CC Minutes - 04/09/12 Meeting - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

Garrett Dunlavy, Ward 3, a student at the University of Oregon, was joined by Nick Beradi, Education Coordinator for the University's Sustainability Center. They shared the center's plans for Earth Week on campus and solicited the community and council's involvement. Dennis Gabrielson, Creswell, offered a failing grade to the council and manager for spending money on Occupy Eugene, for contracting with outside attorneys, and for allowing Occupy Eugene to camp without permits or bonds. He submitted a graph showing the percentage differences in exempt and represented City employee salaries over time. Carla Newbre, Ward 1, a member of the Opportunity Eugene Task Force, endorsed the task force's recommendations. She had asked staff to forward the specific committee reports to the council to ensure the details did not get lost and asked the council to request them if they had not been provided. She endorsed a homeless camp site based on the Dignity Village model in Portland and the formation of a Homeless Commission. Kimberly Gladen, Ward 1, referred to assertions that more downtown benches were needed and called attention to the 74 existing benches downtown, most of which she seldom saw used. She asked why people did not congregate at the Free Speech Plaza, which had more than 200 feet of bench space and was completely unused. People had been sitting on handicapped access ramps, which puzzled her. Ms. Gladen suggested that people needed to be educated as to the location of downtown benches. She also recommended that people seek out nearby public parks, which also had benches. Ms. Gladen congratulated the council for the bicycle racks downtown and called for more of them. She suggested the City solicit suggestions for their location from downtown business owners. Mark Rust, Ward 5, expressed concern about the proposal to expand the urban growth boundary to accommodate job growth in the Clear Lake Road area, suggesting it did not make sense to place all industrial employment in one place. He was also concerned about the infrastructure that would be needed to serve that land and suggested the decision to stop the West Eugene Parkway precluded much growth to the west. Regarding the public need for school and parkland, he suggested that the City consider expanding into the Lane Community Council basin given the City -owned parkland in that area. Mr. Rust suggested that placing 500 new homes at the headwaters of the Willow Creek might not be the best idea, noting that much of the land in the land was purchased to be preserved for natural use. He encouraged the council to keep the potential of Goshen in mind for industrial growth. Eugene Drix, Ward 3, was grateful that the downtown pits had been filled and for the Public Forum. He was glad that Eugene was not Portland. He said change was inevitable, although sometimes it was not noticed. He was still trying to brand the community and suggested that if everyone shaved their eyebrows that might help; if it did not work out they could always grow back. He noted that alleys in his neighborhood, the West University Neighborhood, had been dated when paved and he thought that was useful. Robin Bloomgarden, Ward 8, posited a situation involving an emergency that left residents homeless but the council was unable to act because of restrictive codes that took years to change. She said the community had a homeless crisis. The homeless were unwanted and illegal but they wanted someplace to be and somewhere to store their belongings while they attended school, looked for work, or ate at The Dining Room. She encouraged the City to identify a homeless camping site and modify its zoning and building codes quickly so the homeless had a place to be now. David Ivan Piccioni, Ward X, was concerned about trees being cut in Eugene to accommodate construction activities and infrastructure development. If a tree had to be cut for some unavoidable MINUTES— Eugene City Council April 9, 2012 Page 2 Regular Meeting