08/10/1988 Meeting (2) - Laserfiche WebLink

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~- ~~1 ~ ~ ~cl I M I NUT E S ~ Eugene City Council ~~. McNutt Room--City Hall August lOt 1988 11 : 30 a. m . COUNCILORS PRESENT: Freeman Holmert Ruth Bascomt Robert Bennettt Debra Ehrmant Jeff Millert Roger Rutant Emily Schuet Cynthia Wooten. The adjourned meeting of August 8t 1988t of the City Council of the City of Eugenet Oregon was called to order by His Honor Mayor Brian B. Obie. I. REPORT FROM MAYOR OBIE ON IRKUTSK VISIT Mayor Obie shared his experiences from his recent trip to Irkutskt U.S.S.R. as part of the sister city delegation that included University of Oregon President Paul Olum and several members of the Sister City Commission. He described the trip as intense and non-stop as the six-member delegation was kept busy for often 16 hours a day. Before traveling to Irkutskt Mayor Obie said the delegation landed in Moscow and was met by two representatives from the sister city. Throughout their stay in the Soviet Uniont Mayor Obie said the delegation was transported in limousines and fed excellent food. As part of his reportt Mayor Obie had staff show the first two segments of a series on the trip by an accompanying news team from KEZI Television. Mr. Rutan asked how the trip compared with the Kakegawa trip. Mayor Obie said in some ways it was easier to communicate with the Soviets because their lifestyles are closer to those in the West. He noted that Irkutsk is the government seat for the province of Irkutskt and counts wood products as its major industry. Mayor Obie said he was astounded to learn that City officials in Irkutsk view Eugene as their window to the U.S. Because of the nature of their system of government, he said City officials can have direct relationships with representatives from other countries. The mayor of Irkutskt who is also active in national politicst indicated the City is interested in aggressively pursuing economic opportunities in Eugene. Mayor Obie said the mayor expressed an interest in seeking housingt food, and some clothing items from the U.S. Mayor Obie said six people and the mayor will make up the Irkutsk delegation that is scheduled to visit Eugene. The six representatives will include a university president, the equivalent of our planning directort and an interpreter. He said the Eugene delegation encouraged the Soviets to include MINUTES--Eugene City Council August 10 t 1988 Page 1 -=- ~ ---