Item 3A: Approval of City Council Minutes

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4. ACTION: Motion to Reconsider Area 15: Jefferson Westside Neighborhood Councilor Papé, seconded by Councilor Solomon, moved to substitute the following mo- tion for the tabled motion he made earlier in the evening during the work session: to initi- ate amendment of the Eugene-Springfield Metropolitan General Area Plan (Metro Plan), of the Jefferson/Farwest Refinement Plan, and the Land Use Code to limit the subject area to Low-Density Residential development. In addition, the motion would direct the City Man- ager to make this one task one of the high priority tasks on the Planning Commission work plan and to accomplish this as quickly as practicable within the parameters of the amend- ment process. Unless the council took further action with regard to the subject area, the subject area shall revert to allow Low- to Medium-Density Residential development on July 1, 2008. Councilor Papé remarked that as he understood it, this was the only neighborhood affected by the housekeeping amendments the council approved. He hoped that the City could get “ahead of the game” in terms of opportunity siting and to the kinds of infill standards that were needed so the City could develop the kind of density intended through the Metro Plan. Councilor Kelly asked his colleagues to consider his comments from the work session as they contemplated their votes. Councilor Bettman indicated she intended to support the motion. She believed the City could absorb increased population without “destroying neighborhoods.” She encouraged her colleagues to look at this motion as a way to put things back the way they were before they adopted the housekeeping amendments to the Metro Plan in ignorance of the actual explicit impact to the neighborhood. She averred that the motion before the council would start the public process and would allow people the opportunity to fairly participate in decisions made regarding their neighborhood and homes. Councilor Ortiz stated that she could not support the motion because she did not consider it to be the council’s highest priority. She acknowledged that the neighborhood managed to get together and solidify their vision and bring it forward. Her concern with the motion was in line with her concern regarding the livability of all neighborhoods. She understood that a neighborhood would prefer to keep their area as pristine as possible, but she felt that the more barriers put up against densifying a neighborhood the less opportunity other people had to live in better neighborhoods and to have better lives. Councilor Pryor supported the substitute motion. He said the real focus for him was not whether or not it was a certain level of density; rather he wanted to place a high priority on getting some standards that could be used in all neighborhoods. He averred that the City needed to manage growth in a thoughtful and careful way that both acknowledged and recognized the need to keep neighborhoods as livable as possible as Eugene accommodated further growth and density. He reiterated his support for the motion, adding his prediction that it would only force the issue to come up in another way. Councilor Taylor called the motion a step toward correcting a mistake. She felt it was only to protect the neighborhoods that homeowners had bought into in order to protect their investments in the neighborhood. She felt this motion would bring justice to the neighbors and would be an asset to the entire community by protecting a central neighborhood, while working to prevent urban sprawl. MINUTES—Eugene City Council September 11, 2006 Page 6 Regular Meeting