If you're weighing Ridgefield against other Clark County cities, the farmland and new subdivisions at the edge of town can make it look like a place that's running out of room. The city's own numbers say otherwise. Under the draft Envision Ridgefield 2045 plan, land for homes priced for households above 80 percent of area median income has a large surplus. The tight constraint is housing for households below that line, where the plan has only 81 units of spare capacity.
That one gap explains most of what the plan does. It's the reason denser, mixed-income housing is aimed at a short list of named places and not spread across the city. It also tells a buyer which parts of Ridgefield are planned to change between now and 2045 and which are meant to stay close to how they look today.
Two Housing Numbers, Only One of Them Tight
The city's October 14 news release explains that Washington's Growth Management Act requires the update and that Ridgefield is legally required to accommodate a set amount of growth over the next 20 years. For 2023 to 2045, the county allocated Ridgefield 10,656 more residents and 9,375 jobs. The draft plan's capacity table compares that assigned growth with what the city's land, including its urban growth area, can actually hold:
| Category | Allocated by 2045 | Planned capacity | Spare room |
|---|---|---|---|
| Homes for households below 80% of area median income | 4,136 | 4,217 | 81 |
| Homes for households above 80% of area median income | 1,679 | 2,977 | 1,298 |
| Jobs needing employment land | 8,175 | 8,363 | 188 |
The plan uses Clark County's 2023 area median income of $114,400 as its benchmark. Most of the allocation sits below that 80 percent line. It breaks down as 413 permanent supportive housing units and 744 other units for extremely low-income households, 1,167 very low-income units, and 1,812 low-income units. Above the line are 698 units for households at 80 to 100 percent of median income, 515 at 100 to 120 percent, and 466 above 120 percent.
For buyers, this means the plan already has room for nearly 1,300 more market-rate homes than the county asked for. The draft says plainly that overall capacity can be met under current zoning assumptions, and that new housing policies and land-use changes are needed to make sure there is enough housing for households at or below 80 percent of median income.
Why That Gap Points to Specific Places
Ridgefield's recent building has followed one pattern. The draft describes almost all residential development as single-family detached or attached homes at 4 to 8 units per net acre. It has clustered along Pioneer Street between downtown and the I-5 Junction, along North Royle Road and North 35th Avenue, and along South Hillhurst Road, with newer subdivisions spreading east of I-5.
That pattern alone won't produce housing for lower-income households, so the plan brings in a different tool. The Residential Mixed Use Overlay, which the city abbreviates RMUO, allows "a mix of housing types at a variety of income levels, up to 24 dwelling units per acre." According to the draft, the overlay will be used to implement "targeted mixed-use hubs across the city." That's about three times the density of the typical recent subdivision, and it's meant for particular hubs, not every parcel.
City Manager Steve Stewart described the approach to the Clark County Planning Commission this summer, as reported by Clark County Today: "It does so by targeting our density in the places where it makes sense, using mixed use hubs that have the services and amenities to support them primarily within our existing boundaries."
The Hubs, From the Freeway Toward Downtown
Read together, the draft plan and the Clark County adoption ordinance name the places where most of Ridgefield's change is meant to happen.
- Ridgefield Junction. About 1,400 acres around the I-5/Pioneer Street interchange. The draft makes it the city's primary employment, commercial and institutional center. Warehousing and distribution sit on its east side, commercial and personal-service businesses on its west side, and a Costco with nearby retail has recently been built. The city is already shaping what goes in here. In August the City Council adopted a temporary moratorium on new gas-station applications after counting seven existing or under-construction fuel stations within 1.5 miles of the Junction.
- Royle and Pioneer Crossing Subarea. More than 730 acres between downtown and the interchange, planned as a walkable district with housing, neighborhood businesses, offices, parks and open space. One early example came in July 2025, when the city added the overlay to the 6.27-acre RMD-16 portion of the Legacy Trails III parcel in this area.
- Northern UGA Expansion. Clark County approved expanding Ridgefield's urban growth area to the north "for additional employment and housing capacity." The city intends Employment zoning with the residential overlay on top, and the draft includes a proposed new I-5 overcrossing with a multimodal trail.
- Maul UGA Expansion. A southwest parcel the county approved for housing. The ordinance describes it as under 20 acres and completely surrounded by City of Ridgefield land. The city intends to zone it RMD-16 with the overlay.
- Downtown. The draft treats the historic downtown as Ridgefield's civic and cultural center, tied to the waterfront and marina. More detailed direction for downtown's look and feel will come from a separate Downtown Subarea Plan. In a midyear interview with Clark County Today, Mayor Matt Cole said the city planned to seek consultants for that update.
Before adoption, Clark County Today put Ridgefield's proposed expansion at about 239 acres. For both expansion areas, the zoning map notes say actual zoning will be decided at annexation. Until then, county zoning applies.
Where the Plan Keeps the Lower-Density Pattern
The same hub strategy that concentrates density also protects other areas. According to Clark County Today, Stewart said the targeted expansions could provide opportunities for affordable housing and jobs while limiting pressure on existing neighborhoods. Two subareas on the draft map show what that looks like.
Gee Creek Plateau covers about 355 acres inside the urban growth area. The draft aims to keep its rural heritage, agriculture, open space and larger-lot patterns while still allowing future residential growth. The plan's low-density designation runs 4 to 8 units per acre, with a minimum of 3 units per acre on the plateau.
Carty Road covers about 266 acres. Its plan balances growth with rural and agricultural character, wildlife habitat and open space, around Gee Creek, wetlands and steep slopes.
Existing low-density neighborhoods aren't frozen. The draft proposes allowing two accessory dwelling units on a residential lot. That still adds homes one lot at a time, which is a very different pace from a 24-unit-per-acre hub.
So two homes the same distance from downtown can face very different futures. A house off South Hillhurst Road is in a corridor the plan describes as established single-family growth. A house near Royle and Pioneer sits inside a planned walkable mixed-use district. A lot at the edge of Gee Creek Plateau sits in a subarea written around larger lots and open space. Those differences show up on the draft land-use map, not in recent sales figures.
The Dates Still on the Calendar
The county side is mostly settled. Clark County adopted its comprehensive plan update, Ordinance 2026-10-01, on October 13, 2026, with both Ridgefield expansions approved. The city's plan is still a draft, and these steps remain:
- Thursday, November 12. Open house for the I-5 South Connector study, which Ridgefield and Clark County are still planning. The roughly $268,758 in federal and state money received in 2025 covers planning only, and more funding is needed before design or construction.
- Thursday, November 19, 6:30 p.m. City Council public hearing on Envision Ridgefield 2045 in the Columbia Assembly Room, Ridgefield Administrative and Civic Center, 510 Pioneer Street.
- Thursday, December 3, 6:30 p.m. City Council consideration of adoption, same room.
- Through about December 19. The county's Notice of Adoption went out October 20 and opened a 60-day window for appeals to the state Growth Management Hearings Board, according to the county's 2025 update page.
You can read the full draft at Ridgefield Roundtable and the city's summary in its October 14 news release.
A Few Common Questions
Does the plan rezone my property today? For the expansion areas, the zoning map notes say the designations are intended and that actual zoning is set at annexation. The citywide plan itself is still up for council adoption on December 3. This post is general information, not legal or land-use advice. To confirm what applies to a specific parcel, check with the City of Ridgefield's planning staff or a land-use attorney.
Is Ridgefield running short of land for new market-rate homes? Not by the draft's own math. It shows planned capacity of 2,977 homes for households above 80 percent of median income against an allocation of 1,679.
Will new jobs land closer to Ridgefield? That's the plan's intent. It assigns 8,175 jobs to employment land with 188 jobs of spare capacity, and it makes Ridgefield Junction and the northern expansion the main employment areas.
If you're comparing a home near Royle and Pioneer with one near Gee Creek Plateau, I'm happy to pull up the draft land-use map with you and walk through what's planned around each address before you write an offer. And if you already own in Ridgefield and want to see how your home is valued today, before any of these hubs fill in, Joy Johnson can help. Get your instant home valuation.
