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HomeMy WebLinkAbout03/04/1991 Meeting e M I NUT E S Eugene City Council Eugene Hilton Conference Center, Joplin Room 66 East 6th Avenue March 4, 1991 5:30 p.m. COUNCILORS PRESENT: Ruth Bascom, Shawn Boles, Debra Ehrman, Bobby Green, Roger Rutan, Paul Nicholson, Kaye Robinette. COUNCILORS ABSENT: Randy MacDonald. Members of the council and the Lane Transit District (LTO) Board introduced themselves. Members of the LTO Board included Tammy Fitch, Peter Brandt, Janet Calvert, Keith Parks, Herbert Herzberg, and Thorn Montgomery. The March 4, 1991, joint work session of the Eugene City Council and the LTO Board was called to order by His Honor Mayor Jeff Miller. Staff distributed agenda packets. e I. SYSTEM OVERVIEW/CITY INPUT INTO BUS SERVICE DESIGN Phyllis Loobey, LTD General Manager, reviewed material contained in the agen- da packet regarding ridership statistics. She also reviewed statistics on how LTO ranks among others in the nation, noting that LTO provides more rides per capita than most other systems of equal size. In response to questions, she said she believed that LTD ridership has increased because of greater reliability, increased number of routes, shelters, and display cards showing time schedules. The percentage of senior ridership is no greater than that of the general population. Staff did not know how many riders had no other available transportation. The downtown core area employs about 12,000-14,000 people, while the University and Sacred Heart Hospital employ about 5,500 and 3,500 people respectively. LTO staff member Stefano Viggiano gave a brief overview of the LTO system for new councilors Nicholson and Robinette based on the presentation given at the February 12, 1990, joint council/LTO Board meeting. In response to ques- tions, he said there are some direct buslines from the Beltline-River Road area to downtown Eugene and the University of Oregon. LTD will achieve a 10-minute frequency rate for bus arrivals on major corridors in a few years. All major outlying transfer stations are in place. LTO could use other plac- es as the hub of their service, but downtown Eugene is the heart of the com- munity and is the most logical place, in terms of local geography, with its buttes, river, and so on. Moreover, the downtown area is the most dense e MINUTES--Eugene City Council March 4, 1991 Page 1 e employment area in the community. An Autzen Stadium/University of Oregon route would work were LTO able to run a route directly across the Autzen bridge. As it is, however, such a route would require an added connection and would be overly circuitous. The Lane County Fairgrounds could function as an optional park-and-ride site to the University. A free downtown shuttle service similar to those in Seattle and Portland makes buses more attractive and serves to increase ridership. Ms. Loobey noted that downtown Seattle businesses pay a surcharge to support the free shuttle. Mr. Boles noted that one difficulty with some shuttles is that they are dif- ficult to distinguish from other buses. He further suggested that LTD inves- tigate alternative fuels. Ms. Bascom voiced interest in a Eugene downtown shuttle program. Mr. Viggiano further explained that LTD receives more requests for airport service than any other unoffered service; however, providing the service would not be efficient or cost-effective. He further noted that similarly sized cities that have tried it have been unsuccessful. A significant barri- er to airport busing is that because planes arrive at almost all hours, the airport would need at least 16-hour service with runs at least every half hour. There may be some market in serving airport employees. Having the Junction City route provide the service would not work either because it would increase its riders' trips by a half hour. e In response to Mr. Nicholson's suggestion that LTO simply use smaller buses for airport service, Public Works Director Christine Andersen said the City may put out a request for proposals for airport shuttle service in the near future. Mr. Viggiano noted that although various hotels do offer shuttle services, they are duplicating services. II. EUGENE STATION Ms. Loobey reviewed the background concerning the LTD station siting. LTO has concluded that there are three or four half-block sites and one three- quarter block site with the potential of serving as a station site. It was recently discovered that the preferred site, the elections lot bounded by 5th and 6th avenues and Oak and Pearl streets, would involve more cost than was previously believed. In response to questions, Mr. Viggiano and Ms. Loobey explained that the station would have 20 buses passing through every 10 minutes. Other poten- tial sites include the International House of Pancakes (IHOP) property, the Greyhound site, and a site on Charnel ton Street near the proposed Eugene Public Library site. The question of parking replacement is still being researched. The IHOP property presents the least parking pressure. Opening Willamette or Olive streets would not affect LTO's station siting decision. Responding to Mr. Boles' concern about which mode of transportation receives preference and precedence, Mr. Gleason said that this would take some thought. He remarked that the City could try giving buses separate lanes. e MINUTES--Eugene City Council March 4, 1991 Page 2 e e e Ms. Ehrman noted that some downtown businesses will be disappointed when LTO leaves its current situation in that many riders frequent their stores as they pass through the area. Regarding Mr. Miller's belief that parking was the central issue, Ms. Loobey said that LTO will be required to pay for any parking that the new station usurps, but is not allowed to build supplemental parking. Mr. Brandt dis- agreed, believing that LTO was only obligated to pay for the land that it wanted to buy. He further believed that LTO should not have to provide park- ing just because it was building on the site. Having to pay for extra park- ing would make costs prohibitive. He noted that LTD was trying to alleviate parking problems by increasing ridership. Mr. Viggiano explained that the project is estimated to cost about $10.6 million, of which $800,000 will pay for damages to parking, $3 million will pay for about 200 underground parking spaces, and $2 million will pay for the land itself, including compensation for the building. Mr. Miller further responded to Mr. Brandt's concern, stating that LTO cannot undo the numerous relationships involved in loans taken out to build the nearby buildings. He added that parking is a key way to leverage funds. Mr. Gleason further responded that staff was working on revising the parking ordinance so that fewer parking spaces are required. The City may also work on having employers buy their employees' bus passes, although doing so would require more buses. One problem, however, is that a certain number of park- ing spaces is required in most building loans. There is also the point that in order to increase density in downtown Eugene, the number of parking spaces must also increase. Otherwise, developers would continue to move out of the area. In response to a question from Ms. Ehrman, Mr. Gleason said that rais- ing density by way of increasing the number of parking spaces is possible, but requires a commitment to increasing the tax increment district and legis- lation to allow such a district. Moreover, it would be easier to expand parking in small increments, thus facilitating the entire process. Mr. Boles noted that current parking structures are underutilized. Mr. Mill- er agreed, adding that the free parking zone has actually exacerbated the parking problem. In response to a question from Mr. Boles, Ms. Loobey said that rather than regroup the citizen advisory team, staff has been directed to continue the investigation of station siting internally. Mr. Nicholson believed that the issue of opening Willamette and/or Olive streets was minor compared to the LTD station siting issue. He also felt that the downtown redesign and Ferry Street Bridge issues would impact LTD, but were being discussed independently. Mr. Gleason disagreed, stating that the issues have been examined as a whole. The projects cannot be treated entirely as one, however, because they are financed separately. Mr. Rutan felt that if parking is taken away, there is a responsibility to replace it. The question is who should be responsible for replacing that parking. His greatest concern was that the station siting process not be slowed by the parking issue and that all parties concerned continue to cooperate. Mr. MINUTES--Eugene City Council March 4, 1991 Page 3 e Boles agreed with Mr. Rutan and stated that there must be a creative transi- tion strategy between reducing automobile use and increasing use of mass transportation. Ms. Ehrman concurred. Ms. Ehrman wondered if the City could work with LTO on the bus station park- ing issue. Mr. Gleason responded that parking would still need to be provid- ed. Ms. Ehrman noted that the Hult Center parking structure is not being used to its fullest and wondered if the City could strongly encourage people to use it even if doing so meant that they had to walk an extra block to their destination. The council and the LTD Board agreed that greater cooperation and commitment was needed. In response to a question from Mr. Miller, Mr. Brandt said the two bodies needed better communication. He believed that it would also be helpful if the board knew more about the long-term plans for Eugene's down- town. For example, he wondered whether buses would be allowed to pass through Willamette Street if it were opened. Mr. Nicholson noted again that the possible opening of Willamette and/or Olive streets was not a critical issue. He commented that in visiting three of the Ferry Street Bridge pre- sentations, the LTO station was never mentioned. He added that of the four current bridge plans, only two were workable for LTD. Mr. Miller believed the two groups should meet more frequently, have more information updates in between, and that the LTD Board should make sugges- tions to the council. e Mr. Gleason commented that developing the downtown core requires integration of all transportation elements. He believed that if there are only a few possible station sites, someone just needs to choose one. Mr. Boles added that whether a site is chosen in the near future, he was willing to work with Ms. Loobey in garnering funds for the rest of the project. He further sug- gested that the two groups meet within 60 days. Mr. Miller believed they should meet as soon as a site is chosen. The meeting adjourned at 7:24 p.m. Respectfully submitted, ~,f4,..~ Micheal Gleason City Manager (Recorded by Jacqueline Woge) mncc 030491-530 - MINUTES--Eugene City Council March 4, 1991 Page 4