CC Minutes - 05/20/98 Work Session

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Mayor Torrey asked councilors Laue and Tollenaar serve on the committee. Mayor Morrisette said Mr. Shaver and Maureen Maine would represent the City of Springfield on the committee. The motion passed unanimously, 7:0. C. Downtown Urban Renewal Plan Amendment Lew Bowers, Planning and Development Department, provided the report and noted that the Planning Commission recommended that the library be the priority project for urban renewal funds but that $2 million be set aside for other downtown projects. The Budget Committee has also discussed the item and have recommended the grandfathered option # 1, creating a local option levy maximum should it be approved by voters and the council wished to collect it in 1999. Mr. Bowers noted that the Board of County Commissioners unanimously approved Option 1, the grandfathered option tentatively supported by the council. In response to a question from Mr. Meisner, Mr. Bowers said the Planning Commission's budget recommendation may not be prudent. Jan Childs, Planning Division Manager, said the commission has not had an opportunity to reconsider the matter. Mr. Meisner said he had learned that taking an imprudent action would affect the City's bond rating and that would reduce the amount that could be bonded for the library. Mr. Tollenaar suggested the council first settle on the set aside. Mr. Tollenaar moved, seconded by Mr. Laue, to thank the Planning Commission for its interest, but express the sense of the council that it wished to continue urban renewal under grandfather option 1 to be used exclusively for the library and whatever other existing commitments the fund has. Ms. Nathanson disagreed, saying she believed the set aside would not take anything away from the library and taxpayers would be willing to direct $2 million for downtown improvements as the result to them was still a reduction in taxes. Ms. Taylor expressed support for the motion, saying the only reason she would "consider keeping any part of urban renewal is for the library and that doesn't mean that there aren't things that need to be done but I don't think that's the way to do them." Mr. Meisner agreed with Ms. Taylor's comments and reiterated that he has been told the set aside cannot be done without reducing the bonding authority for the library. Mr. Bowers said there were two ways of providing the set aside: 1) take $2 million out of cash that would be used for debt service reserve (which would put the general fund (GF) at greater risk); or 2) take the loan funds in urban renewal assets and transfer those to the GF and use the receipts from those loan funds for downtown projects, which would reduce the $18 million available for the library by about $900,000. At Ms. Nathanson's request, Administrative Services Director Warren Wong said one of the risks was the rating for the bond from the rating agencies, which determined the interest costs and marketability. He Minutes--Eugene City Council May 20, 1998 Page 4 11:30 a.m.