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<br />ATTACHMENT G <br /> <br />c <br /> <br />Public Works <br />Parks and Open Space Division <br /> <br />MEMORANDUM <br /> <br />City of Eugene <br />1820 Roosevelt Boulevard <br />Eugene, Oregon 97402 <br />(541 ) 682-4800 <br />(541 ) 682-4882 FAX <br />INININ. ci. eugene. or. us/parks <br /> <br />Date: <br /> <br />November 30,2005 <br /> <br />To: <br /> <br />Mayor and City Council <br /> <br />From: <br /> <br />Johnny Medlin, Parks and Open Space Director <br /> <br />Subject: <br /> <br />Santa Clara Parks Update <br /> <br />In response to a request for information from Councilor Pape regarding the status of parks acquisitions in <br />the Santa Clara area, we've prepared the following summary of recent planning activity and some <br />perspective on current issues. The two-part question asked about progress on property acquisition for <br />Santa Clara Community Park, and requested information regarding the possible use of Santa Clara School <br />property for a neighborhood park. <br /> <br />SANTA CLARA COMMUNITY PARK - ACQUISITION UPDATE <br />Since the decision to discontinue consideration of the McDougal proposal, staffhave made significant <br />progress on changing course and reviewing alternative sites. In addition, staffhave met multiple times <br />with representatives of the community group Santa Clara Citizens for Sensible Parks and Open Space <br />(SCCSPOS) to discuss issue4s around community park selection. <br /> <br />The park selection criteria used to identify the McDougal site was developed in 2000 and strongly <br />encouraged a large site under a single ownership. Responding to direction given by City Council, the site <br />selection criteria has been revised to include looking at smaller sites and sites composed of multiple <br />properties. Additional criteria were added to reflect community input, and a revised scoring system was <br />developed to help rank top candidates on the basis of site suitability for park purposes. <br /> <br />Along with a number of sites specifically proposed by SCCSPOS, staff conducted a fresh analysis of <br />suitable properties in the Santa Clara area using the revised criteria, including options around Madison <br />Middle School. A total of 13 sites were scored against the criteria. Staff then met again with the <br />SCCSPOS group to review the new criteria, the results of this analysis, and discuss next steps. <br /> <br />A letter expressing the City's potential interest in purchasing land for a community park was sent to the <br />owners of the 11 top-ranking properties. We have had no responses yet to these inquiries. Staff will <br />follow up through verbal contact with these property owners to determine each owner's willingness to <br />discuss a sale. Staff will include the result of these discussions in the overall analysis to arrive at a new <br />set of options to acquire a community park site in Santa Clara. <br /> <br />SANTA CLARA SCHOOL - NEIGHBORHOOD PARK SERVICE <br />Thanks to a series of acquisitions funded by the 1998 Parks and Open Space bond, we've made <br />significant gains in closing the service gap for neighborhood parks in the Santa Clara area. Since 1999, a <br />total of five (5) neighborhood park sites have been purchased in Santa Clara, including Filbert Meadows <br />