THE OCEANSIDER: Community Coalition Invites Input on Option to Independently Incorporate Northern Oceanside as “Oceanside Village”

By Jerry Keene, Editor
The Oceansider

The Oceanside Village Initiative Envisions Capturing $500,000 in TLT from Village Short-Term Rentals for Local Roads and Improvements

In the bare-knuckled campaign against incorporation in 2022, leaders from Oceanside’s southern neighborhoods made one thing clear – they wanted out of it. Where central Village sentiment largely favored incorporation’s potential for TLT-funded road repairs, short-term rental regulation and more localized growth management, those in South Oceanside (with a fraction of the STRs) expressed a strong preferred for continued county governance and self-funded roads over adding what they viewed as an unnecessary layer of government and new taxes that would only benefit the Village.

Now a coalition of Village full- and part-time residents, property owners and short-term rental owners is inviting community input on a more modest proposal that they say would respect both viewpoints. They suggest formally incorporating only the northern half of Oceanside as “Oceanside Village,” while accommodating the neighborhoods of South Oceanside in their desire to remain under county governance. Citing degraded roads and disruptive building trends centered in the core Village, the “Oceanside Village Initiative” or “OVI” has researched the legal and financial aspects of this concept and compiled the results for community review and feedback at www.Oceanside-Village.org 

In a nutshell, the website projects how incorporation would enable “Oceanside Village” (like Manzanita and other incorporated cities) to manage its own growth and development while funding road maintenance and other functions by capturing nearly $500,000 a year in locally generated TLT revenue that Village short-term rentals currently send to Tillamook County. In addition to legal and financial information (including hypothetical city budgets), the website also includes a proposed map, a feedback forum, a procedural timeline and a schedule of community Zoom meetings addressed to specific aspects of the incorporation concept. If there is sufficient community support, the vote on creating “Oceanside Village” could take place in the May 2026 Primary Election.

The first OVI community Zoom workshop (“Oceanside Village: The Big Picture”) is set for July 12, 2025, from 10-11 am. The Zoom link can be found on the OVI website – and will be sent out in The Oceansider prior to the meeting.

Bill to Loosen TLT Spending Restrictions Dies in the Oregon Senate

Legislation that would have doubled the percentage of transient lodging revenue (TLT) available to local governments for general services died this week. After passing with a bipartisan majority in the Oregon House of Representatives, House Bill 3962 reached the Oregon Senate last Friday, where it was referred to the Finance and Revenue Committee. On Tuesday, the Committee held a single hearing. After entertaining heated testimony by supporters and opponents, the committee adjourned wihtout scheduling further action on the bill. The legislative session is scheduled to end this weekend, which means the bill is “dead” for now. It may be reintroduced to start the process from scratch, however, when the Legislature meets in special session next summer.

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