Comp Plan Nightmares (4)

Public Facilities and Services: Wastewater Collection and Treatment 

8.  Allow through appropriate land use and development standards modifications or expansions of the Tryon Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant (TCWTP) to address new regulatory and environmental conditions, while avoiding or mitigating negative off‐site impacts to adjacent land uses. 

It is necessary to know how this policy might be applied before it is adopted.  Is the policy just referring to the wastewater treatment plant upgrade project that is in the planning stages, or something more? Is Lake Oswego planning for and building capacity for expansion of city limits or its services boundary to encompass Stafford?  Does this policy include modifying the wastewater plant to allow for graywater systems as planned for in the Foothills Development Plan?  (As is, the city is responsible for installing the graywater pipes in the ground (why do we pay for the additional cost?), but not any modifications neede at the treatment plant.  If any of these situations come to pass, (where new development is required or chooses to install features beyond required state plumbing code) who would pay for the sewer plant and wastewater system modifications or expansions - current residents?  This would make current residents' water rates the funding mechanism for future developments that may or may not occur years from now - maybe after many of us are dead.  The policy should make clear how these projects might be paid for up front.

8.  Provide and maintain code standards that promote water conservation in new development and in redevelopment projects to minimize impacts to the wastewater collection system.

See above for possible impacts to current residents.  Also, graywater systems are NOT an addopted part of Oregon's Specialty Building Code nor the state's Plumbing Code.  HOWEVER, each jurisdiction can require such systems IF they approve the additional Development Codes on their own.  More code, more paperwork, more employee cost to write, monitor and enforce new codes.  Plus additional costs to hire trained engimeers or plumbing imspectors to approve documents and on-site conditions.  More costs to the developer translates to more expensive homes and businesses.  

The city should not require by code ANY building, plumbing, electrical or other specialty code to be above standard for Oregon.  Also, allowing for "incentives" to do so involves citizen-subsidized development. This is the responsibility of the developer, and in most cases, the developer will get tax credits or cash incentives from the utilities or state for code upgrades.  

9.  Allow through appropriate land use and development standards modifications or expansions of the Tryon Creek Wastewater Treatment Plant (TCWTP) to address new regulatory and environmental conditions, while avoiding or mitigating negative off‐site impacts to adjacent land uses. 

This policy sounds like it dovetails with the city requiring graywater systems and Foothills development.  This policy needs further explanation to determine all of the situations that can be  and how they might impact costs for the city and/or ratepayers.  $$

Access to Local Food

Please read post titled, "Eating My Words".  

This is a new chapter and does not cover core services of the city.  As such, the city should eliminate this section as one of things that sound nice but are impractical to do.  Read more at previous post. I can. List a thousand things that are healthy and require a place or money to do them - should the city be responsible to keep me healthy or adapt to emergencies?  No.  

1.  Allow farmers’ markets, farm/produce sands* and community gardens where they are compatible with the surrounding uses. 

See below.  Would also allow these commercial activities in "Neighborhood Commons," "Neighborhood Villages" and parks and schools in residential areas that are designated as "Neighborhood Commons".

3.  Allow gardens as an accessory use in all residential zones where residents may grow and raise their own food.

Unlike most cities, LO currently allows residential uses in All commercial zones.  Combined with the Code Streamlining which removes barriers to mixed use and consolidates codes, this would mean that community gardens could be placed anywhere in the city.  Anywhere.  What is compatible?  Whatever staff says it is.  However the code is written.  Very subjective.  Where should community go?  

4.  Allow gardens as an accessory use in all residential zones where residents may grow and raise their own food. 

Make community gardens an allowed use of residential land - no special permission is needed and objections would be virtually impossible.  A community garden next door to your house?  Or just somebody else's?   OR, should community gardens remain under the auspices of the parks dept. and be located on public land where neighbors and neighborhoods must agree with the land use?  

A.  Review and update the Community Development Code to remove regulatory barriers to 

providing local food options within Employment Centers, Town Centers, and Neighborhood Villages. 

The Code Streamlining draft codes includes Industrial Zones, Mixed Use Commercial, and all others.  Town Centers would be downtown LO and Lake Grove, Kruse Way Employment Center - with community gardens?  And industrial areas?  Of course, all of this is setting up the structure for the 20-minute neighborhood and a resilient community.  When all commercial areas of town are littered with mixed use buildings that include housing, people will "need" garden plots to survive the climate change and emergencies to come. And in the meantime, they need access to local, fresh food (it's healthy).  And government should accommodate all these "needs."  At least that's one of the new theories of urban planning. Research in the effectiveness of helping an entire population though is nil.  The research done to date has been about access to food for low income families and the social benefits for participants, who remain a very small portion of the citizens of the city.