CC Minutes - 06/08/98 Meeting - Laserfiche WebLink

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Mr. Farr said that he believed the US flag was a symbol of the promises of the Declaration of Independence, Constitution, and Bill of Rights, not of perfection. He said he did not expect everyone to agree with him, but that he would not vote for the motion in order to express his support for the proposal. He suggested that, if alternative options are proposed, consideration should be given to including an eternal flame and/or provisions to fly flags of the sister cities of Eugene on the butte. Mayor Torrey said that he was disappointed that agreement could not be reached regarding placement of a flag on Skinner Butte. He said public testimony and other input to councilors suggested that opposing views were not being respected. He said he hoped the council could discover a solution to the concerns raised regarding use of the butte for a memorial to veterans which would include display of a flag. Ms. Swanson Gribskov pointed out that her motion included incorporating display of a flag, but that she had meant that it encourage staff to explore all options. Ms. Nathanson reviewed elements which she said should be considered in making a decision regarding the proposed war memorial flag on Skinner Butte. Ms. Taylor said that she would oppose the motion because she wanted additional public input before considering any options. The motion to direct the City Manager to develop additional options for a war memorial on Skinner Butte was adopted, 6:2, with Mr. Farr and Ms. Taylor voting no. IV. ACTION: ORDINANCE AUTHORIZING OVERNIGHT SLEEPING IN SPECIFIED AREAS; PROVIDING EFFECTIVE AND EXPIRATION DATES; AND DECLARING AN EMERGENCY Housing and Neighborhood Development Section Manager Richie Weinman referred to a revised version of the ordinance authorizing sleeping in specified areas to be considered by the council distributed at the beginning of the meeting. He explained that the Council Committee on Homelessness and Youth had revised the proposal to provide for an automatic repeal of the section authorizing sleeping on streets in industrial zoning districts on August 31, 1998. He said the intention was for the committee to review alternatives to the section and present a replacement recommendation before the council took its summer recess from meetings. Mr. VVeinman said that the issues involved in the proposed ordinance defied easy solution. He reviewed several of the issues and concluded that it was difficult to legislate solutions to social problems. In response to a question from Mr. Tollenaar, Mr. Weinman explained that 24 religious institutions were currently involved in allowing persons to sleep overnight in their parking lots, but that some had requested that only families be referred to their location and that there was occasionally less than full utilization of the available space in the program. He said that the agency coordinating the program anticipated that additional institutions would be involved in the program when it was renewed. MINUTES--Eugene City Council June 8, 1998 Page 10 7:30 p.m.