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and a variety of other protections. Firms must work with local bureaucracies to meet regulatory requirements, and some regulations and processes can be quite onerous. The City of Eugene hired Zucker Systems, an outside consultant, in 2003 to review the Planning and Development Departments' Planning Division (which interprets and enforces the code) with an emphasis on the land use permitting process. Zucker Systems reported, that staff and applicants find the code difficult and confusing, and it is likely more complex than it needs to be to achieve the City's goals. There are generally large numbers of criteria and standards that apply to projects and a thoughtful audit of their effectiveness should be done to measure their value. The 2003 Zucker Report recommended that the City consider being less prescriptive, streamline various processes, and amend the code annually. The Committee agreed that many perceive that the City's regulations and land use code to be too complex, inconsistent, and burdensome, and the rules to be inconsistently applied. Many of these problems have lessened in recent years, but there remains substantial room for improvement. An improved regulatory process would enhance the experience and image of doing business in Eugene. SOLUTIONS The development code could be modified to make it simpler to understand. It is beyond the scope and available time of this Committee to make specific recommendations to modify the code, but the Committee agreed to recommend guiding principles to future changes to the City's code. The Committee worked with City staff to identify useful guiding principles to improve the City's code. RECOMMENDATION The Committee recommends that Chapter 9 of the Eugene Code be made simpler, and the following guiding principles should be applied to its review and revision. Additionally, the code should be reviewed on an annual basis. · Intuitive. Staff and the public find the code difficult and confusing, and it is likely more complex than it needs to be to achieve the City's goals. A thoughtful audit of the effectiveness of criteria and standards should be done to measure their value. · Adaptable. At this time, the City's code is 'one size fits all.' It could be more flexible and adaptable on a project-by-project basis. Establishing flexible and adaptable tools would allow City staff to better respond to challenges and issues that come up during the development process. · Enabling. Entrust staff to carry out policies and objectives by utilizing professional expertise. Empower staff to use creative problem-solving to achieve set policies and goals. Provide the framework for bounded delegation. Allow staffto make practical, rational decisions on common sense matters. Common-sense requests by applicants often require exception processes and may be burdensome. Mayor's Committee on Economic Development July 2004 Recommendations Page 9