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He maintained that the park was the last location in Eugene where the car show could be held. The show attracted thousands of competitors and spectators, and provided income to local businesses and money for charity. Leila White, 876 Nadine Avenue, supported leaving Rasor Park in its current condition. She believed the community needed more such parks. Bob White, 876 Nadine Street, the founder of the River Road Cruisers, spoke on behalf of allowing the classic car event to be held at Rasor Park. The event, a free event held one day a year, resulted in donations of more than $14,000 to local nonprofit services. He noted the many other activities that occurred in the park and suggested that those activities would cease if the park was returned to a natural state. Mr. White said that last year the Friends of Rasor Park brought pressure to bear on City, restricting the event's ability to use the site. He said that the 100-foot buffer zone was an arbitrary distance, and the bike path created a natural buffer between the river and event. Mr. White said that a small but vocal group was dictating the community's use of public property. He called the organization's actions to stop the event a radical interpretation of the rules by small interest group and called for common sense. Ann Bart, 245 Maple Street, spoke in favor of allowing the classic car event to be held at Rasor Park. She wished to address the subject of police liability. She asserted that if a police officer was a liability to the LAPD, he or she ended up on the Eugene Police Department. She asked the council to begin thinking about how to address monetary issues because sooner or later one of the police officers would create a liability and the City would be liable. Christy Wells, 360 Durham Avenue, supported allowing the classic car event in Rasor Park. She disagreed with the plans proposed by the Friends of Rasor Park for the park. She said that if the park proposal went through the park should be accessible to the disabled to serve local residents. She said that the event raised funds for the Relief Nursery, which helped to keep families together. She termed the event a widely attended family event. She noted that such events were valuable to families and helped families avoid drug and alcohol addiction. Michael Marlatt, 2627 Hasting Street, supported allowing the classic car event at Rasor Park to continue. He said that he enjoyed the event with family and friends and learned a great deal from the event. He was concerned that the event might no longer be able to be held at the park. Mr. Marlatt said the event helped bring the community together. He called for continued diverse use of the park. Cliff Barney, 3700 Babcock Lane, spoke against Eugene Water & Electric Board's (EWEB) proposal to enter the telecommunications business. He singled out Randy Berggren, General Manager of EWEB, and suggested that Mr. Berggren had forgotten what he should be doing and should focus on delivering electric and water services. He said that telecommunications services should be left to the private sector. Mr. Barney said the City Council should heed Mike Dyer, President of EWEB, who he believed was opposed to the proposal. He encouraged people to testify against EWEB's proposed water rate hike at a meeting on March 7. Richard Davis, 1605 Cal Young Road, spoke in favor of allowing a classic car event at Rasor Park. He urged the council to visit the event. He said that the cars displayed were well-maintained by their owners at great expense, and did not leak oil. Mr. Davis questioned why more trees needed to be planted at Rasor Park. MINUTES--Eugene City Council February 28, 2000 Page 2 Regular Meeting