OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Beaverton Planning Commission Work Session on Transportation System Plan and Approval of Minutes – November 19, 2025

Planning Commission — Wednesday, November 19, 2025
BodyBeaverton, Oregon
SessionPlanning Commission
DateWednesday, November 19, 2025
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 48:47

Transcript — Verbatim
0:14

For the record, I will do a roll call to verify which commission members are participating this evening.

0:19

Commissioner Winter.

0:23

Commissioner Speck.

0:24

Here.

0:25

Commissioner McCann.

0:27

Here.

0:28

Commissioner Mettler.

0:32

Here.

0:33

And Commissioner MacAboy.

0:36

Here.

0:37

Let the record show that Commissioner Holmes is excused and absent from the meeting tonight.

0:43

We are now at Commission Communications.

0:47

Commission, any communications.

0:53

Looks like no communications.

0:55

We are now at staff communications.

0:58

Staff, any communications.

1:05

I have three short items.

1:07

The first is I just uh wanted to let you know the city council adopted the town center maps that uh the planning commission considered recently.

1:16

Uh those should be effective next month.

1:19

Uh and then um a couple of citywide interest items.

1:23

Um regarding fiscal sustainability, uh, like many Oregon cities, Beaverton faces a structural budget deficit driven by expenses outpacing revenue growth, further strained by tax limitations at the county and state level.

1:36

Uh despite significant efforts to improve the our financial position uh funding gap remains.

1:42

To address this, the city council's actively exploring additional strategies to stabilize the finances in both the near and the long term.

1:50

Uh these include a potential revenue generating options such as a city service fee, local option levy, and a street maintenance fee.

1:56

The next discussion that the council will have will take place at 6 p.m.

2:00

December 9th.

2:02

Council will review further financial research and explore additional options.

2:06

They won't make any decisions that night, but the conversation will help shape the path forward.

2:11

So everybody watching is welcome to attend that.

2:16

Um we have a way to celebrate the season.

2:20

Uh the winter lights and tree lighting event is coming up.

2:23

Um you're invited to kick off the holiday season at the at that ceremony, which is 4 p.m.

2:29

to 8 p.m.

2:29

December 5th at City Park and Downtown Beaverton.

2:33

Full details are at Beaverton, Oregon.gov slash winterlights.

2:39

All the announcements.

2:40

Thank you.

2:41

Excellent.

2:42

Thank you.

2:43

The first item on the agenda is a work session on the transportation system plan.

2:48

The order of the work session tonight will be as follows.

2:51

We will begin with the city staff presentation, followed by discussion and questions of staff by the commission.

2:58

The planning commission will then hear public comments regarding the work session item.

3:03

Individual comments will be limited to five minutes and must be directed toward the work session item.

3:09

The commission may ask additional questions of individuals providing comments or staff.

3:14

We will now begin with the staff presentation presented by senior planner Jessica Engelman.

3:26

Sure.

3:26

Thank you for having us this evening.

3:29

My name is Jessica Engelman.

3:30

I work in the long-range planning section for the city, and I'm managing this update to the city's transportation plan.

3:36

I'm joined by Rob Zeller.

3:38

He did a lot of the engagement work, uh coordinated it over the summer, so is here to really um answer any questions about that that you may have at the end of the presentation.

3:49

So I'm gonna just jump in right away.

3:51

We have a lot to cover, and I I think that you'll be interested in hearing about it, and we're really looking forward to hearing your thoughts.

3:57

Um we've been working on two fronts over the past six months.

4:01

We've been analyzing what's out there today, so looking at what works, what's not working.

4:07

Um we've also been talking with community by community members about where they like to go, where they would like it to feel safer.

4:15

Um and in general, we've just been listening, mapping data, learning, uh, looking for patterns, synthesizing what we're we're hearing and learning, and into a coherent narrative that I'm gonna be um presenting this evening and which is gonna influence a lot of the work.

4:32

Oh, no problem.

4:34

Uh going forward.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Transportation Safety█████████████████████████████████████████████61%
Urban Planning██████████14%
Community Engagement███████9%
Procedural██████8%
Public Transportation████5%
Fiscal Sustainability██3%
Summary of Proceedings

Beaverton Planning Commission Work Session on Transportation System Plan and Approval of Minutes – November 19, 2025

The Beaverton Planning Commission held a work session on the Transportation System Plan (TSP) update, receiving a presentation from senior planner Jessica Engelman on community engagement findings and modal network analysis. The commission also approved meeting minutes from October 1 and October 15, 2025. No public testimony was offered.

Staff Communications

  • The city council adopted the town center maps previously considered by the planning commission; those maps become effective next month.
  • City staff reported on fiscal sustainability challenges, noting a structural budget deficit due to expenses outpacing revenue growth. The city council will discuss potential revenue options (city service fee, local option levy, street maintenance fee) at a meeting on December 9, 2025, at 6 p.m.
  • The Winter Lights and Tree Lighting Ceremony will be held December 5, 2025, from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. at City Park and Downtown Beaverton.

Discussion Items

  • Transportation System Plan (TSP) Update Work Session
    • Senior planner Jessica Engelman, joined by engagement coordinator Rob Zeller, presented findings from six months of community engagement (April–September 2025) and data analysis.
    • Key community takeaways included:
      • Travel is essential for daily needs beyond commuting; 71% of trips beginning in Beaverton are for purposes other than work.
      • Safety is a major concern; top streets where people want safer conditions include Canyon, Farmington, Cedar Hills, and TV Highway.
      • Crash data (2018–2022) indicates injury crashes occur approximately every 10 hours; severe crashes every 11 days. Pedestrians and bicyclists face disproportionate risk (42% of pedestrians and 28% of bicyclists in crashes were killed or seriously injured vs. 6% of motorists).
      • Speeds above 30 mph significantly increase fatality risk; over 40 mph, a pedestrian has an 80% chance of death.
      • Community members expressed interest in walking, biking, and transit if facilities are safe and connected; 87% of sidewalks exist but accessibility and maintenance issues remain.
      • Different groups (youth, older adults, people with disabilities, caregivers) share a common desire for safer, more accessible streets.
      • Residents supported future street designs that prioritize safety, comfort, and community gathering.
    • The city is currently completing existing conditions analysis and will begin defining future modal networks (pedestrian, bicycle, transit, motor vehicle) in the coming months, with next commission update expected in spring 2026.
    • Commission members asked about the definition of safe crossings, jurisdictional challenges with state/county roads, feasibility of speed reductions and traffic calming on corridors like Cedar Hills and Hall Boulevard, and strategies for managing peak travel demand.
    • Staff clarified that while the city does not control all roadways, it advocates for safety improvements and coordinates with partner agencies.

Key Outcomes

  • Approval of Meeting Minutes
    • The commission unanimously approved the minutes from the October 1, 2025, meeting (motion by Commissioner [unstated], seconded, vote: 5-0-1 with Chair Adams absent and Commissioner Holmes excused; all present voted aye).
    • The commission unanimously approved the minutes from the October 15, 2025, meeting (motion by Commissioner [unstated], seconded, vote: 5-0-1 with same composition).
  • The meeting adjourned at 7:18 p.m.

Meeting Transcript

For the record, I will do a roll call to verify which commission members are participating this evening. Commissioner Winter. Commissioner Speck. Here. Commissioner McCann. Here. Commissioner Mettler. Here. And Commissioner MacAboy. Here. Let the record show that Commissioner Holmes is excused and absent from the meeting tonight. We are now at Commission Communications. Commission, any communications. Looks like no communications. We are now at staff communications. Staff, any communications. I have three short items. The first is I just uh wanted to let you know the city council adopted the town center maps that uh the planning commission considered recently. Uh those should be effective next month. Uh and then um a couple of citywide interest items. Um regarding fiscal sustainability, uh, like many Oregon cities, Beaverton faces a structural budget deficit driven by expenses outpacing revenue growth, further strained by tax limitations at the county and state level. Uh despite significant efforts to improve the our financial position uh funding gap remains. To address this, the city council's actively exploring additional strategies to stabilize the finances in both the near and the long term. Uh these include a potential revenue generating options such as a city service fee, local option levy, and a street maintenance fee. The next discussion that the council will have will take place at 6 p.m. December 9th. Council will review further financial research and explore additional options. They won't make any decisions that night, but the conversation will help shape the path forward. So everybody watching is welcome to attend that. Um we have a way to celebrate the season. Uh the winter lights and tree lighting event is coming up. Um you're invited to kick off the holiday season at the at that ceremony, which is 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. December 5th at City Park and Downtown Beaverton. Full details are at Beaverton, Oregon.gov slash winterlights. All the announcements. Thank you. Excellent. Thank you. The first item on the agenda is a work session on the transportation system plan. The order of the work session tonight will be as follows. We will begin with the city staff presentation, followed by discussion and questions of staff by the commission. The planning commission will then hear public comments regarding the work session item. Individual comments will be limited to five minutes and must be directed toward the work session item. The commission may ask additional questions of individuals providing comments or staff. We will now begin with the staff presentation presented by senior planner Jessica Engelman. Sure. Thank you for having us this evening. My name is Jessica Engelman. I work in the long-range planning section for the city, and I'm managing this update to the city's transportation plan.

SUMMARIZED BY OPENPUBLICA AI
TRANSCRIPT VIA PUBLIC VIDEO
openpublica.com