11/09/1981 Meeting - Laserfiche WebLink

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..'.... :i- ~ truthful image of Lane County and the fact that it was sincerely interested in -- new development. He said the foundation would also provide funds for studies on economic development, including an inventory of existing industry and what new industries might be appropriate for the area. He said consultants would be employed to collect and analyze information on all the pluses and minuses of the area, to identify the businesses that can be healthy and those that could adapt to Eugene, and to narrow the target on which businesses are really. interested in expanding or moving to Eugene. He said the consultants would also develop strategies to deal with the minuses in the area. Mr~ Moreland said the foundation would soon distribute copies of_an RFP which called for an economic audit of the area. He said the foundation was not a professional group with the expertise in this area. He said a staff would be hired to develop an economic development policy responding to the findings of the RFP and input from the United Lane Forum. He said staff would not act on the notions of a few people. He said the director of marketing would hire a staff that would have skills and demonstrated successes in economi~ development. Mr. Moreland said the foundation was not designed to replace the efforts of individual cities or the County itself, but to interface with them. He said there was currently no confidential organization available to respond to inquiries about Lane County. Mr. Moreland said the United Lane Forum was established to determine public consensus and to pt'ovide direction for economic diversification. He said the forum had a central committee comprised of three components: business and labor, citizens, and government. He said the central committee's sole respon- e sibility was to identify issues to take to the forum for public discussion. He,said the committee would not make any judgments on input received at the forum. He said the input would be summarized without any editorial comment and distributed as widely as possible. He said it was appropriate for anyone, including staff and elected officials, to participate in the forum. He said the forums would help articulate what it means to monitor the economy. He said the forums would not make decisions, but he hoped they would assist those who make decisions affecting economic goals. . Mr. Moreland said concern had been expressed that the central committee was not representative. He said it did not have to be representative because it did not have the power to impose its will on anyone. He said the foundation would provide staff to assist the forum with paperwork and legwork in establishing meetings. , Ms. Smith asked about the relationship between the public and private sector and ways the City could cooperate with the private sector efforts. Ms. Wooten asked about membership in the foundation. Mr. Moreland said the membership fee was a means of raising money to support staff and forum costs. Ms. Wooten asked if the forum would be phased out. Mr. Moreland said if the forum became non-viable because people felt they had said all they wanted to say, the forum would be called upon only to deal with certain kinds of issues. He said the economic audit would not be completed before February. He said staff would not oversee the efforts of the consultant. Ms. Wooten asked about the future of the e MINUTES--Eugene City Council November 9, 1981 Page 2