City Council, April 24th - Second Reading on Parking Mandates

On Monday Council looks to pass the Second Reading of ordnances to remove parking mandates citywide. 

There will be no parking apocalypse.

Also on the agenda as an information item is approvals on a large apartment complex on Cordon Road at the corner with Highway 22.

396 apartments with a lot of parking

Minimum of 558, proposed 774

Since the project was not near core transit, under current parking requirements there was a still a minimum of 558 spaces. The project is proposing 774 spaces.

The minimum was not relevant here. Whether the minimum was zero required parking spots or 558 parking spots, this project still would have 774. The developer had great freedom to choose less than 774, and still proposed a lot more than the minimum.

Developers will still be building a lot of parking, only they will respond to market and project requirements rather than more clumsy government mandates. (Then, of course, the next step is to figure out how to make large parking lots like this unnecessary.)

Action plan on transportation

In the Center 50+ Advisory Committee Annual Report, there's an "age-friendly" action plan for 2023. It has a section on transportation, and specifically calls out "walking, biking and carpool options." It will be interesting to see what fruit this bears. It has not seemed like a very active or effective part of the project, but maybe it is just a little under the radar. Still, for seniors especially trip length is meaningful, and it might be helpful to have more on proximity and adjacency in land use.

Size of fire trucks at Strong Towns

In the update on the bond activity, it's disappointing that there was never more public debate on right-sized fire trucks, and the right proportion of medical.

In March 2023, the City of Salem ordered Fire engines and life-saving equipment with proceeds from the voter-approved Safety and Livability Bond. The new equipment will be arriving in Salem and in service to our community as early as winter 2024 and no later than early 2025. Salem’s first purchase with bond sale proceeds, secured $19.89 million in fire trucks and equipment, including:

• 16 fire engines
• 2 ladder trucks
• 1 heavy rescue vehicle
• 1 air rescue vehicle
• 2 wildland fire engines
• 2 ambulances
• 1 aircraft rescue and firefighting truck

MU-III zoning on Market at Hawthorne and I-5

In another information report there's a new car dealership approved for an area with newly assigned MU-III zoning on Market Street between Hawthorne and I-5. This is not necessarily a failure of the MU-III zoning, but it is a reminder that true mixed uses will not immediately appear in most cases with that new zoning.

Waln Creek and Cul-de-Sacs

There's approval on a tentative subdivision plan off Mildred Lane very near Commercial Street SE. It was odd to see all the dead ends, but the City agreed with the developer that a bridge over Waln Creek was not reasonable.

And finally a renewal on the lease with ODOT for the spandrel land under the bridges near Wallace Marine Park.