Agenda Packet 1-29-20 Work Session

Home Browse Search

January 27, 2020, Work Session – Item 1 EUGENE CITY COUNCIL AGENDA ITEM SUMMARY Work Session: Urban Reserves Planning Meeting Date: January 29, 2020 Agenda Item Number: 1 Department: Planning and Development Staff Contact: Rebecca Gershow www.eugene-or.gov Telephone Number: 541-682-8816 ISSUE STATEMENT Staff will provide the Eugene City Council with an update on the Urban Reserves planning work to date. No action is requested at this work session; however, feedback is invited. Staff will return this spring with an Urban Reserves proposal for council consideration. BACKGROUND Planning for growth in line with local values is a long-standing tradition in Eugene and Lane County. Urban Reserves are a special designation, allowed by state law, for lands outside the urban growth boundary that can be considered a first priority if and when a city needs to expand for a growing population. The goal of Urban Reserves planning is to identify an appropriate supply of land for possible expansion, so we are prepared to grow in a way that meets our community’s needs and values. Land designated as Urban Reserves will remain rural and cannot be urbanized unless it is brought into the city’s UGB through a formal process. The urban reserves process reflects deep collaboration among the City, County, community and service providers. Based on the guidance provided by the pillars of Envision Eugene, it advances our community vision beyond 2032 and identifies land for housing, parks, schools and jobs needed for Eugene’s growing population in the long-term future—potentially out to 2062. On July 20, 2015, as part of the City Council’s direction on the UGB, staff was directed to begin Urban Reserves planning, with a target to bring a proposal for City and County consideration within two years of UGB acknowledgement. As the UGB was acknowledged by the state in January 2018, staff worked to bring forward an Urban Reserves proposal for City Council and Board of Commissioners consideration by this month (January 2020). However, due to the work involved in the necessary analysis, and the need to involve property owners, the public, and the project’s Technical Advisory Committee in review cycles of complex information, the project is a few months behind target. The Project Timeline (Attachment A) has been updated, and staff are working with the goal of bringing a proposal to decision-makers for consideration this spring. If directed to begin the formal adoption process, staff will prepare a complete adoption package with the goal of scheduling formal public hearings in winter 2021.