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HomeMy WebLinkAbout04/27/1988 Meeting e e e M I NUT E S Eugene City Council McNutt Room--City Hall April 27, 1988 Noon COUNCILORS PRESENT: Freeman Holmer, Ruth Bascom, Robert Bennett, Jeff Miller, Roger Rutan, Emily Schue, Cynthia Wooten. COUNCILORS ABSENT: Mayor Brian B. Obie, Councilor Debra Ehrman. The adjourned meeting of April 25, 1988, of the City Council of the City of Eugene was called to order by Council President Freeman Holmer. I. ITEMS FROM COUNCIL, MAYOR, AND CITY MANAGER A. Kakegawa Marathon Mr. Rutan extended greetings from Eugene's sister city, Kakegawa, where he ran in a marathon during a recent week-long visit to Japan. B. L-COG Dinner Ms. Schue said neither she nor Ms. Bascom are able to attend the upcoming Lane Council of Governments dinner, and asked if any of the other councilors can attend in their absence. C. Monroe Park Mr. Miller said he would like to hear feedback from the council regarding the problems at Monroe Park. He said he is concerned about whether the council should adopt a standing policy to deal with the issue, or explore alternative ways to solve it. He said he is not certain that removing picnic tables and benches is the best way to resolve the problem. Mr. Bennett said he is concerned about the Community Development Committee's decision, and would like to hear more about the issue from Ms. Wooten, whose ward includes the park. Ms. Schue said the Joint Parks Committee is concerned about the issue and has been following it. Ms. Wooten said she lives one block from the park and has watched the park environment change for several years. She said the neighborhood association has tried unsuccessfully over the years to find solutions to the problems in the park. MINUTES--Eugene City Council April 27, 1988 Page 1 e Ms. Wooten said it apparently depends on who one talks to as to the severity of the problem. She said there are some who live near the park who do not feel there is reason for concern. However, there are other nearby residents who do not feel safe sending their children there. Ms. Wooten said her primary objection so far is the lack of a formal process to deal with the problem. She said she did not appreciate that the neighborhood association was not notified that the benches and tables were going to be removed. She said this has resulted in a change of behavior at the park, although it was not the best way to go about it. Mr. Miller said the Community Development Committee has not been vindictive over the handling of the issue. He said the committee is concerned about what happens when money is spent for low-income benefit, and then the consequences of those funds are removed. Ms. Wooten noted that many of the people involved in the issue are black. However, she said it is inappropriate to say the City has been racist in its response to the situation. She said staff thought removing the benches would be an expedient way to solve the problem. Mr. Gleason said the council should look to the Joint Parks Committee for a recommendation. Ms. Schue said the issue did not appear before the Joint Parks Committee as part of the decision-making process. Ms. Schue said the item can be placed on the Joint Parks agenda if the council agrees on how to handle the issue. e Ms. Wooten said she would like staff to bring back to council a list of suggestions on how to handle the issue in a long-term as well as a short-term manner. Council members agreed staff should bring back such a list. D. Nuclear Free Zone Ms. Wooten asked for a status report on the City's legal efforts to have both questions appear on the May 17 advisory ballot. Tim Sercombe, City Attorney's Office, reviewed the three legal actions that have been brought before the Oregon Supreme Court, the Court of Appeals, and the Lane County Circuit Court. He said the the Supreme Court initially declined to hear the case, although the City has filed for a reconsideration. Mr. Sercombe said he expects Lane County Circuit Court Judge James Hargreaves to rule on the issue by April 29. The Court of Appeals has not yet ruled on the issue. Mr. Sercombe said the City still has time to get the second question on a paper ballot. He said there is also a slight chance the question will appear in the actual ballot book. Mr. Holmer said the council also needs to address the issue with regard to the Voters' Pamphlet. He said he does not want the City to incur the expense of printing arguments on issues that will not appear on the ballot. e MINUTES--Eugene City Council April 27, 1988 Page 2 e Mr. Gleason said he is cautiously optimistic about the City winning the case. He said it is a difficult issue to predict because any decision in favor of the City will likely be appealed. He suggested the council proceed with publishing the entire Votersl Pamphlet because it would be worse for voters to not have anything to read if the question is allowed on the ballot. Ms. Wooten asked what advice Mr. Sercombe would offer about the first question if Judge Hargreaves rules against the City. Mr. Sercombe said there is no legal precedent in this area. He said Qne option is to remove the first question. He said he believes the City has home rule power to cancel the election. He said he is not certain, however, whether that is a practical or viable legal option. Mr. Sercombe suggested the council consider making a decision soon about how it wants to proceed: Mr. Bennett asked for more clarification about the ballot process. Mr. Gleason said the City would be placed in an awkward situation if the ballots are counted and the City refuses to recognize the vote. Mr. Bennett asked if the City can legally refuse to count the ballots. Mr. Sercombe said his opinion is that this is a municipal election which the council has the power to control under local law. He said no legal precedent exists for what a reasonable timetable is for taking a measure off a ballot. In addition, he said it is unclear what practical benefit the City will gain if it does cancel the election. e Ms. Wooten said she is concerned about the issue. She said she is willing to exercise the City's home rule power to cancel the election because the two advisory questions were intended to be voted on as a package. Mr. Bennett concurred with Ms. Wooten1s position. Ms. Schue said the council appears to want both questions on the ballot at the same time. If that cannot occur, the council should wait until that is possible. Mr. Sercombe said the council will need to pass a resolution to cancel the election. E. Urban Forestry Report Ms. Bascom said the Urban Forestry Report is scheduled for presentation to the council May 9. F. Public Right-of-Way Violation Ms. Bascom said she was displeased to find that her complaint about lawn signs in public rights-of-way while coming into the City from the airport has not been addressed. As a candidate, she said she appreciates the difficulty of finding suitable locatior.s for lawn signs. However, she said placing them in the public right-of-way is a violation of the City Sign Code. G. Budget Subcommittee Process Mr. Bennett said Subcommittee B, at a meeting he was unable to attend, choose e MINUTES--Eugene City Council April 27, 1988 Page 3 e to re-fund an issue that had previously been identified by the council as "below the line." He said the council spent a great deal of time setting priorities. He said he does not feel it is right for the subcommittees to discard those priorities and review individual items. If the majority of the council feel that is acceptable, he said it will open the entire process wide open again. Ms. Wooten said Mr. Bennett is suggesting that the budget process become a mockery and that the Budget Committee not be allowed to alter the priorities set by the council as a guideline to the City Manager. If that is the case, Ms. Wooten said those rules should have been laid out at the outset of the budgeting process. She said it is not appropriate for council members to bypass the Budget Committee process. Ms. Schue said Subcommittee A faced a similar situation. She said that subcommittee also had an item that was not included in the council1s priorities that the subcommittee felt should be funded. Ms. Schue said the process should be changed so that all subcommittees layout before the entire Budget Committee items they feel need to be re-funded. Mr. Miller said he agrees with Ms. Schue. If a subcommittee wants to add something back into the budget, he said the entire Budget Committee should consider it. Ms. Bascom moved that the council address the scheduled agenda items. e Mr. Holmer ruled that the motion is out of order. Mr. Bennett summarized that even though the council spent a great deal of time listening to staff analysis and prioritizing line items, the Budget Committee process is still open to individuals trying to re-fund particular programs and items. Mr. Holmer replied that is correct. He said the council has to allow the subcommittees an opportunity to discuss the budget and return to the full committee with recommendations. H. Cultural Affairs Commission Appointment Mr. Holmer distributed a copy of minutes from a February 26, 1988, meeting of the Cultural Affairs Commission Artistic Organizational Liaison Committee that discussed a staff report on competitive programming at the Hult Center. Mr. Holmer said the council will soon be appointing a replacement to the Cultural Affairs Commission. He said the council should give consideration to direct council representation on the commission. II. WORLD VETERANS GAMES PRESENTATION City Manager Mike Gleason introduced the item. Tom Jordon and Barbara Kousky, US Organizing Committee, presented the report. Mr. Jordon said organizers estimate 7,000 people will come from out of town to attend the e MINUTES--Eugene City Council April 27, 1988 Page 4 e games scheduled in begin July 15, 1989. He said organizers predict the games will bring $10 million into the local economy. Mr. Jordon said the organizing committee is pleased with the sponsorship the City of Eugene has shown so far. He said the committee has also met with success attracting other local sponsors. He said organizers expect the games to be the largest convention-type event in Eugene's history. Ms. Kousky said organizers are developing a computer program to facilitate housing for athletes. She said several tour group operators from several countries have been visiting Eugene. Judging from the response, Ms. Kousky said the 1989 games will most likely attract more than the 51 countries that part~cipated in the previous Melbourne, Australia, games. Ms. Kousky said organizers will be attending the European Master's Championships in Italy to promote the World Veterans Games. Ms. Wooten asked about the Budget Committee's action to allocate $12,000 to the organizers for office space. She said it was her understanding that office space was to be offered at no cost. Ernie Drapela, director of Parks and Recreation, said staff is weighing the options of a long-term solution versus a short-term one for supporting the games. He said Mr. Rutan's original offer of free office space was based on a short-term solution. e Ms. Wooten asked about the total amount of staff time that will be donated to the games. Mr. Drapela said thus far most of the staff time has been evening and weekends primarily on the part of himself and Ed Smith, PARCS executive manager. As the games approach, he predicted they will take the same amount of work as the Eugene Celebration, although it will not occur all at one time. Mr. Gleason added the support is coming out of the special events budget. III. APPOINTMENTS: BALLOT FOR PLANNING COMMISSION APPOINTMENT City Manager Mike Gleason ballots as follows: introduced the item Councilors submitted their Emily Schue--Lloyd Billingsley Jeff Miller--Lloyd Billingsley Freeman Holmer--Lloyd Billingsley Rob Bennett--Lloyd Billingsley Ruth Bascom--Lloyd Billingsley Ms Bascom moved, seconded by Ms. Schue, to appoint Lloyd Billingsley, 419 Stonewood Drive, to the Planning Commission to complete the unexpired term of Alan Yordy ending December 31, 1988. Roll call vote; the motion carried unanimously, 6:0. e MINUTES--Eugene City Council April 27, 1988 Page 5 e IV. ORDINANCE APPROVING ISSUANCE OF AIRPORT REVENUE BONDS City Manager Mike Gleason introduced the item. Finance Director Warren Wong presented the staff report. Mr. Wong said passage of the ordinance will permit issuance of revenue bonds of up to $8,170,000 to finance the portion of the project to be paid from airline revenues. He said the actual amount will probably be closer to $6,775,000 because of market fluctuations. Mr. Wong said a study completed by a national consultant concluded the project is financially feasible and there is more than sufficient revenues to support the debt service on the bonds. He said the bonds will be insured by Bond .Investors Guarantee for a one-time premium of $82,000. This will allow the bonds to sell as though they were rated Aaa, and will save an estimated $1.6 million. CB 3038--An ordinance authorizing the issuance of revenue bonds of the City of Eugene to pay the costs of airport improvements; prescribing the terms of the bonds and the terms under which bonds payable from airport revenues may be issued in the future; pledging and limiting the use of airport revenues; providing for related matters; and declaring an emergency. e Ms. Bascom moved, seconded by Ms. Schue, that the bill, with unanimous consent of the council, be read the second time by council bill number only, and that enactment be considered at this time. Roll call vote; the motion carried unanimously, 6:0. Council Bill 3038 was read the second time by council bill number only. Ms. Bascom moved, seconded by Ms. Schue, that the bill be approved and given final passage. Roll call vote; all councilors present voting aye, the bill was declared passed (and became Ordinance No. 19551). V. WORK SESSION: FUTURE LIBRARY PROJECT--SITING City Manager Mike Gleason introduced the item. Pat Decker, Planning Department, presented the staff report. She reviewed council and staff assumptions about the process as well as the proposed calendar. She said a meeting has been scheduled for May 11 to discuss library branches. A meeting on construction phasing is also being scheduled. Ms. Decker said June 15 has been set as a tentative date for the site decision to be made. Mr. Rutan called the council's attention to an article in the April 26 edition of USA Today that lists Eugene/Springfield as one of five areas in the country projected to have a population decrease by 1992. e MINUTES--Eugene City Council April 27, 1988 Page 6 e Mr. Rutan said he is not comfortable with the library construction and site selection process. He said the City needs to have a concept of what it wants to build before it discusses site. Ms. Decker said staff feels the council is making progress because it is making decisions that are beginning to define the library. Because the process is not finished, she said it will appear that in some cases the cart is coming before the horse. She said questions such as location, size, branch options and construction phasing will all be subject to recommendations from the council subcommittee on library financing. Ms. Decker said staff would like the council to get an approximate idea of what it wants in terms of a library before it tries to determine how it will be funded and whether construction should be phased. Mr. Rutan said he is still uncomfortable that financing and conceptualizing are not closely enough integrated. Mr. Miller said he would like council members to hear input from each other during the library work sessions. e Mr. Bennett said he agrees with Mr. Rutan. He said the information is being presented as if the council will make the final decision. He said the council is approaching the issue in a public manner. At the same time, he said the decisions reached by the council on the issue are being presented to the community as if the council knows the timing and the source of funds for the project as a whole. Ms. Decker said the council's V1Slon of the library and financing proposals will be put out for public comment in November 1989. However, she said the public will not be able to provide meaningful response unless the council combines its vision of the library and how it will be funded. Ms. Bascom said she would appreciate hearing why the Broadway and Charnel ton site was selected as the Future of Our Library Committee's first choice. Mr. Rutan reviewed Mayor Obie's comments that the economics of the new library will playa big part in the location and the nature of the facility. Mr. Bennett said he agrees with the concept of knowing the funding source and probability of a new library first. He said the council should continue to strive for what it wants in a library and can always return at a later date to revise the proposal. Ms. Decker said staff has structured the process this way in an effort to coordinate the library's financial planning with the discussions on the Six- Year Financial Plan scheduled for this summer. Don Lutes, library consultant, presented a report evaluating the existing and proposed sites. Benefits of the proposed Broadway and Charnel ton site are its central location and adequate size for the generally accepted level of one library floor per 45,000 square feet. He said the site would generate - MINUTES--Eugene City Council April 27, 1988 Page 7 e mixed use because of its proximity to the downtown core and could be expanded if needed. Mr. Lutes said the City would not have to purchase property for the new site since the land is already in public ownership. The new site has better vehicular access, would enhance the adjacent office and retail uses, and has good parking access, although it would require more parking spaces than the existing site. Mr. Lutes said the following factors are some of the characteristics of the existing site: removal of existing property tax rolls for parking; not as close to the downtown core area; marginal for mixed use; inflexible for expansion; requires asbestos removal; vehicular access is limited; adjacent commercial uses would be eliminated because of parking area acquisition; the public likes the site; marginal parking access. Mr. Lutes added vertical expansion is not feasible at the existing site. He said libraries require floors that can support 125 pounds per square foot while offices generally need 50 pounds per square foot. Mr. Miller said it is his understanding that the floors in The Bon and Sears buildings could be strengthened to meet a library's requirements. He asked if those buildings would match the benefits of the new site if their construction was strengthened. Mr. Lutes said the benefits would be approximately the same in terms of location. He said he is uncertain about how easily a department store could be converted to a library. He said the council also needs to consider the ~ functional impact on staff in a reinforced, existing building. Mr. Miller said it would be beneficial to have the comparison of The Bon and Sears buildings in light of the $23 million project. He said he would also like information from staff on building reinforcing costs. Mr. Gleason said studying the structure of buildings such as Sears, The Bon, and Lincoln School requires an architectural analysis. He said the study is not a simple matter of adding loading capacity to the floor. He said floor redesigns are likely to alter access and egress points, which impacts exterior wall location. Ms. Decker said staff can study The Bon and Sears buildings. Because some portions of the existing library already do not have the bearing capacity of 125 pounds per square foot, Ms. Decker said staff has assumed that council does not want to look at other buildings that also lack the proper bearing capacity. In response to a question from Mr. Holmer, she said staff does not know for certain the floor strengths of Th@ Bon and Sears buildings. However, she said she fairly sure the buildings were not built to meet library stack standards. Mr. Rutan said the council should not be conducting extensive analysis of The Bon and Sears since they are currently occupied. He said the council needs e MINUTES--Eugene City Council April 27, 1988 Page 8 e to start becoming aware of the trade-offs that will occur. He said the council also needs to be careful about the operating issue. Ms. Bascom asked about the Springfield Library which was adapted to an existing building. Mr. Lutes said the library shelf and spacing in that building were determined by the floor capacity, and not the reverse. Ms. Wooten said she likes the downtown location and her first choice would be to build a new library at that site. She said her second choice is to study buildings like The Bon and Sears if vacancies do occur. She said her third preference is for the existing site. Ms. Bascom said she is committed to expanding the library in some way. She said she favors locating the library at the recommended site. Mr. Bennett said he favors the downtown site. However, he said he also supports considering existing buildings if they become available. He said the council should address the financial issue before it proceeds too much further into the process. Mr. Rutan said The Future of Our Library Committee was appropriately an advocacy group. He said the council's task now is to convert its recommendations into the realities of constructing a library. He said he also favors locating the library downtown. Ms. Schue said her first choice is to site the library downtown, although she said she it is too early to be specific about the project. She said she is ~ willing to consider locating the library in existing buildings. Mr. Miller said he is willing to look at either a downtown site or the existing site. He said he is uncomfortable with anything in the proposed site that is located on the west side of Charnel ton because of the dangers of expanding the mall area. He added he supports pursuing discussions with The Bon and Sears. Mr. Holmer said he favors expanding the library at the existing site, althQugh he said he is not opposed to a site closer to the downtown core area. The meeting was adjourned at 1:32 p.m. Respectfully submitted, ~'!<"trl -. . Micheal D. Gleason City Manager (Recorded by Todd Nissen) mncc 042788 e MINUTES--Eugene City Council April 27, 1988 Page 9