Item 3: PH on Ordinance Regarding State Motor Pool Metro Plan Amendment and Zone Change

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'; 1 zoning continues from the site's earlier use and the former industrial nature of this area. Presently, the only other industrially Plan designated or zoned parcels in ~is area are the EWEB property to the east, across High Street,and a small tax lot northwest of the subject site; Other than the EWEB property, the site is surrounded by properties zoned S-F, Fifth Avenue Special Area Zone. . On the north and west side, adjacent properties are In office use. The railroad tracks border the property. on the south, with the 5th Street Market ~ development further to the south. . As indicated above, the' Metro Plan Diagram designates this site HDR/MU IND. The basis for thi& classification i~ unclear but it'is noted that properties north of 4th Ave~ue are within the Whiteaker Plan area and are design~ted for Mixed Use." 'The applicable refinement plan is the Eugene Downtown Plan, adopted April 12, 2004. In adopting that plan, the Eugene Planning Commission and City Council did not alter the Metro Plan I?iagram with the exception of placing the Nodal Development overlay on the Downtown. Plan area and changing the land use designation. of the. Courthouse District from Industrial to Commercial designation. While the Downtown Plan Diagram wa,s not altered to a great . degree, the text of the Downtown Plan was completely revised, including adoption of.a number of specific policies to. guide development in the downtown area. As indicated at page 1 of the Eugene Downtown Plan, the "central them.es" of.the Plan were to reinforce downtown as a strong" regional center and strengthen downtown as a cultural center, a center o('community life. Chapter II of the Plan, 'entitled"Building .a Dowhtown,>> contains a 'section,. "Facilitating Development," where" it is stated: ~... All zoning regulations for downtown sho~ld be reviewed.to look for ways to simplify and expedite development downtown. In " ,addition there are underused and vacant sites throughout downtown. Some of these parcels are not designated for commercial"use in the Metro Plan, or are designated commercial but not commercially zoned. These sites, which include surface parking lots doWntown, need to be redesignate~ or. rezoned ~o a1lo~ for the commercial development envisioned in t~is plan." (p. 13) Consistent with 'this statement, the Plan adopts as a Policy the following: "3. Facilitate dowri.town developmentby.re-designating and 'rezoning underutilized properti~s, such as surface parking lots, to a commercia11and use designation and a commercial zone such as C-2 orC-3." (p. 14) WRITTEN STATEME~T IN SUPPORT OF THE METROPOLITAN PLAN AMENDMENT APPLICATION, STATE OF OREGON MOTOR POOL SITE - 2