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Ms. Swanson Gribskov expressed disappointment at comments made by the City's executive staff, <br />saying that Ms. Elmer was "set up to fail" and she deserves to continue her job with the City if she <br />desires to do so. <br />Mr. Lee spoke of the struggle in this community between the power structure and the <br />disenfranchised, adding that it is something the council must address. He disagreed with the view <br />that the council has not provided clear direction for the manager, reading from Ms. Elmer's six- <br />months performance evaluation that cited four areas for improvement. Mr. Lee acknowledged <br />that Ms. Elmer had made organizational changes but said it was not accompanied by leadership <br />and communication, creating much anxiety among staff, the community, and the council. Doing <br />otherwise, he said, would have "de-politicized" her decisions. <br /> <br />Mr. Meisner reflected on the City Council's role, saying it was to serve the best interests of the <br />community and to insure fairness and the best services possible. He agreed with Mr. Laue that <br />the input from the bargaining units was important, noting that it was consistent with input given <br />by the executive and other staff. <br /> <br />Ms. Nathanson prefaced her remarks by saying that the decision being made is for the entire <br />community. She described "change agents" as inspiring others involved to become change agents <br />themselves and assume the responsibility for making improvements--something that has not <br />happened here. She said that making tough decisions did not necessarily indicate strong <br />leadership; had there been strong leadership, the decisions made would have been met with more <br />understanding, if not acceptance. <br /> <br />Mr. Tollenaar said some of the complaints against the City Manager were clearly valid and some <br />were matters of perceptions, but even if they were just perceptions, the resulting organizational <br />angst and the low morale were tangible. He also was impressed with the consistency between <br />input by the bargaining units and staff, saying the management style problem was serious. Mr. <br />Tollenaar said even good results "could not be maintained if the management style did not enlist <br />the energies of the staff, the council, and if it produces low morale and loses credibility for the <br />City Manager and the entire organization in the eyes of the community." He concluded that <br />additional time could not help problems with management style. <br /> <br />Mayor Torrey thanked the council for the serious manner in which each approached his and her <br />comments. He thanked Ms. Elmer for her professional demeanor and cited her leadership style as <br />a problem because it did not allow for strong support from her management team. <br /> <br />Ms. Elmer said council confidence was imperative were she to continue leading the City <br />organization, adding that she had done her best and if that was not "good enough," she respected <br />the council's right to make the decision to terminate. Ms. Elmer said she was proud of what she <br />has accomplished during her tenure in Eugene and was sorry for the pain the organization has <br />gone through. She said she had great confidence that the council and organization would meet <br />the challenges facing the community. Ms. Elmer said the pain of downsizing, coupled with <br /> <br />Minutes--Eugene City Council March 18, 1998 Page 2 <br /> 11:30 a.m. <br /> <br /> <br />