Planning Commission

AGENDA Meeting Location: Sloat Room—Atrium Building Phone: 541-682-5481 99 W. 10th Avenue www.eugene-or.gov/pc Eugene, OR 97401 The Eugene Planning Commission welcomes your interest in these agenda items. Feel free to come and go as you please at any of the meetings. This meeting location is wheelchair- accessible. For the hearing impaired, FM assistive-listening devices are available, or an interpreter can be provided with 48 hours’ notice prior to the meeting. Spanish-language interpretation will also be provided with 48 hours’ notice. To arrange for these services, contact the Planning Division at 541-682-5675. TUESDAY JULY 09, 2019 – REGULAR MEETING (5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.) A. PUBLIC COMMENT The Planning Commission reserves 10 minutes at the beginning of this meeting for public comment. The public may comment on any matter, except for items scheduled for public hearing or public hearing items for which the record has already closed. Generally, the time limit for public comment is three minutes; however, the Planning Commission reserves the option to reduce the time allowed each speaker based on the number of people requesting to speak. B. WORK SESSION: Moving Ahead (30 Minutes) Staff: Chris Henry/Public Works Contact: CHenry@eugene-or.gov 541-682-8472 C. DELIBERATIONS/ACTION: Appeal of the Hearing's Official Denial of a Zone Change for Simons Investment (Z 19-1) Staff: Rodney Bohner Contact: RBohner@eugene-or.gov 541-682-5437 D. ITEMS FROM COMMISSION AND STAFF 1. Other Items from Staff 2. Other Items from Commission 3. Learning: How are we doing? Commissioners: Steven Baker; John Barofsky; Tiffany Edwards (Vice Chair); Lisa Fragala; Chris Ramey; Ken Beeson; Kristen Taylor (Chair) MEMORANDUM To: Eugene Planning Commission From: Chris Henry, Transportation Planning Engineer, City of Eugene Andrew Martin, Development Planning Associate, Lane Transit District Terri Harding, Principal Planner, City of Eugene Date: July 9, 2019 Subject: MovingAhead Project Update The City of Eugene and Lane Transit District (LTD), with the help of other regional partners, are collaborating on the MovingAhead project to determine how best to invest in the main corridors that connect neighborhoods, shopping areas and places of employment. Building on years of long-range planning in the community, MovingAhead is an implementation effort that will result in prioritized investments in transit, walking and biking projects in each of five corridors that are identified in Envision Eugene, LTD’s Long-Range Transit Plan, and the Eugene 2035 Transportation System Plan. Since staff last updated the Planning Commission in November 2018, the project completed a second round of public outreach on proposed investment packages and further refined the range based on public feedback. Staff will share the results of that outreach with Eugene City Council and LTD’s Board of Directors on July 15, 2019. Staff will also seek direction on which range packages of investments to take out for a public hearing in fall 2019. Staff expect to engage with Eugene City Council and LTD’s Board of Directors in late 2019 and early 2020 for a public hearing, deliberations, and final decision making. BACKGROUND In 2015, the MovingAhead project kicked off with public workshops held along the corridors under consideration. At each workshop, local residents were asked to design their ideal street to accommodate people walking, biking, using mobility devices, driving and using transit. After gathering that public input, the project team developed conceptual designs on which the formal technical analysis was conducted. These conceptual designs include Enhanced Corridor and Emerald Express alternatives, as well as a No-Build alternative. Using the conceptual designs, staff conducted rigorous analysis in 17 environmental disciplines to inform decision making and meet federal National Environmental Poly Act (NEPA) environmental clearance requirements. In September 2018, staff published the results as the MovingAhead Alternatives Analysis Report. Concurrently, staff engaged the community in a first round of public outreach from September 10 through October 10, 2018. Members of the public were encouraged to provide feedback on the findings of the Alternatives Analysis, including their preferred alternatives and criteria they found most important in evaluating the corridors. PROJECT UPDATE Following the publication of an Alternatives Analysis and first public comment period in fall 2018, staff worked with several committees for the project to develop a range of investment packages to take out for a second public review period. In February 2019, staff updated the Eugene City Council and LTD’s Board of Directors on the results of the Alternatives Analysis and the first public outreach period. At that time, City Council and LTD’s Board affirmed the proposed investment packages for public review. Second Public Outreach Period MovingAhead project staff held a second public comment period from March 11 through April 10, 2019. Community members were asked to weigh in on the proposed investment packages and criteria used to evaluate the packages. An online open house was available for the entire 30 day period and an in-person open house welcomed community members on March 18, 2019. Staff shared information and generated interest in the comment period by directly mailing property owners and residents along the corridors, through community newsletters, online advertising and social media, tabling at community events, presentations to local groups, driving LTD’s Outreach Bus to many of the corridors, and much more. Throughout the period, staff shared information about the project, but most importantly, listened to feedback, concerns, and desires of community members. The results of the public outreach period were released as an appendix to the MovingAhead Investment Packages Alternatives Supplemental Refinement Report, which is attached below as Attachment A. Refined Investment Packages Staff analyzed public feedback and used the results of the comment period to refine the proposed investment packages. Attachment A contains the refined packages and methodology for the refinements. The MovingAhead project has a formalized committee structure that makes recommendations to staff and decision makers. The MovingAhead Oversight Committee formally recommended an altered version of the staff recommendation for refined packages, described below. LTD’s Strategic Planning Committee (SPC) makes a formal recommendation to LTD’s Board of Directors on matters related to the project. SPC made an identical recommendation as the Oversight Committee. Proposed Investment Packages as Recommended by Oversight Committee and SPC Package Highway 99 River Road 30th Ave to LCC Coburg Road MLK, Jr Blvd Enhanced Corridor EC EC EC EC EC Original Package C EC EmX EC EC EC Modified Package C EC EmX EC EmX EC EmX EmX EmX EmX EmX EC MovingAhead Project Update - Page 2 NEXT STEPS MovingAhead project staff will present the results of the second outreach period. Staff will seek affirmation that the proposed investment packages are correct to take out for a public hearing in fall 2019. After a public hearing, staff intend to engage the Eugene City Council and LTD’s Board in joint and individual deliberations during the fall and winter of 2019. In early 2020, staff expect both bodies will be ready to select an investment package that will set a 10-year vision of investment along Eugene’s key corridors. Steps remaining before the implementation of MovingAhead. PLANNING COMMISSION ROLE The MovingAhead project includes an Oversight Committee and a Sounding Board. The Oversight Committee is comprised of elected officials and executive staff from the City, LTD, ODOT, and Lane County, while the Sounding Board’s members come from and represent numerous City of Eugene and LTD committees and commissions. Both entities review project proposals and offer critical feedback to the project management team. They also act as conduits back to their constituencies and fellow committee/commission members. Planning Commissioners participate on the Sounding Board, which has met regularly leading up to Council and LTD Board decision making. RELATED CITY POLICIES The MovingAhead project is in alignment and consistent with policy direction contained in the following: Envision Eugene, Eugene 2035 Transportation System Plan, LTD Long-Range Transit Plan, and Regional Transportation Plan. COMMISSION ACTION This is an informational item. No action is requested. ATTACHMENTS A. MovingAhead Investment Packages Alternatives Supplemental Refinement Report (with Outreach Summary) - http://www.movingahead.org/wp- content/uploads/2019/05/Investment_Packages_Alternatives_Refinement_Report.pdf MovingAhead Project Update - Page 3 FOR MORE INFORMATION Please visit the project website at www.MovingAhead.org. Staff Contact: Chris Henry, Transportation Planning Engineer Telephone: 541-682-8472 Staff E-Mail: CHenry@eugene-or.us Staff Contact: Terri Harding, Principal Planner Telephone: 541-682-5635 Staff E-Mail: THarding@eugene-or.gov Staff Contact: Andrew Martin, Lane Transit District Development Planning Associate Telephone: 541-682-6116 Staff E-Mail: Andrew.Martin@ltd.org MovingAhead Project Update - Page 4