Tigard Park System Master Plan - City of Tigard

TIGARD PARK SYSTEM MASTER PLAN UPDATEcurrent economic conditions may change this pattern of development andemployment, but may only require the City to be innovative in itsapproach to growth.DEMOGRAHICSThe 2007 official population for Tigard was 46,715 with the highestpercentages of residents in the 25 to 34 and 35 to 44 age groups. Familiesaccount for two-thirds of Tigard households, with one third havingchildren under 18.Tigard’s income distribution indicates that it is predominantly a middleclass city, with concentrations in the middle range of the incomespectrum. With 70% of the workforce working outside of Tigard, and ahigher number of jobs than employable workers, thousands of workerscommute to Tigard for employment.The majority of Tigard residents identify themselves as white (85.4%).Asians make up about 6% of the population in the City of Tigard andapproximately 9% of Tigard citizens identify themselves as Hispanic orLatino, slightly lower than the rest of Washington County.The majority of new development has occurred in the City’s westquadrant in previously undeveloped areas. Residential development alsooccurred on larger vacant parcels in the southern quadrant. Infilldevelopment has occurred throughout the City.Tigard maintains a buildable lands inventory (BLI) that tracks availableresidential land. The 2006 BLI identified approximately 600 acres ofundeveloped land available for development. These 600 acres of buildableland represent approximately 8% of the nearly 7,500 acres of land withinTigard’s city limits.DOWNTOWNDowntown Tigard is designated as a Station Community in the 2040Regional Growth Concept, indicating its location along the WestsideCommuter Rail corridor. This designation indicates the intention toincrease density and promote the downtown as an important center of thecommunity. This intention is also emphasized in the recently completedDowntown Improvement Plan. The downtown plan lays out a blueprintfor a vital, vibrant, mixed-use and pedestrian-friendly environment.Included in the features that will make Tigard’s downtown unique are acentral plaza to increase community identity and the integration of2 CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION