supplemental staff findings & recommendation file …

STAFF REPORT Community Development Department

{16564100-01067233;1} MP 18-01/SUB 18-02/ZM 18-02/DA 19-01 Supplemental Staff Findings

SUPPLEMENTAL STAFF FINDINGS & RECOMMENDATION

FILE NUMBERS: MP 18-01/SUB 18-02/ZM 18-02/DA 19-01 LOCATION: Approx. 1680 W McKinney Butte Rd, Sisters, OR 97759 Tax Lots 5500, 1202, 1203, & 1205 of Map 151005CB APPLICANT: Hayden Homes, LLC OWNER: McKenzie Meadow Village, LLC STAFF: BreAnne McConkie, Principal Planner; Joe Bessman, PE, City Transportation

Engineer SUMMARY: On April 24, 2019, the City Council held a Public Hearing to receive public testimony related to application numbers MP 18-01, SUB 18-02, ZM 18-02, and DA 19-01. After receiving public testimony, the Council closed the public hearing for oral testimony and deferred deliberations to May 15, 2019 at 5:30 PM. Pursuant to the hearing process and procedures set forth in SDC Chapter 4.1, the Council left the record open for additional written evidence for seven days after the hearing. This Supplemental Staff Findings and Recommendation responds to certain testimony provided at the public hearing and written evidence received, and summarizes additional evidence submitted to the record by City staff.

1. Traffic Study.

Opponents to the application indicated that the transportation analysis is not sufficient because it fails to account for future development of lands to the north of the subject site and fails to account for impacts from an adjacent high school. The City’s Transportation Engineer has reviewed these comments and offers the following response. Additional hypothetical future development north of the subject site is attenuated because it is located outside of the UGB and is presently zoned for forest uses (F2 - FOREST USE 2). This zoning renders the property to the north a low priority for inclusion in a future UGB expansion. Because the property to the north cannot be developed at urban densities, and may never be developable at urban densities, it is not appropriate for the transportation study to assume traffic generation from the property to the north at urban levels of development. The traffic study estimates of trips using the Williamson Ave. and Hill Ave. connections appropriately account for the high school (and retail center to the east). Specifically, the traffic counts measure trips generated from adjacent land uses and reasonable estimates of the use of these connections were made. In fact, these estimates are likely conservative as they do not account for the narrower than standard roadway widths and the increased travel times that would be incurred using these low-speed local streets, which make these routes less desirable than other potential street designs. Rather, the estimates only considered the trip length and estimates of travel patterns toward the retail uses to the east.

{16564100-01067233;1} MP 18-01/SUB 18-02/ZM 18-02/DA 19-01 05.01.19 Supplemental Staff Findings

2. Village of Cold Springs – Williamson Ave. and Hill Ave. Road Widths. The Williamson Ave. road cross-section consists of a 26-foot asphalt width with 1-foot ribbon curbing on both sides to prevent unraveling of the edge, for a total width of 28 feet. While this concrete edge was intended for drainage and pavement protection, it forms a “rolled curb” design with an effective street width of 26-feet. Williamson Ave. widths were verified onsite by Joe Bessman, PE. Approved Village of Cold Springs Street cross-sections are included in the attached transportation memo dated March 21, 2019, Joe Bessman, PE, Transight Consulting, LLC. Additionally, the pavement widths of Hill Ave. and Williamson Ave. were built meeting the Development Code (Chapter 3.4) and City of Sisters Public Works Construction Standards, November 1999 that were in place at the time of the Master Plan (MP 05-01) land use application (Figure 3.4.100.F – City of Sisters Street Standards, “Residential Neighborhood Street Parallel Parking Both Sides” below). No variance to the transportation design standards were requested nor required for the pavement width (see attached related excerpts of the Findings and Decision, dated 09/06/05, for MP 05-01, CU 05-01, SUB 05-02, pg. 72 and pg. 73).

Figure 3.4.100.F – City of Sisters Street Standards – Development Code in effect at the time of MP 05-01 land use application.


3. Transportation System Plan (TSP) – Street Connections. As staff understands Mr. Fitch’s argument, connections to Hill Ave. and Williamson Ave. are not permitted because those existing streets, even though they are not within the development site, do not meet current standards set forth in the City’s Transportation System Plan. Mr. Fitch does not cite any express language in the City’s Transportation System Plan or Development Code that requires application of the Transportation System Plan to existing streets outside of the development area or otherwise expressly prohibits street connections to non-conforming streets. Rather, he advances two arguments as to why connections to Hill and Williamson are not permitted: (1) streets not meeting the City’s current standards are implicitly unsafe/insufficient and (2) the proposed connections do not fall within the limits established by the notes on Transportation System Plan Drawing No. 7-5 for a “residential local street with parking on one side”. Mr. Fitch’s argument suggests that the Transportation System Plan establishes approval criteria for existing streets outside of the project area. Staff submits that it was never the intention of the Transportation System Plan to create any such approval criteria. The standards in the Transportation System Plan change from time to time and many miles of the City’s existing streets do not meet the current standards. Most of the streets approved under, and built to, prior Transportation System Plan standards (or prior to adoption of initial standards), such as Hill Ave. and Williamson Ave., cannot practically meet current standards because of right-of-way or other design constraints. The Transportation System Plan acknowledges that actual street design changes from segment to segment and there is no requirement for consistency. Mr. Fitch’s interpretation that the Transportation System Plan effectively prohibits connections to non-conforming streets conflicts with connectivity goals set forth in the Transportation System Plan (see pages 7-17 to 7-18 and Figure 7-6). Such an interpretation would also be particularly problematic to implement because connections to non-conforming streets are extremely common within the City. To the extent, non-conforming streets could be upgraded to meet standards, it would not be “roughly proportional” to obligate an applicant to complete such upgrades where, as is the case here, the existing roadways meet safety and functionality requirements. For these reasons, staff finds that the street standards set forth in the Transportation System Plan are only applicable to the new streets proposed as part of this application. However, even if applicable to existing streets within Village at Cold Springs, the connections are permitted for the reasons discussed below. The street section standards set forth in the City’s Transportation System Plan accomplish a variety of objectives including safety, function, maintenance, and aesthetics. There is no indication in the Transportation System Plan that these standards are the minimum necessary to achieve any particular objective. Joe Bessman testified that narrower streets, such as those featured in the Village at Cold Springs, are generally safer than wider street designs and that the as-built streets are capable of carrying additional capacity. In recognition that safety and operations may be maintained with designs other than those set forth in the Transportation System Plan, the Transportation System Plan and Development Code allow for exceptions and deviations from the “typical street sections” set forth in the Transportation System Plan. Staff does not find that the notes in Drawing No. 7-5 preclude the connections. As an initial matter, staff finds the word “used” is somewhat ambiguous in that it could refer to either the street design selected for a particular application or physical use of the street by motorists and pedestrians. Staff


finds that the former is the correct interpretation. More specifically, the note provides guidance for street design selection as part of initial development or redevelopment of a street. In accordance with the discussion above, Hill Ave. and Williamson Ave. were adopted as part of the Village at Cold Springs Master Plan (MP 05-01) pursuant to the standards in place at the time. They do not need to be redeveloped as part of this application because they are outside of the project area, the existing design meets safety and functionality objectives, the streets could not practically be redeveloped, and it would not be appropriate to obligate redevelopment of those streets. Mr. Fitch’s interpretation that “used” means that connections to non-conforming streets is prohibited, inserts additional language into the notes that were never contemplated. Even if the notes were applicable approval criteria, staff finds that Hill Ave. and Williamson Ave. fall within the “limited situations” for purposes of Note 1, which staff notes are not limited to the two examples provided within Note 1. Specifically, the sections of Hill Ave. and Williamson Ave. within Village of Cold Spring are short segments where it would be not be desirable to use a street with parking on both sides because of existing development. For purposes of Note 2, substantial off-street parking exists within Village of Cold Springs in that nearly all lots have garages and most lots feature additional off-street parking within driveways. Finally, staff notes that there are no design standards for residential streets with no on-street parking and nothing would preclude simply eliminating on-street parking on Hill Ave. and Williamson Ave. should the need arise.

4. Williamson Ave. Extension – Village of Cold Springs Subdivision Phase 6 and Phase 7. Williamson Ave. will extend from Lafollette St. east/southeast to the intersection of W. Rail Way and Brooks Camp Rd pursuant to the approved Village of Cold Springs Subdivision and Master Plan (MOD 16-03, SUB 16-01). This portion of the Williamson Ave. right-of-way (depicted as Brooks Camp Road on the tentative subdivision plat shown below) is currently under construction and will be a public right-of-way (ROW) with public access easements and public utility easements adjacent to the ROW. This connection may induce some additional use of Williamson Ave., but not enough that it would exceed design capacity or create any undue safety risk.

Village at Cold Springs Phase 6 & 7 Tentative Subdivision Plat (MOD 16-03, SUB 16-01)


5. Land Use Application. The initial MP 18-01/SUB 18-02/ZM 18-02/DA 19-01 land use application Burden of Proof submitted by the applicant included “fire gates” at Hill Ave. and Williamson Ave. however, gate details and detailed right-of-way improvements for the Hill Ave. and Williamson Ave. “stubs” were not included. At the direction of city staff and the city’s engineers, the applicant submitted revised plans showing fully improved, unobstructed road connections (without gates) at Hill Ave. and Williamson Ave. in order to meet the development code requirements and TSP (see Engineering Memo by Erik Huffman, PE, PLS, and Joe Bessman, PE dated 12.28.18 and Transportation Memo by Joe Bessman, PE, Transight Consulting, LLC dated 01.07.19, attached).

6. Staff Recommended Draft Condition of Approval.

As presented by Staff at the April 24th, 2019 public hearing, staff is recommending the following condition of approval be added in order to mitigate potential impacts related to construction traffic:

“Construction-related traffic by all vehicle types accessing the project shall be restricted from using Hill Ave. and/or Williamson Ave. for the duration of the subdivision build out. Additionally, temporary vehicular barriers shall be placed to prevent construction related vehicular through traffic on Hill Ave. and Williamson Ave. and shall be removed as follows:

• Hill Ave. barricade to be removed by the developer at the time of C of O issuance for the 20th home located in Phase 2.

• Williamson Ave. barricade to be removed by the developer at the time of C of O issuance for the 14th home located in Phase 5.

The design of the temporary construction barricades shall be reviewed and approved by the Public Works Director or designee prior to installation. Upon barricade design approval and prior to issuance of the first building permit in the proposed subdivision, barricades shall be installed by the developer and shall be signed to indicate construction traffic prohibitions and the temporary nature of the barricades. The barricades may be moved by the developer for installation of infrastructure at or near the location of the barricades. Construction-related traffic may use Hill Ave. and Williamson Ave. only if needed to construct infrastructure at or near the site of the street connections”.

7. Hill Ave. and Williamson Ave. Connections – Village of Cold Springs Master Planned Development

(MP 05-01, CU 05-01, SUB 05-02). The Village of Cold Springs Master Plan and Subdivision (MP 05-01, CU 05-01, SUB 05-02) stubbed Hill Ave and Williamson Ave streets and utilities for future connection to the subject site and a mid-block pedestrian connection was proposed in order to meet the Sisters Development Code criteria that was in effect at the time of land use approval including SDC 4.3.140 (A)(3) (pg. 25), SDC 2.1.200 (I)(4)(d) (pg. 46), SDC 3.4.200 (E) (pg. 72), and SDC 3.4.200 (F)(2) (pg. 73-74) (see attached excerpts of the Findings and Decision, dated 09/06/05, for MP 05-01, CU 05-01, SUB 05-02). The burden of proof, Land Use Findings and Decision, and approved plans explicitly identify future street connections. As stated in the Burden of Proof dated 07.21.05 on pg. 121:


“Future street and street extension plans are shown in the Planned Development Overlay Zone and Concept Plan CP1, Street Extension Plan CP7, and Future Street Extension Plan, PP4. Barricades will be constructed at the end of the street temporarily terminating at the site boundary and will not be removed until authorized by the City of other applicable agency with jurisdiction over the street.”

Page 121 of the Village of Cold Springs (MP 05-01) Burden of Proof continues as follows:

SDC 3.4.200(F) Private Streets. Private Streets shall not be used to avoid connections with public streets. Gated communities (i.e. where a gate limits access to a development from a public street) are prohibited. (applicant) Response: “Private streets connect with public streets and allow future extensions to adjacent land. They are not intended to avoid connections with public streets. Private streets will conform to the provisions of Table 3.4.100.”

Additionally, public access easements were proposed on all private streets, as stated in the Burden of Proof dated 07.21.05 on pg. 181:

“All private streets, sidewalks, and pedestrian pathways through common open space tracts shall have public access easements placed upon them when the respective phase is platted. Easements shall be shown on the final plat.”

The approved Future Street Extension Plans for the Village of Cold Springs (MP 05-01, CU 05-01, SUB 05-02) showing street connections are attached. Furthermore, the construction plans approved by the City Engineer for Village at Cold Springs Phase II show a multi-use path drawn through the open space tract 7 located at the western terminus of W. Aitken Ave/W Allingham Ave to connect to the subject property, as referenced in the Land Use decision on pages 46 and 72. It has always been the intent that these streets and paths connect between the two subdivisions; these specific connections are depicted within the recently approved Transportation System Plan (2018) and the previously approved Transportation System Plan (adopted 2010).

8. Private Street Maintenance and Liability. Private streets have been successfully employed within other areas of the City and within other communities throughout the state. Staff is not aware of any instances in which private streets, or connection to private streets, have become untenable. Based on a thorough examination and consideration of the conditions of the subject private streets, staff does not see any reason that the subject private streets will not fulfill the purposes anticipated by the Village at Cold Springs master plan approval, which included connections to future development. While staff recognizes concerns expressed regarding private street liability and maintenance issues, private street liability and maintenance issues do not address approval criteria.


9. Hill Ave. and McKinney Ranch Rd. Intersection. Opponents object to the offset intersection of Hill Ave. and McKinney Ranch Rd. However, the opponents have not identified any applicable approval criteria that prohibits such an alignment nor presented substantial evidence that such an alignment fails to meet safety standards. The City Engineer has reviewed the proposed Hill Ave. and McKinney Ranch Rd. intersection and street spacing and found that the proposed offset will result in safer pedestrian access and mobility and more functional pedestrian and bicycle circulation, as detailed in the transportation memo dated March 21, 2019, Joe Bessman, PE, Transight Consulting, LLC, Comment #7, pg. 6 (attached).

10. Design and Safety of Hill Ave. and Williamson Ave.

Joe Bessman visited the Village at Cold Springs site, physically measured the roadway widths, observed the streetscape characteristics, and walked throughout the development to observe the general area design, signing, and conditions. In addition, Joe Bessman reviewed the transportation reports, trip counts, area safety records, and all of the comments on road conditions submitted into the record. None of the issues raised or anything observed indicates that the roads within the Village at Cold Springs are unfit for the anticipated use or present any unwarranted safety risk. However, Joe Bessman did identify a number of recommended traffic control measures to enhance safety even further, which were presented within a slideshow at the public hearing before the City Council.

In addition to the traffic control recommendations, there are minor suggested changes that would be beneficial to the area to allow the roads within the Village of Cold Springs to better function as they were intended - these include strict enforcement with area neighbors of parking prohibition along the sidewalks (parking on Williamson only be allowed on the south side of the street and not adjacent to

Proposed Intersection Alignment of Hill Avenue


intersections/alleys/crosswalks). From a review of the traffic study, the volumes, and the anticipated connectivity, there are no physical constraints that would alter the general safety or livability of the neighborhood. The existing narrow street design coupled with the traffic control and geometrics will enforce a low speed travel environment appropriate for a local residential street, and the treatments shown allow the vast majority of traffic to more directly use the City’s higher-order facilities. Hill Avenue and Williamson Avenue provide connectivity that is needed in this part of Sisters, but this is intended and designed as connections that are secondary to travel along McKinney Butte Road, providing the emergency access, neighbor access, multimodal connections, and redundancy that is clearly intended by the City’s TSP policies.

Based on observations of the as-built street designs and site conditions within the Village of Cold Springs, and a review of the comments submitted, does not change any prior testimony or conclusions of the safety or livability of properties adjacent to the subject property. The proposed conditions of approval related to street design and transportation issues properly set forth everything that is required for the application to meet applicable street design and transportation related approval criteria. Other comments from staff on safety and design that are not reflected in the conditions of approval are advisory in nature and merely identify means to enhance safety and street function above and beyond City standards.

ATTACHMENTS:

1. City of Sisters Transportation System Plan (referenced excerpts) 2. Findings and Decision for MP 05-01, CU 05-01, SUB 05-02 (referenced excerpts related to ROW

connections and Street Standards) 3. Future Street Extension Plans for the Village of Cold Springs (MP 05-01, CU 05-01, SUB 05-02) 4. Village at Cold Springs Phase II, Engineering Construction Drawings 5. Engineering Memo dated December 28, 2018, Erik Huffman, PE, PLS, and Joe Bessman, PE 6. Transportation Memo dated January 7, 2019, Joe Bessman, PE, Transight Consulting, LLC 7. Transportation Memo dated March 21, 2019, Joe Bessman, PE, Transight Consulting, LLC

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Engineering Memorandum520 E. Cascade Avenue - PO Box 39 - Sisters, Or 97759 | ph.: (541) 549-6022 | www.ci.sisters.or.us

Project: McKenzie Meadows Master Plan

Task: Review of Roadway Connections to Existing Streets – Hill and Williamson

Written By: Erik Huffman, PE, PLS and Joe Bessman, PE

Date: December 28, 2018

Hayden Homes, LLC has submitted an application for Master Plan for the McKenzie Meadows property at 68945 McKinney Ranch Road. The purpose of this memo is to provide recommendations regarding potential extension of existing streets which currently terminate at the easterly boundary of the McKenzie Meadows property: Hill Avenue and Williamson Avenue. The Master Plan application includes right of way dedications for road extensions but with narrow access roads and gates to restrict access. The proposed narrow access roads from both Hill Avenue and Williamson Avenue then intersect with a proposed north‐south standard street, McKinney Ranch Road.

Maximum Access Spacing and Street Grid Requirements

The City of Sisters Transportation System Plan (TSP) calls for the establishment of, “maximum access spacing standards to promote connectivity,” and further calls for the establishment of, “a street connectivity and block formation requirement to implement a street grid throughout Sisters. In order to promote efficient vehicular and pedestrian circulation throughout the City, land divisions and large site developments should produce complete blocks bounded by a connecting network of public and/or private streets.”

Both the City’s TSP and Development Code set the maximum access spacing standard at 600 feet along local streets, with an exception allowable when a pathway is included between street intersections. The north‐south distance across the McKenzie Meadows Master Plan property is over 1200 feet. Hill Avenue meets the property approximately 400 feet northerly of McKinney Butte Road; the proposed Tract I (aligned with Tract F of Village at Cold Springs Phase II) which would have the ability to serve as a pathway, is located approximately 260 feet northerly of Hill Avenue; Williamson Avenue meets the property approximately 500 feet northerly of Tract I (and approximately 760 feet northerly of Hill Ave).

In order to maintain a street grid with complete blocks as described in the TSP, extensions of both Hill Avenue and Williamson Avenue to intersections with the proposed McKinney Ranch Road would be necessary to avoid discontinuance of the street grid.

In order to meet City TSP and Development code requirements for access spacing, the extension of both Hill Avenue and Williamson Avenue, as well as the addition of a pathway within Tract I, would be necessary to meet the 600 foot spacing standards along the proposed McKinney Ranch Road.

Conformity with Preexisting Development and To and Through Requirements

The Village at Cold Springs Master Plan was developed in 2005‐2006. In it, Hill Avenue and Williamson Avenue were designed to “stub out” and terminate at the westerly boundary of that master plan area,

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and both streets have been constructed as planned. Extensions of those streets to and through the site was a requirement of the City as part of the master plan approval. The purpose of stubbing out of the streets was to provide for their future extension to adjacent property.

In addition to the stub out streets themselves, water mains, sewer mains, and power and communication lines are also located beneath the pavement of both Hill Avenue and Williamson Avenue stub outs, each constructed to the boundary of Village at Cold Springs. The intent of stubbing out water, sewer, and franchise utilities was also to provide for their future extension onto adjacent property. To and through requirements are included in current City public works standards, which also require gridded connections of the water system as well as public street access or a minimum of a service road to access all public utility infrastructure.

In order to provide conformity with preexisting and anticipated development, to meet City “to and through” requirements, and to provide required public utility (water and sewer) connections with City access to those facilities, the extensions of both Hill Avenue and Williamson Avenue to the proposed McKinney Ranch Road would be necessary.

Functionality and Safety

The extensions of Hill Avenue and Williamson Avenue would provide connections between residential neighborhoods. Properly designed low speed connections between residential neighborhoods do not pose an inherent safety risk, and actually reduce movements on higher speed and more critical routes that are more likely to experience higher severity conflicts, such as intersections with McKinney Butte Road.

Extensions of Hill Avenue and Williamson Avenue would provide connections which would serve as direct routes to commercial uses along Rail Way, and would help reduce the consolidation of the entire northwest portion of Sisters at the US 20/McKinney Butte – Barclay Drive roundabout. The volume and types of travel anticipated along these connections would remain consistent with a local street designation.

The extensions of Hill Avenue and Williamson Avenue would benefit the neighborhood with direct routes to commercial services, would benefit the State system by reducing reliance on the new highway roundabout, and are likely to provide safety benefits by reducing the number of vehicles intersecting with McKinney Butte Road, a street that has increased potential for higher severity vehicular and pedestrian conflicts than Hill Avenue or Williamson Avenue. These local routes are less impacted with temporary congestion from the nearby schools. More significantly, safety is also improved with additional redundant egress routes within a fire‐prone community.

Recommendations

It is strongly recommended that the City require the full and unrestricted local roadway connections between neighborhoods by extending both Hill Avenue and Williamson Avenue to intersections with the proposed McKinney Ranch Road. Each street should be constructed to meet current City standards

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including full width paving and sidewalks on both sides of the street. Water and sewer utilities, as well as franchise utilities, should be extended or connected as necessary to provide optimized water system pressures and sewer collection system utilization.

Further, it is also recommended that a pathway be constructed across Tract I in order to meet access spacing requirements of 600 feet maximum between street connections.

Should the City consider gated closure of Hill Avenue and Williamson Avenue, as proposed in the McKenzie Meadows Master Plan application materials, it is recommended that full right of way width be dedicated on the survey plat of the development, that full street and sidewalk improvements be constructed per City standards or as approved by the City engineer, and that the gate system installed be easily removable to allow for planned future connection. All utility lines within the street extension area must be extended regardless of street extension, and all utility lines must have a paved access road above to allow for City access to all utility infrastructure.

In addition, if gated closure is considered, the TSP requires that the applicant must apply for an access spacing variance by preparing and submitting an access management plan for review and approval by the Public Works Director or City Engineer, which should include at a minimum the following items:

Review of the existing access conditions within the study area (defined the property frontage plus the distance of the minimum access spacing requirement). This should include a review of the last three years of crash data, as well as collection of traffic volume information and intersection operations analysis.

An analysis of the study area safety and operations with the proposed access configuration, as well as with a configuration that would meet access spacing standards.

This scenario should also include consideration of the long‐term redevelopment potential of the area and discussion of how access spacing standards may be achieved.

Elimination or gated connections of Hill Avenue and Williamson Avenue would only be allowable with an approved access management plan.

Erik Huffman, PE, PLS Joe Bessman, PE

1237RESPONSE2

Date: March 21, 2019

To: Paul Bertagna

From: Joe Bessman, PE

Project Reference No.: 1237

Project Name: McKenzie Meadows Subdivision

This memorandum addresses transportation comments raised as part of the McKenzie Meadows land use application in Sisters, Oregon. Comments from the public are presented below followed by our response.

Comment #1: The roads within the Village at Cold Springs are inadequate. The roads were constructed to substandard dimensions and are privately owned and maintained.

Response: The current roads were approved with a narrower than standard roadway section through a waiver process requested by Hayden Homes that was reviewed and approved by the City in December 2006. With the narrower than standard width (Hill Avenue is 28-feet wide including one-foot ribbon curbs on each side, and Williamson is also 28-feet wide with one-foot mountable curbs on each side) parking is only permitted on one side of the roadway as was designated when constructed through on-street signage. Figure 1 illustrates the approved roadway cross-section.

McKenzie Meadows Transportation Comments

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Figure 1. Approved Village at Cold Springs local two-way street cross-section.

While there is a range in roadway dimensions, typical dimensions for on-street parking typically include seven or eight feet, leaving 20-feet of pavement to support two travel lanes. This is narrower than a higher classification roadway that commonly would include 12-foot travel lanes and would serve a higher mobility function than a residential neighborhood.

The average width of an SUV is about 6.5 feet, with mirrors extending an additional 18 to 20 inches for a total width of approximately 8 feet from mirror to mirror. If two vehicles are passing each other alongside a parked vehicle this leaves four feet for clearance. This allows vehicles to pass but requires lower travel speeds to do so comfortably, particularly when passing larger vehicles such as trucks or SUVs (or improperly parked vehicles).

The dimensions constructed are less than the adopted City standards for a local street. The current City standard is to construct a 31-foot wide road to allow parking on only one side of the street. This narrower width does not make the roads inadequate or insufficient (these dimensions are a standard design for a local street with parking on one side in Bend) but provides a higher design emphasis on access and a lower emphasis on mobility. While this design would be inappropriate on the City’s major roads whose function is to support mobility, within a residential neighborhood this is acceptable and provides traffic calming within the design. This discourages people that do not have a destination within the neighborhood from using these roadways.


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The developer of Cold Springs was permitted to construct the narrower roads that omit sidewalks on one side of the roadway and provide a narrower pavement cross-section. This allowed a narrower right-of-way that supported higher residential density within the Village at Cold Springs compared to the wider standard, which in turn allows the housing costs to be lower. As is typical with design exceptions, since the roads were not constructed to City standards the City did not take maintenance ownership of the streets. This requires that the Village at Cold Springs developer (and now the HOA) take ownership for roadway maintenance. As is evident, there are limited areas with this narrowed section to store snow, and typical plowing would place snow directly onto residential driveways and the adjacent vehicles parked on the driveways.

Despite the City’s requirement that the homeowners association maintain the roads, there are multiple public and utility easements across the roads. The recorded plat for the Village at Cold Springs contains the following language:

A PUBLIC ACCESS EASEMENT; ACCESS, STORM DRAINAGE AND UTILITY EASEMENTS FOR THE BENEFIT OF LOTS 1 -48 AND TRACTS 'A'-'C' WITHIN THIS SUBDIVISION; A SANITARY SEWER AND WATER LINE EASEMENT FOR THE BENEFIT OF THE CITY OF SISTERS, WHICH EASEMENT SHALL BE USED FOR THE INSTALLATION, CONSTRUCTION, RENEWAL, OPERATION, AND MAINTENANCE OF UNDERGROUND SANITARY SEWERS, WATER LINES AND RELATED FACILITIES; A PUBLIC UTILITY EASEMENT FOR THE BENEFIT OF FRANCHISED PUBLIC UTILITY PROVIDERS, WHICH EASEMENT SHALL BE USED FOR THE INSTALLATION, CONSTRUCTION, RENEWAL, OPERATION, AND MAINTENANCE OF THE FRANCHISED FACILITIES; AN EASEMENT PERMITTING ACCESS TO EMERGENCY SERVICE PROVIDERS AND THEIR VEHICLES; AN ACCESS AND UTILITY EASEMENT FOR THE BENEFIT OF THE DECLARANT TO THIS PLAT, ITS SUCCESSORS AND/OR ASSIGNS.

The City’s 2007 Transportation System Plan identified the needed connections of Hill Avenue and Williamson Avenue, which occurred prior to the sale of any homes that DIAL records show were initiated in 2008. The subdivision plans and layout identified the future connection of Hill and Williamson Avenue to the west, and the roadway design exception was approved with the understanding that the roads would be required to connect to the current development application.

Comment #2: The roads within the Village at Cold Springs are unsafe for kids, backing maneuvers, or general travel. If the roads connect high school traffic will cut through the neighborhoods at high speeds.

Response: Review of the ODOT crash records for the period between January 2012 and December 2016. Crashes that are required for reporting during this period include those that contain some level of personal injury or property damage in excess of $1,500. This crash data review shows that there have been no reported crashes within the Village at Cold Springs within this five-year period. In contrast, the crash records show that there was a single injury crash in January 2015 at the intersection of Trinity Way and McKinney Butte Road, ten crashes at the US 20/Rail Way intersection, and fourteen reported crashes at the US 20/Barclay intersection (prior to the roundabout and channelization improvements). There were also two crashes at the Arrowleaf Trail/McKinney Butte Road intersection. Nearly half of the crashes on these higher-order facilities resulted in some level of personal injuries.

The crash records do not indicate any safety issues within the Village at Cold Springs with the current roadway design, and field review of the roads (prior to the late February snow storm) showed that the design encourages low travel speeds that are appropriate within a residential neighborhood. Photos submitted by residents following the snow storm show that high speeds would not be reasonable or possible within the area, and it is very unlikely that “cut-through” traffic that has other travel options would choose to use these constrained roads when the cited conditions exist.


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The safety data and field observations did not identify any safety issues within the Village at Cold Springs. The alleys, driveways, narrow width, and on-street parking all support a low-speed residential environment. The posted 10 mph speed signs installed by the HOA are not likely enforceable as they were not established through a speed study, however, the observed neighborhood speeds are lower than a more typical 25 mph residential neighborhood speed identified within State statutes because of the narrow design that has been constructed.

Comment #3: Connections through the Village at Cold Springs would be most suitable at the greenspace connection to Aitken and Allingham Avenue.

Response: Connections at these locations could occur through the green space and would directly comply with the City’s access requirements, but these connections would likely provide higher speeds and higher traffic volumes through the Village at Cold Springs due to the direct connection to Rail Way that would result. While this connection might impact fewer adjacent homes, it would increase the use of this facility as a direct connection to Rail Way and would make it more prone to the safety and cut-through concerns cited in the neighborhood comments. The approved plan for a multiuse pathway connection through the Village at Cold Springs green space provides a central location for Village at Cold Springs residents to access the future McKenzie Meadows park.

Comment #4: While area plans and City policies show the aspiration to connect local streets it is unnecessary where impractical or infeasible.

Response: City Code requirements identify the need to provide three western connections given the length of frontage along the Village at Cold Springs. Two of the connections include street stubs to the property boundary and are identified connections within the City’s adopted Transportation System Plan. The City has agreed to support the third connection as a pathway in lieu of an additional local street. This third connection occurs at the adjacent Cold Springs green space, and the approved Cold Springs design plans indicate a multiuse pathway connection that was proposed with the original application that would tie in with the McKenzie Meadows pathway and link the existing neighborhood directly to the proposed McKenzie Meadows park.

The design of Cold Springs was developed and approved with the understanding that the roads would connect west in the future. The narrowed pavement width provides inherent traffic calming that will allow the streets to function in a manner that is consistent with their role and classification. The local street connections are both practical and feasible and are specifically identified within the City’s 2007 Transportation System Plan and retained within the 2018 TSP update. Supporting text within the TSP states the following:

New developments are often developed with limited opportunities for movement into and out of the developments, with some neighborhoods funneling all pedestrian, bicycle, and vehicular traffic onto a single street. This type of street network results in out-of-direction travel and contributes to increased congestion and decreased pedestrian/bicycle accessibility. This can result in the need for investments in wider roads, traffic signals, and turn lanes that could otherwise be avoided. By providing connectivity between neighborhoods, out-of-direction travel and vehicle miles traveled (VMT) can be reduced, accessibility between various travel modes can be enhanced, and traffic levels can be balanced out between various streets. In this way, some of these local connections can help mitigate network capacity deficiencies by improving traffic circulation. Additionally, public safety response time is reduced.


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The City’s connectivity goals in this area are practical within a fire-prone community, and the specific connections respond directly to the operational needs that the applicant’s traffic study shows emerging at the McKinney Butte/Arrowleaf Trail intersection, which is projected to fail during the school release period with the completion of the McKenzie Meadows project. ODOT and the City recently spent several million dollars on the US 20/McKinney Butte – Barclay roundabout and channelization improvements, which will provide the only location in northwest Sisters to safely turn left onto the highway (particularly during the peak summer season). This project addresses a documented safety issue that as cited previously has had a history of crashes. As stated in the TSP, the connectivity policies are intended to protect these investments so that the entire northwest portion of Sisters can rely on these facilities for safe access to the highway system.

Comment #5: The traffic study that was prepared and shows estimates of trips using Williamson Avenue and Hill Avenue do not account for high school traffic or the future Urban Growth Boundary expansion.

Response: As required by the Transportation Planning Rule, the Transportation System Plan (and by extension the traffic study) does not assess lands outside of the Urban Growth Boundary (UGB). As additional lands are incorporated into the UGB compliance with the Transportation Planning Rule will be required. This mandates that roads perform consistent with their identified function, or other measures (such as new roads or connections) will be required.

Within the traffic study estimates of trips using the Williamson and Hill Avenue connections do appropriately account for the high school (and retail center to the east). The estimates are likely conservative as they do not account for the narrower than standard roadway widths and the increased travel times that would be incurred using these low-speed local streets. The estimates only considered the trip length and estimates of travel patterns toward the retail uses to the east.

Comment #6: Williamson and Hill Avenue are far below any standard used to define local streets. Local streets with parking on one side are identified with a minimum width of 31 feet, and are only allowed where parking on both sides is infeasible, and then for only limited distances.

Response: A waiver was approved for the Village at Cold Springs to deviate from City standards and allow the construction of Williamson Avenue and Hill Avenue as public streets that would require private maintenance. While the width of these streets is narrower than the City standard this does not change their functional role, but reduces through mobility (speed) in favor of local accessibility. This is consistent with the City’s recommended Neighborhood Traffic Management policies within Chapter 7 of the City’s adopted Transportation System Plan that states the following:

Neighborhood Traffic Management is a term that has been used to describe traffic control devices typically used in residential neighborhoods to slow traffic or possibly reduce the volume of traffic. Neighborhood Traffic Management is descriptively called traffic calming due to its ability to improve neighborhood livability. The City of Sisters currently has limited neighborhood traffic management elements, mainly the use of narrow road widths that manage vehicle speed. As traffic congestion increases in the future, protecting the livability of neighborhoods may become an increasing need that requires the ability to mitigate impact.

This waiver did not modify the Transportation System Plan to remove the connectivity requirement or amend City access policies, but better supports low residential travel speeds. Parking within the Village at Cold Springs was considered adequate as each of the houses contains a garage and driveway, limiting the use of on-street parking to guests and deliveries.


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While the design is narrower than the adopted City standard, the cross-section design is nearly identical to the 28-foot wide residential street requirements for a local street with parking on one side that is adopted in the City of Bend. The cross-section provided is adequate to support the local residential demands on a local residential street.

Comment #7: Hill Avenue is not provided as a direct connection but is instead offset. Because of the offset the connection should be eliminated.

Response: The Hill Avenue design includes a slight offset along Hill Avenue on the east side of the park, as shown in Figure 2. In addition to serving a level of traffic consistent with the local street designation, the offset intersections require additional turning maneuvers to travel between neighborhoods and incur additional delay in making these maneuvers. Direct travel south to McKinney Butte Road remains the most direct and convenient route for drivers, and the majority of trips are expected to use this route.

Figure 2. Alignment of Hill Avenue through McKenzie Meadows.

Drivers that travel between the Village at Cold Springs and McKenzie Meadows will be required to stop at the McKinney Ranch Road intersection with Hill Avenue. For these drivers to continue west through the development they will need to turn left, then turn right to travel around the future park. Between the two offset intersections the road will be narrowed with curb extensions to prevent on-street parking, which will also have the effect of slowing travel speeds and providing clear and unobstructed sight lines for pedestrians. The spacing between the offset intersections will provide clear views between opposing eastbound and westbound motorists, and the distance of the offset will be adequate to support simultaneous left-turn maneuvers.

While the City would typically prefer to have intersections directly aligned, in this area the ability to provide a strong marked pedestrian crossing between the two intersections coupled with removal of


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adjacent on-street parking through curb extensions provides a design that balances (or enhances) safety for pedestrians. The center turn-lane conflicts that can occur with offset intersections does not occur within a low-speed two-lane roadway section (or with the positive offset or “Left-Right” alignment as provided), and with the offset distance of approximately 50 feet there are no left-turn overlap conflicts that occur with simultaneous movements. This means that the intersection will provide a level of safety that is appropriate within a residential neighborhood and will not serve as a direct and convenient “high speed” route. Without the offset I believe that the design would be more inviting to cut-through traffic and would support higher speeds.

SUMMARY

I understand neighborhood concerns related to future cut-through trips and the changes that occur with growth and development. In this case the roadway and pathway connections are planned and anticipated, as well as directly identified within the 2007 Transportation System Plan (and 2018 update). The roads through the Village at Cold Springs are narrow and were approved to deviate from City of Sisters standards in exchange for private maintenance with a public access easement. This narrowed design is consistent with the City’s adopted Neighborhood Traffic Management policies within the Transportation System Plan. This modified streetscape design allowed higher residential density within the Village at Cold Springs and more green space that lowered the land cost of the homes while increasing the on-going private maintenance cost. The public access easement maintains the functional role of these local streets in supporting travel between the adjacent neighborhoods as identified in adopted City plans.

The transportation arguments to extend the streets into the McKenzie Meadows development are clear:

• The connections at Williamson Avenue and Hill Avenue were planned to occur within the adopted 2007 and updated 2018 Transportation System Plan.

• In addition to policy statements, both Williamson Avenue and Hill Avenue connections are specifically identified within the City’s Transportation System Plan as more critical connections to provide;

• Adopted City connectivity policies requires both connections (and a third connection that has been approved by staff to be replaced with a multiuse pathway connection);

• The connections are stubbed streets today that extend to the Village at Cold Springs property boundary and that are intended to extend west through McKenzie Meadows;

• The connections help leverage and extend the significant infrastructure investments that have been made along US 20 to address the area’s more critical safety and capacity needs;

• The narrowed designs will support low and appropriate types and levels of traffic through the Village at Cold Springs that are commensurate with a local residential street;

• The offset design of Hill Street provides additional traffic calming and will help reduce cut-through trips or high speeds; and

• The design of the connections within McKenzie Meadows will match the width and cross-section elements of the stubs to provide a clean transition between the two Hayden Homes neighborhoods.

Based on my review, the following is recommended:

• Both Williamson Avenue and Hill Avenue should be extended into McKenzie Meadows as ungated public streets, with the connections mimicking the streetscape elements within the completed sections within the Village at Cold Springs. This narrow design and the other measures identified


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in the site plan will provide a low-speed connection that will remain consistent with the local street designation while providing alternate emergency and access options to adjacent residents.

• Construction traffic should be prohibited from using the private streets within the Village at Cold Springs to the extent possible as there are alternative construction access options for the property.

• If more limited or gated access is pursued by the applicant or the Village at Cold Springs neighborhood the change in connections identified within the Transportation System Plan and exception to City connectivity and access spacing policies will need to be justified. This will need to be reviewed and approved by the City of Sisters and ODOT due to the impacts that would occur to the highway system and that are already occurring at the Arrowleaf Trail intersection with McKinney Butte Road.

I appreciate the opportunity to provide these responses and for the respectful and considerate comments that were submitted into the record. Please let me know if you have any questions at [email protected] or at (503) 997-4473.

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