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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCC Minutes - 11/13/06 Work Session M I N U T E S Eugene City Council Work Session McNutt Room—Eugene City Hall November 13, 2006 5:30 p.m. COUNCILORS PRESENT: Jennifer Solomon, Andrea Ortiz, David Kelly, Betty Taylor, Gary Papé, Bonny Bettman, Chris Pryor. COUNCILORS ABSENT: George Poling. Her Honor Mayor Kitty Piercy called the meeting of the Eugene City Council to order. A. COMMITTEE REPORTS AND ITEMS OF INTEREST FROM MAYOR, CITY COUNCIL AND CITY MANAGER Mayor Piercy thanked voters for supporting the library and parks ballot measures. She said the City was a co-sponsor of Art Train’s recent visit and distributed information about the art exhibit. She attended weekend events in Eugene and Springfield to honor veterans and last week there was a grand opening of th housing for veterans located on West 7 Avenue. She reported that Interior Secretary Dirk Kempthorne visited the West Eugene wetlands area. She congratulated the Lane Board of County Commissioners for adopting a ten-year plan to abolish homelessness. She also participated in the kickoff of the MADD holiday campaign against drinking and driving. Ms. Ortiz reported she attended a Whiteaker neighborhood meeting with new Police Auditor Cris Beamud. She said Ms. Beamud also attended the November 9 meeting of the Police Commission to discuss issues related to a proposed ordinance articulating her function as police auditor. Ms. Ortiz said she had an opportunity to view plans for PeaceHealth’s Hilyard Street facility and they were very exciting. She said there were plans to involve more of the community in health care, including alternative medical practitioners. She said there would be a count of the homeless population on January 24, 2007, and Project Homeless Connect to provide outreach to veterans would be held on February 8, 2007, at the Lane Events Center. Ms. Taylor said that Lane Regional Air Protection Agency had taken a stand against field burning. She said she received a letter from a constituent regarding pollution at the Amazon headwaters from the use of planting mix. She also received a complaint about the City using leaf blowers by the river. She referred to a recent newspaper article about the City obtaining options on downtown properties and questioned whether the council should have discussed that before $24,000 to $48,000 in funds were spent. She said that a renewal of the options would double that amount. City Manager Dennis Taylor replied that Urban Renewal Agency funds within the fiscal year 2006 budget were used to purchase the options. He said the subject of West Broadway purchase options was on the November 27, 2006, work session agenda and the agenda item summary would contain detailed information. Ms. Taylor reiterated her concern that it was too easy for staff to spend Urban Renewal funds without oversight. MINUTES—Eugene City Council November 13, 2006 Page 1 Work Session Mr. Kelly reported that the Region 2050 Policy Board had its final meeting and because the Eugene City Council did not support the project it would not move forward as a comprehensive regional plan, although several small cities would continue to coordinate and use the information generated by the project. He said the policy board suggested to Lane Council of Governments that a working group of the smaller cities should be convened to help move those efforts forward. He attended a November 3 breakfast sponsored by the HIV Alliance, noting that it was a striking reality check and a reminder that HIV was still very much an issue in the community. He said that Lane Transit District’s EX service would commence on January 14, M 2007, and he had attended the unveiling of the new vehicles. He hoped it was the beginning of an extensive bus rapid transit network. He reminded those interested in the current and future state of arts and culture in the community that there was a public meeting on November 14 at 6 p.m. at the Hult Center. He com- mended the new Wildish Theater in downtown Springfield as a major cultural asset for the area. Ms. Bettman also thanked voters for supporting the City’s ballot measures and her colleagues for putting those measures on the ballot. She said she was hearing concerns that the City’s limit on the number of pets per household was an obstacle to moving toward a no-kill policy. She requested a memorandum from City staff describing whether the ordinance limitation had an impact and what response had been provided when similar concerns were raised previously. She indicated she might request a work session on the issue. Ms. Bettman said she understood that once the minutes of a council meeting had been adopted, the DVD of that meeting was only retained for a year and then destroyed. She was concerned because she continued to find errors in the council’s minutes and hoped that the DVDs would be retained in perpetuity. City Manager Taylor said he would research how streaming video and new technology might affect the City’s archiving of council meetings and provide that information in a memorandum. Mr. Pryor said there had been a presentation from the consultant on findings related to Human Service Commission reorganization options. He said he would keep the council informed as the project moved forward. He praised the Wildish Theater as a great addition to venues in the community that represented cultural arts. Mr. Papé commented that the ArtTrain exhibit was a Native American initiative and it changed his perceptions about the nature of Native American art forms. He thanked the mayor for her one-on-one visit to his ward and thanked council staff Lynda Rose and staff from the Planning Department for their assistance with the event. He asked for a memorandum on the status of discussions with the 4J School District regarding Civic Stadium. He said several members of the McKenzie Watershed Council expressed concern about the Eugene Water & Electric Board (EWEB) decision to transport fish around the Trail Bridge Reservoir instead of building a fish ladder. He reminded people to be careful of downed trees during the winter and hoped the City would accelerate its downed tree removal program. Ms. Solomon said that the grand opening of housing for veterans was a wonderful event and she was amazed at the partnerships and networks in Lane County to help homeless and low-income families find decent, affordable housing. She was proud to be a part of that effort. She pointed out that St. Vincent de Paul secured property for additional housing. City Manager Taylor thanked the public for its patience during the leaf clean-up and commended the Public Works Department for its efforts. MINUTES—Eugene City Council November 13, 2006 Page 2 Work Session B. WORK SESSION: Police Auditor Report City Manager Taylor introduced the new Police Auditor Cristina Beamud. Ms. Beamud reviewed her activities since her arrival on October 16, 2006. She described her meetings with individuals and groups within City government and many organizations in the community in order to obtain an idea of community concerns and how the office of the Police Auditor could help. She said those with whom she spoke made substantive and positive remarks and emphasized the need for transparency and fairness. She said she had conducted briefings with EPD personnel and would continue the briefings until the entire department had been covered. She intended to do ride-alongs with officers and hold conversations with the Eugene Police Employee Association (EPEA). She was anxious to establish an office, have an ordinance enacted, hire staff, and develop protocols in order to begin her work. Ms. Beamud said she had met with the mayor and council officers to develop an accountable working relationship. She planned to report to the council periodically in writing and if there were major issues she would reach out to the mayor. She had worked closely with the Police Commission to develop the ordinance framework. She hoped to hire staff in a career development position as it would be helpful to have someone who was familiar with the City’s administrative operations. She was looking at potential office locations and hoped to move into a permanent space shortly after the first of the year. Ms. Beamud explained that one of the challenges in creating an ordinance was balancing deference to the Police Chief, City Manager, and Police Commission with the need for the auditor to be truly independent. She highlighted several issues that were addressed during her meeting with the Police Commission, including: ? Definitions section: substituted definitions of “facilitated conversations” and “mediation” for the more generic term “alternative dispute resolution” ? 11(c): language modified to allow administrative investigation during a criminal investigation unless it is determined by the police chief in consultation with the district attorney that the ad- ministrative investigation would jeopardize the criminal investigation. Requires that decision to be rendered in writing. Ms. Beamud said the revisions to Section 11(c) would provide greater transparency and avoid keeping an officer on paid leave for an extended period of time. She said it would also ensure that questions were answered for the community as quickly as possible. Mr. Papé asked if the ordinance provisions would apply to any level of criminality. City Attorney Jerome Lidz replied that the ordinance as written would apply to any criminal conduct, including misdemeanors. Ms. Beamud said she would continue to refine the ordinance language and Section 11(d) would be revised to be consistent with Section 11(c). She pointed out that language in Section 6 had been revised to be consistent with the charter language by allowing up to seven members of the Civilian Review Board (CRB) but not requiring that many. She said the CRB could be a five- or seven-member body and the quorum requirements had been changed accordingly. She said that language recommended by the City Attorney had been selected for Section 11(d) in order to avoid a bargaining problem with the police union. She said the change addressed how information would be presented to the Police Chief in the event there was disagree- ment between a supervisor and the auditor on adjudication of a matter. MINUTES—Eugene City Council November 13, 2006 Page 3 Work Session In conclusion, Ms. Beamud said an issue had been raised about the “statute of limitations” that should be applied to the auditor’s work. She did not feel that was a decision that the auditor should make unilaterally. She indicated that based on her research, she would recommend language that would allow complaints to be accepted up to 60 days following the date of a minor misconduct incident and up to six months following the date of a serious misconduct incident, with exceptions for good cause delay. She would transmit her specific language recommendations to the council. Mr. Kelly stated that he was generally comfortable with the direction of the ordinance and deferred to Ms. Beamud’s professional judgment on the recommended changes to language to be forwarded for a public hearing. He said he had suggested at a council process session that the auditor check in with the council officers in person or via memorandum if there was an issue that needed to be addressed by the full council. Ms. Ortiz asked that the ordinance language specify that five members was the minimum size for the CRB. Ms. Bettman was pleased with the ambitious timeline for providing services through the Police Auditor’s Office. She suggested that the auditor’s office could share space with the council when its new offices were established if that would be a benefit to the public. She agreed with Ms. Ortiz’s suggestion to clarify the minimum number of CRB members. She also agreed with those changes that arose from the Police Commission’s review of the ordinance. Mr. Papé concurred with Mr. Kelly’s remarks regarding the auditor reporting to the council instead of the mayor, as he was not certain the Mayor was technically a part of the council. Mr. Lidz replied that it was up to the council to determine the supervisory structure and reporting protocols for the Police Auditor. He would research the issue of whether the council included the Mayor but that should not preclude the council moving forward with a discussion of supervisory options. Mr. Papé expressed concern about language relating to qualifications of CRB members that required consideration of whether the candidate had any real or perceived bias or conflict of interest. He said everyone had a bias and suggested that the term be removed. Mr. Lidz responded that in the context of the ordinance the word “bias” meant grounds for disqualification because of having “pre-decided” a matter. Mr. Papé argued that the term should be more clearly defined. Mr. Pryor suggested substituting the word “prejudice” for the word “bias.” He agreed with Mr. Kelly’s suggestion that the auditor report to the council officers on more routine matters and come to the full council on policy issues. Ms. Solomon referred to language in Section 14(c) that prohibited CRB appointments from being made on the basis of a constituency or representation of a particular group. She said she preferred to see CRB members represent a broad range of community groups to assure balance on the board. Ms. Taylor stated she preferred that CRB members did not represent constituencies. She suggested that daily supervision of the auditor could be done by the Mayor and the council involved in matters of substance. She was in agreement with Ms. Beamud making the recommended changes to the ordinance in order to take it to a public hearing. MINUTES—Eugene City Council November 13, 2006 Page 4 Work Session Mayor Piercy asked the council to consider requiring that the criteria for evaluating the work of the Police Auditor, which would be developed by the CRB, come to the council for review and comment prior to adoption. Ms. Solomon, seconded by Ms. Ortiz, moved to approve the proposal and direct the crea- tion of a draft ordinance. Mr. Kelly suggested that Ms. Beamud consider various supervisory mechanisms that could be discussed by the council at its January 2007 process session. He asked Ms. Solomon if she would accept friendly amendments to her motion. Ms. Solomon declined. Mr. Kelly, seconded by Ms. Bettman, moved to amend the language in draft Section 9(a) with the language of sections 1 and 2 of Resolution 4889 approved by the City Council on August 14, 2006. Mr. Kelly clarified that the resolution language in Section 2 citing “amending this Resolution” should be replaced with “amending Resolution 4889” as it was now an external rather than an internal reference. He said the point of the amendment was that Section 9(a) in the draft described the supervision of the auditor’s staff and following the council’s extensive discussion the resolution was adopted with a dissenting vote by Mr. Papé. He felt that the ordinance language should be consistent with the resolution language. Mr. Papé said he was still concerned about the legality of the matter and asked for the City Attorney’s opinion. Mr. Lidz replied that there were several legal opinions, three from the City Attorney’s Office and one from an outside source, which concluded that the City Manager had the authority to supervise the auditor’s staff based on the terms of the charter amendment. Mr. Papé asked if the outside attorney was paid for his opinion. Mr. Lidz replied that he was. Mr. Papé said that attorneys had been paid for their professional advice and those opinions contradicted Mr. Kelly’s proposed amendment. He would not support the amendment. Ms. Bettman felt that adding the resolution language to the ordinance, which resolved the matter following extensive discussion by the council, was a housekeeping matter. She hoped that the ordinance would move forward without revisiting every single disagreement. Mayor Piercy said she saw nothing new in the conversation that had not been in previous conversations. Ms. Solomon said she did not recall an extensive discussion and after the council adopted the resolution in August 2006 she learned that she had personal liability as a result of adding the word “exclusive” to the resolution language. She asked the City Attorney to clarify the nature of that liability. Mr. Lidz replied that it was a complex issue with many subtleties. He said in light of the City Manager’s delegation order the question would arise only if the auditor acted in a way that was within the authority granted by the council under the resolution, but contrary to the more limited delegation granted to the auditor by the City Manager. He said the issue seldom arose and he would provide further information to the council following research. Ms. Taylor stated it was simply housekeeping by including in the ordinance what the council had already decided. She saw no need for further discussion. MINUTES—Eugene City Council November 13, 2006 Page 5 Work Session Mr. Pryor agreed there was limited discussion and said he based his support of the resolution on the trust that the City Manager was comfortable with it. He said he wanted the Police Auditor to succeed and would support the amendment in the absence of serious objections from the City Manager and auditor. Mr. Papé said there was a lot of discussion between two parties and the word “exclusive” was removed as part of a compromise but returned when the issue came before the council. He asked if the City Manager was comfortable with inclusion of the word “exclusive.” City Manager Taylor replied that it depended on whether it was by administrative order or the council’s interpretation of the charter. He understood that the resolution as amended by Mr. Kelly would not include the word “exclusive.” He agreed with Mr. Lidz that it was unlikely there would be a liability problem and it was important to move forward with implementing the police auditor function. Mr. Papé asked if Mr. Kelly would accept a friendly amendment to remove the word “exclusive.” Mr. Kelly declined. The motion to amend passed 5:2; Mr. Papé and Ms. Solomon voting in opposition. Mr. Kelly, seconded by Ms. Taylor, moved to amend the main motion by adding the phase “and to schedule a public hearing for Monday, December 11, 2006.” Ms. Bettman stated she would support the amendment. She conveyed a sense of the Police Commission’s discussion of the issue of bias with respect to CRB members. She said the commission felt that the board should not represent any particular interest and members should not be selected on that basis; the board should be able to conduct a fair, objective look at the facts. She encouraged any councilor with concerns about that issue to contact former commission chair Tim Laue or current chair Maurice Denner to discuss the issue. She said there was some frustration in the community about the length of time since passage of the ballot measure authorizing an auditor and would support the amendment to schedule a public hearing on December 11. She agreed with holding a discussion of supervisory matters at the council’s next process session. Ms. Bettman said that parts of the ordinance needed to be “staged” and as part of refining it for the public hearing Ms. Beamud should identify which parts should be enacted immediately to allow her to move forward with establishing an office and which parts should be phased in so that she was not obligated to accept complaints immediately upon adoption. The motion to amend passed unanimously, 7:0. Mr. Papé asked for a memorandum on the issue raised by Ms. Solomon, a memorandum on staff authority and a memorandum on when the mayor was considered a part of the council. The main motion as amended passed, 5:2; Mr. Papé and Ms. Solomon voting in opposition. C. WORK SESSION: Update on Farmers Market Facilities Management Division Manager Glen Svendsen explained that the purpose of the work session was to obtain direction from the council on the Farmers Market improvement project. He said the request was unusual because capital projects were not generally brought back to the council once they were budgeted; MINUTES—Eugene City Council November 13, 2006 Page 6 Work Session however, in this case the work session was consistent with a request from Mr. Papé to bring back informa- tion on the project before proceeding. He said that staff was recommending delaying the Farmers Market improvements until a decision was made on the site for the City Hall master plan. He said it seemed prudent not to make a significant capital investment in the Park Blocks site until the decision was made. Mr. Svendsen said the Farmers Market representatives suggested several small inexpensive projects that could be done in the interim, such as removing the drinking fountain. He noted that during Budget Committee discussions Ms. Bettman referenced the project as a placeholder for projects to be done in FY2008. He said representatives of the Farmers Market also indicated they were rethinking design of the space and the market’s long-term needs and wanted additional planning time. He said that Noah O’Hare, director of the Farmers Market, was available to answer questions. Mayor Piercy asked Mr. O’Hare to discuss the position of the Farmers Market. Mr. O’Hare said the market was pleased with the allocation and had developed a list of recommended improvements that could be accomplished prior to a decision on the City Hall master plan. He appreciated the reason for delaying the projects and emphasized that some small improvements in the interim would be very helpful. He was encouraged that the council was interested in the market’s segment of the local economy. Mr. Kelly said his constituents consistently indicated how valuable the Farmers Market was and particularly how valuable its downtown location was in proximity to the Saturday Market. He said the Budget Committee and the council made clear their support for the Farmers Market and its downtown location. He recalled that discussions of the allocation indicated the improvements were expected in calendar year 2007 in anticipation of the next market season. He disagreed with the staff recommendation and felt that up to the entire allocation should be used for improvements before the next market season as it would be at least 2010 before site development began on that site if it was chosen for the new City Hall. Mr. Papé agreed that the Farmers Market was very important to the community but had not heard the same level of support for a downtown location. He asked if the market was discussing possible relocation to accommodate expansion. Mr. O’Hare replied that no change in the downtown location was expected in the foreseeable future. He said there was great potential to expand beyond the Park Blocks and that could mean additional locations throughout the area with a downtown site remaining. Mr. Papé asked if there were improvements short of the full $300,000 allocation that could be made. Mr. Svendsen said there were smaller short-term improvements that could be made and the reason staff brought the issue back to the council was a fiduciary concern about proceeding with major improvements if a decision on the site was going to be made in a year. He said it should be the council’s decision whether that was a reasonable investment of taxpayer money. Mr. Pryor agreed with Mr. Papé’s remarks. He said he was very supportive of the Farmers Market but did not want to spend money twice or spend it on a project that was short-lived. He was willing to move forward with the recommended improvements on the basis that the market would remain in its current location for several years and the improvements were reasonable and prudent. He was not certain it would require the entire $300,000 allocation to complete the short-term improvements and was interested in prioritizing projects to ensure the health of the Farmers Market over the next three to four years. Ms. Bettman said the allocation was an investment in downtown and questioned why the decision was being revisited. She agreed with Mr. Kelly’s identification of the timeline for projects as discussed during Budget Committee actions. She said the market was a local food source of the highest quality and in need of water, MINUTES—Eugene City Council November 13, 2006 Page 7 Work Session electricity, and space for more farmers. She said supporting the market was the intent of the Budget Committee and she did not agree with the direction staff was taking. She pointed out that the City financially supported Downtown Eugene, Inc. (DEI) and that was also not a permanent investment. She noted that smaller markets had sprung up around the community but the City chose to support the Farmers Market because of the tremendous economic vitality it brought to downtown Eugene. She recommended looking for short-term fixes that would provide electricity and water and capacity for more vendors. She identified items 1, 2, 3, 7, 8, 12, 13, and 15 on the project list as likely to accomplish that objective. Ms. Taylor stated her dismay that the decision to do whatever the City could, up to $300,000, to help the Farmers Market was being revisited. She said there was nothing better or livelier downtown than the Farmers Market, especially in combination with the Saturday Market. She said it was a community asset admired by people from other places and in line with the Mayor’s sustainable business initiative. Ms. Ortiz asked if any City funds had been spent previously on improvements for the Farmers Market. Mr. Svendsen said no other funds had been spent, primarily because it was the County’s property. Ms. Ortiz commended staff for being fiscally prudent and checking in with the council. She felt the council had already made the commitment and the project should move forward. She wondered if there might be opportunities for Farmers Market vendors to volunteer on the project and help the City save some money while investing in their future. She hoped to see a similar market in Trainsong Park in the future. Ms. Solomon, seconded by Ms. Ortiz, moved to adopt the recommendation to place the Farmers Market capital improvement project on hold until a final decision is made on the siting of a new City Hall complex. Mr. Kelly, seconded by Ms. Bettman, moved to amend the motion by substituting the phrase “use currently budgeted authority to implement short-term improvements as rec- ommended in the Parks Blocks Master Plan” to benefit the Farmers Market for their 2007 season in the areas of improved electric, improved water and improved space.” Mr. Kelly said his intent was not to direct the entire $300,000 be spent if the improvements could be done with less money. He said even if the site was selected for the new City Hall complex the market would remain undisturbed for at least three to four years and investing in improvements was well worth it. Ms. Solomon asked if the County was contributing to the project. Mr. Svendsen said the County’s contribution was the property. Ms. Bettman commented that not only had the City not invested in the market, vendors were charged for the space and that revenue funneled into DEI. She said the Farmers and Saturday markets were great business incubators and contributed much to the community. She supported the City’s investment in the market. In response to a question from Mr. Papé, Mr. Kelly clarified that his intent was to proceed with those improvements that addressed space, electric and water and could be done for the 2007 season. Mr. Papé remarked that if the City selected the “butterfly” lot site, it would be increasing the value and consequently the price that would be paid to the County with the City’s own funds. Mayor Piercy added that her discussions with market vendors suggested a need for storage space as well. MINUTES—Eugene City Council November 13, 2006 Page 8 Work Session The motion to amend passed, 6:1; Ms. Solomon voting in opposition. The main motion as amended passed, 6:1; Ms. Solomon voting in opposition. The meeting adjourned at 7:17 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Dennis M. Taylor City Manager (Recorded by Lynn Taylor) MINUTES—Eugene City Council November 13, 2006 Page 9 Work Session