By Tony Boom
for the Mail Tribune
Posted Jan. 7, 2015 @ 5:36 pm

After nearly two hours of testimony, deliberation and debate on definitions for structures, driveways, shoulders, foundations and roadways, the City Council ruled Tuesday that Britt Festivals’ new parking lot on First Street is in compliance with city development codes.

Oregon’s Land Use Board of Appeals had remanded the council’s April 2014 project approval for further consideration of one issue after project neighbor Carol Knapp filed an appeal. Knapp had raised five issues.

“I think it was really obvious that the City Council took a great deal of care and reviewed the evidence and testimony carefully,” said Britt President and Chief Executive Officer Donna Briggs. “I was pleased they took it so seriously.

“At the end of the day, it was evident that the engineers and staff correctly determined that the structure certainly conformed to the city code.”

Knapp declined to comment on the decision, which came on a 4-1 vote.

“I didn’t find the definitions were in compliance with the code,” said Councilwoman Jocie Wall, who cast the dissenting vote.

Prior to the session, attorney Tim Jackle, representing Britt, filed arguments that the circulation area of the eight-space, ADA-compliant parking lot finished in June constituted a driveway and that retaining walls for the project made it a structure.

Jacksonville code requires that cut-and-fill disturbances be limited to 25 feet from the foundation of a parking lot or 20 feet from the edge of the shoulder of driveways and roads. Measurements by engineer Todd Powell for Britt and by city staff found that the project fell within those limits if Jackle’s interpretations were accepted. City Planning Director Amy Stevenson agreed with Jackle’s arguments.

“You are being asked for a contrived outcome that lacks integrity with the code,” Knapp told the council. “The definitions offered by staff and Britt are actually inconsistent with Oregon statutory law.”

Using the state’s definitions, Knapp said, cut-and-fill disturbance took place up to 64 feet from the edge of the roadway.

“City staff has bent over backwards to support what Britt has said,” said Knapp.

In his motion, Council President David Jesser said that the parking lot is a structure with a foundation, another interpretation challenged by Knapp.

“Jacksonville has a very complicated land-use code,” said Kelsy Ausland, an engineer and project manager. “I think it’s quite an accomplishment that we only had one issue remanded back to council.”

Jesser presided over the session after Mayor Paul Becker recused himself. Knapp said a column written by Becker in the Jacksonville Review newspaper last year showed a clear bias towards Britt. The column was a disservice to civil discourse on the issue and had a chilling effect on public testimony, she said.

Wall suggested Becker recuse himself, although other council members did not feel that was necessary. Becker said he took the action because a councilor felt his presence might be detrimental to the proceedings.

Newly elected Councilman Ken Gregg also recused himself from the hearing to preclude challenges. Gregg last year accepted tickets to Britt in exchange for allowing staff to park on his property during concerts.

Besides serving Britt patrons, the new lot is used regularly by those going on hikes in nearby woods or visiting the lower Britt Gardens, Briggs said. The lot now gives physically challenged people access to the gardens, she said.

“It was personally rewarding to me to see so many people,” said Briggs. “The number of people in wheelchairs was significantly higher this past season.”

Tony Boom is a freelance writer living in Ashland. Reach him at tboomwriter@gmail.com.