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HomeMy WebLinkAbout06/20/1990 Meeting e M I NUT E S Eugene City Council McNutt Room--City Hall I June 20, 1990 11:30 a.m. COUNCILORS PRESENT: Rob Bennett, Freeman Holmer, Debra Ehrman, Ruth Bascom, Shawn Boles. COUNCILORS ABSENT: Mayor Jeff Miller, Emily Schue, Bobby Green, Roger Rutan. The adjourned meeting of June 18, 1990, of the Eugene City Council was called to order by Councilor Rob Bennett. I. ITEMS FROM THE CITY COUNCIL, MAYOR, AND CITY MANAGER A. River Road Sewer Construction At Ms. Bascom's request, Christine Andersen, Public Works, reported on the status of the River Road Sewer Construction project. Ms. Andersen said that e the City has issued a notice to proceed to the contractors responsible for sewer construction in Basins A, B, and C. Construction in Basins A and B should begin in early July; construction in Basin C is scheduled to begin June 25. Warren Wong, Administrative Services Director, updated the council on possible financing mechanisms being considered for sewer construction. He noted that because the City has failed to secure financing from the County Service District, it has been forced to consider other means of sewer financing. Mr. Wong said that staff recommends the City issue short-term Bond Anticipation notes. Although previously uncertain about its ability to BANs, Mr. Wong said that City of Gresham has recently been successful in issuing notes for a sewer project which were not backed by the full faith and credit of the city. He emphasized that the overall cost to the property owner of providing this alternate mode of financing would be negligible. The council authorized staff to issue up to $5 million in tax-exempt notes backed by a pledge to issue long-term financing. Interest rates would be between 7.2 and 7.6 percent and bonds would mature within 24 months. Mr. Wong indicated that a resolution would be prepared for the June 25 City Council meeting. e MINUTES--Eugene City Council Page 1 June 20, 1990 e Responding to a question from Mr. Boles, Mr. Wong said that Gresham's sewer construction project, not its method of financing, is subject to legal challenge. Mr. Holmer moved, seconded by Ms. Ehrman, to direct the City Manager to being preparing the resolution. The motion carried unanimously, 5:0. B. Federal Money for Trees Ms. Bascom announced that Robin Morgan, author of the Urban Forestry Report and local community activist, has been promoted to the position of Urban Forester for the Southwest region of the United States. Ms. Bascom noted that Ms. Morgan will now be in a position to lobby for Federal funds for urban trees. C. Street Tree Maintenance to Move from PARCS to Public Works Ms. Bascom noted that administration of the City's street tree program has been moved from the PARCS Department to Public Works. Responding to a question from Mr. Holmer, Mr. Gleason said that staff would be analyzing funding sources for the tree program but that General Fund impact for street tree maintenance would not be reduced completely. Mr. Boles emphasized that this transition is a positive demonstration of how e cities are beginning to recognize portions of the natural environment as valuable components of city infrastructure. D. Agreement on the Need to Open Streets Downtown Ms. Ehrman informed the council that the Downtown Development District Task Force (DDDTF) has recently finalized its list of priorities with respect to downtown development. As a part of this, task force members recently reached agreement that several of the streets in the downtown corridor should be opened to facilitate traffic flow. Mr. Boles indicated that a determination regarding the need to open streets to traffic downtown was also reached by the Retail Task Force (RTF) in its downtown redesign plan. Similar conclusions are also being reached by other groups such as Downtown Focus, a group committed to enhancing economic activity downtown. E. Goodship Oregon Spirit Mr. Boles said that he had an opportunity to welcome the Goodship Oregon Spirit, a test certification aircraft built by the US Lighter Than Air which will be stationed in Eugene. He noted that this represents the sort of Economic Development that he fully supports. He said that this concept should be extended to local mass transit and regional high-speed rail, as well. e MINUTES--Eugene City Council June 20, 1990 Page 2 e F. The Bon Marche Mr. Boles encouraged the council and all community members to write letters to the owners of the Bon Marche expressing disappointment with their recent decision to consider closing their downtown store. Mr. Holmer moved, seconded by Ms. Bascom, to direct the City Manager to draft a resolution voicing the community's support for the Bon Marche and encouraging store owners to reconsider their decision. The motion carried unanimously, 5:0. G. Sign Code Moratorium Ms. Bascom requested a report from staff on the status of the sign code moratorium. Mr. Gleason indicated that a six-month moratorium on all signs greater than 100 square feet was passed in November 1989. In March 1990, the Planning Commission voted to extend the moratorium an additional three months to allow for completion of the sign code update. Since this time, the Bon Marche has requested a special allowance from the ordinance to approve a permit for two signs to be erected in August at the new Bon Marche at Valley River Center. Mr. Gleason said that a work session on the sign code update is scheduled for July 25. e Responding to a question, Dick Gassman, Planning and Development, said that since the sign code moratorium has been in effect, the City has received several applications for permits for signs greater than 100 square feet. Upon receiving notification that these permits would be denied, most applicants have withdrawn their applications. No applications on these signs have been processed since the moratorium went into effect. Mr. Bennett said that the sign that the Bon Marche is requesting lies within the requirements of both the original and revised sign code. In light of the fact that the intention of the Sign Code moratorium was not to preclude uncontroversial signs such as this, Mr. Bennett expressed interest in finding a way to address this issue without defeating the original intent of the moratorium. Mr. Gleason said that in order to grant this request, the council would need to amend the ordinance to allow for a larger class of signs. Ms. Bascom pointed out the importance of not confusing the issue of the Bon Marche's move out of downtown with this special request for sign allowance. She also indicated the importance of not granting special preference to the Bon Marche over other requests. e MINUTES--Eugene City Council June 20, 1990 Page 3 e Ms. Ehrman said that a six-week delay should not represent an unnecessary hardship to the Bon Marche and that she is unwilling to grant a one-request exception from the ordinance. Concurring with Ms. Ehrman, Mr. Boles said he is resistant to granting a one-request sign code exception. Dick Hansen, representing the Bon Marche, updated the council on the status of the Bon Marche's decision to remain in downtown Eugene. He said that although the Bon Marche once voiced its intention to remain in downtown, recent legal situations have forced it to reconsider its decision. Mr. Hansen felt that a denial of this request would represent an unnecessary hardship on a company which has made a tremendous investment in this community for many years. Mr. Holmer moved, seconded by Ms. Bascom, to request staff to bring to the council next week an amendment to the sign code moratorium permitting any firm with a newly constructed building to install a sign that does not exceed 200 square feet. The motion carried, 3:2; with councilors Holmer, Bascom, and Bennett voting in favor, and councilors Boles and Ehrman voting opposed. II. WORK SESSION: EXISTING LOCAL STREET STANDARDS e Les Lyle, Public Works Engineering, briefly reported on the existing local street standards. He noted that the Council Committee on Infrastructure (CCI) has developed a recommendation for improving standards for existing substandard local streets and alleys. The committee identified the issue of improvements to these streets as the highest priority street standards issue. Mr. Lyle highlighted the contents of the street standards report generated by the CCI and contained in the council packet. He noted that the committee identified several issues on which it did not reach consensus and which it felt the full council should discuss. The purpose of this work session is to provide staff with direction regarding the recommendations. Mr. Lyle provided an overview of the process which staff would use to consider street improvements. He said that staff would conduct an analysis of needs and restrictions of streets and, based on design constraints, decide what sort of flexibility in street design property owners might have. Staff would then send a matrix of design alternatives to the property owners in that area making them aware of their options and ask them to select the preferred option including doing nothing. Once this has been done, staff would conduct a poll if appropriate of property owners to determine interest in street reconstruction and, if a majority of property owners are in favor of the improvement, improvement would be initiated by the City Engineer. Mr. Boles pOinted out that the recommendations being presented are for substandard streets, not standards for new construction. The underlying e MINUTES--Eugene City Council June 20, 1990 Page 4 e assumption behind this process is that persons should have some control over the design of streets near which they live. Responding to question from Ms. Bascom about who is responsible for choosing which substandard streets are selected for staff analysis, Mr. Lyle said that direct requests from property owners, councilors, or other community members are given first consideration. Eventually the City hopes to look at all substandard streets. Jim Carlson, Lane Council of Governments (LCOG), spoke about the recommendations that the CCI has forwarded to the council. He summarized several of the basic design elements and optional improvements being considered for substandard street reconstruction. Basic design elements which can be modified depending on the results of street analysis include street base, pavement surface, and width. Several optional components include street lights, street trees, and sidewalks. Mr. Carlson said that the two major factors which determine what type of design elements are best suited for a street are the physical restrictions and use. Staff would conduct a cursory analysis of street design needs based on these two factors. Mr. Carlson said that street width is one factor which can be controlled. Property owners would be allowed to chose among three options: streets which are 28 feet wide with parking allowed on both sides, streets which are 24 feet with parking on one side, or streets which are 20 feet in width with no e parking allowed. The typical width on a residential street is 28 feet. The CCI developed a matrix of possible options which could be presented to property owners to determine which alternative options would be chosen. Ms. Ehrman noted that in some instances it would be in the City's interest to require street light installation. Mr. Carlson said that mandatory street light installation is one issue which has not yet been resolved. Mr. Carlson said that property owners are given the option to decide whether they want sidewalks. If they opt for sidewalk construction, they may be given the option of choosing between sidewalk construction on one or both sides of the street. Mr. Bennett pointed out that the importance of sidewalks to residential areas changes over time. Sidewalks become increasingly important in those areas where a large number of families with young children reside. Because the makeup of residential areas is constantly changing, it would be difficult to justify street construction for residential neighborhoods without requiring a sidewalk on at least one side of the street. Mr. Boles responded that sidewalk construction was considered as an optional component because the additional costs associated with sidewalk construction might prevent street reconstruction for property owners with limited financial means. e Page 5 MINUTES--Eugene City Council June 20, 1990 e The council discussed possible safety hazards which might be posed by the lack of adequate sidewalks. Mr. Carlson said that property owners have a variety of choices with respect to the sidewalk options including curbside or setback. Regarding setback sidewalks with planting strips, he noted that there is still some question regarding who has the ultimate responsibility for maintaining the planting strip. Mr. Bennett pointed out that narrowing street widths, particularly for residential streets, can effectively slow traffic flow. Mr. Carlson indicated that the eCI discussed ways in which the City might motivate property owners to initiate street improvements. Out of this discussion came two types of low-income assessment programs. The exiting program includes deferral and extension provisions for low-income seniors. The second type of program being considered is currently used in Springfield and utilizes Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds to subsidize property owners' assessment costs. Ms. Ehrman cautioned that subsidies from low-income assessment programs should not be used on optional street improvements, but limited to basic street reconstruction. Mr. Lyle indicated that this optional design program has been tested on property owners in two areas of Eugene. Property owners on Whitbeck Boulevard were opposed to road improvement while property owners on Meyers e Road were in favor of a 20-foot wide street improvement. Mr. Holmer said he is uncomfortable with a policy which does not require mandatory street light installation on streets with medium- and high-volume traffic. Mr. Boles cautioned that mandatory street light requirements would prove costly for property owners and postpone street reconstruction for property owners with already limited means. Responding to question from Mr. Bennett, Ms. Andersen said that the cost of street lights could be reduced by about one-half if they were placed on an already existing pole. Mr. Lyle noted that the City supports the concept of having private deed restrictions and covenants on property so that new owners will become aware of how the standards for that particular street evolved over time. Mr. Boles expressed an interest in expanding street requirements to allow property owners the option of choosing a 20- or 24-foot rolled-edge asphalt street. Recognizing that these types of streets are less easily maintained, the City would build the cost of maintaining these streets into the cost of street assessment. The ultimate cost of maintaining such a street overtime would potentially be greater and thus inhibit property owners from choosing this option. Mr. Boles added that the advantages of such an approach would e MINUTES--Eugene City Council June 20, 1990 Page 6 ------- - e be to allow property owners an even greater level of design control and remove the burden of maintaining those streets from other City residents. Ms. Bascom noted that channeling rainfall into the drainage system is one of the functions of curbs and expressed concern that rolled-curb streets might not be appropriate in our climate. Mr. Lyle expressed concern with allowing rolled-curb streets as an optional street standard because the reduced life of this option would force the City to undertake street assessment for street reconstruction on a more frequent basis. The council offered general interest in seeking cost estimates of street maintenance for rolled-curb streets. Mr. Gleason introduced Pam Berrian, the new City Council Coordinator. At 1:35 p.m., Councilor Bennett adjourned the meeting of the Eugene City Council. Respectfully submitted, ... ,~~r._, Micheal Gleason City Manager e (Recorded by Traci Northman) mncc 062090-1130 e MINUTES--Eugene City Council June 20, 1990 Page 7