This is the section of Thurston Street the city staff wants to “vacate.” In the background, the intersection and crossing the city paid to have improved.
The Albany city staff will start proceedings to vacate two sections of city streets ending at the Willamette River, including one where the city has just spent a fortune on rebuilding an intersection and railroad crossing.
The streets are the unimproved sections of Jefferson and Thurston streets north of Water Avenue, each about 60 feet wide and a block long or less. (See the map at the bottom of this story.)
The city council heard the proposal at its work session Monday. At least two councilors — Steph Newton and Matilda Novak — had reservations. Other councilors were OK with going ahead, and Mayor Alex Johnson II declared that the council was signaling “thumbs up” to let the staff go ahead and initiate the vacation.
Vacating a street means to close or abandon the public right-of-way, which then reverts to adjoining owners.
By the city starting the process, there is no need to get the approval of neighboring property owners. One of them is the railroad (either BNSF or Portland & Western). Engineering manager Aaron Hiemstra told the council it would be difficult to get the signature for the railroad property.
Once the staff initiates the process, public hearings will be held before the planning commission and then the council. Property owners within 200 or 300 feet will be notified.
Camron Settlemier, who serves on the Albany Landmarks Commission, asked the council not to vacate the streets, especially Thurston. He said both the comprehensive plan and the CARA urban renewal plan envision an “esplanade” along the Thurston Street Canal all the way to the river.
Settlemier pointed out that Albany has just spent “hundreds of thousands of dollars” on the Thurston Street intersection on Water Avenue. That project, part of the $21.5 million waterfront upgrades, installed reddish pavers in the street and built a new railroad crossing.
City officials intend to keep a public easement along the vacated section of Thurston to ensure future access by the public and for maintenance and utility work.
When streets are vacated, adjoining property owners get the land.
The City of Albany owns frontage on both streets closest to the river.
The rest of the section of Thurston is bordered by properties owned by John A. Boock Jr. on one side and Ore Tex Investments Inc. on the other. (The name of the investment firm is not registered with the state of Oregon, but the tax bill goes to an address in North Albany.)
The Jefferson section lies between the Boock property (site of the DeLuxe Brewery) and a vacant lot owned by Glorietta Bay LLC, a Scott Lepman company. Lepman once intended to build apartments on the lot, the former site of the Senders grain and seed elevator, but in recent years the property has been used for storage and as a construction yard.)
When hearings on this proposal are eventually held, maybe we’ll learn if there are urgent or compelling reasons why the public should give up two-thirds of an acre of public right-of-way right next to the Dave Clark Path and the Willamette River. (hh)
Seen from the Dave Clark Path, this is the section of Jefferson Street the city staff wants the vacate. The access across the railroad track from Water Avenue is blocked.
The shaded portions of Jefferson and Thurston streets would be given to neighboring properties.
Isn’t CARA (urban renewal district) ending and shutting down after they spend all the 21.5 million dollars on Water Street where there is “nothing except warehouses? It doesn’t matter what pie-in-the-sky plan for an esplanade that CARA and some long-ago-penned comprehensive plan wants!! The city of Albany can no longer form a CARA-like urban renewal district without the vote of the people of Albany.
It seems to me that now that they have spent a fortune on fancying up Water Street and rail crossing near those streets they want to vacate that their “shorts” are in knot. They are envisioning someone coming to their rescue and building another boondoggle like the building on the old Buzzsaw site that the county now owns. So, they want to gift them the public land that makes up those street sections.
BUZZSAW!
Long live the Buzzsaw, even in demise.
OMG! The Buzzsaw, you all know!!!
The city can only vacate if they pay damages to the affected properties. The city abuses their power for their own agenda. The city vacates a public street then allows the public access to use the street when the property is now private and goes to the abutting properties! Really? The whole point is that it is no longer a public street, it is private property. The people involved need to speak to an attorney. Why vacate a street that is being used by the public?
Pay damages to affected properties? Better check that with someone who knows.
These two “roads” are simply the gravel and pothole strewn entry and exit to the DeLuxe Brewery parking area. As Hasso pointed out, both “streets” dead end at Dave Clark Path, so no thru traffic except for patrons. As far as I’ve been able to observe over several years, little or no maintenance has ever been performed. So in reality there is no difference if the City vacates.
John Boock is a retired attorney and mega land owner in Albany. He will do the right thing.
The curb on the new brick intersection at Thurston isn’t aligned with the flow of traffic and juts into your path if you’re driving east on Water street. Unless they’re planning to put a sidewalk in by the apartments someone’s going to lose a tire there some dark night.