CC Minutes - 10/13/03 Mtg - Laserfiche WebLink

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Mr. Hanks stated that the full details of his work were contained in the traffic impact study, excerpted in the council agenda packet. He asserted that it showed, with the land use limitations in place, the proposed project would meet all adopted traffic standards for both the State of Oregon and the City of Eugene. He conveyed the company's belief that the study overstated the traffic impacts the development would generate. He felt that, based on the traffic analysis, the council should vote to approve the ordinance. Larry E. Reed, 722 Country Club Road, director of planning and development for Arlie and Company, discussed the commercial core of the mixed-use development, located northwest of Shadow View Street and Crescent Avenue. He stated that this would be the core of the nodal development and was planned to be a pedestrian-friendly shopping street. He predicted that residents would walk to work and some may only have to walk down a set of stairs, when residing in a building that was a mix of commercial and residential uses. He projected that residents would utilize the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) to attend events in the downtown area. Mr. Reed said approximately 26 acres of the site would remain under the current zoning, R-4/C-1 neighborhood commercial, and out of the 30 acres, approximately 9 acres would be mixed use/commercial. This was made up of 4 acres of neighborhood commercial, the current zoning, which allowed for circa 60,000 square feet of ground floor retail, plus an additional 5 acres of community commercial (the portion to be rezoned) for the purpose of building a grocery store with a footprint of up to 50,000 square feet. He explained that the above the street level retail would be a mix of offices, estimated to be approximately 12,000 feet, as well as approximately 150 residential apartment lofts. Richard Barbis, 722 Country Club Road, architect for the high-density residential area, indicated the location of the R-4 zone to the north of the commercial area on the map. He explained that one goal of the design was to balance the appropriate housing density so the nodal development would be sensitive to and compatible with the surrounding residential neighborhoods to the east and to the west as well as creating adequate density to support the retail/commercial center. He said the dwelling unit mix was designed to create purposeful density and promote a neighborhood of a broad range of people. He added that the mix would include both zero lot line townhomes and luxury rowhouses, standard apartments and upscale condominiums with retail below overlooking the park/promenade. He shared drawings of the various facades with those present. He asserted that the residential buildings had been specifically designed to respond to the streets and the pedestrian life and the public rights-of-way to create a sense of place. He discussed the design criteria, including clear and identifiable main entrances from the street, outdoor balconies that overhang streets, exterior facade articulation overhanging building footprints, varied facade and roof designs to create interest and scale, and a sensitivity to building heights and massing in order to transition to the adjacent neighborhoods. Kate McGee, 1466 Washington Street, landscape architect for the design team, stated that the open space was provided in a manner much like one would find in a small town. She commented that the lawn was to appear to be surrounded by the buildings, in order to create a commons. She felt the key feature of this to be a linear court that connected the shopping core up to a city park projected to be developed to the north of the site. She said the private open space was diverse, noting that the amount of private open space declined as the amount of public open space increased. She described the landscape buffers that would separate the development from neighbors to the east and to the west. She noted the buffers, as well as landscaping around parking lots, served a dual purpose, as the permeable soils would allow for the drainage of parking MINUTES--Eugene City Council October 13, 2003 Page 8 Regular Meeting