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HomeMy WebLinkAbout12-08-2009C]TY OF A I RN WASHINGT'ON CALL TO ORDER DOWNTOWN REDEVELOPMENT COMMITTEE DECEMBER 8, 2009 MINUTES Chair Lynn Norman called the meeting to order at 4:00 p.m. in Room 3 located on the second floor of Auburn City Hall, 25 West Main Street, Auburn, WA. Committee Members present were: Chair Lynn Norman and Vice Chair Sue Singer. Member Gene Cerino was absent. Staff present included: Interim Planning, Building & Community Director Kevin Snyder, Principal Planner Elizabeth Chamberlain, Assistant City Engineer Ingrid Gaub, and Planning Secretary Renee Tobias. Audience Members present were: Mel Maertz and Spence Alpert II. CONSENT AGENDA A. Meeting Minutes - November 24, 2009 Member Singer moved to approve the consent agenda items as presented; Chair Norman concurred. MOTION CARRIED UNANIMOUSLY 2-0 III. DISCUSSION A. Auburn Junction At the November 24, 2009 meeting, the Committee began a review of a comparison matrix that identified items from the Auburn Junction Alpert Vision Memo against current code or standards and the Auburn Junction development agreement. Chair Norman indicated that this meeting is a continuation of this discussion. Principal Planner Elizabeth Chamberlain reported that staff met with the Alpert Design Team (Team) on December 4, 2009 for the purpose of updating them with the Committee's discussion on the comparison matrix. Staff and the Alpert Team spent considerable time focusing on the connection between historic and new Main Street. The following points were clarified during this meeting. Intersection and Gateway Elements Item 3- Plaza 2 SE corner of 2"d Street and A Street SE Item 4- Plaza 3 NE corner of Main Street and A Street SE Rather than plazas, these are the gateway elements into the overall development. Downtown Redevelopment Committee Minutes December 8, 2009 Vehicular and Pedestrian Streets Item 6- 68 foot right-of-way vehicular streets (perimeter) Item 14 - 72-78 foot right-of-way pedestrian streets (interior) Staff had indicated that the wider right-of-ways (ROW) would be acceptable, but that the street would need to be aligned with the standard 60 ft. ROW. The Alpert Team confirmed that the center line would remain the same; the wider streets would be from on the sidewalk side. Staff will review the Design Standards to add flexibility that would allow for a no curb option on 1 St Street and other identified needs. Spence Alpert stated that they understood that the plaza on Main Street, introduced by the Mayor's Institute on City Design, was a preferable gathering spot than the one his team had proposed next to the transit station. Mr. Alpert stated that a key to the economic analysis of this plaza is if they are able to attract tenants and users that will contribute. Committee agreed. Committee confirmed that prior discussion dealt with a very limited space and development of green space, plaza area and other amenities is very appealing to them. Committee wants to ensure that there is adequate retail, living space and other important aspects in the project. Committee and the Alpert Design Team felt that it was too early in the process to design the plaza and will remain flexible in the size and location. The group discussed the use of brick in parking or pedestrian crossings. There is concern about maintenance of the brick and it was suggested to use a textured concrete pattern. Chair Norman noted that at the November 24, 2009 meeting, there was quite a discussion about 1 St Street. Staff's analysis indicated that with the plaza ending at 1 St Street and not at Auburn Avenue, the direct line of site from historic Main Street into the Auburn Junction project would be lost. Committee agreed to keep the design standards and guidelines the same and requested a pedestrian connection to this corner with a line of site from the development to old downtown, or added enticement to make people curious as to what is on the next street. The pedestrian connection to Safeway is a real plus for people living in the area. Committee felt that there was a way to do both by configuring the building with setbacks and graduated height so as not to have a wall between the development and old downtown. There was discussion about businesses located north of Safeway enhancing the back of their building to draw people in from the development. There was discussion about Auburn Avenue becoming a 2-way street with two lanes, one lane in each direction; traffic ramped down and traffic calming measures required to allow for safe pedestrian crossing from the development to Safeway and old downtown. Ms. Gaub noted that diverting the traffic to Auburn Way and C Street from the A Street corridor would not have significant reduction in traffic flow. Traffic would then cut back to A Street on 3rd or 6th Streets. It was noted that this topic had been discussed at the August 25, 2009 meeting. Committee asked that staff bring the traffic study back for discussion and review. Page 2 Downtown Redevelopment Committee Minutes December 8, 2009 Mel Maertz reported that at Friday's meeting, the group discussed allowing some flexibility on securing retail space if the central plaza is developed in the northeast block of Auburn Junction. The group discussed the possibility of capturing air rights and actually building over the 1St Street right-of-way. Mr. Maertz stated that truck traffic could be prohibited from using 1 St Street. This would then allow for the use of brick pavers as there wouldn't be a concern about trucks degrading the roadway materials. Standard Street Lights Member Singer reported on her recent discussion with a lighting company representative. This company has another technology similar to LED, but is less expensive and super energy efficient. The company offered to do a demonstration for the Committee and staff. Assistant City Engineer Ingrid Gaub stated that the Committee had selected the style of the,light poles for the downtown area. Ms. Gaub r,eported that staff is working with Kim Lighting to install an actual light with dual heads behind Safeway for Council and staff assessment. Staff will review the new technology that is similar to LED lights as mentioned above. Sidewalks Ms. Chamberlain noted that the only matrix item not found in the current code or standards or Auburn Junction development agreement is the kiosks. The Committee previously supported, and continues to support, having some type of kiosk in the project to provide directional signage for pedestrians. Discussion about what the kiosks may look like will be discussed later in the project. Ms. Chamberlain reviewed the Mercer Island pictures that showed examples of no- curb sidewalks with the Committee. Committee agreed that the examples shown looked very pedestrian-friendly and welcoming. Ms. Chamberlain noted that Mercer Island did not start out pedestrian-friendly and was very much vehicular-oriented; it took time for blocks to redevelop and they are to become pedestrian oriented. The no-curb concept is very similar to how 1St Street will function with parking on one side of the street. Assistant City Engineer Ingrid Gaub stated that the only concern with a no-curb street would be a safety feature. A clear zone would be required in situations that do not have a vertical curb. Should a vehicle travel outside of the roadway area, the clear zone would provide a recovery area and mitigate liability for the City. Ms. Gaub stated that depending on the size of tree growth, trees could be an obstruction; staff will want to ensure that trees are not placed right up against the roadway. Committee briefly discussed items that could be used to clearly identify pedestrian and vehicular areas. The specifics of this will be worked out later when the group moves into design details. Public Open Space Item 33 - Transit Plaza Principal Planner Elizabeth Chamberlain stated with the information provided by the City's transportation section indicated that it is unlikely that bus traffic will be re- Page 3 Downtown Redevelopment Committee Minutes December 8, 2009 routed in the future. Staff recommends removing this from the Auburn Junction Design Guidelines. Ms. Chamberlain noted that the City cannot speak for Sound Transit. Spence Alpert expressed concern about removing the concept of a plaza at this location. His group felt that this area could be used as a gathering spot such as a Jameson Park (Portland, OR) concept. Ms. Alpert suggested that the guidelines be changed to reflect utilizing the most economically feasible property for a gathering spot. Should the Transit Plaza be determined as the best place for a public open space, the group could then focus on what will be done about bus traffic and other issues. Mr. Alpert indicated that his team would be happy to take the lead in talking with Sound Transit regarding transit center bus routes. Chair Norman noted that Sound Transit would need to reroute the buses during the Auburn Junction construction, which might lead to an opportunity to talk about rerouting buses permanently. A lot of the buses currently access the transit station via 2"d Street and a thought was that Sound Transit could change the direction around the building so all would use 2"d Street. Item 36 - Main St Plaza and Main Street Market Ms. Chamberlain stated that the Committee and staff were not clear on the Alpert Team's vision of a Main Street Market and how that would play into the Farmer's Market. Spence Alpert replied that the idea of a Main Street Market started with the Mayor's vision of Auburn becoming an international melting pot of citizens. The working title is Main Street Market which will be changed due to the current business, Auburn's Main Street Market. The concept is a play on Seattle's Pike Place Market, with smaller scale and unique market shops that would provide great pedestrian scale. Mr. Maertz stated that this international market would be a great addition to the City Hall Plaza. Committee agreed that these shops would be a good draw for the Farmer's Market and might be the enticement that brings people through both sides of downtown. Items 1-15 in memo In response to staff's request for clarification, Mel Maertz stated that the 15 items associated with the Main Street Plaza is meant for background once the group begins discussing elements at 5,000 feet or less. Committee agreed that the Esther Short Park in downtown Vancouver, WA is a good combination between hard space and green space, use of a water feature that is safe and sane and that the scale is closer to what they are looking for. Staff confirmed that the Esther Short Park is a managed place while Portland's Jameson Park is a spontaneous space; both have different uses. Chair Norman noted that the City is building a 30,000 square foot barrier-free playground in the Les Gove Park, scheduled for completion spring 2011. Mr. Alpert reminded the Committee that his group has always felt it was critically important to have connectivity between the Auburn Junction and Les Gove Park. There was discussion about street improvements and bicycle routes already in the Transportation Plan for this connection. Page 4 Downtown Redevelopment Committee Minutes December 8, 2009 Regarding Item 15 of the memo, Spence Alpert mentioned that his staff worked with the City's Finance Director Shelley Coleman to develop an economic impact study. This economic impact study looked at a$178 million tax benefit to the City and was utilized to help with the legislation for the LIFT program. This economic study came out of the question of whether it was economically feasible for the plaza. Once his team reaches the point of talking to potential users of the plaza, it would be a collaborative economic discussion rather than an analysis or study. Staff will meet after the holidays with the Alpert Design Team to review the Design Guidelines for any adjustments needed based on tonight's discussion. IV. INFORMATION A. The December 26, 2009 meeting will be cancelled. B. Signal Control Boxes Committee asked about the status of the Signal Control Boxes as discussed at the October 27, 2009 meeting. Staff will check the minutes from previous meetings to see what next steps were. C. Auburn Junction Signs Member Singer questioned the status of signs on the Auburn Junction announcing the plans for the property. Staff responded that the site plan might change and it would be premature to place any signs at this time. Mayor responded that once the Promenade is completed, the City may put a sign up to build value and anticipation in the project. V. ADJOURNMENT There being no further business to come before the Downtown Redevelopment Committee, Chair Norman adjourned the meeting at 5:18 p.m. APPROVED THIS C4) DAY OF JANUARY, 2010. , Lynn man, Chair ee Vobias, Planning Secretary Page 5