CC Minutes - 10/26/05 WS - Laserfiche WebLink

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th the WEP was to move regional travel off West 11 Avenue to allow better development opportunities in West Eugene. Mr. Stiles reviewed the WEP Project History. He said the original plan would have built the WEP on the south side of the railroad tracks, but this had been modified due to environmental concerns to place the WEP on the north side of the tracks. He underscored that approximately 20 routes had been considered, including the one that had been selected in 1999. The revised design would keep the road size at two lanes in each direction for the length of the parkway, approximately 5.8 miles, except for the addition of an interchange between the Beltline Highway and the WEP. He explained that the minor changes to the design were required by the scope of planning as dictated by the Federal Highways Administration (FHWA) Re- evaluation, which called for the design to be predicated on expected growth patterns to the year 2025. He noted that it had been determined, through traffic analysis, that the Terry Street Connector would no longer be needed. Mr. Stiles circulated copies of the Draft Traffic Analysis: Existing Conditions and No-Build and WEP Alternatives in 2025. He noted that the design had just been fixed and the traffic analysis was an iterative process between design and traffic analysis. He said this was the first information “out of the gate.” Mr. Kelly asked Mr. Poling to add the 06-09 Metropolitan Transportation Improvement Program (MTIP) to the motion. Mayor Piercy commented that this issue had been on the table for a long time. She agreed there were significant traffic problems and issues in west Eugene that had long needed resolution. She said Eugene had a nationally recognized wetlands project put together by a “unique public/private partnership.” She stated that the wetlands were a highly valued educational, recreational, and environmental asset. She averred that the community needed a solution to its traffic problem that did not compromise the integrity or the West Eugene Wetlands Plan (WEWP). She asserted that the current configuration of the WEP had the support of “only half of Eugene” and had been a long-term source of community division. She asserted that the current configuration of the WEP would make only a minimal impact on the traffic issue, speculated at six percent, and would face legal challenges for years to come. She said the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) and the Army Corps of Engineers (ACOE) both raised issues with the WEP. She asserted that there were established ways to move beyond deadlocks. She suggested engaging the services of Oregon Solutions or the Oregon Consensus Program to help find a creative solution that could replace the acrimony with a community solution all would respect. She indicated she would vote against moving the project forward in the event of a tie vote. Mr. Poling, seconded by Ms. Solomon moved to continue to support the West Eugene Parkway as a modernization project priority when the Metropolitan Policy committee con- siders the Central Lane Metropolitan Planning Organization modernization project priorities for the 2008-2011 State Transportation Improvement Program and the 2006-2009 Metro- politan Transportation Improvement Program. Ms. Taylor moved to substitute the Mayor’s proposal. The motion died for lack of a sec- ond. Ms. Taylor indicated that she would oppose the motion. She did not believe it would solve the problem. She felt it was ethically, morally, and legally wrong. She questioned whether it was legal to “destroy” land purchased with federal money. MINUTES—Eugene City Council October 26, 2005 Page 7 Work Session