CC Minutes - 02/28/05 WS - Laserfiche WebLink

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Ms. Ortiz expressed appreciation for the work that the department did, saying that she felt safe when she traveled on City streets in icy conditions to reach her place of employment. She commended the staff materials. Ms. Ortiz was happy to hear that the City attempted to save money when it could without specific direction from the council. Ms. Solomon, seconded by Ms. Taylor, moved to adopt Resolution 4286, adopting ice and snow removal policies with the addition of Section 6 from Resolution 4784, and repealing Resolution 4278. The motion passed unanimously, 8:0. C. LANE COUNTY TOURISM INFRASTRUCTURE TASK FORCE UPDATE Mayor Piercy introduced the item, reminding the council of the regional tourism summit that occurred in January 2004. Since that time, the Lane County Tourism Infrastructure Task Force was formed and had met over the past year. Members were present tonight to share their findings. She encouraged the council to consider the presentation and moving forward with the recommendations. Library, Recreation, and Cultural Services Department Director Angel Jones introduced Bob Zagorin, chair of the task force, and Kari Westlund, chief executive officer of the Convention and Visitors Bureau of Lane County (CVALCO). Mr. Zagorin thanked former Mayor James Torrey and Mayor Piercy for their work supporting the task force. Mr. Zagorin emphasized the importance of tourism to the region and suggested a logical link between tourism and Eugene's model of sustainability and local economic development. He said that the summit produced a consensus about the importance of tourism and led to the formation of the task force. He reviewed the findings of the task force, which confirmed that Lane County had a large and growing gap in terms of convention and meeting space and first-class hotel lodging. Mr. Zagorin said the task force was asking all of the communities in Lane County to commit to the goal of maintaining the County's place as the leading tourism destination in Oregon outside of Portland and to commit key staff to a technical working group to study the infrastructure gaps and problems. Mr. Zagorin reported that the task force developed a list of key tourism projects, although the list was not prioritized. He reviewed the list, which included a regional convention center with full-service hotel, an outdoor sports complex, and a visitor center. Mr. Zagorin said the task force did not endorse any project or convention center site as it believed a careful cost/benefit analysis was the first order of business for the new regional commission. He acknowledged the need for funding but emphasized that the task force offered no recommendations relating to taxing authority. He further emphasized the task force's commitment to public-private partnerships. Ms. Westlund provided a PowerPoint presentation entitled Tourism Infrastructure in Lane County. Copies of the presentation were made available to the council. She noted the adopted goals of the task force: 1) The City of Eugene will work with Lane County and other cities throughout the county to retain our collective position as the largest regional hub of tourism and convention activity in Oregon outside the Portland metro area; and 2) The City of Eugene will work with the Lane Board of County Commissioners MINUTES--Eugene City Council February 28, 2005 Page 8 Work Session