CC Minutes - 09/22/03 WS - Laserfiche WebLink

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plan being proposed to the council for adoption. He said those activities in the work plan were selected by the commission following extensive prioritization of many potential activities. Ms. Taylor asked with what groups the HRC was cooperating on major projects. Mr. Dean referred to page 26 of the Eugene Human Rights Program Report for a complete listing of organizations with which the HRC had collaborated. He gave as an example of a collaborative project the Accessibility Guide Book, which was previously published by the HRC, and was now being published by the Lane Independence Living Alliance. Ms. Taylor asked what the HRC saw as the biggest challenge in the next year. Mr. Dean said that communication and ensuring that all sides of an issue were heard was a major and ongoing challenge. Greg Rikhoff, staff to the commission, said that a Memorandum of Understanding signed in early 2002, committed the staff often public agencies to work together on a broad range of diversity issues. Ms. Solomon thanked the commission for its report and proposed work plan. She referred to a news article that reported the HRC as protesting the conviction of Jeffrey Luers for arson of an auto dealership. She said she had received comments from a number of people who questioned the commission's involvement in the issue and asked how that fit with HRC's mission. Ms. Rich said the commission had responded to requests from people in the community to explore the human rights issues of the Luers case. She said news reports had not accurately presented the facts and the commission had responded to the length of the sentence given the nature of the crime compared to other crimes, and not to the crime itself or punishment for it. Mr. Dean added that the HRC counseled Mr. Luers to use the criminal justice and judicial systems as the appropriate avenue for appeal. Ms. Solomon urged the commission to use caution in becoming involved in future situations that were similar in nature. Mr. Meisner noted that several councilors were troubled by the public response to the Luers situation and expressed concern over how a similar request from the community in the future could impact the commission's approved work plan. He asked that the commission inform the council about its activities and work program progress through periodic updates and when it considered adding a substantive issue to its work plan. He said that candidates for the HRC each came with a particular area of interest or expertise and asked for advice from commissioners on the types of candidates the council should consider. Ms. Martinez-Wenzl suggested more representation from gay, youth, and Asian-Pacific American communities, as well as people who were sensitive to issues of race, gender, and domestic violence. Mr. Meisner said it was important to determine whether the council should consider members of, or advocates for, particular groups. Mayor Torrey remarked that designers of the new federal courthouse should have reached out to people with disabilities in a meaningful way early in the design process. He asked how the City and the HRC could reach out to members of the community who had an opposing point of view on some issues that the commission supported and bring them to the table for discussions before a decision was made. Mr. Dean replied that it was often a challenge to identify opposition before decisions were made. Using the code revisions as an example, he said there was little stated opposition during hearings, despite extensive public outreach efforts, and opponents only came forward when the issue went before the council. MINUTES--Eugene City Council September 22, 2003 Page 5 Work Session