Item 3A - Approval of City Council Minutes

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4. ACTION: An Ordinance Concerning Downtown Public Safety Zone; Amending Section 4.874 of the Eugene Code, 1971; and Providing a Sunset Date City Manager Ruiz reported that the DPSZ expired April 30, 2012, unless the council chose to extend it. The ordinance before the council extended the DPSZ to April 30, 2014. Police Chief Pete Kerns referred councilors to the handout provided them entitled DPSZ—Supplemental Information, February 27, 2012. He led the council through the handout, which responded to council questions from the work session held on February 13. Councilor Brown suggested that data for the period three years after implementation of the zone would help the council determine if the problems downtown were merely being moved around. Chief Kerns recalled that the department reported on the impact on other neighborhoods in 2010 and it would take some time to collate that information. Councilor Brown wanted to see a more fine-grained listing of all the exclusion orders issued and the reason for exclusion to gauge the effectiveness of the zone. Councilor Brown, seconded by Councilor Farr, moved that the City Council approve Council Bill 5064. Councilor Ortiz pointed out to those offering testimony in the public forum that police officers could target people and cite them with or without the DPSZ. She did not think the EPD would put additional effort into analyzing the data if the council did not extend the DPSZ for six months because the program would be dead. She anticipated that while the analysis was occurring, the City could explore additional opportunities for street vending downtown to provide the homeless with a source of income, an option that had been discussed by the Opportunity Eugene Task Force. Councilor Ortiz asked who would bear the liability of a court challenge. City Attorney Emily Jerome responded that the City Attorney’s Office would defend the ordinance on behalf of the City. She reported that City Attorney Jerry Lidz had reviewed case law to determine if new cases or statutes had arisen that dealt with the constitutionality issues raised by opponents and found nothing new. The City Attorney’s Office believed the law was constitutional. Councilor Pryor said the council could end the DPSZ immediately if it had an alternative to put in place, but he was uncomfortable ending the zone in the absence of such an alternative. He wanted to continue to work on an alternative. Councilor Pryor was intrigued by suggestions that the community could receive real time information. He also emphasized the importance of officer training and wanted to send a clear message to officers that the DPSZ was a safety effort and not punitive. Councilor Poling agreed with Councilor Pryor’s remarks about alternatives. He said the DPSZ was just one of many tools the City was using downtown. It was not perfect but it was the best the City had. He believed the DPSZ targeted behavior rather than socio-economic status. He likened the zone to a temporary restraining order, which placed restrictions on a person’s activities and was issued before the individual receiving the order could talk to a judge. Councilor Poling thought it was a good idea to review the DPSZ in two years to determine if the increased activity from downtown redevelopment helped improved the behavior targeted by the zone. Councilor Ortiz determined from Chief Kerns that the last three officers assigned to downtown would be assigned in July, bringing the officers downtown to a total of nine. She concluded that the nine officers represented “plenty of tools in that one tool box.” She would not support the motion unless the date the MINUTES—Eugene City Council February 27, 2012 Page 5 Regular Meeting