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Record of Proceedings

West Linn City Council Work Session: May 19, 2025

City Council & Planning Commission — Monday, May 19, 2025
BodyWest Linn, Oregon
SessionCity Council & Planning Commission
DateMonday, May 19, 2025
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 1:49:11

Original source
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0:04

Ready?

0:04

Okay, thank you, everybody.

0:06

Well, I'd like to call to order this work session of the Western City Council.

0:09

It is Monday, May 19th, 2025.

0:13

The first item of business is to approve the agenda for the evening.

0:17

Thank you, Mayor.

0:18

I move to approve the agenda for this Monday, May 19th, 2025 City Council meeting work session.

0:27

Hi second.

0:28

Okay, it's been moved and seconded to approve the agenda for the May 19th, 2025 City Council work session.

0:34

Any discussion.

0:37

Looking forward to the meeting ahead.

0:39

Thank you.

0:40

Please call the roll councillor Bonington.

0:44

Yes.

0:45

Councilor Bright?

0:46

Yes.

0:46

Council President Baumgartner?

0:49

Yes.

0:49

Council Croner?

0:50

Yes.

0:51

Mayor Bielostoski.

0:52

Yes.

0:53

Thank you.

0:54

So the motion passes.

0:55

Agenda is approved.

0:57

And that takes us to uh public comments.

1:00

Uh and I understand that the commenters have are gonna give their comments now instead of on the agenda item.

1:05

So we'll that sounds good.

1:09

Our first person is Steve Light.

1:15

Right there's fine.

1:16

Welcome.

1:17

Hi.

1:17

Just make sure the mic's on and then so you think I really need this?

1:22

No.

1:23

Just for the record of the meeting.

1:24

Just state your name and city residence, and you have up to three minutes.

1:26

All right.

1:27

Well, my name is Steve Lights.

1:28

I live at 5591 Broadway Street.

1:31

Um right there at the corner of Broadway and Easy Street.

1:36

Uh and I don't see my three minutes has started.

1:40

That's okay.

1:41

I can I can ramble on all night if you'd like.

1:43

Oh, there we go.

1:44

Uh so I'd like to tell you a little story about, you know, one day I went out and there was this entitled kid parked in front of my house from the high school.

1:57

And I go, uh there's a sign right there says that you're not supposed to park here.

2:03

Uh and he says, I can park here if I'd like.

2:07

And I go, well, okay, that's really a good idea.

2:10

Uh go ahead and park here, but if I see you again tomorrow, I'm gonna call the police and we'll get you a ticket.

2:16

And the next day the car was there, and that entitled little kid went to his attorney father and sued the city and got the uh parking zone removed for quite a while.

2:28

Not quite a while, but enough of the time that it really riled up the neighborhood.

2:33

Uh I think we all know who we're talking about.

2:35

Um, and so now this is coming up again, and I want to make sure that it gets completely absolutely squashed.

2:43

It goes to the vis the livability of my neighborhood.

2:46

Now, I can give you another example.

2:49

I go to Gladstone City Hall.

2:52

I walk in, I say, Hi, and I'm talking to a piece of bulletproof glass through a microphone.

3:01

And I look at these people that are in a nice secure work environment, and then I go to my Baskin Robin store just down the street, and I see my teenage kids in there working with vagrants masturbating in front of them.

3:18

Now are these people in these public places better than we are?

3:25

And that's all I need to ask.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Economic Development█████████████████17%
Transportation Safety███████████████15%
Public Safety██████████████14%
Affordable Housing████████████12%
Urban Renewal████████8%
Community Engagement█████5%
Emergency Management█████5%
Public Health█████5%
Public Use Zoning█████5%
Summary of Proceedings

West Linn City Council Work Session: May 19, 2025

The West Linn City Council held a work session on Monday, May 19, 2025, starting at 6:00 p.m. The meeting included public comments, council reports, an ALS proclamation, a detailed update on the VISION43 project with three policy discussions, and two proposed ordinances related to parking enforcement and temporary storage containers.

Public Comments & Testimony

  • Steve Light (resident) criticized parking enforcement near the high school, recounting a past incident where a student challenged a parking zone and the city removed it. He expressed concerns about livability and public safety, questioning perceived disparities in security between city facilities and private businesses.
  • Ben Erian (Bolton neighborhood resident) urged the council to support an amendment to the painted curb ordinance, stating that currently unenforced yellow curbs and expired permit parking near the school create unsafe conditions, including near-miss accidents involving pedestrians and drivers.

Discussion Items

  • ALS Proclamation: Mayor read a proclamation designating May 2025 as Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS) Awareness Month, noting the disease's impact, lack of cure, and the ALS Association's $154 million in research funding. The proclamation was signed.
  • VISION43 Project Update (presented by Chris, planning staff): Three policy questions were discussed to guide the mixed-use zoning code for the Highway 43 corridor. Councilmembers voiced varied opinions, leaning toward incentives over mandates for housing and height requirements, with emphasis on avoiding unintended consequences and maintaining flexibility near residential zones.
    • Policy Question 1 (housing requirement): Most councilmembers favored encouraging rather than requiring housing, citing potential deterrents to development. Staff will research approaches from other cities and consult with developers.
    • Policy Question 2 (minimum two stories): Support emerged for requiring two stories along the highway, with possible exceptions for side or rear areas. Council President asked for visual examples; staff will bring back more detailed concepts.
    • Policy Question 3 (step-backs near residential zones): Councilmembers generally supported step-backs to reduce visual impact, but acknowledged the need for case-by-case flexibility, potentially triggered by topography or neighborhood input.
  • Ordinance Discussion – Painted Curbs (Chapter 6): Chief Mahuna and Attorney Klein presented a proposed amendment to allow enforcement of painted curbs (yellow/no parking) without additional signage, using only official city paint. Council discussed potential issues with unauthorized painting and enforcement consistency. The ordinance will return for adoption.
  • Ordinance Discussion – Temporary Storage Containers (PODS): A new section would limit PODS or similar containers on residential streets to 72 hours without a permit, with exceptions for permitted longer stays. Council supported the 72-hour limit as reasonable, citing complaint-driven enforcement. A related sub-section clarifying prohibition of unpermitted vehicles in residential parking zones (e.g., near high school) was added. A third ordinance establishes fines referenced in the master fee schedule. All three ordinances will be brought back for adoption at a future business meeting.

Key Outcomes

  • VISION43: Staff will conduct further research on policy questions, bring back visual examples, and continue drafting the mixed-use code with council feedback. No formal vote taken.
  • Painted Curb Ordinance: Council agreed to bring the revised ordinance back for a vote, incorporating language about official city paint and enforcement.
  • Temporary Storage Container Ordinance: Council agreed to bring the ordinance back for adoption, including the 72-hour limit and the residential parking zone clarification.
  • Fine Ordinance: A new section (6.148) will be presented for adoption, standardizing penalties via the master fee schedule.
  • Future Meetings: Budget committee meetings set for May 27 and 29; June 9 meeting canceled; June 16 special meeting likely for parking ordinances.

Meeting Transcript

Ready? Okay, thank you, everybody. Well, I'd like to call to order this work session of the Western City Council. It is Monday, May 19th, 2025. The first item of business is to approve the agenda for the evening. Thank you, Mayor. I move to approve the agenda for this Monday, May 19th, 2025 City Council meeting work session. Hi second. Okay, it's been moved and seconded to approve the agenda for the May 19th, 2025 City Council work session. Any discussion. Looking forward to the meeting ahead. Thank you. Please call the roll councillor Bonington. Yes. Councilor Bright? Yes. Council President Baumgartner? Yes. Council Croner? Yes. Mayor Bielostoski. Yes. Thank you. So the motion passes. Agenda is approved. And that takes us to uh public comments. Uh and I understand that the commenters have are gonna give their comments now instead of on the agenda item. So we'll that sounds good. Our first person is Steve Light. Right there's fine. Welcome. Hi. Just make sure the mic's on and then so you think I really need this? No. Just for the record of the meeting. Just state your name and city residence, and you have up to three minutes. All right. Well, my name is Steve Lights. I live at 5591 Broadway Street. Um right there at the corner of Broadway and Easy Street. Uh and I don't see my three minutes has started. That's okay. I can I can ramble on all night if you'd like. Oh, there we go. Uh so I'd like to tell you a little story about, you know, one day I went out and there was this entitled kid parked in front of my house from the high school. And I go, uh there's a sign right there says that you're not supposed to park here. Uh and he says, I can park here if I'd like. And I go, well, okay, that's really a good idea. Uh go ahead and park here, but if I see you again tomorrow, I'm gonna call the police and we'll get you a ticket. And the next day the car was there, and that entitled little kid went to his attorney father and sued the city and got the uh parking zone removed for quite a while.

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