Item 8: Ordinance Establishing Chambers Special Area Zone

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I. INTRODUCTION What this report contains This report discusses issues related to residential infill and redevelopment in the area encompassed by the "Chambers Revisited" (CR) project in Eugene, Oregon. The CR project area is in west Eugene and roughly bounded by Polk Street, West 13th Avenue, Garfield Street, and West 7th Avenue. (See Appendix A for a map of the CR project area.) (As of the date of this report, the Eugene City Council is considering a proposal to establish the "Chambers Special Area (S-C) Zone" that would encompass the CR project area.) Following the introductory material in Section I, we provide in Section II a brief recap and analysis of Eugene's land use policies that are intended to protect the character of existing residential neighborhoods, such as those within the CR project area. Next, in Section Ill, we provide a close look at the three distinct residential neighborhood areas within the CR project area. For the largest of these areas, we provide a detailed description ofthe elements and patterns that define the neighborhood's character. In Section IV, we provide residents' perspectives on the impacts of new houses, duplexes, and apartments built in this neighborhood, We list specific poor siting andlor bad design practices that impinge on residents' privacy, safety, enjoyment of their homes, yards, and streets, or that erode and destabilize the neighborhood character that makes this area an attractive place to live for a diverse group of people. Section V provides detailed data on the current land use and development in the R-2 zoned area east of Chambers Street. This data provides an empirical basis for both the narrative description of infiU impacts presented in the preceding section and for the density analysis that follows in Section vn. In this version of the report, Section VI is a short discussion of the proposed "Chambers Special Area (S-C) Zone" development standards that apply to the S-C/R- 2 subarea. The proposed code is available from the City of Eugene Planning and Development department and is posted on the CAFHN Web site ( www.cnrNeighbors.Qfg). Section VII provides an analysis of projected residential density under the proposed Chambers Special Area Zone standards. Concluding sections and appendices provide additional resources and supporting information. November I, 2005 Chambers Revisited - Neighbors' Report 1