The City of Portland has created the “Mixed Use Advisory Committee” to study and revise policies for commercial areas of the city (“mixed use” replacing the traditional term “commercial”). The committee will meet once a month for 15 months and will produce a series of recommendations to revise the General Plan. A series of public hearings will be held in 2015 after the committee’s recommendations are made, but prior to changes being adopted as city policy.
Why is this process important to the residents and business owners of Beaumont-Wilshire? Until recent years, the development pattern of Fremont Street has been largely confined to one-story commercial storefronts and smaller bungalows re-purposed for business use. The last decade has seen some infill projects of townhouses, and two and three-story-commercial/condo buildings. Generally speaking, these developments have been respectful of the existing street and surrounding residential blocks and have met with little neighborhood resistance. But last year’s massive 4-story, 50-unit apartment project changed all that. The community was caught off-guard, and the fact that the building contained no parking spaces added salt to the wound of close-by residents. This development has led to much ire between the neighborhood and the developer, and between the neighborhood and the City. If the status-quo on Fremont’s existing zoning is maintained in the revised General Plan, the neighborhood can expect similar projects, and similar discord, up and down the length of the street.
Enter the City’s Mixed Use Advisory Committee. This committee will be analyzing each commercial district in Portland and determining what works and what doesn’t. Hopefully, the recommendations made will be in accord with the desires and wishes of the surrounding community. But the fact is that developers and construction interests are a vocal component of the committee. And while representatives of neighborhood organizations may attend these meetings, they are confined to observer status until the end of the two-hour meeting.
These restrictions notwithstanding, BWNA input has led to some lively discussions in the larger committee. One of main points of contention is the assertion that the status quo one-size-fits-all commercial zoning is not working, because commercial streets are not the same. Case in point: Fremont Street has the exact same zoning as Division, but Fremont is being asked to absorb the same density impacts as Division, even though Division has a full range of urban services that Fremont residents don’t. For starters, there’s no longer a bus line on Fremont that serves downtown or runs on weekends.
Concerned residents are encouraged to attend committee meetings and take part in the General Plan revision process. It’s a fascinating process to observe and participate in, with the future of our neighborhood in the balance. For details about meeting times and committee procedures, contact BWNA Board member (and BWNA’s Mixed Use Advisory Committee representative) Jack Bookwalter (jackbookwalter@yahoo.com).