Item 2A: Approval of City Council Minutes

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Eugene is on the forefront of greenhouse gas reduction work. Until recently, inventories of greenhouse gas emissions have not included purchased goods and services. Recent research – including groundbreaking work by the City of Eugene - suggests that these emissions may well exceed those associated with energy and power. We’ll use this information to guide our work, as will others across the nation. Other important work is stormwater management in the Long Tom Watershed. Public Works offers a $50,000 grant for retrofitting buildings to better handle stormwater. This will, in turn, reduce stormwater surges on our system, keep our water cleaner and reduce costs. One final example of work being done to implement our climate and energy action plan is a project at Sheldon High School to plant trees that are well-adapted to future climate conditions, building resilience. I want to note here that we should all pay attention to our urban forest. Because of budget cutbacks the City has not been keeping up with its past tree-planting practices. As old trees die, new trees are not being planted at the same rate. There is a significant lag. This is something you and I could do together with Friends of Trees. If every family planted one tree a year in our city, we could begin to recover what we have lost. In addition to these specific initiatives, we’re looking at our land use planning and climate work together. We’re looking at our risks and doing a regional vulnerability assessment. This may sound like a lot but it is only a small percentage of what we need to do. Water scarcity is an emerging issue. Climate refugees relocating to this area may impact our resources sooner than we think. In the Netherlands, the government has been preparing for sea level changes for years. But here, like New Orleans, we are mostly unprepared; this is work we need to do together- and it is very important work. 6. While we work to improve our circumstances, there are many in need. Our county government has faced far greater cuts that have impacted every corner of service provision, including human services and public safety. As a city, we recognize and feel the impacts of a less-than-functional public safety system - of insufficient jail beds. Of course, having adequate jobs, education, shelter, food, and health care all reduce crime or keep it from happening in the first place. We will continue to try to be helpful to the county and to people without services. Our county could benefit from an independent, objective outside analysis by someone with no “dog in the fight” to have a look at our entire public safety system. That includes us. As the Governor has said, we cannot afford to keep doing what we have been doing. It’s time to try something different. After the recent election, I have hope for better days ahead for this country and for our state. Things are still very challenging for all too many people. Our city will have many opportunities to lead and to help and we will do our utmost, including continuing to address the needs of the homeless.  We’ll support a pilot micro housing project. MINUTES—City Council January 5, 2010 Page 7