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Mayor Piercy believed that the two bodies needed to consider how best to use the land for the community <br />while recognizing the responsibility the board had to the ratepayers. She wanted a meaningful discussion to <br />put all issues in perspective. <br /> <br />Ms. Bettman said that if EWEB wanted to know if the City was interested in buying the property, it should <br />put a price tag on it and communicate that to the City, as well as its interest in any subsidies, which she was <br />not assuming at this point. Mr. Berggren clarified that, to this point, the board had not discussed price, only <br />the process. <br /> <br />Commissioner Farmer said the bottom line for EWEB was money. EWEB was talking about breaking <br />ground in June 2007; but unless EWEB could sell the site for a figure that reflected the type of development <br />envisioned in the Downtown Plan, the numbers would not work and that would not occur. The default <br />position for EWEB was that it remained on the current site and redeveloped it, which neither body would be <br />happy about. <br /> <br />President Bishop questioned what was meant by Ms. Bettman’s reference to a “windfall” for EWEB in <br />relationship to the zone change proposal. She had never thought of a legitimate request for a zone change <br />made within the planning parameters as a windfall. Further, she said that she had never conceived of asking <br />the City for a subsidy. <br /> <br />Mr. Kelly said that the EWEB site was an exciting parcel of land with a lot of potential. He believed that in <br />spite of the fact the two entities were political bodies, EWEB and the City could rise to the challenges of a <br />tight time line. He thought that both EWEB and the City could rely on the community’s goodwill as an <br />asset, and encouraged staff of the two agencies to get together to discuss different scenarios and potential <br />questions surrounding the future of the property. He suggested that a City subsidy could come in the form <br />of expedited permit processes, for example, or favorable financing terms. He called on the two bodies to get <br />creative. <br /> <br />President Bishop thanked the council and board for their participation in the discussion and thanked staff for <br />its contribution. <br /> <br />The meeting adjourned at 1:34 p.m. <br /> <br />Respectfully submitted, <br /> <br /> <br /> <br />Dennis M. Taylor <br />City Manager <br /> <br />(Recorded by Kimberly Young) <br /> <br /> <br />MINUTES—Eugene City Council/ November 15, 2006 Page 4 <br /> Eugene Water & Electric Board of Commissioners <br />