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and Eugene had experienced millions in budget reductions since the wars began. She believed it was necessary for the council and other elected officials to place pressure on Congress to stop the wars. Ms. Bridgeman pointed out the fact the defense budget had doubled since 1998 to $725 billion, which was more than necessary to keep the country secure. She cited some of the local domestic priorities that needed more funding, such as the schools, First Place, environmental programs, and infrastructure support. Michael Carrigan, 1439 West 4"' Avenue, representing the Community Alliance of Lane County (CALC), joined in Ms. Bridgeman's request and reported that if the City adopted Councilor Brown's resolution, it would be joining many other municipalities across the country. He noted that Mayor Piercy had submitted a similar resolution to the US Conference of Mayors and 70 mayors had signed on to the resolution. Mr. Carrigan referred the council to the Web site for the National Priorities Project, where it could find information about how much the war had actually cost Eugene: http: / /nationalpriorities.org/ He estimated the wars had cost Eugene about $358 million. That translated into real services and programs, such as health care for low- income children, elementary school teachers, and assistance to veterans. Mr. Carrigan believed the American people wanted the wars and the deaths they caused to end, and cited a Gallup poll indicating 59 percent of Americans wanted to bring the soldiers in Afghanistan home in support of his remarks. He asked the council to support Councilor Brown's resolution as he thought its action could have an impact beyond Eugene. Duncan Rhodes, 1005 Lewis Avenue, #1, believed the Whiteaker neighborhood had a disproportionate number of homeless people. He reported that neighbors had recently met to discuss their concerns about homeless camping in Sladden Park. He agreed the homeless needed services such as 24 -hour toilets and potable water. Speaking to Councilor Clark's proposal that the council recite the Pledge of Allegiance, which he characterized as a "loyalty oath," Mr. Duncan termed the idea ridiculous and suggested it would lead to McCarthy -like hearings. Bill Eddie, 830 Crest Drive, said the Crest Drive area street project was done and Crest, Storey, and Friendly streets were more dangerous than before. The rebuilt streets were too narrow and invited accidents, particularly in the curbed sections of the road. Mr. Eddie said he had to come to a stop when he encountered a large vehicle to let it pass, and the steep curb and drainage ditch left no room for maneuver. He had seen vehicles stuck up to their axels in the drainage ditch in an effort to avoid a collision. Mr. Eddie believed bicycle safety was ignored in the design, which he found strange in a community that promoted the use of bicycles as an alternative mode. In addition, there was no accommodation on the streets for any type of bus. Mr. Eddie reported he had contacted the Public Works Department to share his concerns and had learned that City Engineer Mark Schoening was reluctant to sign off on the project or had refused to. If that was the case, Mr. Eddie suggested a moderately talented attorney could sue the City for millions in the case of a serious injury or fatal accident that could attributed to the street design. He believed there was still time to improve the safety of the streets through widening in certain areas, the installation of speed bumps in steeper areas, and the reduction of the steep curb cut to give vehicles more room to maneuver. Mr. Eddie suggested that if councilors had driven the streets they might agree with him, and observed that he had heard anecdotally that the mayor was concerned about the design. He asked the City to rely on its engineers and not on the whims of neighborhood associations for future road project designs. MINUTES— Eugene City Council June 13, 2011 Page 2 Regular Meeting