Item 2A: Approval of City Council Minutes

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long-term planning that provided adequate water for Veneta. Mr. Nye believed EWEB was the most viable option. It had a secure, dependable water source that could be depended on for domestic, commercial, industrial, and public safety needs. Recent wells had not been very productive. He said a finding by the Oregon Water Resources Department restricted Veneta’s access to future groundwater sources. Mr. Ney said that Veneta had secured federal funding to construct the necessary pipeline but an agreement with EWEB must be in place before the public process can begin. He emphasized that time was of the essence. He asked the council to support the agreement. Brian Issa , PO Box 458, Veneta, Public Works Director of Veneta, discussed the opposition to the Veneta water contract. He said the opposition was based on assertions that approval of the sale would lead to sprawl and rampant growth, and Veneta itself had been referred to as sprawl and a subdivision of Eugene. Those in opposition would have the council act as the arbiter of growth in the region by using water as a tool to impede growth in the outlying incorporated communities. He asked the council to consider the contract for what it was, an agreement for EWEB to sell a very small amount of water to a neighboring community so it could continue to pursue its community development goals in the context of Oregon’s land use system. Mr. Issa urged the council to look at Veneta’s planning documents when considering assertions that growth in Veneta was unplanned. He said that Veneta was far ahead of many communities in ensuring growth occurred conscientiously. He said that many in opposition would suggest the contract would lead to rampant growth, but Veneta had experienced growth without abundant water. Dave Davanzo , vice president of the Fern Ridge Chamber of Commerce, said his organization believed a healthy business climate enriched the lives of everyone and it was committed to working with the City to attract new jobs and industry to Veneta and for its residents. He said Veneta was disadvantaged by the lack of a reliable, secure source of water. Water was vital to Veneta residents and critical if the city was to be successful in attracting new business to the area. He noted that the community’s best producing well sites could not be drawn from because the water originated in the Long Tom River and Fern Ridge Reservoir. The surface water from the Long Tom was already committed and it would take an act of Congress to gain access to the Fern Ridge Reservoir; even if Veneta gained access to the reservoir, treatment costs would be excessive. Mr. Davanzo supported the Veneta water contract, saying it made sense, was the right thing to do, and ensured Veneta's future economic independence Jim Eagle Eye , 25456 Hunter Road, Veneta, chair of the Veneta Planning Commission, encouraged the council to support the agreement between Veneta and EWEB for the sale of surplus water to Veneta. He pointed out that Oregon law required Veneta to provide adequate water for projected growth over the next 20 years. Water was critical to Veneta’s ability to both recruit commercial and industrial investment to provide more employment opportunities and services to all residents and to improve residential development so that it could protect its natural resources and continue to grow into a city that could provide its residents with a distinctive quality of life. Mr. Eagle Eye emphasized the importance of timely action due to the nature of the grant/loan funding that would underwrite Veneta’s costs for pipeline construction. He also emphasized the jobs that pipeline construction would bring to the region. Mr. Eagle Eye encouraged the Eugene City Council to continue discussing the issue of regional water planning. Mr. Eagle Eye concluded by saying that Veneta’s projected future growth and increases in commercial and industrial development could be met within its Urban Growth Boundary and should not be considered MINUTES—Eugene City Council December 13, 2010 Page 9 Regular Meeting