CITY COUNCIL (CC) ACTIONS ON PLANNING ITEMS
On June 2, CC approved a contract with the Audubon Society of Portland and Columbia Land Trust for Backyard Habitat Certification Program services. Council also approved Ordinance 2846, annexing property at 900 Atwater Road, 3.62 acres (AN 20-0003).
On June 16, the CC accepted a $35,000 award from Business Oregon for COVID business assistance grants.
PLANNING COMMISSION (PC) ACTIONS
On June 8, the Planning Commission approved the Findings, Conclusions and Order for the Historic Preservation code amendments to the Community Development Code (LU 19-0008).
On June 22, the PC received an update on the City Council’s Housing initiatives (PP 19-0008).
PC meetings are scheduled to resume online in June. Please refer to the following web page for the current PC meeting forecast: http://www.ci.oswego.or.us/boc_pc/schedule-and-information
DEVELOPMENT REVIEW COMMISSION (DRC) ACTIONS
As a precautionary measure due to the Corona Virus outbreak, the City Manager temporarily canceled meetings of City Boards, Commissions, and Committees. As a result, the June 1st DRC meeting was canceled.
On June 15, 2020, the DRC conducted an online public hearing for LU 19-0041, a request for approval of a lot line adjustment, RP District delineations, a Development Review Permit to construct a 160-unit multi-family housing project, approval of a parking study for shared parking, an unavoidable utility crossing for stormwater, minor variances to retaining wall standards, and the removal of 112 trees. The Commission continued the hearing on this application to Monday, July 6, 2020 to allow additional written evidence or testimony only.
HISTORIC RESOURCES ADVISORY BOARD (HRAB)
On June 10, The Historic Resources Advisory Board held their first remote meeting and discussed the following:
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- Preservation Code Revision that were recommended for approval by the Planning Commission on June 8.
- Staff and HRAB discussed the distribution of the Preservation Merit Award to Youth Villages and the House Plaque to Nancy Tongue owner of the Harris House at 930 West Point Road.
- HRAB discussed the development of a Historic Preservation Handbook. The handbook would serve as a supplement to the recent code amendments.
- HRAB discussed the future Reconnaissance Level Survey of the Lake Grove Neighborhood
- Staff announced that the Historic Resources Advisory Board will not be participating in the Farmers Market this year due to the Covid-19 Pandemic.
June was National Preservation Month. Every year during the month of June, communities throughout the nation celebrate Preservation Month, first created in 1971 by the National Trust for Historic Preservation. Over the past several years, Lake Owego has celebrated Preservation Month by presenting a Preservation Merit Award to an individual or group who has excelled in the field of preservation and a bronze plaque is presented to a homeowner whose property is on the Landmark Designation List. Workshops and tours are conducted by the Lake Oswego Preservation Society and the Oswego Preservation Council. Unfortunately, Lake Oswego’s Preservation Month 2020 will be postponed due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Many of the events originally scheduled for this year have been rescheduled for July, 2020.
ADMINISTRATIVE LAND USE DECISIONS
Staff approved one administrative land use case (LU 20-0012), a request for a Minor Variance to reduce the front (north) yard setback for 3240 Upper Drive from 25 feet to 20 feet for the existing dwelling. The applicants also requested approval of a ministerial lot line adjustment between 3244 and 3240 Upper Drive. The Notice of Decision was issued on June 15, 2020.
PRE-APPLICATION CONFERENCES
In June, staff held six pre-application conferences as follows:
- PA 20-0033, new detached accessory dwelling unit on Bonaire Ave.
- PA 20-0034, Development Review Permit to remodel an existing gas station canopy on South Shore Blvd.
- PA 20-0035, construction of a deck, path and wooden platform in a Resource Protection (RP) District on Rosewood St.
- PA 20-0036, a 2-parcel minor partition on Lake Grove Ave.
- PA 20-0037, a development (dredging and tree removal) within a Resource Preservation (RP) District and Floodway (Oswego Canal) at the intersection of Childs Rd. and Canal Rd.
- PA 20-0038, Development Review and Conditional Use Permits for a remodel and site improvements to convert a light manufacturing facility to a school district bus barn (transportation depot) on Lakeview Blvd.
PLANNING REVIEW OF BUILDING PERMITS, SIGN PERMITS AND BUSINESS LICENSES
In the month of June, Planning staff reviewed 28 building permits, 2 sign permit and 10 business licenses.
CODE ENFORCEMENT
In June, 17 code enforcement cases were resolved without Municipal Court action.
PERMIT CENTER ACTIVITY
Customer Contacts: During the month of June, Permit Center staff served 1 walk-in customer and responded to 1,106 phone calls, or approximately 55 customer contacts per day. Of the phone-in customers 34% were for Planning, 37% for Building, 7% for Engineering and 22% for other services.
Building Permit Activity: During June, Building staff issued one demolition permit on Wildwood St. Five New Single Family Residential (NSFR) applications were received. Four NSFR permits were issued as follows:
- Lakeview Blvd.
- Twin Fir Rd.
- Canal Cir.
- Hemlock St.
The above median timeline for review is from application completeness to “ready to issue”. As of November 2018, the Planning Department has provided NSFR plan review services for both Planning and Engineering reviews. Ready to issue includes time that applicants need to address corrections required for code compliance or factors beyond the City’s control.
In addition to NSFR permits, Residential Structural Permits include remodels, additions, decks, etc., of which there were 16 issued in June by Building staff, with the median days being 120. Commercial Structural Permits include Commercial, Industrial, Multi-Family and Institutional, of which there were 11, with the median days being 19.