CC Minutes - 04/14/08 City Council Meeting

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6. ACTION: Minimum Sidewalk Width Design Standard for the Crest Drive Area Councilor Pryor, seconded by Councilor Bettman, moved to adopt Resolution 4927 con- cerning sidewalk widths in the Crest Drive area, and amending the City’s design standards and guidelines for Eugene streets, sidewalks, bikeways and access ways, the Eugene Arte- rial & Collector Street Plan, and the Eugene Local Street Plan. Mr. Schoening explained that this item was in line with a recommendation to pursue an amendment to the design standards for minimum sidewalk width, reducing it from five feet to four feet. He stated that the staff recommendation was to keep the minimum width at five feet as it was considered a comfortable width for two pedestrians to walk side by side. Councilor Bettman indicated she would support the motion. She said it would not mandate four foot sidewalks in the area; it would leave discretion to reduce width in places that would need it. She asserted th that sidewalks were not an adequate width in a project on 29 Avenue and asked how that had been allowed. Mr. Schoening replied that he was not familiar with that project. Councilor Zelenka asked why the Crest Drive Neighbors had wanted four foot sidewalk widths if the existing codes allowed for a five foot sidewalk to be narrower where it was necessary. Mr. Schoening responded that there was not a width to the sidewalk in the recommended design at present. He believed that the community wanted a design standard that was less than five feet because an exception to the current code could only be granted based on one of the five exception criteria: topography, historic resources, wetlands, trees, and inadequate right-of-way. Councilor Zelenka surmised that the sidewalk would double as a bicycle path. Mr. Schoening affirmed that it could. Councilor Zelenka thought a four foot wide sidewalk would make it difficult for a bicycle to pass a pedestrian. Mr. Schoening agreed, adding that it would be difficult on a five foot wide sidewalk as well. Roll call vote; the motion passed, 5:2; councilors Zelenka and Solomon voting in opposi- tion. Councilor Taylor, seconded by Councilor Bettman, moved to direct the City Manager to (1) request the Planning Commission to approve classifying Friendly Street, Crest Drive and Storey Boulevard as local streets, and (2) if the Planning Commission approves that classi- fication, to bring to the council an ordinance adopting that classification. Councilor Zelenka offered a friendly amendment to substitute the word ‘investigate’ for the word ‘approve.’ The maker and the second accepted the friendly amendment. Roll call vote; the motion passed unanimously, as amended, 7:0. Councilor Bettman, seconded by Councilor Taylor, moved to take from the table Consent Calendar Item E. Roll call vote; the motion passed unanimously, 7:0. Roll call vote; the motion to approve Consent Calendar Item E, adoption of Resolution 4937 authorizing interim and long term financing for Local improvement Projects and ter- minating the authority under Resolution No. 4807, passed unanimously, 7:0. MINUTES—Eugene City Council April 14, 2008 Page 15 Regular Meeting