TACOMA Main Street Plan October 2001 CITY OF PORTLAND OFFICE OF T RANSPORTATION Prepared by CITY OF PORTLAND OFFICE OF TRANSPORTATION Charlie Hales, Commissioner Victor Rhodes, Director Through a grant from TRANSPORTATION AND GROWTH MANAGEMENT PROGRAM a joint program of the Oregon Department of Transportation and the Oregon Department of Land Conservation and Development. This grant is funded, in part, by the Federal Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act, local government and State of Oregon funds. The contents of this document do not necessarily reflect the views or policies of the State of Oregon. PROJECT STAFF Rich Newlands, Project Manager Doug McCollum, Traffic Engineer Lewis Wardrip, Traffic Engineer April Bertelsen, Project Assistant Richard Bellinger, Graphics Samy Fouts, Graphics CONSULTANTS Mia Birk, Alta Transportation Consulting David Parisi, David Parisi Associates Ben Ngan, Nvue Ngan Associates Terry Moore, ECONorthwest Jim Ebenhoh, ECONorthwest Photos on front cover from top to bottom: No Parking sign on Tacoma at 15th Avenue. Sellwood Bridge, 1925. (Oregon Historical Society, #OrHi 01207) Tacoma at 15th Avenue looking west, 2000. Tacoma at 13th Avenue. TACOMA Main Street Plan CITY OF PORTLAND OFFICE OF TRANSPORTATION 1120 S.W. 5th Avenue, Suite 800 Portland, Oregon 97204 Citizens Advisory Committee Suzie Budeau Robert Cotton Anne Devane Kevin Downing Peter Hainley John Larson Ann McManamon Doug Menely Mark Perepelilitza Brian Rohter Robert Schmidt Technical Advisory Committee Mark Bello, Bureau of Planning Courtney Duke, PDOT Pedestrian Coordinator Denise Dietrich, BTED Civil Design Dave Hatch, BTSM Signals Roger Geller, PDOT Bicycle Coordinator Donovan Grabowski, BTSM Parking Nancy Gronowski, Parks Bureau Doug McCollum, BTED Traffic Engineering Lidwein Rahman, Oregon Department of Transportation Alice Rouyer, City of Milwaukie, OR Lewis Wardrip, BTED Traffic Engineering Kim White, Metro David Zagel, Tri-Met Table of Contents Executive Summary & Recommendations . i - xv Chapter 1– Introduction . 1 Chapter 2– Background . 3 Chapter 3 – Planning Process Overview . 7 Chapter 4– Existing Conditions . 11 Chapter 5–Alternatives Development . 17 Chapter 6–Alternative Evaluation . 39 APPENDICES A. Existing Conditions Reports • Traffic & Transportation Operations • Streetscape & Urban Design • Economics B. Universe of Alternatives C. Alternatives Evaluation Reports • Traffic Analysis • Streetscape & Urban Design • Economics D. Policy Analysis E. Community Survey Results F. Open House #1 Results G. Open House #2 Results Tacoma Main Street Plan List of Figures Figure 1–Preferred Alternative . vii - xv Figure 2–Study Area . 1 Figure 3–Planning Process . 8 Figure 4– Existing Street Cross Section . 11 Figure 5– PM Peak Hour Volume (1994) . 11 Figure 6–Average Daily Traffic Volumes By Street Segment . 12 Figure 7–Cut Through Traffic . 12 Figure 8–Bicycle Master Plan . 14 Figure 9–Zoning In Corridor . 15 Figure 10–Cross-Section Alternatives . 17 Figure 11–Alternative 1A . 21 Figure 12–Alternative 1B . 23 Figure 13–Alternative 1C . 25 Figure 14–Alternative 1D . 27 Figure 15–Alternative 2A . 29 Figure 16–Alternative 2B . 31 Figure 17–Alternative 2C . 33 Figure 18–Alternative 2D . 35 Figure 19–Alternative 3A . 37 Figure 20–On Street Parking Supply . 40 Figure 21–Peak Hour Traffic Volume (2020) That Exceeds Capacity . 42 Tacoma Main Street Plan Executive Summary & Recommendations BACKGROUND The South Willamette Bridge Crossing Study Traffic impacts on Tacoma Street are a long- recommendations established a regional policy standing livability issue in the SE Portland’s framework for main street planning on Tacoma St. Sellwood-Moreland neighborhood. Every day In 1999 the Portland Office of Transportation more than 30,000 vehicles travel over the received a Transportation Growth Management Sellwood Bridge through the heart of this historic (TGM) grant from the State of Oregon to neighborhood. Approximately one-third to one- develop a main street plan for Tacoma St. While half of this traffic is regional. The volume of traffic the primary objective of this plan has been to has created a street environment that emphasizes implement the vision of a more multi-modal, through traffic movement over a more multi- neighborhood oriented Tacoma St, the challenge modal, main street type of environment envisioned has been to balance this with the reality of it being by regional and local land use policy. an important link in the regional transportation system. The Sellwood Bridge is fundamental to this discussion. Tacoma St is the primary east side link to and from the bridge. Built in 1925, the aging PLAN OBJECTIVES two lane bridge was never designed to handle the A citizens and technical advisory committee volume of traffic it has experienced for many established a set of objectives to guide decades. It is the only bridge crossing between development of the plan. A basic assumption the interstate bridge in Oregon City and the Ross carried into the planning process from the South Island Bridge south of downtown Portland. The Willamette Bridge Crossing Study was that providing excessive volume of traffic it carries reflects the adequate regional traffic capacity in the travel shed fact that there is not adequate bridge capacity in that Tacoma St and the Sellwood Bridge serves is this part of the region to serve existing and future not the responsibility of Tacoma St. travel demand. With help from policy, a community survey, Metro’s South Willamette Bridge Crossing Study existing conditions data and the first public open addressed the regional travel demand needs house, the advisory committees identified the across the Willamette River south of downtown following plan objectives: Portland. The study, adopted by the Metro Council in 1999, resulted in recommendations that • Pedestrian Environment reaffirmed the need to protect Tacoma Street’s Create a high quality pedestrian oriented ability to function as a more neighborhood street. Key issues include the safety and oriented main street. To achieve this, the study convenience of crossings and the design of the recommended not providing any additional sidewalk area. vehicular capacity on the Sellwood Bridge when it is rebuilt. However, the study also did not • Neighborhood Oriented Development recommend any new bridge locations for Support the continued redevelopment of additional vehicular capacity. Instead, to address Tacoma St as a commercial destination that regional capacity needs, the recommendations serves the needs of the neighborhood and emphasize improvements to other existing supports the region’s growth management regional routes (McLoughlin Blvd, Hwy 224 and goals. Key issues include on-street parking and I-205), and regional transportation demand traffic and pedestrian access. management and transit based strategies. Tacoma Main Street Plan i Executive Summary & Recommendations • Neighborhood Livability • Gateways Reduce the barrier effect of Tacoma St which Landscaped medians at the west (6th Ave) and divides the neighborhood, protect the function east (21st Ave) entrances to the main street and character of the surrounding local street area will also serve as pedestrian crossing network. Key issues include traffic diversion, refuges. and bicycle and transit access. • Curb Extensions To improve pedestrian crossing safety at RECOMMENDATIONS unsignalized intersections. Development of a final recommendation to City Council required careful balancing competing of • Streetscape Design Guidelines project objectives and viewpoints of the two The current 8 ft. wide sidewalks will be widened advisory committees. The two advisory to a new standard of 12 ft. as redevelopment committees agreed on the design recommendation occurs. This will provide the space necessary between 13th Ave and McLoughlin Blvd, for a full complement of streetscape amenities alternatives 2A and 3A. Evaluation of the appropriate for a main street. alternatives under consideration in the Sellwood Bridge to 13th Ave segment indicates that no one alternative is able to fully support all of the BASIS FOR objectives. Staff supports taking the citizen RECOMMENDATION advisory committee’s pro- active view toward The recommended preferred alternative is based making the full length of Tacoma function as a on its support of a number of key objectives and main street. The basic design elements of the final related design issues. recommendation (Alternatives 1A-2A-3A) include: • On Street Parking • One Travel Lane in Each Direction of On street parking is considered a critical Travel element to the vitality of main streets. On The street cross-section would be changed street parking supports businesses and a from having two travel lanes in each direction neighborhood oriented urban form envisioned during the peak period and one during the by land use policy. Full time parking provides off-peak period, to one travel lane during all more pedestrian and streetscape hours. Between the bridge and 11th Ave opportunities compared to peak hour there will be a center turn lane. At the 13th restricted parking. It also supports the and 17th Ave intersections there will need to pedestrian environment objectives by also be additional lanes to accommodate turn functioning as an important buffer between movements during the peak periods. the pedestrian and traffic environments. The preferred alternative provides the most full- • Full Time On Street Parking time parking of all the alternatives under Removing the peak hour travel