Item 2D: Ratification of IGR Committee Actions of December 16, 2009

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Mr. Poling agreed that it was important to support projects that benefited air and water quality. Ms. Ortiz said an air monitoring station was still planned for West Eugene and was concerned about making the Bio-Energy Facility a Lane County project unless she was assured there was LRAPA funding available and a monitoring system would be installed. Ms. Wilson suggested that if there was no funding and Eugene wished to retain the request for an air monitoring station on its United Front list, the language should be modified to remove references to grass seed burning. Ms. Ortiz and Mr. Poling concurred with Ms. Wilson’s recommendations on the two energy efficiency projects. Ms. Wilson explained that the City was requesting $250,000 for the Fire Hydrant Replacements project as its contribution to upgrading the fire hydrant system, which was a project that the Eugene Water & Electric Board (EWEB) had agreed to take on at an estimated cost of $10 million. Mr. Poling recommended adding the Police Special Operations Facility project to the list. He asked if funding for the project could still be used if the City acquired the Country Club Road property and moved special operations to that site. Ms. Wilson said there was no intent to move special operations to a new facility, but the request could be written to allow for that in the event plans changed. Ms. Wilson commented that the Support for Medicare Ambulance Relief project was on the list to emphasize how the funding gap impacted the community; it was not a specific request for funding. Ms. Piercy added that the issue had received support as a United Front priority during a recent joint elected officials meeting. Ms. Piercy stated that the transit system was important to the region and felt that regional partners needed to support increased funding for transit. Ms. Ortiz noted that funds were available for transit system capacity building, but not to sustain current operations. Ms. Wilson said that increased transit funding was a part of several pieces of federal legislation. She noted that the United Front requests were for earmarks, but said the need for transit operations funding could be identified as a priority at the beginning of the United Front book. She said an update on the Delta Ponds project, which was moving forward and no longer on the list, would also be included at the beginning of the book. She also recommended removing the Metro Waterways General Investigation project from the list of funding requests and including it in the United Front book as an update until the project moved to the next phase. Ms. Ortiz asked if there were other items in the Bio-Energy Facility project besides the facility and air monitoring station. Ms. Wilson said the funds were only being requested for facility construction and Lane County was seeking other funds to complete the project. Ms. Taylor asked if protecting the Amazon headwaters through additional acquisition could be included in the Metro Waterways General Investigation project. Ms. Wilson said the project was a general investiga- tion to determine how to protect and treat the entire system and requests for acquisition funding could not be made until the study was completed. She said the study was being delayed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. MINUTES—Council Committee on Intergovernmental Relations December 16, 2009 Page 3