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management company had assumed responsibility. In the past, management companies had worked slowly to fix things. He was a member of the West University neighborhood association board and did not recall that the organization had signed on in support of the housing standards. While he would not personally benefit from the standards, Mr. Cox supported the housing standards to address landlords who did not do what they should do. He also supported a sunset clause. Brett Roulett, 600 Howard Avenue, staff of the Eugene Citizens for Housing Standards, spoke of his work in support of housing standards and the research he had done in regard to the topic. He termed housing standards a human rights issue. He urged their adoption as being in the best interest of both landlords and tenants. He disagreed that rents would increase to any great degree as a result, particularly when compared with the rental savings that he anticipated tenants would experience from houses that were properly plumbed, weatherproofed, and heated. He maintained that Corvallis has experienced no great increase in rents. Adam Pitkin, 251 West Broadway, President of the Associated Students of the University of Oregon, asked that the council adopt an ordinance so that Eugene was not the last large community in Oregon lacking housing standards. Mr. Pitkin suggested that Corvallis renters had not had many problems because the program acted as a deterrent. Mr. Pitkin asked that a dedicated fund be created for the program and revenues used solely on the program. He also asked that the annual fee be as low as possible, noting that Corvallis had built up sufficient revenues to create a reserve for the program. Scott Smith, 728 Pond Lane, a board member of the Rental Owners Association of Lane County, said most people rented at one time or another and many times tenants and landlords disagreed. However, he questioned how many of the issues raised during testimony were actually in regard to habitability issues. He said cracks in the walls or poorly painted bathrooms were not habitability issues. Mr. Smith said many of those issues were not going to be addressed by the proposed code. He said that the association had sought information about the habitability problems being experienced by coalition members but had received nothing. He believed the information about the Corvallis code was revealing as the majority of calls were not in regard to habitability issues but instead the program acted as a tenant help line. He thought the proposed code a poor value for the residents of the City of Eugene. John Morrison, 803 Armstrong Avenue, agreed with those who spoke in opposition to the housing standards. He questioned the need for the ordinance, saying he had sought specifics about that need from the coalition but had received no information. He did not see the need for a duplicative bureaucracy and pointed out the City had code enforcement capacity now. Mr. Morrison opposed the fact that landlords who behaved well would pay for the program, as opposed to landlords who egregiously violated the law. Bob Cassidy, 1401 East 27th Avenue, said since he had last spoken in favor of the housing standards he had heard complaints about the program and now believed more time was needed to help reconcile the differences between parties. He did not think those in opposition wanted the program at all. He welcomed paying another $10 annually on his property to help his neighborhood from falling into degradation. He asked how those in opposition would improve the measure. He did not think small claims court was the answer because of the time it took to get on the docket. MINUTES--Eugene City Council November 8, 2004 Page 9 Regular Meeting