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Springfield, Lane County, LTD and Lane Council of Governments (LCOG) who had collaborated in <br />drafting the report and policy recommendations. <br />Ms. Wilson, responding to a question from Mr. Clark, noted that the broad policy recommendations listed in <br />the draft report would most likely not have the opportunity to be discussed at any further joint elected <br />officials meeting as the draft policy was scheduled to be sent to Congressman DeFazio before the end of the <br />year. <br />Mr. Clark felt that while he could agree with the broader regional program policies of preserving existing <br />assets, enhancing public safety and supporting strategic economic investments, he could not support the <br />entirety of the policy recommendations in the draft report. <br />Mr. Clark asked for further clarification regarding the nature of the freight rail connections between Eugene- <br />Springfield and the Coos Bay port as listed in the multi-modal transportation solution section of the <br />Regional Program Priorities in the draft report. Ms. Wilson answered that she did not have any additional <br />information but would research the matter and get back to him. <br />Ms. Solomon thought that the draft report contained several good ideas and that of particular interest to her <br />was the idea of moving freight transportation off of roads and back onto railways. <br />Ms. Solomon and Ms. Wilson briefly discussed the Oregon Department of Transportation’s (ODOT) <br />relationship to the FSTB and SAFETEA-LU, with Ms. Wilson noting there had been some disagreement <br />between ODOT and Congressman DeFazio about how federal funds might be allocated with regard to <br />transportation projects. <br />Ms. Taylor asked what changes might be seen as a result of the council’s support of the draft report and <br />policy recommendations. Ms. Wilson confirmed that one of the key desired changes inherent in the policy <br />recommendations was for the federal government to reconsider the manner in which money was distributed <br />and prioritized. <br />Ms. Taylor expressed that true funding flexibility as was described in the draft report would mean that local <br />governments such as Eugene would have more authority to use federal money as they saw fit in addressing <br />problems of air quality and traffic congestion. <br />Mr. Zelenka noted that he supported the policy recommendations listed in the draft report and said that a <br />lack of adequate funding was likely to stall important transportation initiatives for quite some time. <br />Mr. Zelenka agreed with Ms. Bettman’s assessment that operational funding needed to be part of any final <br />list of recommendations sent to Congressman DeFazio, much more so than vague references to a paradigm <br />shift. <br />Ms. Piercy asked if Ms. Wilson had had any conversations with the other IGR managers where a focus on <br />operational funding directives was suggested in a more direct fashion than broad references to increased <br />funding flexibility. Ms. Wilson indicated that there had been no such conversations. Ms. Piercy responded <br />that it was necessary to be much more specific in communicating what was important to the community <br />regarding transportation policies and projects. <br />Mr. Clark, sensing a general sense of support from the council about the philosophies of the draft report in <br />addition to a great deal of unease about its lack of specifics, asked if there might be an intermediary step <br />between approving or denying the staff’s recommendation that might be helpful in making the report more <br /> <br />MINUTES—Eugene City Council October 13, 2008 Page 7 <br /> Work Session <br /> <br />