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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCCMinutes - 10/11/04 Mtg MINUTES Eugene City Council Regular Session Council Chamber--City Hall October 11, 2004 7:30 p.m. COUNCILORS PRESENT: Bonny Bettman, George Poling, David Kelly, Betty Taylor, Jennifer Solomon, Scott Meisner, Gary Papd, Nancy Nathanson (by telephone). Mayor James D. Torrey called the meeting of the Eugene City Council to order. 1. CEREMONIAL MATTERS - Proclamation for "Breast Cancer Awareness Month" Mayor Torrey explained that the reading of the proclamation would be delayed as it had yet to be delivered to him. 2. PUBLIC FORUM Mayor Torrey reviewed the rules of the Public Forum. David Hansen, 2738 Kismet Way, spoke on behalf of the Eugene Citizens for Housing Standards. He thanked and congratulated the council for its willingness to work on housing standards. He appreciated the unanimity of the councilors' support. He felt the council recognized the need for and the improvement to the community that such standards would facilitate. He said he hoped to meet with councilors over the next couple of weeks both to provide information and to answer questions. Jude Hines, 4487 Knoop Avenue, read the first portion of a statement, copies of which were provided to the council, on behalf of the Alliance of Federal, State, County, and Municipal Employees (AFSCME) Local 1724. She conveyed the local's commitment to a fair collective bargaining commitment to the City of Eugene. She stressed that the local was asking to be treated equitably. Cindy Clark, 1621 Calistoga Court, read the second portion of the statement on behalf of AFSCME Local 1724. She related that the Union had difficulty deciphering the City's costing figures. She underscored that the City budgeted $33.9 million for AFSCME positions, while actual wage costs were $27.9 million, because the City budgeted for 100 unfilled positions. She asserted this would pay for the total cost of health insurance for every AFSCME employee for the year. Roberta Pupilli, 1790 West 15th Avenue, read the third portion of the statement on behalf of AFSCME Local 1724. She discussed the monthly cost of health insurance for a family and reiterated that this was MINUTES--Eugene City Council October 11, 2004 Page 1 Regular Session included in the budget for unfilled positions at approximately $12,000 per year per position. She said the Union understood that the City must budget for positions to meet unexpected needs in the coming year, but wished the staff and council to understand that AFSCME workers were performing the duties of these unfilled positions as well as their own right now. She pointed out that money unused for wages went into the unrestricted fund. She reported that, according to the City's own financial report, the unrestricted fund had accumulated $66 million as of July 2002. Matt McRae, 2584 Friendly Street, recited the fourth segment of the statement on behalf of AFSCME Local 1724. He asserted that there were workers who could not afford to retire. He discussed deferred compensation, a benefit given to managers, supervisors, and exempt employees. He related that the Local had proposed a one-percent deferred compensation package in lieu of a one-percent salary increase, adding that this would save the City $98,000, but the City had dismissed the proposal. Mr. McRae asked AFSCME members to stand and show cards that indicated the number of years worked for the City, ranging from 2 to 28 years. He stressed that people who give dedicated years of service deserved this reliable tool for retirement. Kathy Saranpa, 3015 Friendly Street, thought the meeting held between Public Works Department staff and the Crest Drive neighbors was disappointing. She thought scheduling a design charette at 4 p.m. precluded attendance by people who work until 5 p.m. She said what neighbors wanted, more than an opportunity to design streets, was a follow-up for the questions brought up at the previous meeting. Only one-half hour had been allotted for this at the end of the process. She likened designing a street before it was designated to putting "the cart before the horse." She theorized that the real reason behind the change in designation was to open up the south end of the City for further development. She urged the City Council to explore the real story behind the issues. She asserted that utilizing the local street designation would accomplish the goals of both the City and the neighborhood. Charles Biggs, 540 Antelope Way, reiterated his concerns regarding the sharply rising taxes and inflation in relation to the rate at which incomes were rising. He felt the time was not appropriate for a bond measure to pay for a new public safety facility, especially given that lawsuits against the Eugene Police Department (EPD) were pending. He asserted that the City's liability coverage for the lawsuits was only $5,000 per lawsuit and taxpayers would be saddled with paying the rest. He listed potential expenses the City would be facing in the near future. He submitted his testimony electronically. Martin Brown, 3446 Storey Boulevard, expressed concern about the street classification for the Crest Drive neighborhood. He felt City staff did not understand the traffic flow on Crest Drive. He related that consultants had asserted that the majority of the traffic was on its way to the post office and then, later, on its way to Jefferson Street. He reported that the neighborhood had paid for a detailed traffic study, the results of which had indicated that the majority of the traffic was cut-through traffic to avoid the intersection at 29th Avenue and Willamette Street. It also indicated that 800 cars traversed Storey Boulevard from upper Crest Drive and lower Crest Drive, a lower number than the City's count of 2,100. He thought the reason the City wanted to change the street designation was that it "looked good on the map." Sherie Hawley, 3484 Storey Boulevard, thanked Gary McNeel, Senior Transportation Analyst for the Public Works Department, and Gary Satre of Satre and Associates, for hosting the neighborhood meetings. She related that the majority of the speakers overwhelmingly expressed their desire to keep the street designation local. She conveyed the Crest Drive neighbors' frustration at the "questions only" format of the MINUTES--Eugene City Council October 11, 2004 Page 2 Regular Session first meeting. She felt the second meeting also did not meet the needs of neighbors as they were asked to launch into a design process for which they were ill-prepared. She asserted that the City had not articulated its case for changing the street designation. She related that the neighbors needed confidence that the street would continue to be called ~%cal" in order to continue to work on street design issues. She said City staff stressed that changing the designation was a change in wording only. She averred that if that were so, then there should be no issue in leaving the wording as it stood. Frank Calciano, 975 Crest Drive, echoed the concerns regarding the change in street classification expressed by previous speakers. He thought that a lack of stop signs contributed to the overuse of the neighborhood and allowed vehicles to travel at high speeds with no impediments from Bailey Hill Road to Willamette Street. He related that the design charette had split the group into ten subgroups and every group designed the street similarly, incorporating narrow streets, traffic calming devices, and more stop signs. He underscored that the vast majority of those in attendance wanted the designation to stay the same, with only two people indicating support for the change to the collector designation. He added that the neighborhood was willing to put in the energy and money to support the effort to design a street with which both the City and the neighborhood could live. David Monk, 3720 Emerald Street, urged the council to include a comprehensive public planning process for the rail yard property in the Planning Commission work plan when it held its joint work session with commissioners later in the month. He encouraged the council to assign a staff person to work with Union- Pacific Railroad in order to find out what it intended to do next and plan accordingly. He said attempts by members of the public to gain information had been unsuccessful. He hoped the railroad would realize that there was more money to be made by selling the real estate than by hanging onto it. Zach ¥ishanoff, Patterson Street, noted that Williams Bakery had sought to remove some of the restrictions on its land. He theorized that this had to do with potential for a new arena. He reiterated that the Fairmount Neighborhood Association was opposed the site review proposal and he intimated there would be a lawsuit. He said citizens were "riled up" and recommended that public input groups be formed. Mr. Vishanoff thought the University of Oregon was discriminating against people by not renting 15 houses it owned, although there was a waiting list to get into the housing. Mr. Vishanoff shared other concerns regarding economic development zones. He opined that rich people did not need tax breaks. Kevin Matthews, 120 West Broadway Street, said Public Forum testimony indicated the people of the City of Eugene wanted economic justice and environmental quality. He applauded AFSCME for speaking up about their needs. He questioned the wisdom of imposing a change in street designation on a neighborhood so roundly opposed to it. Mr. Matthews asked why the City Council sought to "ram through" approval of an enterprise zone proposal. He alleged that "a chunk" of the City Council represented construction, real estate, and development interests. He thought the City would spend potential tax money to bring in businesses that bring in low wage jobs and create needs for social services and infrastructure paid for by taxpayers and the community stood to lose in this scenario. He felt City staff had not presented a salient argument for the benefits of an Enterprise Zone for the community. MINUTES--Eugene City Council October 11, 2004 Page 3 Regular Session Bruce Miller, PO Box 50968, conveyed his displeasure with the Downtown Eugene, Incorporated (DEI). Mr. Miller announced that Lane Community College had scheduled a candidates' forum for October 21 and that the Lane County Democrats were also meeting that day. He noted that The Oregonian had endorsed John Kerry for President and The Register-Guard had endorsed Don Hampton for County Commissioner. Mr. Miller called attention to the map that was at the election board. He thought the map did "a horrible job" of designating the boundaries of State representatives and senators. Mayor Torrey closed the Public Forum and called for council comments. Councilor Bettman thanked everyone for their testimony. She commended the Eugene Citizens for Housing Standards (ECFH) for their vigilance and for their articulate testimony. Councilor Bettman agreed with the Crest Drive neighbors that the meeting was confusing and difficult. She asked for draft language for an amendment to designate the streets as local and not collectors as the council would be considering street designations soon. City Manager Dennis Taylor said he would work with City Attorney Glenn Klein to craft the intended motion for her. Councilor Bettman apologized to AFSCME members for having to work without a contract since June. She surmised that the sense of insecurity and unpredictability must have an impact on their daily lives. She stated that the council was forbidden from interfering with bargaining. However, she acknowledged that AFSCME members had brought up an interesting issue and asked City Manager Taylor to speak to it. City Manager Taylor said that mediation was set for Wednesday, October 13, and he believed the two bargaining teams would agree to a fair contract. Councilor Bettman asked City Manager Taylor to speak to the allegation that significant sums of money were being budgeted for unfilled positions. City Manager Taylor said he was not prepared to provide an analysis of vacancy savings at the present time. He did not think such an analysis could be completed within the time that a council assignment was limited to. He suggested that the item be brought for consideration during the Budget Committee process. Councilor Bettman asked if there was validity to the claim that there were 100 unfilled positions, budgeted at $6 million. City Manager Taylor responded that the City bargained at the bargaining table and not through the newspaper, rallies, or City Council meetings. He thought Councilor Bettman was trying to get into the bargaining process by asking the budget question. He did not feel he could gather the information prior to the mediation meeting with AFSCME. Councilor Bettman suggested he provide the information on vacancy savings after the mediation meeting. Councilor Pap~ thanked everyone for coming down and speaking. He asked staff to provide the percentage of benefits in relation to the actual wage of employees. Councilor Pap~ commended the work of the Crest Drive neighbors in lobbying for the street designation. He felt some form of consistency was needed and wanted to know if other neighborhoods were exempt from MINUTES--Eugene City Council October 11, 2004 Page 4 Regular Session such changes. He thought there were safety issues to consider as well, noting that he and a friend "biked" through the neighborhood at times and considered Crest Drive to be the least safe street on which to travel. Councilor Taylor thanked everyone for testifying. She acknowledged that the council could not interfere in bargaining, but echoed Councilor Bettman's request for information. Councilor Taylor complimented the lobbying efforts of ECFS. Councilor Taylor opined that the City should listen to the Crest Drive neighbors. She said if people do not want to designate their street to something else, it should not be so designated. She said, though testimony seemed to indicate otherwise, there were likely some neighbors in that area that could not afford to pay for future improvements. Councilor Kelly thanked everyone who took the time to come down and speak up. Regarding the Crest/Storey/Friendly street designation, he noted that the Mayor had spoken at a previous meeting about building bridges. He fek the City was doing exactly the opposite with this issue. He urged staff not to bring the street designation issue before the council until the City was closer to an agreement with the neighbors. Councilor Kelly said, regarding the discussion of vacancies in AFSCME positions, he was open to receiving the information during the budget cycle. He asked if there was data on comparable jurisdictions on how many positions were open during a budget cycle. Additionally, he wished to convey his objection to the suggestion that Councilor Bettman was trying to interfere with bargaining. Regarding the concerns expressed by the Crest Drive neighbors, Mayor Torrey said it was apparent the process had not reached a point where decisive action could occur. Mayor Torrey acknowledged the testimony of AFSCME representatives. He reiterated that the responsibility of negotiating the contracts was assigned to the City Manager. He believed the Union had supporters among the City Council and people who believe strongly that the council should do the best job for the taxpayers and the service provisions required by the City. He recognized that AFSCME workers did a good job. He said it was up to the City, its elected officials, and staff to provide the citizens of Eugene with the best product for the best price. And, he continued, it was the job of AFSCME employees to get the best benefits for themselves and their families. He stressed that he did not hold this against the employees, but held in high regard the responsibility of the challenge and task of City employees to attain these benefits. Mayor Torrey announced that the proclamation for "Breast Cancer Awareness Month" had been delivered to him. He read the proclamation into the record, which declared the month of October 2004, "Breast Cancer Awareness Month." 2. CONSENT CALENDAR A. Approval of City Council Minutes - September 8, 2004, Process Session - September 22, 2004, Work Session B. Approval of Tentative Working Agenda MINUTES--Eugene City Council October 11, 2004 Page 5 Regular Session C. Adoption of Resolution 4813 Authorizing Lane County to Assess Benefiting Properties Under the Jurisdiction of the City for Improvements to North Game Farm Road between Coburg Road and 965 Feet Southeast of Old Coburg Road Councilor Bettman, seconded by Councilor Poling, moved approval of the Consent Calendar. Councilor Kelly noted he had submitted corrections to the minutes electronically. Mayor Torrey deemed them, without objection, approved. Roll call vote; the Consent Calendar was unanimously approved, 8:0. 4. ACTION: Request for Contingency Funds for Police Audit Councilor Bettman, seconded by Councilor Poling, moved to authorize the expenditure of $108,000 for the purpose of hiring an outside professional organization to conduct an external review of relevant police department policies and procedures. City Manager Taylor explained that he and staff had brought together members of the International City/County Management Association and the Police Executive Research Forum to conduct a police inquiry, a comprehensive and independent review that would be forwarded with recommendations to the Police Chief, elected officials, the community, and himself after the first of the coming year. Councilor Taylor regretted that the City did not have a performance auditor that regularly audited all of the City's departments. In this way, she opined, the City would not have to spend this extra money. City Manager Taylor responded that the particular subject matter expertise of these organizations as well as the background and experience of the people who would be conducting these interviews would provide specific information that would help improve training procedures for officers. Councilor Pap~ pointed out that the council had just approved a contingency request from the Police Commission for $70,000. He asked if the commission could be talked into letting this work supercede some of what it was doing and potentially save the City some money. City Manager Taylor said this study would address the specific aspects of internal affairs as they relate to what the practices were at the time the two officers, who were now serving time in prison, were employed by the City of Eugene. He stated that the scope of work had been reduced so that there was no overlap. Councilor Kelly commended the City Manager and Police Chief's interest in conducting a thorough outside review. He averred he would have no qualms about supporting the funding request if it was within the existing department budget authority. He felt a little pressured by the way that it came before the council. He stated that the City Manager informed the press that the study would happen prior to asking for council approval of the contingency request. City Manager Taylor stressed the importance of expedience in addressing the situation. He noted that overtime expenses for the Eugene Police Department (EPD) had been inordinately high due to election MINUTES--Eugene City Council October 11, 2004 Page 6 Regular Session coverage and the loss of officers to retirement, the war, and to being fired due to illegal conduct while in uniform. Councilor Kelly thought the work would be valuable. He asked if half of the costs could be picked up by the EPD budget. He also wondered if the Police Commission had been consulted or provided the scope of work the study hoped to accomplish. City Manager Taylor responded no to both questions. He added that he did not think this particular work fell under the purview of the Police Commission, though the information would be available to both the Police Commission and the City Council for review, once completed. Councilor Solomon appreciated the expertise in terms of the contacts that City Manager Taylor brought into the community and his leadership skills. She asked if it would be possible for the consultants to speak to the Police Commission. City Manager Taylor replied that they had scheduled a series of interviews that included members of the Police Commission. Councilor Bettman indicated she was conflicted. She supported any oversight of the policies and practices of the department so that it could improve. She asked what the duration of the study would be. City Manager Taylor responded that it was hoped it would be completed within 90 days so that recommendations could inform proposals to be included in the fiscal year 2006 budget process, but he thought it could take as long as 120 days. Councilor Bettman conveyed her support for a larger sum of money, should it be deemed necessary, as she believed it would take much time and resources in order to take a comprehensive look at the department. Councilor Bettman also took issue with how the subject had been presented to the council. She believed the Police Commission did play a role as the results would provide a resource for the department and citizens in the community. She noted that some people on the commission read about the decision in the newspaper. Mayor Torrey supported the resolution, contingent upon unanimous support from Police Chief Robert Lehner and the City Manager. They indicated they both supported the resolution. He opined that such a study could not be conducted effectively within the community. He underscored that the report may reflect negatively on EPD. He reminded the council that this study could only be conducted in this way once. He felt the credibility of the City would shine if the City would %lean out its closet and be completely honest about what happened." He suggested that this sort of external activity would help the incoming mayor and would provide credibility for the department. Councilor Pap~ concurred with Councilor Bettman that the process needed to begin. He felt a credible and efficient complaint process would come from it. He asked Chief Lehner to speak to Councilor Kelly's suggestion that half of the cost come from the EPD budget. Chief Lehner called the police budget ~grim." He noted that the unrestricted money left from unfilled vacancies had been used to pay for, among other things, extra coverage for political candidates. He also said a set of recruits was undergoing field training and another set of recruits had begun the police academy, all of whom were on the payroll. He said the actual number of real vacancies for the coming year was low, but the fact was that a number of the recruits slated to fill vacancies were not ready to deploy. He likened his situation to ~flying the budget plane very close to the ground." He stressed that there were very few areas in which any budgetary flexibility could be found. MINUTES--Eugene City Council October 11, 2004 Page 7 Regular Session Chief Lehner pointed out that the scope of work had been narrowed form the original proposal as it had been determined that the Police Commission study could adequately cover some of the proposed scope. Councilor Bettman thought the department should model transparency. She asked how the audit would address community input indicating that there existed a fear of coming forward with information that might cause trouble with the police. She also wondered if the audit would look at resource issues. Chief Lehner felt the interviews with the Police Commission would help the audit address the concerns of the community. He said Eugene was not the only city in the country where people were afraid, in some cases, to come forward and make reports about police officers. He stated that there were best practices for these sorts of situations. He commented that in some cities there was corruption on the police force. He felt certain this was not the case in our City and he looked forward to a comprehensive audit process. City Manager Taylor added that the resource issue would be part of various components of the audit because resources were a part of each component. Chief Lehner expected the audit to address resources more specifically in the areas of supervision of the internal investigations staff, the kinds of work done to process complaints, and the work to supervise officers. He thought it unlikely that the audit would look at resource issues in the area of direct service provision, e.g., the handling of calls. Mayor Torrey called for the vote. Roll call vote; the motion passed unanimously, 8:0. The meeting adjourned at 8:54 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Dennis M. Taylor City Manager (Recorded by Ruth Atcherson) MINUTES--Eugene City Council October 11, 2004 Page 8 Regular Session