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HomeMy WebLinkAbout11/15/1989 Meeting e M I NUT E S Eugene City Council McNutt Room--City Hall November 15, 1989 11:30 a.m. COUNCILORS PRESENT: Ruth Bascom, Rob Bennett, Shawn Boles, Emily Schue, Freeman Holmer. COUNCILORS ABSENT: Debra Ehrman, Bobby Green, Roger Rutan. The adjourned meeting of November 8, 1989, of the Eugene City Council was called to order by His Honor, Mayor Jeff Miller. 1. ITEMS FROM THE CITY COUNCIL, MAYOR, AND CITY MANAGER A. Public Funding for the Arts Mr. Boles announced that a public forum dealing with public funding for the e arts will be held in Studio One at the Hult Center. Tony Mounts, Finance Division, has prepared information about the revenue that would be made available for arts funding as a result of a restaurant tax. B. Urban Renewal Plan Adoption Mr. Holmer discussed the outcome of the November 8 meeting of the City Council in which the council decided not to adopt the report that must accompany the Urban Renewal Plan. Mr. Holmer noted that Table 4 of the report had some peculiar typographical and mathematical errors, and commended the council on its decision not to adopt the report. C. Arts Funding Committee Ms. Bascom announced that the Arts Funding Committee will be holding a work session with the council on January 22 to generate a proposal for arts funding. D. Tree Commission Ms. Bascom said that the Tree Commission will hold its next meeting on November 16. She added that the Mayor will soon be appointing two new members to fill the vacancies on this commission. e MINUTES--Eugene City Council November 15, 1989 Page 1 ,- e E. Applicants for the Downtown Commission and The Planning Commission Ms. Bascom announced that Bjorn Olson has resigned from his position on the Downtown Commission and, as a result, another vacancy is open. She noted that the council has interviewed three capable applicants, Richard Larson, Daphne Walwyn, and Brad Perkins, and asked for support from the council to selecting two of these three candidates to fill the vacancies. Ms. Schue said that she feels that all three of these people are are good candidates for these positions and would support this option. The council offered its support of this suggestion. F. Trip to the Orient Mr. Miller indicated that he recently returned from a trip to three different countries in the Orient, and will be holding a press conference in the near future to discuss the highlights of his trip. II. WORK SESSION: PROPOSED REPEAL OF CITY LICENSE FOR GAS FITTERS Greta Utecht, City staff, reported on the repeal of the City license for gas fitters. The City Council in June 1985 adopted an ordinance requiring a license for any person doing gas-fitting work in Eugene. Sta ff now recommends repealing the regulation because it doesn't appear to be a necessary procedure for promoting health and safety, because it duplicates e State laws already in existence, and because the cost for monitoring licensing is expensive. If the council wished to proceed with the draft ordinance, a public hearing has been scheduled for Monday, November 20. Ms. Bascom questioned the rationale for initiating this licensing requirement 4.5 years ago. Ms. Utecht responded that the City began this requirement in response to requests from the industry. At that time, there were concerns for the public because workers were not being uniformly regulated within the gas-fitting industry. In light of the new State requirements and the fact that no accidents have occurred since the licensing requirement was instituted, staff feels it no longer necessary to require City licensing. Responding to a question from Mr. Boles, Ms. Utecht said that no accidents had taken place before the licensing procedure began. Mr. Boles said that the fact that the City would begin this licensing procedure in the first place is an indication of the City's willingness and ability to be responsive to the needs of the private sector. Mr. Gleason noted that this ordinance was one of the few remaining City-licensing requirements; the City made an attempt several years ago to get out of business licensing regulation. e MINUTES--Eugene City Council November 15, 1989 Page 2 --"-- e III. WORK SESSION: PROPOSED REPEAL OF CITY REGULATIONS CONCERNING SALE OF DRUG PARAPHERNALIA Ms. Utecht gave the staff report on the proposed repeal of city regulations concerning the sale of drug paraphernalia. The City Council in May 1988 adopted a local ordinance regulating the sale of drug paraphernalia in the city of Eugene because it has been superseded by the State's more comprehensive Drug Paraphernalia Law, which went into effect October 1, 1989. If the council wishes to proceed with the draft ordinance, a public hearing has been scheduled for Monday, November 20. Mr. Holmer noted that he is regretful that this issue is being brought before the council at this time, in light of the current "war on drugs." He noted that although he would support this repeal, he has concerns for the repeal of any law which offers prohibition to drug activity. Ms. Schue noted that the ultimate result of this repeal is a strengthening of legislation on drug paraphernalia. Mr. Gleason said that the initial decision to establish such an ordinance was made because such legislation did not exist at the State level. He added that this decision was made with the awareness that once State regulation was put in place, City regulation would no longer be effective. Mr. Boles noted that this drug legislation was ineffective in the first place and expressed concern that such ineffective policy has simply been pushed to e the state level. He felt that the only way to win such a "war on drugs" is to legalize drugs and control their use. Responding to a question from Mr. Bennett, Mr. Sercombe, City Attorney, said that the State law prohibiting the manufacture and sale of drug paraphernalia has not yet been challenged. He noted, however, that the City law was challenged, and the City ordinance was upheld over the Constitution. Mr. Bennett asked whether the City is taking a risk in repealing this ordinance that the State law will be challenged successfully, leaving the City without drug legislation. Mr. Sercombe said that if such a challenge were successful, the City would be given fair warning and could easily reestablish drug policy. Rick Siel, Eugene Police Department, offered input about the effect that repealing this ordinance will have on the City. Mr. Siel said that no attempt was made to enforce the old ordinance because of certain uncertainties inherent in the policy. The new ordinance has some requirements that will require long-range investigations before any convictions can be made. Responding to a question from Mr. Bennett, Mr. Siel said that the penalties imposed by this new ordinance will potentially be the same as those imposed by the old ordinance. e MINUTES--Eugene City Council November 15, 1989 Page 3 . ---~ e Mr. Gleason asked whether this new law will effectively reduce the number of individuals who manufacture and sell drug paraphernalia. Mr. Seils said that he did not feel that imposing this new law would decrease the manufacture or sale of drug paraphernalia. He noted that this law is difficult to enforce because the State must prove that an individual is selling drug paraphernalia with the knowledge and intent that it will be used in an unlawful manner. Mr. Gleason said that he felt that the drug regulation by the City was more easily maintained through licensing procedures. The meeting adjourned at 12:10. Respec~l~_~~~~~, ?;; ....... ,....'"~ ...~.~ ( ".1;.1.../...,,/ ~ -. J I Mic ael Gleaso, . City Manager (Recorded by Traci Northman) MNCC 111589 e e MINUTES--Eugene City Council November 15, 1989 Page 4