09/09/1991 Meeting - Laserfiche WebLink

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-- sions (this survey was done~~rior to the City's public information e program) ; * only one third of phone survey respondents believe that the City does not have enough money to continue services; * City government is considered the "best value" (school districts came in first with What's Happening respondents); * 50 percent of newspaper respondents are happy with opportunities for input in City decisions (70 percent for workshop and phone survey respondents); and * 85 percent of workshop participants thought the materials were at least moderately clear and most agreed that the workshops allowed for effective input. Ms. Carmichael said suggestions for improving the Eugene Decisions process included: distributing information earlier in the process, having more dis: cussion, and having more widespread citizen involvement. Many said they liked the process. B. Development of Preliminary Strategies Ms. Bellamy said the council should decide how many preliminary strategies to present to the public. After the next round of public input, the council e should be able to narrow the number of strategies for further consideration. She presented examples of strategies that staff has devised, including reduc- tion, enhancement, and maintenance of current services. Mr. Green said that people have expressed interest in knowing in advance the implications of their choices. Staff will address that in general terms in its presentation to the council on September 16. Several councilors felt that people are inclined to reduce services they are not cl ear about. Ms. Bascom felt that Cultural/leisure Services has a nega- tive connotation that may have something to do with that department being the prime target of cuts by the public. She suggested the department be referred to as Parks, Recreation and Cultural Services. Ms. Bellamy said the council may want to pursue some of the long-term strate- gies, such as privatization, consolidation, and volunteerism; but it is dif- ficult to estimate savings at this time. She said council needs to decide how to present these for public input in November. Ms. Ehrman felt the City had a responsibility to respond to public sugges- tions, adding it is part of the education process. Mr. Robinette said that public education would be enhanced when strategies are presented to them. After a brief discussion, the council decided to develop six strategies (two of each for service reduction, enhancement, and maintenance). Mr. Nicholson e MINUTES--Eugene City Council September 9, 1991 Page 3 Dinner Work Session