Item 2A: Approval of City Council Minutes

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expensive and full consolidation would never happen. She was staunchly against the motion because it appeared to support an incremental approach. Mr. Cohen explained that the motion would allow design solutions that examined both an incremental and whole consolidation approach and both options were predicated on one bond measure; there was no assumption for more than one bond measure. He said that was based on the initial position statement to consolidate City services to the greatest extent practical. Ms. Bettman asked how much it would cost to explore the incremental option. Mr. Cohen said the expanded concept design would provide the council with different incremental configurations. Ms. Bettman said consolidating City services incrementally would remove a significant argument in favor of the bond measure. Mr. Pryor said the council was deciding to develop a plan, not adopt a final direction on the new city hall complex and the information provided by the plan would help inform future decisions. He understood Ms. Bettman's point regarding consolidation of City services in one building and still supported that concept, but wanted additional information before deciding whether or not it was appropriate for all services to be located in City Hall. Mayor Piercy said the council's previous discussion included whether there would be space available for the Municipal Court in the former federal courthouse building. Ms. Ortiz used the example of Bethel's construction of a new school to illustrate that an incremental approach could be successful. She felt that an incremental approach could help identify which services would best fit in the new City hall complex. Mr. Zelenka also favored consolidation of all services, but it was too expensive and it was clear the public was not willing to pay for full consolidation; a backup plan was to take a more cost-conscious approach, including considering the former federal courthouse building as a location for Municipal Court and continuing to use the library and Atrium Building for City offices. He felt the public would support an approach that tried to achieve as much consolidation as possible with a lower price tag. Mr. Clark stated he was willing to look at options for consolidation and would support the motion. Ms. Bettman said there had been considerable early work on consolidation of City services in the downtown area based on an assumption of full consolidation. She pointed out that a previous ballot measure for a police station had failed. Ms. Taylor asked what approach was proposed for incremental consolidation. Mr. Cohen said the outcomes of the planning process were not predetermined and the team would be sensitive to feedback on project costs. He said that the process would offer the council consolidation choices. Ms. Taylor asked if the City would continue to pay rent for some services. Mr. Cohen replied that would depend on which options the council chose. The motion passed, 5:2; Ms. Taylor and Ms. Bettman voting in opposition. Ms. Ortiz, seconded by Mr. Pryor, moved to extend the discussion by five minutes. The motion passed unanimously, 7:0. MINUTES—Eugene City Council July 11, 2007 Page 7 Work Session