Much of the area receives its necessary services through special districts, and may need on-site <br />sewage disposal systems, until such time as individual properties are annexed to the City. In <br />accordance with state and federal laws, as well as the Metro Plan and land use code, properties <br />seeking development on these lands in most cases require connection to the City's sewer <br />system and provision of other urban services by the City of Eugene. The Metro Plan anticipates <br />that all lands within the UGB will eventually be annexed and served by the City. However, the <br />lack of certain urban services like sanitary sewer, and the lack of contiguity with City limits, has <br />hindered the ability for many properties to annex in the near term. <br />Property outside the City but inside the UGB (as is the majority of the ICCO area) was previously <br />able to annex even if the property was not contiguous to City limits, provided that the Lane <br />County Boundary Commission approved the request. However, with the abolishment of the <br />Boundary Commission by the Legislature in 2008, annexations must now be contiguous to city <br />limits. In addition to making it difficult to develop unless property first annexed, these changes <br />also have the effect of precluding non-contiguous annexations, which in turn prevents the <br />annexation of individual properties in the majority of the ICCO area. These changes occurred <br />prior to the beginning of the recent recession. With development activity picking up again over <br />the last several years, the policy question about whether to allow annexation agreements, <br />rather than immediate annexation, warrants consideration by Council. In several cases, <br />property owners have been unable to proceed with development plans due to lack of contiguity <br />with City limits or the availability of urban services (which means they cannot annex). <br />The alternative of allowing annexation agreements, along with enabling extension of sanitary <br />sewer service outside the City limits, would be an efficient way to allow industrial development <br />to proceed in the area, with a binding agreement to annex in the future when possible. <br />This policy question was posed to the City Council in November of 2016, with a <br />recommendation from the City Manager and unanimous approval by the Council of a motion to <br />schedule a public hearing to allow property in the ICCO area to develop either by annexing or, if <br />non-contiguous, signing an irrevocable consent to annex. The proposed land use code <br />amendment will also create an exception to the requirements for Extra-Territorial Extension of <br />Water or Sewer Service in Chapter 9 of the Eugene Code (see EC 9.8115-9.8121), which is a <br />necessary component to enable development for some properties not already served with <br />water and sewer facilities. <br />Following the public hearing and depending on the testimony received, it may be possible to <br />hold deliberations and make a recommendation on the same night. If not (for example, if the <br />record is held open or commissioners need more time to deliberate), staff will schedule <br />deliberations and action for a subsequent meeting. <br />Attachment <br />Map of Affected ICCO Properties <br />For More Information <br />Please contact Gabe Flock, Senior Planner, by phone at 541-682-5697 or via email at: <br />gabriel.fIock@ci.eugene.or.us <br />2 <br />