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HomeMy WebLinkAbout05/08/1989 Meeting e e e M I NUT E S Eugene City Council Dinner Work Session Eugene Community Conference Center--Wilder Room May 8, 1989 5:30 p.m. COUNCILORS PRESENT: Ruth Bascom, Rob Bennett, Shawn Boles, Bobby Green, Freeman Holmer, Roger Rutan, Debra Ehrman, Emily Schue. COMMISSIONERS PRESENT: Julie Aspinwall-Lamberts, Mary Young, Sue Prichard, Joy Morrow, Bjorn Olson, John Brown, Michael Schwartz. Mayor Jeff Miller called the City Council work session to order. I. JOINT CITY COUNCIL/DOWNTOWN COMMISSION WORK SESSION Ms. Aspinwall-Lamberts briefly reviewed the commission's tentative recommendations to redesign the Downtown Development District (ODD). The recommendations call for a three-hours-free parking program. Mr. Schwartz said he favored a two-hour program because it would increase parking turnover and be more likely to reduce abuse of the free parking system. Ms. Aspinwall-Lamberts said an informal survey indicated a preference among downtown retailers for a three-hour program. This was one of the factors behind the commission's tentative decision to recommend a three-hour program rather than a two-hour program. In response to a question, Scott Luell, Development Division staff, said the cost of enforcing either program would be about the same. Enforcement revenue from the two-hour program would be higher if the program were enforced aggressively. Aggressive enforcement, however, could evoke a negative response from the public. Mr. Holmer expressed support for a two-hour program, saying that two hours would be enough time for most downtown customers and that long-term meters would be available for those who need more time. Mr. Bennett raised the possibility of a mixed program, some two-hour spaces and some three-hour spaces. Ms. Aspinwall-Lamberts said this option was considered; however, it might make the parking program too confusing for the public. MINUTES--Eugene City Council May 8, 1989 Page 1 , e Mr. Boles said the community needs to conduct a discussion of some of the broad downtown issues and needs to develop a consensus about the overall vision for the greater downtown area. He raised the possibility of forming some type of representative group to begin this discussion. Only after developing this vision for downtown will the City be in a good position to consider specific issues such as programs, boundaries, service districts, parking, and so forth. Mr. Schwartz said a lot of effort has already been made to develop a vision for downtown--namely, the Downtown Plan. Mr. Holmer supported Mr. Bales' point about the need to consider the vision not just for the core, but for the greater downtown area. Ms. Prichard said downtown faces some very immediate problems, such as the real and perceived lack of security. She did not wish to ignore such problems by focusing solely on long-range planning. Ms. Schwartz said downtown Eugene may be without a major retail anchor store in the near future. He said FY90 retail revenue for the downtown area is projected to be at about the same level it was in 1977, $80 million or so. He said the future of downtown retail is in jeopardy. Ms. Morrow said the public sector does not have much control over the amount or type of retail development that occurs downtown; however, it can establish a favorable environment for retail development. She said one of the most e important elements of such an environment is good vehicular access. Mr. Boles said that increasing the number of security personnel ;s not the only way to deal with downtown's security problems. Another approach is to increase the level of downtown activity (because security problems are often worst in underutilized public spaces). Mr. Boles also said there is a potential to create public sector "anchors" in the downtown area. Mr. Brown reiterated Ms. Morrow's point. In response to Mr. Boles, he said the level of downtown activity will not increase if people perceive downtown as an unsafe and uncomfortable place. Responding to Mr. Boles' suggestion about the need to develop a V1Slon for downtown Eugene, Mr. Rutan said the major downtown issues have already been thoroughly studied and the broad policies for downtown have already been developed (in the Downtown Plan). He said the City's priority should now be to create a favorable environment for economic development and an active downtown. Mr. Boles agreed that the City has a wealth of information about downtown issues; however, he was not sure that this information has been put in a form that is comprehensible to policy makers, let alone to the public. He said the information and various studies need to be put in a form that is understandable, a form that will provide a clear direction for downtown's future. e MINUTES--Eugene City Council May 8, 1989 Page 2 e Ms. Schue doubted that there would ever be the kind of community consensus about downtown envisioned by Mr. Boles. She said that rather than doing further long-range studies or plans, the City should consider what specific actions it can take, given its resources and the political environment, to improve downtown Eugene. Mayor Miller said he has heard some talk about letting downtown deteriorate until people are finally convinced that something needs to be done (for example, opening Willamette Street). He said the City should provide more direction and leadership; it should present the public with an option to improve downtown: Mr. Schwartz compared the level of economic activity that is occurring on streets that have been reopened to vehicular traffic in recent years to the level of economic activity on the pedestrian mall. He said the mall has not worked as people originally hoped it would. He also said that downtown malls across the country tend to fail unless that have good vehicular access to them. Ms. Ehrman said the council and commission were still discussing the same old issue; however, the community does not appear to support the opening of Willamette Street to vehicular traffic. Ms. Schue agreed, saying that the City needs to focus its efforts on developing solutions that will receive political support from the public. e Ms. Aspinwall-Lamberts said that is one reason why the commission intends to examine the possibility of opening Olive Street to vehicular traffic. This might be acceptable to the community, and if it proves successful, the public might be convinced to support the opening of Wi 1 lamette Street as well. Several commissioners emphasized that downtown's security problems have worsened over the last 12 to 18 months. Mr. Green said he has heard a lot of concerns expressed by downtown business owners about security, but he has yet to hear significant concerns expressed by the general public. He cautioned that if this issue is discussed in an overly negative way--if downtown businesses keep stressing the security problem--the public may well be convinced that downtown is unsafe. He suggested that a more positive approach be taken when trying to address downtown's security problems. Mr. Green also said that in order to succeed, downtown needs to be able to attract people--with a good range of stores and merchandise, with aesthetic attractions, with various events, and so forth. Ms. Morrow said the people who support the current configuration of the mall do not understand what makes an urban area succeed. She stressed the importance of vehicular access to the economic prosperity of downtowns Ms. Morrow also said the proposal to open Willamette Street to vehicular traffic was not marketed effectively; not enough political effort was put behind it. e MINUTES--Eugene City Council May 8, 1989 Page 3 e e e Mr. Holmer said the opening of Olive Street should not be viewed as an adequate substitute for the opening of Willamette Street. He also said he has no fear of abiding by the opinion of the voters on this issue. He said he was frustrated by members of the City Council who think they know how the public would vote on the Willamette Street issue. He said the community should be given an opportunity to hear both sides of the debate and to make a choice. Mr. Brown said he believed that people with substantial financial investments on Willamette Street would support the reopening. He said consideration should be given to views of these business people. Mr. Boles said the Willamette Street issue needs to be discussed in conjunction with another--namely, the fact that the 8th and Willamette site, the traditional location of the Eugene Celebration, may be developed soon. He said the downtown needs a central place for major public gatherings. Mayor Miller said evidence from other communities indicates that downtown malls tend to be much more successful when they have good vehicular access to them, while malls with poor vehicular access, such as Eugene.s, have done poorly. Mr. Bennett supported Mr. Boles. suggestion to discuss the broad downtown issues and Mr. Holmer's suggestion to place the Willamette Street issue to a public vote. He said the City Council should not avoid the Willamette Street reopening merely because it perceives a lack of support among the public. He said such support does not simply appear; rather, it takes leadership, on the part of City Councilors and others, to generate this type of public consensus. Mr. Bennett said one does not have to be a downtown expert to realize how important vehicular access is to economic health; one only has to compare the mall with the parts of downtown that have been reopened to vehicular traffic in recent years. Ms. Ehrman cautioned that the opening of Willamette Street will not be a panacea. Vehicular access is not the only component of a successful downtown--just look at the downtowns in the country that have plenty of vehicular access but are nonetheless in economic decline. Mr. Rutan agreed; however, he said Eugene has done a lot to establish some of the other components of a successful downtown (a good mix of retail, professional, and government uses, for example, as well as a performing arts center). He said it makes sense to complement these elements by improving downtown's vehicular access. Mr. Rutan also said the City has not done a good job of exposing the community to the studies that have been done of downtown issues. There is a perception, for example, that opening Willamette Street would mean creating a four-lane, high-speed roadway, when it actually means creating a street that effectively combines vehicular access with pedestrian activity and amenities (as in the Downtown Public Spaces Study done by Don Miles). Finally, Mr. Rutan stressed that malls such as Eugene's have not succeeded in the United States. MINUTES--Eugene City Council May 8, 1989 Page 4 e Ms. Bascom said the Willamette Street issue is a complicated one. The street, for example, is blocked at 7th Avenue by the Hult Center and it is rather congested to the south. Because of such factors, Willamette Street is not likely to become the significant vehicular access street that the proponents of reopening have envisioned. Mr. Boles agreed with Mr. Bennett's point about the importance of the City Council's leadership in developing solutions for downtown. He also agreed with Ms. Ehrman that vehicular access is no cure-all. He said the community needs to find the appropriate balance between vehicular access and pedestrian activity for its downtown streets. Mr. Schwartz said downtown's problems haye fed upon each other: the lack of vehicular access has decreased activity on the mall; the underutilized public spaces have developed security problems, which further discourages people from coming downtown; the lack of activity has made investors unwilling to develop more stores in the area, which serves to maintain or worsen the problem of not having enough stores to attract people to the area. Mr. Schwartz also mentioned the Lane Transit District (LTD) station and said many businesses do not want the station located near them. He said that if a new off-street station is constructed, and if it is well-designed and well-managed, it might serve as the kind of public sector anchor mentioned by Mr. Boles. Mr. Schwartz also said a public library could have been an effective source of activity for downtown; however, the voters passed up a great deal. e Mr. Holmer challenged the Downtown Commission to be more aggressive in promoting its recommendations for how to improve downtown. He also said the City Council needs to assert more leadership by actively promoting measures to improve downtown rather than becoming bogged down in processes. Mr. Olson said the level of development in downtown Eugene is inadequate. He also said a coordinated approach is needed to market and manage downtown as a complete package. Mr. Green asked why the 5th Street Market is doing better economically than the mall. Mr. Schwartz mentioned three reasons: 1) because the market is a privately owned building rather than a public space, offensive behaviors can be prohibited much more easily and a secure environment can be maintained'; 2) because the shops are all part of one building, rather than being completely independent businesses, the market can be managed and operated in a coordinated fashion (e.g., common hours of operation); and 3) vehicular access to the market is much better than access to the mall. Mr. Boles cautioned against blaming all of downtown's problems on the lack of security. He also supported Mr. Olson's point about the need to develop not only an integrated vision for downtown, but also an integrated plan to manage the area. He said he would be reluctant to support a proposal to open Willamette Street unless it is part of a more comprehensive set of measures to revitalize downtown. e MINUTES--Eugene City Council May 8, 1989 Page 5 . e . Mr. Green encouraged the commission to explore the possibility of coordinated hours of operation among downtown retailers. Mr. Schwartz said this is difficult because independent businesses are free to choose their own hours of operation. Mr. Bennett said the City is in danger of losing the value of its investment in West Broadway. He said a favorable environment needs to be established to facilitate and encourage private investment in the downtown area. Mr. Bennett suggested that the commission reexamine the major policies for downtown Eugene in order to determine if there is still consensus at the commission level. After the commission examines these policies, the discussion could be moved to a group with broader community representation. He said this kind of process could be used to develop a community vision for downtown. Ms. Ehrman said downtown issues, such as vehicular access, have already been studied extensively. She cautioned against devoting more staff resources to do what has already been done. She said the council may want to revisit the Willamette Street issue, but the City does not need to conduct another major study of vehicular access for the downtown area. Ms. Aspinwall-Lamberts suggested that the commission do some work to summarize in a concise and comprehensible manner the information and policies for downtown that have already been developed. Then it could develop a set of specific recommendations for improving the downtown area--an action plan. Mr. Schwartz said the City needs to make a commitment to an excellent level of security and maintenance in the downtown area. Ms. Schue supported Ms. Aspinwall-Lamberts' proposal. She also stressed that all of the hopes for downtown should not be pinned on the single issue of Willamette Street, because the street reopening may be rejected by the community. Ms. Young said downtown security is an immediate issue that needs to be addressed. She also said too much time is often spent on process, and too little time on action. Other commissioners agreed. Mr. Holmer supported Ms. Aspinwall-Lamberts' suggestion and encouraged the commission to work expeditiously. He hoped that the commission1s set of recommendations could be forwarded to the council before the end of the fiscal year. Mr. Bennett said a proposal currently before the Budget Committee (to integrate the criminal justice system and the social services network) represents a positive step toward a long-range solution to downtown's security problems. He also stressed the importance of increased police presence in the downtown area. Finally, Mr. Bennett said the current level of downtown maintenance is at a bare minimum. MINUTES--Eugene City Council May 8, 1989 Page 6 e Ms. Morrow said she looked forward to the challenge offered by Mr. Holmer and other councilors. Ms. Ehrman said one of downtown's strengths is its proximity to residential areas. More needs to be done to build upon this strength. She also said it may be time to place the Willamette Street issue before the voters. Finally, she said downtown Eugene does not have enough nighttime activities. Ms. Bascom said that when the commission is developing its recommendations, it should solicit input from the groups that were active in opposing the initial recommendation to reopen Willamette Street. She said the commission's recommendations might have a better chance of success if the commission listens to the opposing side and tries to develop recommendations that respond to some of the public's concerns. The meeting adjourned at 7:25 p.m. Respectfully submitted, e (Recorded by Monty Hindman) MNCC 050889-530 e MINUTES--Eugene City Council May 8, 1989 Page 7