Lake Oswego studies tougher enforcement, fees for right-of-way vegetation and encroachments

City of Lake Oswego public works staff on Tuesday briefed the City Council on a proactive enforcement program for rights-of-way and vegetation, showed before-and-after examples of obstructions, and asked council whether to add formal fees and citation authority to the city's toolbox.

Public Works Director and City Engineer Erica Rooney and permit technician Lucas Ryan described a shift from complaint-driven enforcement to a corridor-based, proactive approach focused on hazards that block sidewalks, pathways or sight lines at intersections. Rooney said the program targets safety issues such as reduced pedestrian clearance, obstructed sight triangles and landscaping or large boulders placed in the right-of-way.

"When people get that letter that says, here's the code'you are in violation, you got 30 days to fix it'we're getting an 86% compliance rate so far," Rooney told the council. Staff presented case studies where letters, contractor work funded by the city and voluntary trimming restored pedestrian and vehicular sight lines.

Staff outlined three enforcement alternatives: keep a primarily education-and-letter approach; require correction as a condition of building permits for redeveloping properties (coordination between engineering and community development); or add civil citation authority and a violation-fee invoice in the master fees and charges so the city could recoup costs when property owners do not comply (the staff term: "Alternative 3").

Bill Youngblood, whose office handles code enforcement invoicing, described the existing invoicing module: "It's a tracking system, but it's also a great way to invoice charges," he said, explaining the city already uses a similar module for some code violations.

Council members repeatedly said safety should be the top priority but expressed concern about equity and staff workload if the city started systematically removing encroachments. Councilors asked staff to avoid a hard-handed first step and recommended clear public education and an incremental neighborhood-by-neighborhood rollout.

After discussion, councilors indicated support for developing the fee/citation option and aligning enforcement with the building-permit review process. Mayor Buck summarized the council's direction: staff should pursue creation of a violation-fee/citation mechanism, coordinate with community development to add permit conditions on redevelopment (so encroachments are addressed at building permit review), and bring back a detailed implementation plan, including public education, staffing needs and a phased pilot.

Council members asked staff to prioritize removal of materials that overtly block pedestrian access or create safety hazards, including rocks and planted mounding placed in the right-of-way, and to report back with estimated costs, proposed fees and a communications plan. Staff said code changes and master-fee schedule updates may be needed to implement the chosen approach.

The study session produced no formal vote; staff were directed to return with proposed code language, fee proposals and a public-education rollout plan.