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Mr. Bowers said a plan that had a project focus gave the City flexibility to act when opportunities arose. The problem was never the lack of a plan, but a lack of implementation. Mr. Bowers recommended that the City: · Be clear about what kind of business was acceptable to create certainty · Focus on business retention/new business creation--business attraction is a "crap shoot" · Focus incentives on family wage jobs; minimum wage jobs will come on their own · Create a business ombudsman to help businesses work through the regulations · Place long-term effort and support toward economic development--the political support for economic development tends to be countercyclical but real flexibility is available when times are good, and'.that was when the framework to weather the next recession can be established : · Isolate economic development from politics · Should be flexible to be opportunistic; Eugene tended to want to "pin things down" and that was not an affective approach · Not confuse economic development with downtown development; downtown development was necessary, but not sufficient · Scale incentives to match the public' benefit · Establish public/private partnerships · React quickly · Dedicate resources to economic development, specifically through the establishment of new urban renewal districts--such districts are a flawed tool, but one of the few Oregon allows Consider bonding against the urban renewal districts for funding · Establish a new enterprise zone--it would be a significant symbolic gesture · Commit some General Fund dollars to economic development · Reestablish the Business Assistance Team · Participate in Metro Partnership efforts · Establish an Urban Renewal Agency Authority. separate from the City Council or create an urban renewal advisory comm/~tee · Reestablish the Downtown Commission · Give staff the authority to act--Eugene, has excellent staff Responding to a question from Ms. Pierce, Mr. Bowersindicated that Eugene could not discriminate in terms of nature of the businesses that located in an enterprise zone. Ms. Pierce suggested the creation of such a zone could violate some other tenants the committee discussed, such as the importance of family wage jobs. Mr. Bowers agreed. He said that in the past, the City Council had considered, although it did not approve, a fairly sophisticated set of benefits tied to the public good. Ms. Pierce asked if the zone must be contiguous. Mr. Bowers said yes. MINUTES--Mayor's Committee on Economic Development April 20, 2004 Page 6