HomeMy WebLinkAboutCC Minutes - 02/25/02 Meeting MINUTES
Eugene City Council
Regular Session
City Council Chamber-City Ha11-777 Pearl Street
February 25, 2002
8p.m.
COUNCILORS PRESENT: Bonny Bettman, Betty Taylor, Pat Farr, David Kelly, Nancy
Nathanson, Scott Meisner, Gary Rayor, Gary PapS.
Mayor James D. Torrey called the regular session of the City Council to order at 8 p.m.
I.PUBLIC FORUM
Bruce Miller, PO Box 50968, raised concern over education funding. He urged the council to
support students.
Gary Nauta, 88139 Keola Lane, spoke as head of the Eugene fire fighters union. He said the
union strongly supported Chief Tom Tallon's decision to serve Santa Clara. He believed that
Eugene taxpayers in that region were not receiving the service that they paid for.
Mr. Nauta raised concern that moving an engine from the Valley River area into Santa Clara would
create a response delay in the Valley River area. He said moving engine 9 would affect response
times in the Sheldon area as well. As an alternative, Mr. Nauta suggested a bond levy for a short
period of time to cover the costs of extra personnel to work at the Valley River Station. He
submitted a spreadsheet of costs to the council.
Rob Handy, 455-1/2 River Road, stressed the importance of a discussion of the effects of Bus
Rapid Transit (BRT) on west Eugene. He suggested re-claiming land eventually vacated by Union
Pacific to create a node that would have access to BRT.
Mr. Handy also raised concern over the proposed West Eugene Parkway. He said that, if
completed, it would make the city resemble Los Angeles.
Ken Tollenaar, 1522 Russet Drive, called attention to agenda item 5. He noted that part of the
resolution called for a repeal of Section 51(2) of the City Charter. He recommended if that section
was going to be repealed, then Section 51(1) should be repealed as well.
Councilor Kelly expressed his appreciation for the testimony submitted.
Mayor Torrey closed the public forum.
II.CONSENT CALENDAR
MINUTES--Eugene City Council February 25, 2002 Page 1
Regular Session
A. Approval of Council Minutes:
January 14, 2002 Work Session
January 14, 2002 Regular Session
January 16, 2002 Work Session
January 28, 2002 Work Session
January 28, 2002 Regular Session
B. Approval of Tentative Working Agenda
Councilor Kelly, seconded by Councilor PapS, moved to approve the items on
the Consent Calendar.
Councilor Kelly offered a correction to the minutes of January 16 work session. In the second
paragraph from the top of the page, he noted that he had endorsed both goals a and c in the
meeting packet. In the same document, on packet page 81, he noted that the council had
delegated approval of the design to the Planning Commission.
Councilor Bettman offered a language substitution to the minutes of the January 28 work session.
On packet page 90, she suggested changing the second paragraph to "Ms. Bettman said she
was not in favor of considering additional issues before the citizen charter review
recommendations had been discussed and acted upon."
On packet page 97 the January 28 regular session, Councilor Bettman requested Mr. Weinman's
response on the value of the four Iow-income housing projects being discussed.
Councilor Taylor clarified that she had meant Salem instead of Corvallis during the January 28
work session (packet page 87).
Councilor Rayor offered a correction to the January 14 work session. On packet page 51, he
suggested adding the wording; "subsequently staff indicated that illumination improvements were
planned.
Roll call vote; the motion passed unanimously.
III.PUBLIC HEARING AND ACTION: A Resolution Establishing a Voluntary Campaign Finance
Program for City Elections
Mary Walston of the City Manager's Office provided a brief staff report. The item was scheduled
as a result of council direction on February 13. The proposed resolution attempted to capture the
motions of the council. She said staff had suggested a voluntary spending limit of $7,500
spending limit for council candidates and a $75 per individual or entity donation limit.
Ms. Walston also suggested a voluntary spending limit of $60,000 for mayoral candidates and a
$600 per individual or entity donation limit.
Ms. Walston said staff would include a way to publicize the information on the City website and in
the newspaper. She noted that the voluntary limit also included a prohibition of campaign
contributions after the second supplemental deadline.
MINUTES--Eugene City Council February 25, 2002 Page 2
Regular Session
Mayor Torrey opened the public hearing.
Terry Connolly, Eugene Chamber of Commerce, urged extreme caution by the council regarding
the resolution. He said the council was "walking a slippery slope" by involving the City in City
Council and mayoral campaigns with the determining factor being based on how candidates and
their supporters chose to exercise their constitutional right to free speech.
Mr. Connolly said that the way the resolution was written, if a candidate chose not to participate in
voluntary limits, the City, at the taxpayer expense, would then give preferential treatment to those
who did participate.
Mr. Connolly said that publishing names of those candidates who participated in voluntary limits in
the Voter's Pamphlet and local newspapers amounted to an in-kind contribution to those
candidates. He went on to say that even listing all names and noting those who participated was
an implied judgement.
Mr. Connolly said the Oregon Supreme Court had ruled that campaign contributions in the State of
Oregon were an exercise in free speech. He added that the council had acted too quickly on the
issue and stressed the need for more thought and discussion.
George Beres, 1990 Dogwood Street, said that the need for campaign finance reform went far
beyond what was being proposed by the City Council. He opined that the current system was
scandalous and expressed his support for the resolution but raised concern over depending on
voluntary limits.
Mr. Beres urged the council to further explore how true campaign finance reform might be
initiated. He said that voluntary limits were a bandage for a problem that required major surgery.
Linda Fuller, 2401 West 22nd Avenue, complimented the council on taking a critical step toward
campaign finance reform. She opined that the voluntary limits should be made mandatory and
commented that the $60,000 limit for mayoral races was too high. She raised concern that there
was an inequity between wealthy and non-wealthy candidates.
Alissa Manske, 412 Heritage Oaks Drive, commented that the $60,000 limit on mayoral
campaigns was to high.
John Herberg, 395 East 30th Avenue, said that the resolution was not enough but acknowledged
that it was a step in the right direction. He commented that the voluntary limit of $75 per
contribution for council races was too Iow and suggested $100. He went on to say that the
$60,000 voluntary limit for mayoral races was too high and added that the limit for donations to a
mayoral candidate was too high as well. He urged the council to consider a limit on political
action committee spending in campaigns.
Matthew Donahue, 599 Coburg Road, said there was a real need for campaign finance reform in
Eugene. He opined that potential candidates were being eliminated because of a lack of special
interest support and said that the proposed resolution was a good first step toward addressing
that problem. He urged passage of the resolution.
MINUTES--Eugene City Council February 25, 2002 Page 3
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Sarah Charlesworth, 2373 Pershing Street, said the resolution was necessary for the community.
She opined that large campaign donations were at least perceived as corruption.
Ms. Charlesworth commented that the $60,000 voluntary limit on mayoral races was too high.
She added that candidates should be limited in donating to their own campaigns.
Natalie White, 1128 Washington Street, quoted Abraham Lincoln on campaign finance reform and
urged lower voluntary limits.
Mayor Torrey closed the public hearing.
Councilor Fart related that only one councilor spent less on his/her campaign than he did. Having
stated that, he commented that the resolution was not campaign reform, was not an ordinance,
and was not constitutional.
Councilor Fart raised concern that the word "corruption" was being used often. He expressed a
desire to see proof of corruption in City Council campaigns or, failing that, a stop to the use of the
word. He said it was insulting to himself and the other councilors.
Councilor Kelly thanked those who testified. He went on to outline the language for the resolution
that was proposed in a previous council work session.
Councilor Kelly stressed that all of the proposed limits were voluntary. He noted that political
action committees would be limited to the same contributions as individuals.
Councilor Kelly noted that the City Attorney had said that voluntary limits were constitutional but
mandatory limits were not.
In response to a question from Councilor Meisner regarding the existing State voluntary campaign
limit program and its difference to the proposed resolution, Kate Fieland of the City Recorder's
Office commented that the state program was not a pledge but rather a way to require less
paperwork from those candidates who spend less than $2,000. She said the candidate would file
additional expenditure forms if they exceeded the $2,000 voluntary limit.
Councilor Meisner raised concern that the council was rushing the process so it would apply to the
May primary. He commented that the proposed pledge needed to specifically state that
subsequent contributions and expenditure reporting would be required. He urged the addition of
such language to the resolution.
Councilor Nathanson said she would support some sort of voluntary limits. She raised concern
that the resolution was being hurried so it would apply to the next election and noted that there
were candidates who had already started accepting donations. She commented that
implementing the resolution in the process of an election was changing the rules in the middle of a
campaign and suggested that the resolution take place after the next election was completed.
Councilor Nathanson also raised concern over the implications for a candidate who made the
voluntary pledge while their competitors did not.
MINUTES--Eugene City Council February 25, 2002 Page 4
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Councilor Bettman noted that the reason the action was proposed as a resolution rather than an
ordinance was so it could be modified as experience dictated. She added that most of the
provisions were borrowed from other jurisdictions so that there was no ground breaking legislation
being done. She stressed that the beauty of the proposed resolution was its voluntary nature.
Councilor Taylor raised concern that the process was moving too quickly. She called for more
discussion of the issue before taking action. She also opined that personal donations from
candidates to their own campaigns needed to be limited as well.
Councilor Taylor suggested that the voluntary limit for donations to a council campaign be raised
to $100.
Councilor Taylor reiterated Councilor Nathanson's concern over candidates who made the
voluntary pledge while their competitors did not.
Councilor Pap~ also reiterated the concern raised by Councilor Nathanson. He also raised
concern that the council was rushing through the process without enough discussion. He
suggested implementing the resolution on the November ballot.
In response to a question from Councilor Pap~ regarding in-kind contributions and fair market
value and how to dispute reported figures, City Attorney Glenn Klein said the City would use the
same criteria used by the State for reporting in-kind contributions.
In response to a question from Councilor Pap~ regarding how the voluntary limit figures were set,
Ms. Walston said she had used an average of the costs from the last two council campaigns and
had gathered information on the number of registered voters in each ward, which was around
8,000, and set a number that was easy to remember and communicate to the public that the
mayoral limit was eight times that amount.
Councilor Pap~ noted that a hotly contested council race would have higher spending.
In response to a question from Councilor Pap~ regarding whether other city jurisdictions in the
state had enacted similar voluntary limits, Ms. Walston said that her research, in conversations
with the 10 largest cities in Oregon, yielded that no other city in the state was enacting similar
voluntary limits.
Councilor Pap~ raised concern that the issue was being pushed along too fast. He remarked that
he had heard no real groundswell of public support for local campaign finance reform.
Mayor Torrey said that a candidate should be able to loan his/her campaign front money to get it
moving as long as the money was paid back in a specifically defined time.
Mayor Torrey also raised a concern that the program would give incumbents the advantage in any
election. He said if the program was not adjusted, he would do everything he could to convince
non-incumbents to not participate in the voluntary program and to clearly state that they were not
participating because the pledge gave an unfair advantage to incumbents. He stressed that non-
incumbents needed to spend more money to achieve the same level of name familiarity. He said
that incumbents did not need to spend as much money as non-incumbents. He urged the council
to make the voluntary program fair.
MINUTES--Eugene City Council February 25, 2002 Page 5
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In response to a question from Councilor Farr regarding whether publishing names in the
newspaper of participants and non-participants in the voluntary program would be showing
preference for a particular candidate, Mr. Klein said that the City would be providing neutral
information and not promoting a candidacy. He said it was lawful for the City to publish neutral
information.
In response to a question from Councilor Fart regarding the reason to go beyond the existing state
voluntary limits, Ms. Fieland said that the State required no additional accounting for the rest of
the election.
Addressing the audience, Councilor Fart said that federal and State law did not allow the City to
mandate limits. He raised concern that even though the word voluntary was used, the City was
mandating a response from candidates.
Councilor Kelly noted that dozens of cities nationwide had enacted voluntary spending limit
programs. He added that the issue was not being rushed since it had been on the council work
program since the previous April.
Councilor Nathanson commented that there was still a necessity to discuss making a pledge
contingent on being matched by opponents. She also expressed interest in a discussion of
reporting contributions and expenditures. She added that there was language in the resolution
that needed clarification to get to the council intent. She expressed concern that the council was
"writing on the fly" and reiterated her desire to see the resolution start in November 2002 so that
her issues could be addressed.
Councilor Bettman expressed a desire to see the resolution in place for the May election. She
suggested that a limit just be on expenditures and not on contributions for the May election to
make things fair to the candidates who had already accepted campaign contributions.
Councilor Pap~ commented that the resolution had not been discussed since it was put in the
work program during the previous April.
Councilor Pap~, seconded by Councilor Farr, moved to postpone the topic
until the second work session after the May primary.
Councilor Taylor expressed a desire to take action that evening even if it was rushing the process.
Councilor Kelly acknowledged that there were topics that had yet to be resolved but expressed his
belief that there was enough of a foundation to vote on that evening. He raised concern that if
the topic were postponed then there would be no action by the November 2002 election.
Councilor Kelly, seconded by Councilor Bettman, moved to amend the motion
by postponing the topic until a special session between February 27 and
March 11.
Councilor Meisner noted that there would be potential attendance problems with the dates
proposed by the amendment.
MINUTES--Eugene City Council February 25, 2002 Page 6
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Councilor Bettman reiterated her desire to take action before the May primary. She urged
councilors to clear their questions/comments with legal counsel so that the council would be ready
to take action the next time the topic was taken up.
Councilor Kelly offered a friendly amendment to the amendment, which was
accepted, to extend the time of the Wednesday work session to address the
topic at that time.
Roll call vote; the amendment, as amended, passed 6:2 with Councilors
Pap~ and Farr voting in opposition.
Roll call vote; the main motion, as amended, passed unanimously.
Councilor Meisner requested that Item 6 be moved forward on the agenda to item 4. There was
general consensus.
IV. ACTION: A Resolution Calling a City Election on May 21, 2002, for the Purpose of
Referring to the Legal Electors of the City of Eugene a Measure Authorizing a Four-
Year Local Option Levy for the Funding of Library Operations.
Councilor Kelly, seconded by Councilor Pap~, moved to approve Resolution
4707, a resolution calling a City election on May 21, 2002, for the purpose of
referring to the legal electors of the City of Eugene a measure authorizing a
four-year local option levy for the funding of library operations.
Councilor Meisner thanked the members and staff of the Mayor's Library Improvement Committee
for their hard work on the issue.
Councilor Rayor supported the motion. He said that the library committee was being very fiscally
responsible.
In response to a question from Councilor Farr regarding what would happen if the library levy
failed, City Manager Jim Johnson said the new library would open on schedule even if the levy
failed.
Councilor Kelly said the levy was not a new one, but a replacement of the levy that was passed in
1998.
Councilor Pap~ thanked the members and staff of the Mayor's Library Improvement Committee for
their work.
Councilor Bettman reiterated the comments of Councilor Pap~ and Councilor Meisner.
Roll call vote; the motion passed unanimously.
Councilor Fart, seconded by Councilor Rayor, move to revise the remaining
agenda items to an order of 4, 7, 5, and 8.
MINUTES--Eugene City Council February 25, 2002 Page 7
Regular Session
Roll call vote; the vote resulted in a tie. Mayor Torrey voted in the affirmative.
The motion passed, 5:4, with councilors Pap~, Kelly, Meisner, and Rayor
voting in opposition.
V. ACTION: A resolution Adopting a Limited Neighborhood Recognition Policy for Organiza-
tions in the River Road and Santa Clara Areas
Councilor Kelly, seconded by Councilor Pap~, moved to approve Resolution
4705 adopting a limited neighborhood recognition for organizations in the
River Road and Santa Clara areas.
Councilor Meisner noted that, if the motion passed, the neighborhood services budget would need
to be increased to provide a level of service, and added that Lane County did not contribute any
funds or staff support to River Road or Santa Clara community organizations. He said it was
another example of the City of Eugene taking on a regional responsibility without any financial help
from regional partners. He observed that those organizations were one-third city and two-thirds
county.
Beth Bridges of the Planning and Development Department said there were two key differences in
the way the River Road and Santa Clara organizations would be funded compared to other
neighborhood organizations within the city limits.
1. Funding public information
Ms. Bridges said the funding to River Road and Santa Clara would be based on the number of city
addresses.
2. No support in organizing activities
Ms. Bridges said the River Road and Santa Clara study groups had discussed financial support to
those neighborhood organizations and would recommend to the Board of County Commissioners
that it provide some financial support.
Councilor Kelly expressed his hope that those neighborhood organizations requested support from
the Board of County Commissioners. He stressed that the resolution simply continued current
practice and funding levels, and just codified that existing practice. He said he would support the
motion.
Councilor Bettman said she would support the motion because it would go a long way toward
creating a cohesive community and, over time, change some of the anti-City feelings in that area.
In response to a question from Councilor Bettman regarding whether membership and voting
would be based on city addresses in those areas, Ms. Bridges said they would not. She added
that the neighborhoods were geographically based with no political boundaries imposed.
MINUTES--Eugene City Council February 25, 2002 Page 8
Regular Session
Councilor Pap~ said he would support the motion. He stressed the need for representation for the
people in those neighborhoods.
Roll call vote; the motion passed unanimously.
VI.ACTION: A Resolution Calling for a City Election Regarding a Bond Measure for Fire and
Emergency Medical Services Department Construction Projects
Assistant City Manager Jim Carlson noted that staff had council direction to come back to the
council with resolutions related to the bond measure. He said that since there had been no
specific direction, staff had prepared a number of options. He called attention to council packet
page 181 for a list of the options from which to choose.
Mr. Carlson said staff was recommending Resolution E, which included a downtown fire station in
addition to the highest priority training prop (burn building).
In response to a question from Councilor Meisner regarding the reason why no Facilities Reserve
funds were being applied to fire issues, City Manager Johnson said it was a policy decision as to
how the Facility Reserve funds were spent. He said the professional staff opinion was that the
highest priority was to move the personnel in the basement of City Hall out of that location.
In response to a question from Councilor Nathanson regarding whether new training facilities
would be used by other agencies and what those agencies would pay, Chief Tom Tallon said the
prime reason for the training center was for the training of Eugene fire fighters. He acknowledged
that there was capacity to expand training curriculums to include other fire fighters from the
region. He said there were great business/intergovernmental opportunities for sharing the facility
and recovering funds to pay for its ongoing maintenance.
Councilor Kelly said the move toward providing services in Santa Clara had been thrust upon the
City through no action of its own. He said he would rather see a Eugene fire station in Santa
Clara in the near future, but noted that he had been assured that a temporary facility would serve
for the time being. He expressed more concern over the redeployment of fire fighters from the
Valley River station.
In response to a question from Councilor Kelly regarding whether there would be an actual
change in response times due to the proposed redeployment to Santa Clara, Chief Tallon said a
lot of time and research had been done on the issue. He acknowledged that there would be an
increase in response times but stressed that there would be no risk to the safety of the community
or to fire fighters.
Councilor Kelly, seconded by Councilor Bettman, moved to direct the City
Manager to return to the council with a serial levy for the May ballot to
provide for the operations of the Valley River station for a two-year period.
Councilor Bettman raised concern over a lack of staff to provide services. She said she would
support the motion.
Councilor Farr reiterated Councilor Bettman's concern.
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Councilor Pap~ raised concern over the number of levies that were already on the May ballot. He
said he would support the motion but urged the council to think about everything it was asking the
voters to approve in May.
Councilor Nathanson expressed concern that council was asking for specific and technical work to
be done in a 24-hour period. She also raised concern that the voters were being asked to
approve too much on the May ballot. She commented that the proposed motion was only a
temporary solution and stressed that the arrangement with Santa Clara was only a temporary
measure.
In response to a question from Councilor Taylor regarding whether there are layoffs scheduled in
the proposal, Chief Tallon clarified that there were no layoffs planned.
City Manager Johnson urged the council not get into a work session on the issue during its regular
session. He suggested taking up the issue during the Wednesday work session.
Councilor Meisner said he would not support a levy. He expressed his trust in Chief Tallon's
recommendations. He noted that in any redeployment, staff would work to see that service was
delivered to the City in the most efficient manner possible.
In response to a question from Councilor Taylor regarding whether Police Department employees
could come out of the basement if the downtown fire station moved out of City Hall, City Manager
Johnson said it would be a waste of money to invest funds in City Hall. He said it would make
more sense to construct a building that would take care of police needs for the immediate future.
He stressed that staff was not suggesting to put any more money into the City Hall building for the
next ten years.
In response to a concern from Councilor Taylor that increasing response times would endanger
the people in the Valley River area, City Manager Johnson said, if the issue were moved to a work
session, Chief Tallon could explain that the time and distance studies had been done and shown
that there would be a significant risk to the community. He noted that there were other areas in
the City that did not have four-minute response times.
Councilor Fart commented that the council was not managing its meeting time effectively.
Councilor Fart offered a friendly amendment, that was accepted, to schedule
a work session on the issue during the upcoming Wednesday meeting.
Councilor Fart urged the council to make an early motion on the charter amendment agenda item
that would help to postpone any lengthy debate to a future time.
Mayor Torrey commented that most citizens would prioritize fire/police at the top of their list of
community importance. He challenged the Budget Committee of the City of Eugene to find the
funding to operate in the Santa Clara area and not rely on a levy that the citizens could vote down.
He raised concern that there were too many levies on the May ballot.
Councilor Kelly called for a comparison of fire response under the Chief's proposal, with continued
staff at the Valley River station, and under the current system.
MINUTES--Eugene City Council February 25, 2002 Page 10
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Roll call vote; the motion passed, 6:2, with councilors Meisner and Rayor
voting in opposition.
Councilor Kelly, seconded by Councilor Pap~, moved to approve a resolution
calling for a city election on May 21, 2002, for the purpose of referring to the
legal electors of the City of Eugene the issuance of a maximum of
$8,680,000 of general obligation bonds for fire and emergency services
projects (Option E in the council packet).
Councilor Bettman supported the motion.
Councilor Rayor moved to amend the motion by substituting Option A in the
council packet. The motion died for lack of a second.
Councilor Rayor raised concern that the training facility would not be used for training by the other
jurisdictions in the region.
Deputy Chief Matt Shuler noted that many of the smaller communities did not provide the training
that Eugene staff felt was necessary for fighting fires at an urban level. He said the smaller
communities in the region did not have access to the kind of technical training that the proposed
facility would provide.
In response to a question from Councilor Rayor regarding whether other communities had been
contacted about joint training, Chief Tallon said he had discussed the matter of joint training with
Springfield fire staff. He noted that the department would recover costs from those other agencies
to help pay for costs of the facility.
Councilor Meisner did not support the motion. He did stress the importance of recovering actual
costs from other agencies using the facility for training.
Councilor Kelly reiterated Councilor Meisner's desire to see actual costs recovered from other
agencies using the facility.
In response to a question from Councilor Kelly regarding the reason why the Eugene Police
Forensics Unit could not be moved into the vacant fire station area after it had been vacated, City
Manager Johnson noted that it would be very expensive to refit the space to accommodate a
forensics laboratory. He added that City Hall was not built to the seismic specifications of the
current day. He said a new police facility would be built to current seismic specifications.
Councilor Taylor suggested seismic upgrades for City Hall.
Councilor Pap8 reiterated his concern that there were already too many levies on the May ballot.
Councilor Meisner, seconded by Councilor PapS, moved to postpone the
discussion until the Wednesday meeting.
Councilor Kelly opposed the motion. He said the meetings were already too full and suggested
extending the Wednesday meeting.
Councilor Bettman opposed the motion. She urged taking action that evening.
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Roll call vote; the motion failed, 5:3, with councilors Pap~, Meisner, and Fart
voting in favor.
Roll call vote; the main motion passed, 5:3, with councilors Taylor, Meisner
and Pap~ voting in opposition.
Councilor Meisner left the meeting at 10:50 p.m.
VII.ACTION: Financing for a Police Department Forensic Evidence and Property Control
Building
City Manager Johnson said a motion had been prepared in order to go on to the next step in the
process of moving the forensics and property control. He noted that another work session could
be prepared if the item needed more discussion.
Councilor Kelly, seconded by Councilor Pap~, moved to direct the City
Manager to:
1. Schedule a work session after the spring break to discuss the
Eugene Police Department Forensic Evidence and Property
Control units and to include cost comparisons, site plan, and
the PSCC recommendations on co-locations.
2. Prepare a request for Supplemental Budget #3 that will fund
this project from the Facility Replacement Reserve.
Councilor Rayor raised concern over the costs involved.
Mr. Carlson said staff would provide cost comparisons at the requested work session.
In response to a question from Councilor Taylor regarding whether the motion would eliminate the
possibility of using part of the Facility Replacement Reserve Fund for fire facilities, City Manager
Johnson said the second part of the motion would not take the money away but would become a
moot point if the funding were spent on fire facilities.
Councilor Taylor, seconded by Councilor Rayor, moved to table the motion.
Roll call vote; the motion failed, 5:2, with councilors Taylor and Rayor voting
in favor.
Councilor Kelly called for a cost comparison showing figures until 2010.
Councilor Kelly offered a friendly amendment, which was accepted, to add a
sentence to the motion that cost comparisons would include comparisons of
moving property control and forensics to the new building and back to a
future police facility as compared to moving those two units to old Fire Station
1 and then to a future police facility.
In response to a question from Mayor Torrey regarding whether a forensics unit and a property
control unit needed to be in a facility built to the same standards as the future police facility, Mike
MINUTES--Eugene City Council February 25, 2002 Page 12
Regular Session
Penwell said they did not count as essential services and therefore did not have the same building
standards.
There was general consensus to add that consideration to the friendly
amendment.
Councilor Bettman said she would support the motion. She called for information regarding
possible use of the State forensics lab or figures showing the cost savings of Eugene having its
own lab.
Roll call vote; the motion passed, 6:1, Councilor Rayor voting in opposition.
VIII.ACTION: A Resolution Calling a City Election on May 21, 2002, for the Purpose of
Referring to the Legal Electors of the City of Eugene "Housekeeping" Amendments to
the City Charter
Councilor Kelly, seconded by Councilor Pap~, moved that the housekeeping
amendments to the City Charter be referred to the voters in the election of
May 21, 2002.
Councilor Taylor was opposed to the motion. She opined that all of the charter amendments
should be voted on in the same election. She suggested the November 2002 election.
Councilor Bettman, seconded by Councilor Nathanson, moved to amend the
motion by referring the housekeeping amendments to the City Charter in the
Fall 2002 election.
Roll call vote; the amendment passed unanimously.
Roll call vote; the main motion, as amended, passed unanimously.
City Manager Johnson called for action/authorization on the voter's pamphlet.
Councilor Kelly, seconded by Councilor Pap~, moved to authorize the
expenditure of approximately $15,000 for the production of a City of Eugene
voter's pamphlet for the May 2002 election. Roll call vote; the motion passed
unanimously.
Councilor Kelly, seconded by Councilor Pap~, moved to begin the recruitment
process for members of the proponent and opponent committees for the
measures referred by the City Council on the May 2002 ballot. Roll call vote;
the motion passed unanimously.
The meeting adjourned at 11:15 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
MINUTES--Eugene City Council February 25, 2002 Page 13
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James R. Johnson
City Manager
(Recorded by Joe Sams)
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