08/24/1992 Meeting - Laserfiche WebLink

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Mr. Boles asked about the advantages of the proposed sites to the shuttle e called for in the Central Area Transportation Study. Mr. Viggiano said that if the shuttle were feasible, it did not matter where the station was located. Mr. Miller asked how the district would mitigate the loss of parking at the proposed sites. Mr. Viggiano said that all four sites originally considered would result in the elimination of parking. He described how parking replace- ment might work at the McDonald Theater site in the form of structured parking adjacent to the site. Lew Bowers of the Planning and Development Department added that there were a variety of contingency parking options developed for both preferred sites. Mr. Nicholson asked if LTD would pay for the cost of replacing the lost parking. Mr. Viggiano said that there was an issue of damages for parking that in certain cases is paid in addition to the cost of land. He said that the issue at the McDonald Theater site was not clear due to the location of the property in a parking exempt lone, and there is no code-required parking. However, all the businesses adjacent to the lots at 10th Avenue and Olive Street use the parking there, and would be damaged if the parking is lost. Mr. Viggiano said that the issue had not been resolved. Responding to a question from Mr. Miller, City Manager Mike Gleason said that an appraisal of the property would have to recognize the damage of parking removal to satisfy the Federal government. Mr. Boles said he believed the district should consider a tradeout analysis e between the construction of structured parking contiguous to the station versus a combination of ordinances making it less attractive for employees to park downtown and the proposed shuttle system. He questioned whether the construction of both the transit station and structured parking for more cars reached the community's goals for alternative modes of transportation. Mr. Billings said that the district was willing to work cooperatively with the City in achieving those goals. Mr. Miller asked Ms. Loobey to describe mitigation strategies to respond to neighborhood concerns. Ms. Loobey said the district was awaiting the results of the environmental assessments to determine the necessary mitigation efforts. That assessment will suggest strategies to reduce or eliminate the impacts of the buses on the neighborhood. Ms. Loobey said that the district will investigate the mitigation efforts of other recently constructed transit stations, including those in Tacoma, Bellevue, and Santa Rosa. Additionally, the district will work proactively with the help of surrounding neighborhoods to produce a facility that is an asset for the community. Responding to a question from Ms. Ehrman, Ms. Loobey said that the board was expected to make a decision on the preferred site folloWing the public hearing scheduled for January 20, 1993. Ms. Calvert maintained that the transit station would be a positive addition to downtown. She said that the district's facility in Glenwood illustrated e MINUTES--City Council Work Session August 24, 1992 Page 3 5:30 p.m.