CC Minutes - 04/18/05 PS - Laserfiche WebLink

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be easier to achieve than the neighborhood initiative. Fire Station 9 would largely be a matter of when the council wanted to move forward. The homeless issue was the most complex and would take the longest amount of time. City Manager Taylor said some plans could come forward sooner than later, but it would be problematic to try to get them all to the council before fall. Ms. Ortiz acknowledged that the needed staff work would take time. However, she was concerned about the homeless issue and indicated she would be willing to fast track that issue and hold more meetings in order to be prepared to act in time for the following winter and offer the community something tangible, such as the homeless camp the City once operated. City Manager Taylor reminded the council that the budget was based on current service levels and all the ideas that came from the action plans were likely to be implemented in the next fiscal year. Ms. Bettman agreed with Ms. Ortiz about the need to address the homeless issue before the next winter. She noted that her highest priority was the neighborhood initiative. She expressed concern that staff was currently working on policy initiatives, such as the downtown housing policy and mixed-use center, that were related to the work the council would do later on the action plans. She believed it was inefficient for the policy direction from the council to come after the development of those initiatives. She questioned how anything could take precedence over a unanimous council vote and asked if she needed to request a work session on each goal. Ms. Taylor believed that the neighborhood initiative should permeate everything the City did. In regard to the issue ofhomelessness, Ms. Taylor said the City was not going to solve the problem. She believed it was a statewide issue rather than a local issue, and suggested that it be referred to the Council Committee on Intergovernmental Relations so lobbying could begin at the State Legislature. Mr. Kelly acknowledged the complexities of some of the goals but emphasized that some, like the city hall question, were already in process. He did not want to wait for fall for an action plan on that goal. He hoped the manager took to heart the comments of the council. He believed the council would be prepared for the required work. He suggested that City Manager Taylor consider whether some of the action plans could be developed in phases, with an emphasis on the short term. He expressed concern that the projection of the time needed to complete the plans was due to staff's attempting to flesh out the plans too much. Mr. Kelly said that there were a lot of expectations in the community about the council's goals and that people were excited that the council was united on eight priorities. He said that residents will want to hear about progress. Mr. Pryor recalled the business adage that one could have something done fast, cheap, or right, pick any two; in this case, the council wanted to do the action plans right. He realized that both human and financial resources were a key issue. Mr. Pryor agreed there was some '%w-hanging fruit" involved and encouraged staff to pursue those plans. In other cases, the plans would be more complex, and in order to get the plans fast the council would have to be willing to divert resources to support their development. He said the council may have to be more involved, and he was willing to spend the needed time. However, he acknowledged the staff commitment needed and the fact staff needed to maintain day-to-day operations. Mr. Pryor relied on City Manager Taylor and the executive managers to be able to say if a task was not possible and identify what could be accomplished. MINUTES--Eugene City Council April 18, 2005 Page 9 Process Session