08/25/1975 Meeting - Laserfiche WebLink

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rather it was a question of what was best for the entire metropolitan area over a period of time. He noted the L&B study indicated more commercially zoned land would be needed, also that more retail space would be needed by 1990 and a third regional shopping center by 1980. He didn't think it would be to the best interests of the e metropolitan area to foreclose on Goodpasture Island at this time as a potential site for that center. He noted certain commercial uses classified as "other retail" which normally go into commercial strips and said they could go into the northern end Gf the Island, recognizing they would not be located downtown. He said the recommendation for residential use was not based on the need for residential uses, rather it was based on the fear of further commercial development and its effect on the downtown. He felt there were sufficient areas close to downtown that were suit- able for residential development without taking the Island for that purpose. Mr. Moulton continued that he thought the Plan should be amended to permit both resi- dential and commercial use at the north end of the Island, and that portion along the River designated for residential use. He thought the northern portion of the Island would lend itself admirably to the location ofathird regional center, that there were many alternatives available to control timing of that development. He said that the present Eugene policy might not be the best for the total metropolitan area, that it might not make the best use of present capital improvements, the present road system, and the present mass transit system. Without doubt, he said, more traffic would occur if a third regional center was located at the eastern edge of the metropolitan area than if it was located in the center of the bulk of the population. Mr. Moulton felt planning and zoning provisions should be provided to meet both commercial and residential needs in a way that would permit building now, thereby providing help in the unemployment situation. He urged rejection of the proposed amendment to allow medium-density residential and adoption instead of an amendment that would permit de- velopment of some residential on the northern end of the Island and in those areas that would take advantage of the amenities of the River, thereby supplying both e commercial and residential needs through timing of development for protection of the downtown area. II -A-5 Ellis Jones, 1030 Coburg Road, submitted an overview of actions leading to the L&B commercial study, saying a contract was entered into without bids and without participa- tion by other governmental agencies in the area. He said Goodpasture Island was designated as an opportunity area because of the scarcity in other parts of the metro- politan area of unbroken parcels of land suitable for institutional or regional activi- ties. That scarcity, he said, was even more critical now. He said originally Good- pasture Island was considered not suitable for residential use because of its separation from school facilities. Also, that the amount of land now zoned for residential use represented a 50-year inventory. Mr. Jones said the commercial study dealt only with retail and office space, and it st~ted that neither the downtown area nor Valley River , could handle what would be needed in that type of space, based on projected population figures. So eventually a third regional center would develop. And inventories had shown that in the metropolitan area there was very little land suitable for that type development. Further commercial developmerlt in the Goodpasture Island area, he said, would not hurt downtown Eugene. He said tHat making a "bedroom" area of the Island would result in development and jobs going elsewhere because restricting commercial development there would not stop the need for commercial uses. Duncan Wilson, general manager of Kendall Ford, felt that adoption of the proposed II-A-6 amendment would be a breach of faith. He said they had built on the Island on the premise that the area was designated an opportunity area and no residential development would occur. He thought the amendment would dorce annexation of the area to gain . sewer services for residential use, although his firm had been promised their prop- erty would not be annexed until all city services were available. He said they had gone ahead with their private sewer service installation with that understanding. Curtailing industrial growth, he said, was not in line with the understanding they had with the city and the county when Kendall Ford located on the Island. This pro- posed change, he 5~d, would seriously question the integrity of local govemment. 8/25/75 - 6 470