McMinnville launches two-year update of its Transportation System Plan

Consultants and city staff on July 28 launched a two-year update of McMinnville's Transportation System Plan, the technical policy document that will seed capital projects, system development charges and guidance for land-use decisions over the next 20 years. Mark Bittorick of Kittelson & Associates told the council and planning commission the update will include travel-demand modeling, counts at more than 70 intersections, five years of crash data and a set of performance measures for all modes, including walking, biking and transit.

"This is gonna be a 2-year long project," Bittorick said, "and we decided that it would be best to start off with a bit of a base-level 101 session for you all about what the plan is, what it will be, and all the different steps along the way." He described the TSP as a 20-year framework required by state planning rules that links to the city's comprehensive plan and determines which projects qualify for SDC-backed funding and which projects the city will pursue with grants.

Staff said the TSP will not directly fund or build projects: it provides the policy and project list that later informs engineering and budgeting. Community development director Heather Richards and Public Works Director G. F. Hunsicker (introduced at the meeting) said the update will be coordinated with partner agencies, including ODOT, Yamhill County and Yamhill Transit, and will bring both a technical advisory group and a broader project advisory committee into the process.

Council members pressed staff on details the TSP will influence, such as codifying local traffic-impact-analysis (TIA) standards and how population forecasts will be applied. Councilor Chenoweth raised concerns about using Portland State University population forecasts; staff replied the city must use PSU's most recent 2024 forecast for growth assumptions but will supply the forecast data to councilors for review.

Consultants flagged funding constraints: with long-term declines in gas-tax purchasing power and growing EV use, the pool of predictable local and state money is tight. The consultant said the TSP will produce project cost estimates and explore funding strategies to present back to council in October. Staff outlined public engagement plans including a project website, virtual and in-person open houses, pop-up tabling and targeted focus groups.

The project schedule aims for alternatives and a draft TSP in 2027, with public review and adoption actions in 2028. Staff said they will return multiple times for policy direction on key trade-offs, including volume-to-capacity thresholds and access-management standards that affect both congestion and safety.