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Councilor Pryor noted that the fee for a single-family residence was $280 and asked what percentage of the cost of the residence this was. Mr. Schoening clarified that the amount was not related to the cost of the house, it was related to the cost of the services. Councilor Pryor asked how many starts the current estimates were based on. Mr. Schoening was not sure of this number. He said the starts were both commercial and residential and he did not know what the split was. He indicated that he could get the information. Councilor Pryor said he was trying to get at the impact of a possible delay. He questioned how much $280 would really impact home sales and starts. He averred that in the current market a person could get $280 in “change orders on carpet.” He asked if Mr. Schoening could give a more specific idea of the impact on the department a delay to January would create. Mr. Schoening replied that a person coming to the permit center would not notice a difference, but between July, 2009, and January, 2010, a couple of funds would “take a little bit of a hit.” Councilor Pryor surmised that a delay would be “a pain but not a burden.” Councilor Poling asked when the SDC on a project was collected. Mr. Schoening replied that SDCs were due when the building permit was issued, but could be financed through the City and paid for over a ten- year period. Councilor Poling understood that Eugene was not doing what Springfield and some other cities were doing, which was to collect the SDCs when the final check-off happened and occupancy was about to occur. He wondered if it would be possible for the council to have a discussion about considering a shift to this practice. He appreciated Councilor Clark’s motion. He knew a number of builders for whom a $280 fee would be a big impact. He pointed out that the City was losing builders every day and loans were harder to get than before. He said it was a “tough” situation. Councilor Zelenka had deduced from the total of the estimated revenue that the fees would be generated by th 160 housing starts approximately. He observed that $280 was 1/10 of one percent of the cost of an average house. He was challenged to imagine that the fee increase would have a “giant impact” on the building industry. He expressed appreciation for Mr. Schoening’s candor in what impact delaying the fee would have on staff. Councilor Brown asked if it was rare for a project to reach the $30,000 cap. Mr. Schoening responded that it was rare and there were no projects of that magnitude currently “in the pipeline.” Councilor Pryor recognized that delaying the fee increase could be more symbolic rather than tangible in terms of benefit. He did not want something symbolic to hurt staff and this was why he had sought to determine whether staff would really be impacted very much by the delay. He said if they could send a message that the City supported reinvigorating the community, he could be supportive of it. He added that if staff had responded that it would create a big impact, then he would have been more inclined to oppose the amendment. He thought this could send a positive signal to the community that the council wanted to try to do what it could to help. Mayor Piercy expressed appreciation for the conversation and for the spirit of being sensitive to the challenges being faced by the community at present. She supported the amendment but did not want to give the impression that they were any less supportive of SDCs; the council still had a commitment to having private development pay its own way as much as possible. MINUTES—Eugene City Council May 26, 2009 Page 9 Regular Meeting