City staff present Bethel and University neighborhood visions, propose citywide engagement for Highway 99

City staff presented draft visions and community‑identified priorities for the Bethel and University planning areas and proposed a citywide engagement process for Highway 99 during the Eugene City Council work session on April 22, 2026.

"It's an approach that starts with conversations with community members," said Fabio Andrari of the Office of Equity and Community Engagement, describing a process of listening sessions, follow‑up meetings and staff‑level vetting to turn resident input into an action plan. Cindy Koller, the city's neighborhood and community liaison, stressed that the materials being shown represent what residents said and "have not been vetted by staff."

Why it matters: the presentations lay out resident priorities and a practice for moving from visioning to action at a time when state law changes and resource limits have reduced the city’s ability to pursue neighborhood‑level refinement plans. Staff said the vetting step will show which resident requests are already planned, which are feasible, and which lack funding. The city manager and staff said they expect an initial, compiled vetting of community requests in about three to four weeks.

What staff presented: For the Bethel area staff reported 230 residents participating in six in‑person community meetings, roughly 75 community‑identified priorities that were refined to 71, more than 13,000 mailers sent to addresses in the planning region, and about 2,700 online engagements through the Engage Eugene portal. Koller summarized six themes for Bethel: safety (traffic calming, crossings, lighting, and requests for a police substation), economic development and reuse of vacant spaces, interconnectivity and multimodal travel, affordable housing and incentives for ADUs and middle housing, environmental and climate resilience, and stronger neighborhood identity and events.

For the University planning area staff said about 132 people participated across seven community meetings and online outreach produced roughly 1,500 engagements from mailings to over 10,000 addresses. Koller said university‑area residents prioritized safe travel infrastructure (protected bike lanes, crosswalk visibility, repaired sidewalks), enforcement and education around the social‑host ordinance, options for student disposal of furniture at year‑end, concern about light pollution and a need for affordable housing approaches that account for short‑term rentals and neighborhood character.

Highway 99 proposal: Staff proposed using the Bethel draft vision as the starting point for a citywide engagement titled on the slides as "Reimagining Highway 99 as a Corridor of Opportunity and Care." The proposal would coordinate an 18‑month corridor safety and planning study funded in part by a grant, align related programs (Vision Zero, urban forestry, Safe Routes to School), and explore housing and services along the corridor. Koller said residents repeatedly requested pedestrian‑controlled crossings with signals and physical barriers, traffic calming, intersection evaluations (including the 4 Corners area), safer conditions for people walking and biking, and coordinated approaches for people experiencing homelessness.

River Road–Santa Clara implementation: Staff reviewed the existing River Road–Santa Clara action plan (the prior neighborhood refinement plan reworked as an action plan after state law changes), noted the plan contains roughly 200 items, and described a shift away from one annual meeting toward focused, topic‑specific implementation meetings. The next transportation focus meeting is scheduled for April 29 at North Eugene High School with Lane County and other partner agencies invited.

Council questions and next steps: Councilors praised the outreach materials and asked for clarity on timing and implementation. One councilor said the difference between the Bethel and University responses—"University area concerns are more about quality of life. Bethel residents are concerned about life"—illustrated divergent priorities. Another councilor criticized the pace of past engagement and loss of trust in some neighborhoods, saying long delays had left issues unresolved; staff acknowledged limits on participation and the challenge of managing expectations. On timing, staff said they are compiling a spreadsheet of all requests and departmental responses and expect to return at least an initial vetted list in about three to four weeks, after which council can discuss priorities and potential budget or policy actions.

No formal motions or votes were taken at the work session. Staff identified next steps: complete departmental vetting of requests, prepare a draft list for council review in approximately three to four weeks, and continue focused implementation meetings for River Road–Santa Clara beginning April 29.

The work session concluded with the council president closing the meeting.