CC Minutes - 06/21/10 Public Hearing

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a number of advantages in that it fostered a walkable, vibrant, diverse, dense neighborhood served by bus rapid transit. It would also facilitate a more streamlined, uniform process for those wishing to build in Eugene. Mr. Mason -Gere did not support the last minute change related to the body that heard appeals, which had been made by the Planning Commission. He thought there would be more certainty if such appeals went to the Hearings Official as opposed to the Planning Commission, which was a board of political appointees. He was also concerned about negative impacts on business owners on the south side of Franklin Boulevard by the threat of special setbacks on which one could not build. He asked the council to mitigate that, address the appeals process, and adopt the code. Susie Smith, 1659 Orchard Street, a member of the Walnut Mixed -Use Subcommittee of FAN, shared a "no node" sign from 2003 and acknowledged the process leading to the council's consideration of the Walnut Station WC was a long one. While she thought the process started on a sour note, she believed the outcome was an incredible product of collaboration. She believed the draft plan was getting better with each review and hoped by July 26 it would be "really good." Ms. Smith acknowledged the plan was not perfect and there were problems, but she thought the plan went a long way toward addressing the issues that had been mentioned in testimony. She thought it addressed the edges between the MUC and the neighborhood and expressed support for the proposed evaluation process. Ms. Smith said the neighborhood saw much potential in the plan, including the potential that the multi -way boulevard could be a beautiful entrance into the city. Ms. Smith thanked Project Manager Lydia McKinney and said the project would not have gotten so far without Ms. McKinney's energy and ability to forge consensus through collaboration. Josh Reckord, 1575 Fairmount Boulevard, spoke to the creation of an expectation of graceful transitions from mixed -use to single - family houses. He noted that the term "graceful transition" was found in the plan, but grace could not be asserted and must be demonstrated. He believed that graceful transitions were necessary to satisfy those who participated in the planning process as well as to demonstrate the viability of such projects to others in the community as the City contemplated additional mixed -use centers. Mr. Reckord believed the City needed to commit ongoing resources of time and money to the planning process to overcome residents' resistance to change. He suggested implementation would be key to the success of the MUC. How that occurred would set the stage for moving forward. He suggested that resources be used to assess both the process and the products that resulted. David Sonnichsen, 2435 Skyline Boulevard, supported the multi -way boulevard, terming it vital to FAN's support of the Walnut Station MUC. He said a smooth flow of motorized vehicles using a new Franklin Boulevard friendly to both local and pass- through users, augmented by mass transit, would unite parts of the neighborhood now divided by Franklin Boulevard. Much of the "knitting" would be created by alternative modes. He said that the boulevard would make crossing Franklin more inviting and would promote access to the Millrace riparian corridor and Willamette River because of the stepped down height limits. Camilla Bayliss, 1621 Fairmount Boulevard, spoke to the need for the parking policies recommended by staff and noted the increase in parking problems as the University of Oregon grew and the neighborhood increased in density. The neighborhood succeeded in getting recognition from the UO of the impact of parking spillover problems from UO events. She cited examples of some problems created by those MINUTES— Eugene City Council June 21, 2010 Page 5 Public Hearing