Metro's new numbers

This just in……  Aerial photos to do what locals cannot ……  Metro to make land use decisions by a wing and a prayer!

Maybe their vacant and under-developed land grabs will be as effective as our Sensitive Lands program that was figured not by on-the-ground objective analysis of local land uses and cultural functionality, but by what things look like from on high.

When did Metro begin to cover seven counties?  This illigitimate (unrecognized by the Constitution of the US) layer of government now has Yamhill, Columbia and Skamania Counties in their grip.  I assume that we need to start thinking of these places as part of the "Portland Area."  I wonder what the locals in these counties think about this or if they even know what's in store for them.

To be continued:  How did Metro come up with their numbers?  How will they allocate the bodies?

Portland-area population could jump by 725,000 in 20 years, Metro forecasts

An aerial view of Washington County from above the Portland Community College Rock Creek campus. The seven-county Portland area might grow by up to 725,000 people in the next 20 years, according to Metro estimates. (Jamie Francis/The Oregonian)

The Oregonian, June 9, 2014  |  By Simina Mistreanu

The seven-county Portland area might grow by up to 725,000 people, topping the 3 million population mark by 2035, according to the most recent estimates from the regional government Metro.

This forecast might be at the foundation of next year's assessment of the Urban Growth Boundary expansion. The process allows the regional government to work with cities to plan development.

The metro area includes Multnomah, Washington, Clackamas, Clark, Skamania, Yamhill and Columbia counties and is expected to reach 2,343,000 people by next year, almost 600,000 more than in 1995.

Metro senior planner Ted Reid on Monday, June 9, briefed the Washington County Coordinating Committee, a group of mayors and other officials who meet every month to discuss transportation issues. The agency will release a detailed report on the population estimates in July.

Cities and private developers will have the biggest role in managing urban growth, Reid said, though Metro sets some guidelines. "We are providing the data that political leaders will use to make their decisions," he said.

The Urban Growth Boundary is assessed every six years, in a process that involves various levels of government and the public. This winter, the Oregon Legislature passed a land-use "grand bargain" to designate urban and rural reserves after the process got tangled in court.

In this new planning cycle, Metro is looking at urban growth in a brand new way, Reid said. In the past, the agency used to make population projections and then calculate, based on certain formulas, how many people would live in existing or redeveloped housing units, and how much land would be needed for new development.

Now, the agency takes aerial snapshots of every piece of land within the Urban Growth Boundary and analyzes their development or redevelopment potential one at a time.

Metro will focus on redevelopment to accommodate urban growth in the next two decades, he said.

Mayors reacted in a variety of ways.

"A seven-county snapshot doesn't help us at all," said Hillsboro Mayor Jerry Willey, adding that mayors need county-specific data in order to plan housing and employment. He also wondered how Metro saw urban density evolving in the next 20 years.

Willey said it's unrealistic for Metro to plan for new development in Damascus, a Clackamas County city that last year considered disincorporation.

Wilsonville Mayor Tim Knapp said if Damascus, a mostly rural area, were to develop, the region would need to foot a large infrastructure bill. "Where would they work?" Knapp said.

"We can't control where people live nor are we trying to," said Metro Councilor Kathryn Harrington. "We're just trying to help out our communities. It will constantly be part of the dynamic."

Metro staff will expand on these population estimates during a presentation before the Metro Council in July. In December, the council will decide whether to adopt these estimates as a basis for future planning.

Related links:

Metro (Portland Area)

Metropolitan planning organization (Wikipedia)

Measuring The Contributions of Metropolitan Planning Organizations For Local Transportation Planning (2009) University of Delaware

"Interestingly, the United States Government had originally intended MPOs to be the organizations behind transportation as well as other infrastructure elements including sewers, and housing and development. It was not until more recently, that these planning bodies concentrated solely on local transportation. As will become increasingly the case, MPOs will have a major impact on environmental and local political conditions in the United States. It will be within the political, environmental and governmental realms that their true purpose is affirmed."

Is this what Americans want as part of their political landscape?  If you think the Green Police are overbearing now, or even if you are an ardent eco-activist and think more regulation is a good thing, is lack of local control really what you want?  Are MPOs really monsters in fuzzy green disguise?

Handwriting's link to learning

This has nothing to do with my usual topics, it is just a long-standing concern of mine.  Machines cannot replace man and standard learning practices which have been increasingly viewed as anachronistic.  If penmanship comes back, there is hope for math without calculators and learning without computers in elementary school.

What’s Lost as Handwriting Fades

New York Times, JUNE 2, 2014   |    By MARIA KONNIKOVA

Children not only learn to read more quickly when they first learn to write by hand, but they also remain better able to generate ideas and retain information. In other words, it’s not just what we write that matters — but how.  

“When we write, a unique neural circuit is automatically activated,” said Stanislas Dehaene, a psychologist at the Collège de France in Paris. “There is a core recognition of the gesture in the written word, a sort of recognition by mental simulation in your brain.  

“And it seems that this circuit is contributing in unique ways we didn’t realize,” he continued. “Learning is made easier.”
Continue reading the main story     

                     Ball and stick - 1950s.                                                           NYT Op Ed by Inga Dubay and To learn more about italic and cursive writing,                      Barbara Getty (Portland):  Italicsvisit this website:http://www.handwritingsuccess.com  

Power elite won't tolerate dissent

You can find the unelected "Power Elite" at every level of society down to municipal government, and the monied class behind the scenes that is used to getting its way.  All powers work to control, marginalize and render the public mute, except for their own army of proxy combatants.

Since all power springs from the consent of the people, the people have the ability to change things - if they have the will to do so.

WATCH WHAT YOU SAY, THE NEW LIBERAL POWER ELITE WON’T TOLERATE DISSENT

Newgeography, by Joel Kotkin 06/07/2014

In ways not seen since at least the McCarthy era, Americans are finding themselves increasingly constrained by a rising class—what I call the progressive Clerisy—that accepts no dissent from its basic tenets. Like the First Estate in pre-revolutionary France, the Clerisy increasingly exercises its power to constrain dissenting views, whether on politics, social attitudes or science

An alliance of upper level bureaucrats and cultural elites, the Clerisy, for for all their concerns about inequality, have thrived, unlike most Americans, in recent years. They also enjoy strong relations with the power structure in Washington, Silicon Valley, Hollywood and Wall Street.  

To read the entire article, go to:  Newgeography

Here we go again

Here we go again.  I think I am going to be saying that a lot in the coming weeks. 

This email (in black) from the folks at "Keep Lake Oswego Village Vibrant" (the public relations team for the Wizer Block Development) was sent en mass to many people in Lake Oswego on Friday night (6/6/14).   Is this just promotional, or is it wishful thinking?

Date:  Fri, June 6, 2014 9:10 pm
To:  info@keeplakeoswegovillagevibrant.com 

Subject:   Block 137: New, Improved Design 

From: info@keeplakeoswegovillagevibrant.com

With the help of noted Lake Oswego architect Rich Farrington, Patrick Kessi and his team have just submitted a new and improved design for the redevelopment of the Wizer Block. It celebrates traditional Lake Oswego Village architecture and incorporates the best suggestions of many of
you, neighborhood business and community leaders.
But the best suggestions of so many more were ignored.   

In the same way that Lake View Village marked the beginning of making Lake Oswego village a destination downtown, the new plans to redevelop and revitalize Block 137 continue our conversations about how to achieve a more vibrant and robust village center.
Really?  And an apartment complex, the largest in town, will be the centerpiece of a "destination" village?  Not in my experience or imagination.  Who's kidding whom?   (There's that "vibrant" and it's cousin, "robust" again.)

Take a look at the new and improved design and judge for yourself, www.keeplakeoswegovillagevibrant.com.
And while you are at it, take a look at my previous blog post, " Old and new" to give you a little more background information.  

Some said the previous Wizer Block was too tall. So we addressed it.

* The new Wizer Block project eliminates all fifth stories and no building is taller than the code limit  of 60 feet. By comparison, at some peaks, Lake View Village buildings are over 62 feet tall.
Since the fifth floor never did exceed the 60 foot limit, removing it does not change the height, so why mention the two together as if  they were related?  The development was and remains the maximum 60 feet high regardless of the number of stories it had or has.
Evergreen Grpup LLC Testimony for the DRC, 1/29/2014:

"The floor count will not change the height of Block 137. On Second Street, the exterior fifth floor is aligned and on the same level as the interior fourth floor. On First Street the exterior fourth floor is aligned with the interior fifth floor. If the DRC for example rejects the fifth floor on Second Street, the building height will not change. Instead the ground floor will likely change to retail with a 20 foot floor to floor as allowed by the code, topped by 3 floors of residential for a total height the same as originally proposed and as allowed by the code.  The project would retain the top floor units with their views to the lake. Floors 1 and 2 would become one 20-foot retail floor, replacing 2, 10-foot residential floors, maintaining the overall 
height of the building and the lake view top floor units."

Some said the previous Wizer Block was too massive for the core of our village. So we addressed it.

* The new Wizer Block project has 3 distinct buildings, for a total of 291,963 square feet. Two generous pedestrian walk ways separate the buildings to enhance and activate the street level experience. By comparison, the Lake View Village Complex covers a total of 236,852 square feet... with alley ways allowing pedestrians to access the garage complex.
These measurements don't make sense to me.  According to the county tax map, the total area of the Lake View Village block is about 2.4 acres or 104,544 sf.  IF there was 100% lot coverage, and with only 2 stories, the maximum sf of the (6) buildings could be at most 209,088 sf.  Since there is a driveway, courtyard and alleyways, the lot is not completely covered, so the discrepancy is even greater.  The best estimate of Lake View Village's Floor Area Ratio is around 93,000 sf., and Block 138 to the East has about 90,000 sf.  Is there some explanation for Evergreen Group's figures?  

Some said the previous Wizer Block was too large. So we addressed it.

* The largest building in the new Wizer Block is 122,527 square feet. By comparison the largest building in the existing Lake View Village Block is 219,000 square feet.
Again with the big numbers.  If Lake View Village has 93,000 square feet total, how could it have over 3 times that in ANY one building?  Note to Evergreen Group LLC: there are six separate buildings in Lake View Village so their largest would be considerably smaller than anything on the Wizer Block.  Where are these numbers coming from?

Some said the previous Wizer Block didn’t fit Lake Oswego’s village character. So we addressed it.

* The designs for the new Wizer Block project have been heavily influenced by highly respected Lake Oswego architect, Rich Farrington. Three distinct buildings now have identifiable LO 
architectural style, separated by inviting pedestrian walkways. Buildings B and C now have a greater number of distinct facades breaking up the frontage. By comparison, Lake View Village has that same treatment: Distinct architectural facades which break up the face of the building.  
The pedestrian walkways, while nice, have been criticized for being too narrow and too shaded -   "inviting" may be too strong a word choice here.  Some facades have been redesigned, but they do not seem to have changed much in their setbacks for better articulation.  The Wizer Block development should stand on its own merits and not just compare facade details with another development while ignoring basic form and structure which are the biggest problems.

Some said the previous Wizer Block project had too many residential units and not enough commercial/retail space. So we addressed it.

*The new design reduces residential units by 21 (down to 207) and increases commercial/retail space by 30%.
From Evergreen  Group's January 29 testimony, it appears that if they removed the 5th floor they would compensate somehow to make the 4th floor just as high for lake views. This would mean 20' commercial spaces, and would most probably wipe out some residential units and substitute commercial.   Until this is confirmed, this is only a hypothesis.  

The redeveloped Wizer Block 137 project will create significant community benefits:

*Potentially generating $630,000 in new property taxes for priority community services and projects in surrounding neighborhoods. For example: First Addition, Evergreen, Foothills, Old Town and Lakewood.
The increased property tax will not benefit the city's general fund for about 15 years or so because all taxes over the current [base] tax would go towards paying back the $5 million of bonds (not including interest) used to pay off the city's contribution of waived SDC fees (plus regrading of 2nd Ave.) The 
extra tax revenue sounds good, but most would go back into the EERD to fund more redevelopment projects, and so on, and so on.  How much and when the increased taxes from the district come back to the city to fund basic services is anyone's guess.  

*It creates 1200 construction jobs and 100 permanent jobs and permitting fees will add to public school budgets.
Are the 100 jobs mentioned full time or part time?  Minimum wage or family-wage jobs?

*The new Wizer Block provides more public parking spaces and develops new housing options for young professionals who want to live here.  It provides LO "empty nesters," who are committed members of our community, the option to downsize and remain part of the LO family.
The new website claims only that bicycle parking has been increased.  Has there been an increase in the total number of auto parking spaces?  Regarding potential tenants -  any one development should not be looked at as the last best hope for upscale housing for downsizing seniors or young professionals - that kind of thinking leads to desperate decision making.  

*It creates more public art, new public spaces and great urban amenities.
I have trouble with this one. The development will create public art?  Will people hang out in the pedestrian walkway?  Do "urban amenities" make up for the problems and aesthetic detractors the development might bring to our suburban small town?  

*It will help capture millions of retail spending that is currently “leaking” away from local merchants.
Show me the leakage.  What retail services will this development bring that are leaking away right now?  The challenge for any retailer, new or old, will be customer parking.  Your "leakage" then will be self-made:  too many people and too few parking spaces, regardless of what the code says, and more so since tenant parking is scarce.  Businesses will cater to close by residents - the youngsters and oldsters, just like in the Pearl, but without the critical mass needed to survive.  A lot of us who shop downtown now will probably stay away.  There may not be more customers, just a trade for who has easy access.  

We are excited about the new and improved Wizer Block and thank you all for your feedback. 
You are welcome. 

Together, I know we can work to continue what Lake View Village started. Together we can reach common goals - attracting people who want to live, work, play and invest in this great community and make our downtown core the envy of others.  
OUR downtown!  Now you've got my interest.  Sounds mighty neighborly of you, whoever you are, but can you tell me who the local principals and/or investors are that you refer to?   

We're looking for LIVABILITY, not prestige and the "envy of others".   I also love the way you slipped in the word  INVEST into the oft-heard phrase, "live, work, play" in this great community...  Do you want us to be investors in the project, or do you want us to think that public money spent on the Wizer Block Development as an "investment" instead of a debt?   

It's getting hot in here

Why is global warming, aka climate change, aka climate disruption so important?

Because it is the basis for most of the land use decisions being made today.  The other reason is population growth, but clearly climate anxiety is at the forefront of decision-making about transportation, land use, and daily behavioral patterns of humans.  If the science is not right, what then is driving the political decisions about how we live in the future and what we will be permitted and forbidden to do?  I agree that we have a problem looming in the future and that we may have reached the tipping point already, but it isn't global climate change that's so concerning, it's political overreach and control of our lives.

Global [Warming?] Forever

In 2014, the U.S. Postal Service introduces Global: Sea Surface Temperatures, a new Forever® international rate stamp.

This round stamp features a visual representation of our planet’s sea surface temperatures. It shows the Earth with North America at the center and parts of South America, Asia, and Europe just visible on the edges, surrounded by vivid bands of color throughout the oceans. The image is one frame in a 1,460-frame animation created from the output of a computer model of Earth’s climate by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory. The full animation shows how the surface temperatures of the oceans vary seasonally and change over time, and how surface ocean currents and eddies transport heat and water around the globe. 

20 Years of Winter Cooling Defy Global Warming Claims

Forbes. April 2014  |  By James Taylor 

Winter temperatures throughout the United States are in a 20-year cooling trend, defying alarmist global warming predictions and debunking claims that warmer winters are causing environmental catastrophe.

Old and new

Wizer Block Ver. 2
See if you can spot the differences between the original and the new designs.
Has the developer:  1) broken the buildings up?   2) reduced the massing?  3) provided enough relief to the facade to make it less bulky?  4) made the development complementary (mass and design) with its surroundings?

New design

Note: Lake View Village is on the right, Block 137 is on the left.  Note that the building on the left appears to be the same or similar size as those on the right.  When drawn in perspective, objects in the rear appear smaller than they really are.

 Original design

New design 

  Original design 

New design

Original design

  

New design

 Original design

Facade changes are distinct here, but what 

about building setbacks and volumes?

Original design - as seen from Millennium Park.

I could not find a new design from this viewpoint, but as far as I can tell, the height and size of the buildings will remain about the same as originally designed, so one could expect them to rise above the park at about the same height. The treetops in the background are from Evergreen St. below.

Kessi's vision for downtown

The last part of the title of this opinion piece in today's Lake Oswego Review, A Shared Vision, is wishful thinking at best, and political spin at worst.  Kessi is from Portland.  No doubt he and Gene Wizer share the same vision for their development downtown, as do the investors in Evergreen Group LLC, and probably some of the people who crafted the Revised EERD, though some do not.  And what about the residents of Lake Oswego?  The opposition to the hulky, densely populated and badly situated development is huge.  Will a better design make it more palatable?  Yes, but did Kessi's group have the vision to go far enough?

East End Redevelopment District: A Shared Vision
Lake Oswego Review,  June 5, 2014   |   By Patrick Kessi

Patrick H. Kessi is principal of Evergreen Group LLC.

The vision behind the East End Redevelopment District was to use high-quality design to attract people and businesses back to downtown Lake Oswego. The landmark Lake View Village was the beginning of a bold, public-private investment. It built on traditional architectural values to shape special downtown spaces and create significant public value. This kind of redevelopment encourages other innovative development on adjacent blocks, resulting in a more vibrant Lake Oswego Village.

The vision of attracting people and businesses back to downtown has been done.  High-quality design is in the eye of the beholder, and where the design goes.  A great many people did not approve of Kessi's first design for the Wizer Block location (or probably anywhere in Lake Oswego).

I admired the foresight and tenacity in the creation of Lake View Village — it was a tough project to introduce to the community. Today, there’s no doubt that it was a vital strategic step in the right direction, attracting people who want to work, shop, play and invest in downtown.

 The "tough project" was made easier by the developer's willingness to accommodate neighbors' design suggestions and solve potential problems.  It only makes sense that what pleases the locals will please newcomers too since what they are buying is the atmosphere that makes the city an attractive place to live.  Let's not spoil it with unsuitable development that capitalizes on the place and degrades it at the same time.

I am drawn by the vision of a destination downtown Lake Oswego. My team and I are working closely with the community to take the next step in designing and building another high-value project known as the “Wizer Block,” or Block 137.

A destination downtown?   I know a boutique hotel on the Wizer Block was in the EERD Plan, but when did we become a tourist destination?  I sure hope the city doesn't make the same mistake Metro has in helping fund a new hotel!  We (the public) have funded so many businesses already!  

I have not seen the new Wizer Block designs yet and do not know anyone who has.  Comments and questions below (in red) are ones that should be answered by the project designs that have been resubmitted to the planning department for a building permit.  A DRC public hearing will be scheduled in a few weeks for review of the project.  

This newly redesigned Block 137 project includes the best suggestions of city staff, neighborhood residents and business and community leaders, including:

n Scaling down the project into several distinct facades and segments, reducing the mass and maximizing the village design characteristics;

Did the developers split the project into more than 3 buildings as the DRC suggested?  Or did they just play with surface detail and setbacks?

n Removing the fifth story — no building is taller than four stories (as permitted by city code);

No giveaway here.  The code limits buildings to four stories, so a fifth story was impossible from the beginning.  Perhaps this was just a bargaining chip anyway.  It is telling that Kessi writes that four stories are permitted as if this is a settled case.  The wording in the code is "may" not "shall" have four stories.  The issue of the fourth story as a permitted use may become a court case. 

n Reducing the density and number of residential living units;

By cutting out the doomed fifth story, the number of units was automatically reduced.  Besides the actual number of units ( this affects numbers of cars, people and pets), the massing or bulk of the buildings was a huge issue.  Has the FAR (floor area ratio) been reduced for the remainder of the buildings?  

n Increasing the amount of commercial spaces; and

Does the revised design increase the number of spaces, or the actual square footage of commercial space?   Kessi's wording suggests the former.  

n More adherence to the distinctive historic traditions of Lake Oswego-style architecture.

It is interesting that people now refer to the "Lake Oswego Style" - a design style that was made-up just for Lake Oswego's downtown area - as "distinctive historic traditions."  I do not fault any developer for mistaking this thematic, imposed style as historic or traditional.  It is written the 2004 EERD Plan as the style for the district, and probably draws on Sundeleaf's 1920s-era architecture, even though more homes and buildings were built in the 1950s and '60s than all previous decades.  Lake Oswego has a farming history too which lasted up until the Kruse farm was vacated just a few years ago.  

Stay tuned.  We're in for a bumpy ride.  

And please, can everybody stop using the word "vibrant"?   The word has lost its original meaning and sounds cartoonish now.  

The Arlington Way

It must be Arlington everywhere these days. And look at what the trigger is - streetcars!  Damascus, Lake Oswego, Clackamas County, Tigard, Stafford, and countless other communities throughout the country (and world) are not the congenial, collegial  places to live that they once were.  I wish they were.  But I also don't want the back room deals and secret power trips that turn average citizens (aka taxpayers or ATMs) into pawns.  Government has gone too far and this is the response.

I give kudos to the current City Council members for working together for the good of the community, but if this trend does not continue, the old ways will come roaring back.  This article will remind us where we were and where we don't want to go.  Despite the new tone in City Hall, past conflicts are still there - waiting.  What will Lake Oswegans decide to do?

How do we get government back on track to serve the public and the not the developers and powerful outside influences?  Forget what they want, what does the public want from its government?  Which direction will give us the most liberty and keep the most money in our pocket?

A Streetcar Route Drives Typically Calm Arlington County into Conflict

Governing Magazine, August 2013  |   By Alan Eherenhalt

The wealthy Virginia county outside Washington, D.C., has been free of the nasty political environment home to its neighbors – until now. Causing the controversy is a proposed streetcar, which nearly a dozen cities are building.

What may be most important is that local politics has changed, and seems unlikely to change back anytime soon. Political conflict that was long submerged under the peaceful aegis of the Arlington Way has now broken into the open, and bottling it up again will be difficult. That may be a shame, but it was also probably inevitable that some issue would surface and break the spell, even one as seemingly benign as streetcars.

Sensitive Lands really are a sensitive matter

At the City Cpuncil Meeting on June 3, the Council held a public hearing regarding a proposal to sell the WEB property plus a 1.3 acre parcel for the $20 million the city paid for it.  This allow the city to pay off its loan on the property and pocket over $2 million in the process.

The buyer this time is Lake Oswego developer, Nick Bunick who wants the building and property for his charity, The Great Tomorrow, and to expand on its good works.  Bunick outlined some of the endeavors planned for the Kruse Way property as cited in last week's Lake Oswego Review.

City Council to consider WEB purchase and sale agreement

Bunick suggested that not only will the city break even, it will end up saving money in the long run and will not have to relocate any of the facilities currently housed at 4101 Kruse Way.

The offer came across as ambitious and, to some, unclear, due to its multifaceted nature: Bunick has said he intends to use about 30,000 square feet of the 80,000-square-foot building as administrative offices for a child abuse resource organization; as offices for a program to both combat hunger and provide education to children in Southeast Asia; and as the headquarters of a newly founded research group called the Kruseway Cancer Treatment Corporation.

The prolific developer and spiritual author has proven his mettle with local construction projects, and the move toward a purchase and sale agreement would allow the city to finally unload a property that costs it about $1.5 million annually in loan payments and operation expenses.

*  *  *  *  *  *

The sticking point may be the 1.3 acre landlocked parcel that has natural resources on it - tree grove and wetlands.  Councilor Hughes rightly pointed out that it would not be fair to ignore this Sensitive Lands designation for city convenience when regular citizens have to deal with the loathsome effects of the regulations with no relief.  Mr. Bunick if erred that he must have access to build on that property in order to compete the deal.

There is a legal question as to whether or not the parcel ever had the Sensitive Lands designation because it was challenged by then-owner Safeco.  Since there was never an attempt to formally deal with the challenge (and why not?), technically the land is free from the SL overlay.  The Council could place the designation on the property now if it so chose, but the Redevelopment Director, Brant Williams, suggested a restrictive covenant instead.  

The decision to sell the WEB property a long with the 1.3 acre parcel was passed, even though no decision about the status of a zone change from PNA (Public Natural Area) to Office Campus / Research & Development could be made at last night's meeting.  How will the city deal with what is obviously considered Sensitive Lands under the current regulations?  What is fair to citizens who have had to work within its (expensive) limitations?  Will Bunick assist the city in removing restrictions on such property?   We'll see.  

Back on the block

Evergreen Group turned in its revised application to the Planning Dept. for the Wizer Block (Block 137) on Monday (6/2/2014).  As reported by Redevelopment Agency Director, Brant Williams, the DRC should be holding a Public Hearing on the design relating to city codes and the East End Redevelopment Plan sometime in July - most likely the DRC's first meeting that month.  This will be a continuation of the hearing held in January of this year, and since new evidence is being introduced, anyone can testify at the hearing.

The city should post new documents to the project page on their website - hopefully earlier rather than later.  But be aware that the developers may change items prior to the hearing, so check back frequently to see if there is anything new.

On the city website, the Wizer development can be found under Planning Projects.  Further searches can be done using the Land Use case number LU 13-0046.

THE BIG QUESTION:

Did the developers take to heart the DRC concerns about the size, bulk and lack setbacks to pass muster?  
Did they design something more in keeping with community values and is compatible with neighboring structures and homes?  Do they respect the citizens of Lake Oswego?  Did they follow the EERD Playbook for Project J?

Now that the plans are in, the intent of the developers will be known.

From the East End Redevelopment Plan (pg. 25)

Project J Block 137 Mixed-Use Development 

The parcel between A Avenue and Evergreen, and 1st and 2nd Streets (Block 137), should be redeveloped to enhance the "compact shopping district" extending one block in all directions from the intersection of 1st Street and A Avenue. The preferred project shall be mixed-use with retail fronting on 1st Street. Along with the retail frontage on 1st Street the site could be developed with a public library overlooking Millennium Plaza Park, a 30 to 70-unit hotel or housing. The mix of uses will need to provide sufficient on-site parking to satisfy the demand for all proposed uses. New or remodeled structures shall be designed to compliment structures located on Block 138, Millennium Plaza Park (south) and the townhouses on Block 136 (west). 

Complement :  add to (something) in a way that enhances or improves it.  
Which means, The Wizer Block development shall enhance or improve Lake Village, the townhouses on Block 136 and Millennium Park.  


Original design (above) dominates neighboring blocks,

LORA Budget approval tonight - what's next for downtown

The LORA Budget Committee meeting held quite a surprise for this reporter.  Just from the last fiscal year ( 2013-14 LORA Budget, pg. 12), the "Civic Center" project has jumped from the lowest priority group into the highest priority category.  In addition, the $10,076,682 requested for Proposed Requirements for next fiscal year (2014-15 LORA Proposed Budget, pg. 4), is over double the amount of the previous two years, and significantly more than the year before that.  

The Civic Center is described in the East End Redevelopment Plan as:

Project O     Civic Center
Future development on Block 135 should consider the changing needs for public services together with the changing mixed-use nature of downtown. Private/public partnership proposals that incorporate ground floor retail, restaurant or service uses, provide separate police and court functions, improve the City's emergency dispatch capabilities, provide adequate public parking, and allow for increased public participation in civic functions should be considered. The design and character of any project should address the space and use needs for city offices and should also demonstrate that the city is an active participant in the redevelopment and revitalization of the downtown. Additional property acquired for civic center use could be used for structure expansion, parking, and landscaping. 

  

The proposed budget for next year is to purchase the remaining property held in private hands on the City Hall block for a new police station and emergency dispatch center.  The new building would cover the half block east of City Hall and be connected to it in some way.  This sets the stage for the redevelopment of the City Hall building in the future.  The "park" on the corner of Evergreen and 4th will become part of the development.

Emergency Dispatch:
The city has NOT done any study to see if our emergency dispatch services could be handled better and/or more efficiently by the County's system.  Lake Oswego's system is the only system operating outside the County consortium.  West Linn contracts with LO for services, so this makes LO and WL outliers in this area.  Is there a good (VERY good) reason LO needs to duplicate County services?  What could we get and how much money would the citizens save if we used County services?   How much money can we save in capital (and facility operations) expenses alone?  Of 33 counties in the state, 22 are the sole providers for emergency dispatch for the entire county.   It is this unwillingness to consider [outside] alternatives that makes it seem like Lake Oswego City Hall is in the business of building empires rather than providing quality services for the best value.

East End Capital Outlay

                                                                                                                   2011‐12           2012‐13           2013‐14             2013‐14            2014‐15            2014‐15        
                                                                                                                 ACTUAL         ACTUAL       BUDGET      ESTIMATE       PROPOSED      APPROVE      

Tax Increment Excess Projects

Millennium Park Improvements.                                      $34,152 
North Shore Gateway                                         199,311
Sundeleaf Plaza Park (close‐out)                                     169,320          12,000
Second St. Improvements (A to B Aves)                          238,976        909,000                            44,000
Third Street Left Turn Improvements                                                     94,000
Millennium Plaza Kiosk.                                                                         55,000
First Street North Anchor Project                                  3,643,608    2,008,000    2,890,000    1,461,000       150,000
Trolley Station Parking Improvements                                                                     250,000         40,000       300,000
State Street Pedestrian Improvements                                                                        60,000                             80,000
Block 137 (Wizer Redevelopment)                                                                                                                4,700,000
Civic Center                                                                                                                                                    3,500,000        
Second St. Improvements (south of A Av                                                                                                           25,000
Façade Improvement Project                                                                                                                              50,000                      
Total Capital Outlay                                            $4,285,367  $3,023,000   $3,255,000  $1,545,000  $8,805,000    $          

This schedule details East End capital outlay investment.                                                                                                                  

Besides moving the Civic Center project to the head of the class, this project brings up another question. There is a proposal to page the public parking lot by the RR tracks that is currently (pervious, easy to repair) gravel.  Is this part of Project D Transit Center in the East End Redevelopment Plan?  If not, should LORA be spending money on it?  If it is, can the persons in charge explain how the proposed parking lot "improvements" fit with the purpose of Project D - to encourage redevelopment, etc.?

Project D    Transit Center (from the East End Redevelopment Plan)

A multi-modal transit center should be developed along the east side of State Street. The project should accommodate a park-and-ride facility and bus transfers. It should include or support adjacent mixed-use development, include amenities for pedestrians and transit-users, provide parking opportunities for other downtown activities, and minimize pedestrian/vehicle conflicts. A new multi- modal transit center will provide for additional transportation connections and services necessary to enhance the vitality of the Redevelopment Area and both support and incentivize additional retail, commercial and housing development in that area as described in the Plan. 

From the Proposed 2014-2015 LORA Budget:

Proposed projects in 2014‐15 for the East End District include Block 137 (Wizer Redevelopment), parking lot improvements to the Willamette Shore Line Trolley Station, sidewalk improvements along State Street between A and B avenues, and property acquisition and design for a new Public Safety facility. Work will continue on the First Street North Anchor to determine the type of project that will be best for downtown and the community as a whole. Lastly, a new Store Front Improvement Program is being proposed to assist property owners with enhancements to their buildings. For the Lake Grove Village Center Urban Renewal District, the Agency will continue to accrue tax increment funds to finance the two future projects identified in the Plan: Boones Ferry Road and Parking Improvements. 

It's happened to me, and maybe to you:  You are coming to a stop sign or light, preparing to stop, or worse yet, having already stopped, you have your turn signals on and are preparing to make a right-hand turn.  You look right and left and even glance in your rear view mirrors, then out of nowhere comes a bicycle rider who zooms through the stop light and scares the daylights out of you.

Maybe you are the bicycle rider and you see an opportunity to slide through an intersection without stopping and you take the chance that everything will be OK.  Accidents can and do happen when everyone doesn't follow the rules of the road.

This article in the WW tells bike riders it's OK to break the rules.  This is how accidents happen and what causes friction between drivers and riders.  Instead of co-existence, some folks seem to trust that they are invincible, or that they have special rights.  Good luck.  Even if the majority of people survive their time on the streets, let's keep it safe out there.

ILLUSTRATION: Levi Greenacres

Stop! Don’t Stop! 

You are on a bike. Someone has placed a red octagon with unfamiliar letters on the side of the street you are biking down. What do you do? A hypothetical decision tree.*

Willamette Week, May 28th, 2014

by WW Culture Staff
Read more at the link above.