CC Minutes - 07/18/05 Mtg - Laserfiche WebLink

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4. EXECUTIVE SESSION Pursuant to Oregon Revised Statute (ORS) 192.660(2)(f) the City Council went into an executive session for the purposes of consulting with legal counsel regarding the proposed West Eugene enterprise zone at 9:10 p.m. The City Council returned to the Council Chamber at 10:05 p.m. 5. ACTION: Resolution 4849 Establishing Interim Local Criteria Applicable in the Proposed West Eugene enterprise zone and Adopting a Public Benefit Scoring System; and Repealing Resolution 4845 Councilor Papé, seconded by Councilor Poling, moved to extend the meeting by one-half hour. Roll call vote; the motion passed unanimously, 8:0. Councilor Ortiz moved to direct the City Manager to inform the State and the County that the City does not intend to appoint a Local Zone manager under ORS 285C.105 and Oregon Administrative Rule (OAR) 123-065-0200 until after City and County elected officials have additional discussions and reach agreement about how to deal with the question of job retention. The motion died for lack of a second. Councilor Papé, seconded by Councilor Poling, moved to direct the City Manager to cease his efforts to terminate the newly created enterprise zone. Councilor Bettman, seconded by Councilor Kelly, moved a substitute motion that the City Council reinforce its commitment to its previous resolution for the enterprise zone application of April 20 and its Interim Standards Resolution of June 27; Lane County would be a welcome partner in the enterprise zone should it notify the City of its concurrence by July 22, 2005. Failing such concurrence the City Manager shall end Eugene’s participation in the enterprise zone. Councilor Papé raised a point of order in that he had not been provided the opportunity to speak to his motion. Councilor Bettman asked him to speak to his motion. Councilor Papé felt Councilor Bettman’s motion was “splitting hairs.” He regretted that his participation in the work session at which the initial vote on the enterprise zone had been taken had been prevented by a poor telephone connection. He said he would have opposed the motion to direct the City Manager to cease pursuance of the enterprise zone. He felt that both the City and the County wanted what many people in the community wanted. He thought walking away from this mechanism for increasing economic vitality in the community over a minor change in the tax breaks would make the City Council “look like a ship of fools.” Councilor Bettman thought the council adopted a compromise motion for interim standards. She averred that this near-consensus had led to the success of the application. She said the zone, as conceived with those standards, would provide benefits for local businesses and for new businesses as well as providing jobs and MINUTES—Eugene City Council July 18, 2005 Page 13 Regular Session