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Mike Moore, a general contractor in Corvallis, said he shook his head when he heard a frank comment made by a neighborhood activist.

Before a developer builds anything, the person said, he or she should get a consensus from the neighboring residents about what they want to see built.

That philosophy, Moore said, is at the heart of a conflict over parking near Oregon State University. But it actually is a much larger disagreement, he added, between practical, no-nonsense construction professionals and neighborhood residents who spend most of their time in ivory towers.

鈥淭his is a huge change in law that is largely driven by aesthetic preferences and emotional arguments,鈥� he said.

Corvallis Planning Division Manager Kevin Young said that is overstating the matter. The recommendation that went before Corvallis City Council on Monday was an honest attempt to control parking congestion near the OSU campus, he said.

Councilors gave preliminary approval to increase the on-site parking requirements for four- and five-bedroom multifamily housing developments. A formal decision on the parking issue is not expected until Dec. 3.

A group called Collaboration Corvallis 鈥� including neighborhood leaders and university administrators as well as city officials and staffers 鈥� recommended the changes.

The requirement would go from five on-site parking spaces to nine.

鈥淚t’s physically impossible to provide that many spaces on the majority of land that’s available around the university,鈥� Moore said. 鈥淭here is no solution.

鈥淚t was almost impossible (to provide five spaces). It gives you little room for design variations. There are a lot of things that go into the end design here in Corvallis. It’s not a simple process. I don’t think it is this difficult in other communities. It is onerous in Corvallis.鈥�

Young said he is not unsympathetic.

鈥淚 think this rule change will make it more difficult to do that sort of development, but I would not go so far as to say it would be impossible,鈥� he said.

‘ recommendation addressed a very real problem, Young said.

鈥淐urrently, there is no increase in parking, even though we’re experiencing some pretty significant growth at Oregon State,鈥� he said.

Moore suspects the group set out to stop some of that growth in its tracks.

鈥淭he bottom line is that the intent is not to have any more four- or five-bedroom units,鈥� he said. 鈥淯nfortunately, in the process of considering potential solutions, the steering committee and various associations did not actively seek participation from developers, investors and contractors.鈥�

Young said that’s not true.

鈥淚 don’t think that the work group was trying to stop all large-scale development,鈥� he added.

Eric Adams, the project manager for Corvallis Collaboration, said in a public hearing that the rules are taking a shot at developers.

鈥淒evelopers were getting free density,鈥� he said. 鈥淭hose units without parking were exceeding the compatibility envelope. They were degrading the livability of the neighborhoods. That tool was put in there intentionally.鈥�

Moore said he is not out to blast anyone.

鈥淚 don’t want to make this a public battle,鈥� he stressed, adding that he understands concerns about parking. 鈥淥SU is growing significantly, so there has been a lot of student rental development. Neighbors surrounding campus feel the character of their neighborhoods is being altered, so they’re upset.

鈥淭here are also student behavioral issues that the surrounding neighborhoods are dealing with such as parties and various shenanigans. There is not enough on-campus parking, so many students, given the low vacancy, park near campus.鈥�

However, Moore said, group members acted in haste without considering the consequences of their actions.

鈥淭hey were anxious to have traction, to grab some low-hanging fruit, some quick wins,鈥� he said. 鈥淗owever, this is a categorical code change that applies to the whole code. It’s a parking code change, not a zoning change.鈥�

The net effect, Moore said, is that large multifamily developments won’t be built in the campus area. Students will be forced to drive to campus and thus contribute to the very parking problem the rule change sought to correct.

鈥淚 understand that logic,鈥� Young said. 鈥淚f you have fewer bedrooms near campus, more students are going to be driving to campus. I understand that. However, I think the overall effect of that is hard to quantify. It really is too early to tell.鈥�

Moore said what really bothers him is that building professionals were never really brought into the process other than being told that meetings are open to the public.

鈥淔rom my perspective, passive inclusion isn’t adequate,鈥� he said.

Young said everyone was invited to the process.

鈥淲e have representatives from the development community involved in every step of the process,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e really tried to get a diversity of perspectives.鈥�