Attachment 1 <br />In addition, the City Council finds that the tree preservation and native landscaping requirements, as well as <br />the limits on allowed structures within the Greenway Setback included in the Willamette River Greenway <br />Code Amendments are consistent with this policy's intent to protect and preserve the vegetative strip along <br />the river, as well as other valuable natural elements. <br />Finally, the City Council finds that the Willamette River Greenway Code Amendments are consistent with <br />this policy's intent to provide bicycle and pedestrian access and acknowledgement that such access may be <br />appropriate within the setback. Consistent with this policy, under certain circumstances the clear and <br />objective approval criteria included in the Willamette River Greenway Code Amendments require pedestrian <br />paths within a development site to allow residents to easily and conveniently access adjacent public lands, <br />and/or public accessways extending from the development site to existing public ways that provide a <br />connection to and along the river. <br />For all the reasons stated above, the City Council finds that the Willamette River Greenway Code Amendments <br />are consistent with the Riverfront Park Study. <br />Downtown Riverfront Specific Area Plan <br />Eugene's Downtown Riverfront Specific Area Plan (2013) was originally adopted in support of a proposed special <br />area zone, the S-DR Downtown Riverfront Special Area Zone. The specific area plan and implementing zone <br />provided a framework for mixed-use redevelopment of the former Eugene Water & Electric Board (EWEB) <br />headquarters site and maintenance facilities located along the south bank of the Willamette River. The site area <br />extends from the Ferry Street Bridge to the eastern extent of EWEB's former ownership including the remaining <br />Steam Plant Building and electrical substation. This master plan was found to be consistent with the Riverfront <br />Park Study which originally included this land near the western extent of the study area and provided more <br />specific master plan for redevelopment of this former industrial land into a vibrant, people-oriented mixed use <br />neighborhood including a riverfront park and a mixture of residential and commercial uses adjacent to the river. <br />The Downtown Riverfront Specific Area Plan was subsequently repealed, and the S-DR zone was revised in 2019 <br />with an updated master plan concept approved by City Council. A related set of code amendments to the S-DR <br />zone was adopted at that time, including changes to the approved street layout, allowed uses, and other <br />development standards for the area. Those amendments did not, however, change the original plan's <br />establishment of a site-specific Willamette River Greenway setback that was mapped and included in the City's <br />adopting ordinance (see EC 9.3147 and Ordinance No. 20619). The adoption package also included a Willamette <br />River Greenway Permit approval for development of the site in accordance with the S-DR zone. <br />The Willamette River Greenway setback line was established for the Downtown Riverfront project site to keep <br />structures separated from the river and to protect, maintain, preserve, and enhance the natural, scenic, historic, <br />and recreational qualities of the Willamette Greenway. The setback line is site specific, context sensitive, and <br />responds to existing conditions on the site as a former industrial site with existing buildings and redevelopment <br />potential near the river. The setback for this specific area is measured from top-of-bank and varies in width from <br />25 feet to 125 feet. The setback's variable width responds to existing site conditions and anticipated <br />redevelopment consistent with the Downtown Riverfront Concept Plan vision. Existing structures, including the <br />EWEB Headquarters, Steam Plant, and Willamette Substation, are excluded from the setback area. The EWEB <br />Headquarters and Steam Plant are envisioned for adaptive reuse and are therefore excluded from the setback to <br />enable future redevelopment. <br />At the northern extent of the project site, the setback is approximately 60 feet in width and encompasses all <br />property currently in use as open space and currently being developed as a riverfront park. The setback aligns <br />with the eastern perimeter of the EWEB Headquarters North Building and EWEB Headquarters South Building <br />and increases to approximately 110 feet in width to encompass the EWEB waterfront plaza and public access <br />points between buildings. In the middle portion of the subject site, the setback aligns with the eastern edge of <br />Page 36 of 125 31 <br />