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Councilor Bettman ascertained that the council could vote to change the process to allow a project that had <br />met qualifications for a funding year to remain in the queue. <br /> <br />Councilor Bettman, seconded by Councilor Taylor, moved to give priority to previously <br />submitted qualifying grants. <br /> <br />Ms. Bridges observed that this would mean that in the next cycle there would be only $25,000 to offer after <br />funding the remaining projects from the previous year. <br /> <br />Councilor Solomon expressed appreciation to Ms. Bridges for the work she did for the grant program. She <br />indicated she would oppose the motion as she felt it would not be fair to tie the hands of the advisory <br />committee. <br /> <br />Councilor Zelenka asked if Councilor Bettman meant the previously approved projects would automatically <br />receive funding. Councilor Bettman affirmed that this was her intent. <br /> <br />Councilor Zelenka did not agree with changing the rules at this point. He said if he had known that the rules <br />would be changed in this way he would have encouraged the people from his ward to submit a lengthy list of <br />projects and they would have used up the entire amount of available funding for more than one cycle. <br /> <br />Councilor Bettman said she would accept a friendly amendment to make her motion effective for the next <br />funding cycle. Councilor Zelenka indicated he was not interested in changing the process. He averred that <br />all projects should compete in a given funding cycle on their own merits. <br /> <br />Councilor Zelenka asked if there was consideration of geographic distribution of the grants. Ms. Bridges <br />replied that there is the ability in subsequent years for the advisory committee to rearrange it as a ranking of <br />the grants to achieve geographic distribution. <br /> <br />Councilor Pryor opposed the motion. He supported having projects compete on their own merits every time. <br />He said each round needed to be fair to all of the applicants. <br /> <br />Councilor Bettman felt people get discouraged if they “keep coming back and keep getting burnt.” She <br />asserted that there was no requirement in the operating procedures of the department advisory committee to <br />provide geographic equity and this led to a concentration of projects in certain wards. <br /> <br />Roll call vote; the motion failed, 5:3; councilors Ortiz, Taylor, and Bettman voting in favor. <br /> <br />Councilor Poling asked when the Willakenzie Park tree planting project was slated to occur. Ms. Bridges <br />replied that the park improvement was scheduled for summer, but would most likely occur in the fall <br />because it was better for trees to be planted at that time. <br /> <br />In response to a follow-up question from Councilor Poling, Ms. Bridges explained that the grant application <br />for the Willakenzie Park project that had not been funded, a project to add artistic tiles around the <br />playground, was for $900, which would then be matched so that the total project would have $2,000. She <br />said it would have been an added element to help explain the history of the park. <br /> <br />Ms. Bridges affirmed, in response to Councilor Poling, that the City would do the tile installation if the <br />funds to make that project happen were provided by a private party. <br /> <br /> <br /> <br />MINUTES—Eugene City Council May 14, 2007 Page 4 <br /> Regular Meeting <br /> <br />