Welcome to Benton County Community Development

The primary objective of the Community Development Department is to ensure that the Building and Land Use Laws of the State of Oregon and Benton County are followed in a fair and equitable manner. A one-stop permit service coordinates the issuance of permits for other county departments involved in development activities.

Board of Commissioners Hearing April 20, Noon - The Planning Commission has recommended adoption of revisions to the floodplain chapter of the county Development Code; and the Benton County Board of Commissioners has continued its January 19th hearing to April 20th, at noon in the basement of the Benton Plaza Building.

You may view the Staff Report on this subject here, and comments submitted by the public here. To view the notice sent to property owners in the floodplain, click here. To view the full text of the proposed revisions to the Floodplain Management chapter of Development Code, Chapter 83, click here. To view a version of this chapter showing the tracked changes, click here. To view the changes proposed to Chapter 51, Development Code Administration, click here.

Updated Preliminary Flood Maps Available - Recently released from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the revised Federal Insurance Rate Maps maps can be viewed here. (note, these are very large files -- 50-60MB each). For more information regarding the new maps, click here.

If you are looking at a map for property along the Willamette River please read this first:
The following panels will be re-issued by FEMA in the near future to reflect the correct boundary between Benton and Linn Counties: 0085G, 0094G, 0095G, 0105G, 0111G, 0112G, 0113G, 0114G, 0184G, 0192G, 0203G, 0205G, 0210G, 0215G, 0330G, 0340G, 0480G, and 0490G.

Building Permits in Butterfly Habitat - Building and other permits within the potential habitat for a federally protected butterfly now require approval from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. Revised mapping based on habitat surveys in the spring of 2009 has resulted in the removal of about 350 tax lots and the addition of a few tax lots. All affected property owners were mailed a letter in early September, informing them of their property's status. Read more...

The September 2009 Revised Draft of the Benton County's Prairie Species Habitat Conservation Plan received comments through October 7, 2009. All comments are posted on the HCP website. Click here to view the Draft, the comments, and for more information.

Community Wildfire Protection Plan (CWPP) – Please visit the CWPP web site for important information on protecting your home from wildfire. For more information on CWPPs, visit the Oregon Department of Forestry.

Measure 49 - For information, view the DLCD M49 Web site.