06/10/1991 Meeting - Laserfiche WebLink

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- In response to a question from Ms. Bascom, Mr. Farkas said the DDD Task Force and Downtown Eugene Inc. have had overlapping membership. Mr. Farkas confirmed for Mr. Boles that the RTF and the Downtown Design Com- mittee have both disbanded, as well as the DDD Task Force. The LTD Site Selection Committee has disbanded but may be reformed because the LTD Board is considering 11 new station sites. Mr. Boles asked if LTD had a citizen involvement component to its site selection plan and Mr. Farkas said it did not. Bob Hibschman, PDD, started his review of downtown accomplishments by saying that the Downtown Plan was approved in 1984. He said various improvements have been made downtown since that time, such as the conversion of street systems and building renovations. Mr. Gleason said the downtown area had a significant work list. Mr. Farkas pointed out that the list included areas beyond both the Urban Renewal District and the Downtown Plan area. Mr. Nicholson said the City had made some "dubious" improvements since 1984, most noticeably the EWEB Plaza. Mr. Boles asked when the ODD Task Force had been formed, and Mr. Gleason said the group was initiated in 1983. Mr. Hibschman referred to a chart on Renewal Assessed Valuation which showed that the biggest decreases since 1984 had been in the value of buildings downtown. He said the City hoped that the sale and development of sites e downtown would help increase the value of the district. Mr. Nicholson said he had graphed property values adjusted to "real" dollars and, in terms of value increase, the downtown area was underperforming resi- dential properties by a factor of five. Mr. Farkas pointed out that the urban renewal district is a fixed geographic area. He said the City's area as a whole has grown a great deal in terms of industry and residences. Mr. Gleason added that the County Assessor's Office does not often use income as an assessment practice. It relies primarily on a recent sales approach. (Mr. Green arrived at the meeting.) Mr. Nicholson said he had compared properties immediately inside and outside the urban renewal district and the area contrasted badly with these proper- ties. He said the premise of urban renewal was that it would increase prop- erty values. Mr. Hibschman presented a chart on DDD retail gross receipts. He said gross receipts had increased and decreased, but the trend was toward decreased receipts. Mr. Hibschman presented businessman John Brown's data on downtown occupancy rates which showed an increasing occupancy trend for offices, and decreasing occupancy for retail space based on square footage. e MINUTES--Eugene City Council June 10, 1991 Page 2