Item 2A: Approval of City Council Minutes

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Councilor Ortiz, seconded by Councilor Pryor, moved that the City Council adopt Council Bill 4943, an ordinance amending the Metro Plan and Willakenzie Area Plan. Councilor Bettman expressed concern that redesignating the area would create the opportunity for commercial development, potentially including a strip mall. She asked what kind of influence the Planned Unit Development (PUD) process had and whether or not the council had any influence at this point in order to ensure that any commercial development would be small-scale. City Manager Taylor asked Associate Planner for the Planning and Development, Lydia McKinney, to speak to the question. Ms. McKinney explained that the base zone would be medium density residential use and commercial use would only be permitted in the zone district through a PUD process and would be required to be at the level at which it would serve the residents of the PUD. She said there was also a policy in the Willakenzie Area Refinement Plan that supported the limitation of commercial uses. She related that staff had sought advice from legal counsel as to how commercial uses could be further limited should the ordinance be approved because of the Willakenzie Area Plan policy that supported having some commercial use. In response to a question from Councilor Bettman, Ms. McKinney stated that the area in question was comprised of seven acres. Councilor Bettman asked what the absolute minimum of dwelling units per acre there would be. Ms. McKinney responded that the minimum would be approximately 67 residential units. Councilor Bettman asked what commercial development would be permitted with the ordinance. Ms. McKinney replied that she could only think of one residential PUD that allowed commercial development, Valley River Village. She explained that it had gone through the PUD process and had commercial development that included a bagel shop and a gas station. She noted that the PUD included well over 1,000 dwelling units. Councilor Bettman asked if a gas station would be a permitted use if the council approved of the ordinance. Ms. McKinney replied that she did not believe this was a permitted use within the Willakenzie Area Refinement Plan. She also did not think the argument could be made that a gas station would be a neighborhood commercial use that would serve less than 200 residents. In response to a follow-up question from Councilor Bettman, Ms. McKinney clarified that the minimum residential density would be calculated on the entire acreage and would not be calculated after commercial use was factored in. Councilor Solomon asked on behalf of a constituent how the change would reduce existing transportation impacts given that residential use would be increased. Ms. McKinney replied that the land was currently zoned Industrial and industrial uses had a much higher traffic impact than residential uses. Councilor Solomon asked if old Coburg Road would come under the jurisdiction of the City of Eugene. Ms. McKinney responded that this had not happened yet but it would be part of the process. Councilor Zelenka asked for clarification of the commercial use policies. Ms. McKinney responded that the commercial uses permitted in the PUD would have to be in the C-1 category, i.e. neighborhood commercial. MINUTES—Eugene City Council March 12, 2007 Page 13 Regular Meeting