11/17/1982 Meeting - Laserfiche WebLink

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j M I NUT E S e Eugene City Council City Council Chamber November 17, 1982 11:45 a.m. COUNCILORS PRESENT: John Ball, D. W. Hamel, Mark Lindberg, Gretchen Miller, Emily Schue, Betty Smith, Cynthia Wooten (commencement to 1:10 p.m.). COUNCILOR ABSENT: Sr i an Ob i e . Adjourned meeting of the City Council of the City of Eugene, Oregon, was called to order by His Honor Mayor Gus Keller. I. ITEMS FROM MAYOR & COUNCIL, APPOINTMENTS, ANNOUNCEMENTS, AGENDA ADJUSTMENTS A. Petition Regarding Naming of the Hult Center for the Performing Arts Mayor Keller referred to a petition received by the council at its November 10, 1982, meeting regarding the naming of the Hult Center for the Performing Arts. e He noted that a lawsuit had been filed on the matter and asked Tim Sercombe of the City Attorney's Office to review the suit and discuss the alternatives for action available to the council. Mr. Sercombe said that a complaint had been filed in Lane County Circuit Court on November 8 regarding alleged violations of the Oregon Open Meetings Law at the council's meeting of September 23, 1982. He said that the allegations were 1) that the meeting was not open to the public, since the meeting was held at a banquet with a charge of $10 per person; 2) that the required 24 hours' notice was not provided in a manner reasonably calculated to reach the public; and 3) that the notice was not specific enough as to the subject(s) to be covered at the meeting. Mr. Sercombe said that the intent of the suit was to void the council's action and to recover attorney's fees and court costs for the complainant. Mr. Sercombe said that it was the opinion of the City Attorney's Office that the case lacked merit and could be decided in a summary manner. Regarding the first allegation, Mr. Sercombe said that the defense was factual: employees at the doors to the room where the meeting was held had been instructed to allow interested people to attend. Regarding the second charge, he said that the defense was also factual: notice of the meeting was provided to local radio and television stations and the local newspaper more than 24 hours before the September 23 meeting, and the September 23 meeting was announced at the council's Wednesday noon meeting on September 22. Mr. Sercombe said that the defense to the third allegation was both factual and legal. He referred to Section 192.640 of Oregon Revised Statutes, which requires that the principle agenda items be e listed in advance on notices only for regular meetings and not for special meetings, such as the September 23 special meeting. Mr. Sercombe said that even MINUTES--Eugene City Council November 17, 1982 Page 1