Item 2A: Approval of City Council Minutes

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issue with the idea of Whole Foods Grocery coming to Eugene, but he felt the City was giving a subsidy to the developer. He called this a “planning process out of control.” He noted that one of the reasons given for the parking garage was to be prepared for future development as yet unidentified. He said the City would be subsidizing “we don’t know what.” It was not clear to him that a public benefit would be achieved by the proposal. He opined that he did not trust staff because the City had spent almost $100 million on the downtown and staff was responsible for the result. Planet Glassberg , PO Box 11011, opposed using public money for a parking garage. She thought the money should stay in the community and should not be used to subsidize a corporation. She called it “crucial” to continue to support local businesses and farmers in order to build a resilient local economy to conserve cultural and biological diversity in the community. She suggested that the downtown could be revitalized and would flourish for local businesses, parks, and open space. Chuck Hunt , 130 Hansen Lane, asked the council and staff to think creatively of alternatives to the proposal. He stated that he was beginning his 10th year as a vendor at the Farmers Market and suggested that the council consider what it already had. He said the Farmers Market took in $1.5 to $2 million in gross annual sales. He asserted that this revenue remained in the community. He related that the market was struggling with space issues and had problems with weather. He thought the market would love to have a covered area for a year-round farmers’ market-type venue. He asked that the council look to the Farmers Market if it was looking for partnerships. Carl Oslund , 28285 Spencer Creek Road, spoke in support of the Whole Foods Grocery and proposed parking structure. He said as a designer and consultant on a variety of projects, he had found the design- built format very effective. He supported the no-bid contract. He disagreed that Whole Foods Grocery would cause other businesses to fail. He underscored that Eugene would grow regardless of what happened with this issue and the question was whether the growth would occur in the core or at the perimeter. He thought one could “talk on and on” of the aesthetics of a parking structure, but personal transportation and food were both hallmark underpinnings of a vibrant economy. He said people would live near food. He predicted that the development would be a catalyst for the community. He thought instead that the presence of Whole Foods Grocery could raise the standards for other larger stores such as Safeway and Albertson’s. Charles Biggs , 540 Antelope Way, thought the need for the parking structure had not been made clear. He had not personally found any “sound evidence” to support the need. He opined that educational levies would be hurt by the deferred tax revenue. He predicted the project would deplete stormwater funds and this would require an increase in systems development charges (SDCs). He said urban renewal districts were formed to redistribute the “up-front costs of development” over a 20-year timeframe and should not be used to subsidize “as much development as possible” with taxpayers’ money. It was his understanding that the Riverfront Urban Renewal District had depreciated in value since its formation and had “not performed even to conservative expectations.” He submitted his testimony in writing and reiterated his earlier request, made during the Public Forum. th Kim Buchanan , 85 West 24 Place, spoke on behalf of Dan Lundberg. She read a statement from Mr. Lundberg which related his experience studying traffic-calming and car-free centers. She said he found that in Europe, traffic congestion had been reduced by increasing parking fees and reducing parking places. His statement also asserted that Los Angeles traffic engineers found that reducing the freeway by one lane reduced traffic congestion. Mr. Lundberg thought the earth’s climate was “spinning out of control.” She said his main message was that projects such as a parking structure should not be built because peak oil production had been reached and money should not be spent on building infrastructure for petroleum-using vehicles. MINUTES—Eugene City Council -- March 13, 2006 Page 22 City Council Meeting