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HomeMy WebLinkAbout01/11/1989 Meeting e e e M I NUT E S Eugene City Council McNutt Room--City Hall January 11, 1989 11:30 a.m. COUNCILORS PRESENT: Ruth Bascom, Rob Bennett, Shawn Boles, Debra Ehrman, Freeman Holmer) Roger Rutan, Emily Schue. The adjourned meeting of January 9, 1989, of the Eugene City Council was called to order by Mayor Jeff Miller. I. ITEMS FROM THE MAYOR, CITY COUNCIL, AND CITY MANAGER A. Designating CCED as Coordinator for Wetlands Issues Mr. Rutan reminded the councii of a memo he sent them as Chair of the Council Committee on Economic Diversification (CCED) recommending that CeED serve as a coordinating subcommittee for the various wetlands issues facing the City. Mr. Rutan requested that the council give CCED the role requested in the memo (dated December 23, 1988). Ms. Ehrman asked Mayor Miller whether the proposed subcommittee on infrastructure would be a better committee to serve as a coordinating body for wetlands issues. Mr. Boles suggested that CeED serve as a coordinating body for wetlands issues until the infrastructure subcommittee is formed and its role is known. Mr. Holmer was appalled that the review of wetlands issues in west Eugene alone will take until October of 1990. He stressed the importance of expediency in dealing with wetlands issues. Mr. Holmer said the City's policy towards wetlands is essentially an administrative decision and felt staff should be careful not to get bogged down in details about public process. Mr. Boles said the controversy surrounding wetlands is an environmental issue as well as an economic development concern. He said public involvement is necessary and warranted for this reason. Mr. Rutan moved, seconded by Mr. Holmer, that the Council Committee on Economic Diversification adopt the role as coordinator of wetlands issues as outlined in Mr. Rutan's memorandum of December 23, 1988. The motion passed unanimously) 7:0. MINUTES--Eugene City Council January 11, 1989 Page 1 . B. Downtown Development District Review Mr. Holmer said the Downtown Development District Review Group (DDDRG) would like preliminary feedback from the council on its recommendations for changes to the structure of the parking program. He said these changes include metering 350 of the spaces currently in the free parking program and limiting the remaining spaces to three hours. Another portion of the recommendation is to use revenues generated from the newly metered spaces to offset the Downtown Development District's (DDD) parking rental costs. Ms. Ehrman noted that this would be a shift in policy for the City, as revenues from metered spaces in the City typically go to the General Fund. Mayor Miller felt the council should hold a work session on this recommendation. He feared that if the DDDRG were to make a final recommendation before the council has fully considered all of the policy implications, the council would feel inhibited in rejecting the suggested shift in policy. Mr. Gleason felt the council has already made a policy decision to meter more spaces, but felt it was appropriate for the council to re-affirm this commitment. He felt the council needed to give more careful consideration to the decision to transfer meter revenues from the General Fund to the parking fund, however. Mr. Gleason said such an action will have a dramatic impact on the structure of the budget. He recommended that this change be considered in conjunction with a more general discussion of the General Fund. e In response to a question from Mr. Bennett, Mr. Gleason said the General Fund has never recovered all of its expenses for the activities in the parking program. Mr. Rutan was supportive of the proposal made by the DDDRG. He felt it is time to begin thinking about parking turnover in the downtown area. Mr. Bennett said he too is in favor of the recommendation. He did not feel transferring revenue for newly metered spaces out of the General Fund was as major a decision as Mr. Gleason believes. Mr. Bennett said if the council no longer agrees with its policy to give special support to the downtown parking program, it needs to let the DDDRG know now, because the review work should not, and could not, continue under these circumstances. Ms. Bascom moved, seconded by Ms. Schue, that the council is in favor of the recommendation to impose some limit on free parking but would like more time to consider where the added revenue would go. The motion passed unanimously, 7:0. C. National League of Cities' Annual Trip to Washington, D.C. Ms. Schue felt that if the council plans to institute new limitations on traveling and training expenses, it should do so before the annual trip to Washington, D.C. e MINUTES--Eugene City Council January 11, 1989 Page 2 e Mr. Rutan recommended that a limit be imposed on the number of councilors attending the conference. Ms. Ehrman, Mr. Boles, and Ms. Bascom all agreed with this suggestion. Mr. Holmer felt that the councilors' time in Washington, D.C. is generally better spent when the councilors go as issues demand. He said when the councilors go with the National League of Cities, there are too many activities vying for their time and they lack a focus. Ms. Bascom disagreed with this position. Mr. Bennett said it is the responsibility of each councilor to decide whether they can represent their constituents better after attending the conference. For this reason, he did not support the imposition of an arbitrary limit on the number of councilors who could make the trip. Mr. Bennett added that focusing on travel and training as a means for reducing the budget is a red herring. He said solving the budget problem of the City will require a discussion of more significant items. The council agreed to refer this item to the Committee on Committees for a policy recommendation. e D. Clty Council Goals Session Ms. Schue did not feel the last group process session held by the council was very successful and suggested that it not be included as part of the upcoming council goals session. She felt the council's time would be better spent discussing major issues of the City. Mr. Rutan, Ms. Ehrman, Mr. Holmer, and Mr. Bennett agreed. Ms. Bascom favored holding a group process session and felt Mayor Miller should have the discretion to plan the goals session. Mr. Boles agreed. Mayor Miller said he would take these concerns into consideration when planning the goals session. He felt a group process session would be beneficial since three councilors have not previously attended one. Mayor Miller said it is important for the new council to establish a working relationship and thought a group process session could foster this goal. E. Monroe Park Update Mr. Boles said he attended a recent meeting of the Friends of Monroe Park. He felt that the council will continue to-see support from the community for enhancement of the park and for a restoration of service level to what it once was. II. ELECTION OF CITY COUNCIL PRESIDENT AND CITY COUNCIL VICE PRESIDENT Mr. Holmer moved, seconded by Ms. Schue, to elect Ms. Bascom as City Council President. The motion passed unanimously. e MINUTES--Eugene City Council January 11, 1989 Page 3 \ \ - e e Ms. Schue moved, seconded by Mr. Holmer, to elect Mr. Rutan as City Council Vice President. The motion passed unanimously. III. APPOINTMENT PROCESS FOR WARD 6 COUNCIL POSITION Barb Bellamy, Community Relations Director, said the council has 90 days to fill the vacancy in Ward 6. She said the suggested schedule for filling the vacancy would allow the position to be filled before the council goals session. Ms. Bellamy reviewed the schedule included in the council packet. Ms. Bascom moved, seconded by Mr. Rutan, to proceed with the selection process for the Ward 6 City Council vacancy as outlined by staff. The motion passed unanimously, 7:0. Ms. Schue said when the last vacancy in Ward 6 was filled, the Active Bethel Citizens held a forum for the candidates. She suggested that the group be notified of the selection process so that they can hold a similar forum if desired. Mr. Boles suggested that the council meet for 15 minutes before the interviews to generate a core list of questions to be posed to all applicants. The council agreed to this proposal. IV. APPOINTMENTS: CONSIDERATION OF COUNCIL SUBCOMMITTEE'S NOMINATIONS TO THE HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSIONS Mr. Rutan requested a delay in appointments to the City's human rights commissions to give the council time to consider a restructuring of the human rights program. Mr. Rutan stressed that his intent in suggesting such a reorganization is not to take strength away from the program. To the contrary, he feels a consolidation of the individual commissions would represent a substantial positive benefit to the program. Mr. Rutan said the commissions are currently small, fragmented, and have trouble recruiting and maintaining members. He felt a consolidated program would be able to address these issues as well as make it easier for City staff to serve the commissions. Other councilors agreed with Mr. Rutan's position that the council should consider restructuring the human rights program, but felt the council should proceed with new appointments to the commissions at this time because the commissions are currently lacking members. Ms. Ehrman said the commissions have previously discussed the possibility of a consolidation. She requested that councilors be sent a record of these discussions. MINUTES--Eugene City Council January 11, 1989 Page 4 e The councilors reached a consensus to refer the issue to the Committee on Committees for a recommendation on restructuring the City's human rights program. Ms. Bascom moved, seconded by Mr. Rutan, to appoint those nominated by the council subcommittees to the various human rights commissions as outlined. The motion passed unanimously, 7:0. V. APPOINTMENTS: CDNSIDERATION OF MAYOR'S NOMINATIONS TO CITIZEN INVOLVEMENT COMMITTEE, JOINT PARKS COMMITTEE, LIBRARY BOARD OF TRUSTEES, LOAN ADVISORY COMMITTEE, -REFUSE AND RECYCLING BOARD, RIVERFRONT RESEARCH PARK COMMISSION, AND HISTORIC REVIEW BOARD Mayor Miller said because two members of the previous Historic Review Board wished to be re-appointed but failed to re-apply, he has revised his list of appointments to include these two individuals. Ms. Bascom suggested delaying the appointments to the board so that she could make some suggestions regarding the appointments to the Mayor. e Teresa Bishow, Planning Department, encouraged the council to make its appointments to the Historic Review Board as soon as possible because there is work for the new board to do. The council agreed by consensus to make the final appointments on January 18, 1988. Ms. Bascom moved, seconded by Mr. Rutan, to appoint the Mayor's nominations to the Citizen Involvement Committee, Joint Parks Committee, Library Board of Trustees, Loan Advisory Committee, Refuse and Recycling Board, and Riverfront Research Park Commission. The motion passed unanimously, 7:0. VI. APPOINTMENTS: NOTIFICATION OF MAYOR'S APPOINTMENTS TO THE BICYCLE COMMITTEE AND PUBLIC SAFETY ADVISORY COMMITTEE The Mayor's appointments to the Bicycle Committee included Brian Churchill, Susan Schrieber-Smith, and Robert Graef. Appointments to the Public Safety Advisory Committee included Richard Green, Donna Lattin, Elizabeth Thwing, Michael Slattery, Sylvia Roehnelt, Jan Gund, and Maria Richeson. VII. LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEE MINUTES OF DECEMBER 12, 1988 Ms. Bascom moved, seconded by Mr. Rutan, to approve the December 12, 1988, Legislative Committee minutes. The motion passed unanimously, 7:0. e MINUTES--Eugene City Council January 11, 1989 Page 5 , f \ e VIII. INTERNATIONAL NUCLEAR FREE ZONE CONFERENCE FUNDING REQUEST Mr. Gleason said the International Nuclear Free Zone Conference Committee is requesting funding support from the council for this event, which came to the council through former councilor Cynthia Wooten. Mr. Gleason said most of the events referred to the council come through either the Mayor or a City board or commission. He said this sometimes creates problems, as groups often assume the City will help fund the event. Staff has been trying to exert tighter discipline over funding for events by requiring that such expenditures be officially sanctioned by the council. Ms. Ehrman expressed support for this expenditure. She stressed that although the issue is controversial, the expenditure is appropriate as it will be a good economic development investment for the City. Mr. Boles and Ms. Schue agreed. Ms. Schue stressed that the council does need a clearer policy by which to make allocations, however. Mr. Rutan was not supportive of the request. He said the University of Oregon frequently sponsors similar, but larger, conferences. Mr. Rutan felt the City could not afford this expenditure and felt it would encourage additional requests. e Mr. Holmer felt the conference was too small to warrant the expenditure. He questioned how the specific languages for translation were chosen, and noted that financial support for translation services could start a precedent which the City cannot afford. Ms. Bascom moved, seconded by Mr. Rutan, to authorize the expenditure of up to $5,000 in Transient Room Tax revenues to purchase translation services in support of the Fourth International Conference of Nuclear Free Zone Local Authorities. The motion passed 5:2, with Ms. Bascom, Mr. Bennett, Mr. Boles, Ms. Ehrman, and Ms. Schue voting in favor, and Mr. Holmer and Mr. Rutan voting in opposition. IX. WORK SESSION: UPDATE ON ORDINANCES RELATING TO THE MALL ACTIVITIES Jan Bohman, Development Specialist, gave the staff report. She said the mall regulations and the City ordinance regarding the mall were last revised in 1985. Since then, staff has identified the need for other revisions and additions to facilitate management of the mall and other central downtown areas. Staff has been working with the City Attorney's office for approximately a year in drafting revisions to address the concerns identified. The Downtown Commission held a public hearing regarding the regulations on behalf of the City Manager; the commission's recommendations have been forwarded to the council. e MINUTES--Eugene City Council January 11, 1989 Page 6 e e e Ms. Bohman summarized the proposed changes to the mall regulations and ordinance. The revisions focus on private commercial use of public space, street entertainers and entertainment events, enforcement, interference with permitted activities, and restriction against unamplified noise disturbance during business hours. Proposed amendments to two other ordinances would exempt permitted mall activities from the City.s noise ordinance, and would prohibit skateboarding on downtown sidewalks surrounding the mall and in parking structures. Ms. Bohman said one major concern which is not addressed by these proposals is aggressive begging. A draft ordinance was written by the City Attorney based on a similar ordinance in Portland. However, a recent Oregon Supreme Court ruling regarding Portland's ordinance has caused the attorneys to withdraw the proposal. Tim Sercombe, City Attorney, said the City is currently considering three alternate ways to regulate begging which interacts with other activities to produce undesired effects on the mall. The first option being explored is the retention of the existing system which requires permits to be obtained for some fund-raising activities. This would include the solicitation of money for personal benefit. The second regulatory scheme being considered is the inclusion of State statutes regulating interpersonal behavior in the municipal code. Mr. Sercombe said this will make it possible to enforce the behavioral problems as municipal offenses. The third regulatory option under consideration is limiting anti-competitive behavior next to retail establishments on the mall. This will encourage the free flow of pedestrians and provide the necessary access for emergency vehicles, as well as protect existing commercial establishments on the mall from competitive activity. Councilors voiced their concerns about the proposed regulation that would establish fees for commercial use of public space in the mall. Ms. Ehrman said the City has been trying to encourage the use of public space on the mall and felt initiating a fee would counter this aim. Ms. Bascom agreed. Ms. Bohman said the purpose of the fee is to acknowledge the increased cleanup and administrative costs associated with commercial use of public space on the mall. While it would be possible to issue a permit without a fee, staff feels the proposed fee would be consistent with the City-wide policy that there will be some charge for the private use of public space. Ms. Bohman added that the City is considering revisions to the revocable permit structure. At some later point, fees instituted for mall space might be altered so as to be consistent with fees charged for similar uses city-wide. Mr. Bennett questioned whether there should be a fee charged for commercial use of public space on the mall, no matter how small the fee may be. He said the City is currently trying to encourage use of the mall and the institution of a fee would contradict that goal. Mr. Bennett said that in the future, there may be enough activity on the mall to warrant such a fee, but he did not feel it would be advisable now. MINUTES--Eugene City Council January 11, 1989 Page 7 e Mr. Boles felt that activity on the mall, restaurants, enlivens the downtown area. from a public safety perspective, because to be tolerated in a highly used area. especially that provided by He felt it is also advantageous unacceptable behavior is not likely Mr. Gleason said the implementation of a fee is the council's prerogative, but he encouraged them not to back away from the remaining proposed regulations. He said while the businesses currently on the mall are responsible, loose regulations could attract businesses that are less responsible. Mr. Gleason felt that such businesses and their clients could radically affect the nature of the mall. Mr. Rutan did not favor the proposed regulations for street entertainers. He felt that while not all of the entertainers may be talented, the variety is important to the vitality of the downtown area. Mr. Rutan said the proposed regulations raise questions about the extent to which individual behavior can be legislated or mandated. Mr. Bennett agreed with Mr. Rutan, saying that the variety of these entertainers can be extremely enjoyable and that the City should encourage variety. Mr. Gleason agreed that there are clear constitutional limits to the degree to which individual behavior on the mall can be legislated. He said there are also strong social expectations about how a person should behave in that setting. Mr. Gleason felt some regulations are needed to ensure that these expectations are met, otherwise a majority of people will not feel comfortable using the space. e Ms. Ehrman felt the proposed noise ordinance comes close to infringing on the right to free speech. She asked how the ordinance will work and if it would be effective. Keith Martin, City Attorney, said the City would have the power to arrest a person under the noise ordinance, if that individual willfully violated the ordinance. Ms. Bohman said the proposed skateboard ordinance would prohibit skateboarding on downtown city sidewalks where bicycling is already prohibited. Ms. Ehrman pointed out that skateboarding is an issue citywide rather than a mall-related problem. She felt it would need to be considered in this light in the future. The meeting was adjourned at 1:30 p.m. Respectfully submi~ted, . . ..::.,/<,,;'-::'.>'..:,,;~~ ,; ~ < " .'. .... '/ - /..c''v~'~~~ ~ ~cheal Glea~ ' City Manager (Recorded by Tanya Northman) MNCC 011189 e MINUTES--Eugene City Council January 11, 1989 Page 8