CC MInutes - 07/16/07 Public Hearing

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housing. He calculated that the City could provide $200 per month vouchers to 1,000 people for 10 years with $24 million to lower the cost of apartments downtown. He noted that one of the big issues was that more people were needed downtown. He believed that if the housing was built the number of people in the downtown area would increase. th Drix , 307½ 14 Avenue, said he was proud to be present for the hearing. He believed that Eugene was a connected town. He likened the development project to kids needing to clean up their rooms. He averred that the project created a beautiful opportunity. He specifically thought the “two holes” presented an opportunity to build something better. He thought the City should tap into the many people of Eugene because they were a real creative resource. He volunteered to help clean up the holes. rd Laura Byxbe , 677 West 23 Avenue, believed the City was about to commit a lot of public money that would be borrowed. She acknowledged that the City was expecting future revenues to pay the debt. She believed the project could be done for less. She suggested that local architects be invited to submit proposals for smaller pieces of the project. She felt local businesses could relocate from existing locations into the redeveloped parts of the project. She did not think it was a good idea to let an out of town developer build an “instant downtown.” Greg Bryant , 2173 Alder Street, explained that he ran a non-profit dance center downtown, the Tango Center, at 194 West Broadway. He said they had worked hard to develop the Tango Center and had invested a lot of money. He averred that the Tango Center managed to create “an exciting place after 8 p.m.” He invited people to come down and check it out. He felt that putting more money into an urban renewal district was not a good idea. He asserted that “the more power [one has] the more destruction [one is] capable of.” He alleged that people who were a threat to people “with lots of money and plans and fantasies” without a broad interface with the people they would affect typically disagreed with their own empowerment. He believed this was why “colonialization was such a popular mechanism.” He felt any study of urban renewal literature would primarily be a “study of human rights violations.” He believed that urban renewal had been a “major tool” for such violations over the past 50 years. He urged the council to be careful when expanding and funding the urban renewal district. Carolyn Kranzler , 2660 Cresta De Ruta, supported the increase in the maximum indebtedness and the extension of the termination date. She averred that the City had a tool and it should take “good advantage of it.” She noted that she had been involved with the DIVA since its inception. She said it would be displaced with the development but she was not afraid; she believed it would do better in a new place. She did not think the buildings being considered for the project were worth saving. Lloyd Holtcamp , 24325 Vaughn Road, Veneta, stated that he owned property at 2171 Madison Street. He noted he was responding to the card he had received at the property. He believed that the amount of money the amendment to the plan would allow to be spent on urban renewal was large enough that it should be placed before the voters. He related that an urban renewal project in Lake Oswego had resulted in an initiative petition to have anything over $2 million go before the voters. Zachary Vishanoff , Patterson Street, commended Councilor Bettman. He believed that she was adept at recognizing a “sham process.” He opined that Eugene had a “sham process culture.” He said engaging the public could be exciting and would lead to the creation of more popular spaces, such as parks in the downtown area. MINUTES—Eugene City Council July 16, 2007 Page 8 Work Session