June 2013
NEWS
The Southwest Portland Post • 7
Citizens give Metro feedback on Southwest Corridor Plan; 45 out of 60 in favor of light rail
By Lee Perlman
The Southwest Portland Post
About 60 people attended and gave
input at a public open house on the
Southwest Corridor Plan (SWCP) at the
Multnomah Center, April 25.
The Plan, under the direction of
Metro, is an examination of a possible
“a high capacity transit” improvement,
either light rail or “bus rapid transit”
extending from downtown Portland
to as far as Sherwood utilizing either
Highway 99W or adjacent streets.
Those who came were asked to show
their preference for one of five transit
options, and support for 46 transpor-
tation-related projects adjacent to the
potential routes.
Portland recently completed the
Barbur Concept Plan, showing the
kind of future development desired on
Southwest Barbur Boulevard and adja-
cent streets, and suggesting the type of
zone changes and public improvements
needed to make them happen. Other ju-
risdictions have had similar processes.
Metro Councilor Bob Stacey told
those present that the process’s end
result should be “not just high-capacity
transit, but a great community through
a coordinated plan. We’re taking these
great visions and deciding what transit
improvements we can do to make them
all happen. Your level of interest will
be crucial.”
Metro planner Malou Wilkinson said
that the area covered by the SWCP
comprised 11 percent of the Portland
metropolitan area. “It’s a really big area
with a lot of opportunity,” she said.
By July, Wilkinson said, “We want
to narrow down the alternatives, and
have a small list of improvement pri-
orities. We want to know how we can
serve the community with local transit
projects.”
During the open house, 45 people
expressed a preference for light rail as
opposed to bus rapid transit. For the
northernmost part of the route, 47 said
a tunnel would be preferable, while 11
called for a surface route. There were 26
people who voted for Barbur Boulevard
and 16 for Naito Parkway, as potential
surface routes.
On the other end of the line for
Portland, the vote was 31 to three in
favor of access to Portland Community
College’s Sylvania Campus by Barbur
instead of Capitol Highway. Only one
person voted for access via Southwest
Haines Road, while 34 said you should
use existing routes.
Barbur Concept Plan
City Council, “There’s an important
question regarding the [Barbur] Cross-
roads: How does it fit into the matrix
of equity?”
He said that before making the kind
of investment in the area the Plan called
for, “I recommend reviewing our fund-
ing priorities, and how this investment
meets those citywide priorities.”
Commissioner Steve Novick said that
he lived near Multnomah Village but
that “I would feel guilty about having
high capacity on Barbur (Boulevard)
before attending to (Southeast) Powell
Boulevard and 122 nd Avenue.”
Commissioner Amanda Fritz had a
different reaction. “West Portland Park
has one of the highest concentrations
(Continued from Page 1)
As city planners Jay Sugnet and
Morgan Tracey told the City Council,
the public input was strongly for en-
couraging mixed-use development of
four to six stories.
Sugnet and Tracey noted the need
for significant public investment to
make the area safe and accessible to
pedestrians and bicyclists, especially in
the “Crossroads” area at the junction of
Barbur Boulevard, Interstate 5, Capitol
Highway, and Taylors Ferry Road.
Regarding this point, Andre Baugh,
chair of the Portland Planning and
Sustainability Commission, told the
of Section Eight housing in the city,”
she said. “I don’t accept the premise
that this has to be either/or. We should
figure out a way to do both.”
Southwest Neighborhoods, Inc. presi-
dent Marianne Fitzgerald said that this
corridor “has the greatest potential to
increase transit ridership of anywhere
in the region” – if improvements are
made. “Help West Portland Park realize
its potential as a town center in more
than name,” she said.
Several residents from Southwest
Haines Road testified to their concern
that their street could be part of the
route for a future High Capacity Transit
project, and the effect that would have
upon their livability.
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