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P/SUNNY Temp: 51 °F Wind: CLM at 0 mph Friday, June 20, 2003 SECTIONS Home Page Local News Sports Business Obituaries Life Opinion - Politics AP News Weather Classified Archives Site Map EXTRA HomeLife Magazine W3 Magazine Jobs @ Mail Tribune Tempo A & E Oregon CarZone Wellness Connection Real Estate Newspaper in Education Prime Times Outdoor Journal Personals Movie Times TV Times E The People CLASSIFIEDS Find a Car Find a Home Find a Job Find Everything E SOUTHERN OREGON Automotive Communities Entertainment Publications Recreation Calendar ABOUT US FAQ What's New Advertise Home Delivery Classified Ad Contact Us Media Kit Email Story to a Friend June 18, 2003 A bicyclist crosses Crater Lake Highway at Antelope Road in White City on Tuesday. Confronting state concerns of unmanaged growth and growing problems with traffic congestion and uncoordinated development, Jackson County officials are scaling back growth Mail Tribune / Bob Pennell Growth concerns in White City Highway congestion one reason the county has scaled back its plan By DAMIAN MANN Mail Tribune Jackson County has scaled back planned growth for White City after bumping into a roadblock over congestion on Highway 62 and concerns about random development. When the county first drew up a master plan for White City in 1983, the community was planned for 20,773 people. Since then, Highway 62 has become overcrowded, some land has been declared off-limits to protect vernal pools, and major thoroughfares must be built to handle increased traffic. As a result, the county is revising its population plan down to 14,000. Currently White City, which adds 64 new houses a year, has an estimated population of 6,300. Advertisement County Planning Manager Ali Turiel said concerns about the effects of future development in White City would be a drop in the bucket compared to the transportation woes currently affecting Highway 62. But to get state approval for a new growth plan in White City, Turiel said it will be up to Jackson County to develop a strategy that will encourage more people to live and work in this community to ease traffic congestion in and out of the area. Programs encouraging bicycle use and mass transit, which have proved successful in Ashland and Central Point, could be part of future planning for White City, she said. "We have to convince them (ODOT) there are enough mitigations to make this work," she said. Terry Harbour, ODOT planning manager in Roseburg, said intersections at Antelope and Agate Roads often exceed their recommended capacity and don’t meet Oregon highway safety standards. As part of the county’s plan for White City, Harbour said something needs to be done to lessen the traffic load on those roads. Dan Beck, White City Planning Commission member, said he gets the impression that ODOT doesn’t have a lot of control over development in incorporated areas, so it is putting more leverage on the unincorporated city. "ODOT is putting the burden on White City, while at the same time the state land-use ordinances require us to increase density" on undeveloped land, he said. Despite scaling back population projections, Beck believes it will have little impact on development. "As part of the new plan, there will be more mixed-use and variety in development," he said. County Planner Raul Woerner said that development in White City has often occurred in a piecemeal fashion, with a five- acre parcel subdivided here and a 10-acre parcel developed there. "It has created a network of streets that don’t connect in a uniform plan," he said. But on Wilson Way, the county worked with the developer to make sure he didn’t block the potential arterial route that could connect to Highway 140. Also, these projects are so small that they fly under the radar of ODOT, which reviews larger developments. "ODOT just doesn’t flag them," he said. But all these projects added together have created concern with ODOT and county officials, requiring a more detailed transportation plan that helps traffic flow in White City and makes it possible for it to be served by mass transit in the future. "It preserves connections that we need to maintain," he said. "It also prevents one property from landlocking another property off." The county also is contemplating changing several hundred acres of land from heavy to light industrial as part of the plan. A formal public hearing on the White City plan will be held before the county commissioners at 1:30 p.m. on July 30 in the Jackson County Courthouse Auditorium. Improvement plans still in the works To make White City a better place for transportation alternatives and to ease congestion on Highway 62, Jackson County is considering a number of new policies and strategies: New developments could be required to help pay for improvements to arterial and collector roads. More public transit would be encouraged within the community, with streets built to accommodate buses. Create bike lanes by widening roads, particularly on routes that exceed 2,000 average daily trips. More crosswalks, sidewalks and paved shoulders would be provided to accommodate pedestrians. Reach reporter Damian Mann at 776-4476, or e-mail [email protected] Printer Friendly Version Email Story to a Friend Subscribe Archive: Click to Search Mail Tribune Home Local News | Sports | Business | Obituaries | Life Opinion - Politics | AP News | Archives | Site Map E Southern Oregon | Classified Copyright © 1997-2003 Mail Tribune. All rights reserved. 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