HomeMy WebLinkAbout05/04/2009 Work Session
City of Springfield
Work Session Meeting
MINUTES OF THE WORK SESSION MEETING OF
THE SPRINGFIELD CITY COUNCIL HELD
MONDAY, MAY 4, 2009
The City of Springfield Council met in a work session in the Library Meeting Room, 225 Fifth
Street, Springfield, Oregon, on Monday, May 4, 2009 at 6:03 p.m., with Mayor Leiken presiding.
ATTENDANCE
Present were Mayor Leiken and Councilors Lundberg, Wylie, Leezer, Ralston, and Pishioneri.
Also present were City Manager Gino Grimaldi, Assistant City Manager Jeff Towery, City
Attorney Joe Leahy, City Recorder Amy Sowa and members of the staff.
I. Historic Commission Annual Report to Council.
City Planner and staff liaison to the Histone Commission Molly Markarian was present for this
item.
The Historic Commission introduced themselves.
Ted Corbin, Chair of the Historic Commission said he was Chair last year for a short time and
continued on for this year. He had been on the Commission for about six or seven years. The
Commission was doing their best to balance being active and letting things run the way the
Washburne community wanted. The Commission was very well represented, with a lot of
diversity. They had experienced some turnover in the last three or four years, but had a good mix
at this time.
Paula Guthrie said she had been on the Commission for two years. She had put together the
Downtown Walking Tour Guide and was currently revising the website. She had also done some
work on plats that would be presented to Council in the near future.
John Tuttle said he had been on the Commission for about nine years. He was the past Chair of
the Commission.
Two commissioners were not present this evening, Maren Tomlin and Sean Van Gordon.
Kuri Gill said she had served on the Commission for a few years and had worked up the Heritage
Programs.
Mayor Leiken welcomed the Historic Commission members and said he always looked forward
to this meeting.
Ms. Gill reviewed the Historic Commission goals: Goal A: Educate the Community about
Historic Preservation; Goal B: Continue Survey and Inventory Efforts; Goal C: Protect
Resources through National Register Listings; Goal D: Conduct Historical Research; Goal E:
Use Current Technology to Make Information Pertaining to Historic Preservation and Historic
Resources Available to the Public; Goal F: Develop Public Support; Goal G: Develop and Offer
Incentives to Property Owners Interested in Preserving Historic Resources; Goal H: Strengthen
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Council Work Session Minutes
May 4, 2009
Page 2
and Maintain the City's Historic Preservation Program as Part of the City's Planning and
Regulatory Efforts.
Ms. Gill said they had become more active in discussions and planning. She thanked her
colleagues on the Commission for their efforts and accomplishments.
Mr. Corbin said over the last year, applications that went through the Historic Commission had
been down. It was difficult to say what that meant. The Commission didn't police the district, but
there were some members that walked the neighborhood and hadn't seen many projects going on.
The Historic Commission wanted to make sure the Washburne continued to revitalize itself. The
goal was for the properties to gain value while maintaining some of the heritage. They tried to
make the application process accessible for residents.
Ms. Gill showed a slide of the postcard sent out to the Washburne residents and property owners
to let them know how the Historic Commission could assist them. She reviewed the Historic
Commission accomplishments from July 2007 through April 2009 (listed in Attachment 2 ofthe
agenda packet). A copy of the Walking Tour Guide and Everyday Houses, a Guide to
Springfield's Most Popular House Types 1880-1980 was provided to Council members. Ms. Gill
discussed the application to the State Historic Preservation Office (SHPO) for the Gray House
and the issues faced in that application. This house could be on the local register without being on
the National Register.
Ms. Gill discussed the Historic Commission's Proposed Projects for April 2009-April 2010
(listed in Attachment 3 in the agenda packet). The update of the Commission website would be
very helpful and they would send Council the link once it was ready. The Historic Commission
supported a SHPO historic resources survey of Post WWII era houses in the Mohawk
Neighborhood. There was a large boom in growth for Springfield during that time and they
wanted to make sure to capture that information. Many of the homes in the Mohawk
Neighborhood were still in their original design. The Commission was looking forward to
connecting with the people in the neighborhood. One of the projects for the next year would be to
participate in discussions regarding what, if any, sites in the Glenwood areas of Springfield
should be preserved as part of the Glenwood Refinement Plan Update project. She spoke about
the Main Street Program and said the program was interested in working with Springfield.
Ms. Gill said they were working to make revisions to the Historic Overlay District in the
Development Code by clarifying the application review process, correcting typographical errors,
and establishing procedures to address non-compliance with the regulations of the Historic
Overlay District that were fair and equitable.
Ms. Gill said the Commission applied for grant funding from the State Historic Preservation
Office (SHPO) to support its activities. The Commission was still drawing from its funding from
the 2008 - 2009 grant cycle, and the Commission applied for grant funding for 2009 - 2010 in
late March.
SHPO had recently changed the grant application funding cycle. Starting in 2010, applications
would be biannual and would be due to SHPO in early February. To ensure on-going
coordination with other City activities, the Historic Commission proposed the following schedule
for communicating with Council in the coming years:
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Council Work Session Minutes
May 4, 2009
Page 3
Oct 2009: Commission establishes goals, objectives, and implementation actions for 2010 -
2012
Nov 2009: Commission presents proposed activities for 2010 - 2012 to Council for review and
feedback
Jan 2010: Commission and staff present draft grant application to Executive Team for review
and feedback prior to submittal to SHPO in F eb 2010
Nov 2010: Commission presents annual report to Council on activities to date
Nov 2011: Commission presents annual report to Council on activities to date and proposes new
activities for 2012 - 2014 for review and feedback
Mayor Leiken said the City had recently received good news on funding for the Mill Race. He
would like the Historic Commission to research more about the historical value of the Mill Race.
Elias Briggs, founder of Springfield, dug most of the Mill Race by hand. He asked if the Historic
Commission could come up with some ideas about how to acknowledge that at the Mill Race. He
noted that when growing up in Roseburg, he and his friends found headstone markers for four of
General Joseph Lane's children at his elementary school. That area was now fenced in as a
historic property. The Mill Race was important and it was important to understand why it was
there in the first place.
Councilor Lundberg agreed that the Mill Race had historical importance and the City and Parks
District were working to make it a place for all to enjoy. Another area she was interested in was
Willamette Heights over to Dorris Ranch, where the Briggs House was located. There were
historical buildings there, so it would be interesting to tie those places together. There was huge
potential for a place to show off and learn more about our history.
Ms. Guthrie said when talking to Bob Keefer, Superintendent from Willamalane Parks and
Recreation District, about Dorris Ranch, they told him there needed to be more signage on Main
Street and South A Streets noting the many amenities at the ranch. We needed to draw people to
that area more. She had done four years of research on Elias Briggs and hoped to write a book
about him. Her notes included the significance of the Mill Race.
Councilor Lundberg said the two books distributed were wonderful.
Councilor Wylie said Rotary had a presentation from RiverBend regarding the gravesites found
on that site and the research of the family. They had reunited the graves from the RiverBend site
to the rest of the family on the hillside family graveyard. The presenter brought a map showing
the pioneer graveyards in our community. She would like to see more information about how we
had researched our history.
Councilor Pishioneri said the Commission did great work and he was anxious to see the website.
He asked if they had a pictorial or catalogue of all the homes in the Historic District.
Ms. Guthrie said the only thing like that was a reference book in the Library. There was no
database with photos and descriptions. That was another project she would like to undertake.
City of Springfield
Council Work Session Minutes
May 4, 2009
Page 4
Councilor Pishioneri said it could be a way to memorialize it in case of a catastrophic event. He
said he appreciated their work and was proud to be Council liaison to this commission.
Mr. Corbin asked Ms. Gill if the cemetery at Willamette Heights had been involved in the State's
efforts.
Ms. Gill said as of last Thursday, it had not. To do anything significant there, some ground
penetrating radar would fIrst need to be done to see if there was still anyone there. Most of the
burials were removed at some point, but it was not clear how many.
Mr. Corbin said the current commission had a strong interest in education for citizens and the
neighborhoods. The Council was expressing an interest in making things more visible. Over the
next year or two, many of the efforts from the Commission would move in that direction. A
couple of new members were very excited and delivering good products. The Commission really
wanted to stay on track with the Council and their interests. Downtown was important to the
Washburne neighbors and they were happy with the way things were going.
Councilor Pishioneri said Springfield's downtown had a number of historic buildings still in
place, unlike some cities. We had the Mill Race, downtown, and the Washburne District. He felt
that design standards that complimented what we had instead of taking away would be beneficial.
Mr. Corbin said "Feet on the Street" waskey to the health of Booth Kelly, Downtown, and
Washburne. Historic neighborhoods were fantastic because people still walked through them, and
the great ones were close enough for people to walk to do their shopping.
Mr. Tuttle said the Commission couldn't function as well as they did without the staff provided
for them. He encouraged the City to make sure staff continued to be funded to help.
Community Relations Manager Niel Laudati said next year was Springfield's 125th Anniversary.
It could be a very good year for the Historic Commission if the City could partner with them on
events. One of the things they were planning was a historic 5k run/walk through the Washburne
District. He would be working with the Commission on that and other events.
2. I-5 Willamette River Bridge Proiect Update.
Planning Manager Greg Mott presented the staff report on this item. The I-5 bridge project began
in 2003 when state bridge inspectors determined that the now decommissioned I-5 bridge could
no longer safely support the weight of to day's freight trucks. The temporary bridge was
completed in 2005 and was not intended to be in use past 2015. ODOT secured funding'for the
permanent replacement bridge in 2007 and is ready to commence the final phase of this project.
Dick Upton, I-5 Willamette River Bridge Project Manager, was present to provide an update to
the Council.
Mr. Upton thanked Council for the opportunity to present this item. He said he would not be
going through the information in the packet, but rather point out the project details on the map on
the wall. He was here to provide information to the Council as construction of the bridge began.
He expressed appreciation to City staff, including Mr. Mott, who was a member of the citizen
advisory committee; Planner Mark Metzger, who helped work through the permitting process;
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Council Work Session Minutes
May 4, 2009
Page 5
and Transportation Manager Tom Boyatt, who helped ODOT secure some enhancement funding.
He appreciated the partnership.
Mr. Upton said the core of this project was replacing the old structure over the Willamette River.
The replacement would be twin structures, each capable of carrying three lanes, although they
would each start out carrying two. Because of additional clearance needed over the railroad and
Glenwood Boulevard, they would be raising the bridge three or four feet. In doing that, they
needed to re-track the horizontal alignments. He referred to the area on the map that would have
to be reworked in order to elevate the bridge. That elevation put the canal bridge at the wrong
elevation relative to the new construction, so it would also need to be replaced. They would also
be doing some work on the ramps for the same reason.
Mr. Upton said the map showed the fIrst phase of work. During construction, they would try to
keep bike traffic going. There would be some impacts near the Mill Race. As an agreement with
SHPO, they would be doing some research around the history ofthe Mill Race and building an
interpretative center. He had noted that he would talk to the Historic Commission about that
project to make sure ODOT included things the Historic Commission wanted.
Councilor Pishioneri asked about one area on the east side.
Mr. Upton said they would be building work bridges and containment structures across the river
that would give them a platform. The area Councilor Pishioneri noted was access at that end of
the work platforms. They would also have access at the other end. In doing so, they were building
an alignment to drive construction trucks on. They would also be impacting and shifting around
the bike path. Through most of the alignment they were at grade. He referred to the map and
explained further.
Councilor Pishioneri spoke regarding outflows and if that had been coordinated with the City.
Mr. Mott said Public Works (PW) were sending crews out to survey the condition of that
waterway. They were preparing some documents to enter onto the property and remove some
blackberries. That would be a significant component of the Stormwater Master Plan. PW was
aware ofODOT's interest in this as well as the Oregon Department ofFish and Wildlife (ODFW)
and the Division of State Lands.
Mr. Upton said they were anticipating starting construction on the south bank on May 18. The
first thing they would be doing was moving in on the bike path. Based on the timing for permits
they needed from national parks to do any work in the park, and because of the salmon run that
used the north bank in June, July and August, they would start on the path work in about mid-
June. They wouldn't be starting in the water on the north side until early or late August. They
would be working with the national fisheries to make sure the salmon had passed before they
went into the water. They expected that most of the construction would start from the south. Once
the work bridge was in place, they would begin taking down the existing relic structure. It would
be crushed up so it could be re-used.
Councilor Wylie asked when the big construction would start.
Mr. Upton said that should start in September. This was a very large project. Things would most
likely come up monthly that would affect their schedule.
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Council Work Session Minutes
May 4, 2009
Page 6
Councilor Wylie said she often drove under the old bridge and saw the extent of the damage. She
asked how they would take the old bridge down over the roadway.
Mr. Upton said there would be times when Franklin Boulevard would be closed, mostly
weekends and nights. They were working on a detour. The device to take it down was a machine
with 'jaws' that chewed and crunched up the pieces.
Mayor Leiken asked if they needed demolition permits from the City or someone else.
Mr. Mott said it was not the City. The City had provided all the permits we had the authority to
review and issue. The City had no jurisdiction regarding their building or, demolition permits.
Mr. Upton said relative to the greenway permit, ODOT had described the work they would be
doing.
Mayor Leiken said he was fine with the project, but there could be some neighborhoods that were
interested.
Mr. Upton said they would meet with each of the neighborhoods to talk about the project. He
described the further steps in this project. They would work on the south alignment to make it the
new detour. Once the south alignment was finished, they would move traffic off the temporary
structure onto the southbound, and would shift the containment structures over and begin work on
the southbound bridge, then the northbound lanes. Southbound should be starting up late this Fall
(2009) and would continue through the Summer of201O. Around the Fall of2010, they expected
to shift to the north. Northbound work should continue through the 2011 and early 2012. In the
summer of2012, they would pull the old structures out of the water. The target completion date
was December 2012.
Discussion was held regarding offramps.
Mr. Mott asked if they would be constructing any soundwalls.
Mr. Upton said they had soundwalls planned for several areas. He noted those locations on the
map. They fIrst needed to present the impacted neighbors with the proposal and make sure more
than half wanted the wall.
Councilor Pishioneri discussed the need for high security around the construction site. He asked
about future on and off ramps.
Mr. Upton said they had not explored that in this process. There was discussion about creating
ramps into Springfield. There was a project discussing how to provide access into Springfield in
several locations.
Councilor Pishioneri asked if this construction would preclude that possibility.
Mr. Upton said it would not.
ADJOURNMENT
City of Springfield
Council Work Session Minutes
May 4, 2009
Page 7
The meeting was adjourned at 6:58 p.m.
Minutes Recorder - Amy Sowa
Attest:
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Amy So
City Recorder