01/14/1980 Meeting - Laserfiche WebLink

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. , II 1. MAYOR I S STATE OF THE CITY ADDRESS-- TEXT AND MEMO, IISIGNIFICANT PROJECTS COMPLETED IN FY 1978-79 BY MAYOR, COUNCIL, AND STAFF--CITY OF EUGENE; ~ DISTRIBUTED Mayor gave the following address: IITonight we've honored almost 400 cumulative years of service to Eugene by City employees. These men and women provide a theme for my remarks on the state of the City because dedicated service has brought our community through a difficult year and will be even more critical in the year ahead. IIThis City faces the harsh facts of increased costs, decreased revenues, and energy shortages that face cities across the nation, but Eugene has a head start over most other communties in dealing with these nega- tive trends: There is a precedent here for creative problem solving. In other years, far-sighted citizens began to shape the Eugene of the 80's by planning compact growth, initiating a transportation plan, pro- viding parks and recreation facilities, and funding major civic projects like construction of a performing arts center, airport improvements, and wastewater system expansion. On May 20, Eugene voters will face a tax- base election mandated by the State legislature for all cities that have gone outside of their tax-bases in their last three years budgets. The next three months are going to be critical for the community's long-term well-being, as we take a hard look at City services and plan a realistic, long-range approach to funding them. e IIIn the past year, the City Council struggled with long-range planning and started to realize some of the goals we set for ourselves in 1978. Projects ranged from spurring community economic development to estab- lishing an active Sister City Program with Kakegawa, Japan, and lobbying the State Legislature for action to ensure clean air in the Willamette Valley. With the recent accord reached with the Grass Seed Industry, the Council can feel confident of having air quality improvement for Eugene citizens, and they can now turn their attention and redirect dollars from that ten year conflict to internal problems and challenges. IIPriorities and goals that the Council set for 1979 included reworking the City budget process, reviewing in depth Growth Management issues, taking an active role in discussion of Ballot Measures 6 and 11, updating the 1990 Plan, and creating a vehicle to address the City's overall economic development needs. 1I0ther priorities focused on the Council's role in the 1979 Legislature, development of the Performing Arts Center, the City's role in the CETA program, transportation and planning policies, reviewing the City's capital improvement projects, and working to improve inter-governmental relations. - 1/14/80--3