Tualatin City Council Meeting - November 10, 2025
Tualatin City Council Meeting - November 10, 2025
The Tualatin City Council held a regular meeting on November 10, 2025, starting at 8:00 AM. The meeting included a proclamation for Small Business Saturday, a new employee introduction, a presentation from Clean Water Services, a public hearing on the appeal of an Architectural Review Board decision for LAM Research's expansion, and advisory committee appointments. The council unanimously denied the appeal and affirmed the ARB's decision.
Consent Calendar
- Approved unanimously: Adoption of the work session and regular meeting minutes of October 27, 2025, and Resolution No. 5926-25 adopting the City of Tualatin investment policy.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Janet Bailey (resident, 20+ years) spoke against a "land agreement" (clarified as land acknowledgement) circulating in the community, stating she does not consent to it under common law. Council clarified no land acknowledgement has been recommended by the IDEA committee.
- Brett Hamilton (appellant, resident on Calispell St) argued against the LAM Research expansion, focusing on traffic safety at 108th Avenue and Tualaton Road, claiming the northern driveway is dangerous and unnecessary.
- Andrew Mulkey (attorney for appellant) argued that noise performance standards in TDC Chapter 63 must be met before approval, not just enforced after construction; requested conditions requiring rooftop noise study and mitigation.
- Supporters for LAM (Annalia Jackson, Chamber of Commerce; Monique Claiborne, Greater Portland Inc.; Elizabeth Mazar Myers, Westside Economic Alliance) emphasized LAM's economic importance as Tualatin's largest employer, the Tux project's hundreds of millions in investment, job creation, and community partnerships.
- Opponents of LAM expansion (Marius Brieson, 113th Ave; Russell Street, Hazelbrook Rd; Bonnie Peterson, Jurgens Lane; Janet Weber, 115th Ave) expressed concerns about increased traffic and noise on Tualaton Road, but supported LAM with conditions for mitigation.
Discussion Items
- Proclamation: Council proclaimed November 29, 2025 as Small Business Saturday. Anna Leah Jackson from the Chamber of Commerce presented the proclamation, highlighting the 36.2 million small businesses nationally and their role in the local economy.
- New Employee Introduction: Policy analyst Quinn Bruner introduced by Sid Urban Renewal Manager, started October 29, 2025, will focus on Southwest Urban Renewal District and downtown revitalization.
- Clean Water Services Presentation: Joe Gall (Chief Utility Relations Officer) and interim CEO Rick Shanley presented the district's annual report. Key points: 2023-2027 permit cycle, $78 million in five-year projects in Tualatin, planned billing study, and upcoming rate discussion in February 2026. Councilor Gonzalez inquired about water quality swale maintenance; Clean Water Services stated they inspect on a 3-4 year cycle and will follow up.
- Public Hearing – Appeal of ARB Decision AR 24-0002 (LAM Research Tux Development): Staff (Keith Leonard) presented a detailed staff report. The appellant (Brett Hamilton) raised three categories of claims: application did not meet criteria (lack of notice to CIOs, noise violations, new driveway on 108th), errors by applicant (missed second neighborhood meeting, inadequate traffic study), and errors by city (missing noise model pages, delayed public records). Proponent (LAM) argued that noise is a performance standard enforced after construction, not an approval criterion; they provided a noise model and traffic study demonstrating compliance. Traffic engineer Brent Arendt explained that only 25 peak-hour trips would use the northern driveway, and the intersection meets safety standards. City attorney Kevin McConnell opined that further noise conditions beyond Condition A25 (compliance with noise ordinance) would be legally difficult. Council discussion focused on criteria vs. community concerns; members noted that closing the northern driveway would not fundamentally solve intersection safety issues and that existing noise enforcement mechanisms exist.
- Advisory Committee Appointments: Councilor Reyes moved to adopt recommendations: Planning Commission (Ursula Kuhn, Ray Liv), Library Advisory Committee (Dana Polino, Melissa Lawrence), IDEA Committee (Emily Baker, Aaron Stimson, Samantha Peterson, Maya Schroeder, Laura Enberson, Nina Ichikawa). Councilor Gonzalez questioned diversity of IDEA committee; Councilor Reyes noted it includes diverse ethnic, cultural, physical, age, and economic backgrounds. Motion passed unanimously.
Key Outcomes
- Denied appeal and affirmed ARB decision (unanimous vote): Council denied the appeal (moved by Council President Pratt, seconded) and affirmed the Architectural Review Board's September 10, 2025 decision approving AR 24-0002 with conditions. The council directed staff to prepare an order and resolution incorporating findings from the ARB decision, staff's supplemental report, and LAM's alternative findings on noise and traffic standards.
- Advisory appointments approved (unanimous).
- Next steps: Resolution for the appeal decision expected November 24, 2025 council meeting. Clean Water Services to return in February 2026 for rate discussion.
Meeting Transcript
November 10th, 2025, Towalton City Council meeting. I'll now call this meeting into order. First item on our agenda is a Pledge of Allegiance led tonight by Councillor Sacco. Everybody can please stand and make a flag. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America. That brings us to our announcements part of the agenda, and our first announcement tonight. It's a proclamation declaring Saturday, November 29th, 2025, as Small Business Saturday in the City of Twalton. And we have Anna Leah Jackson from the Chamber of Commerce come on on coming on up with a presentation. Welcome, Annalia. Press the button. Oh, there it is. Good afternoon, Mayor and City Council's. She was one of the first people to welcome me to Tualaton, and she taught me that Tualton is shaped like a moose. And I didn't believe her. I thought you're kidding me. And so I went back to the chamber and I got a map out, and sure enough, we are shaped like a moose. And I thought, I need to do something with that. So we can't see it. Yeah. Can't unsee it. You can't, yeah, you can unsee it. So now we've created a graphic where Tualaton is a moose and it's uh shop local. And so there's some goodies in the bag for you, and um we'll be having these bags on sale. We also are going to have a business showcase uh to start kick off the holiday season for small business Saturday that is going to be uh proclamation tonight. Um but our showcase will be on November 21st at the library. So we're inviting all small businesses to come and uh show us you know network and show us what what they have. So should I read this or do you want to do that? Actually, Councillor Gonzalez is gonna read the proclamation. I love that. Wonderful. Okay. Thank you, everybody, for being here. Uh the proclamation is whereas the city of Tualeton, Oregon, celebrates our local small businesses and the contributions they've made to our local economy and community. According to the U.S. Small Business Administration and its Office of Advocacy, there are now approximately 36.2 million small businesses in the United States accounting for nearly all U.S. firms and contributing to nearly 46% of private sector employment. Whereas small business employ nearly half of all private sector workers, approximately 45% of the U.S. workforce, and are responsible for roughly 90% of net new jobs created from March 2023 to March 2024. Small business accounts for a net increase of about 1.2 million jobs of 1.00 total. Whereas small business continues to face post-pandemic challenges, including inflation, supply chain disruption, labor and benefit cost, even as many have have adapted with increased online presence and pivoting businesses models. Whereas consumers continue to value purchasing from locally owned businesses. Studies indicate that a very high percentage of Americans believe small business possibilities impact their communities and local economies. Whereas Tualeton, Oregon strongly supports our local businesses to create jobs, boost our local economy, and preserve our communities. And whereas advocacy groups, as well as public and private organizations across the country, have endorsed the Saturday after Thanksgiving as Small Business Saturday. Now therefore be it resolved that the City of Twalton does hereby proclaim November 29, 2025 as Small Business Saturday, and urge the residents of our community to support small businesses and merchants on small business Saturday and throughout the year. Introduce adopted the 10th day of November 2025. Thank you. I'd love to. I don't know if we anybody take the pictures or just hand it over. We'll just hand it over.
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