09/23/1981 Meeting - Laserfiche WebLink

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. Mr. Lindberg noted that he feels the Chamber of Commerce contract would be a fantastic way of involving people in the community and harnessing energy and e experience. Venture capital is needed and most small businesses fail because of lack of expertise. The question is how this will be achieved. Where the money will come come from is another question to be reckoned with. A decision must be made as to how long these programs will exist and whether they will be done with existing dollars or built into the 1982-83 budget. Ms. Smernoff responded that these answers will have to be identified by the consultant and then staff will come back to the council. Mr. Gleason said that the Venture Capital Program could be similar to the housing rehabilitation pool, which would be a reimbursable account. Funding sources such as IRB, SBA, or the public may be financing mechanisms. Or, this could be done through a corporation. There are models around, such as the one in Long Beach. The technical assistance program would use resources from the University of Oregon and Lane Community College and could be focused on existing local businesses. Ms. Smernoff stated that she would be turning the discussion over to Mike Tharp, HCC, to discuss boards and commissions that work with the downtown area. Mr. Tharp stated that there are numerous boards and commissions that could work together on this issue. A matrix is included in the councilors' packets as well as an outline of boards and commissions and what activities they deal with. The dark line on the matrix (the first five groups) shows the most potential for overlap or duplication. If downtown neighborhood groups and the Fifth Street Special District were included, there would be 15 groups active in the area. The issue appears to be one of coordination. Staff would like to propose a method of coordination. This can by accomplished be polling the council and boards and commissions to determine which issues are the most important. This - information will provide a basis for proceeding. For example, two options for proceeding are: coordinating roles or consolidating roles. If coordination is used as the mechanism, boards and commissions could make recommendations as to how they should proceed. The chairpeople of the boards and commissions can report back to the council. A formal or informal steering committee could be established to guide the role of boards and commissions. Every board and commission could be requested to develop a work plan and a budget for dealing with that plan, or the council could develop a work program to present to the boards and commissions. The other option would be to consolidate boards and commissions, which would be a sensitive issue. After the information is shared, there could be a joint meeting or work session with the council and boards and commissions to determine how best to proceed. Mr. Gleason stated that the areas of the most overlap occur in the core area. The others seem manageable. In the core area, many boards and commissions work hard and are successful. There is no unified central city policy or staff because it is fragmented. The staff is not saying that the solution is consoli- dation. Boards and commissions are concerned about their effectiveness. There should be an analysis to rethink the urban village concept and come up with a process. Ms. Smith added that as one reads through the list of ideas, one sees several boards and commissions dealing with the same issue. She feels there must have been a great deal of overlap in the boards and commissions and what staff does. Issues must be identified to determine what the function is of each advisory group. Mr. Lindberg added that the council must be the body to provide e MINUTES--Eugene City Council September 23, 1981 Page 6