CC Minutes - 10/24/07 Work Session

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Mayor Piercy noted the incredible work load of the Planning Commission on very important issues of concern to the council and community. Ms. Bettman thanked the Planning Commission for its presentation. She was not prepared to approve the work program today and hoped approval could be postponed until the City Council could hold a work session to discuss the policy and funding issues imbedded in the work program. She stated the GMPs should be implemented and included in the City Code before replacing them. She asked what had happened to adopting the GMP through the minor and major code amendments. Although the new format was polished, Ms. Bettman said she preferred the old matrix format. Mr. Duncan said the Planning Commission had been working on developing a method for implementing GMP as a measuring tool on all land use issues that went before the commission. He acknowledged unanimous support of the Planning Commission to use the GMPs as a strong measurement tool. Responding to a question from Ms. Taylor, Mr. Duncan said the Planning Commission was hoping to look at all 19 GMPs when considering land use decisions to better measure land use issues. Ms. Taylor stated with the current City budget, even if there was a need to revisit the GMPs, there was no funding available to take on such a large project. She noted the CIC had been abolished and its duties and responsibilities had been assumed by the Planning Commission. She asked how much time the Planning Commission devoted to being the CIC. Ms. Gardner opined every project had an expanded citizen involvement component. The commission not only served formally as the CIC, but also met with subcommittees and other groups on an informal basis to solicit feedback from the public. She said the format currently being used enabled the Planning Commission to be nimble in creating the necessary opportunities for public involvement. Ms. Taylor hoped there would be no action taken today, expressing concern about a reference in the work program for new staff. Mr. Clark articulated concern about compliance with HB 3337. He asked Ms. Jerome if the legislation required the City to demonstrate or determine a 20-year supply of land. Ms. Jerome said the legislation required the City to both demonstrate and determine a 20-year supply of land, as well as setting a timeline of two years to accomplish specific benchmarks so that a 20-year supply could be demonstrated when a new Eugene-specific UGB was adopted. She added that demonstration of a 20-year supply was not required for the two-year window. A future joint meeting with other local elected officials would provide an opportunity to decide the timing. The setting of the UGB was a complicated process under the statutes, and would not be changed by the requirements of HB 3337. Responding to a question from Mr. Clark, Ms. Gardner said the Planning Commission recommendation was to broaden the scope of the work beyond the requirements of HB 3337 to include a comprehensive lands assessment to provide a database of natural resources, commercial, residential and industrial, and redevelopment capacity. Mr. Clark stated he was encouraged by the letter in the agenda packet to the Planning Commission from Ms. Gardner encouraging the City Council to assess the capacity because a frank conversation regarding this topic was long overdue. He stressed the importance of identifying all of the areas that needed protection. He expressed a desire that the City of Eugene do its best to create a better relationship with other local government partners, noting there was a very real need to have an honest discussion with those partners to enable appropriate planning. MINUTES—Eugene City Council October 24, 2007 Page 4 Work Session