THIS is a MUST READ by
ALL LAKE OSWEGO TAXPAYERS
and the CITY COUNCIL!!!
Because of existing and past agreements and our own budgeted capital improvement plan, Lake Oswego residents have reason to worry. It is up to the city to prove that the rail road is on board with their plans for Foothills before a deal is signed with Foothills investors and developers. And before any expensive design work is done, before the first RFP is let out, before the first construction contract is signed, before the backhoes arrive, and before we can't say no.
Here's an idea - get an outside legal opinion of all agreements before they are approved. That would have been a good idea before the LOT contracts were signed. Even if everyone on the council or staff is a lawyer, have development agreements looked at again - and again if necessary - by an objective source.
USC NOTE: If you notice any errors in facts, please let me know - this is too important not to get it right.
See Foothills District Framework Plan
Executive Summary:
In order to provide good access to the District and meet TPR requirements, a series of potential upgrades to the transportation system are proposed. The most significant new project is the creation of a new northern portal at State Street between D and E Avenues. This project will utilize the existing at- grade public crossing of the Union Pacific Railroad, providing an alternative ingress/egress point to the District. Before this plan is finalized, additional design work will be required in order to minimize impacts on adjacent properties and discourage potential cut through
traffic in the First Addition neighborhood.
Development Opportunities and Challenges:
Union Pacific/Pacific and Western Rail Line – The freight rail line along the western edge of the District provides a unique challenge to the District, restricting potential locations for access and requiring collaboration among a number of organizations, including Union Pacific, Pacific and Western, and ODOT Rail. Because the grade of the rail line does not match that of State Street, there are only a few locations where new at-grade vehicular crossings are possible, including at the current public crossing at Public Storage (opposite D/E Streets in the north), at Terwilliger Boulevard, and potentially at A Street.
North Portal:
Over the long term, it is likely that the Foothills District and State Street will benefit from the development of an additional access point in the northern portion of the District. By providing two primary points of access to the District rather than one (at Foothills/State in the southern portion of the District), Foothills Road can act as a local bypass to the most congested portion of State Street, minimizing the impact that Foothills District traffic has on the existing transportation system.
Given the expense of developing a new bridge across Tryon Creek, required modifications to the State/Terwiliger intersection, and the reduction in trip volume from the Approved Framework Plan to the Revised Framework Plan, the project team felt that a new intersection in approximately the same location as the current Public Storage access would be the best solution. Any road modifications to accommodate a new Foothills Rd. intersection at the north portal will be considered a NEW crossing which might be (with a very high probability) denied.
This intersection will not be needed until development in the District is well underway – probably eight to ten years after the first development comes on line, depending on the pace of
redevelopment activity. This will allow sufficient time to work with adjacent property owners – especially Public Storage as well as other nearby properties and businesses – on the final design of the project so as to minimize impacts.
An at-grade crossing of the Union Pacific rail line, will require concurrence with UP and ODOT rail.
Any work done now (as part of the LO CIP projects) on Foothills Rd. improvements, may (very high probability), be wasted in a few years when a North Portal is not approved b UP. Will LO be responsible for making this happen by sacrificing an existing crossing elsewhere in the city because of an agreement with developers? Ndo you know what a RR X-Ing costs? Will this be our next, entirely predictable, Water Treatment Plant debacle?
Rail Crossings:
Access to and from the Foothills District is impacted significantly by the Union Pacific rail alignment. Because the rail line sits slightly above or slightly below the grade of State Street, there are limited opportunities to provide vehicular connections across the rail line without significantly altering the rail line itself. The two locations where an at-grade crossing are physically viable are at the current public crossing location at the Public Storage facility (proposed location of the new
Northern Portal) and directly opposite the State/Terwilliger intersection.
From the 2015-16 Capital Improvement Project Plan:
Of the top 10 unfunded projects on the city's list, #3-#7 are part of the Foothills District Plan - $11.5 million plus the Tryon Creek Bridge which is related ($1.9 million) to the development and natural resources planning.
Unfunded
|
Rank
|
||
Bridge Repair & Replacement Fund - Citywide (Placeholder cost - Bridge Analysis will be completed this summer)
|
1
|
Street
|
51,500,000
|
Tryon Creek Bridge and Culvert Replacement (TSP #231)
|
2
|
Street
|
1,910,000
|
B Avenue Phase I (Foothills Project) (TSP #136)
|
3
|
SDC/Developer
|
3,253,000
|
B Avenue Phase II (Foothills Project) (TSP #136)
|
4
|
SDC/Developer
|
1,829,000
|
Foothills Rd Phase II/North Portal btwn D and E Ave (TSP #135)
|
5
|
SDC/Developer
|
1,780,000
|
Foothills Rd Phase I from A to B Avenues (Foothills Project) (TSP #133)
|
6
|
SDC/Developer
|
2,960,000
|
Foothills Rd Phase II North of B Avenue (Foothills Project) (TSP #134)
|
7
|
SDC/Developer
|
1,683,000
|
Boones Ferry Rd Improvements - Phase II (Total Project Cost of $10 million, LO contributes 10% match) (TSP #1.2)
|
8
|
Bonds/Grant/ SDCs/TIF
|
955,000
|
Mercantile Dr/Boones Ferry Rd: Intersection Improvements (TSP #138)
|
9
|
Street
|
19,000
|
Boones/Reese/Oakridge: Intersection Improvements (TSP #139)
Chart below is From the Foothills Framework plan (link above):
|
10
|
Street
|
No comments:
Post a Comment