METRO COUNCIL GROWTH MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE

Tuesday, October 20, 1998

Council Chamber

Members Present:  Jon Kvistad (Chair), Don Morissette, Rod Monroe

Members Absent:    None

Also Present:    Susan McLain

Chair Kvistad called the meeting to order at 1:39 P.M.

1.  CONSIDERATION OF THE OCTOBER 13, 1998, GROWTH MANAGEMENT COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES

2.  PUBLIC HEARING ON POSSIBLE MOVEMENT OF THE URBAN GROWTH BOUNDARY (UGB), WITH EMPHASIS ON URBAN RESERVE SITES 31-34

Chair Kvistad described the public hearing process. He opened a public hearing at 1:40 P.M.

Judie Hammerstad, Chair, Clackamas County Commission, submitted written testimony into the record. The substance of her comments is included in her written testimony.

Karl Rohde, Councilor, City of Lake Oswego, read a letter from William Klammer, Lake Oswego Mayor, to Chair Kvistad. A copy of the letter is included in the meeting record.

Michael Morrissey, Senior Council Analyst, gave an overview of materials in front of the committee and the audience. A set of 11x17 property line specific maps was distributed to each Councilor. A copy is included in the meeting record.

Councilor Morissette thanked staff for its work.

Lorie James, President, West Clackamas County League of Women Voters, 3335 Childs Road, Lake Oswego, submitted written testimony, a copy of which is included in the meeting record. The substance of her comments is included in the written testimony.

Richard Stevens, Rosemont Property Owners, said he is a lifetime resident of the North Stafford area, and he currently lives on 30 acres located in urban reserve area (URA) 31. He said back in 1995 and 1996, when the Rosemont Property Owners proposed designating the area as an urban reserve study area, the neighboring municipalities opposed the idea, citing excessive costs. He said four subsequent technical studies all confirmed that service costs are no more than average. Mr. Stevens said the neighboring municipalities’ next argument was that the area is largely zoned Exclusive Farm Use (EFU) 20, and therefore is farmland. He said in reality, the land has poor topsoil and the lots are small and fragmented. Next, Mr. Stevens said, Lake Oswego decided to put the question of annexation of Stafford to its voters this November. He said Lake Oswego’s latest imperious behavior has been the mid-term imposition of a requirement for an urban services agreement for all incoming URAs. He said the time is right to bring Stafford into the UGB, the residents have followed the rules for the last three years, and they ask for a fair shake from Metro.

Lee Leighton, Senior Planner, Shapiro and Associates, spoke on behalf of the Rosemont Property Owners. Mr. Leighton submitted a letter into the record, a copy of which is included in the meeting record. In addition, three letters from Erik Sten, Portland City Councilor, to Mr. Leighton and Mike Burton, Metro Executive Officer, were submitted into the record by Mark Turpel, Senior Planner, Growth Management Services. Mr. Leighton said when he began working with the Rosemont Property Owners to prepare a master plan, they met with both Metro and Lake Oswego staff. He said they built on Lake Oswego’s previous work, which was halted when the urban reserve decision was appealed. He said they had a multi-jurisdiction briefing in July at which many jurisdictions, including Tualatin, West Linn and Lake Oswego, and many service providers were represented. He said the goal of their plan is to point the way to a successful Region 2040 Vision in the North Stafford area, one that can create a good place to live, work, and recreate, maintain good relationships with its neighbors, and preserve and improve the travel needs along the Stafford Corridor and Rosemont Road. Mr. Leighton pointed out features of the master plan to the committee. A detailed copy of the master plan for this area was previously submitted into the decision record, and is available through the Council office.

Councilor Monroe asked about schools in the master plan.

Mr. Leighton said the master plan indicates several potential school sites, including a site north of the proposed village center and immediately adjacent to the Luscher Farm Park. He said he met with the Lake Oswego School District Superintendent, and representatives from Lake Oswego and West Linn/Wilsonville School Districts attended a briefing meeting in July.

Wendie Kellington, Schwabe Williamson and Wyatt, represented the Halton Company, a member of the Rosemont Property Owners Association. She said Commissioner Hammerstad issued a challenge in her testimony that if there is capacity, Clackamas County will provide service. She said her understanding has been that regardless of capacity, the county would not provide service. She said they are willing to work with the county on an agreement, and the people who have refused to talk to them have done so solely on the governance issue. She said no one has stated that it is not feasible to provide urban services to Stafford, and there is no evidence to support such a claim. She said the service costs to develop Rosemont are average. She cautioned the committee on the idea that Rosemont Village does not meet Goal 2 or Goal 14, because if it does not, none of the urban reserves do. She said this plan has had more attention to detail and work on a privately funded effort than any other. She said this is not agricultural farm land: Clackamas County’s own 1991 urban fringe study says the land is marginal, and the Farm Bureau asked the Council to bring the area into the UGB. She said the committee has heard myths about governance, but governance is not an approval standard. She said there is no data showing that it is not feasible to provide services to the Stafford area. She said the Stafford area has been targeted as an area to provide affordable housing for a region with a serious jobs/housing imbalance. She said there is a federal Constitutional doctrine that the committee should keep in mind, the Mount Laurel Doctrine, which says governments cannot refuse to serve moderate income people. She said their plan meets all of Metro’s requirements, including Goals 2 and 14, and the only ability to refuse their plan is a political opt-out, which she thinks is inappropriate.

Randy Pozdena, EcoNorthwest, spoke for Rosemont Property Owners, and addressed the fiscal viability of Rosemont Village. He said there have been concerns that the infrastructure costs are too great to be financed by the development, but their analysis demonstrated that there would strong fiscal balance in the key areas of city, county, and public schools. He said further analysis shows that the infrastructure costs of transportation, water and sewer can be carried by a village that has prospects of nearly one billion dollars worth of in-place development. He said they examined the affordable housing issue, and depending on the assumptions, between 45 and 80 percent of all households at medium income could afford one of the units in the proposed Rosemont Village. He said their conclusions are presented in Table 6 of the Technical Report.

Marilyn Brock, Rosemont Property Owners Association, 22170 Southwest Stafford Road, Tualatin, said a lot of work has been done since the Rosemont Property Owners Association first asked the Council to designate 700 acres in the Stafford area as an urban reserve study area. She said the location of urban reserve areas 31 and 32 lends itself to compact development near existing cities. She said the area is already surrounded by urban development on three sides. She said the Rosemont Property Owners Association have worked together to create a 15 to 20 year plan they feel will benefit the entire region, a task made extremely difficult by the reluctance of Lake Oswego, West Linn, and Commissioner Hammerstad to even discuss any change in the area. Ms. Brock said bringing urban reserves 31 and 32 into the UGB at this time is both practical and reasonable. She said although the governance issue is not resolved at this time, they are confident they can work with the governments involved to assure a great development.

Judy Eselius, Rosemont Property Owners Association, 18018 Skyland Circle, Lake Oswego, said her family has lived at that address for 20 years. She said in 1986 her family purchased 20 acres located off Rosemont Road, put in a well, planted 1700 Asian pear trees with a drip irrigation system, purchased equipment, built a packing house with a cooler, and then 3 years later, experienced their first major problem. She said the Oregon State Agriculture Department identified through soil analysis a significant depletion of magnesium and other important trace elements, and labeled their land as Class 3 and 4 soils. She said now that their trees have reached full maturity, they have also reached maximum water capacity and cannot expand. She said they are also experiencing problems that come with suburban encroachment, and are surrounded by homes in West Linn, Skyland, and now Lake Oswego. She said her family has found it necessary to become an LLC to provide liability protection against spraying and other standard farm practices. She said they now know through 12 years trying to farm their land that it is not good farmland is better suited to residential uses. She said for this reason, they have joined with the Rosemont Property Owners Association to support a well planned development of the area. She said improvements are already needed in this region: Stafford and Rosemont are already urbanized, increasing road congestion and accident rates as well as failing septic systems with possible well contamination, all contribute to an imminent and unavoidable set of difficulties that must be addressed now. She said doing nothing does not help of solve these problems. Ms. Eselius said her husband want to continue living in the area, and know the Rosemont Village plan will plant trees on ridge lines, will work to protect neighbors’ views, and will not be a typical suburban development. She said they would like to be included in the UGB this year. She said her family wants to participate in good planning for the Rosemont area and to help maintain high quality of life standards for everyone.

Jim Jacks, Planning Director, City of Tualatin, read from his submitted written testimony. A copy of the letter is included in the meeting record.

Chair Kvistad asked if the Tualatin City Council position stated in the letter was current, and if Mr. Jacks had discussed the matter with the council or mayor in the last month. Mr. Jacks said the matter was discussed about six weeks ago, and the Tualatin City Council’s position had not changed from its last official position to oppose the designation of the urban reserves.

Lois Tolbert Wanker, 2400 Southwest Borland Road, West Linn, said she represented the Wanker’s Corner and Stafford area property owners. She said growth was rapidly continuing in her area, despite the cities and counties opposition to growth. She said the area needs to be brought into the UGB so they have the option to plan for future needs, and the ability to solve existing problems.

George Mitchener, 20500 South Sweetbriar Road, West Linn, said his property is adjacent to the property in question. He said the area is a unique mix of small farms and new and old homes. He mentioned the preferred land use questionnaire that had been put out by the Stafford area task force in October 1993 and filled out by most of the owners in the Rosemont and surrounding areas. He said at that time the answers revealed that 87-93% wanted the zoning left alone, and after polling neighbors in the area recently they found the same results. He said with the exception of members of the Rosemont Property Owners Association they could not find anyone in favor of this development. He said the Rosemont Property Owners are an extremely small minority of the people in the area whose properties would be significantly affected. He said traffic would exceed capacity if the area was developed. He said Portland was often cited as an example of good land use planning throughout the United States, but this area was now doing the same things that had already destroyed the livability and character of other areas. He said the real issue is the will of the people and what is necessary for the area. He noted a strong disagreement among the Council members regarding the number of dwelling units that needed to be brought into the UGB.

Sally Johnston, 21998 South Grapevine Road, West Linn, said her comments were emotional and not technical in nature. She said she is a Stafford Basin resident and contrary to the advertisements, she is against its inclusion in the UGB. She said the issues has been untruthfully put forward as the cities of West Linn and Lake Oswego against inclusion and area residents for inclusion. She said the Rosemont homeowners are a small group of people owning large parcels of land, but they are not the majority of the people in the Stafford area. She noted the questionnaire mentioned by Mr. Mitchener. She said she felt Metro tried to appease its constituents by asking for their vision of a growth plan, but then pursued its own agenda regardless of the results, because people overwhelmingly asked for greenspaces separating cities. She said Metro is abusing its power by ignoring the mandate of the citizenry and circumventing the Tier 1 and Tier 2 designations. She asked how Metro can be trusted under these circumstances. She said the Stafford area is indeed farmland, and high density development of the area would not benefit a single landowner in the area with the exception of the Rosemont Village Homeowners. She implored the Council to reconsider the issue.

Debbie Craig, President, president of the Three Rivers Land Conservancy, 850 Cedar Street, Lake Oswego, noted she had previously sent letters to Councilors concerning the precedent that is being set in this area by changing the Tier 1 and Tier 2 process. She was very concerned that the process is being changed and feels that the great amount of planning that has already been done for the area should be followed. She also felt that other interested parties should be included in the planning because some folks had a different vision for the area based on individual studies done by other groups.

Gary Buford, 415 North State Street, Lake Oswego, spoke about urban reserve 34, a 7.4 acre parcel of Tier 1 land. He directed the committee’s attention to the Revised Draft Council Summary Table of the Status of Requirements for UGB Amendments, dated October 13, 1998, included in the agenda packet. He said he has been involved as a property owner and civil engineer doing land development work for 30 years. He said their request to designate this as urban reserve land started back in 1991 when he spoke to the Lake Oswego city council regarding amending the UGB by annexing the 7.4 acres to the City of Lake Oswego. He said they were asked to hold public hearings on logical annexation and had played by all the rules for seven years. He asked Council to please not change rules at this point. He noted the summary table showed the serviceability cost per dwelling unit was almost $99,000. He suggested that the cost is misleading and would actually be closer to $20,000-30,000 per dwelling unit. He stressed again that they had played by the rules for seven years and asked the Council to consider the 7.4 acre development, which is endorsed by City of Lake Oswego, to be included into the UGB.

Bob Van Brocklin, Stoel Rives, 900 SW 5th Avenue, Portland, OR 97204, represented the Larry Petersen and the Larry Petersen Trust, owners of the northern-most property in urban reserve site 32 (with one small part of the property being in area #31). He distributed a map of the area to council which highlighted the property. He noted that the placed well for urban residential development because it was bordered on 3 sides by land already inside the urban growth boundary. He noted that the Petersens had retained Otak to look at some questions about the criteria council was using. He introduced Mr. Hansen to explain the findings.

Don Hansen, Planner, Otak, commented on Section 3 requirements. He said density was specified at six dwelling units per acre, which is easily achieved given the available services to the property. He said housing diversity is currently planned at four types of housing on the site, including single family attached housing, small 4,000 square foot lots, and larger home sites. He said attached housing, if considered, would qualify as affordable and would complement the dense urban housing in downtown Lake Oswego. He said commercial services are available at the recently renovated Palisades Shopping Center, and Bergis Road has been designated as a collector road by both Clackamas County and the City of Lake Oswego. He said there is one wetland on the northwest corner of the site. He said there is adequate water, sewer and emergency services for the area.

Olive Kuhl, Rosemont Property Owners Association, 445 South Rosemont, West Linn, responded to previous comments. She said over half of the land owners in URAs 31 and 32 support the Rosemont Property Owners’ plan. She said the people who spoke earlier did not live within the 700 acres of the development, they were neighbors. She said she respects their point of view regarding open space, and wished it was economically feasible, but open space is often purchased by Metro or a municipality or given in trust to Three Rivers. She said the Rosemont Property Owners’ plan protects many aspects of open space including trail preservation and wetlands. She asked the committee to be fair: they had followed the rules and planned carefully.

Greg Leo, Rosemont Property Owners Association, 11938 Southwest 25th Avenue, Portland, said he wanted to reinforce Ms. Kuhl’s comments. He noted they had polled people and found most of the residents are interested, although they have questions and concerns about the type of plan and the proposed density. He said good planning is not and should not be a popularity contest but should be about what is best for the region. He said the Rosemont Property Owners Association used its own money to help plan what is best and have been resisted by local governments. On behalf of the Rosemont group he said it is time to stop the conflict and to start cooperation to try to bring this land into the UGB in the best way possible.

John O’Neill, 4061 Southwest Borland Road, Tualatin, responded to an earlier comment. He said although he is not member of the Rosemont Homeowners Association, he is in favor of bringing the Stafford Basin area into the UGB. He said he is curious that someone from the City of Tualatin said the city is opposed to bringing the area into the UGB, but then said the city want to annex the area five years from now. He wondered what would be different in five years, and said the land had to be brought in now to get the planning process started.

Sally Quimby, 1961 Southwest Mossy Brae, West Linn, said she lives by the Tualatin River and came to the meeting to hear what is happening in her neighborhood. She described the traffic problems that have developed in her area in the last seven years, and said she had not heard any of the cities, the Rosemont Homeowners Association, or Metro address water, sewer or transportation in the Stafford area, although she had heard Metro speak of those issues in other areas. She said she wants to know who will make sure Stafford Road is safe after the development and who will make sure people in the surrounding area have adequate sewer and water. She said she had not been asked what she thought should happen to the area she had lived in for so long even though she has been on Metro’s mailing list for three years. She agreed that the Councilors were not hearing what other land owners in area felt. She said she did not blame the Rosemont people for wanting to sell, but the effect it would have on other people should be examined carefully.

John Smets, Smets Family Trust, 2100 Southwest Borland Road, West Linn, submitted a map with notes, a copy of which is included in the meeting record. He said supports adding this site to the UGB and looks forward to working with the community and Metro.

Molly Ellis, 410 South Bergis Road, Lake Oswego, spoke in opposition to the inclusion of this area in the UGB. She said she also was not asked by the Rosemont Property Owners Association for her opinion. She said she opposes development for the area on the basis that the soil is prime for agricultural uses. She said the productivity of the land is a gift and yields a great variety of fruits, vegetables, perennials. She the land has a lot of very good farmland which, once developed, could never be reclaimed for future generations. She mentioned the land also serves as a wildlife corridor to the Tualatin River. She urged the committee to consider future generations and to give the facts a hard look.

Jack Sullivan, 17660 Stafford Road Unit 32, Lake Oswego, said he and his wife have live there 32 years. He said he is neutral with regard to the impact of the Rosemont project on them, except for one major concern. He said their daughter and her family live 10 minutes away and their grandchildren sometimes walk over to visit. He said the night before they had the fifth major traffic accident involving fatalities within 1,000 feet of his house since they moved to the Lake Oswego area. He noted deep concerns about traffic on Stafford Road and urged the committee to give serious consideration to traffic impact in the area.

Councilor McLain commented that this group has always been well prepared and respectful of everyone in their years of dealing with Metro. She agreed that they all have different opinions and said she respects the group and thanked them for their work.

E.P. Eselius, 18018 South Skyland Circle, Lake Oswego, owner of 20 acres in the Rosemont area, reported that farming is a losing proposition at their property. He felt it needed to be emphasized that there would be an increase in population in the metropolitan area in the next 20 years. He asked the cities of Lake Oswego and West Linn if they plan to take their share of the individuals who will be coming in, including people who need affordable housing. He said the cities’ opposition to developing the Stafford Basin is a classic case of the not-in-my-backyard mentality, and said that West Linn and Lake Oswego are extremely excited about the possibility of high density housing in Damascus. He asked the cities to step forward and outline their proposals to take care of the people who might like to live in their communities. He said he likes to see the land as it is now because it is beautiful to look at, but he knows the area will change. He said this is the ideal opportunity to plan development that will not conflict with the surrounding areas. He said he hope they can work together to develop the area so most individuals will be pleased.

Roberta Wiehrdt, 2200 Southwest Borland, West Linn, said she resides in UR 34. She urged the committee to add some or all of the Stafford urban reserves to the UGB. She noted activities in her neighborhood that are detrimental for future planning and development, such as facilities that are drawing other types of industrial uses into the area, which are working illegally. She said it is difficult to understand the argument that the area is not serviceable based on the level of current development. She urged the committee to add the land into the UGB.

Herb Koss, Koss-Brod-Goodrich Associates, Inc., 340 Oswego Pointe Drive, Lake Oswego, spoke regarding area 30 in the Stafford area. He said his firm is the lead developer in the Tanner Basin in West Linn, a 600-acre master planned community, and he invited the Councilors to tour the site so they could see all of the work that had been done entirely with private dollars with no cost to the citizens of West Linn. He said the big gain for West Linn will be the tax base it will acquire from his group’s efforts and dollars. Mr. Koss said he and his wife own 13 acres in UR 30, which is adjacent to the Tanner Basin, and their project includes a 12 1/2 acre retail shopping center that is now bordered by 12 5-acre lots that should be developed into high-density residential housing. He said it is a shame that these 12 5-acre lots are not handling the density that could be handled next to retail centers and schools. He said he came to the meeting because a neighbor called him and asked for advice on what to do in UR 30. He said he held a neighborhood meeting which 10 of the 14 property owners in the area attended. He said they will organize, then ask for the support of the City of West Linn and Clackamas County, after he and his neighbors have had the chance to develop a sewer and utility plan, so that they can return to Metro early next year. He asked the committee to keep an open mind on UR 30.

Chair Kvistad said he supports bringing the Stafford area into the UGB. He said he has been clear and consistent, and takes exception to the discussions about Tier 1 and Tier 2 lands. He said he did not support the tier designation because he felt it was political, not reasonable. He said since he takes a lot of the hear for the Council’s decisions, he wants to put on the record that it would have been much easier for the Council to make decisions had the local jurisdictions come to the table to work on something in this area, rather than come and oppose it. He said this is his opinion; he respects that other people have different perspectives and opinions.

Chair Kvistad closed the public hearing at 3:16 P.M.

3.  COUNCILOR COMMUNICATIONS

There were none.

There being no further business before the committee, Chair Kvistad adjourned the meeting at 3:17 P.M.

Respectfully submitted,

Suzanne Myers

Council Assistant

i:\minutes\1998\grwthmgt\10208gmm.doc

ATTACHMENTS TO THE PUBLIC RECORD FOR THE MEETING OF OCTOBER 20, 1998

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

Oral Testifiers (testimony cards included)

Public Hearing

Judie Hammerstad

Karl Rohde

Lorie James

Richard Stevens

Lee Leighton

Wendie Kellington

Randy Pozdena

Marilyn Brock

Judy Eselius

Jim Jacks

Lois Tolbert Wanker

George Mitchener

Sally Johnston

Debbie Craig

Gary Buford

Bob Van Brocklin

Don Hansen

Olive Kuhl

Greg Leo

John O’Neill

Sally Quimby

John Smets

Molly Ellis

Jack Sullivan

E.P. Eselius

Roberta Wiehrdt

Herb Koss