Item 2A: Approval of City Council Minutes

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3. PUBLIC HEARING: An Ordinance Concerning Extra-Territorial Water and Sewer Extensions Procedures; and Amending Sections 9.7055, 9.7205, 9.7820, and 9.8121 of the Eugene Code, 1971. Mayor Piercy opened the public hearing and explained the procedures for providing testimony. There being no one wishing to speak, Mayor Piercy closed the public hearing and called for comments from the council. There were no questions or comments from the council. 4. PUBLIC HEARING: An Ordinance Concerning Public Contracting Provisions; Repealing Section 2.150 of the Eugene Code, 1971; Amending Sections 2.1420 and 2.1430 of that Code; and Adding a New Section 2.1447 to that Code. Mayor Piercy opened the public hearing and explained the procedures for providing testimony. There being no one wishing to speak, Mayor Piercy closed the public hearing and called for comments from the council. Councilor Bettman observed that the ordinance gave the purchasing agent a lot of latitude to declare an emergency and establish special circumstances that would allow expenditures without any competition or public bidding. She preferred language that specified the City Manager or designee instead of the purchasing agent. She objected to removal of 2.1430(7)(b) relating to notification of the council and asked to have the language restored. 5. PUBLIC HEARING: An Ordinance Concerning Rental Housing Standards; Amending Section 8.425 of the Eugene Code, 1971; and Repealing Section 5 of Ordinance No. 20239. Mayor Piercy opened the public hearing and explained the procedures for providing testimony. Jim Straub , Owl Road, Eugene, acting president of the Rental Owners Association of Lane County (ROA), said the association currently represented over 960 members covering over 6,500 area rental units. He said the association had a deep commitment to promoting fair housing and landlord/tenant regulations and aggressively educated its members about all laws related to rental housing. He stated that the ROA had been on the interested parties list for housing code issues for the past four years, but had not received any notification about the council work session or request to staff to draft language for expansion of the current code. That information became available through a chance encounter with a council member last week. He said landlords, as the sole funding source for the housing program, had earned the right to have a voice in changes to the regulations and asked the council to delay its vote on the ordinance to allow the ROA to provide input. Heather Hannah , Avalon Street, Eugene, ROA board member, addressed concerns with incorporating the issue of mold into the housing code. She said it would open a Pandora’s Box by requiring standards, limits, identification procedures and testing parameters. She said mold was everywhere and not all mold was harmful; expanding the code to include it could force expensive processes on property owners when it might not be a health hazard. She strongly urged the council to reconsider including mold. She said housing programs in other jurisdictions were watching closely as Eugene’s decision regarding mold could have ramifications across the state. She said there were no state or federal guidelines related to acceptable levels MINUTES—Eugene City Council May 19, 2008 Page 5 Public Hearing