11/23/1977 Meeting - Laserfiche WebLink

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. Ms. Smith wondered if there were any efforts underway to use the site specified as 6-B as space for a hotel development. Mr. Baumgartner said the Commission had had some initial contacts and had referred those to the ERA. He said it was assumed by the Commission that City agencies would follow up on those initial requests and the Commission would work with the City agencies. Mr. Lieuallen reviewed the process for Council. He said some felt Commission members were not getting involved as much as might be desired. The suggestion was made that the Commission get more deeply involved, and Mr. Lieuallen noted he had visited several sites in California with the architect and staff to look at and talk about how facilities were developed, financial planning, and role in the community. He felt it very beneficial that that was happening. He said the Commission will take a fairly active role from now on. He said reports from the Commission process will have a great deal of citizen involvement, with reports to Council as to how work is pro- ceeding. He felt there was a great deal of understanding about what the City wanted it to do with this civic center, and he felt very good about the process as it was evolving. He encouraged Council and the public to call staff or persons involved if there were any questions. He reassured Council that the Commission was very much involved in the proceedings with the Civic Center. Mr. Hamel moved, seconded by Mr. Delay, to approve the site as recommended (site noted 6-A). e Mr. Lieuallen also noted for Council there were a number of people at the hearings who spoke in favor of the downtown site. He said it was hard to say if all those speaking in favor were representative of the entire community, but they were well-represented groups. He said it was a pretty impressive show of consensus of opinion for that site. Mr. Haws said he never had conceived this to be what he wanted. He would support a performing arts center but did not feel the people, or he himself, wanted to spend tax dollars on a convention complex to attract the hotel complex in the downtown area. He interpreted what Council was doing as encouraging a hotel complex. Mr. Obie asked Mr. Haws how he arrived at that interpretation. Mr. Obie felt the Commission was trying hard to carry out the City Council direction. Mr. Haws said he thought he had voted on an idea to promote a local performing arts center and not to bring in outside performances or to encourage a hotel in the downtown site. Rather, he said it was a concept to promote Eugene's local per- forming arts. Mr. Obie said he could not understand that line of reasoning. He said the original discussion by City Council talked about a convention center aspect and Council had voted in that direction. Mr. Haws thought he had voted only to explore that idea. He felt a performing arts center was of higher priority. e 11/23/77--5 Uo