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Middle Housing Public Engagement
As the City of Eugene’s Citizen Involvement Committee, early on in the process, we approved a Public Involvement Plan that aimed to elevate voices not usually heard during planning processes. The middle housing public engagement process exemplified excellence in reaching and informing a broad cross section of our community, not just the most vocal. The process demonstrated a commitment from City staff to raise the bar, elevate voices, reconcile our State’s and local zoning code’s history of exclusion, and implement amendments that center on equity. The Commission enthusiastically supports this robust and broad outreach process that was inclusive and representative of the interests of: renters, homeowners, Black, Indigenous, People of Color, people of all ages and abilities, and people from all Eugene neighborhoods. For many, this was their first time getting involved with a City process, much less a land use planning process.
- City of Eugene Planning Commission
Excerpt from their letter to the City Council
Helpful Links and Documents
- Project Public Involvement Plan
- List of Public Engagement Activities
- Project Webpage
- Guiding Values and Principles
- Healthy Democracy Reports
- Equity RoundTable Summaries
- Local Partner RoundTable Summaries
- Boards and Commissions RoundTable Summaries
- Local Developer Focus Group Summaries
- Middle Housing Survey Summary
- February 2021 Outreach Summary
- March 3, 2022 Information Session
Who Has Been Involved in Project Panels and Committees
- 1000 Friends of Oregon
- 2Form Architecture
- AARP Oregon
- Aligned Architecture
- Arbor South Architecture and Planning
- Better Eugene-Springfield Transportation
- Better Housing Together
- CDC Management
- Cultivate Development
- DevNW
- DisOrient Asian American Film Festival
- Eugene Chamber of Commerce
- Eugene Human Rights Commission
- Eugene Planning Commission
- Eugene Sustainability Commission
- Gallic Financial
- Granite Property Management
- Habitat for Humanity Lane County
- Hayden Homes
- Historic Preservation Board
- Homes for Good
- Housing Policy Board
- Huerto de Familia
- Lane County Homebuilders Association
- Lane Independent Living Alliance
- Lottery-Selected Panel representative of Eugene demographics
- NAACP Eugene-Springfield
- Neighborhood Leaders Council
- Rainbow Valley Design and Construction
- Rowell Brokaw
- Sapsik'ʷalá
- SquareOne Villages
- Studio e-Architecture
- University of Oregon Longhouse
- University of Oregon Real World Eugene class
- Walkable Eugene Citizens Advisory Network
Panels and Committees
- Lottery-selected Panel
- Equity RoundTable
- Local Partners RoundTable
- Boards and Commissions RoundTable
- Local Developer Focus Group
The City of Eugene partnered with Portland-based nonpartisan, nonprofit, Healthy Democracy, to assemble a Planning Review Panel that was composed of 29 random Eugene community members representative of local demographics and chosen by lottery.
Over 15 meetings in late 2020 and early 2021, the panel met for 35 hours, heard from 20 local experts, conducted thoughtful deliberation, and produced 4 reports containing recommendations to the City. The Panel crafted a list of guiding principles, two rounds of final code recommendations, and recommendations for future public engagement efforts.
More information and resources can be found on the Healthy Democracy webpage.
The Equity Roundtable included participants from organizations representing underserved communities and served to provide an equity lens to the project. Themes and highlights from this group include participants’ experiences with housing discrimination, racial profiling, accessibility concerns, needs for multigenerational households, and giving renters more housing options they can afford.
Local Partners RoundTable
The Local Partners RoundTable includes a variety of local stakeholders including Better Housing Together, the Eugene Chamber of Commerce, Better Eugene-Springfield Transportation, 1000 Friends of Oregon, Walkable Eugene Citizens Advisory Network (WECAN), Lane County Homebuilders, AARP, and the Neighborhood Leaders Council and serves to provide a community stakeholder lens.
Boards and Commissions RoundTable
The Boards and Commissions RoundTable consists of representatives from the Planning Commission, Sustainability Commission, Human Rights Commission, Historic Preservation Board, and the Housing Policy Board and serves to provide a city-wide policy lens.
Two focus groups were held on Thursday, April 22, 2021 and Monday, May 10, 2021 via Zoom. Attendees included a mix of market-rate, workforce, and Affordable Housing developers and project leaders with experience delivering affordable and middle-housing types in this community. Better Housing Together facilitated the discussions. The groups were convened to offer feedback on identified questions from City staff and the Planning Commission about development feasibility and the Middle Housing Code Amendments. Discussion focused on choices among various actions and efforts to align regulations and incentives with the project’s requirements, values, and goals.
Engagement Methods
The Middle Housing Survey was open on Engage Eugene from February 5th to March 8th 2021 and received 730 responses. A Spanish Engage Eugene page and survey were published from February 19th to March 19th and received 11 responses. In total, we received 741 survey responses. Although the survey is not statistically valid, it provides a snapshot of community perspectives. The questions in the survey were based on levels of implementing House Bill 2001. The state adopted minimum standards in the Oregon Administrative Rules (OAR) that serve as a baseline for complying with the bill. The questions asked community members whether we should do the minimum required to comply with the OARs, referred to as the “Allow” option, or go beyond the minimum required, referred to as the “Encourage” and “Incentivize” options. There were 3 main areas of focus: parking requirements, lot size, and design standards. Community members were also asked to prioritize Guiding Values and Principles and share additional input.
The project team has maintained a social media presence on the EUG Planning Facebook page, Instagram, and through an AMA on Reddit. 5 Facebook Live events were held about Zoning's connection to larger issues: transportation, climate, economics, equity, and engaging with Gen-Z. Follow along @EUGPlanning
English Engage Eugene
The project Engage Eugene page acted as the main host for project engagement. It does not contain as much information as the project webpage and is meant to complement the project webpage. It contained high-level project information, a “quick poll,” an interactive “guest book,” a “newsfeed” for project updates, a Q&A monitored by staff, and, of course, the Middle Housing Survey. Overall, the English Engage Eugene received 4,000 views and engaged 773 community members.
Spanish Engage Eugene
Along with the English Middle Housing Engage Eugene page, a Spanish Middle Housing Engage Eugene page was created. It contains high-level project information, links to translated fact sheets, a “quick poll,” and, of course, the Spanish Middle Housing Survey. Overall, the Spanish Engage Eugene received 103 viewers and engaged 10 community members.
The Planning Team partnered with University of Oregon's Real World Eugene class to work on public engagement of young adults. Real World Eugene is a class offered to undergraduate students that pairs students with City staff to work on actual City projects. Planning staff worked with students Darian, Brianna, Cody, and Camryn as they conducted focus groups, sent out a survey, and developed a proposal for how the City can better reach young adults in the community. The students received a total of 137 survey responses from young adults living in Eugene – a relatively high number for a short period of time. The survey results highlighted themes of environmental conservation and safety as housing solutions are considered by the City. The students’ recommendations for reaching young adults will informed outreach methods for the next phases of the project.
The Middle housing interns also produced a Middle Housing story map intended for a Gen-Z audience- check it out!
Staff also wanted to create materials that folks could use in groups, which resulted in the creation of Meeting in a Box: printable materials that enable community groups such as neighborhood associations to host their own meetings, conduct middle housing walking tours, and provide feedback to staff. They include a Discussion Guide, Several Neighborhood Walking Tours, and Feedback Forms.
Information Sessions & Project Guides
To provide community members with opportunities to learn about the project and ask questions, staff held 6 Information Sessions. 3 were held before the Planning Commission Public Hearing and another 3 were held before the City Council Public Hearing. Each Information Session series was paired with the release of guides that summarized the Law and Land Use Code and detailed how to get involved.
Project Guides
2 project guides have been produced at different points in the Adoption Phase. The first was produced before the Planning Commission Public Hearing. It contained project background, Land Use Code summaries, and details for how to get involved. The second was produced before the City Council Public Hearing. It contains project background, a letter to the city Council from the Planning Commission, Land Use Code summaries, and details for how to get involved. These guides were released concurrently with the hosting of 6 Information Sessions.
New! Click the image below to read.
Reflections from Healthy Democracy and the Equity RoundTable
Past Meetings & Events
Past meeting materials and Planning Commission recordings can be found here.
Action - City of Eugene City Council- May 24, 2022 (watch video)
Work Session - City of Eugene City Council- May 18, 2022 (watch video)
Work Session - City of Eugene City Council- May 11, 2022 (watch video)
Public Hearing - City of Eugene City Council- April 18, 2022 (watch video)
Work Session - City of Eugene City Council- April 11, 2022 ( watch video)
Work Session - City of Eugene City Council- March 9, 2022, (watch video)
Community Information Session 3- March 3, 2022 (watch video)
Community Information Session 2- February 22, 2022 (watch video, presentation) *there have been some questions involving building height. For clarified information, visit this segment of the third information session.
Community Information Session 1- February 18, 2022 (watch video, presentation) *there have been some questions involving building height. For clarified information, visit this segment of the third information session.
City of Eugene Planning Commission-January 25, 2022
City of Eugene Planning Commission-January 11, 2022
City of Eugene Planning Commission-December 14, 2021 (watch video)
City of Eugene Planning Commission-December 7, 2021 (watch video)
City of Eugene Planning Commission-November 30, 2021 (watch video)
City of Eugene Planning Commission-November 16, 2021, (watch video)
Middle Housing Information Session and Q&A- October 26, 2021 (watch video, meeting chat)
Middle Housing Information Session and Q&A- October 21, 2021 (watch video, meeting chat)
Middle Housing Information Session and Q&A- October 19, 2021 (watch video, meeting chat)
Joint Planning Commission and City Council Work Session- October 18, 2021
City of Eugene Planning Commission- October 12, 2021
City of Eugene Planning Commission- September 28, 2021 (watch video)
City of Eugene Planning Commission- August 10, 2021 (watch video)
City of Eugene Planning Commission- June 28, 2021 (watch video)
City of Eugene Planning Commission- June 21, 2021 (watch video)
City of Eugene Planning Commission- June 14, 2021 (watch video)
City of Eugene Planning Commission- May 25, 2021 (watch video)
City of Eugene City Council- May 24, 2021 (watch video)
City of Eugene Planning Commission- May 17, 2021 (watch video)
Equity Roundtable- May 12, 2021
Developer Focus Group - May 10, 2021
Healthy Democracy Steering Committee- May 6, 2021 (watch video)
Local Partners & Boards and Commissions Roundtable- April 29, 2021 (watch video)
Healthy Democracy Panel #15- April 27, 2021 (watch video)
City of Eugene Planning Commission- April 26, 2021 (watch video)
Healthy Democracy Panel #14- April 22, 2021 (watch video)
Developer Focus Group- April 22, 2021
Healthy Democracy Panel #13- April 20, 2021 (watch video)
City of Eugene Planning Commission- April 13, 2021 (watch video)
Healthy Democracy Steering Committee- April 1, 2021 (video coming soon)
City of Eugene Planning Commission- March 9, 2021 (watch video)
Healthy Democracy Steering Committee- March 4, 2021 (watch video)
Land Use & Housing Economics: what drives the price of new construction?- March 4, 2021 (watch video)
Local Partners Roundtable- March 1, 2021 (watch video)
Boards and Commissions Roundtable- February 25, 2021 (watch video)
Healthy Democracy Panel #12- February 23, 2021 (watch video)
Equity Roundtable- February 22, 2021
Healthy Democracy Panel #11- February 18, 2021 (watch video)
Land Use & the Climate- February 18, 2021 (Facebook Live)
Equity Roundtable- February 17, 2021
Healthy Democracy Panel #10- February 16, 2021 (watch video)
Land Use & Equity: What are the Connections?- February 10, 2021 (Facebook Live)
Where the Code Hits the Road: Land Use and Transportation Planning- February 4, 2021 (Facebook Live)
Healthy Democracy Steering Committee- February 4, 2021 (watch video)
City of Eugene Planning Commission- February 1, 2021 (watch video)
City of Eugene City Council- January 25, 2021 (watch video)
City of Eugene Planning Commission- January 12, 2021 (watch video)
City of Eugene Planning Commission- December 14, 2020 (watch video)
Healthy Democracy Steering Committee- December 10, 2020 (watch video)
Equity Roundtable- December 8, 2020
Healthy Democracy Panel #9- December 5, 2020, (watch video)
Healthy Democracy Panel #8- December 3, 2020, (watch video)
Healthy Democracy Steering Committee- December 3, 2020 (watch video)
Healthy Democracy Panel #7- December 1, 2020, (watch video)
Healthy Democracy Panel #6- November 24, 2020 (watch video)
Healthy Democracy Panel #5- November 21, 2020 (watch video)
Equity Roundtable - November 19, 2020
Healthy Democracy Steering Committee- November 19, 2020 (watch video)
Healthy Democracy Panel #4- November 17, 2020 (watch video)
Healthy Democracy Panel #3- November 14, 2020 (watch video)
Healthy Democracy Panel #2- November 12, 2020 (watch video)
Healthy Democracy Steering Committee- November 12, 2020 (watch video)
Healthy Democracy Panel #1- November 10, 2020 (watch video)
Healthy Democracy Steering Committee- November 5, 2020 (watch video)
Local Partners Roundtable- October 29, 2020 (watch video)
Healthy Democracy Steering Committee- October 29, 2020 (watch video)
Boards and Commissions Roundtable- October 28, 2020 (watch video)
Healthy Democracy Steering Committee- October 22, 2020 (watch video)
Eugene Planning Commission- August 11, 2020 (watch video)
Eugene City Council- July 22, 2020 (watch video)
Eugene Planning Commission- June 22, 2020 (watch video)