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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCC Minutes - 10/26/98 Meeting MINUTES Eugene City Council Council Chamber--City Hall October 26, 1998 7:30 p.m. COUNCILORS PRESENT: Pat Farr, Tim Laue, Bobby Lee, Scott Meisner, Nancy Nathanson, Laurie Swanson Gribskov, Betty Taylor, Ken Tollenaar. Mayor Jim Torrey called the adjourned October 21, 1998, meeting of the Eugene City Council to order at 7:35 p.m. 1. PUBLIC FORUM Mayor Torrey reviewed guidelines for participating in the Public Forum. Robert Bury, 4090 Stewart Road, stated that he wished to express a concern regarding the closure of Stewart Road. He referred to a petition of area residents and a letter objecting to the closure which he said he had previously submitted to members of the council. He said he objected to the adequacy of the process used to notify and involve citizens in the decision regarding the closure. He reported that a number of fires had taken pace in the area in the previous year and that, if Stewart Road had been closed, evacuation routes would have been blocked. He suggested that the closure was "politically expedient, but not wise." He stated that he planned to file an appeal of the administrative decision involved in the closure. Eleanor Mulder, 2775 Emerald Street, stated that she represented the Steering Committee of the Library Now! political action committee supporting the Four-Year Library Operations Serial Levy. She said that fund raising, volunteer recruitment, information distribution, and media campaigns for the levy were more successful than anticipated. She expressed appreciation to the council for having placed the measure on the ballot and said she anticipated that it would be approved by voters. Casey Kolendar, 2117 Dakota Street, stated that she represented residents of the Bethel- Danebo Neighborhood who lived in the area of State Street Park. She described a recent increase in youth violence and requested support from the City Council to find a way to deal with it. Shelly Morgan, 2143 Dakota Street, described slow police response to a situation in the State Street Park area in which guns were involved. She said the incident resembled a gang fight and frightened many of her neighbors. She said residents had met with representatives of the police and received a commitment to be alert to potential incidents. She said that speeding was also a problem in the area. She asked the council to support neighbors seeking to "take back the park." MINUTES--Eugene City Council October 26, 1998 Page 1 7:30 p.m. Jim Lynch, 2350 North Terry Street #26, stated that he was co-chair of the Active Bethel Citizens neighborhood association and that he was concerned that City officials were not responding to neighborhood concerns. He said he hoped parks personnel followed through with their promise to trim trees in State Street Park to make it possible for police and residents to observe what was happening in it. He asked for additional support for police and for implementing the Community Policing Plan. He said the area needed a police substation. He expressed appreciation for additions made to the City budget which supported programs at Petersen Barn. He said he believed the Police Review Board ballot measure was an unnecessary expense and that it should be defeated. Ron Kollendar, 2117 Dakota Street, stated that he shared the feelings of previous speakers regarding concerns about State Street Park. He said area residents were concerned about the safety of children and those who used the park at night. He reported that he had heard area citizens discussing carrying guns when they went to the park. He said he did not believe it was acceptable to have to wait 1-1/2 hours for police to respond to a call for emergency service. Sandy Gregson, 1504 Dola Street, said that she did not wish to speak in the Public Forum. Harry Ashburn, 26044 England Loop, Veneta, stated that he owned property on Commercial Street in Eugene. He expressed appreciation to the City, police, and City Manager for their work with homeless persons in the area. He said the recent application of the City Camping Ordinance showed concern for businesses, homeless persons, and the police. Rod Huey, 90290 Shore Lane, stated that he represented the interests of the McDonald Wholesale Company. He expressed appreciation to the Mayor and City Manager for their work to establish and implement the amendment of the City Camping Ordinance. He said the effort showed compassion for all involved. He reported that he had recently visited a number of large cities throughout the United States and that he had seen no police force as good or as concerned as that in Eugene. He submitted a series of cards with expressions of appreciation to the council. Mayor Torrey determined that there were no other persons wishing to testify and closed the Public Forum. 2. CONSENT CALENDAR Mayor Torrey announced that irreconcilable errors in the minutes of the September 28, 1998, Council Work Session led him to suggest that the approval of the Consent Calendar be postponed to a later meeting. 3. PUBLIC HEARING: POTENTIAL CITY INITIATION OF WHITEAKER PLAN AMENDMENT AND ZONE CHANGE Administrative Services Director Warren Wong announced that the council would conduct a public hearing on whether it should initiate an amendment to the Whiteaker Plan and a related zone change. MINUTES--Eugene City Council October 26, 1998 Page 2 7:30 p.m. A. Staff Report Planning Division Senior Planner Teresa Bishow referred to the Agenda Item Summary regarding the public hearing. She reviewed guidelines for City-initiated refinement plan amendments and options regarding the issue available to the council contained in the summary. She stated that if the council decided to initiate a plan amendment and related zone change, direction would need to be provided as to whether City staff should prepare the necessary applications and if application fees should be waived. Ms. Bishow referred to a document entitled "Time Line Regarding Proposed Whitaker Plan/Zone Change for Clark Property: 925 and 927 West First Avenue." She said it had been prepared and distributed at the beginning of the meeting at the request of Mr. Meisner. Ms. Bishow noted that it was normal practice for the council to not take action on a matter at the same meeting in which it had held a public hearing regarding it. B. Public Testimony Mayor Torrey explained guidelines for testifying and opened the public haring. V. Pauline Clark, 209 North 71st Street, Springfield, asked if members of the council would be able to ask her questions regarding her testimony. City Attorney Glenn Klein explained that, in order to maintain decorum, it was normal practice for councilors to not address those who testified in public hearings, but that there was no ordinance which prohibited doing so. He said that councilors often asked staff to inquire regarding concerns of those who provided testimony. Ms. Clark stated that she represented her father, Paul Clark, owner of 925/927 West First Avenue. She expressed appreciation to staff of the Planning Division for its assistance in bringing the matter before the council. Ms. Clark reviewed incorporation of a zone change made in the Whiteaker Plan based on an error in the land use survey of her father's property completed during the plan update process. She explained circumstances surrounding the purchase and use of the property, its misclassification, the unsuitability of its zoning, the disparity between the legal structures on the property and the zoning, and the difficulty created by the zone change on her father's current attempt to sell the property. She said an urgent need existed for consideration of an amendment to the Whiteaker Plan. Ms. Clark stated that she was unaware of required processes to prepare applications for a plan amendment and zoning change, but that she was willing to attempt to do so. She said she preferred option 2 included in the council's agenda item summary. She said that she was willing to consider having the City prepare application materials, but that, in either case, she thought it only fair that application fees be waived since the City had committed an error creating the difficult situation. Mayor Torrey determined that there were no other persons wishing to testify and closed the public hearing. MINUTES--Eugene City Council October 26, 1998 Page 3 7:30 p.m. C. Questions of Staff Ms. Taylor asked for an explanation of the advantages of staff and applicant preparing application forms. Ms. Bishow noted that advantages and disadvantages of each option were listed in the Agenda Item Summary and explained that if staff completed the application forms, the City could better integrate Planning Division and Planning Commission resources for their consideration. Essentially, the timing of preparing and processing the applications would be in the city's control if staff prepared the applications. She said that applicants normally hired professional assistance in the preparation of land use applications such as would be required by the proposed plan change because of the amount of expertise involved, but that it was not impossible for persons unfamiliar with issues involved to do so. Mr. Meisner asked for an explanation of the notice given regarding the current public hearing. Ms. Bishow explained that the property owner, Ms. Clark, and the Whiteaker Community Council had been notified of the hearing. She said that notification of property owners and residents within a certain distance of the property was not required because no land use application was involved. Mr. Meisner stated that he had been contacted by neighbors of the property who were unhappy about the potential zoning change. Mr. Meisner asked about the use of a cinder block building on the property in question at the time of the land use survey. Ms. Bishow replied that a sidewalk observation performed in 1993 had assumed that the building in question was a residence. She explained that there was no business signage, no off-street parking for the building, and its address was clearly visible. She said that it now appeared that business usage of the building had ceased at least one-year previously. She also said that a subsequent site visit revealed that the building continued to contain material used in a counter top and floor covering business and that it had been some time since the business had been in operation. Mr. Meisner asked for an explanation of the term "one development site" in a letter he had received from Mr. Clark. Ms. Bishow replied that adjoining tax lots were allowed to be considered as single development sites. She said that the property owner was only seeking to change the zoning of the property containing the cinder block building at 927 West First Avenue. Mr. Meisner asked if it would be possible for a future owner of property adjoining that under consideration to also request rezoning to mixed use. Ms. Bishow said that such a request would be possible, but that she believed provisions of the Whiteaker Plan would make approval of such a request difficult without also amending the Whiteaker Plan. Mr. Meisner noted that the single-family house previously on the property in question had been moved and its land covered with gravel. He asked if it would be possible for a business operating on the property proposed for mixed use zoning to use the property formerly occupied by the house as parking. Ms. Bishow replied that it would be possible, but that it would be considered a new development and be subject to existing Land Use Code requirements for parking lot improvements, such as landscaping. Mr. Tollenaar noted that recent court and Land Use Board of Appeals decisions required that refinement plan applications establish that all State Planning Goals are met. He suggested that doing so was a formidable task. He asked how often such applications were submitted by MINUTES--Eugene City Council October 26, 1998 Page 4 7:30 p.m. persons untrained in Oregon land use law. Planning Division Manager Jan Childs replied that no refinement plan applications processed in Eugene had been prepared or submitted by untrained persons. Ms. Swanson Gribskov asked what fees were required for the applications involved in the processes under consideration. Ms. Bishow replied that the fee to file an application to amend a refinement plan was $1,028; and the fee for a zoning change was $1,020. Ms. Swanson Gribskov stated that she appreciated the candor of staff in admitting the error in the land use survey creating the situation under consideration. She said she would support action to rectify the problem. In response to a request from Mayor Torrey, Ms. Bishow determined from Ms. Clark that it was difficult to determine when her father had ceased operating his business at the property in question. She said tools and equipment were still in the building on the property and would likely remain there until it was sold. Mayor Torrey determined there were no further questions of staff and reminded councilors that a decision on the matter was scheduled for November 9. The meeting adjourned at 8:15 p.m. Respectfully submitted, James R. Johnson City Manager (Recorded by Dan Lindstrom) MINUTES--Eugene City Council October 26, 1998 Page 5 7:30 p.m.