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e Mr. Bennett asked about the status of the Retail Task Force, observing that the task force has broad-based community representation. He said the idea behind the task force was that it would not get bogged down in street openings. He understood the role of the Retail Task Force to be an examination of consensus in terms of vision of where the retail sector should be downtown, and how downtown should operate. Do we want office space at ground level or not? Is it possible to have a well-thought tenant mix plan under centralized retail management or not? Where is it appropriate to have night life? Where is it appropriate to have restaurants with sidewalk cafes? Where is it appropriate to have soft goods retail or service retail? Mr. Bennett said this is no different from the considerations that take place when designing an enclosed suburban shopping center. He understood that as part of this mission, the task force might take advantage of outside expertise. Mr. Bennett said regardless of the different points of view expressed on the task force, the responsibility of each faction is to develop a specific vision of downtown. Issues such as the potential, or lack of, for mixed use; the potential, or lack of, for housing; the potential, or lack, of speculation office space; all of these issues can be addressed on a comprehensive basis. Mr. Bennett said he was convinced of this approach. Even if it was politically possible to make a case to the community for opening Olive Street, this does not address in a comprehensive way, the issues surrounding the success of downtown and its place in the community. He said he was very interested in the task force's work and did not wish it to become bogged down in circulation and access issues immediately. Ms. Aspinwall-Lamberts said the task force has not lost sight of the e objectives described by Mr. Bennett. Access will come up in the task force discussions. There is no way to address tenant mix issues, for example, without some discussion of access. She anticipated that the task force will proceed on the course outlined by Mr. Bennett. She said the task force is very diverse in composition and, after only a few meetings, the group is still team-building. She described this progress as excellent, saying that she had never before seen people with such diverse interests and points of view come together so quickly. Ms. Prichard said the task force had reached a stopping point when it attempted to come up with a marketing plan without addressing access issues. The group resolved to develop a plan by assuming that all access questions are resolved. Addressing Mr. Bennett, Ms. Bascom said she was under the impression that Mr. Bennett thought the access issue should be discussed at the same time as other issues being worked on by the task force, but his remarks tonight seemed to indicate that he believed that other issues should be resolved prior to the task force tackling access. Mr. Bennett said it was his view that it is difficult to accomplish centralized retail management without looking at the physical environment. He said some people disagree with his point of view. The task force has an opportunity to present different points of view, with supporting evidence, based on the group's collective vision of what downtown should look like. He did not think it was helpful to e MINUTES--City Council/Downtown Commission-- October 9, 1989 Page 7 Dinner/Work Session