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Mr. Meisner reported on a recent National League of Cities (NLC) training regarding policy governance he <br />had attended in Big Sky, Montana. He termed the training a disappointment, saying that it had contained little <br />content. Mr. Meisner said he was working with another NLC member from Gresham and NLC staff to find <br />better trainers that could be shared. <br /> <br />Mr. Carlson clarified the fire in Ms. Nathanson's neighborhood was started by a lighted cigarette that was <br />discarded by the property owner. He said that staff would continue to work on the issue of fire-resistant <br />building materials. <br /> <br />Mayor Torrey asked how people could report consistent speeders in their neighborhoods, and what follow-up <br />occurred when a citizen reported the license plate number of a speeder to the police. <br /> <br />Mayor Torrey reported that a brief process session was scheduled for August 9. He invited suggestions <br />regarding the issues to be discussed, and distributed a list of issues that had been identified to this point. <br /> <br />Mayor Torrey encouraged councilors to indicate to Councilor Coordinator Kate Rowles their committee <br />preferences soon. <br /> <br />B.WORK SESSION: Discussion of Recommended Amendments to the Eugene City Charter <br /> <br />Mary Walston of the City Manager's Office was present for the item. She said that the main topic of <br />discussion was the Citizen Charter Review Committee's (CCRC) recommendations related to an in-house city <br />attorney. She noted three proposals related to the topic had been distributed to the council, one from the <br />CCRC, one from former City Manager Jim Johnson, and one from Mr. Kelly. <br /> <br />Ms. Walston deferred credit for the text change related to conflict of interest to City Attorney <br />Jerome Lidz. <br /> <br />Mr. Kelly called attention to a side-by-side comparison of the three proposals and said his proposal reflected <br />the concerns expressed by Mr. Johnson and restores the recommendation of the CCRC that the appointment of <br />an in-house attorney by the City Manager be confirmed by the City Council. <br /> <br /> Mr. Kelly, seconded by Mr. Pap6, moved to refer the proposed new Subsection 7 of <br /> Section 16, concerned with the city attorney, using his proposed text, to the following <br /> ballot in the November 2002 election. The text read: "The City Manager shall appoint <br /> a city attorney, subject to confirmation by the city council. The city attorney shall <br /> serve as chief legal advisor to the council and the city manager, shall devote full-time <br /> to the duties of this office, and may not engage in the private practice of law. The city <br /> attorney shall supervise the performance of all contracts for legal services." <br /> <br />Mr. Fart said he was willing to put the item before the voters but he did not support a change in the status quo. <br />The City received the benefit of a large firm rather than having to develop its own internal resources. While <br />the appointed attorney could issue contracts, he did not think the City would receive the same level of <br />dedication it did from the current firm. He thought it refreshing to have a City Attorney present who did not <br />receive a paycheck signed by the City Manager. He thought there was a strength in having a citizen firm <br /> <br /> MINUTES--Eugene City Council July 8, 2002 Page 4 <br /> Work Session <br /> <br /> <br />