Hillsboro: Planners Approve Islamic Center’s 10,500-Square-Foot Building with 45 Conditions
- The Hillsboro Planning Commission has approved the Islamic Community Center of Hillsboro's plan for a 10,500-square-foot multi-purpose building on NW Helvetia Road.
- The commission approved the application on Sept.
- The 4.43-acre corner lot is zoned I-S Industrial Sanctuary, where a "major assembly facility," such as a religious institution, needs a conditional use permit.
The Hillsboro Planning Commission has approved the Islamic Community Center of Hillsboro’s plan for a 10,500-square-foot multi-purpose building on NW Helvetia Road. The signed order, No. 8501, appeared on the city’s CivicWeb meeting portal Oct. 27, and it carries 45 conditions, from a right-turn lane on Helvetia to a floor built above the mapped flood level.
The commission approved the application on Sept. 23, according to the signed order. Its findings say the building would add “prayer capacity, restrooms and ablution facilities,” plus indoor recreation and gathering space. The project at 7270 NW Helvetia Road, at NE Pubols Street, also paves the gravel lot and adds a fire-protection water tank and a new septic system.
A larger gathering on an industrial lot
The 4.43-acre corner lot is zoned I-S Industrial Sanctuary, where a “major assembly facility,” such as a religious institution, needs a conditional use permit. The site has operated under that kind of permit since 2016, the order says. Staff Report No. 2 describes the new request as raising the gathering size to 500 people.
A floodplain covers most of the site, and a vegetated corridor along Waible Creek takes up its east side. The strip left for building is about 100 to 140 feet wide, and the findings call the lot “unlikely to serve an industrial user requiring a large parcel.”
The order’s traffic findings rest on a study by Kittelson & Associates, which counted 312 vehicle trips in the Friday peak hour of the first prayer service, with 324 people attending. At 500 people, it projects 481 trips, an increase of 169, or about 54% (our calculation: 169 ÷ 312). The plan shows 99 parking spaces, below the code’s maximum of 500 for that capacity.
What the approval requires
The city and Washington County tied the road frontage work to the expanded use at a 500-person capacity, the findings say; the 2016 approval had left that work to be weighed with a future expansion. Most items below are due before the city issues a construction permit or a certificate of occupancy.
| Condition | Requirement |
|---|---|
| NW Helvetia Road | Half-street improvement with a right-turn lane, as Washington County directs, including a sidewalk and bike lane |
| Future widening | Keep a setback 51 feet from the road’s centerline for a future five-lane Helvetia Road |
| Land for the road | Dedicate right-of-way at the Helvetia–Pubols corner and for the turn lane |
| NE Pubols Street | Street built from Helvetia to the new driveway: 24-foot pavement, sidewalk, street trees, lights, no-parking signs |
| Setbacks | Building at least 38.4 feet, parking 20 feet and water tank 10 feet from the Helvetia property line, instead of the usual 50 feet |
| Flooding | Floor at least one foot above the base flood elevation; FEMA elevation certificates; a stamped “no-rise” analysis |
| Fire water | Tank must supply at least 1,750 gallons a minute for two hours, unless Hillsboro Fire & Rescue sets another figure |
| Sewer | County septic permit, or a public sewer hookup if one arrives first |
| Landscaping | Half native species, an Oregon white oak, 10 native shade trees by the creek, no running bamboo, tank screened |
| Public access | Recorded public access easement from the Pubols sidewalk to a creek viewing platform, with a small sign |
| Wildlife | At least six bird nest boxes along the creek |
Details still to be settled
Some items depend on other agencies. Clean Water Services must approve a revised letter covering the flood cut and fill, the septic drainfield and a proposed community garden. If the agency does not authorize the garden, a condition says it must be dropped from the plans and “shall not be constructed.”
The driveway figures in the order do not match. Condition 10 places the new Pubols Street driveway at least 100 feet east of Helvetia Road, while Condition 38 sets a 150-foot minimum. Staff Report No. 2 put the planned driveway about 117 feet from the intersection, and the documents do not explain the difference.
The site also lacks city utilities: public water and sewer are not available, the order says. Staff Report No. 2 attached a utility plan for the nearby QTS data center campus showing that developer’s planned water and sewer lines, but it says the developer has not submitted permits.
How the case reached a signed order
The posted records trace the case:
- Sept. 2, 2025: first neighborhood meeting
- April 8, 2026: an earlier application for the expansion is withdrawn
- April 28: the current application is submitted
- July 21: second neighborhood meeting
- Aug. 5: hearing notice mailed to owners within 500 feet
- Aug. 26: hearing opens, takes testimony and is continued to Sept. 23
- Sept. 23: hearing reopens, closes and the order is approved
- Oct. 27: signed order appears on the city’s meeting portal
The order says the commission took public testimony at both sessions but does not summarize it, noting only that staff had received no public comment when the staff report was written. It does not record the vote count, and minutes for Aug. 26 and Sept. 23 were not on the city’s meeting portal as of Oct. 28.
The order states it “shall take effect immediately upon approval.” It does not list an appeal deadline or say who would hear an appeal, and the posted case records do not show when a notice of decision was mailed. Residents with questions can cite Case File No. DR-015-26 ICCH to the city’s Community Development Department, which the Planning Commission’s meeting page lists at 503-681-6153.
Top image: Illustrative image, 2022: the Spokane Islamic Center in Spokane Valley, Washington (not the Hillsboro site). Photo: T85cr1ft19m1n, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons (cropped).
