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Mark Johnson, 1320 Inglewood Street, identified himself as an employee of Lane Transit District and spoke of the effect of the DPSZ on LTD's Eugene Station operations. He supported the extension of the DPSZ until the officers in training now were on the street. He thought the DPSZ was a great safety valve that the police had used well. Thomas Kamis, 94 West Broadway, a downtown business owner, recommended the extension of the DPSZ as another tool for the police. He questioned where those who opposed the zone had been when the City established a prostitution -free zone. He believed the DPSZ was effective in helping to eliminate repeat offenders from downtown. Mr. Kamis shared a quote from a nationally broadcast cartoon that implied Eugene contained a large hobo jungle. Eugene Drix, 307 -1/2 14` Avenue, supported trying out the DPSZ given the development occurring downtown, which would bring more people to downtown. David Hauser, 2168 Elkhorn Drive, representing Downtown Eugene, Inc, thanked the council, Police Commission, and City staff for their thoughtful evaluation of the DPSZ. He thought it important not to overstate the importance of the zone, which was one of many needed tools to create a downtown where all were welcome. It replaced an incarceration option that was not available now, and could displace chronic violators from downtown. The DPSZ had been implemented responsibly and no complaints had been made to the Police Auditor. Mr. Hauser thought the sunset clause made sense as it built a bridge to increased police capacity to downtown. He acknowledged the DPSZ was not the perfect solution, but that solution did not yet exist. Laura Potter, 1401 Willamette Street, representing the Eugene Area Chamber of Commerce, said the DPSZ was an important element in public safety downtown. The zone was designed to provide an alternative to incarceration by displacing chronic violators from downtown. She agreed with Mr. Hauser that the Eugene Police Department had used the tool responsibly. She asked that the ordinance be extended until more officers were available to work downtown. Jim Welsh, 2139 Centennial Plaza, representing the Eugene Association of Realtors, supported the extension of the ordinance as proposed and the addition of sexual offenses to the list of offenses for which one could be excluded. He said the exclusion zone had improved public safety downtown. He expressed appreciation to the council and Eugene Police Chief Pete Kerns for listening to all residents' concerns. He said his association believed the ordinance was important to the community and downtown. Mayor Piercy closed the public hearing and solicited council questions and comments. Councilor Zelenka thanked those who offered testimony. He said the exclusion zone had been used 93 times in the last two years and only two actual crimes were involved. The majority of exclusions were for alcohol violations and trespass. While criminal activity downtown had decreased, criminal activity in nearby neighborhoods had increased, so the City had not stopped the behavior involved, it had merely moved it. Councilor Zelenka was struck by the fact that 65 percent of those excluded were low- income homeless people. He noted that the pre- hearing exclusions occurred before a person went to a judge, and requested that staff prepare two amendments to the ordinance, the first to eliminate the pre- hearing exclusion, and the second to provide advocacy for those coming before a judge for the 90 -day exclusion. Councilor Taylor was opposed to the DPSZ but supported Councilor Zelenka's amendments if the zone was to be renewed. MINUTES — Eugene City Council November 22, 2010 Page 2 Regular Meeting