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On February 9, 2004, the council conducted a public hearing on the amendments and received testimony from twelve people. On February 25, 2004, the council considered the amendments for final action and voted to expand the boundary to include EWEB property up to the corner of 4th and High. Final action was tabled in order to refine the expansion options and rewrite the ordinance language to accommodate the new boundary. Policy Issues Improving the viability of downtown has been a community and City Council goal, in some form, for decades. The existing Downtown Plan includes portions of the Riverfront Renewal District. The adopted Growth Management Policies, the Vision for Greater Downtown Eugene, and the council' s 2001-2002 Vision and Goals Statement all include policies or strategies to create a more vital downtown. There is a close relationship between urban renewal goals and these policies. The update of the Downtown Plan highlights the need for development tools and points to urban renewal as the most valuable tool option. Growth Management Policies Six of the adopted Growth Management polices particularly relate to implementing the downtown vision: Policy 2 Encourage in-fill, mixed-use, redevelopment, and higher density development. Policy 3 Encourage a mix of business and residential uses downtown using incentives and zoning. Policy 4 Improve the appearance of buildings and landscapes. Policy 10 Encourage the creation of transportation-efficient land use patterns and implementation of nodal development concepts. Policy 14 Development shall be required to pay the full cost of extending infrastructure and services, except that the City will examine ways to subsidize the costs of providing infrastructure or offer other incentives that support higher-density infill, mixed use, and redevelopment. Policy 16 Focus efforts to diversify the local economy and provide family-wage jobs principally by supporting local, and environmentally sensitive businesses. Direct available financial and regulatory incentives to support these efforts. Council Goal Action Priority 2002-2003 City Council Vision and Goals Statement Sustainable Community Development · Prioritize and implement next steps in Growth Management. · Promote a variety of additional housing in the downtown core and provide stability to downtown and neighborhoods adjacent to downtown by preserving existing housing and residential uses. Financial and/or Resource Considerations An analysis of the district's revenue projections and potential expenditures is included in the report as Attachment D. Other Background Information The update of the Riverfront Urban Renewal Plan has been treated as a high-profile action and there has been significant opportunity for public comment. At each of the public information sessions related to the update of the Downtown Plan, use of Urban Renewal was highlighted as a tool. The most recent L:\CMO\2004 Council Agendas\M040310\S040310A. doc