AGENDA ITEM SUMMARY <br />November 12, 2024 <br />To: Eugene Planning Commission <br />From: Doug Singer, PE, Development Service Manager, Public Works Engineering <br />Subject: Deliberations and Possible Recommendation on Code Amendments to the Stormwater <br />Development Standards <br />ISSUE STATEMENT <br />The Planning Commission will deliberate and possibly make a recommendation on the proposed land <br />use code amendments to the stormwater development standards (City File: CA 24-3). The proposed <br />land use code amendments, which are included in Attachment A, are proposed in order to comply with <br />City’s National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit. <br />BACKGROUND <br />The proposed land use code amendments to the stormwater development standards are requested in <br />order to comply with state and federal requirements and permitting. The City of Eugene’s Stormwater <br />Development Standards regulate the location, design, construction, and maintenance of stormwater <br />facilities and are applicable to the development of new and replaced impervious surfaces. Eugene’s <br />Stormwater Development Standards have been in place since 2006 and are a requirement of the City’s <br />National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System <br />Discharge Permit issued by the Oregon Department of Environmental (DEQ) to comply with the federal <br />Clean Water Act. The Stormwater Development Standards are an important element of the City’s <br />multi-faceted stormwater program aimed at protecting and improving the water quality of Eugene’s <br />streams and rivers, including Amazon Creek and the Willamette River. <br />The City’s first-term NPDES Stormwater permit was issued in 1994 and subsequently re-issued in 2004, <br />2010, and most recently in 2021. The NPDES permit includes measures that fulfill the Clean Water Act <br />requirements for municipalities over 100,000 in population. The overarching goal of the NPDES permit <br />is to ensure that streams and rivers that receive stormwater are meeting or improving overall water <br />quality. As such, each time the permit is reissued, stream and river quality is studied and the <br />requirements are modified to further improve water quality, unless the receiving streams are meeting <br />water quality standards for their designated beneficial uses. <br />The 2021 NPDES Stormwater permit requires the City to update its post-construction stormwater <br />pollutant and runoff control program to prioritize on-site retention of stormwater runoff for improved <br />runoff volume reduction and pollutant removal. This program applies to new development and <br />redevelopment projects that create or replace 1,000 square feet or more of impervious surface. The <br />land use code changes are designed to more clearly align the City’s stormwater development standards <br />with current federal and state clean water requirements to prioritize, emphasize, and promote low <br />impact development and green infrastructure approaches to stormwater management. <br />Agenda Page 3 of 27