CC Minutes - 09/24/01 Work Session

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Ms. Nathanson indicated appreciation for Mr. Denner's remarks regarding the progress that had been made. She acknowledged the degree of internal department change that had occurred. Ms. Nathanson thought it regrettable that budget cuts necessitated the elimination of the annual report, and wished there were more citywide newsletters to provide the kind of public outreach and education that had been mentioned by many during the discussion. She asked staff to consider how the City could more effectively use the many City and EWEB newsletters that were distributed to the public. Ms. Bettman said community policing involved not just the Police Department but other departments as well, and some of the strategies associated with community policing might come from other department budgets. For example, citizens complained about speeding in the neighborhoods, and that was a public safety issue with a transportation solution. She requested council comment about other items on the work plan. Mr. Meisner had no comments on other work plan items. In terms of using resources effectively, Mr. Meisner expressed hope that the commission did not consider itself bound by previous plans. He called for an open and creative look at the issues involved with community policing. Ms. Taylor concurred with Mr. Meisner. She reiterated her interest in using neighborhood newsletters to get out news about the City. She perceived community policing both as an attitude and a way of doing things. Dr. Katul expressed gratitude for the dialogue and thanked the councilors for their comments. Mr. Kelly, seconded by Ms. Nathanson, moved to approve the Police Commission FY02 work plan. The motion passed unanimously, 5:0. The council took a brief recess and reconvened. Mr. Pap6 left the meeting during the recess. Ms. Taylor called attention to the presence of the high school students from Cottage Grove, and noted that they had suggested sending the commission's questionnaire to citizens with the voters pamphlet, an idea that she endorsed. C.Work Session: Sister City Program Mary Walston of the City Manager's Office joined the council for the item. She provided background on the Sister City Program, noting the City had four official sister cities, with the first established in 1961 (Chinju, Korea) and the last (Irkutsk, Russia) in 1989. The sister city agreements are signed by representatives of both cities and commit the cities to a mutual relationship. MINUTES--Eugene City Council September 24, 2001 Page 7 Work Session