CC Minutes - 12/01/03 WS - Laserfiche WebLink

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Ms. Bettman commended the comprehensive format of the CATS document. She highlighted several issues, including the impact of bicycle routes and street conversions on on-street parking. She cited the estimated costs of parking spaces and noted that Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) on l0th Avenue would result in the loss of 22 parking spaces, with a potential cost of $500,000 to replace those spaces. She urged the council to be cognizant of both the replacement cost of parking and the adverse impact on adjacent uses on the street, especially small businesses. She noted that several streets were recommended as future BRT routes and commented that BRT was basically a commuter system designed to bring employees to their job sites or provide access to other transportation infrastructure, rather circulate in a downtown area. She said that the terms %huttle" and ~BRT" were used interchangeably in the document, but had very different purposes and a shuttle was intended as a local circulating route. She said that BRT was not appropriate for residential streets. Mr. Kelly thanked the Planning Commission for its thorough review and recommendations, which he supported. He asked for clarification of proposed Policy #8 on page 13, relating to vehicle parking. He said he recognized that the provision of adequate parking needed to balance a number of needs, but said there was no mention of transit, pedestrian, and carpooling factors that could lower the demand for parking. He commended the thoroughness of the parking analysis and asked that those additional factors be acknowl- edged. He also asked that consideration of public/private partnerships inthe development of future parking structures, including incentives for private sector development of a structure as part of a larger mixed-use project, be reflected in the implementation strategies. He observed that the Downtown Plan called for a trolley study and asked that the study also be included in CATS as an implementation strategy. Mr. Meisner thanked staff for completing a challenging project. He emphasized the importance of acknowledging the need for objective and specific goals while recognizing the fluidity of change, citing as an example the changing traffic patterns that resulted from relocation of the library. He observed that the piecemeal transition of downtown streets from one-way to two-way operation had actually slowed traffic. He expressed hope that the City could work with the State to explore ways to slow traffic on 6th and 7th avenues and better integrate them into downtown. He agreed that the subject of a trolley should be more actively stated and asked for information on the actual projected costs of converting to free parking, which would include the cost of enforcement of limitations. Ms. Nathanson addressed the proposed conversion of Willamette Street between 13th and 20th avenues. She said that pedestrian access across the south end of Willamette Street, where operations were two-way, was extremely difficult and the City had struggled to find ways to improve that condition. She commented that it would be very difficult with existing congestion and healthy commercial enterprises along the street to accommodate additional modes of transportation, such as BRT. She cautioned that the long-term impact of conversion of the proposed section of Willamette Street to two-way operation be considered in order to avoid a similar problem. Mr. Henry responded that the CATS did recognize that a larger and more comprehensive study of Willamette Street that would encompass Oak Street, Pearl Street, and Amazon Parkway was necessary and recommended that such a study be undertaken. He said there was a need to study several aspects of the arterial system and develop solutions that would relieve traffic cutting through neighborhoods. Mr. Pap6 commented that a consideration of angled parking downtown should be included in CATS, as well as consideration of a multi-modal transportation center. Mr. Henry replied that angled parking was included in Strategy 8.2 on page 41 of the document, but was somewhat problematic because of the right-of-way MINUTES--Eugene City Council December 1, 2003 Page 7 Work Session