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HomeMy WebLinkAbout10/14/1987 Meeting (2) - M I NUT E S e Eugene and Springfield City Councils Council Chamber--Springfield City Hall October 14, 1987 7:30 p.m. SPRINGFIELD COUNCILORS PRESENT: Christine Larson, Joseph Barry, Lee Beyer, Bill Morrisette, Ben Reed. SPRINGFIELD COUNCILORS ABSENT: Gail Decker. EUGENE OFFICIALS PRESENT: Mayor Brian B. Obie; Councilors Freeman Holmer, Emily Schue, Ruth Bascom, Roger Rutan, Rob Bennett, Jeff Mi 11 er. EUGENE COUNCILORS ABSENT: Debra Ehrman, Cynthia Wooten. Springfield City Council President Christine Larson said this is a public hearing of the Eugene and Springfield City Councils to hear testimony concerning four proposed amendments to the Metropolitan Area General Plan. The Springfield and Eugene councilors introduced themselves. President Larson called the meeting of the City Council of Springfield, e Oregon, to order in the absence of Mayor Richard Gorman. Mayor Brian B. Obie called the meeting of the City Council of Eugene, Oregon, to order. Ms. Larson reviewed the format that would be followed during the evening. Eugene Planning Director Susan Brody reviewed the process for considering amendments to the Metro Plan. She said the Springfield, Eugene, and Lane County Planning Commissions held public hearings on these amendments and made recommendations to the elected officials. After this hearing, the Springfield and Eugene councils will act on the amendments. The Lane County Board of Commissioners will hold a public hearing on the amendments and then take act i on on them. If the action of the elected bodies is not the same, the Metropolitan Policy Committee (MPC) will try to fi nd a compromi se. If a compromise is found, each of the elected bodies will consider it once. If the elected bodies concur with the compromise, the amendments will be approved. If the elected officials do not accept the compromise, the amendments will fail. Ms. Brody reviewed the criteria for Metro Plan amendments. e MINUTES--Joint Springfield, Eugene City Council October 14, 1987 Page 1 1. PROPOSED METRO PLAN AMENDMENTS e A. Metropolitan Wastewater Management Commission (87-06-83) Request for a text change to allow for the extension of water service (EWES) to the sludge management site Ms. Larson opened the public hearing. Ms. La rson sa i d she and Mr. Sennett serve on the Metropolitan Wastewater Management Commission but that does not constitute a conflict of interest. No conflicts of interest of ex parte contacts were declared by any Springfield or Eugene councilors. Springfield Planning Director Greg Winteroud reviewed the background information. He said approval of the amendment would permit Eugene Water & Electric Soard (EWES) water service to the MWMC sludge disposal site north of Awbrey Lane. The site is outside the urban growth boundary. He said currently Mahlon Sweet Airport is the only site EWES serves outside the urban growth boundary. Mr. Winteroud said the three planning commissions recommended approval of the amendment. Alan Peroutka, 2693 Almaden, Eugene, is a member of the MWMC. He said the disposal site is the last component of the regional sewage treatment system to be deve loped. He discussed the site and said a public water system is needed. e There being no more requests to testify, Ms. Larson closed the public hearing. B. Sycan B. Corp. (87-06-84) Request for the redesignation of .37 acres of Community Commercial and 5.78 acres of Low Density Residential to Medium Density Residential Ms. Larson said the request was withdrawn by the applicant. C. Banfield Properties, LTD. (MA 87-3) Request that 10.4 acres of Medium Density Residential be redesignated to Commercial Mr. Bennett sa i d he is a developer and, in the past, has discussed the Banfield properties. He said he has not discussed them recently. He said he can be objective in analyzing the amendment. He requested the opportunity to participate during consideration of the amendment. No one challenged his participation. No other councilors declared ex parte contacts or conflicts of interest. e MINUTES--Joint Springfield, Eugene City Council October 14, 1987 Page 2 Jean Hahn of the Eugene Planning Department reviewed the background material. She said the request is to redesignate all of Tax Lot 200 and a part of Tax Lot e 100 for commercial use. The remaining portion of Tax Lot 100 will retain the existing residential designation. She said the major issues are traffic and a change of circumstances concerning the noise generated by the Eugene Sand and Gravel plant located west of Tax Lot 200 across North Delta Highway. She said the Eugene noise standards were changed after the Metro Plan was adopted and the noise from the Eugene Sand and Gravel plant is now more than the standard for residential properties permits. Because of the change in noise standards, there is a question of whether the Banfield property is desi rabl e for residential development. Ms. Hahn distributed copies of a September 28, 1987, memo to Eugene Planning Director Susan Brody from Dave Reinhard of the Eugene Public Works Department. She said a study by JRH Transportation Engineering indicated that the traffic generated by commercial development of Tax Lot 200 would be acceptable and have no more impact on the area than traffic generated by residential development. Ms. Hahn sa i d a 11 the planning commissions recommended approval of the amendment. Jim Saul, III West 7th Avenue, Suite 300, Eugene, said he represented Banfield Properties. Reviewing comments of Terry Smith, Assistant Director of the Public Works Department, at a Eugene Planning Commission meeting on August 24, 1987, Mr. Saul said Mr. Smith said noise from the Eugene Sand and Gravel plant would be a problem for about 75 percent of the population and it would not be practical to mitigate the noise at its source. Therefore, the only options e are mitigation of the noise on Tax Lot 200 or a change in land use. Mr. Saul said the previous noise standards required an l8-foot sound wall on Tax Lot 200 to mitigate the noise for residential use and the current noise standards are more restrictive. Mr. Saul said Banfield Properties controls the rest of Tax Lot 100 that would retain residential designation. He said the principals in Banfield Properties are also principals in Senior Professional Care and they intend to develop a senior care facility on the rest of Tax Lot 100 if some of the noise problems can be solved with commercial development on Tax Lot 200. Mr. Saul said the study by JRH Transportation Engineering indicates that commercial development on Tax Lot 200 and residential development on the rest of Tax Lot 100 will result in less traffic than would be generated by full development at the existing Medium-Density Residential designation of the two properties. He said approval of the commercial designation for Tax Lot 200 wi 11 necessitate no more street improvements than those already listed in TransPlan. He reviewed the street improvements currently planned for the area. Mr. Saul said the Eugene Planning Commissioners decided the existing commercial development on Green Acres Road is primarily discount merchanising. The commi ssi oners concl uded that those busi nesses probably would not locate in the downtown or in regional shopping centers. Comparing e MINUTES--Joint Springfield, Eugene City Council October 14, 1987 Page 3 shopping centers, he said about 38 acres are zoned for commercial use and nine acres are zoned for general office use at Green Acres Road and North Delta e Highway. Valley River Center consists of 80 acres. Valley River Center and the surrounding commercial and automobil e dealer development total approximately 175 acres. The Gateway commercial area is about 190 acres, Santa Clara Square ;s about 66 acres, and the Oakway Mall is about 58 acres. Mr. Saul said the amendment application contains data about the community's need for additional commercial land. He emphasized that approval of the amendment would result in commercial development on the westerly portion of Tax Lot 100. The remaining part of Tax Lot 100 would be developed with residential uses. He submitted copies of an aerial photograph of the area; an October 14, 1987, letter to the Eugene-Springfield City Councils from Harold P. Benson, General Partner in Senior Professional Care; and an October 14, 1987, letter to Mayor Richard Gorman and Mayor Brian Obie from Jim Saul. Answering questions from Ms. Bascom, Mr. Saul said the senior care facility would include about 120 to 140 units on 8.3 acres. Replying to questions from Mayor Obie, Mr. Saul said there will be one major access to Tax Lot 200 from Green Acres Road. No plans have been submitted indicating other accesses from Green Acres Road. Commercial development on Tax Lot 200 would not have direct access to Applewood Lane. The residential development on Tax Lot 100 probably would have access to Applewood Lane. There would also be an access to Tax Lot 200 from North Delta Highway. Commercial development of Tax Lot 200 would be coordinated with development on property owned the Vi k Fami ly. He sa i d commercial development on Tax Lot 200 would increase the distance between the rock crusher and the residential development on Tax Lot 100 and commercial structures on Tax Lot 200 would somewhat mitigate the noise on Tax Lot 100. If e Tax Lot 200 is developed residentially, very stringent noise mitigation measures would have to be included in the construction. Answering other questions from Mayor Obie, Jim Hanks, 767 Willamette Street, reviewed his traffic study. He said the existing zoning on properties on the north side of Green Acres Road would permit development that would generate 10,000 to 15,000 daily trips. There being no more requests to testify, Ms. Larson closed the public hearing. D. Harry Ruth (MA 87-4) Request that 16 acres of Light-Medium Industrial be redesignated to Commerci a 1 No conflicts of interest or ex parte contacts were declared. Terry Jones of the Eugene Planning Department reviewed the background material. She said the applicants want to to develop an integrated commercial center on Tax Lot 1201 and part of Tax Lot 1111. She said the applicants indicated two changes in circumstances warrant approval of the amendment. The changes are inadequate commercial land allocations in the Metro Plan and two planned transportation improvements (the construction of the West Eugene Parkway and the improvement of Bailey Hill Road to five lanes). e MINUTES--Joint Springfield, Eugene City Council October 14, 1987 Page 4 Ms. Jones said the Lane County Planning Commission recommended denial of the amendment 4:0:1 because approval would be premature. The Springfield Planning e Commission unanimously recommended approval of the amendment. The Eugene Planning Commission vote was a 3:3:1 tie. Answering questions from Mr. Barry, Ms. Jones reviewed the C-4 and I-2 zoning on the south side of West 11th. Mike Evans, 209 Q Street, Springfield, said major issues are Resolution 3862 and the impact of the amendment on industrial lands. He said Resolution 3862 concerns strip commercial development and does not apply to this amendment because the amendment concerns an expansion of the existing community commercial node composed of the Moyer Theater and the Fred Meyer Shopping Center. He said Bailey Hill Road is the most logical boundary for commercial development on West 11th Avenue. Mr. Evans said industrial use of Tax Lot 1201 has been questioned for some time. For example, the West Eugene Industrial Study indicates concerns about industrial development on Tax Lot 1201 because of nearby residential development. The Industrial Task Force Report (1981) i ndi cated that the slopes of Stewart Knoll on Tax Lot 1201 might limit industrial uses but general offi ces and commerci a 1 uses would be appropriate. He reviewed surrounding development and said Tax Lot 1201 is isolated for industrial development. Mr. Evans said there is an acknowledged lack of commercial property in the community. He said approval of this amendment would remove only .04 percent of the industrially designated land within the urban growth boundary and e justification for the redesignation has been presented. Jim Hanks, 767 Willamette Street, said West 11th Avenue between Tyinn and Beltline Road has only four lanes. New development on adjacent properties wi 11 provide an opportunity to construct a center turn lane. He said the knoll on Tax Lot 1201 makes the property unsuitable for industrial use because trucks usually have to be able to move allover industrial property. If Tax Lot 1201 is developed industrially, much earth-moving will have to be done. On the other hand, trucks can be limited to streets on commercially developed properties. Mr. Hanks said West 11th Avenue is a commercial corridor. Before the Fred Meyer Shopping Center was developed, half of the traffic between Garfield and Bailey Hill roads was destined for West 11th. He said more of the traffic is probably generated on West 11th now. He discussed the conflicts that result when when cars associated with commercial development are mixed with trucks associated with industrial development. Mr. Hanks said West 11th was the only out-of-town route when Resolution 3862 was adopted in 1984 but now the Eugene Parkway has been approved and Roosevelt Boulevard is being improved. He said the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Eugene Parkway indicates that property around the Fred Meyer Shopping Center will become more desirable as commercial property because industrial traffic will use the Eugene Parkway and Roosevelt Boulevard. Therefore, circumstances have changed. e MINUTES--Joint Springfield, Eugene City Council October 14, 1987 Page 5 -- Dave Pedersen, P.O. Box 10543, Eugene, distributed copies of "Application Summary - Plan Amendment and Zone Change for Harry Ruth, et a 1. and Lane e Electric CO-Op." He said the cover of the Application Summary illustrated a diagramatic site plan that might be proposed for Tax Lots 1201 and 1111. Accesses might be from West 11th Avenue, Bailey Hill Road, West 7th Avenue, and the Fred Meyer Shopping Center. He said parking could be terraced and as much of the knoll as possible will be retained. Referring to changes in circumstances concerning Resolution 3862, Mr. Pederson said the 1986 Metro Plan Monitoring Report indicated there were only 210 acres of developable commercial land in 1984, the MPC Mid-Period Review Report indicated more commercial land has been absorbed since 1982 than other land use categories, and the 1986 Draft Alternative Industrial Growth Areas Study indicated that commercial land is in the shortest supply when compared to expected demand. Reviewing changes in circumstances concerning traffic, Mr. Pederson discussed the West Eugene Parkway, the EIS for the parkway, and the widening of Bailey Hill Road. He said about 800 acres are designated for Light-Medium Industrial use in the Metro Plan and the redesignation of 17 acres would not have a big impact. He said commercially designated property has more value than industrially designated property, and, therefore, the topography of Tax Lots 1201 and 1111 can be overcome for commercial development. He said there are compelling reasons to approve the amendment. Harry Ruth, 2525 Windsor Circle East, Eugene, said many tenants are interested in the properties and tenants interested in locating on West 11th would not locate downtown. He said very few commercial sites comparable to Tax Lots e 1201 and 1111 are available. He said site review procedures probably will be attached to the zoning. Dick Briggs, 80 West 23rd Avenue, Eugene, said about 90 percent of new jobs will be servi ce jobs. Therefore, the community should retain an adequate supply of commercially designated land. Answering questions from Mayor Obie and Mr. Morrisette, Mr. Evans said no study of the number of trips generated by commercial development on Tax Lots 1201 and 1111 has been commissioned. Mr. Ruth said there probably would be one or two anchor tenants and several supporting tenants in a large building in the middle of the property and several small buildings on the southern boundary of the property. There being no more requests to testify, Ms. Larson closed the public hearing. E. Iverson, Smith, Belnap, et al. (MA 87-5) Request that two acres of Medium Density Residential be Redesignated to Commercial No ex parte contacts or conflicts of interest were declared. e MINUTES--Joint Springfield, Eugene City Council October 14, 1987 Page 6 Jim Croteau of the Eugene Planning Department reviewed the background material. He distributed copies of an October 12, 1987, letter to the City of e Eugene from Helen Lorenz and an undated letter to Joint Councilors from Boyd Iverson. Mr. Croteau said the request concerns properties between 23rd Avenue and 24th Place on Willamette Street. The applicants would like to have the properties rezoned to GO General Office but the proposed Metro Plan amendment must be approved first because the properties are now designated for residential use. He said the Eugene Planning Commission recommended denial of the request, the Springfield Planning Commission recommended approval of the request, and the Lane County Planning Commission deferred to Eugene's decision. Mr. Croteau said the issue in the amendment concerns the character of the neighborhood. The traffic generated by general office use would only be about 200 more daily trips than would be generated by the existing R-3 development. Answering questions from Mr. Miller and Mr. Holmer, Mr. Croteau sa i d the applicant indicated that the existing housing probably would be converted to office use if the amendment and rezoning are approved. The cost of street improvements has not been discussed with the applicants. Dick Briggs, 80 West 23rd Avenue, said the amendment should not be approved because a commercial designation would permit many uses that would not be appropriate. He said the City should encourage the consolidation of properties and road access along Willamette Street. There being no more requests to testify, Ms. Larson closed the public hearing. e II. ACTION ON AMENDMENTS Mayor Obie noted that the Eugene City Council is scheduled to act on the amendments before the other elected bodies. He di scussed the impact of approval or denial of some of the amendments on Eugene. Ms. Larson said the Spri ngfi e 1 d council ors wi 11 take note of the Eugene council.s action. Ms. Larson adjourned the meeting at 9 p.m. Respectfully submitted, 1. BLR/mncc1014 e MINUTES--Joint Springfield, Eugene City Council October 14, 1987 Page 7