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6. ACTION: ORDINANCE AMENDING ORDINANCE NO. 20126; AMENDING THE WEST EUGENE WETLANDS PLAN BY ADOPTING NEW AND REVISED PLAN POLICIES RELATED TO THE CRITERIA FOR WETLAND DESIGNATIONS; AND ADOPTING A SEVERABILITY CLAUSE Mr. Johnson introduced Neil Bj0rklund of Planning and Development Department and indicated he was present to answer questions. Mr. Kelly, a member of the council/board committee that had reviewed the testimony submitted at the public hearing on August 4, said the committee recognized the limited nature of its charge and had come up with a total of four changes it believed would clarify the criteria. He said that three of the changes were described in the staff memorandum included in the meeting packet, and invited questions about the memorandum. He said that the fourth change was encapsulated in a memorandum from Mr. Bj0rklund dated October 11 and placed at each councilor's seat. Mr. Kelly said that the change was the addition of a sentence to Section 3.17 clarifying the policy. The memorandum explained that the sentence was added to correct the impression expressed by many in testimony that for a site to be designated for development or protection it must meet all the development or protection criteria. Mr. Johnson said that the council would consider Council Bill 4705, an ordinance amending Ordinance 20126, amending the West Eugene Wetlands Plan by adopting new and revised plan policies related to the criteria for wetland designations; and adopting a severability clause. Mr. Meisner moved, seconded by Mr. Fart, that the bill, with the unanimous consent of the council, be read the second time by council bill number only, and that enactment be considered at this time. Mr. Kelly moved, seconded by Mr. Fart, to amend Exhibit A of the adopting ordinance to incorporate the three changes stated in the October 5 memorandum to the Council/Board Committee on Wetland Policy Amendments, and the single change reflected in the October 11 memorandum to the mayor and council. Responding to a question from Mr. Fart, Mr. Kelly said that to the best of his knowledge the City was acting in a manner consistent with the actions to be taken by Lane County. He noted that the changes were intended to be clarifications of the proposed plan text. Mr. Fart asked Steve Gordon of Lane Council of Governments if he had heard anything from the Board of County Commissioners regarding the amendments package. Mr. Gordon said that he believed the amendments could be acceptable to the board. Mr. Rayor discussed his concern about the amendment related to small occurrences of rare plant species on a site. He suggested that small occurrences of such plants were the reason they were rare. He acknowledged that such sites were often surrounded by developed parcels but he was troubled that the City would lean toward development for such sites. Mr. Kelly responded to Mr. Rayor, stating that while he was not comfortable with the criterion in isolation, within the context of the plan the criterion allowed the City to distinguish between sites that were more worthy and less worthy of protection. MINUTES--Eugene City Council October 11, 1999 Page 4 7:30 p.m.