Rogue Valley Independent Media Center

Citizens Win Decisive Victory over Wal-Mart

Medford Citizens for Responsible Development, 03.06.2009 20:17

"This is a real victory for the citizens of Medford,” Holen said. “It just doesn’t make good sense that Wal-Mart should be allowed to create traffic gridlock near the South Gateway and dump the costs of fixing it all on the backs of the taxpayer."

Holen added, "I would also like to say that I was really deeply disappointed in the way the city SPAC treated MCRD and other citizens who testified before them on this Wal-Mart matter over the years. We were never treated with respect or common civility, and felt belittled by them. I hope that this decision will not only change the way the codes are interpreted, but will also serve to remind this Commission that it needs to treat all those who come before it, not just the developers and power brokers, with dignity and courtesy.

Walmart Hurts Our Economy!

Medford, Oregon

Medford Citizens for Responsible Development Wins Decisive Victory over Wal-Mart
LUBA Rules Traffic Study Required
Date: 3 June 2009
For more information, contact Ivend Holen, 541-779-5392

Medford Citizens for Responsible Development (MCRD) won a decisive victory Tuesday from Oregon’s Land Use Board of Appeals (LUBA) on a case involving the construction of a Wal-Mart Superstore near the new South Medford Interchange. LUBA issued a remand ordering the City of Medford to properly interpret its current city code as requiring a comprehensive traffic study prior to granting permits for major commercial development, or to revise such codes to bring them into correct legal compliance.

After nearly five years of insisting that a comprehensive traffic study is required, members of Medford Citizens for Responsible Development felt vindicated and called for the city of Medford to immediately comply with the ruling and require Wal-Mart to submit a comprehensive traffic analysis of their proposed supercenter.

MCRD petitioner Ivend Holen said that LUBA’s decision means that Medford taxpayers will not be solely responsible for paying for any necessary street, railroad crossing, or intersection improvements required by the development.

"This is a real victory for the citizens of Medford,” Holen said. “It just doesn’t make good sense that Wal-Mart should be allowed to create traffic gridlock near the South Gateway and dump the costs of fixing it all on the backs of the taxpayer."

The latest LUBA decision was the third one it has issued regarding this matter since 2004. On April 2, 2004, the city’s Site Plan and Architectural Commission (SPAC) approved Wal-Mart’s application for a 206,533-square foot retail store on 20.51 acres of the old Miles Field baseball park. MCRD appealed that decision to the Medford City Council, which denied Wal-Mart’s application, concluding that the site design was incompatible with uses and development on adjacent land. The city's decision was appealed to the Board by Wal-Mart and South Gateway Partners. LUBA remanded (overturned and sent back) the city's decision on March 11, 2005 due to a procedural error, but asked the city to better explain why they were not requiring a traffic study.

In a subsequent appeal, the Board found that the city had prejudiced MCRD’s rights by refusing to allow it to testify on traffic related issues during the city’s remand proceedings. One of the issues that MCRD wanted to comment on was the application of city codes MC 10.462, 10.460, and 10.461, which require a comprehensive traffic study prior to approving major commercial development. Throughout the proceedings, Medford city staff insisted that a comprehensive traffic study is only required at the time of zone change. In its latest decision, LUBA rejected this argument saying that there was no textual evidence in the Medford City Code to support this position.

Holen added, "I would also like to say that I was really deeply disappointed in the way the city SPAC treated MCRD and other citizens who testified before them on this Wal-Mart matter over the years. We were never treated with respect or common civility, and felt belittled by them. I hope that this decision will not only change the way the codes are interpreted, but will also serve to remind this Commission that it needs to treat all those who come before it, not just the developers and power brokers, with dignity and courtesy.

"I am also disappointed with some members of our City Council and city government. I realize that our officials must take all kinds of legal matters into consideration before deciding what kinds of businesses and activities are permitted in our city, but I also believe that this case illustrates the lackluster job they have done in directing the city’s future development in a direction that benefits the financial and environmental interests of the city and its citizens."

Medford Citizens for Responsible Development are a group of concerned citizens who have joined together to advance the interests of a stable economy, sustainable building and responsible development. We are committed to making sure our local government thoroughly analyzes development proposals and evaluates their impacts on the transportation network, the local economy and our community character. We support smart and responsible growth here in Medford. That kind of smart growth can only happen with thorough objective planning.

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Citizens Win Decisive Victory over Wal-Mart