Five of the Planning Commissioners from left to right:
Bruce Webber, Steve Schmunk, Isaac Rhoads-Dey, Andrew Buck, Matthew Salazar

The Planning Commission is currently accepting applications for multiple vacancies:  

• Eligibility: Applicants must reside within the Springfield city limits or within the urbanizable area of the Urban Growth Boundary (UGB).
• Contact: Sandy Belson, Comprehensive Planning Manager, 541-736-7135, sbelson@springfield-or.gov or Sarah Weaver, Administrative Specialist, 541-726-3653, sweaver@springfield-or.gov
• Applications are available online at https://bit.ly/SpfldGetInvolved

Planning Commission

The Springfield Planning Commission is a seven-member volunteer Commission appointed by the Mayor and City Council. It is staffed by the Community Development Division within the Department of Development and Public Works.

Charge of the Planning Commission

1. Make recommendations to the City Council concerning legislative adoption or amendments of land use plans and land use regulations, in accordance with state law. Such plans and regulations include, but are not limited to, the Eugene-Springfield Metropolitan Area General Plan, the Springfield Comprehensive Plan, Neighborhood Refinement Plans, Functional Plans, and the Springfield Development Code.
2. Make land use decisions on quasi-judicial development proposals. In reviewing the development proposals, the Commission must act impartially and in accordance with land use plans and regulations that have been adopted by the City Council.
3. The Commission serves as the City’s Committee for Citizen Involvement (CCI) whose charge is to review and approve citizen involvement strategies for compliance with the required components of the Citizen Involvement Program for land use planning issues.

Membership

Commissioners are appointed to four-year terms. At least five of the Commissioners must live within the city limits and the others may live within the Springfield urban growth boundary. No more than two members shall be engaged in the same kind of business, trade, profession or occupation. The City’s Bicycle Pedestrian Advisory Committee and the Community Development Advisory Committee each include a Planning Commissioner in their membership. Commissioners may also be asked to serve on project specific committee’s.

Meeting Dates & Times

Meetings are typically held the first and third Tuesday of every month. Planning Commission meetings are offered in a hybrid format, both in person and virtually. Unless otherwise noticed in advance, work sessions begin at 6:00 pm and regular sessions begin at 7:00 pm. All regular sessions include “Business from the Audience” which is an opportunity for the public to speak to the Commission about items not otherwise on the agenda.

Meeting Agenda

To see Planning Commission meeting agendas and provide comments on upcoming land use actions, please go to SpringfieldOregonSpeaks .  You can also view video recordings of meeting back to October 2020 at this location.

For meeting agendas, minutes, and audio recordings of meetings held in 2020 or earlier please scroll down.

City Staff Contacts

Sandy Belson (sbelson@springfield-or.gov), Comprehensive Planning Manager, 541.736.7135
Sarah Weaver (sweaver@springfield-or.gov), Community Development Administrative Specialist, 541.726.3653

Resources

Springfield Municipal Code Chapter 2 describes the City Planning Commission in Section 4.
The City’s Comprehensive Planning webpage includes links to Springfield’s adopted plans.
The Oregon Planning Commission Handbook explains Oregon’s statewide planning program.
The Oregon Land Use Planning Online Training provides an overview of planning principles and practices in Oregon.
The City Attorney’s Office provides regular training on Ethics, Public Meetings and Public Records.

Meeting Recordings, Agenda’s and Staff Reports

2020

2019

2018