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September 14, 2009 <br />Joint Elected Officials Meeting <br />City of Springfield <br />City of Eugene <br />Lane County <br /> <br />Page 8 of 14 <br /> <br /> <br />of Transportation/Manufacturing seemed ambiguous. He asked if that would mean to ‘build it and they <br />would come’, or to look at integrating land use and transportation through planning. If there was an <br />electric vehicle industry, they would need to determine where the plug-ins would be throughout the <br />community. <br /> <br />Councilor Pryor said he had helped work on the 1982 report, and was one of the original members of the <br />groups that became the Lane Workforce Partnership and Lane Metro Partnership. Those groups went on <br />recruiting trips, which were a waste of time. It was not necessarily what they did, but how they did it. <br />Many reports did have similar things in them. This was the early stage, and he didn’t feel the need to go <br />with option 2. The information from the summit would go into the final plan regardless if they approved <br />option 1 tonight or later. A lot had been learned about how to do things and he wanted to make sure this <br />was done the right way. The summit would help move the group in that direction. He would support <br />option 1 with the expectation that it would be adapted, modified and changed. <br /> <br />Councilor Leezer congratulated everyone on their hard work. She agreed with Option 2 and suggested <br />that tourism be added. Tourism was an amazing area and she felt it should be capitalized upon. <br /> <br />Councilor Simmons complimented the group for the work done. This was similar to the document in <br />1982, but things had changed. The thing that was missing was the need to produce food locally and the <br />need to ensure the food sources and production sources for the needs of the community were met. He <br />agreed with Mayor Piercy that the small to moderate size businesses were extremely important. The <br />fundamental house must be in order, and the fundamental needs met. The listed goals were admirable, but <br />it needed to address the food source component. <br /> <br />Councilor Taylor agreed with the comment regarding food. If we got rid of our land that produced food, <br />we were in trouble. The air and water were the other two basics and protecting natural areas was essential. <br />She asked what was meant by Transportation/Manufacturing. <br /> <br />Mr. Ruiz said that was partly under recognizing industry currently in the area, such as the RV industry. <br />Part of this was to support those that had been successful, could be successful, and also encourage the <br />emerging technology, such as electric vehicles. <br /> <br />Councilor Taylor said while at the National League of Cities convention in Massachusetts, she visited <br />three communities that were cooperating and she commented that cooperation was excellent. She <br />explained how they worked together to determine the most suitable site among the three cities, then <br />shared the tax income. Oregon didn’t have tax income, but it was an example of cooperation rather than <br />competition. Industries that were needed should be targeted, rather than those that might bring in big <br />money. She felt the incentives provided to Hynix were an example of a poor choice. She agreed with <br />removing impediments, but not giving incentives unless they were a benefit to the public. She was <br />concerned that if the focus was only on growth, businesses that we wanted here would be turned away. It <br />was important to preserve what made this a good place. She suggested everyone read the book “Better, <br />not Bigger”. She agreed with option 2, and holding the summit first. <br /> <br />Councilor Ortiz said she felt this was very comprehensive and she was in support. She agreed mostly with <br />the comments regarding small businesses. She referred to Tactic #2, of Strategy #1 and said she hoped the <br /> <br />