09/11/1989 Meeting - Laserfiche WebLink

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e would require the council to give up valuable residential and commercial lands. He was also not in agreement with the commission's position that the council should try to avoid an expansion of the UGB; he thought that the council could probably get approval for such an expansion from the other jurisdictions. Finally, Mr. Holmer did not feel much would be accomplished by identifying improvements in the Central Eugene Industrial Area. In spite of these reservations, Mr. Holmer was willing to support the commission's proposal in light of the need to take immediate action to replace industrial land. Answering a question from Ms. Ehrman, Gary Chenkin, staff person for the Planning and Development Department, said the City Manager had sent a letter to other jurisdictions soliciting feedback on the council's desire to begin rebuilding its industrial lands inventory. As of yet, no formal responses have been received. City Manager Mike Gleason said there is no reason to expect that this issue will be free of concerns similar to those that have been raised in conjunction with other recent land use decisions. Mr. Bennett said Steve Gordon, Lane Council of Governments, has estimated that Eugene will lose at least 200 acres of industrial land because of wetlands. The Metro Plan was based on the fact that those 200 acres of industrial land are necessary, and this premise has not changed. For this reason, Mr. Bennett said he strongly believes that the council should begin replacing the industrial lands that will be lost. He added that both the commission and council should begin pressing for a major update to the Metro Plan. e Mr. Bennett said he would not favor expanding the UGB at this time and requested that this element of the commission's proposal be eliminated. Ms. Schue, Mr. Boles, and Ms. Ehrman all agreed with him. Ms. Nathanson explained that the commission included this element to keep the proposal flexible. She described a scenario in which a very minor expansion of the UGB might make a parcel more attractive for development. Mr. Bennett said that any expansion of the UGB is serious and he would be unwilling to consider an expansion until the Industrial Lands Study has been completed. Mr. Holmer agreed with Ms. Nathanson that the council should not rule out the possibility of a UGB expansion. Mr. Rutan mentioned several additions to the criteria used to evaluate the relative merits of each location--specifically, parcel size, the nature of the transportation systems, the nature of the general surroundings, and a general idea of acreage costs. Mr. Holmer encouraged the council to delete the element to explore development and redevelopment of the Central Eugene Industrial Area. He did not believe that this element would add anything to the industrial lands inventory and thought that it would divert staff's attention from the goal of quickly securing additional industrially zoned land. Mr. Boles said this element is the only portion of the commission's proposal that he finds attractive. e MINUTES--City Council-- September II, 1989 Page 4 Dinner/Work Session