HomeMy WebLinkAbout4.8.2019 City Council Work Session MinutesMINUTES
Eugene City Council
Harris Hall, 125 East 8th Avenue
Eugene, Oregon 97401
April 8, 2019
5:30 p.m.
Councilors Present: Emily Semple, Jennifer Yeh, Alan Zelenka, Mike Clark, Chris Pryor, Greg Evans,
Betty Taylor, and Claire Syrett (via phone)
Mayor Vinis opened the March 8, 2019, work session of the Eugene City Council.
1. Committee Reports and Items of Interest
• Councilor Taylor -Reported on League of Cities work with Councilor Evans; expressed
concern about EWEB policies regarding missed payments; suggested working towards
Federal subsidies for Amtrak.
• Councilor Semple - Expressed concern regarding oil cars in Eugene; spoke about online
resources for tree inspections; expressed continued interest in downtown day center;
expressed concern for changes in Saturday Market operations and communications.
• Mayor Vinis - Mentioned work being done at Hunsaker and Beaver Lane to make area
safer; shared about future attendance to Walkability Conference regarding Vision Zero;
discussed work on TAC report recommendation implementation; discussed attendance
to Prepare Out Loud; gave kudos to various City staff working on projects.
2. Community Safety Initiative
Assistant City Manager Kristie Hammit, Fire Chief Joe Zaludek, Police Chief Chris Skinner,
and Senior Financial Analyst Maurizio Bottalico provided information about a possible
payroll tax structure to fund the Community Safety service system gaps.
(CouncilorZelenka arrived at 6:10 p.m.; Councilor Syrett called in at 6:15 p.m.)
Council Discussion:
• Councilor Clark- inquired about the amounts of the library levy and parks levy and
bond; expressed concern about the order of needs funded and the mechanism for
funding community safety but would like community safety needs prioritized.
• Councilor Evans - expressed support for the proposed mechanism; cited personal
anecdote about need for services; suggested there is not another mechanism available
to meet the need for community safety; asked about the net affect of investment on
emergency calls.
• Councilor Taylor - expressed desire for public shelter downtown; expressed
disagreement with Councilor Clark stating that libraries and parks are a matter of
community safety; expressed concerns about equity of payroll tax; suggested use of
transient tax instead of a payroll tax and supported lobbying the state to repurpose
state transient tax dollars.
• Councilor Pryor- stated the need to do something quickly and create responsiveness
within the City; cited work to view options for funding mechanism and expressed belief
that a payroll tax works; voiced a desire to focus on what can be done rather than what
can't be done.
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Work Session
• Councilor Zelenka - cited support for community safety needs and package of services
but expressed concern about a payroll tax; suggested a payroll tax is not progressive
and suggested methods for making a payroll tax more progressive; mentioned desire for
more community engagement and possibly a public vote.
• Councilor Clark - agreed with other councilors about the need; cited previous
suggestion for an alternative funding mechanism; supported deciding the issue as a
council rather than sending it to a public vote.
• Councilor Semple - asked for clarification about Councilor Clark's alternative funding
mechanism.
• Councilor Clark - cited annexations of River Road/Santa Clara properties as a
mechanism for incremental, additional revenue.
• Councilor Semple - asked staff about balance of budget estimates; expressed support for
the payroll tax and referenced a future report about where tax revenue would go within
community safety; expressed hope for community support.
• Councilor Zelenka - inquired if there is an updated analysis of how many people work in
Eugene versus live in Eugene; expressed appreciation that cost of community safety
under payroll tax would be split with non-residents.
• Councilor Clark - inquired if revenue from annexations of River Road and Santa Clara
properties was discussed as a part of the funding mechanism analysis; made additional
comments about who bears the burden of a payroll tax.
• Councilor Semple - reminded council that nonprofits and lower wage earners were
included in payroll tax as a measure of fairness.
• Mayor Vinis - suggested that a payroll tax is meant to be broad and shallow with
minimal impact; expressed desire for more time to show impact of bridge funding and
reminded council of the promise to establish long-term funding; referenced TAC Report
and interconnected nature of community safety and homelessness/housing efforts.
• Councilor Pryor -expressed interest in analyzing alternative tax structures to address
concerns about lower wage workers.
• Councilor Zelenka - asked staff to produce a variable rate analysis and expressed that
progressivity is more important than simplicity.
The work session adjourned at 6:34 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Beth Forrest
City Recorder
(Recorded by Samantha Roberts)
Link to the webcast of this City Council meeting: here.
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