At a meeting Monday with board members of 1000 Friends of Oregon, Metro Councilor Robert Liberty said Metro's support for the Columbia River Crossing project should not be unending.
Liberty said he would propose an amendment to the Regional Transportation Plan that would require Metro reevaluate the project's status after the 2011 legislative session, and to vote on whether or not Metro should continue to support the plan.
"Unless we reinstate it, our endorsement will be revoked," Liberty said.
His comments came as Liberty and Metro public affairs coordinator Ken Ray met with members of 1000 Friends of Oregon's board to solicit their opinions on Metro chief operating officer Michael Jordan's recommendations, published Sept. 15 in a report entitled "Making the Greatest Place: Strategies for a sustainable and prosperous region."
Liberty is a former executive director of 1000 Friends of Oregon. The meeting comes after the formal 30-day comment period for Jordan's report, and Metro still has meetings scheduled into early next month.
At Monday's sit-down, 1000 Friends interim executive director Tom Keffer wasted no time getting to the point of the discussions.
"What would you like from this organization?" Keffer asked Liberty.
"Thoughtful monitoring," Liberty replied. He noted that 1000 Friends attorney Mary Kyle McCurdy was on the Reserves Steering Committee, and that involvement similar to that would be helpful.
When 1000 Friends president Elisabeth Lyon asked if Liberty was looking for 1000 Friends' endorsement of Jordan's report, Ray said Metro staff and councilors were only looking for feedback.
Keffer also had questions about the reserves process. He asked Councilor Liberty why Metro needed an urban growth boundary and urban reserve lands set aside for future expansion. Liberty said the reserves, which are set aside for the next 40 to 50 years of growth offer more certainty than the urban growth boundary, which is reevaluated every five years.
"It was very hard for someone close to the boundary, if they wanted to develop, or if they wanted to invest in farmland, to do any planning," Liberty said.
Liberty also addressed the issue of equitable neighborhoods in his opening remarks. He said 20 percent of households in East Portland are forecasted to be in the lowest income bracket. That number is only two percent in Lake Oswego, Liberty said.
"Polarization by income and race is recurring," Liberty said. "We have yet to decide how we're going to address that."
– by Sean Breslin, Metro staff