Agenda Packet 1-23-19 Work Session

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CLEAR & OBJECTIVE HOUSING APPROVAL CRITERIA UPDATE November 13, 2018 DRAFT Preferred Concepts Report: Introduction Page 1 of 59 DRAFT Preferred Concepts Report Introduction As part of the Envision Eugene urban growth boundary (UGB) process, in 2015, the Eugene City Council provided direction on housing by initiating several projects. These included establishing a baseline urban growth boundary (UGB), establishing urban reserves, growth monitoring, and updating the City’s needed housing (clear and objective) regulations for land use applications. Related to the City’s needed housing regulations, the Council specifically directed the following:  Update the City’s procedures and approval criteria for needed housing applications.  Target for City consideration of proposed updates: within 1 year of State acknowledgement of the baseline UGB. Multiple factors contribute to the need to update the City’s existing land use application approval criteria and procedures for housing developments. As identified in 2012, during the Envision Eugene process, Eugene will need to accommodate approximately 15,000 new homes within our urban growth boundary (UGB) by 2032. We will need to find a way to efficiently accommodate this growth while preserving the community’s values regarding livability, public health and safety, and natural resource protection. Oregon Revised Statute (ORS) 197.307(4) requires that housing developers must have access to an approval process that applies only clear and objective standards, conditions, and procedures regulating the development of housing. In addition, ORS 197.307(4)(b) requires that the clear and objective standards, conditions, and procedures may not discourage housing through unreasonable cost or delay. Standards, conditions and procedures regulating the development of housing include development standards such as setbacks and building height that apply to housing at the time of building permit, as well as land use application approval criteria that apply to the development of housing. In 2001‐2002, as part of a major update to the City’s land use code, the Eugene City Council adopted a two‐track system for the following types of land use applications: partitions, subdivisions, site reviews, conditional use permits and planned unit developments. One track allows applicants to use the “clear and objective” approval criteria required by ORS 197.307(4). In Eugene’s land use code, these clear and objective tracks are called the “Needed Housing” tracks. The Needed Housing tracks are intended to offer a predictable path to approval for housing projects that meet the approval criteria contained in the track. The City also offers land use applicants an alternative process that includes discretionary (i.e. subjective) approval criteria. The discretionary track is designed to allow more flexibility in how projects may meet development standards. In Eugene’s land use code, these discretionary tracks are called “General” tracks. Housing applicants are entitled to choose either track. January 23, 2019, Work Session – Item 1