Item 2A: Approval of City Council Minutes

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that the construction jobs were being included in the tax credits as well. He greatly appreciated that job creation was being recognized “on the front end,” as well as when construction was completed. Roger Kaldahl , 2350 North Terry Street, #99, stated that he represented approximately 200 construction men and women who worked and lived locally and underscored that they supported local businesses and paid local taxes. He stated that they supported the West Eugene Enterprise resolution. He said when considering giving a contractor a construction bid, one would expect the contract to be a responsible citizen that paid employees a living wage, provided a full family health plan, and supported the community’s future by supporting State-approved apprenticeship programs. Majeeska Seese-Green , P.O. Box 11692, conveyed the support of the Whiteaker Community Council for the community standards being considered by the council. nd Mitch Hanan , 385 72 Street, Springfield, supported the ordinance. He said he worked in the construc- tion trade. He felt it was important to support living wage jobs with good family benefits. Mayor Piercy conveyed Lane County’s support for the existing recommendations submitted by the Enterprise Zone Task Force, as provided by Lane County Commissioner Bobby Green. Mayor Piercy closed the public hearing. She called for council questions and comments. Councilor Solomon, seconded by Councilor Ortiz, moved to adopt Council Bill 4923, an ordinance establishing local criteria applicable in the West Eugene Enterprise Zone and adopting a public benefit scoring system repealing Resolution 4851 and providing an effec- tive date. Councilor Bettman opined that it was unfortunate that the criteria applied to “such a minimal amount” of the development in the zone. She felt the criteria were negligible. She said she supported community standards, but the effort of the committee had failed to tie the standards to jobs created and there were several pieces she considered to be “giveaways” in terms of the point system. She called it “almost an illusion of standards.” She indicated she would oppose the motion. Councilor Pryor acknowledged Mr. Cassidy’s comments. He thought it was an intriguing option, but since they were working with Lane County as a partner and the City was trying coordinate its efforts with those of the County, he would support the motion as it stood. He thought it would be possible to discuss an additional point for higher wages at a later date. Councilor Kelly said he wished to echo “90 percent” of Councilor Bettman’s comments. He thought it unfortunate that the community standards applied to “such a small percentage” of the tax exemption. He continued to feel that the council was misled during the original application of the Enterprise Zone as to what could be included in terms of community standards. He commented that he would have opposed the Enterprise Zone had he known that the community standards did not govern the entire tax exemption. He said he would support the motion as it was better than nothing. Councilor Taylor called the standards “meaningless” and only slightly better than the previous standards. She said she would oppose the motion. MINUTES—Eugene City Council May 8, 2006 Page 18 Regular Meeting