Agenda Packet 9-9-19 Meeting - Laserfiche WebLink

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MINUTES – Eugene City Council June 24, 2019 Page 3 Work Session o Councilor Yeh – reiterated her opposition to striking this sentence or striking reference to“alt-right” groups; proposed rewording the sentence in Item H to read, “Today, groups areadvocating for the apprehension, detention and deportation of Central American refugeeslegally seeking asylum in the United States.” o Councilor Clark and Councilor Semple accepted Councilor Yeh’s rewording as a friendlyamendment. o Councilor Taylor – proposed postponing this item because she objected to re-writing theresolution language in this way at the table. o Councilor Zelenka – asked clarifying questions about postponing motions to reconsider;said it was important that if they’re spending time amending the resolution, they’re doing itto get to a unanimous decision; shared concerns that Councilor Taylor’s suggestion topostpone the item might mean she won’t vote in favor of the amended resolution. o Councilor Taylor – said she would prefer to consider the amendments thoroughly and voteon the resolution after break because this process was messy. VOTE ON SUBSTITUTE MOTION (with friendly amendments): PASSED 7:0. VOTE ON MAIN MOTION AS SUBSTITUTED: PASSED 7:0. o Mayor Vinis – said this was an important conversation to have but encouraged councilors INthe future to make edits to a proposed resolution in advance and not during a City Councilmeeting. 2.WORK SESSION: Implementation of Construction Excise Tax and Use of Affordable Housing Trust FundsCommunity Development Director Michael Kinnison, Grants Manager Stephanie Jennings, andBuilding Permit Services Director Lydia Kaye provided an update on the Construction ExciseTax (CET), a timeline for its implementation, and the outcomes and potential focus areas for useof CET funds.Council Discussion o Councilor Clark – asked staff about the pilot assistance program; talked about his challengeswith the Construction Excise Tax because it makes housing more expensive and generatesmore rental housing instead of home ownership; said he would prefer to make it easier forlow-income folks to buy homes and would support 15 percent or more of residential CETrevenue set aside for down payment assistance. o Councilor Syrett – said she liked the makeup of the proposed committee; asked who thecommittee would be making recommendations to; said her priority focus areas are includedon the proposed list, including both renter and homeowner assistance; asked if this fundingcould be used for permanent supportive housing; said she supported this fund because ofits flexibility and will be looking for creativity in the recommendations from the advisorycommittee and staff to make the best use of CET dollars. o Councilor Zelenka – asked about the status of the renter protections task force and surveyand how that gets integrated into this process; talked about the affordable housing taskforce group and their focus on more affordable housing, noting very few people in thatgroup were renters so the focus was not on renter protections; said he thinks this moneyshould be focused on people not losing their homes with assistance to renters andhomebuyers, including help with down payments, rental deposits, housing navigators, and asingle rental application process. o Councilor Yeh – agreed that the money should be focused on the three proposed potentialfocus areas and that the City should be looking at setting aside more than 15 percent of the September 9, 2019, Meeting – Item 2A