Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout04/11/1988 Meeting e e e M I NUT E S Eugene City Council Dinner/Work Session Bloch Room--Eugene Community Conference Center April 11, 1988 5:30 p.m. COUNCILORS PRESENT: Freeman Holmer, Ruth Bascom, Robert Bennett, Debra Ehrman, Jeff Miller, Roger Rutan, Emily Schue, Cynthia Wooten. Mayor Obie opened the meeting and said cellular phones would be on the council agenda Wednesday at noon, !, URBAN RENEWAL PLAN UPDATE (PEDESTRIAN MALL/PLAZA/WILLAMETTE STREET FROM 8TH TO 10TH) Bob Hibschman of the Development Department reviewed previous discussions, including the Downtown Commission and the Planning Commission's recommendations for the design of Willamette Street, alternatives for financing, and information about access as it related to economic activity. He said staff recommended that the Council establish a Design Advisory Committee to consider one or more options and to report back to the council. He also said the council could make a decision about voter referral and could take a position or make a recommendation, Ritchie Weinman of the Development Department reviewed a flow chart illustrating the process for voter referral of design plans, He said the recommendations of the Planning Commission and the Downtown Commission for the Urban Renewal Plan included specific direction about the composition of a Design Advisory Committee, which consisted of citizens with expertise in public places, retail and performing arts, project management, accessibility for the disabled, lighting, landscape architecture, and economics. The committee also would include a City Councilor and a citizen-at-large. He reviewed a time line, noting that appointment of a committee could occur by May 9 and possibly the committee could submit recommendations to the council by the end of July, This would be necessary for the November election, He noted that the schedule would be tight, and he said later public votes could be held in March 1989 or in a special election. Mr, Weinman said construction could occur between January and July 1990, and he reviewed design options. Responding to questions, Mr, Weinman said the recommendation had not included a suggested size for the committee, and potential designs for limited access involving alleys had not been reviewed by traffic engineers. MINUTES--Eugene City Council Dinner/Work Session April 11, 1988 Page 1 e e e Mayor Obie said he recalled that the council had requested information about options to open Willamette Street to traffic with minimal impact, Ms. Wooten said she did not favor the idea of letting a committee decide the design of Willamette Street between 8th and 10th avenues, She said her preference from among options was to create one design option that would open the street and to submit that option to voters, If that failed, she said the street should remain closed, She said she was not supportive of a design committee proposing a redesign of the street should it be closed, She also said she thought a committee of the council, in collaboration with the Downtown Commission and/or the Planning Commission and technical staff could develop a street opening design option based on the preliminary designs prepared by Don Miles. Ms, Wooten said she favored a process of three months or less and wanted to put the option on the November ballot, Mr, Holmer said he found Ms, Wooten1s suggestion generally agreeable, and he asked whether a November vote would mean that January 1990 was the earliest possible construction date, Mr. Hibschman said the period after the holiday shopping season had been chosen as less disruptive to retail activity on the mall, Responding to questions, staff said construction in early 1989 probably would not be possible because of lead time required for design and contract work. Mr, Rutan said he supported Ms. Wooten1s proposal with minor modifications, He said extensive review had been done, he believed the concept submitted by Don Miles was a viable option, and he did not favor formation of a committee, He recommended submitting one option--either to open the street or to keep it closed--for voter referral, Ms. Ehrman said she supported that proposal and did not want to prolong the process with a large committee. Mr. Hibschman said an option for opening the street would need to address the Broadway/Willamette plaza area and to identify a location for rest rooms. Ms. Bascom said she thought it was clear from previous discussions that the council had agreed to decide on an option for referral. She said she would prefer to submit to voters an option with a carefully thought-out plaza with a Broadway-like treatment that later might be opened to traffic. Mr. Miller said he favored submitting one option to voters and making a recommendation in favor of an attractive option. He said he liked the recommendation from the Downtown Commission and the Planning Commission for a well thought-out committee to deal with community concerns. Ms. Schue said she favored giving voters sufficient information to make a decision, but asking for their decision before spending a great deal of time on specifics, Ms. Wooten and Mr. Holmer said they agreed. MINUTES--Eugene City Council Dinner/Work Session April 11, 1988 Page 2 e Mayor Obie reviewed three developments concerning downtown: 1) Ed Whitelaw's information with regard to economic impact, which he said he found to be substantial and very meaningful; 2) a recent announcement that The Bon planned to open a store at Valley River Center; and 3) discussion about a new Sears store in the Gateway area, He said he believed it was important for the survival of downtown to have the street opened, and he was ready to submit that recommendation to voters. Ms. Wooten said she was amenable to submitting the issue to voters. She added that she remained opposed to opening the street to traffic, but she favored proceeding with the decision, Mr. Holmer said he favored opening the street to traffic, but he believed the issue deserved to go before the voters, Ms, Bascom said she did not favor council action to open the street and she thought it was necessary to refer the issue to voters. Mr, Miller said he favored opening the street and he believed the issue should be submitted to voters with a recommended option to open the street, including the costs of opening and not opening the street to traffic, e Ms, Schue said she thought the perceived benefits of opening the street could be lost in the hard feeling generated by how the council handled the issue, and she therefore thought voter referral was imperative. She said she favored keeping the street closed, but she thought getting the voters' advice was essential. Mr. Miller said he thought information about costs and economic impact should be presented to voters, Ms. Schue said she did not believe the information presented by Mr, Whitelaw necessarily could be applied to Sears or The Bon, Mr. Holmer suggested referring to voters the issue of whether vehicular traffic should be permitted on Willamette Street between 8th and 10th avenues, He said details of design, plazas, etc. then could be dealt with, Ms. Bascom asked how many lanes would be permitted. Mayor Obie said he thought any more information would run a risk of misleading voters. Ms. Schue said she favored including in the motion "through" traffic, Ms, Ehrman said that if the vote did not favor opening, she would be reluctant to introduce traffic through alleys, Ms, Wooten said she was not opposed to considering drop-off circulation possibilities in the event of development or expansion activity along Willamette Street from 8th to 10th avenues, and she thought it should be made clear that those options remained open, /I MINUTES--Eugene City Council Dinner/Work Session April 11, 1988 Page 3 e Mr, Miller asked whether the council favored taking a recommended position when referring the issue to voters. Ms, Wooten said she favored taking a vote of the council after the issue was forwarded. Ms, Schue said she favored voter referral, but she wanted the opportunity to vote against opening the street to traffic. Ms. Bascom said she did not favor submitting a proposal without an intended design to open the street, adding that she would prefer to submit Don Miles' option for opening the street at a later date, Mr, Holmer moved, seconded by Mr. Rutan, that the council propose a ballot measure asking the voters to decide on the question of permitting through vehicular traffic from 8th to 10th on Willamette, Mayor Obie said the measure was not being proposed tonight, but staff would return with a ballot measure, and the council could hold further discussion about particular options or other items, Ms, Wooten asked whether the motion implied formation of a committee comprising representatives of the two commissions and the council to review elaboration of the Miles report, Mayor Obie and Mr. Rutan said they did not intend that implication. e Roll call vote; the motion carried 6:1:1, Councilors Holmer, Ehrman, Miller, Rutan, Schue, and Wooten voting aye; Councilor Bascom voting nay; Councilor Bennett abstaining. Mr, Gleason requested direction in terms of providing public information about the option for opening the street to traffic, Ms. Wooten said she favored attempting to reach agreement about the concept to be presented for public information but that did not necessarily limit the project to the presentation. She said she did not intend to open the street to four lanes of traffic, and she wanted to provide for pedestrian, traffic, and planting areas in a concept. Mr. Holmer said he favored referring the general question to voters and allowing the council to decide specifics, Ms. Ehrman said she agreed with Mr. Holmer that the question should be kept simple until a decision about traffic had been made, Mayor Obie and Ms, Schue concurred. Ms. Ehrman added that the measure should be placed on the ballot as soon as possible. Ms. Bellamy said she thought the September ballot was possible, and staff agreed to check on a special election in June, Responding to Mr. Gleason's question, councilors said the issue should be included in a voter's pamphlet, e MINUTES--Eugene City Council Dinner/Work Session April 11, 1988 Page 4 e Mr. Miller suggested that the council find out about its authority to determine election format and timing and whether researching the issue was worth the time, Mr, Gleason agreed to check with City Attorneys. Ms, Wooten noted that when the council referred to voters issues of diverse opinions, the council became the proponents for purposes of the voter's pamphlet. She said she believed that when community members had strong feelings on the issue, they, rather than the council, should be involved as proponents, and she might request that as a legislative change, Ms. Schue said she and Mr. Holmer had found themselves the proponents of the nuclear free zone measure, and when they had realized the omission of supporters, they had added one representative as a "good faith gesture,lI But, she added, she did not find the procedure very rational. Ms. Wooten requested that the City Attorney review the matter with the voter pamphlet committee, because she would like to see the procedure changed to be and appear more fair. Ms, Bellamy said the procedure was based on the State model. e Mr, Holmer said he believed that if the council referred the issue to voters, it was the proponent and should be identified as such, He said he believed the apparent unfairness had occurred in identifying opponents, and because the committee required five members, the councilors and other members had been very willing to find an opponent representing the other point of view, He said that as long as five members were included, he thought an argument would result, and he noted the further protection of a public hearing on the description, which was a neutral explanation provided by the committee, If the committee did not agree, the statement reverted to the City Attorneys first draft of the description, which he found fair. Ms. Wooten said she found the process appropriate for some issues but inappropriate for others that were more controversial. She said she still favored consideration of an amendment or legislative change, Mr. Miller suggested amending the procedure to define proponents as the council "or their designees." Ms. Ehrman said a one-year review of the ordinance was planned, Ms, Schue suggested an informal agreement with the mayor that the members of the council appointed to the committees personally agree with the point of view of which they were asked to be a proponent. She said, for example, that she had voted for referring the street opening to voters, but she did not want to be a proponent of opening the street. Mayor Obie said that was what he looked for in the Nuclear Free Zone, Ms. Ehrman asked when the council would take a position on opening the street, Mayor Obie said he favored placing the issue on the ballot and taking a council position at a later meeting. Responding to Ms. Wooten1s question, councilors said they did not agree on formation of a committee or on elaboration of the Miles documents or information pertaining to a design concept. Mayor Obie said the only elaboration would come from those who served on the voter's pamphlet committee and must conform to the motion that was passed, e MINUTES--Eugene City Council Dinner/Work Session April 11, 1988 Page 5 ~ The meeting was adjourned at 6:45 p.m, Respectfully submitted, e e ....." . " . ~.."':.... .....~ ':'" .' .~ . :...' ~ '. - Micheal Gleason, City Manager (Recorded by Leslie Scales) mncc041188 MINUTES--Eugene City Council Dinner/Work Session April 11, 1988 Page 6