CC Minutes - 01/24/05 Mtg - Laserfiche WebLink

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Kathy Ging, 2878 Harris Street, spoke in support of the Community Center for the Performing Arts, also known as the Wow Hall. She said the center and the City were at a crossroads regarding the land purchased by the City. She called the WOW Hall a unique community treasure. She predicted that development only 13 feet away from the WOW Hall would harm the structure. She stressed that the WOW Hall was a historic site that had been unchanged. She averred that she and others did not want any money spent by the neighboring developer to mitigate the noise issue for the WOW Hall. She expressed concern that any changes they incurred on the building could cause it to lose its National Historic Registry standing. Instead, she wished for the Ridenour Building to be left as it was. She felt the building was still viable and that it would serve as an adequate buffer to mitigate noise. Mayor Piercy closed the Public Forum. She conveyed her appreciation for the work that local people were doing to raise money for victims of the tsunami disaster in Southeast Asia. She also reaffirmed her commitment to working with the City Council for a stronger, better relationship with residents of the Santa Clara/River Road neighborhood. Mayor Piercy offered to meet with Ms. Dunn and the other victims of the two former police officers to convey her personal sorrow for the trauma they experienced. She acknowledged that what the women had gone through must have been terrible. Mayor Piercy called on the council for responses and comments. Councilor Pap6 concurred with Mayor Piercy's comments with regard to the last issue and offered his condolences and apologies on behalf of the City. He wished to clarify that the Police Commission was not the only body that was looking into the incident and asked City Manager Taylor to repeat the toll free telephone number for the International City Managers Association (ICMA) and the Police Executive Research Forum (PERF). City Manager Taylor listed the number to call: 1-866-292-4860. In response to further questions from Councilor Pap~, City Manager Taylor said complaints could be made anonymously and that the resulting report from the review would be completed by March 1, 2005. Councilor Pap~ said he did not realize that the train whistles had been allowed to be louder. He commented that he could hear them in his neighborhood, which was some distance away from the train tracks. City Manager Taylor stated that train whistles had been an issue of community concern since the 1980s. He said there was no specific proposal but as part of the work with the Public Works Department staff was trying to outline what it would take to declare portions of the community ~whistle-free." He acknowledged there were traffic safety barriers, as cited in Public Forum testimony, that would be required at the at-grade right-of ways and then there was a subsequent procedure required to get such a designation. Councilor Pap~ requested a memorandum on the possible improvements and what it would take to get the approval of the Federal Railroad Administration for a whistle-free designation. Councilor Ortiz commended Ms. Dunn for her bravery for coming forward to speak in the Public Forum. She wanted the City to look into the issues of why there were people in the sex trade and why people were using drugs on the street. She called it a societal ill and hoped the City Council could delve further into the issue. MINUTES--Eugene City Council January 24, 2005 Page 5 Regular Session