University of Oregon Sustainable City Year

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https://hdl.handle.net/1794/10380

The Sustainable City Year program is a partnership of a cross-disciplinary group of faculty and students with one city in Oregon each year. Coursework in disciplines including design, planning, arts, ecology, journalism, engineering, business, and public policy focus on assisting that city with its sustainability-oriented goals and projects. The Sustainable City Year faculty and students work with city staff and other partners, through a variety of studio projects and service learning courses, to 1) provide students with a real world project to investigate; 2) apply their training; and 3) help a local city transition to a more sustainable and livable future.

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Open Access
68th and Rock Creek Station
(University of Oregon, 2018) Heese, Brianna; Ribe, Rob
This studio project was organized around the plans for a new TriMet light rail line to Tigard, Tualatin, and Washington County. Though this Southwest Corridor project is still in the early phases of planning and design, the studio collaborated with TriMet planners and the City of Tigard to visualize the future of a site that is likely to become a major station area. In addition, the site is seen as a critical location for a Park and Ride structure as this point marks where traffic into Portland drastically increases. The merge from Pacific Highway (99W) onto Interstate 5 (I-5) lies one-half mile east of the site, and the intersection of the two sees daily congestion and long waiting traffic. This site provides opportunities beyond transit. Older development near the site has potential to be acquired by the project for use as Park & Ride, LRT station, and for potential development of parking and transportation-related uses. Other adjacent sites can be critical purchases for developers given the benefits of the transit station. The City of Tigard supports plans for these future developments that include sustainable transit-oriented design, and restoration of environmental assets, such as Red Rock Creek, as opposed to box commercial development that maintains an auto-oriented focus. Students were tasked with considering the area surrounding the future station site as well as places that may be developed in later phases. The class divided into groups of various sizes, each focusing on a different approach to the transit-oriented development (TOD) proposed around the new TriMet station. Most teams developed 80- and 40-scale designs to create a cohesive master plan across the site before taking a more individual approach on an area with a smaller extent and more detail. Groups included: • “Stormwater Impacts”, Chrissy Stillman This design focuses on Red Rock Creek as its own entity. Chrissy calculated on and off-site storm water entering the creek, its ephemeral flooding zones, and the impacts of more hardscape in the area. Much of her design strategies for reducing the “flashiness” of the creek occurred east of the study area toward I-5. • “68th and Rock Creek Parking Structure”, Kailee Bell This design focuses on the opportunity of an off-site parking structure west of SW 68th Parkway that could provide rooftop amenities and access to a multimodal path along the bridged rail line leading into the station. This alternative solution frees up space for transit-oriented development in the site south of the station by providing at least half the required parking within a reasonable off-site distance. • “Place over Parking”, Thomas Copper and Nick Sund This design focuses on the maximum integration of parking in a high-density transit-oriented development site adjacent to the light rail station. This team focused on TOD1, the second thing likely to be built by developers after the station. • “Positively Tigard” Adam DeHeer and Yumna Imtiaz This team focused on a design of the station and the transit-oriented development with an approach of impact mitigation and sustainability. This group focused on the station plaza and TOD1 and worked closely with Chrissy Stillman for assessing storm water impact of their design proposal. • “Tigard Terraces”, Brianna Heese, Emma Stone, Bocong Li, and Tori Murphy This team focused on the topography of the site to integrate a medium density transit-oriented development. The team proposed designs for the station plaza, TOD1, Red Rock Creek, and TOD2 to meet the long-term phasing goals of TriMet and Tigard. Students generally found the site challenging in terms of balancing programmatic requirements with creating livable and enjoyable spaces. The student designs offer the best attempts to combine the two goals and do so in many ways. The required amount of parking was a challenge, and most students found that the best way to create a functioning transit-oriented development was either to invest in a parking structure below development or to site the parking across SW 68th Parkway. Additionally, if Tigard and TriMet desire sustainable and ecological designs, many teams suggest partnering with developers now and planning for elements to be incorporated. Finally, Red Rock Creek presents a potential flood problem for nearby development. Teams recommend multiple ways to reduce the flashiness of the creek, such as capturing stormwater on site for any new development.
Open Access
Assessing Hazard Vulnerability in Troutdale
(University of Oregon, 2021-06) Meng, Sian; Caudill, Lydia; Yang, Yizhao
In this report, students helped address Troutdale’s goal of understanding potential hazards and the social vulnerability associated with such risks. Students collaborated in four research groups to collect data and analyze the potential for hazard susceptibility in the City. Students employed a variety of methods to inform their research including: • Literature review of selected hazard plans • Collecting and analyzing U.S. Census and GIS data • Local resources, including conversations with City planning staff and other professionals in related fields Groups were each assigned one of four hazards to research and analyze: wildfire, flooding, landslide, and earthquake/liquefaction. According to the final comprehensive analysis, it was determined that the city of Troutdale has low hazard susceptibility. Overall: • Wildfire susceptibility is low. However, three main regions of high burn susceptibility exist: along the east of the Sandy Riverfront, near the McMenamins Edgefield/Halsey Corridor, and a free-standing area located in Troutdale’s southeast. • Flood susceptibility is low. Susceptibility is highest near rivers, particularly on the east side of Sandy River and along Beaver Creek. • Landslide susceptibility is low, with the highest susceptibility area on the eastern extremity of Troutdale’s city limits. • Liquefaction susceptibility is relatively high. The high susceptibility area is located on the north side of Troutdale, near the Columbia River, and along the Sandy River and Halsey Street. Despite overall low hazard susceptibility, students established recommendations for increasing citizen resources and infrastructure safety and resilience. Increased education and awareness of the existing hazards can benefit residents ability to prepare for emergencies especially residents in high-hazards areas with greater social vulnerability. Additionally, Troutdale could mitigate and prepare for hazards by identifying funding for building and infrastructure retrofitting, establishing and placing signs that indicate alternate routes for emergencies, and adopting land use codes to limit future development in high hazard areas. Finally, due to growing tourism in the areas located within high hazard areas, Troutdale could benefit from developing a plan to communicate dangers and respond to the needs of visiting tourists in the face of emergencies.
Open Access
Bicycle Transportation in Medford: Connections to the Bear Creek Greenway
(University of Oregon, 2014) Schlossberg, Marc; Peizer, Ross; Fiorelli, Thomas;
Under the direction of Professor Marc Schlossberg, 42 students in the University of Oregon Department of Planning, Public Policy, and Management’s Bicycle Transportation course reviewed and examined critical elements of an urban bikeway system and proposed projects that would encourage and increase bicycle ridership and safety in Medford. This course was offered to upper-level undergraduates and graduate students from a variety of academic disciplines. Course projects were generally chosen by surveying elements of Medford’s environment including: • Existing and proposed bike lanes • Automobile traffic volumes on all roads • Residential population density in Medford • Connecting neighborhoods, schools, parks, and destinations. One of the city’s primary goals was to think about ways to build upon and highlight the amenity of the Bear Creek Greenway. The Bear Creek Greenway provides Medford an excellent source for bicycling and walking, but routes connecting to and from the greenway into neighborhoods, business districts, or recreation areas around Medford are lacking. Students focused on various areas surrounding the Bear Creek Greenway and researched potential recommendations for enhancing its use and connections between destinations. Projects developed for this course considered current bicycle parking capacity, average daily traffic (ADT) counts, neighborhood demographics, local economy, and nearby destinations. Students collaborated with city staff to identify locations where the Greenway intersects key Medford streets. This report outlines ways to better utilize this asset. Some students introduce the concept of a neighborhood greenway and different strategies developed to better connect schools and neighborhoods safely. Some present a set of approaches that enable bicycle riders to share the road safely with automobile traffic. Other students focus on non-design bicycle and active transportation related projects including education campaigns, wayfinding and branding, and other forms of encouragement, or programs that can increase community awareness and participation in cycling. Recommendations vary from easily implemented changes that complement existing infrastructure, to more challenging road redesigns and treatments. Consistent across course projects, however, was a focus on connectivity throughout Medford that can provide citizens of all ages and abilities with bicycle access to this source of untapped potential from both arterial and neighborhood streets.
Open Access
Bicycle Transportation in the City of Troutdale
(University of Oregon, 2021-06) Gisler, Abby; Little, Daniel; Schlossberg, Marc
In this report, students critically examined potential redesigns to existing infrastructure with the intent of promoting higher rates of bicycle ridership in Troutdale. Students worked in small groups to create recommendations, using case studies of other cities and small towns, including both domestic and international examples. Teams focused on the following projects: • Redesigning Main Street in downtown Troutdale as a safe cycling route connecting a potential bike shop to the rest of Troutdale. This includes creating new protected bike lanes downtown, reimagining parking on Main Street, incentivizing the creation of a bike shop in the old City Hall location, and increasing bike parking capacity downtown. • Designing safe cycling infrastructure along Halsey Street to promote access to McMenamins Edgefield via bike, including the establishment of an off-street path adjacent to Halsey Street and a neighborhood park. • Redesigning 2nd Street to create a safe neighborhood bicycling corridor, including the development of bioswales, green-painted bike lanes, and other strategies that slow car traffic and encourage cycling on the route. • Connecting Glenn Otto Park to downtown via bike and promoting cycling at Glenn Otto Park. • Promoting Troutdale as the gateway to the 40-Mile Loop. • Planning events and cultural initiatives that instill a sense of pride in Troutdale as a regional leader in cycling. The resulting proposals utilize ideas from all groups and are categorized into ‘Gold,’ ‘Silver,’ and ‘Bronze’ tiers based on the strength of the proposal in improving bicycle infrastructure and the level of investment required for implementation.
Open Access
Bridging Historic Downtown Troutdale and The Confluence Site
(University of Oregon, 2021-06) Kristof, Evan
Troutdale’s Town Center District was established in the 19th century by pioneering families and is considered the cultural heart of their community.The Town Center District is 270 acres located south of Interstate I-84, and west of the Sandy River.The City of Troutdale has a robust Capital Improvement Plan with goals for the city's growth, supportable employment, civic-use spaces, and future economic development of the empty Confluence site behind the Columbia Gorge Outlets Shopping Center. Currently, there is no safe or direct route for pedestrian traffic from Historic Downtown Troutdale to the Confluence site as an active main-line Union Pacific Railway creates a barrier between these two areas. The purpose of this project is to connect the Downtown area to the newly developing Confluence site using a pedestrian bridge. This proposed design would be inclusive to pedestrians, cyclists, and neighborhood electric vehicles (golfcarts). The scope of this project is a 30% Initial design along with costing estimates for design, permitting, and construction that could take place in the next five years.The foundation design was performed in accordance with geotechnical standards of practice using resources available from previous nearby geotechnical investigations, United States Geological Survey (USGS) data, as well data gathered on-site.In all cases, conservative design values a reused in calculations and design as described herein. At this time, any design recommendations should be considered preliminary, and further geotechnical exploration and data collection should be done to verify the design recommendations of this report. A shallow foundation analysis was performed. A range of allowable vertical loads was determined for a variety of footing geometries, and the most reasonable geometries were selected and recommended herein as potential footing geometries for the loads calculated in the preliminary analysis. Preliminary CAD drawings andtypical detail are provided for these shallowfoundation geometries in appendix C. In general, the loads determined require relatively large shallow footing supports. Due to the space limitations of the project, it is likely that deep foundations will be preferred as they will take less space and perhaps be less costly. Cursory deep foundation analysis has been performed using SHAFT software, and those calculations and preliminary design recommendations are provided in section 3.4.1 and appendix C and D. For the structural design, the truss of the bridge is made out of W18x86 I-beams, except diagonal members that are made of W18x158. The horizontal perpendicular and diagonal members are made of W12x53 and W12x87 respectively since they are only for the lateral stiffness of the bridge. This means that they have a small axial loading where similar ones are used in the Lafayette street pedestrian bridge. The loading condition sand calculations followed the AASHTO LRFD 2012 Bridge Design Specifications 6th Ed (US) code, as shown in section 3.4.2 and the appendix.The columns of the bridge are constructed of a cast-in-place reinforced concrete with rectangular cross-section 3 ft x 6 ft, concrete compressive strength of 4000 psi, and grade 60 reinforcing steel.The longitudinal reinforcement is provided by 26-#9bar and the transverse reinforcement is provided by overlapping closed-loop #3 ties, following the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) Bridge specifications. For the slab design, corrugated steel was used as a reinforcement with a two-inch concrete cover.U.S. BRIDGE provided the tests for the designed loading using different spans. Through two load combinations, the max moment of the floor beams was found and used to determine adequate members. A W10x17 section was selected and placed at a 4.33 feet spacing and at a 3-floor beam per panel.
Open Access
Building a Neighborhood: Community Development Strategies for North Hermiston
(University of Oregon, 2021) Harris, Joëlle; Arroyo, John; Sandoval, Gerard; Knudson, Kaarin
Recent economic investment of some of the largest companies in the US make Hermiston the fastest growing city in Eastern Oregon. As a result, Hermiston is experiencing rapid change in population growth and urbanization of rural land. The city of Hermiston presented students with the opportunity to present ideas for a site that is experiencing dynamic changes of due to rapid growth. Five student teams were assigned a thematic area of focus to help deepen their research and frame their master plan proposals for the project site. From this focused research, students developed key strategies and recommendations for the City to consider. The student teams identified four key strategies to transform the project site into a vibrant neighborhood: increasing connectivity, focusing on affordable housing, placemaking opportunities, and community engagement and equity. The key strategies respond to the issues identified by the City by: • Promoting connectivity and building robust alternative modes of transportation. • Prioritizing affordable housing and leveraging development partnerships to annex vacant and blighted property. • Using generative planning policies and creative placemaking to build community and foster small business. • Focusing on community engagement and deliberate inclusion of the Latinx community. This report is a summary of the primary ideas and strategies proposed by the student teams. The research and analysis undertaken by the student teams is described and insights that influenced the student teams approaches are highlighted.
Open Access
Building Communities for the Future: Affordable Housing on the Overlook Tract
(University of Oregon, 2021-06) Reifsnyder, Katie; Mladinov, Jerolim
Fair access to housing is a global, national, and local issue. In 2017, about 38% of Troutdale overall households were cost-burdened with renters having a significantly higher percentage, 58%. The City’s recently adopted Town Center Plan identifies the 4.3 acre “Overlook Tract” as a potential location to construct affordable housing in collaboration with Home Forward, a Portland-based organization with a mission to provide affordable housing. Students explored the creation of dynamic and inclusive urban environments and their relation to housing typology at two different scales: (1) the city or public realm scale and (2) the home or domestic environment scale. After analyzing the site and region, student teams developed urban design proposals for the site based on four distinct frameworks: 1. Views of the Gorge (Linear Buildings) 2. Park with a View (Open Block) 3. Internal Central Park (Closed Block) 4. Neighborhoods (Smaller Housing Clusters) Design proposals endeavored to preserve a small town feel, create a unique gateway to the City, accommodate multiple generations on the site, and create privacy for residents.
Open Access
Capital Improvement Planning Recommendations
(University of Oregon, 2021) Hays-Alsin, Bethany; Lewis, Rebecca
A team of students at the University of Oregon has provided research and recommendations to aid the City of Troutdale in the improvement of their Capital Improvement Planning (CIP) system. This collaboration occurred through a partnership between the City of Troutdale and the Sustainable City Year Program. In this report, potential funding opportunities for the City of Troutdale are explored, including fees, grants, cost sharing, and debt financing. Three prioritization systems for project selection will also be discussed and the best system for Troutdale will be recommended. The first system blends the surrounding jurisdiction’s goals and values. The second model is based on relevant grant funding. The third model is based on best practices and the City of Troutdale’s City Council goals. After exploring these topics, final recommendations will be offered to the City of Troutdale.
Open Access
City of Talent Citizen Involvement Survey
(University of Oregon, 2021) Stephens, Ric
The Green Cities course examines the history and future of the interface between urban growth and environmental concerns, and the technological, social, and political forces that continue to shape it. Students in the 2021 Summer Quarter “Green Cities” course organized, conducted, and analyzed citizen interviews with the use of the questionnaire designed to help understand and guide citizen involvement for the City of Talent, Oregon. (Citizen Involvement Project, 2021) This report is a compilation of these student interviews, research and analysis. The purpose of this report is to provide an initial evaluation of community engagement, assessment of current community planning perspectives, and insight on future survey methodology for the CAPP and other programs.
Open Access
City of Tigard Paid Parking Policy
(University of Oregon, 2018) Moore, Eavan; Golub, Aaron
Open Access
Clean Energy Solutions: Community Solar
(University of Oregon, 2018) Skov, Joshua
Open Access
Co-Living for the Changing Family: Thriving through Sharing in Expandable Buildings
(University of Oregon, 2023) Cheng, Nancy Yen-Wen; Gottlin, Alexandra
The city of Sisters identified the need for 1,100 housing units to accommodate its 2041 projected population growth and is exploring “efficiency measures” as an alternative to expanding its urban growth boundary. Final year Architecture students studied the situation and considered contemporary approaches to how people are choosing to live as the definition of “family” continues to evolve. As innovative design thinking is needed for new household types, students looked at how homes and communities can adapt to changing household needs. They envisioned inclusive places where people can thrive through mutual support and sharing.
Open Access
Community Engagement & Engaged Journalism
(University of Oregon, 2018) Poole, Emily; DeVigal, Andrew
Nestled along U.S. Highway 97 in Central Oregon lies the city of La Pine. With a population of around 2,000, La Pine is a smaller city in Oregon. It is also one of the state’s newest cities: La Pine was incorporated in 2006 as a part of Deschutes County. La Pine is an emerging city that is experiencing population and economic growth. Since 2000, the average income has jumped nearly 30 percent, from $29,859 to $38,308; though it is still lower than the state median of $59,532. In juxtaposition to the city’s relative youth, the population itself trends in the older direction. The average age of the La Pine population is 42.6 years old, compared to 39.2 years old for the state of Oregon. For such a small city, La Pine residents have a number of choices when it comes to local media outlets, including a local paper (the Newberry Eagle), two radio stations (KNCP 107.3 and KLBR 88.1), and a local television channel (KTVZ Channel 21). Residents also have access to a wide variety of national and internet-based outlets, including CNN, NPR, Fox News, and others. With hopes to better understand the community’s information needs, the University of Oregon School of Journalism and Communication (SOJC) J463 Engaged Journalism class conducted an information needs assessment. Our objectives were to find out what media is consumed in La Pine, and how it’s consumed; which outlets are doing well with the community and why; and finally, how the media can better serve the needs of La Pine. We began with a visit to La Pine, where we surveyed residents and introduced our project. Shortly thereafter, an online survey was made available to any residents interested in participating. Our final step was a second visit to La Pine, where we hosted a workshop in order to find out what media outlets can do to gain the trust of the people of La Pine. In total, we surveyed over 70 residents, both in person and via an online survey.
Open Access
Connecting Troutdale: Options for Future Transportation Choices
(University of Oregon, 2021-06) Josephson, Brian; Brown, Anne; Haley, Clare
Sustained population and employment growth in the City of Troutdale have benefited the city in a variety of ways. However, this growth has amplified demand on the city’s transportation system and impacted people’s ability to get around. The class proposed several possible solutions to address these issues. For example, the City could paint crosswalks more clearly, stripe bike lanes, and ensure that sidewalks are continuous in their construction. This provides pedestrians and bicyclists with more certainty and comfort as they navigate the city. In addition, the class recommended different ways to connect downtown to the rest of the City via a shuttle or trolley. After assessing both options, it was concluded that a shuttle could provide a better replacement for personal vehicle trips to the downtown area. The class also recommended a golf cart zone be added to augment the shuttle in low speed zones and offer even greater flexibility in transportation choices. An additional system of electric bicycles and scooters throughout the City could also offer new and exciting methods of transportation for many residents, tourists, and commuters. These scooters could be paired with a multi- use path near a bus stop to transport workers to and from the Amazon and FedEx facilities in the Troutdale Reynolds Industrial Park. Finally, in order to facilitate the movement of goods and people in the City center, a system of three different loading/ unloading zones could be implemented during certain hours of the day to maintain space for deliveries and drop offs without obstructing the flow of traffic. These recommendations offer diverse alternatives to help improve and increase opportunities to get around within the City of Troutdale.
Open Access
Creating Shared Knowledge: An Asset-based Community Development Project in Hermiston
(University of Oregon, 2022) Costie, Daniel Paul
This report discusses the Asset-based Community Development project conducted between March 1st and May 30th, 2022 in Hermiston, Oregon. The purpose of the three- phase project is to better understand the city’s assets as well as gaps in public service provision. Through an environmental scan, a survey, and a focus group, five investigators from Eastern Oregon University, collected and analyzed data offered by both public and non-profit organizations in Hermiston. Our findings indicate that there is strength in the city’s ‘small town feel’ and that there is great potential for growth in the area. Gaps in services that exist relate to better understanding how to serve different vulnerable populations, how to address the economic insecurity many in the community face, as well as how to address the fragmented public services already available in Hermiston. A community directory and a community navigator program are offered as potential solutions to the gaps identified in this project. This work is an important, preliminary step at realizing community development that is both self-sufficient and inclusive. Continued collaboration is needed in order to optimize the value of this ABCD.
Open Access
Designs for the Halsey Street-2nd Street Bridge and Off-Street Multi-Use Trail
(University of Oregon, 2021-06) Kristof, Evan
The City of Troutdale wishes to develop a proposal for a pedestrian bridge that crosses Southwest 257th Drive near downtown Troutdale, approximately 200 feet south of the intersection with Historic Columbia River Highway. The project is identified in the City’s Town Center Plan and is expected to be discussed in a three-city “Main Streets on Halsey” corridor planning effort in 2021. There have been no formal engineering studies done, though hypothetical designs have been rendered. This proposal would seek to connect a prospective off-street multi-use trail from Halsey Street (to the west) to 2nd Street (to the east) over 257th Drive, a major arterial road and freight route. This would enhance connections between downtown and residential areas to the west, and improve safety for pedestrians and bicyclists. The Portland State University Halsey-2nd Bridge Capstone group was employed to produce a 30% design or initial designs leading to a 30% design. Also desired are costing estimates for additional design/permitting/construction that could take place in a five-year horizon, plus feedback from Multnomah County and City engineers to highlight permitting requirements or conditions. The City would like design considerations to be made for bicycle and neighborhood electric vehicles such as golf carts. Inspiration should be taken from a recent bridge installation connecting Pier Park and Chimney Park in north Portland. In designing the bridge, the Capstone group determined through analysis that a steel truss would be the best structural system to use. Shop-fabricated steel trusses are widely accepted as the ideal option for pedestrian bridges. The proposed design is a 140-foot-long single-span truss with a deck that has 14 feet of clear width. The truss type is a Pratt truss, with 14 panes that are each 10 feet square and which have 45 degree diagonals. The truss will be composed of Grade 50 steel. The bridge deck will be a reinforced concrete slab that rests on 18-gauge corrugated steel decking, and which is simply supported in the transverse direction relative to the long axis of the bridge. The slab will be 6.25 inches high in total, with #9 rebar placed every 12 inches. The bridge will be simply supported by concrete abutments, one on each side of 257th Drive. Each abutment will be a 2-foot-thick stem wall, at the top of which is a 10-inch-thick bearing pad and a 6-inch-thick back wall that extends 2 feet above the stem wall. The abutments will each have a spread footing foundation with a width of 18 feet and a thickness of 2.5 feet. The foundation on the west side of the road will have a back wall height of 12.5 feet. On the east side the back wall will be 10.5 feet high. The foundations will have wing walls to retain the soil in the backfill, which will consist partially of Geofoam. The wing walls will be 8 inches thick and will extend 10 feet back, perpendicular to the stem wall. The bridge will cross 257th Drive in a direction perpendicular to the road. The vertical clearance between the bridge and the road will be 18 feet. Trails connecting the bridge westward to Halsey Street, and eastward to 2nd Street, will be shared-use pathways that are 14 feet wide. Ramps are used to connect the trails with the elevated bridge The bridge and trails will conform with the standards of the American Association of State Highway and Transportation (AASHTO), or with superseding local and state regulations where necessary. The start-to-finish construction time is estimated to be around 20 weeks. The total cost for the completed facility, if constructed in 2026, is estimated to be $1,943,538.
Open Access
Destination: Tigard Transit-Oriented Development and Urban Design Strategies
(University of Oregon, 2018) Hirzel, Hannah; Larco, Nico
Tigard, a suburb of Portland, Oregon, is interested in a new urban design vision as a new MAX light rail line is proposed to extend through the city. TriMet and the city of Tigard partnered with a University of Oregon graduate architecture seminar and design studio to envision a new plan and identity for the city. The city of Tigard sees this new transit line as an opportunity on many levels. Tigard aims to be the “most walkable city in the Pacific Northwest,” which could include a shift from its current identity as a transit line transfer point into a destination for visitors and commuters. With a new light rail line making travel to downtown Portland and surrounding suburbs easier, the city of Tigard sees opportunity for growth and development, and the potential to redefine some of its city goals. Student teams of three to four members tackled these issues and presented proposals for a new town center in Tigard. Though each team proposed unique schemes, there are similar issues and goals. Some key focus areas include: • Creating a public “place” and identity where the MAX light rail stops in Tigard • Creating a connection to the existing town • Celebrating Fanno Creek, a natural area and trail system located west of downtown • Re-designing Hall Boulevard to become safer and more accessible for pedestrians • Redefining the city grid and creating more manageable block sizes The following proposals have various approaches to urban design and the future vision for the city of Tigard, but all make an effort toward sustainable urban design. Through effective street design, stormwater management, pedestrian-focused public spaces, mixed-use development strategies, and more, these proposals aim to develop Tigard into a place where people want to live, develop, and enjoy public spaces.
Open Access
Downtown Improvements: Special District Recommendations
(University of Oregon, 2021) Connor, Emily; Lewis, Rebecca
As an element of its recently adopted 20-year Town Center Plan, the City of Troutdale identified improvements and and revitalization of their downtown district and surrounding areas as a priority. Public Budget Administration graduate students were tasked with investigating funding options to improve and maintain their downtown commercial streetscape via a special district tax. This report examines the feasibility of two district types: Business Improvement Districts (BID) and Economic Improvement Districts (EID). Included in this report are recommendations for the size of the district, an examination of the creation of a Main Street Organization, and information on best practices gleaned from case studies conducted on the use of special tax districts in 10 different locations, including: * McMinnville, OR * Newport, OR * Durham, NC * Cottage Grove, OR * Hillsboro, OR * Bend, OR * Miami, FL * Oregon City, OR * Salem, OR * Corvallis, OR Using Troutdale's goals for an EID/BID program, as well as insights from the case studies, this report provides an estimated expenditure for the first five years of Troutdale’s EID/BID program, as well as funding options to help meet that goal. Five funding options are considered and analyzed for Troutdale’s EID/BID funding: • Option 1: EID based on the assessed value • Option 2: EID based on square footage of the lot • Option 3: EID based on square footage of the business • Option 4: EID based on square footage of the frontage • Option 5: BID- Business license surcharge • Option Overlay: Tiered systems based on proximity to downtown core (either EID or BID) Out of these options, the only one that reaches estimated expenditure goals is Option 2: EID based on square footage of the lot. However, Troutdale staff may also want to take into consideration the most politically sound options when it comes to combining EID and BID options and the possibility of tieredtax rates. This report includes tax rate options that could be further analyzed to determine which option or options best suit the goals and the needs of the Troutdale community.
Open Access
Explore Sisters: Strategic Plan
(University of Oregon, 2023) Chase, Eleana; Pernell, Ryan; Shocair, Hibo; Bosworth, Austin; Mason, Dyana; Fracchia, Elena; Thompson, Kim
This product is designed for Explore Sisters as a client of the University of Oregon’s Nonprofit Management Consultancy capstone course in Spring of 2023 in partnership with the University of Oregon’s Sustainable Cities Year Program. A team of four graduate students consulted for ten weeks by interviewing similar destination management organizations (DMO), facilitating a board visioning workshop, conducting literature reviews and analyzing relevant data to provide customized recommendations and resources to best develop and sustain the organization. Explore Sisters was established in 2022 to promote local tourism and recreation opportunities in Sisters. With its recent inception, building a solid foundation to promote long-term sustainability will be key to the organization's success. This document contains three strategic goals and subsequent action steps for Explore Sisters to consider when presenting their strategic plan to the city. Given its recent establishment, the steps provided are scaled to the capacity that Explore Sisters currently possesses.
Open Access
Explore Troutdale Communication Strategies
(University of Oregon, 2021-06) Sands, Jeredith; Mundy, Mundy
In the University of Oregon’s Public Relations Campaigns class, a team of five public relations majors worked with the city of Troutdale to establish and meet goals for its Travel Troutdale campaign. After the class concluded, “Travel Troutdale” became “Explore Troutdale” to reflect the city’s interest in connecting broadly. Report text will refer to Travel Troutdale. The students crafted a mission statement for the project, with the aim of attracting visitors to and keeping residents in Troutdale. After conducting research on the town and defining its primary and secondary publics, the team decided on social media as the best approach for influencing people to visit, stay, or move to Troutdale. In addition to creating visual and written content for social media and the Travel Troutdale website, the team developed various “how- to” guides to assist Troutdale’s staff in content management and production post-project. The students’ research, planning, content, guides, and additional recommendations for future implementation will ideally provide Troutdale with the tools and tactics necessary to meet its goals and communications needs.

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