March 6, 2017 <br />Kate Perle <br />201 River Loop 1 <br />Eugene, OR 97404 <br />Planning commissioners, <br />I am a resident of Santa Clara, a long time board member of my community organization, a local fanner, and was a <br />member of the Envision Eugene CRG. I have stayed in touch with the land use processes set in motion through <br />Envision Eugene and continue to work to address growth and change in our cornmunity through a citizen initiated <br />area plan for River Road and Santa Clara neighborhoods. <br />I have fanned on the edge of Eugene's UGB for the last 20 years and have witnessed the infill on previously fertile <br />and productive lands in both River Road and Santa Clara. I am fortunate to work on Class 1 and 2 soil and am <br />intimately familiar with its ability to return far greater yields for the same inputs than on lesser value soils. Not only <br />is its productivity greater, the range of uses for greater yields is much broader. The USDA classifies these soils as <br />high value with good reason. Climate change, peak oil, and a growing understanding of the finite nature of natural <br />resources used to support the current national and international food supply we rely on all conspire to indicate that <br />our future relies on our ability to meet our needs from closer to home. "Buy Local" isn't just a trendy choice for <br />folks with disposable income, it's a prerequisite for survival into the future. <br />Currently Oregon's land use laws require that we provide a 20 year supply of residential, industrial and commercial <br />land to support adopted population projections. I assert that it is well past time to also require cornmunities to <br />account for a 20 year supply of food growing soil, adequate water, and a quality air shed for that same population. <br />What goodwill jobs and housing be if we have noway to feed ourselves? We are fortunate to be surrounded by <br />high value soils which can help us secure a liveable future, if only we don't squander this resource. I appreciate the <br />balance that needs to be struck between competing uses for the same land. This brings me to the UGB expansion in <br />front of you. <br />I would like to express my concerns for the proposed expansion with the hopes not of opposing the action, but <br />informing it. I served on the subcommittee that looked at land availability for jobs. Our subcommittee work ended <br />before coining to a discrete number of acres needed for expansion. The process was sent back to the TRG and staff <br />to continue to identify the need for sites of specific sizes and their availability within the current UGB. I am a strong <br />supporter of brownfield redevelopment within the current UGB and believe that we have yet to seriously work to <br />make this a viable option for existing or new businesses looking to locate here. That not withstanding, it has been <br />determined that we have a need for larger greenfield sites. The Clear Lake expansion is designed to address that <br />need. <br />The current proposed expansion is designed to accornmodate 11 sites ranging in size from 10-75+ acres. The intent <br />of the expansion is for discrete numbers of sites of specific sizes that will remain AG zoned until such time as they <br />are annexed for development. It is imperative that the sites be used in that manner, that they remain large sites and <br />not be divided into smaller parcels. I would ask that as time passes, if we find there is no demand for these large lots <br />there is a process in place to remove them from the inventory in the future and return them to exclusive agricultural <br />usage. An apt local example is when Rexius was looking to move sites, bought 60+ acres on Awbrey Lane and due <br />to wetland issues could not develop there immediately. After a few years of trying unsuccessfully to develop there <br />they found that their business model had evolved to not needing such a large site and they successfully moved to a <br />much smaller site. They continue to be a thriving local business on less land. <br />Although on principle I do not support the conversion of high value farmland to other uses, through the Envision <br />Eugene process and subsequent years work I have come to understand the need for compromise and am willing to <br />accept this expansion with the understanding that we need to get it right, that there will be no "do over" in the future <br />for another 900 acres. There is no higher use for class 1 and 2 soils than food production and we need to create a <br />method to return any undeveloped land in the Clear Lake expansion to agricultural usage for the future. <br />