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Councilor Taylor said she did not find the reasons cited in support of renaming the park to be sufficient to <br />support the proposal. Other citizens had also made community contributions. She supported an open <br />naming process through which citizens could make suggestions for names. She pointed out the City <br />Council had just adopted a naming policy and she believed it should be adhered to. <br />Councilor Brown said he did not know Ms. Arlie but it appeared from the e -mails the council received <br />that she was a fine person. However, there were many fine people in the community who volunteered <br />their time and money. He felt the proposal was inappropriate. He supported the purchase but not if the <br />seller demanded that the park be named after Ms. Arlie. He wanted to postpone the naming process until <br />after the sale. He found the naming requirement to be offensive and willing to walk away from the <br />purchase. He thought it was bad policy to accept the proposal. <br />Councilor Clark suggested that over time the naming controversy would be forgotten and people would <br />only remember that the council purchased it at a very good price. He found the purchase opportunity to be <br />a once in a lifetime opportunity. He said the parks and open space bond was intended to purchase such <br />properties in the area in question. Mr. Clark thought that the purchase was a wise long -term investment. <br />He supported the motion. <br />Councilor Poling believed the council had followed its naming guidelines, which allowed it to name <br />something for someone living who had made extraordinary community contributions. The appropriate <br />application process was followed. He agreed with those who said Suzanne Arlie was an extraordinary <br />person. Councilor Poling supported the purchase and renaming proposal. <br />Councilor Zelenka reported he had polled those in attendance at neighborhood organization meetings <br />about the topic, and the Amazon and Laurel Hill Valley associations supported the purchase overwhelm- <br />ing. He believed the criteria in the policy were difficult to address because it was hard to say if someone <br />was extraordinary or if their gift was of an extraordinary nature. He suggested the language should be <br />deleted or made more explicit as it was difficult to apply. He supported the motion. <br />Councilor Taylor wanted to buy the land. She thought others deserved the honor of having a park named <br />after them more. She believed that if the City did not buy the land it would remain on the market and <br />could be acquired in the future. <br />Councilor Pryor did not object to revisiting the policy. The issue boiled down to a matter of preference <br />for him, and he respected all the councilors who had a preference. He was happy not to have to make the <br />decision alone. He noted his own association with the nonprofit community and commended Ms. Arlie's <br />extraordinary contributions. She had done things people would never know about. He thought that the <br />park name was okay because Ms. Arlie was a great person. <br />Councilor Solomon agreed that Ms. Arlie was a remarkable person and she was pleased to be able to vote <br />for the motion. <br />Councilor Ortiz felt uncomfortable about the subject initially but the more she considered the issue, she <br />believed ten years from now people would not remember the naming controversy or who the park was <br />named for. She suggested what really mattered was the legacy that one left behind. She was comfortable <br />with the naming proposal. <br />MINUTES— Eugene City Council December 13, 2010 Page 12 <br />Regular Meeting <br />