CC Minutes - 11/12/02 Work Session

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Mayor Torrey hoped that if the City continued the ClC, its expectations regarding outcomes were greater than what it achieved in the last few years. He emphasized project-by-project approaches. He said that did not mean he did not appreciate the work of the ClC. Mr. Kelly pointed out that in past years there had been "add" items included in the base budget. Mr. Kelly said that in terms of ClC membership, in the past the mayor had to assign councilors to serve on a committee, and that might be the case in this instance as well. He expressed appreciation to Ms. Taylor for her willingness to serve on the ClC. Mr. Kelly emphasized the need to focus staff on priority issues. Mr. Kelly spoke to Ms. Nathanson's remarks, suggesting the best overseer of a citizen involvement process was a citizens group rather than staff. Mr. Kelly thought Mayor Torrey's remarks regarding broader outreach should be pursued. He suggested it was difficult for a committee that met once a month to pursue broader outreach methods. Mayor Torrey reminded the council that when he polled it, a majority of members indicated interest in finding another approach than the CIC. Ms. Taylor clarified that she had volunteered to serve on the McKenzie Watershed Council, not the ClC, which she had spent four years on. She agreed with Mr. Kelly that a councilor could be assigned to the ClC if no one volunteered. Ms. Taylor commended the good work of the ClC. Mr. Fart said that people got involved in City issues on an ad hoc basis, citing the library measure as an example. He suggested that the City consider how to better get information about those issues out to the community and involve more, different people in City business. He believed that past patterns would continue into the future. He also stated that the ClC could help in the efforts. Mr. Rayor thanked the CIC for its work. He thought the CIC had the hardest job in the City. He supported the CIC's recommendation for Option 3. He suggested that a justification for the funding could be the fact that completion of a special project could save the City money and staff time in the future. Mr. Rayor asked what special project savings could be produced by the CIC to offset the additional costs. Mr. Kelly, seconded by Mr. Pap~, moved to forward a recommendation to the Budget Committee to consider inclusion of Option 3 as a service level adjustment in the base draft fiscal year 2004 budget. Ms. Bettman said that in the absence of the CIC, its job would need to be done by someone, such as the Planning Commission, which would require an additional commitment of resources in some part of the budget. She reminded the council of the ClC's limited review role, and emphasized that it did not campaign for issues but attempted to improve the public involvement plans proposed by staff. She supported the motion. Mr. Fart concurred with the assessment of Ms. Bettman. He determined from Mr. Carlson that the motion meant that Mr. Carlson would have to include the option in the base budget, requiring a MINUTES--Eugene City Council November 12, 2002 Page 6 Work Session