CC Minutes - 04/13/09 Meeting - Laserfiche WebLink

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M I N U T E S Eugene City Council Regular Meeting Council Chamber—Eugene City Hall 777 Pearl Street—Eugene, Oregon April 13, 2009 7:30 p.m. COUNCILORS PRESENT: Chris Pryor, George Brown, Andrea Ortiz, George Poling, Mike Clark, Alan Zelenka, Betty Taylor, Jennifer Solomon. Her Honor Mayor Kitty Piercy called the meeting of the Eugene City Council to order at 7:36 p.m. 1. PUBLIC FORUM Mayor Piercy reviewed the rules of the Public Forum. Pauline Hutson , 1025 Taylor Street, called the tree cutting that had been done for the EmX project along Pioneer Parkway a “massacre.” She asserted that 286 trees had been destroyed. She alleged that no one had known about it except the Lane Transit District (LTD) planners. She averred that LTD had responded that 286 trees sounded like more trees than it actually was. She disagreed; it was a lot of trees. She asserted that the public hearing on these trees was scheduled after the tree cutting had been scheduled and at an “inconvenient hour on a weekday.” She opined that one could not trust LTD staff to tell people as decision- makers what they needed to know. She declared that a person must ask the right questions and must anticipate “every possible impact.” She felt that LTD planners would tell members of the public that they were transportation professionals, had done “all that hard work and study” and that their judgment should be trusted. She averred that if one asked for proof or questioned their judgment the planners would “act hurt.” She said when that happened a person should “just remember the EmX tree massacre.” Joseph Collins , Ward 8, wished to protest the “inordinate amount of time allotted to the juggernaut” of Crest Drive/Friendly Street/Storey Boulevard residents. He understood that a number of the people who th resided on the streets had protested “for years” regarding the costs of upgrading their “19 century streets.” He had driven through their neighborhood and had been impressed by the “magnificent homes” he saw. He commented that it embarrassed him to hear so many of those homeowners express moral outrage that they had to pay to fix their streets like everyone else. He discussed some of the testimony he had heard. He noted that Councilor Taylor had indicated that she had complained “for years” about the street assessment methodology. He wondered if any councilors had complained when other areas of town had faced the same situation. He recalled that one person had opined that all property owners should pay for these streets since everyone used them. He underscored that he did not want to see anyone lose their home over this issue. th Eugene Drix , 307 ½ East 14 Avenue, remarked that street signs on High Street were often stolen. He commented that Eugene had too much of nothing, like many people these days. He noted that the ceiling of the Council Chamber was shaped like an ‘O’ like the first letter in Oregon. He said there was nothing all around us and there were two large holes in downtown to keep nothing in. He said Eugene also had lots of potholes, which were more holes to keep nothing in. He remarked that there used to be money coming in for trees but then “all the trees were cut down.” He averred that the solution to the future was “4:20.” He said if a person did not know what 4:20 meant, they should find out. He invited everyone to join him on April 20 MINUTES—Eugene City Council April 13, 2009 Page 1 Regular Meeting