Approved Minutes - 2010-12-20
CITY OF LAKE OSWEGO
Sustainability Advisory Board Minutes
December 20, 2010
CALL TO ORDER / ROLL CALL
Co‐chair Bruce Brown called the Sustainability Advisory Board (SAB) meeting of December 20,
2010, to order at 6:30 p.m. in the Conference Room of the Main Fire Station, 300 B Avenue,
Lake Oswego, Oregon.
Members present: Co‐chairs Bruce Brown and Grant Watkinson; Dorothy Atwood,
Gary Bachofner, Daniel Gottlieb, Vidya Kale and Gregory
Monahan
Members excused/absent: Sarah Asby and Matt Briggs
Council Liaison: Sally Moncrieff
Staff present: Susan Millhauser, Sustainability Coordinator; and
Alex Deley, AmeriCorps worker
MINUTES
The draft was corrected and then Atwood moved to accept the Minutes of November 15, 2010.
Watkinson seconded the motion and it passed by unanimous vote.
ANNOUNCEMENTS
A Parks and Recreation Department workshop regarding Luscher Farm was scheduled for
January 22. The City was to host a block foam recycling event on January 8. Master Recyclers
had helped significantly reduce the amount of landfill trash generated at the City employee
holiday luncheon. Eleven people had confirmed they would attend the January 28‐29 Train the
Trainer program. The 2011 Board meeting schedule was distributed. Millhauser announced
the City Council had adopted a resolution in support of a statewide plastic bag ban, which the
SAB had reviewed and the recommended to the Council.
PUBLIC COMMENT (None)
REGULAR BUSINESS
Review Agenda
Chair Brown added an agenda item to discuss Board recommendations to the Planning
Commission about exceptions to the height limitation for solar panels being considered as part
of the Planning Commission’s review of the Community Development Code.
City of Lake Oswego Sustainability Advisory Board
Minutes of December 20, 2010
Page 2 of 4
Update: Goal‐setting meeting with the Mayor
Chair Brown reported that he and the chairs of other City boards had shared their goals at a
recent Mayor’s roundtable. Many of them had transportation‐related goals. They planned to
meet with the City Council on January 13 to talk about synergy and then present their specific
requests to the City Council on January 22. Brown advised the SAB needed to refine its goals‐
related budget requests to account for the amount of staffing resources necessary. During the
discussion Gottlieb questioned whether the City would need a bigger library given the trend
toward electronic books. The group considered where to get data to support a cost/benefit
analysis related to the Living Building goal. Brown suggested included the Living Building case
study cost matrix with the goals document. A case by case analysis might be necessary for each
new City facility. The Council had already had an analysis done related to use of the WEB.
Councilor Moncrieff suggested the staff look for examples of other cities where a Living Building
Challenge had worked. The Board scheduled a special meeting on January 5 to refine the goals
document and discuss cost implications.
Board Liaisons
The Board examined and revised the list of SAB liaisons and other volunteer assignments.
Monahan volunteered to lead the Zero Waste initiative. Deley agreed to lead the Sustainability
Action Month effort with support from the Board. Sensitive Lands was taken off the list. The
Board discussed the importance of tracking what was on other board’s agendas to identify and
work together on common concerns, such as pathways. NRAB, TAB and HRAB were all
concerned about trails and pathways. The Board discussed rolling the SAB initiatives into the
Board’s goals, once finalized.
Sustainability Action Month
Deley planned to work with a subcommittee to plan SAM events. Atwood, Kale, Brown,
Monahan, Gottlieb, and Briggs volunteered to serve on the subcommittee. The HRAB chair had
asked the SAB to consider some other month than May for SAM because May was Historic
Preservation Month. Watkinson suggested SAM events could be spread over the summer or
the year. The Board heard suggestions to work with the NRAB to plan an event on Earth Day;
staff a Farmers’ Market booth on two Saturdays during the season; ask local companies and the
school district to host events; ask Solar Oregon to conduct workshops; recruit speakers; present
information about composting, wave energy and firms that generated their own power;
arrange for vegetable garden and backyard chicken coop tours; write to the local newspaper
each month to promote a SAM event; plan another bike event; and promote the City’s
participation in the Clean Energy Works Oregon home energy efficiency retrofit program.
Sustainability Fund/LOSD
The City was going to give the $4,600 in Sustainability Dinner proceeds to the School District.
Staff suggested the SAB could recommend the City give the money to Hallinan Elementary
School to help them with their garden program; or give it to the District to help support an
City of Lake Oswego Sustainability Advisory Board
Minutes of December 20, 2010
Page 3 of 4
urban watershed program or pay for an energy kiosk. The Assistant City Manager had visited
Hallinan and learned it was becoming an Oregon Green School. The Hallinan effort included a
sustainable food school lunch program. Hallinan could serve as a model for other schools.
Chair Brown suggested allocating $2,000 to Hallinan because it would help teach kids how to
utilize rainwater and that kind of education was an SAB goal. The Board heard suggestions to
use the rest of the money to pay for another school to follow the Hallinan model or to pay for
teachers to attend sustainability education seminars. But they would wait to hear more
information from the Assistant City Manager before they decided how it should be used.
Monahan moved to recommend that the City give Hallinan School $2,000 of the Sustainability
Supper proceeds for its garden project. Brown seconded the motion and it passed by
unanimous vote.
Update: Comprehensive Plan Citizen Advisory Committee
Atwood reported the CAC was going to hold a design charrette to start building scenarios at its
January 6 meeting. The following meeting was scheduled on January 26. She encouraged SAB
members to attend CAC meetings. A public comment period was scheduled at the beginning
and end of each meeting.
Lake Oswego to Portland Transit Project
Brant Williams, Director, Economic and Capital Development Department, was to provide an
overview of the project at the regular January SAB meeting. The Draft Environmental Impact
Statement (DEIS) had been issued. An open house would be held on January 24. The City
Council would consider the Locally Preferred Alternative (LPA) at a study session on February 8
and hold the hearing on March 1. They were to vote on it on March 8. Brown suggested
testing the new sustainability rating tool he and Millhauser were developing on this project.
The Board planned to schedule a separate meeting to do that after they heard Williams’
presentation and in time to forward a recommendation to the City Council. Atwood suggested
inviting TAB to the meeting. Millhauser was to arrange for a meeting date between January 20
and the February SAB meeting.
Planning Commission request for comments on solar panels
The Planning Commission was considering an ordinance as part of the Community
Development Code housekeeping updates that would exempt solar panels and related
environmental components from the height restriction. Some Commissioners questioned why.
The Planning Commission chair had asked the SAB for input. Chair Brown advised just about
every city allowed some height increase over the allowable maximum for mechanical
equipment.
Atwood moved to support the following recommendation regarding solar panel exemption
from the building height requirement for the Planning Commission’s consideration:
City of Lake Oswego Sustainability Advisory Board
Minutes of December 20, 2010
Page 4 of 4
1. The SAB supports the proposed Community Development Code amendment adding solar
panels to Section 50.22.015 General Exception to Structure Height Limitations, and
recommends that the term “solar panels” be expanded to “solar panel and solar thermal
systems” to ensure that solar panels, solar thermal (hot water), and required mounting
systems are all exempt from the height limitations.
2. The SAB encourages the Planning Commission and staff to consider additional building
height exceptions for green building practices to allow functioning roof top wind turbines,
skylights and clerestories, and natural ventilation chimneys, while avoiding unacceptably tall
solutions.
Watkinson seconded the motion and it passed by unanimous vote.
ADJOURNMENT
There being no further business Chair Brown adjourned the meeting at 8:50 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Susan Millhauser
Sustainability Coordinator
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