Transportation System Plan 2018-2038

• Growth : Downtown’s position as a vibrant and attr active integrated 24-hour urban center is firmly established as part of the City ’s urban cen tered growth m anagem ent objective, with plans and program s to assure the sustained growth and developm ent of downtown as the Rogue Valley ’s largest urban service center. Downtown is not only the heart of Medford, but also the Rogue Valley , and is a unique irreplaceable component to the City ’s identity and sense of community . • Urban Design: Downtown is the region’s m ost recognizab le and enjoy able urban center with its traditional historic character, a com prehensive netw ork of sidewalks, bike and pedestrian ways, attractive streetscapes, ground-level retail, a network of parks and plazas, and convenient transportation linkages to surrounding neighborhoods. • Housing : Downtown is a vibrant 24-hour urban cen ter with a large residential com munity supported by convenient services within easy walking distance. • Transportation : Downtown is a balanced m ulti-m odal urban center with easy access to all areas of the Rogue Valley . Within downtown ther e is provided a full range of transportation opportunities with an em phasis on the quality of travel and preservation of a highly livable and pedestrian downtown environm ent. • Historic Preservation : Throughout downtown it is visibly evident that Medford’s heritage is a major contributor to the com munity ’s livability and identity . The historic architecture and traditional designs of downtown have been preserved through renovation, and enhanced and complemented by new developm ent, m aking dow ntown a truly unique and enjoy able urban place for both residents and visitors, while providing a com petitive advantage over, and setting it apart from , other com mercial centers. • Partnerships : The revitalization and redevelopm ent of downtown is a long-term program supported by a unique public-private partnership that recognizes past investm ents, and works to leverage public, institutional, com mercial and private investm ents; and to share the benefits and risks of future downtown investm ents to achieve a com mon objective, and a healthy and vibrant downtown. In the spring of 2003 the Medford City Council approved the Downtown 2050 Plan including a policy fram ework, design standards and guidelin e ordinances for downtown along with a Comprehensive Plan amendm ent to include a special plan designation for Downtown. Land Use Types The City Center TOD is encom passes the sam e area as the central business district and is generally bounded by Jackson Street, Oakdale, 10th Street and Bear Creek. The City Center TOD includes about 210 acres. The current land uses include downtown retail type uses and civic uses in older two and three story buildings. There are a num ber of vacant lots or underutilized lots within the City Center TOD and auto-oriented commercial on the edges of this T OD boundary . The City is preparing new zoning code language for the City Center TOD that would em phasi ze the role of the city center as a TOD. The purpose of the new regulations is to preserve the unique pedestrian character, im plem ent a plan of im proved pedestrian and vehicular circulation and parking m anagem ent, and prom ote a variety of retail consum er and service businesses. The new changes prohibit auto-ori ented uses in the City Center TOD such as new and used car dealers and auto repair. Because much of the developm ent in the City Cent er TOD occurred in the early 1900’ s it represents the type of developm ent that the TOD strategy is try ing to replicate in other parts of the city . The new zoning Medford Transportatio n System Pl an 4-8 Transportation and Land Use