Beaverton Traffic Commission Meeting Summary – September 3, 2026
Beaverton Traffic Commission Meeting Summary – September 3, 2026
On September 3, 2026, the Beaverton Traffic Commission met to consider two public hearings: a left-turn restriction on Southwest 117th Avenue at Barnes Road (TC 875) and revisions to downtown on-street parking regulation hours (TC 876). The commission also approved consent agenda items and received an update on a pedestrian path improvement project. The meeting included staff reports, public testimony, and commission deliberations.
Consent Calendar
- Approved 7-0: Meeting minutes from July 2026 and the final order for TC 874 (stop control at Southwest Angel Avenue and Southwest 6th Street).
Public Hearings
TC 875: Left-Turn Restriction on SW 117th Avenue at Barnes Road
- Staff Report (Mr. Cashell, City Traffic Engineer): Washington County safety analysis identified six crashes (four minor injury) between 2023 and 2025 at the T-intersection, primarily involving northbound left turns conflicting with eastbound through traffic. Staff proposed restricting left turns from 117th Avenue onto Barnes Road, noting that drivers can instead use a new signalized intersection at 116th Avenue (300 feet east) to make a safer left turn. The change would not affect the neighborhood on Shobi Drive/Shauben Lane, as they can use the signalized intersection.
- Commission Questions: Commissioner Moore asked about crash types (no rear-ends reported). Commissioner Bansky clarified the vote was only on the turn restriction, not Washington County's broader concepts. Commissioner Miranda asked about U-turn possibilities at 116th; staff explained U-turns are not allowed at signalized intersections unless posted, and they do not encourage them.
- Public Testimony: No members of the public testified in person or via Zoom.
- Commission Deliberation and Vote: Commissioners expressed support based on crash data and safety. Chair Conway motioned to approve as written; seconded by Commissioner Friedler. Approved 7-0.
TC 876: Revisions to Downtown On-Street Parking Regulation Hours
- Staff Report (Mr. Cashell and Molly Rubinovitz, Parking Manager): The downtown parking plan, adopted by City Council on June 16, 2026 (Resolution 4960), calls for changing parking time limit restrictions from 7 a.m.–6 p.m. Monday–Friday to 8 a.m.–9 p.m. Monday–Saturday (matching the Broadway district). The change is based on parking occupancy data (collected Thurs–Sat, 5–10 p.m., July–Aug and Nov–Dec 2025) showing that most time-limit areas exceed the 85% occupancy threshold, the industry benchmark for considering policy changes. Staff emphasized this is the first step in a longer process, with future changes to time limits, permits, and other code updates planned.
- Commission Questions: Commissioner McLean asked about eliminating the 7–8 a.m. hour; staff replied it has very low utilization. Commissioner Miranda queried whether time limits (e.g., 2-hour) would change; staff said no, only the enforcement hours. Commissioner Moore raised concerns about overnight parking of caravan vehicles; staff noted the data does not cover overnight. Commissioner Bansky noted a discrepancy in map data (one map showed 919 parking spots vs. 1,166 in others); staff explained construction on Broadway affected earlier data collection.
- Public Testimony: Three speakers testified in person, all opposed to the change:
- John Matilla (resident, 12325 SW 2nd St.): Supported extending parking time limits but opposed the hourly change due to difficulty finding parking as a resident. Suggested increasing resident permits from 2 to 3 and reevaluating permitted parking areas. Also raised concerns about data collection via roving cameras (Fourth Amendment), which the chair deemed outside the scope of the hearing.
- Ben Johns (resident, Caddy building): Opposed the change because he arrives home around 3–4 p.m. and would have to move his car until 9 p.m. He has two resident permits and asked about parking on Lombard (not part of this proposal).
- Caitlin Smith (owner, Her Salon on SW Farmington Rd.): Opposed the change, especially the addition of Saturday and later evening hours. Her salon clients need longer parking for services; Saturdays previously allowed parking without time limits. She also noted that employee permits on 2nd Street are unnecessary because that street has no time limits.
- Written testimony: Approximately nine written comments were received; three from the same source, all opposed. Staff had sent over 500 hearing notices and posted signs.
- Commission Deliberation:
- Commissioner McLean argued public streets are not owned by any party; expanding restricted hours promotes equality and turnover, even if it doesn't please everyone.
- Commissioner Bansky suggested that if consistency were the goal, making all restrictions end at 6 p.m. (instead of extending to 9 p.m.) would be simpler. He noted that parking occupancy data may not justify extending hours when many businesses are closed after 6 p.m.
- Commissioner Moore expressed concern that the change appears to prioritize businesses over residents and that residents and businesses are already constrained. She noted that 20,000 visitors to the Saturday market manage to park, so the need for more enforcement on less busy days seems questionable.
- Vice Chair Bobadia felt the timing is premature; the commission should first address time limits and permits before expanding hours. She commended businesses and residents for working together.
- Commissioner Miranda made a motion to approve as written, but it failed due to lack of a second.
- Commissioner Friedler noted that all written and in-person testimony was opposed. He wanted a timeline for future parking changes (permits, time limits) before supporting this step.
- Commissioner Bansky requested data on the percentage of businesses open after 6 p.m. and the number of residential units downtown to better balance competing needs.
- Key Outcome: Commissioner Miranda moved to table the item and request additional data: the number of businesses open after 6 p.m. and the number of residential units in the affected area. The motion was seconded by Commissioner Friedler and passed 7-0. The item will be brought back to a future Traffic Commission meeting once the information is gathered (staff indicated it would not be available by the next meeting).
Other Business
Old Business: Pedestrian Path between Corby Drive and Barnes Road
- Update from Mr. Cashell: In February 2023, the Traffic Commission denied a request to close the path; City Council concurred. City operations now have a project to improve the path: clear vegetation, fix the bridge, and clear the surface. Concrete blocks have been added to prevent obstruction. The storm engineer (Conley) hopes this will reduce flooding. Commissioners noted the project was long pending (since 2023).
- No new business was raised.
Key Outcomes
- Consent Calendar: Approved 7-0 (minutes and TC 874).
- TC 875: Approved 7-0. Left-turn restriction on SW 117th Avenue at Barnes Road.
- TC 876: Tabled 7-0 pending additional information on business hours and residential unit counts in the affected downtown area. No meeting scheduled for October 2026; the item will return when data is ready.
- Pedestrian Path: Update noted; improvements underway.
- No new business or other old business.
Meeting Transcript
You attend one of our public hearings, um, City Council included. You'd let them know ahead of time, and uh visitor comments for anything not on the agenda are always welcome. So if you have anything you want to share, please always uh consider that. Uh next up, then would be staff comments, Mr. Cashau. Uh before you there is additional written testimony that we received on TC 876. Thank you. Uh next up is uh consent agenda. We have um two things on the consent agenda the meeting minutes from the last time we met, which was in July, and the update for uh TC 874 stop control at the intersection of Southwest Angel Avenue and Southwest 6th Street. Uh uh Commissioner McLean. I'll make a motion to approve the minutes from last month and the final rent order of TC 874. Excellent, thank you. Uh uh Commissioner uh Miranda's second on that. Um we'll call then for that. Uh Commissioner Miranda. Yeah, aye. Uh Commissioner Friedler. Aye. Uh Commissioner Moore. Aye. Uh Vice Chair of Ovidia. Aye. Uh Commissioner Banski. Aye. Uh Commissioner McLean. Aye. And Chair Conway, aye. Uh, motion passes um 70. Thank you. Uh next up, we have a public hearing. We have two public hearings. Recording in progress. We have two public comment, uh, two public hearings on the agenda this evening. We will do a chair opening comment. This will apply to both of our public hearings. And we'll begin with uh traffic commission holding hearing on TC number 875 at left turn restriction on southwest 117th Avenue of Barnes Road, followed by TC 876 revisions downtown on street parking regulation hours. The hearings will begin with the report from City Traffic Engineer, followed by testimony from the person who submitted the proposal. City traffic engineers report will list the applicable substantive criteria and the reasons behind the recommendation. We would then hear testimony from other interested parties. If you wish to testify again, please complete one of the yellow cards available at the table near the entrance of the room and present it to our recorder. Evidence and testimony must be directed to the criteria in section 6.02.060, determined to be applicable by the city traffic engineer or other criteria, current city, metro, trimet, state or federal laws or policies which you believe apply to our decision. After the hearing is closed, the commission will deliberate on the evidence received and make an oral decision to approve, approve with conditions or deny the proposal. The decision will not be final until a final written order is signed by the chairperson. All persons who testify will receive a written notice of the final decision of the commission. Decisions, traffic commission or recommendations, city council become effective after approval by council. Typically, traffic commission recommendations appear in the consent agenda of council and are not approved and are excuse me, are approved by the council without discussion. City Council ordinarily does not conduct a public hearing on such recommendations. Any decision of the commission may be appealed to city council, though. When an appeal is properly filed, a separate hearing will be scheduled before council. Any appeal must be filed with the city recorder within 10 days of the date of the traffic commission's final written order.
openpublica.com