HomeMy WebLinkAbout09/09/2002 Work Session
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MINUTES OF THE WORK SESSION
OF THE SPRINGFIELD CITY COUNCIL
HELD ON MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2002
The Springfield City Council met in work session at Springfield City Hall, 225 Fifth Street,
Springfield, Jesse Maine Meeting Room, on Monday, September 9,2002 at 5:30 p.m. with Mayor
Leiken presiding. .
ATTENDANCE
Present were Mayor Leiken, and Councilors Ballew, Fitch, Lundberg, Ralston and Simmons.
Also present were Assistant City Manager Gino Grimaldi, City Attorney Joe Leahy, City
Recorder Kim Krebs, Police Chief Jerry Smith, and members of the staff.
Councilor Hatfield was absent (excused).
Guests: Oregon Department of Transportation Representatives Dean Fuller and Ann Sanders.
1. Planning Commission Interviews.
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Planning Supervisor Mel Oberst was present for the staff report; He said the purpose of this work
session was to conduct interviews of Planning Commission candidates and make
recommendations for appointments. Two vacancies exist on the seven-member Planning
Commission due to the expiration of terms for two Commissioners Sean Wilson and Lee Beyer.
Two applications were received for these vacancies and are from the incumbent Commissioners
Sean Wilson and Lee Beyer. Both applicants seek reappointment to a second term on the
Commission, and both reside within the city limits of Springfield, and are present for their
interviews. .
The couIicildiscussed the questions that would be asked of each applicant. The quc:stions
selected were:
· What personal or professional contributions do you think you make to the Planning
Commission?
· What role should the relationship between the Planning Commission ap.d the City
Council play in Planning Commission decisions on legislative matters such as Metro
Plan diagram amendments?
· Many of the land use laws applied by the Planning Commission are state or federally
mandated. During Planning Commission meetings how do you reconcile your own
personal opinions and beliefs and/or the interests of the applicant when they are at
odds with these mandates?'
· What roles do you feel the staff should play in contested proceedings before the
Planning commission and what do you feel is role of the Planning Commission?
· What do you see the role of the public at the Planning Commission meetings?
Mr. Sean Wilson was present for his interview.
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Mayor Leiken welcomed Mr. Wilson and asked him to briefly share some of his thoughts from
the prospective of a Planning Commissioner on what he foresees for the future of Springfield, and
why he has chosen to reapply and continue to serve on the Planning Commission.
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Mr. Wilson responded to Mayor Leiken's question.
The Council interviewed Mr. Wilson.
Mayor Leiken asked Mr. Wilson ifhe thought the annual joint meetings that the City Council
held with the Planning commission were beneficial, and whether he felt those meetings should
happen more often. He alSo. asked Mr. Wilson if he had any questions ofthe council.
Mr. Wilson said he would suggest meeting jointly at least two to three times per year. He also
stated he had no questions of the council at this time.
Mr. Lee Beyer was present for his interview.
Mayor Leiken welcomed Mr. Beyer and asked him to briefly share some of his thoughts from the
prospective of a Planning Commissioner on what he foresees for the future of Springfield, and
why he has chosen to reapply and continue to serve on the Planning Commission.
The council interviewed Mr. Beyer.
At the conclusion of the interview Mr. Beyer asked the council what they thought the most
significant issues are related to development in Springfield. .
The councilors identified which issues they felt were most significant.
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Mayor Leiken asked Mr. Beyer ifhe thought the annual joint meetings that the City Council held
with the Planning Commission were beneficial, and whether he felt those meetings should happen
more often.
Mr. Beyer said if the City Council and the Planning Commission could possibly meet for more
than a couple of hours similar to that of the. council goal setting sessions he felt that might be
beneficial. If that were feasible, he thought meeting once a year would be enough. Otherwise, he
would suggest meeting more often than once a year.
After discussion, council consensus was to reappoint the two. incumbents, and directed staff to
prepare the necessary paperwork for the ratification of these appointments at the next City
Council meeting scheduled for September 16,2002.
2. Oregon Department of Transportation CODOn Bridge and Preservation Projects.
Traffic Manager Nick Arnis was present for the staff report. He introduced representatives from
ODOT who were present. Dean Fuller, Project Leader on the Preservation Project, and Ann
Sanders Project Leader on the Bridge Project. He said both Mr. Fuller and Ms. Sanders were
present to respond to questions of the council related to the two projects.
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Mr. Arnis said ODOT will be initiating and construct two projects on Highway 126 (Franklin
Boulevard and Main Street sections) in the City of Springfield over the next few years beginning
in 2003. In 2003 the Willamette River bridge decks will be replaced. The project cost is
estimated at $2.5 million and includes replacing the deck on each bridge, installing new catch
basins, adding an eastbound bike lane, and repairing the railings: It does not include any seismic
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work. The work is expected to last ten to fifteen days for each bridge. To close the bridges
requires rerouting of traffic at the bridge entrances into downtown and Glenwood. ODOT has a
preliminary traffic plan and will hold an open house to present this plan to the downtown business
owners. ODOT is not intending on working on the bridges during the Filbert Festival. The City
Transportations Division is represented on the ODOT project team and will act as liaison between
ODOT and the business owners.
In 2004 ODOT will begin a Highway 126 preservation (overlay) project that begins on Franklin
Boulevard in Glenwood and ends at McVay Highway and then starts again at 20th Street and
proceeds to 73m Street in Thurston. There are two more sections further up Highway 126. The
project cost is estimated at $6.4 million, which includes grinding and replacing the surface of the
road and iri the Springfield section from 20th to 73rd bike lanes and pedestrian islands are
proposed.
The Franklin Boulevard section in Glenwood will experience five infrastructure projects in the
nexttwo years that are being coordinated and planned between the implementing agencies:
. Glenwood Trunk Sewer City 2003
. Water line SUB 2003
. Bus Rapid Transit LTD 2003 and 2004
. Bridge deck replacement ODOT 2003
. Road Preservation ODOT 2004
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ODOT Representative Ann Sanders referred to an overhead map and highlighted briefly the
information related to the bridge project. She identified for the council the structuresthat would
be under construction. She said traffic control would be one of the bigger issues for this project.
. It is a structural overlay of both bridges; the westbound bridge will have the repair of the historic
rail. She said a later portion ofthe project would be to come back and wash the older structure
_ sometime in the winter months. The structural overlay will be in the summer of 2003, and said
they anticipate the closure to be 10-15 days per bridge. She said there would be lane closures
during the project but most of that should take place at night. They will be applying for a special
variance permit to allow two 10-hour shifts to work. She said they would be working very
closely with the Filbert Festival to avoid any conflicts.
Councilor Ballew asked if this project would address any seismic issues?
Ms. Sanders said no, most of the seismic projects planned by ODOT have been cancelled.
Councilor Simmons asked if the work includes replacing the small end railings on the steel bridge
structure?
Ms. Sanders said yes.
Councilor Simmons said in a previous bridge report he reviewed made mention of some deck
buckling on the steel structure, and asked if that would be replaced as well?
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Ms. Sanders said she was not aware of any problems with deck buckling, they will be doing some
Class I and Class II repair.
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Councilor Simmons said if we are going to do all of this work and not do the seismic work
underneath the bridges, it strikes him as being somewhat backwards in the process. He said he
understands the funding dilemmas, and understands the successful completion ofthe project will
help stabilize the roadbed. He said again, the seismic component is an extremely critical
component.
Councilor Ralston asked when the project would begin.
Ms. Sanders said the job would be going to bid in January, and the work will take place in the
summer of2003. She said she would take the council's comments back regarding the seismic
issues and review the bridge reports that CounCilor Simmons referred to.
Ms. Sanders responded to final questions of the council related to lane and sidewalk width.
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ODOT Representative Dean Fuller said the preservation project would begin in 2004. He
highlighted where the project would take place. He said this would not be including any bike
lane treatment in Glenwood, however there are proposed bike lanes and pedestrian islands for the
. section from 20th to 52nd. He said that corridor has almost three times the state average on
bicycle accidents, and in light of that ODOT feels it is a good idea to install additional pedestrian
islands in the area as well. There will also be some channelization work being done between 41 st
and 43m to reduce some left turning movement conflicts, he said that may a contentious item
because some of the business driveways may be turned into right in right out. He said there
would be a lot of communication to the property owners in that area, as there is a lot of specific
access needs that need to be addressed and resolved before the actual project begins.
Councilor Simmons said the business owners have expressed concerns related to the impeding of
the left turns into their businesses. He said no matter what is done should be a challenge in the
process. He asked Mr. Fuller what his relationship was with Union Pacific in completing the rail
crossing at 28th. .
Mr. Fuller said they are currently trying to put the pressure on the railroad to complete the
crossing repair before ODOT begins its project.
Mr. Fuller responded to questions ofthe council related to the median strips on 58th and Main
Streets.
Councilor Fitch said she appreciates the update as it allows the council to remain informed when
they receive inquiries from citizens.
In closing, Mr. Arnis said city staff member Dean Bishop is the liaison with ODOT on the bridge
deck project, and as we get closer to the project we will probably need a liaison with businesses
and media. He said there will also be scheduled an open house that will include downtown
merchants before that project begins.
Mayor Leiken asked Councilor Fitch to preside over the meeting as he wasn't feeling well and
left the meeting at 6:30 p.m.
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3. Natural Resources Study - Council Update and Plan for Completion.
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Plaimer Mark Metzger was present for the staff report on this issue. He said the purpose of the
work session was to review and comment on a proposal by staff to complete the Springfield
portion of the Natural Resources Study.
The City Council last considered the natural Resources Study (NR Study) in March of this year.
At that meeting, compromise language describing the "significance criteria~' to be used in
identifying important natural resource sites was considered and approved. In the time following,
a number of issues have been raised by City of Eugene and Lane County that have -led staff to a
conclusion that the project might best be completed by having each jurisdiction complete the
study work for their own community and coordinate at the policy level on amendments that will
be needed in the Metro Plan.
Out of discussion about the NR Study at the August 15th Metropolitan Policy Committee (MPC),
staff was directed to prepare estimates of the time and costs for each jurisdiction to complete it's
portion of the NR Study. An estimate for completing the Springfield portion of the NR Study is
listed in Attachment 1 of the Agenda Item Summary (AlS). The estimate is based on the City
choosing to use the "standard process" as opposed to the 'safe harbor" approach to addressing
how significant natural resource sites (wetlands, riparian, and wildlife. habitat) will be protected.
The standard process allows communities to weigh and balance the economic, social, and
environment pro's and con's for allowing full development, partial development or no
development of resource sites. The sate harbor approach simply applies state established
setbacks and other protection measures without consideration for any further development of a
site.
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. A memorandum for distribution to the MPC was prepared by Kathi Wiederhold of Lane Council
of Governments and is Attachment 2 to the AlS.
Mr. Metzger reviewed the information contained in the staff report, and said the criteria for
Springfield and Eugene will probably be very similar. He responded to questions ofthe council
related to safe harbor, and financial issues.
Councilor Ballew asked Mr. Metzger to follow up on the question regarding if there were a
jurisdictional change in the future how would these different standards be addressed.
After further discussion, council consensus was to approve the Natural Resources Study as
presented.
4. Water OualitvIDetention Pond Maintenance and Ownership.
City Engineer AI Peroutka was present for the staff report. He said the purpose of this work
session was to continue discussion of the pro's and con's of public versus private maintenance
and ownership of water quality/detention ponds and discussion of dealing with the cost of such
maintenance. Staff is seeking council. direction on this issue at this time.
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Mr. Peroutka said council discussed this issue at their work session of July 22, 2002, as part of
the discussion of the proposed Engineering Design Standards and Procedures Manual. The issue
was raised during the development of that manual as the design parameters for water quality and
detention facilities were being developed, although the issue has been a matter of discussion and
concern in Public Works for some time as an issue separate from the Manual. Council requested
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a continuation of discussion of this issue and requested some additional information and analysis
from staff.
Mr. Peroutka said staff has prepared a response to City Council questions and has prepared the
response to those issues in the form of a Council Briefmg Memorandum (CBM) (Attachment A
to the AlS). He highlighted the response to each of items 1-4.
1. More specific information about the existing and planned stormwater management
ponds.
The information contained in the CBM Attachment A page 3 has a table that provides more
detailed information about the existing and planned stormwater management ponds.
2. Feedbackfrom the City Risk Manager regarding the liability implications of city
ownership of stormwater management ponds.
Public Works staff had a discussion regarding the liability issues of public ownership of the
stormwater management ponds with the city's Risk Manager and City Attorney. The consensus
from that meeting was that city-controlled maintenance, upkeep and updating of the water
quality/detention facilities was probably the most efficient method of assuring that they function
properly in the long run. The proper functioning of these systems will help the city meet the
obligations of stormwater management under the upcoming NPDES discharge permit and may
take the place of need for other regional or end-of-pipe treatment facilities.
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However, the Risk Manager prefers that ownership of facilities built as part of a sub-division
development remain with the development properties through a homeowners association or other
mechanism. The City Attorney feels that, if preferred by the City Council, the ownership could
remain with the association, but with the city retaining a maintenance easement and maintenance
responsibility for the facility. This would provide some liability protection to the city for claims
related to presence of the ponds, but no protection related to the maintenance or lack of
maintenance by the city.
3. Look at other methods of ownership for these facilities, such as a drainage district.
Per Peroutka highlighted the information contained in the CBM Attachment A Page 4 in response
to this question.
4. Discussion regarding who should pay for maintenance of the facilities.
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Mr. Peroutka said there are currently two different circumstances in existence in Springfield. He
. said the information contained in the CBM Attachment A Pages 4 & 5 that provide a more in
depth description of these two circumstances. Who pays for the on-going maintenance of the
stormwater ponds should logically follow who benefits from their existence and on-going
maintenance. On one hand, the ponds or some alternative means of managing stormwater for
water quality or detention were necessary for the very existence of the new development. But the
same can be said of other infrastructure that is built privately (such as roads, sewers and drainage)
and then taken over by the city for perpetual maintenance. On the other hand, the existence of
these ponds is a plus for the city in helping to meet our future NPDES permit obligations, as part
of our response to the salmon listings, and to reduce needs for downstream treatment, detention or
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conveyance, which may be much more expensive than the more localized stormwater
management pond systems. To a great extent the ponds being built are just a part of the
stormwater improvements necessary to begin meeting our obligations and goals for addressing
stormwater quality. Also, the fact that they received drainage from, and discharge drainage to,
the public stormwater system, logically makes them a part of that system. .
Mr. Peroutka said, staff recommends that maintenance responsibility and costs be borne by the
city as a whole, as part of the overall maintenance ofthe city's stormwater system. As noted in
the CBM, the ownership does not necessarily have to follow with the maintenance responsibility.
If the council disagrees and chooses to impose a surcharge on properties served by water
quality/detention ponds, the surcharge could be imposed as part of the stormwater utility billing.
Councilor Ballew said she would prefer private ownership; supportive of the city maintaining, but
not completely, she would suggest participation and shared costs by the benefited properties.
Mr. Peroutka responded to questions of the council related to what type of maintenance would be
necessary .
The council further discussed the advantages/disadvantages of public versus private ownership, as
well as whether maintenance should be retained by the city. They agreed that if these ponds are
not done correctly the city winds up suffering throughout the process.
After further discussion, consensus of the council was in light of the information received from
the Risk Manager, if possible they would like to leave them in private ownership; however, if it
made more sense to leave in public ownership than do so. They would like to allow staff to have
some flexibility in making the determination;, however, private ownership would be the preferred
alternative to help in alleviating some of the liability issues.
ADJOURNMENT
The meeting was adjourned at 7:08 p.m.
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Minutes Recorder - Kim Krebs
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Kim Krebs, City Record