Eugene citizen groups are concerned that the proposed Interstate-5 and Franklin Boulevard interchange will have negative effects on Alton Baker Park and increase traffic in the Fairmount neighborhood, east of the University.
The Oregon Department of Transportation wrapped up Phase I of the project Wednesday morning at a Board of County Commissioners meeting. The presentation addressed a plan that would make it easier for Eugene-bound motorists to exit Interstate-5 onto Franklin Boulevard when heading south.
Thus far, city and county officials have supported the project and the Eugene City Council “seemed generally supportive of the open public process” ODOT is utilizing to work with stakeholders and community groups, ODOT Senior Transportation Planner Tom Boyatt said.
Fairmount Neighborhood Association member David Sonnichsen said he is concerned the interchange will “bring traffic and noise” to quiet parts of Alton Baker Park, and he would like to see ODOT look at some alternatives to ramps onto and off of Franklin Boulevard. He said he is also concerned about the navigability and scenery along the Willamette River if there are more giant cement pillars protruding from the water.
“I have many concerns about any further intrusion into the park,” Alton Baker Park planning committee chair Bonnie Ullmann said.
She said she doesn’t want to see any more motorized vehicles in the area.
In a letter to the Mayor and Eugene City Councilors, former FNA Traffic Committee Chair Kristen Taylor said the association is worried about “possible impacts to the Willamette River Greenway and to the development of the Walnut Mixed-Use Area as well the increased traffic on Franklin Boulevard and neighborhood streets due to the proposed expansion of an I-5 interchange at Franklin Boulevard.”
Boyatt said one-on-one interviews with stakeholders have been conducted and their concerns have been documented. There are several different sites still being considered as ODOT embarks on Phase II of the four-phase process.
Boyatt told commissioners that ODOT will hold open houses for stakeholders as part of the second phase. At the end of this phase, city and county elected officials will need to
approve before the Planning and Analysis phase can begin.
Sonnichsen is optimistic that something good will come from the public involvement process, but Ullmann worries about ODOT’s environmental track record.
“Our community is one of the only urban areas in the world to enjoy a park at the center of its population that is managed for natural values, and we ought to do everything we can to maintain its wild and feral nature,” Sonnichsen said.
The proposed full or partial interchange will be too close to the Glenwood exit, breaking a federal spacing requirement, so there will have to be an “exception process” to build an exit in that area in the first place, Boyatt said.

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