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HomeMy WebLinkAbout24_03_03_0602_Eugplanning Emailed Newsletter Public Hearing1 DOMINGO Elena M From:City of Eugene Planning Division <envisioneugene@cityofeugenepdd.ccsend.com> Sent:Sunday, March 3, 2024 6:02 AM To:DOMINGO Elena M Subject:March EUG Planning Newsletter [EXTERNAL ❚❛❜] EUG Planning Newsletter What's New with EUG Planning Sunday, March 3, 2024 This month's EUG Planning Newsletter includes updates on: Fair Housing Training at Planning Commission, Urban Growth Strategies, RRSC Public Hearing, SDC Exemptions, Middle Housing, CDBG and HOME Investment Partnership Program funds, and an Internship Opportunity. We hope you'll find this information useful and reach out if you have questions. As always, you can find more information on all of our work by visiting our website. You don't often get email from envisioneugene@cityofeugenepdd.ccsend.com. Learn why this is important 2 Visit Our Website   Fair Housing Training at Planning Commission Using federal Community Development Block Grant funds (CDBG), the City of Eugene contracts with Fair Housing Council of Oregon (FHCO) to provide trainings to Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing throughout the year. On February 27, Mel Keller and Sam Goldberg from FHCO provided information and resources on fair housing to the Eugene Planning Commission as it relates to land use code, planning, housing policies, and practices. Watch the presentation below and read the agenda packet here. The purpose of fair housing laws is to provide access to housing choice by everyone, free from discrimination. Federal, state, and local fair housing laws all play a part in protecting people seeking housing free from unlawful discrimination in any housing transaction, including rentals, sales, lending, and insurance. Fair housing guarantees that individuals from a “protected class status” that includes race, sex, national origin, religion, family situation, or level of ability, has the right to find housing that fits their needs. Additionally, the City of Eugene also protects against housing discrimination based on ethnicity and age. A summary of the City’s Fair Housing Plan is available, which was adopted by City Council as part ofthe 2020 Eugene‐Springfield Consolidated Plan. The full plan, also known as the Analysis of Impediments is available here. Urban Growth Strategies: Planning for Homes, Jobs, and Public Lands to 2045 3 The Community Engagement Plan for Urban Growth Strategies was recently approved by the Planning Commission. The Plan outlines a multi-year community engagement strategy that will help identify the needs and priorities of community members for housing, jobs, and access to community resources in Eugene. The Community Engagement Plan builds off the Envision Eugene Community Vision and outlines community engagement goals, activities and timeline, engagement strategies, communication tools, and equitable outcomes for the project. In February, the City of Eugene was awarded additional funding from the Oregon Department of Land Conservation and Development to support equitable community engagement throughout Urban Growth Strategies. Eugene will use this additional funding to support direct engagement with people from historically marginalized communities, as a part of Climate-Friendly and Equitable Communities (CFEC). Engagement will begin this month and run through the end of 2025. Stay tuned for project updates and engagement opportunities through the EUG Planning Newsletter, by following the project on Engage Eugene, and visiting the project webpage. About Urban Growth Strategies Urban Growth Strategies will identify the tools, actions, policies, and land needed for the next 20 years to support housing and living wage jobs. This project is a collaborative effort that integrates state-required urban growth planning, equitable community engagement, and City Council-directed policy work. River Road - Santa Clara Neighborhood Planning River Road-Santa Clara Neighborhood Planning The River Road-Santa Clara neighborhood planning process has been a collaborative effort among community members, River Road Community Organization (RRCO), Santa 4 Clara Community Organization (SCCO), City of Eugene, Lane County, and other stakeholders throughout both neighborhoods. After five phases and countless volunteer and staff hours, an adoption package was recommended by the Community Advisory Committee, as well as both Eugene and Lane County Planning Commissions. The adoption package will now be considered by the Eugene City Council and Lane County Board of Commissioners as the final decision- makers. Eugene and Lane County are considering amendments to the Eugene- Springfield Metropolitan Area General Plan (Metro Plan) to adopt the River Road-Santa Clara Neighborhood Plan. Eugene is also considering neighborhood-specific land use code amendments within the River Road and Santa Clara neighborhood boundaries (these changes would only apply to properties within city limits). Upcoming Joint Public Hearing The City Council and Board of Commissioners will hold a joint public hearing on the River Road-Santa Clara Neighborhood Plan Adoption Package scheduled for March 12, 2024 at 6:00pm. The public hearing will be entirely virtual. Providing Testimony City and County officials are formally accepting comments on these proposals. All testimony received since September 12, 2023 will be shared with the City Council and Lane County Board for their consideration before any final action is taken. To submit testimony:  Email Testimony: Send e-mail testimony to RRSCPlan@eugene-or.gov.  Written Testimony: Send a written statement to the City Council and/or Board of Commissioners, c/o Elena Domingo, City of Eugene Planning Division, 99 West 10th Avenue, Eugene, OR 97401.  Spoken Testimony: Attend the virtual public hearing on March 12, 2024 at 6:00pm. Information for options to attend, watch, and participate in the public hearing will be made available no later than 5:00pm on March 11, 2024 at: https://www.eugene- or.gov/3360/Webcasts-and-Meeting-Materials. To learn more about this project, visit www.RiverRoad-SantaClaraPlan.org. Planning to build affordable housing in Eugene? Consider applying for SDC exemptions! 5 The City of Eugene will be accepting applications for system development charge (SDC) exemptions for qualified local affordable housing projects beginning February 28 through April 26, 2024. The SDC exemptions can be used for rental housing for households earning 60% of the area median income (AMI) or below (50,580 for a household of four); or for homeownership housing for households earning 80% AMI or below (67,450 for a household of four). Many housing types are eligible including single-family homes, attached homes (duplexes, triplexes etc.), accessory dwelling units (ADUs), as well as multi-unit developments. Exemption funding is limited, and the total amount requested often exceeds the amount available. To help provide a clear framework and process for projects interested in getting SDC exemptions, the City uses a request for proposal (RFP) process to allocate funds. The RFP will collect information to help prioritize funding for projects that:  offer the highest percentage of units serving the lowest income households.  provide more than 5% of units to be accessible for people with physical disabilities.  commit to longer affordability periods than the minimum 5 years.  provide the most units within their category (rental or home ownership).  provide housing affordable to low-income households in higher-income census tracts to support diverse housing opportunities. Projects must:  Be located in Eugene city limits.  Have control of the property and be ready to start construction within 12 months of approval.  Meet affordability criteria outlined in the application.  Apply prior to permits being issued (SDC exemptions cannot be applied retroactively).  Submit a complete application by the deadline. The Request for Proposals is an open, competitive process. Proposals will be reviewed, scored, and ranked based on the information provided in the application. Applications will be available in February on the city’s website. For more information contact Laura Hammond, 541-682-5502; LHammond@eugene- or.gov. 6 Middle Housing Ordinance Coming Back to City Council A public hearing with City Council was held on February 20, 2024. The City Council may take action on the 2024 Ordinance on March 11. Prior to the public hearing, City staff presented information to the City Council on this topic at a work session on January 10, 2024. At this work session, staff provided information to the City Council regarding the remand of the 2022 Middle Housing Ordinance and discussed the updates provided in the draft Ordinance that address the remand issue. The draft Ordinance includes updated findings demonstrating compliance with Goal 11 (Public Facilities and Services) to ensure that adequate infrastructure is provided when middle housing is constructed. The text of the 2024 Ordinance is identical to the 2022 Middle Housing Ordinance except that the 2024 Ordinance corrects scrivener errors in the 2022 Middle Housing Ordinance, incorporates updates to the land use code that have occurred since the 2022 Middle Housing Ordinance was adopted, and updates the expedited land division criteria to ensure consistency with statutory requirements. More information on the updated ordinance and the remand is available on the project webpage. Community Development Block Grant and HOME Investment Partnership Program Funds 7 Opportunity for Public Comment The City of Eugene receives funds from the U.S. Department of Housing (HUD) for Affordable Housing and Community Development. The City is requesting written public comment on the proposed uses of CDBG (Community Development Block Grant) funds and the proposed uses of the HOME Investment Partnership Program funds for the period beginning July 1, 2024 and ending June 30, 2025. For more information about these federal funds, including how to submit written public comment or attend upcoming public hearings, please visit the Community Development webpage. Join our Team! Housing & Urban Growth Planning Internship   The City of Eugene Community Planning & Design team is seeking paid intern support for the spring and summer of 2024. Intern responsibilities will be focused on supporting equitable community engagement within Urban Growth Strategies – a multi-year effort focused on housing and urban growth planning. Intern(s) will learn the following through a variety of internship tasks, including but not limited to:  Developing thoughtful and accessible materials and activities for engagement events  Creating partnerships with local community organizations  Applying an equity lens to project materials and engagement opportunities  Assessing the benefits and burdens of proposed policies through an equity analysis  Producing communications content to share information about ongoing projects  Staffing community engagement events with a focus on reaching historically marginalized community groups Read the full intern position description here. To apply, please email a cover letter and resume to Leah Rausch at LRausch@eugene-or.gov. The deadline to apply for this position is 11:59 PM on March 31, 2024. We anticipate work starting by early May. 8 Interested in Land Use Updates? It’s important to us that community members know when someone has applied to develop their property through the land use application process. City staff are always happy to discuss a project before the formal review, and can provide information about what the formal review process will be to ensure that you have a fair opportunity to review and comment on a project. Sign up to start receiving emails that list recently submitted projects.   Sign up for Land Use Updates Upcoming Meetings City Council Agendas and Webcasts Planning Commission Agendas and Webcasts You can decide which email lists to be a part of by clicking update profile below. This will allow you to unsubscribe from this email list while remaining on other City of Eugene Planning and Development email lists. If you would like to unsubscribe from all City of Eugene Planning and Development emails, please click unsubscribe below. Thanks! 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