CC Minutes - 04/13/09 Work Session (2)

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involved in discussions of strategies as consumers. She encouraged the council to clearly identify its vision for downtown to help guide developers. Ms. Taylor asked for an explanation of more flexible home occupation standards. Ms. Muir replied that greater flexibility could allow someone to operate a small-impact business from a home under certain guidelines, including those for parking. Ms. Taylor agreed with Ms. Piercy’s suggestion to apply a sustainability screen to ideas. She pointed out that the downtown belonged to everyone, not just those who operated businesses there. She said alleys were an asset and aided pedestrians and bicyclists moving around in the downtown area. She did not want to offer tax breaks without clear benefits and reiterated her opposition to enterprise zones. She said the City should consider ways to collect taxes from everyone equitably, instead of giving more tax breaks. She pointed to the example of Hynix, which was provided incentives to locate in Eugene and then left. She preferred to assist local businesses. Ms. Muir said there were no policy items on the list to increase tax breaks. Mr. Pryor expressed interest in the concept of a business chain, which had been an asset during previous times of economic hardship. He also favored business loan programs. He appreciated the City’s efforts to find a balanced approach. He said it was important to help both small and large businesses. He noted that Hynix jobs paid well and had good benefits, and Hynix paid the largest property tax in the area for many years, which more than compensated for the incentives it received. Mr. Zelenka commended staff for the actions that had already been taken. He agreed with Ms. Piercy that any actions should have a synergy of goals and include jobs, sustainability, energy efficiency and long-term investments that would produce a good economic environment in the future. He noted that Eugene was 21 on a list of comparable communities from across the nation considered the best places for business and careers. Regarding Attachment F, Mr. Zelenka expressed concern with Item 9, related to sale of surplus City property. He said selling at a low point in the real estate market might not be an appropriate strategy. He also cautioned, regarding Item 13 related to general code amendment, against taking short-term actions that could have a long- term impact on the community’s livability. Mr. Poling declared that he could have a conflict of interest on issues regarding the airport because of his occupation and might need to recuse himself during those discussions. He said that the sale of City-owned property should not occur unless it was to the City’s advantage; a viable development project could provide that benefit, even if the sale price was somewhat lower than anticipated. Ms. Piercy was in favor of Item 4 related to use of City facilities as incubators for small business. She encouraged staff to also consider what types of activities would be likely to draw other business to the facility and the downtown area. She suggested that the University of Oregon, School of Business, might be a resource for the City. She pointed out that economic stimulus dollars could help initiate activities but were not sustainable in the long-term. Ms. Ortiz commented that she supported enterprise zones and urban renewal districts as tools that were used wisely to encourage economic development. She asked if there had been consideration of deferring fees until a property was sold. Ms. Muir said the City had a program that allowed an owner to finance system development charges (SDCs) and make payments over a period of ten years. Ms. Ortiz emphasized the importance of reflecting City values in the use of facilities for small business incubators and seeking business owners from diverse backgrounds. MINUTES—Eugene City Council April 13, 2009 Page 3 Work Session