Item 2A: Approval of City Council Minutes

Home Browse Search

level, as agreed upon at the CCIGR. She did not support leveraging additional grant money for land outside of the urban growth boundary (UGB) when there was land within the UGB that the City wished to purchase. She feared that money spent on the land outside the UGB would deplete funding and threaten the purchase of the Beverly/Green properties. Councilor Clark said as an effort of good faith he would be willing to not support the item in order to make sure that the council would bear in mind while working on the acquisition of the Beverly/Green properties that a promise of a community park had been made to the people of Santa Clara since 1998. He did not want to see more money spent from the bond funds without this being assured. Councilor Taylor averred that money was already set aside for Santa Clara. She believed that the acquisition of the Beverly/Green properties should be the City’s top priority. She did not think the properties should cost $7 million. She asked if the council could approve the item contingent on receiving the grant. In response to a follow-up question from Councilor Taylor, Ms. Weiss affirmed that the City could back out of the funding if the cost of the land proved to be more than $4 million. Councilor Taylor favored the application but felt that the acquisition of the Beverly/Green properties was more important. She observed that there would be approximately $6 million left in the PROS funds and asked if that would be enough to purchase the properties. Ms. Weiss responded that she could not say at this point. Councilor Taylor asked if SDC funds were being diverted from the acquisition of those properties by the Golden Gardens Park project. Ms. Weiss replied that there was approximately $2.5 million available in SDCs at present. Councilor Taylor asked who made the decision to apply SDC funds to that project. Ms. Weiss surmised that it was a staff decision made by executive management. Councilor Pryor thought it would be difficult to get the Forest Legacy grant at the higher level. He wanted the grant request to go through. He underscored that the City had sent a lobbyist to Salem to lobby for Eugene to be able to purchase land outside the UGB. He felt that for the City to “suddenly decide” it was not a good idea was disingenuous. He said part of the reason the City lobbied for this was because of the Ridgeline Trail, as it was important enough that the City was willing to purchase land outside of the UGB for it. He ascertained from Ms. Weiss that the properties that were the subjects of the grant application were located on the ridgeline. He believed everything before the council at present was consistent with what the City indicated it wanted to do. He did not understand how this grant application could be considered to be “outside reasonable or directional or what the City’s established that it wants to do.” He recalled that the 2006 PROS measure said funding was intended to purchase land, preserving natural open places near the Ridgeline Trail, Willamette River, and Gillespie Butte. He underscored that the item before the council fit that description. He said he would love to give staff the opportunity to go for the additional OWEB grant but he was not certain there were the votes to do so. He believed the item was consistent with what the City had said it wanted to do and to decide to pursue another course was not fair or reasonable. He reiterated that this was what the City said it would do in the bond measure; this was what the City said it would do as a matter of policy; and the properties were on the Ridgeline Trail corridor. Ms. Weiss clarified that the Forest Legacy grant had been submitted at the 50 percent level on October 1. Councilor Zelenka complained that the council had not been consulted about the change in the level of the grant. He asked if the OWEB grant could be used to help purchase the Beverly/Green properties. Ms. Weiss replied that the grant money could not be used under a condemnation proceeding. MINUTES—Eugene City Council October 8, 2007 Page 10 Regular Meeting