CCMinutes - 07/21/04 WS - Laserfiche WebLink

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support for a new police facility, particularly combining support services through social services agencies with law enforcement functions. She said she was inclined to support Option A+. Mr. Meisner remarked that Option D was what the City needed, but he agreed that it was not feasible at the present time for the November ballot. He supported Option A+ and expressed hope that the education process for the public regarding the City's long-term facility requirements and the need for Option D would be undertaken promptly, regardless of what was placed on the November ballot. He noted that most people were familiar with the concept of spending more than a structure was worth for maintenance and City Hall was approaching that point. He agreed that the butterfly lot project could be done with other revenue sources such as urban renewal district or parking funds. Mr. Pap6 concurred with Mr. Meisner's comments. He said that past councils had recognized the limited lifespan of the current City Hall and worked with staff to develop long-range plans to meet facility needs and identify financing strategies. He congratulated the council and staff for moving in the right direction and said he could support options A+ through D and while Option D was the best choice to address long-term needs, the timing was poor and he would consider options A+ and B. Ms. Nathanson commented that she would like to implement the Civic Facilities Visioning Committee's recommendation, but recognized that it was not possible to accomplish it all at once or in one project. She felt that Option A+ would begin the process of continuing improvements to downtown and City facilities in a sensible way that conserved money and moved the City forward toward its vision. She stated her support for options A+, B, or others, but Option D was too ambitious. She expressed concern about the description of Option A+ and whether it would limit options for space occupied by other entities in the facility. Mr. Kelly commented that there was no question that City Hall needed to be replaced and all of the arguments for replacing police facilities also applied to replacement of City Hall general facilities. He said he could not support Option A+ because of concerns that future expansion might never occur and the building as planned only provided for space needs to 2018. He said he was apprehensive about the chance for any measure to win on the November ballot. He stated that if any measure was placed on the November ballot, it ought to be Option D. Ms. Taylor stated that she did not think any option should be placed on the ballot until 2006. She said she preferred Option B of those presented. She said that the public should be allowed to vote on the use of any internal funds for such projects. She encouraged the council to consider placing Option B on the ballot in 2006, with a different location instead of directly across 8th Avenue. Ms. Bettman declared she was pleased to see support for Option D as any other option was short- sighted because of the potential to prejudice future ballot measures and the fact that the City's need for expanded capacity would not be fully met. She urged the council to demonstrate leadership by educating the public about the need for new City Hall and police facilities. She said she did not feel there was support in the community for either Option A+ or B. Mayor Torrey said he would support Option D if a majority of the council supported it, but asked where the funding for a campaign for the ballot measure would be obtained. He said that no one in the community had come forward in support of a large bond measure. He commented that as a practical matter, a new police facility would need to be built so that police functions could be moved out of City Hall and into a secure facility that met the seismic code, and he therefore saw MINUTES--Eugene City Council July 21, 2004 Page 3 Work Session