Wednesday, January 7, 2004
Commission weighs south Corvallis home improvement center
City planners say code allows big store there
By BECKY WALDROP
Gazette-Times reporter
From a procedural standpoint, developers of the proposed home improvement
center in south Corvallis should have an easier road in gaining city approval
than the recently rejected Home Depot request.
The proposed development is for a 180,000-square-foot building and construction
materials store to be built on the west side of Oregon Highway 99W, south of
Goodnight Avenue and north of Rivergreen Avenue. At least two companies, Jerry's
Home Improvement Center and Lowe's Home Improvement Warehouse, are interested
in the site.
Unlike the Home Depot/Corvallis Station plans, the site in south Corvallis
is general industrial so a home improvement store would be allowed and a zone
change isn't needed.
Still, there is opposition to the plans from many of the same people and organizations
that testified against Home Depot in December. People have urged the planning
commission to deny the developer's request to modify the conceptual development
plan and a detailed development plan.
Among the opponents are Goal One Coalition, a Lebanon-based group with Corvallis
members that is concerned with issues that affect livability; Corvallis Action
Project, the major opponents in the Corvallis Home Depot request; the Corvallis
League of Women Voters and the Corvallis Independent Business
Alliance.
Opponents of so-called "big box" stores were delighted by the planning
commission's 8-0 decision last month to deny a zone change to allow a home
improvement center, in this case Home Depot, to be built on a 17.2-acre parcel
behind Safeway and Big Kmart near Circle Boulevard.
That decision was appealed to the Corvallis City Council by co-developers Steve
Deacon and Pete Snook. The council has scheduled a Jan. 20 hearing on the appeal.
David Dodson of Willamette Valley Planning represents the developers of Corvallis
Home Improvement Center, and said if the planning commission approves the
request, construction could begin on the south Corvallis store later this year,
so long as the project is not tied up in appeals.
He confirmed that developers are in contact with Jerry's and Lowe's but that
neither company was willing to commit to locating there until such a development
is approved. City planning staff has recommended approval.
Testimony against the proposal has focused on fear of competition from a large
home improvement store.
Recently, the definition of the type of business that's allowed in a general
industrial zone was expanded to include stores such as Home Depot, Jerry's
and Lowe's, or the expansion of another local building materials store. Because
of that change, city staff instructed the planning commission that arguments
against the home improvement center based on policies and codes that protect
downtown and local businesses aren't applicable.
That hasn't stopped people from submitting testimony based on the potential
for economic damage.
Tori Lockwood of Robnett's Hardware downtown wrote a letter outlining why she
thinks independent businesses are better than big boxes: "Local, independent
businesses support far more than just the families that own them."
She described the business transactions Robnett's has with many other local
and regional businesses.
"I realize this is not planning-related," Lockwood wrote, "but
I felt it was a necessary point to put forth."
Proponents of the development include the Corvallis Chamber of Commerce and
members of a neighborhood association, South Corvallis Neighbors.
Tom Powell, president of the neighborhood association, wrote to the planning
commission about the need for places to shop and businesses in south Corvallis
.
"We do not want to drive across town or to Albany to shop," Powell
said. "The project being proposed may not be exactly what we want or our
first choice, but the sign that something is coming our way has a lot of people
excited and hopeful that we may eventually have our own local shopping and dining."
Powell said residents of south Corvallis want design standards set high and
for traffic safety to be a consideration. He urged the city to dedicate system
development charge fees to other improvement projects in south Corvallis .
"The best thing that could happen for our existing local businesses would
be the introduction of an anchor store in our area," Powell said. "Many
small, local businesses on South Third Street should benefit from the increased
traffic generated by new commercial development in southtown."
©2004 Corvallis Gazette-Times
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