MINUTES OF THE METRO COUNCIL TRANSPORTATION PLANNING COMMITTEE MEETING

Tuesday, March 17, 1998

Metro Council Chamber

Members Present:  Ed Washington (Chair), Susan McLain (Vice Chair), Jon Kvistad

Members Absent:  None.

Chair Washington called the meeting to order at 3:32 PM.

1.  INTRODUCTIONS

None.

2.  CONSIDERATION OF MINUTES OF MARCH 3, 1998

3.  BRIEFING ON LOOP-ORIENTED TRANSIT-MALL INTERMODAL (L.O.T.I.)

Mr. Art Lewellan, a citizen who lives at 3205 SE 8th, Portland, Oregon, presented his concept of an electric trolley system for interurban transit and his ideas for alternative alignments for the proposed South/North Light Rail. (More details about Mr. Lewellan’s concepts are contained in a packet prepared by Mr. Lewellan and included in the meeting record.) Mr. Lewellan’s key points include an east-side alignment for the South/North Light Rail rather than a west-side downtown hub; an alignment for the light rail that runs from Oregon City to the Rose Quarter and does not continue farther north; ideas for trackless trolleys to serve urban neighborhoods and tie into the light rail; and ideas for including commuter “heavy” rail, particularly to the north, as part of the system. Mr. Lewellan showed a series of overheads of maps of the various alignments. He said his concept would lower costs by avoiding the need to build a bridge over the Willamette, by avoiding reconstruction of the downtown transit mall, and by avoiding displacing residents.

Councilor McLain asked Mr. Lewellan if he was suggesting putting light rail in the fast corridor and trolleys for local trips. Mr. Lewellan said yes, the trolley would connect to the light rail. Councilor McLain said she sees the South/North light rail as a regional system. The trolley seems to be a local transit. She asked how the trolley would replace a light rail.

Mr. Lewellan said he was not suggesting replacing the light rail. He would like to see the light rail on the east side rather than the west side, not going downtown, and not crossing the river. The trolleys would feed into and connect with that light rail.

Councilor McLain asked how the L.O.T.I. system would fit with the alignments currently proposed. She said these alignments have already been chosen by the community. Mr. Lewellan said it would not fit into any of the current alignments. He said he didn’t believe the current system was the most efficient use of all the vehicle types in the system. He said he believes his system would provide more redevelopment potential, be more efficient, and cost less than the current proposal.

Chair Washington wanted to make certain Mr. Lewellan understood that the committee would not be making a decision today on which alignment to accept. The purpose of having Mr. Lewellan make his presentation was to be able to hear his ideas and be able to ask him questions.

Councilor Kvistad said he shares Mr. Lewellan’s belief in an east-side alignment. He asked whether Mr. Lewellan had presented his trolley ideas to the City of Portland. He said the city is currently working on a streetcar system. Mr. Lewellan said he thought the city was aware of his work, but perhaps not the most recent. Mr. Lewellan said he had become frustrated trying to get officials to accept his ideas.

Councilor Kvistad said he, too, becomes frustrated, because sometimes he cannot get his ideas accepted, either. He complimented Mr. Lewellan on his hard work, and he said he thought many of the ideas might tie in with the city’s work on a trolley system.

Andrew Cotugno, Director of Transportation, Metro, said that transit includes a variety of functions. He said light rail performs half-way between heavy rail and buses. In downtown areas, it's used as a slow means of transportation. In between, it’s fast. It can be flexible and go either way. This flexibility is fundamental to the growth concept. The regional centers are the slower runs, because those are the destinations.

Mr. Cotugno said streetcars fit into a local system. Streetcars and light rail can dovetail, both in terms of service area and in terms of transfers. The city, rather than Metro, has been responsible for that part of the system. He said he agrees with Mr. Lewellan that it would be good to pay more attention to integration of systems and put more emphasis on local service.

Regarding the east side connector, Mr. Cotugno said that is more of a question of when, not whether. The decision to date has been to go downtown first, then to the east side. The reason for going downtown first is because there is more to get to on the downtown side. However, there will be more to get to on the east side in the future. Both are part of the overall equation. He said the same is true for going to Oregon City. That would require building the whole south line first, rather than doing half a south line and half a north line. Metro has chosen to do the latter because the transportation problem is more pressing right now to the north, between Portland and Vancouver. The extension to Oregon City is planned, but for later.

Chair Washington said he did not want any citizen to be misled into believing that if he or she made a presentation before this committee, the ideas would be automatically accepted. They might and they might not; but there is no guarantee. The decision does not rest between the citizen and this committee or the Transportation Department. The process is lengthy and complicated, with Metro being only one of several entities involved. Tri-Met, ODOT, 24 cities, and three counties are also involved. He said he is not prepared to act on Mr. Lewellan’s information. He then asked what should happen next.

Mr. Cotugno said there are two components, one involves decisions surrounding the South/North Light Rail, and the other involves other projects in other places. The latter includes several forms. The two most relevant to L.O.T.I. are the city streetcar program and Tri-Met’s Transit Choices for Livability program. Both of those programs deal with parts of the system that will complement the current bus and rail system. They would be good places to discuss proposals like L.O.T.I.

Councilor McLain said that Metro has become involved in other projects that originated outside this agency. She said in this case, this committee could make a statement to the appropriate people that it finds value in the Mr. Lewellan’s hard work. She said she finds value in providing inter-agency and interjurisdictional studies to be investigated in the future. She said this won’t happen this year. But it could be put on the list of other intermodal connections to consider. She suggested the committee make a formal statement to that effect. She said she understands that Mr. Lewellan envisions a different alignment from those being proposed. He needs to understand that some decisions have already been made so he does not become frustrated trying to change those things.

Mr. Lewellan said he appreciated the opportunity to talk before the committee. He said the experience has been educational. He said many people who criticize Metro have not had the opportunity to talk with councilors personally, as he has had. He said those people will need to be reassured that the alignment Metro has chosen is not a mistake. He said he still cannot support the proposed alignments. His remains concerned about accidents in the downtown mall and about the cost of bridges.

Councilor McLain suggested that regardless of whether Mr. Lewellan agrees with the current alignment or not, the committee could send a letter to Tri-Met and the City of Portland sharing the information in the L.O.T.I. proposal. Conversely, she hoped Mr. Lewellan could support those elements with which he agrees. Chair Washington asked Mr. Cotugno to make certain Tri-Met and the City of Portland received Mr. Lewellan’s proposal, along with a letter from him saying this information had been shared with Metro’s Transportation Committee.

Mr. Cotugno said he would draft a letter to accompany Mr. Lewellan’s proposal, and send a copy to Steve Clark of Tri-Met and to Commissioner Charlie Hales of the City of Portland. The letter would be signed by Chair Washington, and a copy would be sent to Mr. Lewellan.

Chair Washington complimented Mr. Lewellan on his diligence and persistence, and said he had every right to disagree with Metro’s decisions. He noted that Mr. Lewellan had presented his work to the Council on numerous occasions and felt the Council had been fair about providing ample opportunities for him to do that. He thanked Mr. Lewellan taking the time to share his work again.

Mr. Cotugno requested the opportunity to address items not on the agenda before continuing with the next agenda item. He said the items he would like to address relate to the transportation budget he would be presenting to the budget committee. These items are the same as those he would be discussing as part of Agenda Item number 4, on which the Transportation Planning Committee would be asked to vote. He said they would be easier to understand if he talked about the budget first. In addition, he would like to discuss the Joint Policy Committee on Transportation’s (JPACT) response to recommendations for linking transportation with affordable housing, after Agenda Item Number 4.

STAFF COMMUNICATIONS: Items In Transportation-Department Budget

Mr. Cotugno presented three budget items that are in the budget narrative notebook. These narratives are the same as those in the Unified Work Program. The items are ones the Budget Committee had questions about. He said the purpose of presenting them here is so the Transportation Committee can discuss them in the event a recommendation needs to be sent to the Budget Committee. The Budget Committee will be considering the Transportation budget on March 18.

Mr. Cotugno said the three items of concern are 1) the Metro Information on Long-Range Transportation (MILT) bus, 2) the schools program, and 3) a commercial-transportation study program. He introduced Gina Whitehill-Baziuk, Supervisor of Public Involvement, Metro Transportation Department, to explain the MILT bus and the schools program, which is related to MILT.

The MILT Bus

Mr. Cotugno said the MILT program was initiated last spring, with the intention of deploying the bus for two seasons. The budget that was proposed would have covered through next October, the end of the second season. The current budget proposal would cover another round of improvements to the bus over next winter and running the bus for a third season. One of the reasons for wanting to run a third season is the bus took longer to get up and running last year, so it was able to operate only half a season. Another reason is that during this initial season, a lot was learned about the kinds of places where the bus is effective. It would be good to target more of those kinds of places. MILT proved to be a good way to reach a lot of people who might otherwise not have contact with Metro. Not only does MILT go out into the communities, but the format for presenting information engages people in a way that a dry transportation meeting does not.

Ms. Whitehill Baziuk said staff is currently scheduling MILT for the county fairs. They are identifying other locations that worked well. The Fred Meyer locations did not work well. Locations that do work well have electricity and an audience that includes people of all ages who have the leisure time to investigate the bus. The Blue Lake Festival, for example, was ideal. Staff is looking for more venues like that.

Ms. Whitehill-Baziuk said the presentations inside the bus would be improved. More multi-media programs will be added. Other Metro departments who presented information on the bus have had their presentations returned to them with comments about how to improve them. Those departments will pay for their own presentations. The scripts are being revised and submitted to the contractor to be re-installed. Hardware will be improved, including the sound system and monitors. She said staff hopes to have the bus out in the community for a full season this year, beginning in May or June and continuing through October.

Chair Washington asked if MILT would be present at the Rose Festival’s Fun Center. Ms. Whitehill-Baziuk said no, because the Rose Festival contracts out the entire Fun Center to paid vendors.

Councilor McLain said a new festival will start up in North Plains, called the “Garlic Festival.” She said she would be sending to Ms. Whitehill-Baziuk a list of other, small festivals in the outlying areas. She said the outlying areas do not know as much about transit as the downtown people do. Tri-Met is looking at expanding in the outlying areas, so it will be important to get this information out there.

Councilor McLain also discussed things about MILT she would like to see improved before it goes out again. The equipment is one thing. Most of the equipment did not work or worked poorly. She wondered about the quality of the product from last year’s contractor. She suggested Scott Moss, Metro Contract Management, help ensure good quality in this year’s product. The sound that accompanied the multi-media presentations was terrible, for example.

Ms. Whitehill-Baziuk said the contractor was trying to fix the sound by putting in an external microphone. That, she said, was the solution of the moment.

Councilor McLain said another problem, which she has not yet heard addressed, was that the bus did not look like a Metro bus; it looked like a Tri-Met bus. She said the bus needed to advertise on the outside how neat it is inside. Ms. Whitehill Baziuk said several changes were planned for the outside of the bus this year. She said the awning blew over in the wind, so it would not be used. The literature racks fell over, so the literature would be inside the bus. An extended kiosk would be used at the fairs.

The Schools Program

Mr. Cotugno introduced the schools program. He said this would be a small pilot project. From the success of Metro’s recycling program for schools, staff believes schools are a good channel of communication. However, schools programs are also large. The questions is, would the department be taking on more than it can follow through on, or is this an opportunity too good to overlook?

Mr. Cotugno said that a schools program would be too large to put into the budget. Instead, the budget includes $6,000 seed money for a small amount of staff time, to write a proposal for a foundation grant. The $50,000 implementation figure would be contingent on getting a foundation grant. No program has yet been designed. The seed money would be used to pay Metro staff to design the program. The $50,000 at this point is a place-holder, not an absolute figure. The actual amount would depend on the amount of the foundation grant. The point of structuring a budget with contingencies like this is to avoid committing to do a project for which there is no funding. If the schools program is not approved, then the $50,000 of foundation money would be removed, and the 0.049 FTE of staff time would be transferred to another project.

Ms. Whitehill-Baziuk explained how MILT could be connected with the schools program. In addition to doing community outreach at selected events this summer, during that time a curriculum would be developed and MILT would be outfitted to take to eight or nine middle schools in the fall. The fall visits would constitute a pilot test education program. The pilot test would provide information on the value the program and be used to support the foundation grant application. The curriculum would potentially be developed this summer with the help of the Business Education Compact, a non-profit agency that places teachers from all grades in private business.

Councilor McLain said she is familiar with the group, but her understanding of the way it does business is that an organization brings an idea to them. She asked what the idea here is. Ms. Whitehill-Baziuk said it is to develop a curriculum that is appropriate for some area of study--say, Political Science or Art or Sociology. No one her staff has curriculum development expertise. MILT would be designed to enrich that area of study and, perhaps, kick off a follow-on program for students, such as a written report or an art project.

Councilor McLain said if the purpose is to develop an idea, she would like to schedule a meeting where she can offer some of her ideas. She said she has given it some thought and has quite a few.

Commercial-Transportation Study

Andrew Cotugno addressed the third item, the commercial-transportation study. He said this is a natural outgrowth of several pieces of work already underway: Metro’s Regional Transportation Plan (RTP) work, the work the Port of Portland has been doing on the importance of freight movement in the metropolitan area, and Metro’s data-collection work to update information on freight movement and freight modes. After the information has been collected, the next step would be to figure out what it means. What is the significance to the economy of moving freight? What are some of the impediments? How should the impediments be handled?

Metro would engage the interest groups involved in freight movement to identify solutions from the public- and private-sector standpoints. The private sector will be approached for ways it can help relieve congestion, such as moving freight at different times of the day or changing internal operations. The point is to begin discussing freight issues, to try to understand the information, to try to understand the implications for business, and to identify solutions. This is a new program area to the budget, but it was anticipated when Metro began the commodity-flow survey that is currently underway.

4.  RESOLUTION NO. 98-2604, FOR THE PURPOSE OF APPROVING THE FY 1999 UNIFIED WORK PROGRAM

Mr. Cotugno explained that the Unified Work Program is nearly the same as, though not identical to, the Transportation Department’s proposed budget, the adoption of which is still in progress. The Work Program includes two of the three programs just discussed--the MILT program and the commercial-transportation study. Both of these involve federal grants. The schools program is not included because it does not involve a federal--the $6,000 seed money to develop the foundation grant application is Metro’s money, and the foundation grant would be private. Everything else in the proposed budget for the Transportation Department is in the Unified Work Program.

Chair Washington will carry the motion to a meeting of the full Council.

STAFF COMMUNICATIONS : JPACT’s Response To Recommendations For Linking Transportation With Affordable Housing

Mr. Cotugno resumed addressing topics not on the formal agenda, namely the response of JPACT to recommendations for implementing an affordable housing/transportation policy. The topic came up when Councilor Washington began a discussion at JPACT on a resolution that suggested establishing a link between transportation funding and affordable housing. After considerable discussion, Councilor Washington asked JPACT to come up with some suggestions. In response to that request, Mr. Cotugno convened a small work group from the Technical Policy Advisory Committee (TPAC) to develop recommendations to take back to JPACT. Those recommendations were brought back to JPACT for its approval on March 12, 1998.

Mr. Cotugno said JPACT considered three basic recommendations for linking affordable housing with transportation policy. One would directly link transportation funding with provisions for affordable housing, such as has been done with the Belmont Dairy project and the Lovejoy Ramp. Ways to do that include assigning points for elements of a project that help ensure affordable housing. JPACT was adamant, however, about not excluding projects that do not have those elements. If this recommendation were followed, the next step would be to decide what the State Transportation Improvement Plan (STIP) allocation criteria would be. Considerations of the STIP process will start in May, so if this route is chosen, now is the time to determine what the criteria will be. Mr. Cotugno said his suggestion to JPACT was to take up the question of whether or not and how many points affordable housing might get in the context of all the criteria the STIP allocations address.

Another recommendation was to consider the indirect yet pervasive link that underlies most of the transportation/land-use policies. These policies include promoting a job/housing balance. By putting people closer to jobs, transportation costs are reduced, freeing up money that can be applied to housing. Likewise, providing good mass transit helps people avoid the cost of an automobile or a second automobile. These policies, though inherent in current policies, are not easy to adapt to a point-scoring system.

The third consideration, which JPACT opposes, would penalize projects or jurisdictions that do not have an affordable housing component. JPACT raised a final point regarding all recommendations for tying transportation to affordable housing, and that is to recognize that the size of the tool transportation funding provides is small. Expectations should not be high for this contribution. More emphasis needs to be placed on the other tools. Mr. Cotugno said he asked if those other tools need to be discussed further by JPACT; JPACT said no.

Councilor Kvistad asked what happens next. Mr. Cotugno said the next step would be to determine how to fold affordable housing considerations into a point system.

5.  COUNCILOR COMMUNICATIONS

Councilor Kvistad asked for an ISTEA update. Mr. Cotugno said the US Senate voted to increase highway funding in general. Oregon got $250 million last year under ISTEA. The Senate bill would increase that to $325 million. However, the Senate does not earmark transportation funds, so he does not know yet what specific pieces will be increased or decreased nor what Metro’s share will be. The House, which does earmark funds, has not yet voted. However, he said he expects the House Bill will include earmarks for I-5/Kruse Way, Sunnyside Road, South Rivergate Overcrossing.

Councilor Kvistad requested that Mr. Cotugno provide regular updates on the status of ISTEA as it moves through the Senate and House. He would like to be kept up to date on how this affects Metro’s priority projects. He said he said he is particularly interested in the I-5 to 217 piece. He would like to be able to monitor progress fairly closely, so weekly updates might be appropriate.

There being no further business before the Committee, Chair Washington adjourned the meeting at 4:55 PM.

Prepared by,

Pat Emmerson

Council Assistant

ATTACHMENTS TO THE PUBLIC RECORD FOR THE MEETING OF MARCH 17, 1998

The following have been included as part of the official public record.