During the Jan. 13 Southwest Corridor Plan Steering Committee meeting, approval of an implementation advisory committee and presentations on enhanced local bus service and multimodal projects stole the show from discussion of high capacity transit.
Metro's Southwest Corridor Plan is a comprehensive planning initiative, targeted at realizing the land use visions of jurisdictions in the plan's study area. While conversations about the plan often revolve around its study of a potential high-capacity transit line, Monday's meeting instead reflected some of the plan's other focus areas.
The steering committee approved the appointments of members for Implementation and Development (ID) Southwest, a strategic advisory group that will focus on implementation of projects supportive of the Southwest Corridor Shared Investment Strategy. The strategy recommends investment in transit, roadways and active transportation, and parks, trails and nature.
"This isn't a group to simply go lobby Salem for money," said Elissa Gertler, Metro's deputy director of corridor planning, at Monday's meeting. "This is a group to get community work done on the ground."
ID Southwest committee members were chosen to serve on the committee based on their varying areas of expertise relating to project implementation. Members include stakeholders from educational institutions, community-based organizations, government and the private sector.
Although the initial appointments were made this week, the committee is not set in stone.
"I don't imagine this is a very static group," said Malu Wilkinson, Southwest Corridor Plan project manager. "There is the potential to add community members going forward."
Metro Councilor Craig Dirksen, steering committee co-chair, was enthusiastic about the advisory group's formation.
"This will be a wonderful group to advise on projects," Dirksen said. "Getting new voices in the process is important to maintain momentum."
The kickoff meeting for ID Southwest will be held from 10 a.m. to noon on Thursday, Jan. 23 at the Multnomah Arts Center in southwest Portland. The meeting will be open to the public.
Following approval of ID Southwest's roster, the steering committee heard from Tom Mills, a planner with TriMet, who presented upcoming local service enhancements in the corridor.
Mills said that, in step with TriMet's recovery from the recession, the transit agency is reinstating midday frequent service cut during the economic downturn, including that on the 12 line, which connects downtown Portland to Tigard.
Frequent service lines that currently run 15 minutes or better during peak hours will offer that level of service midday as well starting March 2, Mills said.
Mills also shared a visual analysis of where employed corridor residents live and work, suggesting common trips made within corridor communities on a daily basis. This data can inform the decisions of transit planners adding service and lines in the future.
"At TriMet, we recognize that things have changed," Mills said. "There aren't so many people going into downtown Portland anymore."
The steering committee meeting concluded with a presentation on the status of multimodal and green project planning for the corridor, and a public comment period.
Although the meeting itself included little discussion of high-capacity transit, it was a focal concern of members of the public who chose to speak.
One corridor resident spoke out against "another high-capacity transit line" extending from downtown Portland, saying smaller, local-scale projects would be a better investment.
Another member of the public voiced his opinion that a future high-capacity transit line should be well-supported by local bus service enhancements. "If we don't improve access to adjacent communities," he said, "this entire effort isn't worth it."
Community members interested in contributing to local transit's future in the Southwest Corridor can attend TriMet's Service Enhancement Plan meetings, which are run in conjunction with the Southwest Corridor Plan and are structured around receiving community input.