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Boulevard. She attributed the closing of stores in the downtown area to urban renewal and opined that urban renewal was not necessarily a good thing. She asked if the urban renewal district would raise property taxes and, if so, to what degree. Carlis Nixon, 1556 Willamette Street, remarked that it was difficult not to see this development through the "filter of the research park development" and opined the development had not been an enrichment to Eugene. She asked that all possible care be taken to ensure the natural area adjacent to the river not be environmentally damaged and that unnecessary development of open spaces and natural areas be kept to a minimum. Charles Biggs, 540 Antelope Way, requested the record be left open for an additional seven days. He asserted that the Riverfront Research District had been conceived of 20 years ago. He questioned whether the debt and the projections made regarding in the district the present proposal were being truthful to the public. He thought it could take 60 years to achieve the full build-out. He questioned the merit of taking the revenue from the schools and the City. Jana Rygas, 2476 Nixon Street, was concerned about the removal of some of this land from the tax rolls which support the things the community needs such as fire, police, and aquatic facilities - all supported by the General Fund. She averred that, should the land be taken off the tax rolls, there needed to be accountability and that the City should be able to reliably predict that this move would benefit the community in the long-run. She suggested that there had been a "mixed track record" in the City of Eugene and some projects had worked well and some had not. She felt there were not enough safeguards in place. She disputed the language that referred to "blight" in the neighborhood, stating that though there were parking lots there was also a substantial natural area along the river. Ms. Rygas alleged that the plans called for a road to be situated next to the river. She opposed this, as the Willamette Greenway should be protected. She urged the council to build in more control "up front" to guide very specifically which projects should go forward and which priorities should be adopted. Mayor Torrey stated that, barring objections from staff and the City Council, action on Agenda Item (9) would be deferred to a later meeting due to time constraints. Terry Connolly, 1401 Willamette Street, spoke on behalf of the Eugene Area Chamber of Commerce. He called urban renewal districts one of the few tools that a city had to help with redevelopment and revitalization. Regarding the riverfront district, Mr. Connolly asserted that the development of the courthouse would serve as a catalyst for new development and extending the boundary to the courthouse area would provide the City with the tools necessary to bring the planning concepts to fruition. Ray Wolfe, 1473 Luella Street, submitted documents into the record. He opined that the timing of the urban renewal district could not be worse as Ballot Measure 30 had so recently been defeated. He alleged there had never been an objective study of the urban renewal results from past projects. He felt it would be prudent to allow the ad hoc committee on economic development to fulfill its charge prior to embarking on such a project. He asserted that tax increment financing would set a preemptive priority on sacrosanct tax increment funds. He thought there were other items in the General Fund budget that held a greater priority. He called attention to the bicycle tunnel built under the railroad tracks by the Riverfront Research Park and called it an example of poor spending priorities. MINUTES--Eugene City Council February 9, 2004 Page 11 Regular Meeting