At a Southwest Corridor Plan Steering Committee Monday, committee members and citizens voiced thoughts, concerns and encouragement regarding the committee's draft recommendation and action plan.
The shared investment strategy recommendation, released July 1 and reviewed at the meeting, identifies three key areas of investment in moving forward with the Southwest Corridor plan: transit; roadways and active transportation; and parks, trails and nature.
The strategy recommendation includes project lists for each investment area and, as indicated by Metro councilor and committee co-chair Craig Dirksen, "sets the stage for significant investment in the Southwest Corridor."
The mood was generally upbeat and positive in the meeting, with several committee members stating simply that they and their constituents were entirely happy with the plan as-is.
Discussion points centered on the transit portion of the recommendation, reemphasizing elements people wanted to see addressed. A citizen representing the Tualatin transportation task force stressed the importance of speed in a high-capacity transit design and the role that will play in commuter ridership.
Tualatin mayor Lou Ogden expressed concern that Tualatin would not be able to support an access point park-and-ride facility for the entire southwest portion of the region.
The current draft slates the city as the terminus for a high-capacity transit system, citing ridership potential, operational efficiency, and future plans for housing and employment growth in Tigard and Tualatin as the basis for the choice of location.
While the committee is set to make a final recommendation at a July 22 meeting, Tigard mayor John Cook reiterated that the plan is flexible at this stage, indicating that projects will still be up for modifications resulting from feasibility studies and further input.
"It's important getting people to realize that decisions we're making this July can be changed," Cook said. "What we decide right now doesn't inhibit our ability in the future to make changes."
Dennis Doyle, mayor of Beaverton, advocated continuing to conduct as much public outreach as possible throughout the planning process.
Previous public outreach in the form of online surveys indicated strong support for high capacity transit in the Southwest Corridor. The majority of responses preferred Sherwood as the destination for such a system, deviating from the draft recommendation. However, public support was strong for studying both bus rapid transit and light rail as transit options, which aligns with the strategy outlined in the draft.
Following approval of the recommendation by the steering committee, the plan will be passed along to the councils of partner cities, counties, and agencies to begin work on the Southwest Corridor Plan.