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HomeMy WebLinkAbout09/27/1989 Meeting - M I NUT E S Eugene City Council McNutt Room--City Hall September 27, 1989 11: 30 a. m. COUNCILORS PRESENT: Ruth Bascom, Rob Bennett, Shawn Boles, Emily Schue, Debra Ehrman, Freeman Holmer, Bobby Green, Roger Rutan. The adjourned meeting of September 25, 1989, of the Eugene City Council was called to order by Mayor Jeff Miller. 1. ITEMS FROM THE CITY COUNCIL, MAYOR, AND CITY MANAGER A. Returned Peace Corps Volunteers' 1990 Conference Mr. Boles announced that Eugene has been chosen to host the 1990 Conference of returned Peace Corps Volunteers. Eugene competed with approximately 200 other municipalities to host the conference. The event, which is likely to e draw between 1,200 and 1,500 people to the community, will be held July 20-22. Mr. Holmer was also excited about the conference, which he described as an important event in Eugene's destination-point efforts. He commended the Eugene/Springfield Convention and Visitors Bureau for its role in persuading the national board to choose Eugene as a site for this conference. B. Support for Housing Now! March Mr. Boles reminded councilors of a previous endorsement of the Housing Now! march to be held in Washington, D.C. on October 27. When councilors discussed the issue earlier, they discussed the possibility of paying for the attendance of a City representative. Mr. Boles said that as of yet, no City representative intends to attend the march, but the council has received a request of support for a van from Catholic Community Services which would take eight or nine community members to the march. Catholic Community Services estimates that it will cost approximately $1,000 to make the trip and has requested that the City contribute $500 from its Contingency Fund. Mr. Boles moved, seconded by Mr. Bennett, that the City Council authorize staff to negotiate a contract for $500 with Catholic Community Services to support the van attending the Housing Now! march. e MINUTES--Eugene City Council September 27, 1989 Page 1 e Ms. Schue asked if the City has contributed to similar projects in the past. Dave Whitlow, Assistant City Manager, said the City has previously entered into contracts to help support nonprofit or advocacy efforts. Mr. Whitlow said that last year the City entered into a contract to help underwrite the costs of hiring translators for the Nuclear-Free Zone Conference. Mr. Green felt that this was a worthy cause, but expressed concern that it would set a precedent of nonprofit groups requesting council support for their events. Ms. Schue said she also has qualms about this, but said she would back the motion because she is so strongly supportive of the need for housing. The motion passed unanimously, 8:0. C. Council Discussion of Charter Amendment Requiring Public Approval of Urban Renewal Plans or Changes to Urban Renewal Districts Mr. Holmer expressed appreciation for the joint session between the Neighborhood Leaders Association and the council on September 25. He said this was one of the most useful exercises of citizen involvement he has experienced during his work on the council. Mr. Holmer said that the unanimity of the neighborhood leaders in urging the council to refer urban renewal plans or plan amendments to public vote should be heeded by the council. Mr. Holmer noted that an initiative petition has been filed for a charter e amendment requiring the council to secure public approval of urban renewal plans or changes to urban renewal districts. He urged the council to refer the proposed amendment for popular vote at the earliest opportunity. Mr. Holmer informed councilors that in two weeks he would request that the council set a time to consider action to endorse or oppose the charter amendment. Ms. Ehrman requested that staff schedule time for the council to discuss this issue. D. Council Involvement in the Negotiations of City Business Mr. Holmer stated that via memoranda to the Mayor and council on September 7 and September 13, he expressed concern that the council has not had the opportunity to discuss with the City Manager negotiations of certain matters of City business that are now under way. The City Manager reported those negotiations to the council by "confidential" memorandum in August, but he provided few details. Mr. Holmer said the manager is legally correct in labelling the matters confidential. He said that if the council were to discuss the pending negotiations with the manager before the council is presented with a final proposal, it would need to be in executive session. e MINUTES--Eugene City Council September 27, 1989 Page 2 e Mr. Holmer said this is why, two weeks ago, he urged that the council hold an executive session very soon. The Mayor indicated that the council would address this issue at the earliest opportunity. Mr. Holmer said he had expected that opportunity before now. He said he is raising the subject again because he fears that the intent is to defer council involvement until the negotiations have been concluded. Mr. Holmer felt that if this were to occur, the council would not have been an active participant in the shaping of long-term and expensive commitments for which the council must bear ultimate responsibility. Mr. Holmer urged that there be an executive session of the council to discuss with the manager the specifics of the negotiations he referred to in his confidential memoranda of August 25 and September 12. Mr. Holmer stated that if the council is presented with a completed agreement for its "rubber stamp," it will have been derelict in the discharge of its fiscal responsibility. Mr. Holmer moved, seconded by Mr. Boles, that the council meet in executive session before the conclusion of the negotiations and within the next week, to discuss with the manager the status of negotiations he referred to in his confidential memoranda to the Mayor and City Council. Mayor Miller did not feel the negotiations warranted an executive session. He said that a deal has not yet been put together and, once it has, it can be discussed in public. He did not think it would be too late for the council e to discuss the proposal after it has been completed; he said the council can change or even reject the proposal if it so desires. Mr. Rutan did not favor an executive session. He felt that the parties involved in the negotiations understand that they are dealing with a public body and realize that the negotiations will not be complete until they have been approved by the council. Mr. Rutan thought that the council would be able to change any facet of the deal when it is ready for public review. Ms. Schue agreed. Mr. Holmer said that if the council is to be influential in the negotiations, rather than being presented with a finished deal, then it needs to be familiar with the issues at this point. He felt it would be too late for the council to influence the shape of the negotiations later. Mr. Boles suggested that one reason the council has not engaged in executive sessions in the past is that it has not been faced with many public/private negotiations and the delicacy associated with them. Mr. Boles stated that the council does not have a collective sense of the issues being addressed in the negotiations and thought that an executive session was warranted. The motion carried 5:3, with Mr. Green, Ms. Ehrman, Mr. Bennett, Mr. Holmer, and Mr. Boles voting in favor, and Mr. Rutan, Ms. Bascom, and Ms. Schue voting opposed. e MINUTES--Eugene City Council September 27, 1989 Page 3 e II. PRESENTATION ON EMERALD CANAL BY COMMISSIONER JERRY RUST Lane County Commissioner Jerry Rust said the Emerald Waterways Committee has been meeting since 1982 to bring the Emerald Canal to fruition. He said there are five City planning issues that are relevant to this project: the Metro Plan updatet the Riverfront Research Projectt the Ferry Street Bridge, the Army Corps of Engineers' Willamette Basin Study, and the expansion of the Lane County Fairgrounds. Mr. Rust thanked Eugene for funding the work that is being done to update the Metro Plan. He said with the special studies that the City is funding, most of the technical work that is needed to construct the Emerald Canal is being done. Mr. Rust said that as part of the Riverfront Research Park, the Millrace will be cleaned up. He said this will enhance the Emerald Canal project. As part of the Ferry Street Bridge project, a larger culvert will be installed to accommodate the outflow of the Millrace; this will also help clean up the Millrace. Mr. Rust noted that the Amazon Channel runs directly past the Fairgrounds. He thought that increasing the flow in the Amazon Channel as part of the development and expansion of the Fairgrounds could help make the area more interesting. Finally, Mr. Rust reported that Congressman Peter DeFazio secured a $300tOOO grant for a waterbasin study that will enable the Army Corps of Engineers to determine water levels for Fern Ridge Reservoir that would promote recreation year round. Mr. Rust said the Army Corps of Engineers believes that the Emerald Canal would be one way of furnishing additional water to Fern Ridge Reservoir. e - Mr. Rust summarized by saying that these five planning issues will all promote the Emerald Canal project. He asked councilors to factor this into their thinking as the City works on these projects. Mr. Bennett stated that the Emerald Canal could be a tremendous asset to the community in a number of ways. He said he looks forward to working on the project. Mr. Bennett asked if the increased flow in the Millrace and the Amazon Channel could be credited as wetlands mitigation. Mr. Rust stated that the increased flow will create side ponding and will have a cleaning effect. He said the Emerald Waterways Committee is exploring whether the increased flow could help with wetlands mitigation. Ms. Schue agreed that the project was exciting although complicated. Mr. Boles also expressed excitement about the project because it accomplishes objectives associated with environmental, recreational, and economic development goals. He said these are the types of projects that governments should look for in the future. Mr. Rust said he appreciates the fact that councilors are open-minded about this project. III. REPORT ON WORLD VETERANS' CHAMPIONSHIPS Mr. Rutan commended Tom Jordant Barbara Kouskyt and Ernie Drapela for the work they did organizing the World Veterans' Championships. He said the e MINUTES--Eugene City Council September 27, 1989 Page 4 - community has a lot to be proud of for its support of the championships but the championships would not have been successful without the leadership of these three people. Mr. Jordan thanked Mr. Drapela and the City for its support of the championships. He distributed a packet of letters from visitors who enjoyed the championships and the community. Ms. Kousky said she and Mr. Jordan are still finishing the work on the championships. She said that a results book will be printed and distributed soon. Mr. Drapela distributed a chart containing a breakdown of appropriations and expenditures to date for the World Veterans' Championships. He noted that the spending was well within the projected budget. Ms. Kousky said that financial reports for the championships are not yet complete. Preliminary analysis indicates that approximately 1,400 rooms were rented to participants throughout the championships. The hotels/motels were paid approximately $550,000 for these rooms; of that amount, approximately $50,000 was room tax revenue. Mr. Jordan said the room tax revenues for July were the highest they have ever been. Typically, the local hotels/motels have very high vacancy rates in July and August. He emphasized that the World Veteransl Championships did generate more room tax revenues than would have been generated otherwise. Mayor Miller said one issue surrounding the World Veteransl Championships was e the use of the University of Oregon dormitories as "motel" space. He suggested that the council explore a way of collecting a fee from the University when their dormitories are in competition with other hotels. Mr. Rutan suggested that the University be asked to collect a City sports surcharge. Ms. Kousky stressed that the World Veterans' Championships also have long-term benefits, as several track clubs and other groups have decided to visit the community because they enjoyed it so much during the championships. Mr. Green said he was pleased with the success of the championships. He said the community has an environment that is conducive to this type of event and stressed that these local resources should be used to support other events. IV. REPORT ON AIR QUALITY ISSUES BY LRAPA Don Arkell, Director of the Lane Regional Air Pollution Authority, summarized the legislative activity pertaining to wood stoves and field burning. He said that bills surrounding these issues were debated during the Legislative session, but were not passed. Mr. Arkell said that LRAPA is responsible for complying with Federal Ambient Air Quality Standards for PM10 (particles less than 10 microns in size). The Eugene-Springfield area is currently noncompliant with Federal standards for e MINUTES--Eugene City Council September 27, 1989 Page 5 e PM10. The key reason for this is the large number of residents that use wood stoves for heat. Mr. Arkell said that since this problem is common to other . "- areas of the state as well, LRAPA elected to work wlth tne Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) proposal to allow regional air authorities to regulate home heating. Mr. Arkell said that the amendment giving LRAPA the authority to regulate wood stove heating remained until the bill itself was defeated late in the session. Mr. Arkell said that in the winter the air quality in the Eugene-Springfield area violates Federal air quality standards for PM10. LRAPA is required to develop a PM10 control plan under Federal law. Failure to do this subjects LRAPA, the State, and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to lawsuits with court-imposed deadlines. Mr. Arkell said that from all the data produced to date, residential wood heating is the most significant source of PM10 in the winter. The LRAPA Advisory Committee is scheduled to make recommendations to the LRAPA Board in November of this year. The board is scheduled to hold hearings in early January. LRAPA expects that mandatory curtailment will be the cornerstone of the recommended strategies, and that City and County ordinances would be the means to implement the strategy, at least for the short run. The mid-range plan is to continue to seek authority to regulate home heating through Legislative action, and to continue to develop and support other strategies to reduce PM10 emissions. Mr. Arkell estimated that a successful mandatory e curtailment program is likely to cost approximately $70,000 per year to operate. Mr. Arkell said that field burning was also widely discussed in the 1989 Legislature. Proposals ranged from a complete, immediate ban on all types of burning, to a six-year phase out of burning, to allowing 200,000 acres to be burned each year for the next ten years before any reduction takes place. Mr. Arkell said that what ended up as the "vehicle bill" was close to the consensus that the City Council reached in February, involving a substantial phase down over the next few years and additional regulation of propaning and stack burning. In the end, ~his bill failed to attract the support needed for passage on the House floor. Mr. Arkell said that two, and maybe three, initiative proposals have emerged since the Legislative session. One would immediately ban all types of burning. Another, announced and supported by the Governor, would phase out burning over the next few years. Mr. Arkell said it has been rumored that the grass seed industry may circulate a third petition. The initiatives are designed for a November 1990 vote. Mr. Arkell said the LRAPA Board of Directors has still not reached consensus on the field burning issue. The board will continue to discuss the issue in the context of these initiative petitions, and may arrive at some position on an initiative if it succeeds in reaching the ballot. He emphasized that the e MINUTES--Eugene City Council September 27, 1989 Page 6 e City of Eugene needs to decide how important it feels the field burning issue is to the community. Ms. Schue said that when the initiative proposing a phase out of field burning is ready, the Legislative Subcommittee will bring it to the council for discussion and possible action. Mr. Boles hoped that the City would not try to address the PMI0 pollution problem solely through a curtailment of wood burning. He noted that although wood burning may be the major source of PMI0, other sources should be addressed as well. Mr. Arkell said there is an effort to build a coalition to address PMI0 in a more comprehensive manner. He stressed that there are other sources of PMI0 such as dusty roads, field burning, and industrial operations. Mr. Boles requested a breakdown of the number of elderly and poor citizens who need to use wood heating for financial reasons. He also asked for a more detailed analysis of the success of the voluntary curtailment program. Mr. Arkell said that LRAPA intends to try to collect this data over the next two years. He said that since the voluntary program was introduced, there have not been many "red" days during which burning should not have occurred. He said that people do seem to comply with the voluntary curtailment program, but LRAPA has not been able to collect hard data documenting this observation. e V. WORK SESSION: DRAFT GLENWOOD REFINEMENT PLAN Terry Jones, Planning Division, gave the staff report. She said the purpose of this work session was to prepare councilors for the October 11 joint public hearing with the Lane County Board of Commissioners on the draft Glenwood Refinement Plan. The Eugene and Lane County planning commissions have reviewed and revised the refinement plan and now recommend its approval to their respective elected officials. Ms. Jones introduced Steve Moe, Chair of the Glenwood Planning Team. Ms. Jones said that in 1984, the three metropolitan governments adopted the Glenwood Jurisdictional Study which gave jurisdictional responsibility for Glenwood to Eugene. The Metro Plan was subsequently amended to reflect the results of the jurisdictional study. Ms. Jones said that the draft Glenwood Refinement Plan reflects the complexity of land use, transportation, and service issues that are within Glenwood itself. The refinement plan is the product of the work of two planning teams over the past four years. It includes the Phase I Glenwood Refinement Plan which the City Council and Board of County Commissioners adopted in 1986. Some aspects of the refinement plan are specific to the Phase I area and reflect what has already been adopted, but most of the goals, policies, and implementation strategies in the refinement plan pertain to both phases. e MINUTES--Eugene City Council September 27, 1989 Page 7 e Ms. Jones reviewed the ten subareas that are proposed in the refinement plan, and the uses associated with those subareas. Ms. Jones said that during the planning commissions' public hearing on the refinement plan, concerns were voiced about the need to strengthen Glenwood's residential areas. In response to these concerns, the commissions made two additions to the refinement plan. Revision 1 adds an implementation strategy regarding the possibility of creating a tax increment district in Glenwood. Revision 2 directs Lane County to consider adopting Eugene's mobile home park conversion ordinance in order to provide protection to the many mobile home parks in Glenwood. Ms. Ehrman asked about the purpose of revision 1, which suggests using revenues from the tax increment district to increase housing resources in the Glenwood area. Eugene Planning Commissioner Ken Tollenaar pointed out that there are relatively few dwellings in Glenwood. He said the commissions hoped that some moderate-income housing could be developed in the Glenwood area through revenues from the tax increment district. Mr. Tollenaar said another main reason for creating an urban renewal district is to help provide infrastructure to the Glenwood area. He said the creation of a tax increment district might also help reduce the burden on residential property owners for infrastructure improvements that might otherwise be assessed to them. Ms. Jones reviewed issues that are likely to be addressed at the joint public hearing. She said two letters have been received since the planning commissions' public hearing was closed. Both of these letters request e changes to specific subareas in the refinement plan. The first letter requests a change in Subarea 8 to allow a broader range of commercial uses. The second letter requests that Subarea 3 allow both commercial and industrial uses rather than just industrial uses. Ms. Jones said that the refinement plan proposed development guidelines for uses within the Willamette River Greenway including a 35-foot setback from the river for new development. The refinement plan also proposes continuation of the south bank bicycle path through Glenwood consistent with direction in the adopted Metropolitan Bikeway Master Plan. Land owners located along the river tend to be in opposition to these proposals. Ms. Jones added that bicycle access to Glenwood is a major issue because it is hard for cyclists to ride their bikes from Glenwood to either Springfield or Eugene. Several bicycle paths are proposed in the refinement plan, some of which are short-term solutions and some of which are longer-term solutions. Ms. Jones said the refinement plan proposes to allow the gradual transition in Subarea 2 from the existing residential use to eventual industrial use. Some residents and property owners in the subarea would like it to remain residentially designated. The planning team and the planning commissions both discussed whether this subarea should be designated for residential use, but decided to retain the original language proposed in the refinement plan. Ms. Jones stated that the refinement plan, as drafted, will require five amendments to the Metro Plan. These are all changes to the plan diagram. e MINUTES--Eugene City Council September 27, 1989 Page 8 ------ - The changes were described and illustrated in an attachment under separate cover. Mr. Holmer requested clarification on how Goal 15 regulates Greenway utilization and how this might affect development along the Willamette River in Glenwood. Ms. Jones said the provision of sanitary sewers is the biggest public service issue in the plan. She said staff estimates that it will cost approximately $4.5 million to sewer Glenwood. Ms. Jones noted that staff recently received a letter from Wildish Construction Company requesting that providing sewers to Glenwood be made a priority. Mr. Boles commented on the variety of designations in Subarea 9. He asked if staff had given any consideration to breaking this subarea into smaller pieces. Ms. Jones explained that the boundaries of Subarea 9 are logical physical boundaries; she said the area functions as a cohesive neighborhood. Mr. Boles asked what is being done to ensure that Glenwood will make a nice entry corridor into Eugene. Ms. Jones said this issue is addressed in the refinement plan. The plan recognizes the corridor along Franklin Boulevard and McVay Highway as an entrance corridor into the city and provides for site review within 100 feet on both sides of the corridor. The site review will address specific entryway concerns. Ms. Jones said the plan also suggests that Glenwood be included in the City's Entrance Beautification program. e The meeting adjourned at 1:40 p.m. .; Mi~~al Gleaso City Manager (Recorded by Tanya Northman) MNCC 092789 e MINUTES--Eugene City Council September 27, 1989 Page 9