CC Minutes - 11/17/99 WS - Laserfiche WebLink

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two years. In the long run, he said, the decision was the right one. He was ready for the community to have a discussion about the long-term future of City Hall, and the general obligation bond was the trigger for that discussion. Mr. Fart said it was important to him that when the City did build new permanent facilities, those facilities matched the scale and style of Eugene. He asked if $28 million would build quality facilities that met the community's long-term needs. If not, the council should save the money, move forward with the temporary solution for the police and fire services and Municipal Court, and then consider a longer term solution. Mr. Fart expressed concern about some of the asset sales proposed. He agreed that something had to happen at the current City Hall. He asked if the estimates proposed for renovation of the structure would result in a facility the community could be proud of in the future. Ms. Taylor said that the amount of money involved concerned her. She did not believe replacing City Hall would cost only $2 million more than it would cost to renovate it. She was troubled by the speed of the process, saying that there should be a public process. If anything needed to be done, the council should proceed slowly and thoughtfully. She said that it appeared there was money to relocate the downtown fire station, and the police could occupy the space currently occupied by the station now. Ms. Taylor believed that the current City Hall location was the best location because of its proximity to the County building. She said she would like to see the Sears building site used for all the offices that currently occupy leased space. If the Atrium was no longer needed it could be returned to mixed commercial use. Ms. Taylor was concerned about moving the police from downtown. She asked if the public needed to go to the police station sometimes and, if so, everyone was familiar with downtown which could be accessed with a single bus ride. Ms. Taylor said if people need access to the station it should be downtown. She said that Municipal Court should be downtown for the same reason. Ms. Taylor said that the current City Hall, if it were made safe, was fine until the City could afford to build something worthy of preserving and worthy of Eugene. Mr. Meisner said the federal courthouse issue has brought urgency to the issue of replacing City Hall. That issue had been urgent but unacknowledged. While some planning had been done, as with all other capital maintenance, the situation had been put off and unfunded. He was glad that the federal courthouse issue had brought the issue more prominence. Mr. Meisner said that if the City asked the GSA not to consider City Hall, it was saying, build at 6th Avenue. The City Council needed to be prepared, if it said no, to see a building at that location whose design, scale, and it had no legal control over. He was not prepared to do that. Mr. Meisner believed that the City Hall facilities, particularly those with the police and fire functions, should have been replaced a long time ago. He asked if the current facility was worth the investment it would take to make it safe for other City offices if police and fire were moved out. Mr. Meisner said that the building would need to be made safe to work in. He believed the current City Hall site was the best site for the new courthouse. MINUTES--Eugene City Council November 17, 1999 Page 6 5:30 p.m.