CC Minutes - 01/14/08 Work Session

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Ms. Bettman said she did not object to the policy of not opposing other jurisdictions' projects, but it was not fair or correct that those were represented as Eugene's priorities. She said in the past Eugene representatives were put in the position of lobbying for other jurisdictions' priorities without any idea of the council's position on them. Ms. Ortiz remarked that there was more to the issue and the Mayor and CCIGR chair, who would be Eugene's United Front representatives, were clear about the council's intent. She did not feel a motion was necessary. She said the term "united front" meant that local jurisdictions moved forward together and perhaps the name should be changed if that was no longer the intent. Mayor Piercy said her intent was to clarify in the 2008 federal priorities document what it represented. Ms. Bettman said her motion was meant to articulate that the council was not giving its United Front representatives the ability to endorse projects that it had not approved. Mr. Clark remarked that the mayor of Springfield had missed a flight and was unable to participate in the 2007 United Front trip and Mayor Piercy had generously agreed to lobby for Springfield's priorities in his absence. He felt that was a good thing to do as it promoted regional harmony and was a cooperative effort. He would not support the motion. The motion failed, 3:5; Ms. Bettman, Ms. Taylor and Mr. Zelenka voting in favor. C. WORK SESSION: City Manager Recruitment Human Resources Manager Lauren Chouinard referred to the agenda packet materials representing data sorted to compare city manager total compensation from major Oregon cities and from selected cities in western states and to compare local public CEO compensation. Ms. Bettman expressed her interest in a system that would be competitive in attracting an excellent candidate and it appeared the City's pay scale was out of sync with other cities, although she was not certain how to establish a threshold commensurate with the candidate's current salary. She said that beyond that the six steps could be utilized. Mr. Chouinard said that the vast majority of city manager positions did not have a salary range or steps; the salary was negotiated with the candidate and annual raises were decided based on merit. He said in some cases a cost-of-living adjustment was included. He noted that the City's compensation was not consistent with the broader regional market, which could make it difficult to compete. He said deferred compensation was also an area of inconsistency and suggested that any adjustments be made in salary and deferred compensation. Ms. Bettman said it appeared preferable to not establish a range, but rather negotiate on a case-by-case basis with a candidate. She was inclined to support Option C. Ms. Ortiz said she also was in favor of Option C. She did not support an automatic cost-of-living adjustment and agreed that deferred compensation was desirable. Mr. Clark said he could support Option C as it provided the greatest degree of flexibility, but asked councilors to bear in mind that it was acceptable to offer a lower salary than other cities as Eugene offered so many other amenities to residents. He characterized it as the "green paycheck." MINUTES—Eugene City Council January 14, 2008 Page 7 Work Session