Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutApproved Minutes - 2020-05-19 CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING +--+ MINUTES May 19, 2020 1. CALL TO ORDER Mayor Studebaker called the regular City Council meeting to order at 3:05 p.m. on May 19, 2020. This meeting was conducted virtually via Zoom. 2. ROLL CALL Present: Mayor Studebaker and Councilors Nguyen, LaMotte, Wendland, Manz, Kohlhoff, O'Neill Staff Present: Martha Bennett, City Manager; David Powell, City Attorney; Anne-Marie Simpson, City Recorder; Megan Phelan, Assistant City Manager; Erica Rooney, City Engineer; Stephan Broadus, Assistant City Engineer; Scot Siegel, Planning and Building Services Director; Erik Olson, Senior Planner; Katy Kerklaan, Citizen Information Specialist; Ivan Anderholm, Parks and Recreation Director Others present: Lucinda Broussard, Oregon Department of Transportation; Heather Wills, WSP 3. PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE The Pledge of Allegiance was not recited. 4. PROCLAMATION 4.1 High School Senior Week The Mayor read a proclamation honoring Lake Oswego High School Seniors during Senior Week May 25-29, 2020 and congratulated the graduating class of 2020. 5. CITIZEN COMMENT • Sister Mary Rita Rohde, 17590 Gleason Dr, Lake Oswego City Council Regular Meeting Minutes Page 1 of 10 May 19, 2020 Sister Rohde stated she was on the Leadership Team for the Sisters of the Holy Names of the United States, which had offices located on the Marylhurst University Campus. Since the closing of the University, the sisters had been considering what to do with the campus property that had reverted to their ownership. They wanted to maintain the campus and buildings, possibly serving unmet community needs. Meetings were held with many organizations, neighbors, and other community members to receive input and every group's comments had focused on the need for affordable housing. The sisters contacted Mercy Housing Northwest, who would conduct a feasibility study for establishing a housing community on the back of the campus. The process revealed the need to rezone the campus to allow for multi-family housing, and that was her request of the City Council. She addressed clarifying questions, noting the rezoning needed to be done by the end of December, as Mercy Housing Northwest needed to start its application process for affordable housing funding in January. She knew an overall master plan was done for the campus some years ago, but she did not have further knowledge of it. Mercy Housing would be toward the back of the campus and would not be the entire plan. Other uses planned for the campus included leasing to non-profit organizations, such as the educational group the Sisters were talking to currently. They believed everything else would fall under the Campus Institutional Zone. She confirmed that 75 to 100 affordable housing units were proposed. Councilor Nguyen expressed his appreciation that Sister Rhode had come before Council, adding he had always hoped a purpose befitting the beauty of the campus could be found. • Colin Morgan-Cross, Mercy Housing Northwest, 6930 Martin Luther King Jr Way S, Seattle Mr. Morgan-Cross, Director of Real Estate Development, Mercy Housing Northwest, described the history of Mercy Housing and the Sisters of the Holy Names, noting Mercy Housing's recent focus was to provide affordable workforce housing and community for families. They wanted to preserve the historical significance of the Marylhurst campus, and Mercy Housing's development goals for environmentally sustainable, community-integrated design and to provide spaces for family and children aligned with the Sisters' goals for housing. He appreciated the speed at which Council was considering the rezoning, noting housing funding awards typically occurred once a year, so rezoning the property before the end of the year would help bring the resource to the community to help meet the housing needs of nearby workers and families as quickly as possible. Councilor LaMotte noted as a prior Task Force member for the University, he saw many development proposals had no consideration of the overall campus. City Council and the City's Planning Department would want to work from a bigger master plan vision for the campus to learn how a mix of housing, including for sale and rentals, would fit. Many seniors lived alone in houses that were too big or too expensive, and could downsize to affordable housing if condos or townhouses were available, as well as apartments. Councilor Kohlhoff received clarification that the typical definition of workforce housing was income below 80 percent of the area median income (AMI), and confirmed Mercy Housing was considering a 50 to 60 percent AMI range. Sister Rhode clarified for Councilor LaMotte that there had been no further planning for the campus other than to be certain that the priority would be affordable housing due to the need. City Council Regular Meeting Minutes Page 2 of 10 May 19, 2020 The Sisters had no intention of building anything other than affordable workforce housing at this point and they had not entertained building and selling any property. Mayor Studebaker thanked Sister Rhode and Mr. Morgan-Cross, adding he expected the rezoning to move forward. 6. STUDY SESSION 6.1 1-5/1-205 Tolling Project Update Ms. Broussard updated Council on the 1-205 and 1-5 tolling project, noting its milestones and timeline, as well as the reasons for tolling and how it would function. Responses had been received on the project following requests for public engagement, and several opportunities were coming up for the public and community stakeholders to provide input. An Equity and Mobility Advisory Committee (EMAC) would be involved as well to hear from those with equity and mobility in their professional work or through other experiences. Forty-eight applications were received for the three at-large positions on the EMAC and the first meeting would be held in June. A travel preference survey was launched in March a few weeks before the COVID-19 outbreak and 60 percent of the respondents stated no congestion existed. Another survey would be conducted when the "new normal" was reached. She finished by highlighting previous and upcoming activities related to the project. In response to Mayor Studebaker's question, Ms. Broussard said she understood enough funding was available to meet the timeline even with the impacts of COVID-19, which revealed a different mode of travel that would improve traffic modeling. She did not believe COVID-19 would affect the project financially. The stay at home order would only have a small impact, perhaps 4 to 6 percent, not 40 to 60 percent. She clarified the tolling locations on 1-205 had not yet been determined. Councilor Manz raised the issue of vulnerable communities who could not work at home and would need public transportation, and asked if that would be taken into consideration in the "new normal." Ms. Broussard replied that the equity framework would be considered a benchmark for the tolling project. ODOT was also working on that issue. Councilor LaMotte noted the County's Economic Development Commission (EDC) had raised concerns about tolling impacts on lower-income people and about pushing drivers onto already- congested local roads. He asked if ODOT and the consultants had considered those impacts. Ms. Broussard answered yes, those impacts would be considered, but added that no existing model showed the increases in congestion. She welcomed other data sources that could be compared to the ODOT data to show the difference. In June and July the modeling would be mostly complete, and a meeting would be held to present the data. Diversion was already occurring. The survey showed that 36 to 39 percent of the respondents already used alternative routes. The question as to why 60 percent of the respondents said no congestion existed might be answered with additional data from other sources. Councilor Nguyen said he was most concerned about the inequities regarding tolling on those who could not work from home, especially in light of COVID-19, who would bear the burden of City Council Regular Meeting Minutes Page 3 of 10 May 19, 2020 tolling disproportionately. Considering the equity lens, why did the EMAC have only three at- large members? Ms. Broussard clarified that three members would be at-large and 12 would be general members. Everyone at the table would bring something different to provide a broad spectrum of input and knowledge from many different viewpoints. Councilor Wendland expressed concerns about electronic tolling, its costs, and the need for transponders for vehicles, since a tolling system did not currently exist in Oregon. He wanted to ensure some tolling funds were used for improvements versus overhead costs and administration. He was also concerned about people who did not have credit cards or other financial resources getting fines because they were the least able to pay. Ms. Broussard agreed some drivers would not have a transponder, but a number of ways existed to pay a toll without getting a toll violation. Plans were to educate the public through marketing campaigns to minimize tolling fines for those who might not know about tolling. The EMAC might advise the Transportation Commission about discounts or other ways to address the issue. Targeting low income individuals was not the goal of the program. Councilor Kohlhoff stated that although comments were being sought, she understood that tolling was happening regardless of public input and engagement with the plan. Regarding the Mayor's concern about funding, she noted ODOT had severe financial problems and she wondered what the impacts would be on tolling. Ms. Broussard replied she would have an ODOT representative report back to Council about the finances, but she knew her project continued to move forward. Councilor O'Neill asked about any issues in getting legislation passed for tolling if federal money was used to build 1-205 and 1-5. Stafford Road and Highway 43 went through Lake Oswego, and he was concerned drivers would cut through the city to avoid paying tolls. Those in the construction industry driving in to work in the metro area would be affected and the extra costs passed onto clients could impact affordable housing. Ms. Broussard replied the tolls had dual objectives of revenue generation and influencing traffic demand; she believed drivers would pay a toll rather than taking more time avoid it. The leveling out of traffic and delivering a faster, reliable trip would be more important than paying the toll. 7. COUNCIL BUSINESS 7.1 Resolution 20-15, A Resolution of the City Council of the City of Lake Oswego Adopting an Amendment to the Wastewater Master Plan Mr. Broadus introduced Resolution 20-15 and the amendment to the 2013 update of the Wastewater Master Plan adopted by Council in 2013. He reviewed the history of the modifications to the Plan over the years, noting the input parameters for the model on which the Master Plan was based had changed over the years. The scope of the amendment was a refinement of the existing Master Plan to change the input parameters to a higher level of detail in order to increase the accuracy of the model. Rerunning the model revealed that some projects identified in the Master Plan had changed for a variety of reasons. He reviewed the five projects needing an update. None of the modified projects would affect development for future growth in the city. No recommendations were suggested for rates or system development City Council Regular Meeting Minutes Page 4 of 10 May 19, 2020 charges (SDCs). His recommendation was to adopt the resolution. He confirmed that money was available in the Wastewater Fund and that dig-once opportunities were consistently sought. Councilor Wendland moved to adopt the 2019 Amendment to the 2013 Update of the Wastewater Master Plan. Councilor Manz seconded the motion. A roll call vote was held and the motion passed, with Mayor Studebaker and Councilors Nguyen, LaMotte, Wendland, Manz, Kohlhoff, and O'Neill voting `aye.' (7-0) 7.2 Grant Application for House Bill 2001 Planning Assistance Mr. Siegel introduced the agenda item, noting the grant funding would be an excellent opportunity for the City to get a jump start on the HB 2001 work. Mr. Olson described the implementation of the bill and the process going forward. Discussion was still happening at the State level, so the wait for clarity on the bill would be several months. He confirmed that State grant funds were available. More interest had been expressed in the housing production strategy-related grants and a bit less interest in grants going for Development of Code alternatives to consider, so he believed the City had a good chance for a grant. Councilor LaMotte asked when the HB 2001 guidelines would be issued from the State. Mr. Olson responded that a hearing was proposed at the Department of Land Conservation Development (DLCD) in late fall, which he believed was ambitious. More details would be in the proposed drafts expected in the summer that would provide more insight. The State's model code draft and minimum requirements were expected to be available then. Hopefully, the model code would only be relevant if the City were not able to adopt Code amendments that were compliant, so the City would focus on complying with the minimum requirements. Councilor LaMotte asked about the City's timeline to get ahead of the State issuing its model code regarding HB 2001. Mr. Olson explained the City needed to adopt provisions that were compliant by June 30, 2022, which was a rush considering the large and complex effort involved. Mr. Siegel added the strategy was to address HB 2001 in two phases. Now was an excellent time for Phase 1, the reconnaissance work the neighborhoods would need so the City could break the design context down into component parts, which was not a high touch process. When funds were available, a consultant would be deployed to work with Staff on data collection and on presenting information about the neighborhoods and the design context, which would be used in a format to easily engage in the larger community conversation process in 2021-2022 on how the City would respond to the minimum requirements and what should be customized for Lake Oswego. Councilor Wendland moved to authorize the Mayor to sign a letter supporting the City's grant application to DLCD for work on HB 2001. Councilor Kohlhoff seconded the motion. A roll call vote was held and the motion passed, with Mayor Studebaker and Councilors Nguyen, LaMotte, Wendland, Manz, Kohlhoff, and O'Neill voting `aye.' (7-0) City Council Regular Meeting Minutes Page 5 of 10 May 19, 2020 7.3 Rezoning of Properties for Affordable Housing Mr. Siegel introduced the two rezoning requests for direction from Council, one for the Boones Ferry staging property and the second for the Marylhurst campus. Staff believed both requests were consistent with Council's affordable housing goal and that an opportunity existed to capitalize on the available Metro Housing Bond funds both through Clackamas County and through Metro. Timing was important to allow for partnerships, solicitation of proposals from developers, and for competing for funds from Metro. Rezoning the properties would require updates to the Comprehensive Plan and an opportunity for public input, but direction from Council was needed before proceeding. He briefly reviewed the standards for affordable housing, highlighted the timeline, and explained the public hearing process to fulfill the request for rezoning by the end of the year. Mayor Studebaker noted that the former Mercantile Village property on Boones Ferry Road would have 200 multi-family units and asked if any would meet the standards for workforce or affordable housing. Mr. Siegel responded that housing would be available to the local workforce, but the cost would be market rate. Discussion with the developer had not resulted in an obligation to provide affordable housing, and the Code did not address affordable or inclusionary housing. He noted the estimated market range from last year for a one-bedroom apartment was $1,300 to $1,400 and $1,700 to $1,800 for a two-bedroom. A needs analysis must be prepared if the Comprehensive Plan was to be changed due to rezoning, and that would include an assurance that the targeted need for housing would be addressed through what would be built. Councilor Wendland asked about the definition of workforce housing for the Marylhurst site and who would be included in meeting those requirements. He supported the changes but did not want the City to subsidize the costs and did not want the housing to be exclusively for those in the Marylhurst community. Mr. Siegel noted the Fair Housing Act would prohibit any exclusive restrictions, but Marylhurst could market the housing to its workforce. Councilor LaMotte asked if the Boones Ferry Road parcel was rezoned, but no housing project was built there, could it still be used for office/commercial, the current zoning. Mr. Siegel replied several scenarios would be considered, one could be mixed-use, which would continue to allow commercial or office/commercial, as well as housing. Ultimately, a rezoning of that area would have to meet the Comprehensive Plan criteria. The neighborhood plan focused any zone changes to higher density along major arterials, like Boones Ferry Road. As the owner of the property, the City had a lot of control over its end use. He confirmed a rezoning would not deter someone from pursuing a project for which the City would receive top dollar if it sold. The City was the applicant for this rezoning request. Marylhurst was different in that currently the Comprehensive Plan had it planned as a Campus Institutional use. It had no private development. Taking the property out of Campus Institutional Use or a nonprofit use was a policy decision. The City-owned site was zoned for commercial development. Councilor LaMotte clarified the two types of zoning for Boones Ferry Road and Marylhurst, noting a rezoning on Boones Ferry Road would immediately allow for affordable housing, or perhaps market rate housing as a fall back. Because the City was the owner it could work closely with the developer, especially with regard to bond funds or SDC waivers. The Marylhurst Campus was controlled by Marylhurst, which could request market rate housing. Mr. Siegel responded that was why it would be important to work with the property owner on zoning that required a City Council Regular Meeting Minutes Page 6 of 10 May 19, 2020 change to the Comprehensive Plan, but it would ultimately be a policy decision to even allow housing there. If the policy was for workforce housing, the Plan should state that. The solicitation for development on Boones Ferry Road could specify what type of housing the City was seeking. Councilor LaMotte said he would like to see a range of affordable housing offered at Marylhurst and would like to fast track the project. Councilor O'Neill asked if the current staging area at Boones Ferry Rd would be used for Stage II of the Boones Ferry project. Mr. Siegel replied that was a topic for discussion at another time. Rezoning would still leave those options open. Mayor Studebaker moved to initiate Comprehensive Plan and zoning changes for multifamily affordable housing. Councilor LaMotte seconded the motion. Mr. Powell noted the City Manager had the authority to waive the application fees associated with the zone changes, which could be significant. He confirmed the Council's concurrence on waiving the fees. Councilor Kohlhoff believed the income for the segment of population looking to rent would decrease due to COVID-19 impacts. She would like the Planning Commission to get involved in the decision-making process to, at the very least, have the option to develop Boones Ferry Road with the addition of Metro funds or with other non-profits. Councilor Wendland offered a friendly amendment to finalize the rezoning for Marylhurst by the end of 2020 to meet the Marylhurst deadline. Mayor Studebaker and Councilor LaMotte accepted the amendment to the main motion, adding that the Marylhurst rezoning be completed by the end of 2020. A roll call vote was held and the motion passed, with Mayor Studebaker and Councilors Nguyen, LaMotte, Wendland, Manz, Kohlhoff, and O'Neill voting 'aye.' (7-0) 7.4 Council Briefing on Community and City Issues During the City's Declared State of Emergency Ms. Bennett gave a quick overview of the day's Clackamas County Commission meeting. The Commission voted to approve the draft reopening plan for Phase 1 to be submitted to the State on Thursday. County staff said the state review and decision could take up to a week. Ms. Bennett proposed that May 26 mark the final special City Council meeting; if the County moved into Phase 1 staff would be busy planning for reopening. Ms. Bennett noted that Phase 1 would allow gatherings of up to 25 people with physical distancing, which meant future meetings might be a hybrid of virtual and in-person. Ms. Phelan gave an overview of the City's reopening guide, which had four phases and would evolve over time based on information received regarding best practices. The current planning phase had facilities still closed to the public. The key focus of the phase was to prepare for more City employees returning to work and determining how to reopen to the public by appointment only. Phase 1 would mean access to City services would be different. Signage would be placed throughout the facility regarding best practices in preventing the spread of COVID-19. The timeline for transitions would be based on the County's reopening plan approval from the State, City Council Regular Meeting Minutes Page 7 of 10 May 19, 2020 guidance from medical professionals, and other relevant criteria as determined by the City Manager and Emergency Operations Center (EOC). This timeline would also be based on the City's comfort level with the guidance provided by the State and County. Many services were being provided online or by phone, and in-person appointments would follow appropriate protocols. Each phase would be followed by a 21-day period to allow for evaluation and to assess the safety and health of employees and the public. Lifting restrictions came with a risk, but staff was taking that seriously and with caution. Councilor O'Neill asked what would happen if Clackamas County reopened before Multnomah County. Ms. Phelan replied that topic would be part of the discussion with the EOC in the coming weeks, because it could have impacts on public services and facilities. Further information would be available later this week. Councilor Wendland asked when court proceedings would start up. Ms. Phelan replied that virtual court proceedings had already begun in Municipal Court. For cases requiring an appearance before a judge, protocols were created so it could be done safely. Cases would be spaced apart by about an hour to allow for cleaning in between. Ms. Kerklaan described the implementation of the strategic communications strategy, messaging, and announcements. Positive news was often shared on social media, such as stories about neighbors helping neighbors, Staff videos, and photo collages. Followers across all platforms had increased steadily since February. Messaging was now transitioning to communicating changes in City services and adjustments to be made to operating procedures. Her group was brainstorming how to message the new environment everyone was in. Face coverings and physical distancing would still be necessary, and everyone was adapting to a new way of living during a pandemic. Staff members Nell Diamond and Dave Arpin created the 'New Days New Ways' motto and a logo that represented the transition period. A New Days New Ways communications plan was created as a supplement to the overarching Coronavirus Strategic Communications Plan and contained goals, key messaging, and notification protocols for releasing information about restoration of City services and changes or adjustments in response to the Governor's phased framework and the county's reopening. Councilor LaMotte suggested that the Woodmont Park and Iron Mountain Park project updates and site plans be shared as part of the positive news. Also deserving mention was the undergrounding of utilities on Boones Ferry Road as it made the area look tremendous. 8. CONSENT AGENDA 8.1 Roehr Park Trail and Bridge Replacement Project (WO 283) Motion: Move to award a public improvement contract with Emery and Sons Construction for construction of the Roehr Park Trail and Bridge Replacement Project (WO 283) in the amount of $363,765.25. 8.2 Approval of Meeting Minutes Motion: Move to approve minutes as written. City Council Regular Meeting Minutes Page 8 of 10 May 19, 2020 Councilor Manz moved to adopt the consent agenda. Councilor LaMotte seconded the motion. A roll call vote was held and the motion passed, with Mayor Studebaker and Councilors Nguyen, LaMotte, Wendland, Manz, Kohlhoff, and O'Neill voting `aye.' (7-0) 9. ITEMS REMOVED FROM THE CONSENT AGENDA No items were removed. 10. INFORMATION FROM COUNCIL Councilor Kohlhoff shared that she would be listening in on an ODOT call about the Safe Routes to School construction program. ODOT allocated $26 million in grants and would select 30 communities to receive Safe Routes to School planning assistance this year. She would communicate with Ms. Bennett about applying. Councilor Manz stated that she and Councilor Kohlhoff had been working on a needs assessment for the City and would be working on a draft to give to Ms. Bennett for dissemination to Staff and to then return to Council for direction, if necessary. She proposed Council send a letter to Clackamas County thanking them for the work on the plan and showing Council's support and partnership. Ms. Bennett confirmed she would draft the letter for Council. Councilor Wendland asked for clarification on parks reopening and on playground equipment. Mr. Anderholm said that all parks and trails were open, though the parking lots were still closed in Lower George Rogers Park, Foothills Park, Westlake Park, and East Waluga Park. Reopening parking lots for East Waluga and Westlake was dependent upon being allowed to reopen athletic fields or other group activities. Playground structures were still closed due to the Governor's Executive Order. Parks was working with the Governor's office to get clarification on summer programming. Dog parks were anticipated to be open by the end of the week with appropriate CDC recommendations. Weekend maintenance had begun to meet requirements for opening the restrooms. Ms. Bennett clarified that in Phase 1, sports fields would reopen for practice, but not for formal competitive events. Mr. Anderholm confirmed that weekly updates regarding parks were being posted on the Parks and Rec website. 11. REPORTS OF OFFICERS No reports were made. 12. ADJOURNMENT, CITY COUNCIL Mayor Studebaker adjourned the meeting at 5:03 p.m. City Council Regular Meeting Minutes Page 9 of 10 May 19, 2020 Respectfully submitted, Anne-Marie Simpson, City Recorder Approved by the City Council on July 7, 2020 Kent Studebaker, Mayor City Council Regular Meeting Minutes Page 10 of 10 May 19, 2020