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who paid for what services. She said that was a significant discussion given the financial situation facing <br />every local government. Mr. Fleenor said the board was aware of that and understood there was a cost <br />involved in assuming responsibility for services. He hoped to see a creative process that led to a solution <br />that fit both Eugene and Springfield and met the needs of residents. He acknowledged the board was not <br />certain as to how to proceed. <br />Mr. Stewart said the comments read by Mr. Handy had not been reviewed by the entire board or approved <br />as its official position. He agreed the board had discussed the issue many times and understood that the <br />board's concern was the reason for the work item. He was not privy to the development of the comments <br />and could not represent them as his own at this point. <br />Referring to Mr. Handy's comments about another refinement plan for the areas in question, Mr. dark <br />asked if Lane County intended to have its staff prepare that plan. Mr. Handy said the intent of his remarks <br />was to alert the other elected officials as to what the board was thinking and to avoid later surprises. <br />Mr. Simmons said that if the board was to discuss service provision in the urban transition areas, he <br />thought it appropriate to have costs as part of the discussion so that the public knew what it meant. He <br />said while it was clear the board had some interest related to jurisdictional control, it needed to have <br />money to support that interest. He suggested that Springfield provide services at less expense and more <br />quickly than Lane County. He believed that was very important to avoid inhibiting growth. <br />Mr. Sorenson agreed the board had discussed the issue many times. He said the board was looking at <br />whether Lane County could provide services more efficiently to the unincorporated areas within the UGB. <br />He acknowledged that historically, the data demonstrated that cities could deliver services at less cost. <br />However, he believed Oregon's government was shrinking relative to its population, and he thought <br />creative thought was needed to address service provision in that context. Mr. Sorenson suggested that the <br />elected officials needed to consider what government was needed, and what government could be <br />afforded. He pointed out an increasingly smaller percentage of residents lived in the unincorporated areas <br />of Lane County. Mr. Sorenson said that government consolidation was an increasingly popular trend and <br />said people were concerned about the efficiency of government when they saw what appeared to be <br />service duplication in the form of three public works departments, three law enforcement agencies, and <br />three planning agencies. <br />Mr. Fleenor agreed with Mr. Sorenson. He questioned the relevance of Lane County government, <br />particularly as the timber payments were threatened, economics worsened, and property values fell. He <br />suggested that there was a need to consider the bigger picture and options like government consolidation. <br />He said that the board would discuss the costs of service provision, and suggested the issue went beyond <br />costs and touched on the cost of not having representational government, which led to a loss of trust on the <br />part of citizens. <br />Mayor Leiken observed that he did not have much time to view the meetings of the Board of County <br />Commissioners. He expressed concern that the commissioners had made no informal approaches to the <br />cities and the elected officials of Eugene and Springfield about issues the jurisdictions could work on <br />together. He noted the regular meetings he had with Mayor Piercy and said Mr. Fleenor as board chair <br />was always welcome at those meetings. He invited informal contacts from other elected officials. <br />Mayor Piercy found it heartening that the elected officials were having such a substantial discussion in <br />their limited time together. Given that limited time, she suggested it would be helpful if a j urisdiction <br />putting forth a substantive change could assure the other elected officials that the proposal represented <br />that jurisdiction's official position. <br />MINUTES Joint Elected Officials Lane County & Eugene June 17, 2010 Page 6 <br />