Saying their concerns about the protection of Hayden Island haven't been addressed, the Metro Council decided on Thursday to delay signing off on the project's environmental review.
Councilors voted 6-1 to approve the project's Land Use Final Order, the approval needed to move the project forward within the realm of Oregon land use law. But the original resolution the council was scheduled to vote on also authorized Metro Council President Tom Hughes to sign the project's Final Environmental Impact Statement.
That part of the resolution was pulled after a motion from Councilor Barbara Roberts, a motion that was supported by all the councilors except Rex Burkholder.
"Some additional time will afford us the opportunity to further scrutinize the draft final environmental impact statement and address some of the shortfalls in the document, most notably the absence of a community enhancement fund," Roberts said. "We all benefit when our collective decision do not place unjust burdens on any given group or neighborhood."
The council's vote on the Land Use Final Order, or LUFO, came after a nearly 6 hour meeting that included testimony from more than 20 people, the vast majority of whom spoke in opposition to the project.
But the council wasn't sold on the arguments of project opponents, saying the project met the standards of Oregon's land use law pertaining to light rail in the Portland region.
"I think we have met the criteria," Hughes said. "I'm persuaded by the argument that the law was not time sensitive but project sensitive."
Councilor Carl Hosticka cast the lone vote against the LUFO, saying the project took the region away from the first of its six desired outcomes.
"The No. 1 outcome … of the six outcomes of the region is to have walkable communities," Hosticka said.
There was no immediate indication of when the council would consider the environmental impact statement, although Hughes said he intends to have it brought back relatively quickly.
It was clear the council was moved by the testimony of Hayden Island residents, who have been frustrated by federal laws that prevent them from being listed as a protected community but are worried about the impacts the transportation project will have on their community.
Dawn Murphy, a Hayden Island resident, was tearful when speaking about the plight of her community and her neighbors.
"There's a 92 year old woman who still drives to Safeway on a weekly basis," Murphy said, speaking of the grocery store that could be removed if the project moves forward. She wondered whether that woman would take light rail to another grocery store to get her groceries.
"There are fiercely independent people who live here. If the Metro Council approves this project today without questions answered, the only thing left to protect our community is a lawsuit," Murphy said.
Hayden Island doesn't receive federal environmental justice protection because the wealthier households on the east side of Interstate 5 are in the same census tract as the mobile home community on the west side of the freeway. Still, councilors wanted to see some guarantees that the west side communities will be protected, regardless of federal designation.
Matt Garrett, the director of the Oregon Department of Transportation, offered assurances that the community would be protected by whatever final project was selected. But his guarantees weren't enough for most of the council, which wanted to have protections for Hayden Island in writing.
The council didn't seem inclined to reject the project, with several councilors saying the project had been thoroughly vetted and was the best option for solving the region's traffic problems.
"It seems imperative that something needs to be done," Hughes said. "If this bridge is not going to get built, then no bridge will get built. It's time to solve the problem."
The problem-solving starts on Hayden Island, which appears headed toward getting more protection before the Metro Council approves the project.