Item B: River Road/Santa Clara Annexation Policy

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therefore who the appropriate responder is for a particular call. Calls referring to the right-of-way are more difficult and therefore it is important that logical street segments or the entirety of streets are inside the city to make it easier to dispatch the correct units. The transfer of fire hydrants to the City as the result of the annexation and subsequent withdrawal from the water districts also enables a more efficient means of maintaining and testing the hydrants. What street segments are requested for annexation? In reviewing an annexation application, the City considers several factors, including the following to determine whether to request the addition of street segments: 1. Is the street segment appropriate and logical? 2. Does the street segment abut the subject site? To facilitate development of a site, streets providing immediate access to site should be annexed. On corner lots both streets are considered. 3. Does the street segment have logical ends, preferably street intersections? Typically the segment should be at least one block long. 4. Does the annexation help police or fire and emergency medical response or avoid confusion? 5. Would the street segment improve access to the development site along a logical network of city streets? Are City standards for speed, access, or connectivity preferred near the development site? If so, annexation of an entire street length will be considered. 6. Look for opportunities to provide logical service connections between separate incorporated areas (e.g., an unincorporated street should not be the only separation between two city areas). Street segments that will provide improved access and more seamless services to more than one incorporated area would be recommended. Summary While recognizing that current annexation procedures in River Road and Santa Clara create certain short- term issues, the overall process is logical if viewed from the premise that the River Road and Santa Clara areas will eventually annex entirely to the City, as planned in the Metro Plan. The Metro Plan generally anticipates that all lands within the Urban Growth Boundary will eventually be served by the City, that the City will eventually provide all services. Annexation of appropriate and logical public street segments helps knit together the “Swiss cheese” effect of long-term individual noncontiguous annexations into a recognizable pattern that helps provide better, more consistent transportation, utilities, and emergency services for growing urban areas. Please contact me at 682-5524 or via e-mail (james.r.carlson@ci.eugene.or.us) if you have questions or need additional information.