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Judge Allen believed that the judicial surveys of the committee had been somewhat unbalanced and that a <br />disproportionate number of respondents had been EPD officers. <br />In response, Mayor Piercy expressed her hope that future surveys might have a more balanced respondent <br />base. She noted that the survey results rated Judge Allen's performance quite highly. She thanked Judge <br />Allen for the fines amnesty program he had initiated. She believed that it had been helpful to many <br />members of the community. Judge Allen suggested that the amnesty program or a similar strategy might <br />be re-established in the future. <br />Judge Allen, responding to a question from Ms. Ortiz, believed that the lower Municipal Court citation <br />levels in Eugene made it more likely that people would pay their fines. He further maintained that the <br />lower fines should be continued. <br />Judge Allen, responding to a question from Ms. Ortiz, briefly described the manner in which exclusions <br />and variances to the DPSZ had been granted since the creation of the zone. <br />Ms. Ortiz believed that the cost savings from leasing jail beds from the City of Springfield might be a <br />reasonable and productive financial strategy. <br />Mr. Zelenka believed that some of Judge Allen's comments regarding the associate Municipal Court <br />judges were disconcerting and asked for further information as to how the associated judges were <br />evaluated. Judge Allen replied that the Court did not perform full-scale evaluations of the two current <br />associate judges but that he had considered implementing a self-evaluation in order to gauge the judges' <br />own perceptions before implementing a more comprehensive evaluation process. <br />Judge Allen briefly discussed the perceptions of how the associate judges functioned within the current <br />Municipal Court structure. He further discussed his plans for bringing in associate judges Don Dement <br />and Don DeLoomis in the hopes that they would strengthen the current Court processes. <br />Mr. Zelenka commented on the staffing constraints within the City's current public safety system. <br />Judge Allen, responding to a request from Mr. Zelenka, listed information regarding requests for <br />exclusions from the DPSZ. He reported that of the 66 requests for 90-day exclusions received by the <br />Municipal Court, 42 had been granted and 24 had been denied. He noted that of the 16 hearings for <br />exclusions before the court, 9 had been granted and 7 had been denied. <br />Mr. Zelenka asked Judge Allen if he believed that the DPSZ was an effective tool for improving the <br />downtown area. Judge Allen repeated his earlier comment that it was not his position to definitively <br />make such a determination and that such a determination was the purview of the business owners and the <br />community members who lived and worked in the downtown area. <br />Judge Allen, responding to a question from Mr. Zelenka, briefly discussed the current and future facility <br />needs for the Municipal Court. He stated that the current Court space in the Eugene City Hall was <br />inadequate in that it had no dedicated space for attorneys to confer with their clients. <br />Mr. Zelenka commented that the customer and defendant survey results from the judicial surveys were <br />excellent. <br />Mr. Perry briefly explained the financial revenue information that had been included in the Judicial <br />Evaluation Committee's report. <br /> <br /> <br />MINUTES—Eugene City Council July 28, 2010 Page 5 <br /> Work Session <br /> <br />