MINUTES OF THE METRO COUNCIL TRANSPORTATION PLANNING COMMITTEE MEETING

Tuesday, April 7, 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 3:35 PM.

1.  INTRODUCTIONS

None.

2.  CONSIDERATION OF MINUTES OF MARCH 17, 1998

3.  RESOLUTION NO. 98-2619, FOR THE PURPOSE OF AUTHORIZING START-UP ACTIVITIES FOR THE TRANSIT-ORIENTED DEVELOPMENT (TOD) IMPLEMENTATION PROGRAM AT METRO

Andrew Cotugno, Director, Metro Transportation Department, introduced Phil Whitmore, the project director for this TOD program. He said Mr. Whitmore would be available to answer questions.

Mr. Cotugno explained that this resolution authorizes the important “get started” step in what has so far been a process of obtaining approval for preparatory steps. First, the federal authorities had to approve the idea, then approve grant funding, then approve the environmental review. With those approvals, the project is ready to begin actual projects. The resolution itself authorizes a series of steps to do that. An inventory of the steps appears on the cover page of the staff report that accompanies the resolution (contained in the meeting record).

Key steps are 1) authorize implementation; 2) authorize the Request for Proposals (RFP) to solicit public/private partnerships and lay out the selection criteria; and 3) transfer the TOD program funded by a Congestion Mitigation/Air Quality (CMAQ) grant from the Portland Development Commission (PDC) to Metro to form a single, regional program rather than two separate regional program. In the process, the steering committee would be transferred also, to oversee the program. A Metro councilor, selected by the Presiding Officer, would be added to the committee. 4) Authorize the execution of development agreements and establish a seven-day review period for Council to decide whether to consider an agreement. 5) Authorizing loans from the Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) infrastructure bank--a program funded with Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act (ISTEA) funds. They key here is that the loan would be secured by the property itself, not by the Metro general fund. ODOT has agreed to that arrangement.

Mr. Cotugno said two processes are envisioned regarding projects. One would take place in response to an RFP. In this scenario, a proposal would be brought by a developer to Metro. The developer would presumably already own or have an option on a piece of property. The RFP would control the criteria for selection. The other process would take place in the absence of a developer, but when a parcel of land with good potential exists. Metro would purchase this parcel and sell it for development in the future. A competitive process would require Council action to release an RFP connected with that project at that time.

Mr. Cotugno said Metro has alerted developers and jurisdictions along the corridor that this opportunity would be coming.

Councilor Kvistad asked what the acronym FONSI stands for. Mr. Cotugno said it means

a Finding of No Significant Impact. The significance is that any federal action on any federal money must be accompanied by a federal environmental finding. Findings, in order of most rigorous to least, include an Environmental Impact Statement (EIS), an Environmental Assessment; a FONSI; and a categorical exclusion. An environmental assessment was completed for this program (a copy of which is attached to the meeting record) and the federal authorities have issued a FONSI.

Mr. Whitmore said the issuance of a FONSI in this case was somewhat unusual, in that the FONSI was for a whole program rather than a specific project. He said additional environmental work would be required for each project, but nothing on the scale of an environmental assessment.

Councilor McLain suggested that Metro contact the “livability team” to obtain its goals and to possibly develop partnerships. The team is being put together by the state to make sure the 2040 growth concept is built.

Mr. Cotugno said the membership of the steering committee is made up of those folks. They are from ODOT, the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ), Housing, and Economic Development.

Councilor McLain asked whether the steering committee is a set group of particular individuals from those agencies or whether it is an assembly of different teams put together for different parts of the region and different parts of the state. Mr. Whitmore said his understanding is that the livability team forms around an issue, and representation is assigned around that issue.

Chair Washington asked if public hearings would be held or if all the public hearings had already been held. Mr. Whitmore said public hearings had been held. The notice of the RFP will be published in a journal of circulation.

Chair Washington asked when the public hearings were held. Mr. Cotugno said the hearing on the Environmental Assessment was done a month ago, and those on the initial grant were held a year ago. Individuals developments will still be subject to local permitting processes, and some of those will involve hearings, depending on the scope of the project and the local requirements. That, however, is outside Metro’s scope of responsibility.

Councilor McLain will carry the motion to a meeting of the full Council.

Mr. Cotugno asked if agenda item No. 5 could be heard next, to allow him to leave to attend another meeting. Chair Washington agreed.

5.  REVIEW OF THE JOINT POLICY ADVISORY COMMITTEE ON TRANSPORTATION (JPACT) AGENDA FOR APRIL 9, 1998

Mr. Cotugno noted that the agenda for the meeting is included in the meeting record. He said an amended version has been sent out that adds an item related to developing a recommendation on which version of the ISTEA funding to support--that approved by the U. S. Senate or that approved by the House. Other issues on the agenda include a resolution on High Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) lanes. This authorizes ODOT to spend some of its money on I-5 north to implement an HOV lane. The HOV lane was partially implemented on a shoulder of the highway when the bridge was closed in September of 1997. This would continue that lane all the way to the bridge and reinforce it. This HOV lane would then operate on a pilot basis. At the end of the pilot period, a decision would be made on the future use of that lane. Mr. Cotugno said an Air Quality issue will need to be addressed when a permanent decision is made, but not for the 6-month pilot test.

Mr. Cotugno said the third item, the South/North issue, alerts JPACT that a whole set of decisions from the EIS will be coming and lays out the calendar for actions. The fourth item initiates the Metro Transportation Improvement Plan/State Transportation Improvement Plan (MTIP/STIP) allocation criteria. This will fold the housing issue into the rest of the issues. Mr. Cotugno said his objective is to begin the process and suggest having something adopted by the June meeting. In the interim, he would be bringing to this committee the current criteria and the projects that have been funded as a result of them from 1992 until 2001. All the criteria would then be reviewed to determine whether future projects should be like those of the past or whether new criteria should be developed. This is where affordable housing issues might be introduced.

4.  RESOLUTION NO. 98-2622, FOR THE PURPOSE OF APPROVING SOLE SOURCE AGREEMENTS FOR MARK BRADLEY RESEARCH AND CONSULTING, CAMBRIDGE SYSTEMATICS AND JOHN BOWMAN AND ASSOCIATES

Keith Lawton, Assistant Director of Technical Services, Metro Transportation Department, explained why a sole source contract was being requested rather than the project put out to bid. He said the project involves working for Los Alamos National Laboratories, who is in turn working for the Federal Highway Authority (FHWA), the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) , and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), to develop new transportation models for the country as a whole. New software and new techniques they develop will be tested as pilot projects in various parts of the country. Portland will be the site of the next one, because Portland has a reputation for good modeling. Los Alamos would like to move the modeling into an area called “activity modeling,” which is much more complex than that Metro currently does. A part of that would take the model Metro has just finished developing and make it a core piece of the whole modeling package.

Mr. Lawton said the piece Metro currently has is reasonably complete. Los Alamos would like Metro to make available to them the consultants who developed Metro’s model, to further refine the model and recode it to fit into the larger package. The model was developed for Metro from two sources, Cambridge Systematics with John Bowman, and Mark Bradley. This model is new and unique. It does not make sense to put the project out to bid.

Mr. Lawton said the money to do this refinement would be provided entirely by the FTA, which is one of the reasons Metro agreed to take this project on. Mr. Lawton said another, separate sole source request would be forthcoming related to this, for the graphics and output part. He said he had an 8-minute video the committee could view at its leisure that explained that part. Chair Washington asked that Mr. Lawton leave the video with Michael Morrissey, Council Analyst, for the committee to view later.

Councilor McLain asked how this work would benefit Metro.

Mr. Lawton said a whole piece of this project would carry out work Metro had planned, but would have taken many more years to fund. This would move Metro forward on that much faster and produce a much better product. Second, the Los Alamos project is scheduled for completion by 2000, and by 2003 it would be provided to other Metropolitan Planning Organizations (MPOs) and eventually be part of an EPA requirement.

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

6.  COUNCILOR COMMUNICATIONS

There being no further business before the Committee, Chair Washington adjourned the meeting at 4:00 PM.

Prepared by,

Pat Emmerson

Council Assistant

ATTACHMENTS TO THE PUBLIC RECORD FOR THE MEETING OF APRIL 7, 1998

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