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<br />M I N U T E S <br /> <br /> <br />Eugene City Council <br />Work Session <br />McNutt Room—Eugene City Hall <br /> <br /> May 17, 2006 <br /> Noon <br /> <br />COUNCILORS PRESENT: Jennifer Solomon, Andrea Ortiz, Bonny Bettman, David Kelly, Gary <br />Papé, George Poling, Chris Pryor. <br /> <br />COUNCILORS ABSENT: Betty Taylor. <br /> <br /> <br />A. WORK SESSION: City Council Priority Issue – Develop a Strategy to Help the Homeless in <br />Eugene <br /> <br />Her Honor Mayor Kitty Piercy called the meeting of the Eugene City Council to order. She announced that <br />Public Works Director Kurt Corey was named one of the top ten public works leaders of the year by the <br />American Public Works Association (APWA). <br /> <br />City Manager Dennis Taylor introduced Library, Recreation, and Cultural Services Executive Director <br />Angel Jones and Urban Services Manager Richie Weinman to present options for assisting the homeless <br />population and/or addressing the local impacts of homelessness. <br /> <br />Ms. Jones said the presentation would provide information obtained from local service providers, community <br />stakeholders, the homeless population, and advocates for the homeless and frame a discussion of options for <br />the council to consider when it provided direction to staff. She said that many of those who participated in <br />the examination of options were in the audience and available to answer questions. <br /> <br />Mr. Weinman said the City’s staff team and others in the community worked together to develop a strategy <br />to help the homeless. He used a slide presentation to illustrate the issues, needs, conclusions, and response <br />options. He hoped to obtain direction from the council in several areas: budget parameters, target <br />population(s), and preferred response. He said the homeless had many faces and homelessness was the most <br />acute symptom of poverty. He said there were two categories of homelessness: situational and chronic. He <br />said that many people experienced situational homelessness because of an unanticipated financial crisis; <br />situational homelessness was often preventable and people often regained housing. He said those who did <br />not return to housing became chronically homeless and the chronic population was increasing and the most <br />expensive to address. He said in Eugene over 1,300 people were assisted by shelters or turned away on any <br />given night. He said the homeless population included families, youth and children, adults without children <br />living with them, single, chronically homeless adults, the mentally ill and veterans. He summarized the <br />conclusions of the work group: <br /> <br />? <br /> Homelessness is very costly to the community <br />? <br /> Homelessness will not go away on its own <br />? <br /> If not dealt with now, the problem will continue to affect all of Eugene <br /> <br /> <br />MINUTES—Eugene City Council May 17, 2006 Page 1 <br /> Work Session <br /> <br />