CC Minutes - 07/22/02 Work Session

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commission continued to work on that. She emphasized the importance of good neighborhoods to good transportation, and said she had enjoyed visiting neighborhood organizations since becoming a commissioner to discuss the City's work on nodal development. Ms. Colbath also spoke to the importance of a regional planning strategy and noted her participation in the Region 2050 study. She said it was important for the commission to be able to see the big picture as it made decisions, and she thought that happened. Mayor Torrey called for council comments and questions. Ms. Nathanson thanked Planning Commissioner Art Farley, who was unable to be present at the meeting, for his service on the commission and for the specific comments he made in the memorandum he prepared for the council. Ms. Nathanson referred to page 16 of the meeting packet and requested clarification on the proposed Iow-density residential transitional zone. She noted that the materials indicated the zone would have a minimum density of eight, which was higher than most people considered Iow- density to be. Ms. Childs said that the purpose of the district, which was part of the implementation of the Residential Lands Study, was to create a Iow-density residential zone tailored to the high end of residential density; eight units per acre would be the minimum density allowed, whereas in the current R-1 district there can be 13,500 square foot lots. She said that the idea was to showcase small-lot development within the Iow-density range. Ms. Nathanson expressed appreciation to the commission for identifying a special project, saying she thought the one that had been selected was excellent. Mr. Kelly said that the commission did a good deal of work over the last year and he thanked members. The plan for the year ahead was very ambitious, and he appreciated the commission's willingness to take on the work. He found it sad that there were so many high-priority items that were being postponed because of staff resource issues. He said that was a real consequence of the cut that the Planning Division took over the last two years. Such reductions made the community less livable. He said that when incompatible development is built due to lack of planning, the consequences are long-term in nature. He wanted the council to keep that in mind. Mr. Kelly was pained by the postponement of the South Hills Study update, the alternative code path to make sure that innovative development was not hamstrung, and asset mapping to determine how infill occurred. He asked Ms. Childs if the addition of another planner would help to move those items forward. Ms. Childs confirmed that the issue was both a staff resource issue and a work load issue. Staff capacity had been lost in both sections of the division. She said that the work program already envisioned more public hearings than the commission generally held, and there was only so much work the commission could process in one year. Mr. Coyle added that while there could be more staff, there was only one Planning Commission, and all such work had to go through the commission. He thought to ask the commission to do more would be excessive. Mr. Kelly asked Ms. McMillan if she thought the commission could get started on the South Hills Study by the end of the year if staff support was not an inhibiting factor. Ms. McMillan said that would be the commission's intent. The item was dependent on completion of other work items and funding. She believed it would not be possible to address the other two items cited by Mr. MINUTES--Eugene City Council July 22, 2002 Page 4 Work Session