City of Eugene, OR

01/07/2025 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 01/07/2025 17:43

City Council selects Climate-Friendly Areas

The Envision Eugene Community Vision calls for focusing future growth, particularly higher density housing, in and near mixed-use centers and along key corridors to increase access to essential goods and services for all residents. Mixed-use centers in Eugene are envisioned to range in size and activity level, from downtown to smaller neighborhood centers.

Designated Climate-Friendly Areas

Climate-Friendly Areas (CFA) are a type of urban, mixed-use center, directed by state administrative rules. They are intended to be areas where most people can meet their daily needs without relying on a car. City staff proposed three options for CFA designation, based on the results of the 2023 Climate-Friendly Areas Study, 2024 redevelopment analysis, and community engagement.

On November 13, 2024, City Council chose where to designate Climate-Friendly Areas. Councilors unanimously selected "Option 1", which includes parts of greater downtown Eugene and the commercial area on lower Coburg Road. Draft maps of Option 1 with current zoning are available here and included below.

Staff will spend 2025 preparing a package to implement the Climate Friendly Areas, including:

  • Finalizing boundaries
  • Completing a gap analysis to identify improvements for people walking, biking, and taking transit
  • Identifying strategies to mitigate possible housing displacement of vulnerable residents
  • Drafting needed changes to the land use code and adopted plans

The package is anticipated for adoption by the City Council in 2026. CFA designation is not intended to be static. The City will monitor and may need to designate additional areas during future urban growth planning.

Eugene's Centers

Eugene is integrating Climate-Friendly Areas designation within Urban Growth Strategies for a more cohesive approach to housing and growth planning. As a part of this work, the City is advancing citywide policies to focus future growth in and near mixed-use centers and along key corridors within the Envision Eugene Comprehensive Plan.

Centers play a crucial role in reducing dependence on cars, lowering household transportation costs, and decreasing pollution by keeping goods and services close together and near where people live.

Centers are places that are envisioned as:

  • Familiar, often just down the street. Places people live within or nearby.
  • Comfortable and safe to be in and get to, whether walking, biking, using assistive mobility devices like wheelchairs, taking the bus, or driving.
  • A range of sizes and activities, including the downtown center, core commercial centers, and neighborhood centers.
  • Connected to housing, transportation options, parks and open space, schools, and other services.
  • Convenient and climate-friendly areas that bring essential goods and services closer to people's doorstep.

Find more information on Eugene's vision for centers here.

Learn more about Urban Growth Strategies on the project webpage and find opportunities to engage in this work on the Engage Eugene page.

This work is part of the Housing Implementation Pipeline, the City's broad effort toward Strategic Plan goals to stabilize the cost of housing and mitigate the impacts of homelessness. Additionally, this work also supports the Strategic Plan goal to increase the vibrancy, vitality, and livability of downtown.