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MINUTES <br /> <br /> Eugene City Council <br /> Regular Meeting <br /> Council Chamber--City Hall <br /> <br /> March 8, 2004 <br /> 7:30 p.m. <br /> <br />COUNCILORS PRESENT: Gary Papd, Nancy Nathanson, David Kelly, Betty Taylor, Bonny <br /> Bettman, George Poling, Jennifer Solomon, Scott Meisner <br /> <br />His Honor Mayor James D. Torrey called the meeting of the Eugene City Council to order. <br /> <br />1. PUBLIC FORUM <br /> <br />Mayor Torrey explained the rules for the Public Forum. <br /> <br />Denny Guehler, 2090 Dewey Street, spoke on behalf of the WOW Hall. He said a committee had been <br />formed of community members with board experience to provide a ;;public face" for the hall for the City <br />Council and the future developer of the housing complex, slated to be built next to the WOW Hall. <br /> <br />Mr. Guehler stated that the WOW Hall was a small, non-profit business that paid its staff, bills, and had <br />some money in the bank. He applauded the purchase of the property next door to the WOW Hall for <br />development of mixed use low-income housing. <br /> <br />Mr. Guehler related that the committee met with staff and community leaders and conveyed the WOW <br />Hall's interest in the parcel of land directly behind the WOW Hall. He said the hall needed clear, <br />unimpeded access to the back of the building and parking for volunteers and performers and would <br />someday like to add on to the building. He sought the ;;enthusiastic support" of the council for this sale. <br />He also sought to bid on some footage on the east side of the building, particularly if the Ridenour Building <br />was taken down. He said the hall also hoped to add on to that side and beautify the building. He added <br />that, in the meantime, the WOW Hall hoped to use the neighboring building for storage as long as it still <br />existed. In closing, he suggested that, should the developer take the building down, the ;;good old beams" <br />inside it be recycled. <br /> <br />Kathryn McDonald, 55 Prall Lane, said she began as a volunteer at the WOW Hall in 1994 and was now <br />the current house manager and volunteer coordinator for the WOW Hall. She stated that the hall had 12 <br />people on its staff and 400 volunteers, many of whom were low-income people. Fifty percent of the <br />volunteer workforce was less than 21 years of age. She called the hall essential to youth in the community <br />as it taught them good life skills, such as lighting, technical skills, social skills, crisis intervention, <br />journalism (writing articles for the newsletter), among others. <br /> <br />MINUTES--Eugene City Council March 8, 2004 Page <br /> Regular Session <br /> <br /> <br />