Item 2A: Approval of City Council Minutes

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ATTACHMENT E M I N U T E S Eugene City Council Public Hearing/Work Session Council Chamber 777 Pearl Street—Eugene, Oregon April 19, 2010 7:30 p.m. COUNCILORS PRESENT: Mike Clark, Betty Taylor, George Poling, George Brown, Alan Zelenka, Jennifer Solomon, Andrea Ortiz. Her Honor Mayor Kitty Piercy called the meeting of the Eugene City Council to order. 1. PUBLIC HEARING An Ordinance Adopting an Amended Urban Renewal Plan for the Downtown Urban Renewal District City Manager Jon Ruiz provided an overview of the proposed Downtown Urban Renewal Plan amendment and four targeted downtown projects. He said the amendment for the four proposed projects only would increase the plan’s spending limit by $16.1 million, expand the boundary if the Veterans’ Administration (VA) chose a downtown site for its clinic, impose a sunset provision and establish an annual review panel. He said the council was scheduled to review comments from the public, Planning Commission and taxing districts at its May 10, 2010, work session, with action on the amendment scheduled for May 24. He noted that a frequently raised concern was the impact of the urban renewal district on School District 4J and stated that an analysis by the county assessor, in which the school district concurred, concluded that the school district was better off financially if the downtown urban renewal district continued. Specifically, the school district would lose $117,000 annually if the district was terminated. Mayor Piercy opened the public hearing and recited the procedures for providing testimony. Sue Prichard , Emerald Street, Eugene, Ward 3, said she was a semi-retired real estate broker and much of her professional activities had focused on the leasing and sales of downtown properties. She thanked the council for its commitment to downtown and developing a sensible, comprehensive plan. She said the past had proved that no one project was the solution for downtown; it was a complex puzzle that required a number of simultaneous activities in the public and private sectors and a continued commitment over time. She strongly supported a favorable vote to amend the urban renewal plan as proposed. It was a timely step forward and without it time would pass and nothing would change. She said tax increment financing was an effective tool and one of the few available to the City for downtown revitalization. She said all of the projects were important and well thought-out, particularly construction of a Lane Community College (LCC) campus downtown. Her life had been changed by the opportunity to attend LCC and there were thousands of similar stories in the community. Ben Sappington , Mecca Avenue, Eugene, Ward 5, stressed the need for a thriving downtown and its importance to the economic well-being of the community and retention of young, talented workers central to MINUTES—Eugene City Council April 19, 2010 Page 1 Public Hearing