Momentum continues to build in the effort to address the longstanding inequity faced by homeowners on local access roads (LARs) in River Road and Santa Clara.
These are public roads under Lane County jurisdiction that are not maintained by the county or any governmental agency. They were built decades ago and most are indistinguishable from neighboring county-maintained roads (aside from not having received recent maintenance), yet homeowners have been left responsible for maintenance while continuing to pay the same transportation taxes that fund road maintenance as everyone else. Many homeowners also say they were never informed of this responsibility when they purchased their homes and only learned about it years later, often from fellow community members.
Public Works Presents Report
At the request of the Lane County Board of Commissioners, Lane County Public Works spent more than six months preparing a report estimating the costs and timeline for potentially accepting LARs into the county road system. The report was presented to commissioners on June 9.
The report proposed a path that would require extensive evaluation of every road, a complex and potentially expensive homeowner petition process, and reconstruction of roads to current standards for new roads — with curbs, gutters, storm drains and sidewalks — before acceptance. Public Works estimated that rebuilding the 12 miles of Eugene LARs to current standards could cost approximately $88 million, a figure far beyond the county’s current road fund capacity.
Commissioners Ask Tough Questions
The most significant part of the meeting was not the presentation itself, but the extensive discussion that followed.
Commissioners repeatedly acknowledged that this is an equity issue and questioned whether the framework used in the report — an acceptance process meant for newly constructed roads — was the right one for addressing roads that have existed for decades. Commissioners also questioned whether roads built decades ago should be evaluated under the same acceptance process used for newly constructed roads.
Commissioners noted that many LARs in River Road and Santa Clara are difficult to distinguish from neighboring county roads. Public Works also acknowledged that an LAR designation says nothing about the condition of a road.
Rather than accepting the report’s recommendations at face value, commissioners repeatedly expressed interest in finding a practical, affordable path forward.
Residents Return to Thank Commissioners
On June 23, residents returned to thank commissioners for their thoughtful discussion and to encourage them to continue pursuing a practical solution.
Residents urged the county to focus on accepting these roads into the maintenance system as is, rather than requiring the roads be rebuilt and creating additional barriers ,or imposing new taxes on LAR homeowners through mechanisms such as special road districts. They stressed that they are not seeking special treatment; they are seeking equal treatment, with the public roads they live on receiving the same opportunity for maintenance that other roads in these neighborhoods receive, as available county funding allows.
One consistent message from testimony was that homeowners on local access roads pay and for decades have paid the same transportation taxes as residents on neighboring county-maintained roads. Any solution should recognize that history rather than requiring those homeowners to overcome new procedural and financial hurdles.
The turnout was encouraging. Eighteen LARs homeowners and allies attended the meeting—triple the previous record for LARs participation—demonstrating that this is a community concern shared by many residents, not just a few advocates.
Growing Public Attention
Public awareness of the issue continues to grow.
In recent weeks, local access roads have been covered in articles by Lookout Eugene Springfield and the Register-Guard, an interview on Oregon on the Record, and two letters to the editor (by Laura Shoe and Steve Hiatt).
What Comes Next
No decisions have yet been made, but the conversation has changed.
The discussion showed that commissioners recognize that LARs present an equity issue, and that they seek a practical path forward that balances legal requirements, public safety, and the county’s financial constraints.
Commissioners also expressed interest in holding a joint work session with the Eugene City Council to explore practical paths forward. Because Eugene LARs under consideration are within the Urban Growth Boundary, commissioners recognized that both the county and the city will need to be part of developing a long-term solution that provides equitable treatment for homeowners.
RRCO will continue following this issue closely and will keep residents informed as discussions continue and opportunities arise for public participation.
In the meantime, for more information on this issue and to find out if your road is a local access road, visit www.LARSinEugene.com.
Looking back: Read RRCO’s 2025 letter to commissioners requesting that they accept LARs into the county road system.