City of Eugene Voters' Pamphlet - Laserfiche WebLink

Home Browse Search

BALLOT MEASURE NO. 20-88 REFERRED BY CITY OF EUGENE Ballot Title: General obligation bonds to partially fund civic center vision project. Question: Shall City of Eugene issue $6,790,000 of general obligation bonds to partially fund Civic Center Vision project? If the bonds are approved, they will be payable from taxes on property or property ownership that are not subject to the limits of sections 11 and Ilb, Article XI of the Oregon Constitution. Summary: If approved by the electors, proceeds from sale of the bonds will be added to existing funds to enable City to implement the first phase of the Civic Center Vision project. The City currently has approximately $28 million that can be used to build a Community Safety Building and back-up 911 Center. The measure provides additional funds for other elements of first phase, including space for co-location of victim support agencies that work with police investigators of crimes against families and children; meeting estimated 10 year Police Department space expansion needs; improvements and expansion of downtown park blocks; and "Civic Street" enhancements as recommended in the Downtown Plan. Approval of this bond measure is expected to provide the City with sufficient funds, when coupled with existing funds, to build this first phase. Proceeds from bond sale would be used to pay for costs of capital construction and capital improvements related to the first phase of the Civic Center Vision project as described above, including payment of bond issuance and interim financing costs, RESOLUTION 4801 D. in Apri~ 2001 the Council began to consider a Iongorange A RESOLUTION CALLING A CiTY ELECTION ON NOVEIt, IBER 2, downtown city space plan that would include both long-term and short- 2004, FOR THE PURPOSE OF REFERRING TO THE LEGAL term actions that would eventually result ~n replacement of Qty Hal~, and ELECTORS OF THE CITY OF EUGENE A MEASURE AUTHORIZ- has held numerous work sessions on this topic over the course of the lNG THE iSSUANCE OF A MAXII~UM OF $6,790,000 OF GENERAL last three years. OBUGAT~ON BONDS TO PARTIALLY FUND THE CIVIC CENTER VISION PROJECT. E. Commencing ~n fiscal year 2001 the Council identified and began to set aside one-time money each year for replacement of The City Council of the City of Eugene finds that: downtown Qty office space In the fiscal year 2003 budget the Council began systematically setting aside funds from department budgets for A. The Qty's Police Headquarters has been located at the th~s purpose. present Qty Hall s~nce it opened ~n 1964. As the Qty has grown, so have the functions and needs of the department. F. In May 2002 the first step ~n remowng functions from Qty Hail so that it could be replaced was taken when voters approved a bond B. Concerns about the ab~hty of C~ty Hall to withstand an measure to relocate Rte Station #1 from City Hall to a new downtown earthquake were raised in a 1992 C~ty Facilities Condition Report. fire station at 13~ and W~llamette Street. The Council also approved Additional studies and actions between 1995 and 2003 continued to using internal funding from the Facdlty Reserve for a Forensics Evidence support the need to provide safe and adequate facilities to house Police Unit and Property Control Unit facility to be buitt at a stte on Roosevelt Department services. The Council also created a Council Committee Boulevard in May 2002 in order to relocate personnel that were working on City Hall Alternatives ~n 1999 charged with recommending a plan for in the basement of Qty hall into a safer and more suitable working space. developing options to relocate functions in Qty Hall in the event that s~te was chosen for a new federal courthouse site The Committee's key G. The policies in the Downtown Plan were adopted bythe Qty finding was that the existing City Hall was not an appropriate facility for Council in April 2004, after a four-year process to develop the plan. In housing public safety functions due to the seismic vulnerability of its 2000, the City Council appointed a Committee for Greater Downtown structural systems V~s~omng to explore the future of downtown. The vision that emerged promoted downtown as a thriving, act,ve urban center with t~es to our C. Mayor Torrey appointed the Police and Rre Stations Task dch natural heritage, a variety of interm~ngled activities, and safe, inviting Force ~n 2000 to develop a recommendation for the Qty Council on streets This vision was used as a basis for updating the Downtown providing safe and adequate facilities for Police and Fire services. One Plan, which included the concept of a "Civic Street" that would I~nk a of the most ~mportant recommendations of this Task Force was that a series of existing and planned open spaces, and be the first choice for new Police facility shoed be located w~th~n the downtown area to best future civic buildings, indud~n9 a new city hall or police headquarters. address functional proximity to courts, the jail, and other City offices, CONTINUED 1, service delivery ~ssues, and growth management goals. 9