08/12/1985 Meeting - Laserfiche WebLink

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Ms. Bascom said she had attended three meetings, with about 30 to 55 people at e ea ch. She said she felt there was a need for education and clarification on the Riverfront Project and added that she was hopeful that support cou1 d be achieved with information. Ms. Wooten said she felt there had been a failure to communicate a precise vision of what the Riverfront Project was, who it would benefit, how it would be accomp1 ished, etc. Ms. Bascom said concerns also had been expressed at two meetings about making the ballot measures specific, and she said residents had been reluctant to think in different terms about community improvements. She added that some people had wanted to wait for the outcome of the sales tax vote, and said she had not noticed any specific opinions tied to the sales tax, but she did feel it would have some effect, pOssibly by lowering property taxes and making an income tax more acceptable. Mr. Holmer suggested that even if the state sales tax fails, a city sales tax might be acceptable. Ms. Bascom said she did not think a city sales tax could be realized. Ms. Bascom said a County gas tax had been suggested as a way of financing transportation system improvements, and Mr. Miller said he had heard that suggestion as well. Ms. Bascom a1 so noted that only 94, peop1 e out of 1,000 had said the 1 ibrary was not important. Ms. Wooten said the small service-related business people she had spoken with generally were not committing to an income tax. She sa i d concern had been expressed about whether the income tax wou1 d apply to small businesses and whether that was fair or counterproductive. She said she had noted general It support for the airport, with concerns about phasing in expansion and about the information used to justify expansion. Ms. Wooten sa id a vision was needed for the Riverfront Project, and she sug- gested developing an explanatory brochure. She said people interested in downtown development had suggested engaging in more aggressive retail devel- opment efforts, possibly including rent subsidies and going through agents to attract major reta i1 ers. She said the need for transpOrtation systems beyond those already planned had not been understood, and she noted a general lack of enthusiasm for those projects. Regarding entrance beautification, Ms. Wooten said she had noticed a need for better planning at the time of street widening or improvements, and she said simple, inexpensive projects were favored, to be paid for through a local gas tax. She said people appeared to support 1 ibrary expansion, but strongly preferred that it be done at the existing site, and Ms. Ehrman agreed. Ms. Wooten also said a replacement for Jefferson Pool was desired, and she said residents still did not believe Jefferson was beyond repair. She sa i d strong support exi sted for capi tal improvements, but more speci fic informa tion was desired. Ms. Wooten said she believed CIP had strong support because the direct benefits were clear to people, and she noted a need to clarify the benefits of projects. She added that she did not think an income tax wou1 d pass, even at 1/4,percent, but she did see strong support for a gas tax. e MINUTES--City Council Dinner Session August 12, 1985 Pa ge 4,