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HomeMy WebLinkAbout01/11/1982 Meeting '. .. '9-- ~..') "'11""<' " .; ....... " - ~- -'.. -<.:.r- '.. ~ MINUTES Eugene City Council Dinner/Work Session Treehouse Restaurant January 11, 1982 5 p. m. PRESENT: R. A. Keller, Mayor; D. W. Hamel, Emily Schue, Mark Lindberg, Betty Smith, Gretchen Miller, Brian Obie, Cynthia Wooten, Eugene City Council; Hope Pressman, Chairperson, and Wayne R. Atwood, Karlyn Campbell, Carolyn S. Chambers, Lloyd E. Millegan, Gary Wildish, Gary G. Williams, Jim Williams, members, Board of Directors, Eugene Arts Foundation; Ronald E. Blind, Honorary Director, Benson Snyder, Execu- tive Director, and Edwin M. Baker, Chairperson of the Board of Trustees, Eugene Arts Foundation; Ed Smith, Director of Facilities, Development; Dick Reynolds, Director, Eugene Performing Arts Center; Micheal Gleason, .City Manager; Carol Baker, Community Relations Director; Pat Lynch, Council Administrator; Steve Gordon, Lane Council of Governments; Jim Farah, Teresa Bishow, Planning Department; Dave Williams, guest; Susan Pack, Eugene Register-Guard. I. PRESENTATION BY EUGENE ARTS FOUNDATION A. Introductions Mayor Keller welcomed foundation members and thanked them for their work to benefit the Eugene Performing Arts Center (EPAC), local arts organizations, and the general public. Ms. Pressman introduced the members of the Board of . Directors of the Foundation and briefly described the background of each m~mber. She said that the foundation had requested this chance to speak with councilors to let the council know what the foundation is doing. She said that f6undation members understand and share the fiscal concerns of the council. B. History of the Foundation and its Relationship to the City Gary Williams said that the foundation was incorporated in June 1978 as the Eugene Community Foundation, in recognition of the fact that the revenues gener- ated by EPAC would not be great enough to meet all the costs of running the center and replacing worn equipment, as well as in recognition of the importance of fostering and maintaining the health of local arts groups. He said that the foundation recognized the need for continuing private support for the center and for local arts groups, in addition to the support that the City can provide. MINUTES--Eugene City Council January U, 1982 Page 1 6:/ .- " ,.- Gary Williams reported that Benson Snyder had been hired as Executive Director of the foundation in August 1979 and that at that time the foundation had contracted with the City as a separate, non-profit entity to provide fund- raising and support services for EPAC. He said that this agreement had been renewed and extended through December 1981. He said that the foundation had pledged to raise $75,000 for art work to be installed in the Performing Arts Center, $336,000 to build the shells of the rehearsal hall and community room, and $59,000 to build an orchestra pit in the small theater. The group had also promised and delivered the amount of $61,805 toward the first year's operation of the center. C. Interrelationship of the Foundation with Area Arts Organizations and the Eugene Performing Arts Center; and the Foundation's Arts Organiza- tion Loan Program Jim Williams said that the foundation has made $75,000 in low-interest loan funds available to support local performing arts groups. He said that this money is available in maximum amounts of $10,000 per organization for a 180-day period at a rate equal to half the current prime rate in Oregon. He reported that to date $27,000 in such loans have been made. Jim Williams said that the foundation hoped in the future to be able to make outright gifts. He said that the loan program had been developed in recognition of the indivisible relationship between the success of local arts organizations and the success of EPAC. He noted that two prime goals identified with EPAC were the provision of a service to the community through cultural and entertainment offerings and the provision of an economic stimulus for the area. D. The Foundation's Process for Establishing Goals and Priorities Mr. Wildish said that the primary goal of the foundation is to provide support for EPAC and for local arts organizations. He said that the foundation had given support during construction of the center by providing funds for the "extras" identified by Gary Williams. He said that the foundation had set an overall fundraising goal of $5.5 million, including $3 million for the capital needs of the center and $2.5 million for center operating expenses, support of major local performing arts organizations, and the operating budget of the foundation itself. E. The Foundation's Networks for Establishing Proper and Prudent Management of Funds Mr. Blind stated that at each of its monthly meetings, the foundation's board of directors reviews current financial information, including cash flow statements and cash flow projection statements. In these documents, contributions and pledged commitments of funds are also recorded. Mr. Blind said that in the past year the foundation's money had been invested in Money Market funds or high interest Certificates of Deposit. He said that an Investment Committee had recently been formed to advise the Director on investments and on disposition of real property received. Mr. Blind felt that the funds are in extremely good hands. MINUTES--Eugene City Council January 11, 1982 Page 2 " ,J f F. Donor Commemoration and Benefits ~ Ms. Campbell said that a Commemorative Committee had been formed approximately two years ago to identify ways to acknowledge the contribution of donors to the foundation. She referred to materials on this subject which had been distributed to councilors by Mr. Snyder. She said that different benefits would be offered to those donating at various dollar levels. She said that the foundation hoped to name specific rooms in the center after major contributors, but she noted that the foundation would approach the council before taking such action, since the council needed to have a voice in these decisions. -- G. Trustees' Fundraising Program and Results Ms. Pressman introduced Mr. Baker who is the chairperson of the Board of Trustees of the foundation. Mr. Baker briefly described the membership of the board, which he felt was composed of prestigious and dedicated members of the community. He said that fundraising was difficult in the current economic climate, but that the trustees had received promises of large future contributions and had to date not received any outright refusals in their search for major gifts. Mr. Baker referred to a listing of Goals Analysis/Achievement for the fundraising effort. He noted that the fundraising was divided into four phases and briefly described each phase. The phases ranged from pursuit of gifts in the $500,000-800,000 range, to pursuit of gifts in the $50-$600 range. He noted that to date the foundation had received 61 gifts totaling a little over $2 million. Mr. Baker said that the number of people involved in fundraising would increase dramatically in the next few months as the foundation prepares for a major campaign in the spring of 1982. Mr. Baker promised not to cease with fundraising efforts until the full $5.5 million has been raised. H. Discussion Mayor Keller again thanked the foundation members for their diligent efforts. Ms. Wooten expressed her admiration for the hard work and commitment of founda- tion members. She said that the council was currently involved in budgeting for the City for the coming fiscal year and asked whether the foundation could pledge $300,000 for operational costs for the Performing Arts Center for the coming year. Ms. Pressman and Mr. Snyder responded that the foundation's board would meet in the coming month to discuss this and that they would have an answer to Ms. Wooten's question at that time. Several councilors requested that this item be given a high priority in the foundation's consideration of its fiscal dispositions for the coming year. Ms. Smith noted that the Room Tax Committee had failed in its attempts to develop alternative revenue sources for the center, making the contribution of the foundation especially important. Mr. Lindberg said he was most impressed with the range of accomplishments in its work to date. He asked whether the foundation was working to take advantage of the two to five percent of profits which corporations seeking a tax benefit can contribute to non-profit corporations. Mr. Snyder responded that such an effort would be good but that it would need to be separate from the other fundraising activities of the foundation. . '--:-...... MINUTES--Eugene City Council January 11, 1982 Page 3 / " ~ e--- . .. Mr. Obie urged Mr. Snyder and foundation board members to continue to communicate with the council and to seek effective means for such communication. He offered the help of the Mayor and City Council in the work of the foundation. Jim Williams said that an important ingredient in the success of the center would involve making certain that the center is fully used. He felt that this would lead to recognition by the community that the center is a valuable asset and that this in turn would lead to a greater willingness in the community to help with the expenses of operating the center. Ms. Schue agreed with this and felt that once the community has recognized the value of the center, the sugges- tion of alternative funding sources or new taxes such as those proposed by the Room Tax Committee can again be considered. Mr. Gleason said it was important to acknowledge the problems already solved and noted that almost the entire "capital idea" involved in the original concept of the Performing Arts Center was coming in under bid and ahead of schedule. He said that the questions of operation and of its relation to the health of the convention bureau and local arts groups will continue to be addressed. Mayor Keller again thanked foundation members for their work and requested a report from them after their upcoming goals-setting session. II. METROPOLITAN AREA GENERAL PLAN Mr. Farah said that this presentation was being made to help councilors prepare for the January 12 Joint Elected Officials Public Hearing on the Metropolitan Plan. He said that the agenda for that meeting included discussion of Goal 5 Natural Resource Areas and ratification of materials forwarded by the Elected Officials Coordinating Committee. Mr. Farah listed materials related to the January 12 hearing which had previously been distributed to councilors: Metro- politan Plan Update Natural Resource Areas: Conflict Resolution for 5i nificant reas ecem er ; e ropo 1 an p a e xcep 10ns ovem er ; u lC Testimony on Proposed Metropolitan Plan Amendments (December 1981); "Summary of Issues from Written Testimony" (January 4, 1982); a memorandum from the Metropo- litan Planning Team to the Elected Officials of Eugene, Springfield, and Lane County on "Goal 5 Metropol itan Pl an Amendments" (December 15, 1981); a memoran- dum from the Metropolitan Planning Team to the Elected Officals of Eugene, Springfield, and Lane County on "Proposed Metropolitan Plan Amendment Materials" (January 8, 1982); a meeting notice and agenda for the January 12, 1982, Joint Public Hearing; a memorandum from the Eugene Planning Department to the Mayor and council on "Planning Commission Review and Recommendation on Goal 5 (Natural Resource) and Exception Materials" (January 7, 1982); and a memorandum from the Eugene Planning Department to the Mayor and council "Responding in a Nutshell to Major Issues Raised at the Elected Officials Joint Public Hearing of December 15,1981" (January 7,1982). [Note: Copies of these materials are on file in the Eugene Planning Department.] Mr. Farah then went over the issues identified in the latter memorandum. He reported that the Eugene City Attorney's Office has said that the legislative language of House Bill 2754 does not preclude or contradict the language in the Metro Plan Update which says that the City of Eugene will provide services in MINUTES--Eugene City Council January 11, 1982 Page 4 - ' I -. e-~ e--- . .' the River Road/Santa Clara area. Mr. Farah reported that the Eugene Department of Public Works has said that the City's sewage system has a high degree of integrity and that the measurements of sewer leakage described in testimony at the December 15, 1981, hearing were not accurate. He noted that Public Works was using television monitoring techniques to continue watching this situation. Mr. Farah said that there had been testimony to the effect that the exception called for in the plan for the Mahlon Sweet Field area was a "taking" of land. He noted that the Eugene City Attorney's Office had said that they do not concur with that position. Mr. Farah then distributed copies of compromises reached by the Elected Officials . Coordinat ing Committee that wi 11 need to be rat ified at the January 12 joint meeting. Ms. Miller asked councilors to help in limiting the hearing to the subject of Goal 5 considerations and to support the chair's attempts to hold to the 10:30 p.m. adjournment scheduled for the meeting. Mr. Obie asked Mr. Farah how the "floating nodes" concept was treated in the current draft of the plan. Mr. Farah responded that the Planning Commission had accepted the definition of "floating nodes" suggested by the Eugene Chamber of Commerce. Mr. Obie asked how staff would respond to the testimony which had been made by Wildish Sand and Gravel at the December 15, 1981 hearing. Mr. Farah said staff feels that since there is considerable residential land already located within the urban growth boundary, it cannot recommend that the boundary be moved further north at this time. Mr. Gordon said that the Springfield City Council was meeting to consider the plan and that the County Commissioners had also received a list of items of concern. Mr. Gordon said that the River Road/Santa Clara and Airport issues were still major concerns for the commissioners. The meeting was adjourned at 6:50 p.m. Respectfully submitte , -:-~-9} ~. ..L ..~~cA~{:7~,y/:d} ~ (' "";.r"~ Micheal D. Gleason City Manager (Recorded by Darcy Marentette) DM:jw/CM7a3 MINUTES--Eugene City Council January 11, 1982 Page 5