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Approved Minutes - 2001-09-10 PM°, LA[L OS w! CITY COUNCIL SPECIAL MEETING MINUTES September 10, 2001 06[60" Mayor Judie Hammerstad called the City Council information session to order at 4:05 p.m. on September 10, 2001, in the Municipal Courtroom in City Hall. Present: Mayor Hammerstad, Councilors Turchi, Graham, McPeak, Hoffman and Rohde. Councilor Schoen was excused. Staff Present: Doug Schmitz, City Manager; David Powell, City Attorney; Robyn Christie, City Recorder; Lisa Hamerlynck, Natural Resources Coordinator; Jane Heisler, Community Planning Manager 3. INFORMATION SESSION 3.1 River Run Mitigation Plan Lisa Hamerlynck, Natural Resources Coordinator, recalled that a couple of years ago, Pacific Habitation Services contacted the then Natural Resources Coordinator, Deb Lev, about the possibility of doing a wetlands mitigation project on property in Lake Oswego as compensation for an illegal ditch fill it did on a Tualatin site. She said that Ms. Lev identified a couple of sites in Lake Oswego that made sense to enhance as wetlands and that met the criteria of lying within a certain distance from the fill site. Ms. Hamerlynck recounted that the Pacific Habitation firm expressed particular interest in the River Run Park site because the City was in the process of writing the park master plan. She explained that the master plan had already identified this parcel for wetlands enhancement by daylighting the underground storm water drain in order to address flooding and water quality issues. Ms. Hamerlynck noted that the company modified its enhancement plan based on input received from the neighbors during the public process. She mentioned the neighbors' concerns of tree location and setbacks from their properties. Ms. Hamerlynck asked Council permission to use this public land for the mitigation. She noted that in creating a wetland, the City would be subject to the normal wetland regulations in the future. She mentioned that she had information and pictures if the Council wished to walk through it. Councilor McPeak commented that it appeared to be a good project. She asked if there were any negatives that were not obvious. Ms. Hamerlynck said that, in the plans, they tried to address the negative issues raised by the neighbors, which were the setback from the property lines and the trail not giving access to their backyards. She reiterated that the master plan used an independent public process to identify this site for wetlands enhancement. Ms. Hamerlynck pointed out that there was no use for the site other than passive recreation use of a trail and as a wetland. She said that it was already in the Tualatin River's floodplain and fell within the City's setbacks for the riparian area under Goal 5. She referenced pictures illustrating the location of homes with respect to this area, noting that the homes already sat 15 feet above the floodplain. Ms. Hamerlynck confirmed to Councilor Graham that this project made up for the problem created by the company. She explained that the fill activity occurred in the City of Tualatin but the Division of State Lands (DSL) allowed compensation and mitigation for fills on sites of a City Council Information Session Minutes Pagel of 3 September 10, 2001 similar function within the same watershed and within a five -mile radius of the fill site. She indicated that cities were used to dealing with mitigations done in one jurisdiction for fills done in another jurisdiction. Ms. Hamerlynck observed that purchasing property on which to do the fill was very expensive; therefore, companies tended to look for the nearest public property to do their mitigation plus value added. She indicated that the value added in this case was the trail. In response to Councilor Hoffman's query, Ms. Hamerlynck pointed out on the map the location of the public access. She indicated to the Councilor that the neighbors' concerns have not unduly constrained the project, as the City intended to put a wetland on this site anyway. She noted the location of the eight -foot high fence, with only two properties having gated access. At Councilor Hoffman's request, Ms. Hamerlynck reviewed the maintenance requirements mandated by DSL; the creators of the wetland had to maintain and monitor the site for five years, at which point the City took over. She indicated that the easement was temporary for four to five years. Jane Heisler, Community Planning Manager, observed that this easement was similar to the road opening permit that people were required to get when working in the City roadways; it functioned somewhat like a license. Councilor Rohde asked if staff looked at using volunteers for this project. Ms. Hamerlynck clarified that the company bore the entire cost of the project. She explained that staff did the cost estimate for the project as part of the master plan but it would cost the City nothing. She indicated to the Councilor that DSL based the compensation project on size, and not on the company spending a certain amount of money. Impacting one-quarter of an acre of wetland meant enhancing one acre. Councilor Rohde asked if the developer was interested in making this a volunteer activity. Ms. Hamerlynck said that she had considered volunteer opportunities at this site, such as clearing out the blackberries. She suggested asking the company to scrape out the blackberries as part of the minor grading required for the trail; then the City could bring in volunteers to replant the area with appropriate vegetation. Ms. Hamerlynck discussed other opportunities for wetlands creation using volunteers, once the paid consultants completed the hydrology, soils and wildlife studies. She mentioned the lower area of Iron Mountain Park and Bryant Woods. She mentioned DSL's mitigation banking system, in which it allowed those who could not find suitable sites under the criteria to put the money into a mitigation bank for use in enlarging enhancement projects. Ms. Hamerlynck confirmed that Councilor Turchi's description of how to create a wetland was correct. She mentioned the many variables involved in designating an area as a wetland, including soils, hydrology, plants and water. She concurred that they created the environment for a natural process to take hold. She indicated that successfully creating a wetland was a hit and miss proposition, especially if someone tried in an area with underlying gravel. She described how the plan for this project included plants that would help move the process forward. Ms. Hamerlynck indicated to Councilor Graham that the company wanted to do this project as soon as possible in order to catch the fall construction season before the rains started. She said that the company thought it would take a week to excavate the site; they would then wait for the first rains before doing the planting. Ms. Hamerlynck reviewed the DSL requirements for the five-year monitoring, including annual reports. She indicated to Councilor Graham that the Clackamas County DSL representative had oversight responsibility on making sure that things were done correctly. She commented that in her experience, the companies were responsive to fixing problems brought to their attention by the City because they knew that the next phone call would be to DSL. Ms. Hamerlynck indicated to Mayor Hammerstad that she presented an update to the Natural Resources Advisory Board at their meeting last month. She said that the Board has been City Council Information Session Minutes Page 2 of 3 September 10, 2001 involved with the project since the beginning; Chris Roth visited the fill site in order to feel comfortable with what would be created. She confirmed that the Board recommended approval. At Mayor Hammerstad's request, Ms. Hamerlynck reviewed the exact location of the site. She indicated to Councilor Graham that she intended to send a notice postcard to the neighbors who have been most active in the project over the past two years. Councilor Hoffman asked if there might be any unintended consequences. Ms. Hamerlynck said that the City was getting bonus points for this project because it would help with the Clean Water Act, storm water, PPPS permits, Title 3 and Title 5 requirements. Mr. Schmitz mentioned his expectation of the City receiving calls when people started using the trail, as this area was not accessible to the public yet. Ms. Hamerlynck confirmed to Councilor McPeak that there was an informal pathway already in the area. She indicated to Councilor Rohde that standard park rules would apply with respect to alcohol in the park. The Council agreed by consensus to put this item on the September 18 agenda. 4. ADJOURNMENT Mayor Hammerstad adjourned the meeting at 4:30 p.m. Respectfully submitted, ��� akt�' Robyn C istie City Recorder APPROVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL: ON October 2, 2001 Mayor City Council Information Session Minutes Page 3 of 3 September 10, 2001