01-22-18 City Council Agenda Packet

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ane County is unique when it comes to the outdoors. Within a matter of hours, one can travel from the high Cascades to the Oregon Coast, easily taking advantage of abundant urban, rural, and wilderness experiences. The United Front partners recognize the value of these experiences for our residents and visitors, and seek to enhance access to outdoor recreation opportunities and protect natural resources. This is especially true as we evolve the planning for the 2021 IAAF World Track and Field Championships. Our global visitors will seek easy access to the Willamette and McKenzie Rivers, and will be inspired to recreate during their visit to Lane County and Oregon. Ongoing local efforts to develop and improve recreation infrastructure are focused on walking, hiking, running, bicycling, water sports, and overall pedestrian safety. Overall public health, safety, wellness and recreation is also dependent on the health and safety of our forestland, and each of these elements was dramatically impacted by the 2017 wildfires and resulting smoke. Most of the fires originated on public lands, and thus it is imperative that the US Forest Service and the Bureau of Land Management are given adequate resources and policy direction to improve forest health. Our River Districts vision depends on local collaboration, and we seek to leverage federal investments and bolster local resources for infrastructure improvements necessary for 2021. Additionally, the United Front partnership continues to collaborate on implementing long-term program investments included within Eugene's Rivers to Ridges plan and the Willamette Confluence Preserve, and to further build out Willamalane's recreational trails and Thurston Hills Natural Area. These projects provide opportunities to support a healthy population while enhancing aquatic and wildlife habitats. While we are keeping an eye on the reauthorization of the National Flood Insurance Program, which needs to be modernized, one specific area we are concerned with is striking a balance between mitigating flood risk in Oregon and economic recovery. An on-going Endangered Species Act consultation of the National Flood Insurance Program in Oregon, has added significant agency process and financial uncertainty to public and private interests attempting to invest in areas associated with flood plains. Additionally, FEMA issued a National Flood Insurance Program Nationwide Programmatic Environmental Impact Statement in November 2017 for rule changes that will attempt to address Endangered Species Act compliance for the National Flood Insurance Program nationally, rather than the current state - by -state approach. While we support the concept of a nationwide approach, the Preferred Alternative in this Environmental Impact Statement further places the burden for ensuring compliance with the Endangered Species Act on the local jurisdiction issuing a floodplain development permit, regardless of that jurisdiction's capability or expertise to make such determinations. Local jurisdictions need acknowledgement that differing locations, waterways, and community needs are not best served by a one size fits all regulatory scheme as developed by the Oregon consultation, or by shifting the compliance burden to local jurisdictions.