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HomeMy WebLinkAbout07/16/1990 Meeting ~. e M I NUT E S Eugene City Council Valley River Inn--Rogue Room July 16, 1990 5:30 p.m. COUNCILORS PRESENT: Mayor Jeff Miller, Emily Schue, Ruth Bascom, Shawn Boles, Rob Bennett, Debra Ehrman, Bobby Green, Roger Rutan. COUNCILORS ABSENT: Freeman Holmer. The work planning session of the Eugene City Council of July 16, 1990, was called to order by His Honor Mayor Jeff Miller. 1. WORK PLANNING SESSION Mr. Gleason noted that the work planning program is undergoing a reorganiza- tion and highlighted the distinction between the council's Work Planning Session and its Quarterly Process Session. He drew attention to the work e planning documents prepared by the City Manger's Office and said that Darcy Marentette would be available to answer questions. The council agreed that the format for this work session would be to review the work planning document on a goal-by-goal basis and to bring to the atten- tion of the full council any issues of concern regarding projects. A. GOAL 1--Library: Sel ect a Site Ms. Bascom noted that proponents of the existing library site have asked for reassurance that the existing building, if not used as the future library site, is well-used. She asked for council input on whether the topic of potential uses for the existing library site should be folded into discus- sions about the new library location. Mr. Green asked whether consideration has been given for the possibility of using the existing library building as a branch library. In response, Mr. Gleason said that the existing library location would not be a good location for a branch library because of its proximity to the proposed new facility. Staff feels that branch libraries should be established in locations that will allow the opportunity to lease space so that they can be easily relocat- ed if necessary. Mr. Gleason added that some consideration has been given to using the existing site as housing. e MINUTES--Eugene City Council July 16, 1990 Page 1 Dinner/Work Planning Session e Mr. Boles said that the council should consider whether the issues of branch libraries and the future of the existing library building should be folded into discussions about the proposed new library. Mr. Rutan said that the council should put a proposal before the citizens on what it feels the library system should look like. He noted that including the issue of branch libraries into the overall discussion increases its complexity. Mr. Bennett said that, in order to reduced the complexity of the issue, proposed usage for the existing library building should be removed from the larger discussion. Ms. Bascom agreed that the issue of branch libraries should be removed from discussion. She pointed out, however, that many citizens are concerned about the future use of the existing library building. Factoring a proposed new use for this building into the overall library discussion might help neutral- ize opposition from those citizens who strongly support leaving the library in its present location. Concerning the library discussions, Mr. Boles asked staff to provide several alternate financing packages for the proposed library, including the possible revenue which could be generated from a restaurant tax. Mr. Green emphasized the importance of being prepared to provide the public with answers about proposed usages for the existing library building. e B. GOAL II--Financial Stability: Promote Long-Term Financial Stability Mr. Rutan observed that the City has invested some high-quality resources into the Development Services Financing Study and said that the council must now decide what the roles and responsibilities of government and private property owners should be. Because of the nature of this discussion, Mr. Rutan requested that the work session and decision-making meetings be sepa- rated. Pursuant to the City Manger's budget message which cautioned that the City would not be able to continue operating its financial structure as it has in the past, Mr. Rutan said that the council should have a discussion soon about the strategies it plans to use to meet its financial goals and obligations. Mr. Gleason acknowledged that at times the work of other boards and commis- sions becomes crowded onto the council's work agenda, hindering the council's ability to work on its major goals. He asked for council authorization to turn down those projects which do not have council priority. In order to ensure that the council's work planning interests are carried out, Mr. Gleason also requested that the council vote on any major changes it makes to its work planning program. e MINUTES--Eugene City Council July 16, 1990 Page 2 Dinner/Work Planning Session e Ms. Schue stated that many members of the Budget Committee have expressed dissatisfaction with its present level of authority and said that the council needs to discuss what the role of the Budget Committee should be. In partic- ular, many members feel that the council should listen more closely to the committee's recommendations. Mr. Miller said that the role of the Budget Committee is to ensure that the council's budget is in conformance with its policies. The Budget Committee is apparently not satisfied with this role; the council needs to discuss whether the Budget Committee's role should be expanded. Mr. Bennett emphasized that because the members of the Budget Committee are not elected officials, they should not have the same decision-making authori- ty as the council. Mr. Boles agreed that the Budget Committee should not be given policy-making authority, but asserted that the council should listen closely to the advice of the Budget Committee on policy issues. He suggested that the Budget Committee be invited to participate in work session discussions, making it clear in advance that the ultimate authority to make decisions rests in the hands of the council. Mr. Green concurred. The council offered general consensus on the need to schedule a two-hour work session to take place this fall in order to discuss the policies and strate- gies it plans to use to promote long-term financial stability. The council also agreed to invite Budget Committee members to this meeting to observe the e council's discussion on the role of the Budget Committee. Mr. Gleason said he will inform the Budget Committee chair not to form sub- committees until the council has had an opportunity to discuss the future role of the Budget Committee. Ms. Schue moved, seconded by Mr. Rutan, that the council entertain a policy level debate about its work program and other financial policy considerations before additional subcommittees of the Budget Committee are formed. The motion carried unanimously, 7:0. Ms. Schue noted that as representative of the League of Oregon Cities, she recently received a letter from the State Home Builder's Association indicat- ing its interest in becoming involved in attempts to amend the Oregon Consti- tution to add new construction to the tax base as infrastructure assets. C. GOAL III--Downtown: Review the Downtown Plan and Strategy Ms. Ehrman asked for additional information on the 11th Avenue and Willamette Street development project. Mr. Gleason replied that staff is still optimis- tic that a project will take place on this site, but explained that the mix of parties involved in site development have changed. He noted that housing is being considered as a potential use for this site. e MINUTES--Eugene City Council July 16, 1990 Page 3 Dinner/Work Planning Session e Mr. Bennett voiced concern that the council must decide whether there is a great enough demand for housing downtown to ensure that a housing project could be competitive on this site. In light of the limited financial resources that the council has to invest in downtown, Mr. Boles said that the council must set priorities on its proposed projects downtown. Ms. Ehrman voiced concern with the time commitment which has already been invested in the innovative and industrialized housing initiative project. Mr. Boles agreed and requested a written report from staff on the timeline and payoffs for this project, as well as expectations for the commitment of public funds. Mr. Bennett said that he strongly supports the notion of housing provision for very low-income individuals and indicated his interest in exploring the possibility of using revenue-backed general obligation bonds to help finance housing projects. Mr. Boles noted that because the council has a variety of financial mecha- nisms which it could use to fund its projects, it should decide during its policy discussion what types of financing should be used for what types of projects. Responding to a question from Mr. Green, Mr. Boles said that as a result of the Retail Task Force's (RTF) public forum on its recently released recommen- e dations for downtown redesign, a decision was made to create two committees: a subcommittee to choose a design consultant and a Design Advisory Committee responsible for selecting members of the design group. Mr. Green expressed support for the RTF's report on design recommendations, but voiced concern with the amount of time being consumed in its implementa- tion because of the extensive subcommittee process. Ms. Ehrman voiced concern with allowing laymembers the authority to choose a design consultant. Mr. Gleason noted that after gathering input from the committee, staff has the final authority to choose the design consultant. Ms. Bascom highlighted the importance of making a timely decision on Lane Transit District (LTD) station siting. Responding to a question from Ms. Schue, Mr. Gleason said that it is his belief that the council and the LTD Board have equal authority on the final station siting decision. Mr. Bennett observed that the preservation of the Tiffany Building as a historical structure is very important in the community. He suggested that if for some reason the proposed project for this site does not work, the Urban Renewal Agency consider purchasing the building. e MINUTES--Eugene City Council July 16, 1990 Page 4 Dinner/Work Planning Session e D. GOAL IV--Economic Development: Build a Healthy and Diversified Economy Ms. Bascom expressed her strong support for the Special Events Strategic Plan and said that work on this issue should be given council priority. Mr. Gleason said that he is attempting to divert staff resources from other boards and commissions to the council. He cautioned that because other boards and commissions cannot operate without staff support, the net result of this decision will be a slowing of boards' and commissions' activities. Mr. Miller raised the issue of whether the council's list of goals is priori- tized. After lengthy discussion on this issue, the council agreed that Goals 1, 2, and 3, would receive first priority for staff work, perhaps at the expense of its other goals. Mr. Green alerted the council that some projects, such as the Special Events Strategies, operate under a timeline and cautioned staff to remain aware of this when prioritizing staff work on projects not under the first three goals. (At 7:15 p.m. the council recessed for 10 minutes.) Mr. Rutan recommended that for future work sessions, those items which can be dealt with during single work sessions be removed from this work planning document. e E. GOALS VI-XI Responding to comment from Ms. Ehrman regarding council Goal 6, Ms. Schue said that the issue of cable access is of concern to many Eugene residents. The council should review this decision. At council's request, staff agreed to provide the council with a written report on this issue with a list of staff-generated alternatives to simplify the decision. Mr. Rutan noted that a group in California has established a neighborhood development center which will provide a computer terminal available for access by neighborhood organizations. He noted that this has had an enor- mously positive effect on citizen involvement in this region. Mr. Green asked for a meeting with staff on the issue of the Joint Social Service Budget. Mr. Gleason said that for those issues which can be dealt with in a memo, staff will provide the council with information and a list of possible deci- sion alternatives and a clear staff recommendation. Council will be in- structed to bring any concerns they might have to the full attention of the council at its Wednesday work sessions. If no issues of concern are raised, staff will consider it a decision. e MINUTES--Eugene City Council July 16, 1990 Page 5 Dinner/Work Planning Session e F. Council Policy on Funding Requests Mr. Gleason indicated that individual councilors are prohibited by charter from committing financial resources, and run the risk of personal civil liability if they should do so. In order to deal with individual requests for funding, he suggested that the council establish a Professional Services Account. When framing funding requests, Mr. Gleason cautioned councilors to insure that they indicate how a request would support previously established council goals and policies. Mr. Gleason also recommended that for those funding requests for which a councilor has a direct pecuniary or fiduciary interest, the councilor declare conflict-of-interest and have another coun- cilor raise the issue. Mr. Boles recommended that the council direct all funding requests to the City Manager's Office to go through a formal funding application process. Mr. Rutan noted that the nature of this fund is for one-time-only requests. Successive requests for funding should go through the council's normal budget process. The council discussed and reached tentative agreement that the intent of this fund is for requests on a one-time basis. However, it agreed that subsequent requests for funding might come before the council and could, with council agreement, be funded again. e Mr. Rutan moved, seconded by Ms. Ehrman, to put $50,000 in the budget to fund private funding requests. Ms. Bascom said that it should be clear that should the council need addi- tional moneys for this, the council can still utilize money from the Contin- gency Fund. Mr. Rutan withdrew his motion. Mr. Rutan moved, seconded by Mr. Boles, to establish criteria on the process for handling funding requests as recommended in the council's memo dated July 13, 1990. The motion car- ried unanimously, 7:0. G. How Votes are Recorded When a Councilor Leaves the Meeting Room The council discussed this issue and agreed that should a councilor need to be absent prior to making a voting decision, the councilor can request that the vote be deferred until he or she returns. H. Reducing the Volume of Paper Sent Out in Council Packet In keeping with the council's request, Mr. Gleason said that staff is at- tempting to reduce the volume of paper that is included in the council's e MINUTES--Eugene City Council July 16, 1990 Page 6 Dinner/Work Planning Session e agenda packet. He asked that the council monitor this process and provide staff with feedback. I. Time Allowed for Public Testimony The council discussed the amount of time which should be allotted for public testimony at its hearings and agreed that the Mayor would make this decision and publicly announce this at the beginning of the meeting. If a counc il or wishes a different amount of time, he or she should bring this to the Mayor's attention before the hearing begins. Mr. Green requested that the Mayor withhold appointments to the Community Development Block Grant committee until the appointment to the Planning Commission has been made. At 8:10 p.m., Mayor Miller adjourned the meeting of the Eugene City Council. ~lY Mic eal Gleaso City Manager (Recorded by Trac; Northman) mncc 071690-530 e e MINUTES--Eugene City Council July 16, 1990 Page 7 Dinner/Work Planning Session