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

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Mr. Poling opened the public hearing. Kevin Matthews, Box 1588, president of the Friends of Eugene and the Southeast Neighbors, said certainly ;;most of the stuff" in the CIP ;;bubbled up" from long-range plans, but asserted that some things had come up ;;rather suddenly" and were seemingly contradictory to such plans. He felt that what this meant was that it was simultaneously a long-range planning document which had marbleized in with it the projects and politics of the moment. He opined that the participation in the hearing was indicative of the level of public understanding about what was going on with the program. He said the council was the elected body that should provide a higher level filter on the community values. He averred that this was where the council should pay closer attention to the CIP. Mr. Matthews listed some of the projects that the Friends of Eugene did not think reflected community values and should not move forward in the CIP, as follows: B(6) City Hall, T(3) Patterson trench, P(6) Willamette River corridor acquisition (called ;;another subsidy for Triad at the riverfront"), and S(2) and (3) Greenhill and Royal node stormwater projects. He alleged that public sentiment supported an emphasis on acquisition rather than development in the Parks and Open Space CIP. He questioned the necessity of three street upgrade and capacity enhancements in his neighborhood. He also questioned the wisdom of including enhancements to the PeaceHealth Hilyard Street campus. He opined that without knowing what would happen there, nothing should be budgeted for it. Councilor Poling closed the public hearing. Councilor Bettman pointed out that she had asked staff to draft a motion for amending the ordinance to adopt the CIP. Councilor Bettman agreed with Mr. Matthews' assertion that there was not enough citizen involvement in the CIP process. She did not believe it was a failure on the part of the public. She alleged it was a failure on the part of the City to engage the public in a meaningful way. She hoped the City would find a way to make the document more %omprehensive." She wanted people to understand what the City was thinking of buying if the conditions were right and to understand how it would impact their lives and neighborhoods. She called it %ad" and %ounter to what the City was trying to achieve" in terms of broad public support for the work when no one showed up to testify on this. Councilor Taylor echoed Councilor Bettman's sentiments. She averred it was the City's job to find a way to get people involved. She also supported land acquisition over park development. City Manager Taylor said many of the ideas that were in the CIP came out of extensive public involvement processes, such as the Parks, Recreation, and Open Space Plan, the Stormwater Plan, and TransPlan. He recognized that it was a challenge to find ways to involve neighborhoods and individual citizens and attain the best possible public process. 4. PUBLIC HEARING and POSSIBLE ACTION: An Ordinance Providing For Withdrawal of Territories From the River Road Water District and the River Road Park and Recreation District, From the Santa Clara Water District, and From the Junction City Water Control District MINUTES--Eugene City Council February 28, 2005 Page 7 Regular Session