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Ms. Taylor stated that downtown needed more activities like the art walks and Eugene Celebration to <br />draw people to the area. She suggested charging fees for empty buildings to encourage owners to make <br />them affordable for tenants. She was completely opposed to the exclusionary zone as it only moved <br />people elsewhere in the community. <br />Ms. Ortiz asked if the task team was looking at ways to address aggressive panhandling. She said that <br />problems with the sale of certain types of alcohol beverages elsewhere in the community had been dealt <br />with through discussions with the business owners. She understood that only the Oregon Liquor Control <br />Commission had the authority to impose restrictions. She asked what services downtown were perceived <br />as drawing undesirable behaviors as most social service agencies were outside the downtown core. <br />Mr. Brown asked for clarification of a statement in Mr. Clark's handout related to downtown events and <br />efforts that did not work for all of the community. Mr. Clark replied that many events, while intended to <br />appeal to all residents, did not attract people from the northern part of the City. Those residents did not <br />feel safe downtown and were not interested in the type of events that were offered; they regarded the <br />Oakway Center as their "downtown." <br />Mr. Brown asked if data indicated that Eugene provided more social services than other communities and <br />which programs would be better located outside of the downtown area. Mr. Clark said his point was that <br />Eugene spent more on those services than other cities of a comparable size, but public safety was <br />dramatically under- funded by comparison to those same cities. He pointed to programs like The Dining <br />Room and a methadone clinic as creating a problem environment. <br />Mr. Brown asserted that providing those types of services reduced criminal behaviors <br />Mr. Pryor encouraged the council to focus on addressing inappropriate behaviors and the relatively small <br />number of people who were responsible for them., rather than social services and the people they assisted. <br />He said the problem needed to be clearly defined and who were causing it identified before effective <br />solutions could be developed. <br />Ms. Piercy felt that social services and public safety were integral parts of a comprehensive system. She <br />said there appeared to be interest among councilors in task force recommendations related to enhanced <br />enforcement through the use of security officers and limitations on the sale of certain beverages. <br />Mr. Clark agreed that many in the homeless population were community residents who had encountered <br />financial hardships, but a majority of the people concentrated in the downtown area had carne into Eugene <br />from elsewhere. He wanted to see a better balance between investments in social services and public <br />safety systems. <br />Ms. Medary stressed that leadership in the community was committed to making a difference and there <br />were many initiatives under way to improve downtown and the broader community. <br />Ms. Taylor agreed that many people downtown had moved to Eugene from other communities and were <br />deliberately homeless. She asked if there were public restrooms downtown. Ms. Muir replied that there <br />were several public restrooms downtown and the hours they were opened had been expanded and security <br />enhanced. She said there had been discussions about improving signage to make their locations better <br />known. <br />MINUTES Eugene City Council November 23, 2009 Page S <br />Work Session <br />