02/17/1989 Meeting - Laserfiche WebLink

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e - tion to process, but opposition to blind progress. He felt that there were a number issues in the community in which a blend of opportunity and concern for the environment could be realized. After the first round of more personal thoughts around the table, Sharon Thorne asked the group to share their personal goals as Councilors for the next year. Green began by saying that he wanted to focus on bringing the community closer to the City Council; improving relationships with constituents so that they feel that they are a part of the process. He felt that the Council needs to take the first step in this process. He would also like to focus on parks and recreational opportunities and have a supervised park program, like the one he experienced as a child in New Orleans. He said that the real quality of Eugene is in its livability, but that we can make it better. He would like to explore other sources of revenue to help generate a better economy for the community. Again he underlined his desire that all citizens in the community feel a part of the process and get the most out of what our community has to offer. Bascom stated that one of her concerns are parks. She mentioned the formation of the Eugene Parks Foundation, the City Pride project and the Tree Commission. She feels that Eugene's tree program is poorer than those in Seattle, Portland, or Salem and wants to work to change this. The PARCS Department has been working with the Tree Commission to develop new resources and programs for the improvement of trees. She feels that Alton Baker Park is a challenge, and wondered how to deal with such a park in a municipal area. She supports the concept of "Eugene Summer" and feels that it could be very attractive to tourists. If the library measures passes she intends to spend a great deal of time on how it will all fit together. She expressed some displeasure about being drawn into the Sister Cities program, and expected that she would go to Irkutz in May which would be a drain on her personal time. Rutan felt that the Council was on course and expressed the sentiment "if it ain't broken, don't fix it" around certain matters. He said that in the last 4 years a great deal has been accomplished, but that we can do a lot more, and continue to support what has been done. He felt the Council has done a good job on the 1988 "short list", and in his review of the City Manager's report on the 1988 Council Goals, felt that the Council has a record of accomplishing what it sets out to do. He cited the library as an example of this. Holmer discussed his style in dealing with issues and said that he hoped to improve his effectiveness by not throwing gasoline on the fire; he said that he finally figured out that part of him still was operating in the classroom mode, in which he was more concerned with the "rightness" of the issue rather than winning the issue. He stated that he felt that the Council should focus more on policy and that too much authority has been delegated to boards and commis- sion, for example the library project. He suggested that the Council members might consider discussing the Manager/Council form of government, and felt that the Council is getting too involved in the administrative details of the City operations. Ehrman said that the library is an issue with which she wishes to continue. Her goal in this term is to get the library constructed and finished, and DRAFT COUNCIL GOAL SESSION PAGE 3