CC Minutes - 06/13/05 Mtg - Laserfiche WebLink

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She stated that while an increasing number of young people participated in the program, the amount of the allocation from the City had remained the same. She underscored that the request only represented a three- percent increase per year over the life of the agreement. Councilor Bettman opposed the amendment for a number of reasons. She said none of the reasons had to do with how great the program was. She called it a great program among many great programs in the City that were not receiving City funds. She averred that Kidsports Executive Director and former Mayor Jim Torrey had contacted the council about this request ~well before" Budget Committee deliberations. She related that she had discussed this with Mr. Torrey via email. She believed there were many young people who were unable to participate in sports or who did not have an interest in participating whose interests were not provided allocations. She thought there were other deserving entities and would prefer to allow all of them to compete equally for the money. Councilor Pap~ called Kidsports a wonderful organization and a value to the community. He called this request a ~heck of a way to run a railroad" because Kidsports had known of its need for an increase for ~a while." He asked Executive Director for the Library, Recreation, and Cultural Services Department (LRCS) Angel Jones to speak to the timing of the request. Ms. Jones explained that the request had not been included in the LRCS budget because the department was operating under a status quo budget and so did not submit requests for additional service improvements. She did not know why the request had not surfaced during budget discussions. She said Kidsports requested an increase in funding every year, as did other organizations. Councilor Pap~ asked if Kidsports was taking on as much or more in maintenance and were they doing less with more. Ms. Jones responded that the role of Kidsports had changed over the last few years because there were now a number of entities that provided athletic opportunities to young people. She thought the high performers, the true athletes, went into those other programs, leaving Kidsports with core recreations programs for those who did not have the skills and/or the resources to go to the more elite programs. She said the level of maintenance that Kidsports had taken on remained the same over the years, but the participation level in Kidsports had increased. Councilor Pryor asked if this was a one-time funding allocation or if it was intended to be ongoing. Councilor Solomon replied that it was for an ongoing increase. Councilor Pryor remarked that it was always difficult to address something brought up at the last minute. However, he averred that Kidsports was a very important program that had been around for a long time. He underscored that the program was in ~desperate financial condition." He stressed that there were programs for the %ports superstars" but there were not many opportunities for the less able kids, the kids who were not as competitive, and the kids who just wanted to play. He said, in this instance, he was inclined to reluctantly support the amendment because Kidsports was a ~great program." Councilor Ortiz agreed with concerns about the proposal coming at the %leventh hour." But she had utilized the Kidsports program and had benefited from its scholarships. She indicated that she would be more likely to ~100 percent support" the amendment if it was for a one-time allocation. Councilor Ortiz offered a friendly amendment to specify that this would be a one-time allocation. The maker and second of the motion accepted the friendly amendment. MINUTES--Eugene City Council June 13, 2005 Page 14 Regular Session