Item 5: Parks and Open Space in River Road/Santa Clara

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The park selection criteria used to identify the McDougal site was developed in 2000 and strongly encouraged a large site under a single ownership. Responding to direction given by City Council, the site selection criteria has been revised to include looking at smaller sites and sites composed of multiple properties. Additional criteria were added to reflect community input, and a revised scoring system was developed to help rank top candidates on the basis of site suitability for park purposes. Along with a number of sites specifically proposed by SCCSPOS, staff conducted a fresh analysis of suitable properties in the Santa Clara area using the revised criteria, including options around Madison Middle School. A total of 13 sites were scored against the criteria. Staff then met again with the SCCSPOS group to review the new criteria, the results of this analysis, and discuss next steps. A letter expressing the City's potential interest in purchasing land for a community park was sent to the owners of the 11 top-ranking properties. Staff have followed up verbally with 9 property owners, whereby 5 declined outright and 4 suggested a possible future interest in selling depending on timing and the amount being offered. Phone contact information was unavailable for two property owners. A second letter requesting a phone conversation was sent to the two owners, however no reply has been received. Of the four remaining candidate properties, two are located inside the UGB, and two outside. Inside the UGB, the estimated cost for the two candidate properties is $2 million for a 14-acre site and $2.5 million for a 17-acre site. Outside the UGB, the estimated cost for a 22-acre site and a 42-acre site is at least $1 million each. One challenge currently facing property purchase outside the UGB is that owners are indicating low interest in selling for current, appraised value given the speculative value of properties adjacent to the UGB. Periodic follow-up with candidate property owners will continue toward the goal of securing a site as soon as possible. Future Plans for River Road/ Santa Clara Parks, Recreation, and Open Space In addition to the acquisition of a community park to serve Santa Clara, a number of other projects are included in the draft PROS Project and Priority Plan (See Attachment B). Priority one improvements, scheduled for the next five years include: · Acquisition of an additional 3 neighborhood park sites · Acquisition of stormwater corridors that link with parks · Acquisition of Willamette River frontage · Development of 2 neighborhood park sites Projects outside of the first five year planning window include: community park development, additional neighborhood park development, developing a Willamette River boat launch, developing a community/aquatic center, access improvements, and more. RELATED CITY POLICIES The PROS Comprehensive Plan was adopted by Council on February 13, 2006. The draft PROS Project and Priority Plan is scheduled for action on May 8, 2006. A bond measure for Parks, Recreation, and Open Space is currently under deliberation by Council.