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<br />Mayor Piercy determined there was no one else wishing to speak and closed the public hearing. She called <br />for questions and comments. <br /> <br />Councilor Bettman asked if staff had spoken to LCC about the Centre Court building. Mike Sullivan, <br />Planning and Development Department, replied that staff was engaged in ongoing conversation about its <br />space needs in downtown and would follow up on the possibility of using the Centre Court building. <br /> <br />Councilor Taylor thanked Mr. Cassidy for his suggestion regarding the Centre Court building. <br /> <br />Councilor Clark was pleased that Beam had continued its commitment to downtown redevelopment. He still <br />had some questions regarding the project, specifically environmental studies and whether water damage had <br />been assessed. Mr. Sullivan said Beam had conducted extensive investigations and was satisfied with the <br />results. He said the City had provided the initial environmental studies to Beam and thought Beam would <br />also pursue its own studies. <br /> <br />Councilor Solomon asked how many square feet of occupancy had been committed to by the City. Mr. <br />Sullivan replied that no specific commitment had been made but estimated that Beam would require between <br />30,000 and 50,000 square feet to be preleased before moving forward with the project. He said the new <br />building to be constructed on the Aster development site and the existing Centre Court building would total <br />about 120,000 square feet. <br /> <br />Councilor Solomon asked if there would be a cap on costs and when the actual costs would be known. Mr. <br />Sullivan said there would be a maximum cap on the City’s space commitment in the purchase agreement. <br />He said Beam was still working on details of the pro forma that would be attached to the purchase <br />agreement and that would include final lease rates. He expected the rate would be $1.83 per square foot or <br />close to that amount. <br /> <br />Councilor Solomon asked if there was a comparison of that rate to what the City was currently paying in <br />total for the other space that would be vacated in order to move City functions into the Beam project. She <br />asked if there were plans for the sale of other City properties such as 858 Pearl Street. Mr. Ruiz said staff <br />would research the cost issue and provide the information to the council. He said the City was still <br />committed to a private tenant as the first priority, but if the City did become a tenant the intent was to <br />minimize the financial difference and evaluate financial opportunities related to other City properties. <br /> <br />Councilor Solomon expressed concern about moving forward without a clear idea of the cost or adequate <br />information to make a decision. She noted that detailed information on space costs had been provided by <br />staff during discussion of the new City Hall project and should be readily available. She wondered what <br />type of response there might be from local developers to a request for proposals if the City provided the <br />incentive of being the anchor tenant. <br /> <br />Councilor Bettman remarked that local developers had not responded when there was the implied benefit of <br />an incentive. She was concerned that staff was moving forward with plans to vacate 858 Pearl Street and <br />planning to sell it when the council had not provided that direction. She wanted a work session to discuss all <br />aspects of vacating space, including the current cost of space in the Eugene Hotel building and 858 Pearl <br />Street and plans to sell any City-owned property. She also asked how many square feet of space was rented <br />by the Metro Partnership at the Chamber of Commerce office and the cost of that space. <br /> <br /> <br /> <br />MINUTES—Eugene City Council May 19, 2008 Page 11 <br /> Public Hearing <br /> <br />