09/10/1986 Meeting - Laserfiche WebLink

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approved by the City Council but had been accepted by the Downtown Commission in Apri 1 . Ms. Stewart said the design concept had been adopted by the e Downtown Commission and had been presented to the counci 1 . Ms. Ehrman requested that the council receive copies of the study. Mr. McKinley said any introduction of traffic flow into the mall would affect the central plaza. He distributed information packets, which included a summary of process, a timeline, objectives, and drawings of the five options. He said a public information session held on August 28 had attracted about 140 people and had gathered about 45 written comments. He reviewed presentations being made to community groups and organizations. Mr. McKinley said the Eugene Downtown Public Spaces Study contained four recommendations that influenced the Willamette Street project. Those recommendations included the mall design concept; introduction of limited two-way traffic with pedestrian features, such as textured paving and benches, on Willamette Street; and maintaining the Broadway-Willamette central plaza as a major public open space. Mr. McKinley reviewed the five design options: 1) keeping the status quo; 2) a pedestrian streetscape similar to the scheduled redesign of Broadway and with no traffic; 3) access for limited traffic or a special shuttle, which Mr. Gleason noted could provide linkages to other shopping centers and special events; 4) two-way traffic with textured paving, non-traditional curbs, and drop-off bays; and 5) a full street like that between 10th and 11th, with alternating parking bays and regular curbs. Ms. Ehrman suggested contacting the "Gut" Task Force for comments. e Ms. Wooten asked whether merchants favored increased parking access along the street. Mr. McKinley said several merchants had expressed that interest. Ms. Ehrman asked about the safety of curbs and traffic. Mr. McKinley said options would be presented to the Commission on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, and staff also would work with the Public Works Department. Ms. Ehrman expressed concern about children darting into traffic and suggested a speed limit of perhaps 5 m.p.h. Mr. Miller asked how traffic on Willamette would connect to Broadway. Mr. McKinley said the connection had not been discussed in detail but would result in major impacts on the central plaza. Mr. Rutan noted that a decision about design would require objectives. Mr. Reinhard said objectives that had been deve loped by the task team were described on page 3. Mr. Reinhard said the maximum number of on-street parking spaces possible was about 17 or 18 per block, or 35 to 40 spaces along Willamette Street. Mr. Gleason said installing high-turnover parking broadened the types of retail businesses that would succeed. He cited examples of quick-service print ShDPS and drug stores. e MINUTES--Eugene City Council September 10, 1986 Page 4