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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCC Minutes - 09/23/02 Work Session MINUTES Eugene City Council Work Session McNutt Room--Eugene City Hall September 23, 2002 5:30 p.m. COUNCILORS PRESENT: David Kelly, Gary Pap~, Nancy Nathanson, Scott Meisner, Pat Farr, Betty Taylor, Gary Rayor, Bonny Bettman. CITY COUNCIL WORK SESSION Mayor James D. Torrey called the meeting to order. A. Items from the Council, Mayor, and City Manager Ms. Bettman commended the Eugene Celebration and the work of the volunteers and Downtown Events Management, Inc. (DEMI), in organizing the event. She said she wished to recognize the contribution to the parade of the dancers from the group The Edge, who had traveled the entire parade route doing cartwheels. She said the group did a great job. Ms. Bettman suggested that DEMI consider holding the parade on Sunday rather than on Saturday, and perhaps later in the day to avoid conflicts with University of Oregon football games and to increase the crowds, which are generally thinner on Sunday. She thought that requiring the police to work on both the parade and the game represented a long hard day for staff. Ms. Taylor recognized the passing of community activist Bayard McConnaughey, saying he was intelligent, dedicated, informed, and always looking to improve Eugene. She termed his death a great loss to City government. Ms. Taylor suggested a public discussion of the City's false alarm policy. She said many people were unhappy with the policy. Ms. Taylor called for more discussion on the homeless issue. Ms. Taylor indicated she was also in attendance at the Eugene Celebration and hoped the conflict between the parade and football games could be resolved. Ms. Taylor noted that under the old council ground rules, three councilors had requested a work session on whistle blower protection, and she asked that a work session on the topic be scheduled. Ms. Nathanson said she attended the Eugene Celebration on pads of all three days the event was held, and commended the event. MINUTES--Eugene City Council September 23, 2002 Page 1 Work Session Ms. Nathanson suggested that staff schedule a review of local roles in emergency responses for the new council to be seated in January 2003. Ms. Nathanson provided City Manager pro rem Jim Carlson with a copy of a photograph of a youth skateboarding in Vienna to distribute to the appropriate staff. The photograph illustrated Iow- scale, Iow-cost options for recreational skateboarding in neighborhood areas. Mr. Kelly joined Ms. Taylor in her remarks regarding the passing of Mr. McConnaughey. He said Mr. McConnaughey would be missed. Mr. Kelly complimented DEMI, the volunteers, and City staff for their work on the Eugene Celebration. He said the event was well-done. He hoped that the City and the University could develop a better solution to the conflict between the parade and football games. Mr. Kelly said he attended a recent open rehearsal of the Eugene Symphony in the new acoustical shell at the Hult Center. He commended the positive difference that the shell made and applauded those who made it possible. He urged the council to view the shell, and noted that it required no property tax dollars to install because a community fund-raising effort supported part of the cost and the remainder was paid by the patron user fee. Mr. Pap~ commended the reopening of Broadway, saying it looked good and would look better in the future as the vegetation matured. Mr. Pap~ reported that the Human Rights Commission recently heard from many of the protestors occupying the Wayne Morse Free Speech Plaza regarding their concerns about enforcement of the City's ban on camping in public parks. He anticipated continuing commission discussion about the topic. He acknowledged the difficulty of the issue. Mr. Meisner said that the reopening of Broadway was wonderful, and he commended the timeliness of the opening and its appearance. As construction progressed, he had heard many people not normally found downtown discussing how much they appreciated the project and how much safer it made them feel. Speaking to the false alarm policy change issue, Mr. Meisner said he was receiving constituent contacts regarding the issue. He said he had recently witnessed a police response to a false alarm and noted that the involved party did not understand the change in the policy. Mr. Rayor suggested that, during the Eugene Celebration, the vendors on Willamette Street be reconfigured to save space and facilitate an emergency response. Mr. Rayor said a property owner invited him to an informal neighborhood meeting about a proposed development. The meeting was attended by City staff and the developers, and the neighbors got to express their concerns about the proposed development. Mr. Rayor characterized the experience as an excellent example of public involvement and communication. Mr. Rayor thanked staff for its response to his concerns about the trees at the library and for the completion of the Broadway project. Mr. Farr said he had requested a meeting of the Committee on Homelessness and Youth be called, but noted that the committee lacked a third member. He said that the issue of MINUTES--Eugene City Council September 23, 2002 Page 2 Work Session homelessness was continually evolving and the council needed to keep an eye on its. He suggested the committee meet at least one more time. Mr. Farr also regretted the passing of Mr. McConnaughey, and said he hoped that his widow, Evelyn McConnaughey, would continue to be involved in City issues. Mr. Farr requested a memorandum from City Manager Carlson on when the living wage issue would return to the council. Mr. Fart noted the upcoming opening of Kalapuya High School in the Bethel area. He said that it would serve a youth population very much in need of its services. City Manager Carlson joined in the compliments for the completion of the Broadway project and said that it appeared to have enhanced the level of activity on the street already. He commended all those involved, and noted that Lane County supplied the bulk of the funding, for which he expressed appreciation. City Manager Carlson said that he spoke to representatives of the University of Oregon, who were in contact with DEMI about coordinating their mutual events in the following year. He said that Ms. Bettman's suggestion for a Sunday parade could be one solution. City Manager Carlson joined in Mr. Kelly's comments about the new shell. He said that it was generally receiving "rave" reviews. Mayor Torrey determined from City Manager Carlson that the Bethel skateboard park was a design-build project, and that Mr. Carlson would provide some information to the council on how that process had worked. Mayor Torrey commended physical improvements to the Atrium Building that complimented the new library. Mayor Torrey encouraged councilors to view the new Bethel Skatepark. Mayor Torrey suggested that, on the behalf of the council, Ms. Taylor draft a letter of regret to Ms. McConnaughey acknowledging the passing of Mr. McConnaughey. Ms. Taylor agreed to do so. MINUTES--Eugene City Council September 23, 2002 Page 3 Work Session B. Work Session: Joint Meeting with the Police Commission The council was joined by Police Commission Chair John Brown, Vice Chair Carla Newbre, and Maurice Denner, Tim Laue, Kim Shore, Floyd Prozanski, and Munir Katul of the Police Commission. Interim Police Chief Thad Buchanan, commission staff Jeannine Parisi, and department liaison to the commission Captain Becky Hanson were also present for the item. Mr. Brown noted that Ms. Bettman and Ms. Taylor were both members of the commission. Ms. Brown directed the council's attention to the Police Commission Fiscal Year 2002 Annual Report. Ms. Newbre began a review of the commission's accomplishments over the past year, noting its completion of department polices related to media access. She summarized the work done on those policies and noted the extensive public process that proceeded their adoption. Mayor Torrey solicited council comments and questions on the information provided by Ms. Newbre. Mr. Meisner determined from Ms. Newbre that exceptions from police orders to disperse only applied to thos wearing media identification tags. Mr. Kelly complimented the Media Access Committee of the Police Commission for the work it did on the department's media access policies. He looked forward to seeing how they worked, saying that he thought the media pool might be a challenge. He suggested that the commission report back to the council on how the policies were working. Mr. Fart praised the policy work the commission had done, saying he thought it important the City give its police staff as much guidance on how to respond to difficult situations as it could. Mayor Torrey asked how the policies were negotiated between the department, the commission, and the public. Ms. Newbre said that the committee first gathered information and public input. Because of concerns raised by the Eugene Weekly, the commission referred the issues of concern back to the committee prior to taking final action. Ms. Newbre characterized the department's involvement in the policies as proactive, with quite a bit of back and forth negotiation within the bounds of what was practical. She said that the issues were challenging, but she thought the final text developed was very good. Mayor Torrey asked Ms. Newbre if she believed the work of the commissioners had meaning. Ms. Newbre said yes, absolutely. Ms. Bettman briefly overviewed the committee/commission policy review process and emphasized the level of interaction that had occurred. She thought the process was very productive. Mr. Brown reviewed the commission's work over the past year on preferred policing strategies, in particular its community outreach regarding community policing. He noted that the commission had forwarded its recommendations regarding next steps in community policing to the council in July 2002. He further noted that the commission's priority recommendation was to maintain the existing community policing strategies, such as the Safer Schools Program, for which the community showed strong support. MINUTES--Eugene City Council September 23, 2002 Page 4 Work Session Referring to other recommendations in the report, Mr. Brown spoke to the department's strategies for alternatives to police response, including CAHOOTS, the false alarm verification ordinance, and the Senior Patrol Group. Mr. Brown also encouraged the continuing proactive traffic enforcement efforts conducted by the department, citing the recent pedestrian safety operations as an example. Mr. Brown said the commission recently heard a presentation by Terry Smith of the Police Department, who indicated that western states' spending for police had not kept up with growth. Police staffing in Lane County was next to last of all Oregon counties. Eugene's Part 1 crime index indicated eighth highest in a comparison of the 20 largest cities in the United States. He encouraged the council to hear the presentation, saying it argued a systematic failure of cities to provide effective public safety services. Mayor Torrey solicited comments and questions on the information provided by Mr. Brown. Mr. Kelly said he was pleased that the commission was willing to take on the topics of substance abuse and treatment and hoped that the commission would make progress on the topic. He said that substance abuse was an underpinning of the community's high level of Part 1 crimes. Mr. Kelly urged the commission to ask the council for help when appropriate. Mr. Kelly suggested that issues such as the false alarm verification ordinance could have long- term adverse impacts on community-police relations. Mr. Brown indicated the commission had space on its work program for emerging issues and would be willing to take on the topic. Mr. Kelly suggested the commission's involvement would have been more meaningful earlier in the process. Mr. Meisner said that the commission had quickly become an effective body soon after its inception. He appreciated the commission's approach to the community survey regarding community policing. He said that the commission's questions were clear and resulted in clear responses. He said that he frequently received complaints, particularly from Santa Clara, that the police were not visible, and he agreed that police visibility was very important. People wanted to see officers in their neighborhoods. Mr. Meisner said the City had created a high level of expectations for its citizens in terms of its response to alarms. He said that a citizen's installation of an alarm had obligated a police response, but that was not how the City generally did business. Mr. Meisner commended the commission for its good work. Ms. Nathanson said that the alarm issue had a relationship to community policing in that it freed up the police for a response to a crime. She asked City Manager Carlson to provide the council with more information on those alarm companies and property owners not concerned about the change. Ms. Nathanson asked the commission to share her thanks and congratulations with the Senior Patrol Group. She asked about the logistics of scheduling a commissioner, staff member, or member of the Senior Patrol to visit neighborhood meetings. Mr. Brown said that no protocol had been established for such visits in terms of the number of those in attendance at such meetings. MINUTES--Eugene City Council September 23, 2002 Page 5 Work Session If someone asked the commission to speak, he believed commissioners would be happy to do so. Ms. Nathanson asked about the threshold of attendance for staff members. Mr. Brown indicated he would pass along the question, but thought staff would be happy to attend in conjunction with the commissioners. Mr. Fart said that the continuation of the Safer Schools was a big issue for him, and he agreed with Mr. Brown that it was supported by the community. He hoped that the council would continue to fund the program, which he characterized as community policing at its finest. Mr. Pap~ hoped the commission had time in its work program to address the false alarm ordinance. Ms. Shore provided a brief overview of the commission's proposed fiscal year 2003 work program. She indicated that the commission would seek direction from the council on possible additions to the work program, such as the false alarm ordinance and bicycle policy. Mayor Torrey solicited comments on the information provided by Ms. Shore. Mr. Meisner asked if the commission would be considering at the use of cameras at intersections for the purpose of traffic enforcement. Ms. Shore said yes. Mr. Meisner said that the work program was very ambitious; he was reluctant to add anything further to the plan. He was pleased to see the commission's comprehensive approach to substance abuse and its relationship to crime. Mr. Meisner suggested that the work program was lacking any mention of the commission's role in the hiring of a new police chief. He asked if the commission envisioned a role in that process. Mr. Brown responded that as part of its final report, it recommended prior experience in community policing implementation should be a criterion for a new chief. The commission had not gotten into the hiring process. Mr. Meisner asked if the commission wanted a role. Mr. Brown believed the commission would be very interested in being involved and thought its input could be useful. Dr. Katul said that in the past the commission was prohibited from participating in hiring processes. Mr. Meisner suggested the development of criteria and participation on community panels as appropriate roles for the commission. Mr. Carlson concurred; advice from legal counsel was that sitting members of City advisory committees cannot participate it the selection process, but could suggest criteria and hiring characteristics to be incorporated into the job description. Ms. Nathanson said that substance abuse was not a problem Eugene could solve alone, nor was it generally within its budgetary purview. With regard to the interface between substance abuse treatment and law enforcement, she welcomed the commission's involvement in determining Eugene's role in the problem of substance abuse. She suggested that her work on the Public Safety Coordinating Council (PSCC) could dovetail well with the work done by the commission. She cited the work of the Custody Referee as an example, saying that if the referee was not present when an intoxicated person was admitted to the jail, that could displace a person who committed a more serious crime. She believed that Eugene should look at the entire system and see how it works. She acknowledged the heavy work program of the commission. Mr. Fart commended the composition of the commission, saying it was well-chosen and well- balanced. He said that Bethel was lucky to have a substation, which helped make the officers MINUTES--Eugene City Council September 23, 2002 Page 6 Work Session more visible. He acknowledged the cost involved but suggested the return on investment was high. He hoped future councils would consider expanding the number of substations in the community. Mayor Torrey asked if University of Oregon students felt represented on the commission, and if the commission was reaching out to them in a meaningful way. Ms. Shore said the commission attempted to do so, but she did not think the commission was welcomed with open arms; at its University outreach event, only five students attended although the event was well-advertised. She thought that students would rather react to a situation than help prevent it. Mayor Torrey wanted to get sworn officers in school rooms. He said that contact with students would reach beyond the classroom. Mayor Torrey said the reopening of Broadway had relocated some problems. He asked if there was a way to anticipate such situations and discuss how to avoid them. He said that there was a serious problem in the Park Blocks, and he hoped the commission could help assist the City in addressing the problem. Mr. Prozanski discussed the commission's work on funding issues, reporting that the commission was considering its role in the annual budget review as it believed it could provide some perspective to the departments in how funds were allocated, and was considering revenue sources for police-related capital costs. He said that the commission was seeking council approval to investigate statewide interest in the potential of a public safety systems development charge (SDC), with the intention of forming a coalition to seek changes in Oregon law to enable such a charge to be levied locally. Mr. Prozanski indicated that the commission intended to seek public comment on the concept, but suggested that the timing of that comment period was possibly premature until the City decided whether to move forward. Mr. Prozanski indicated that the commission would ensure that the Council Committee on Intergovernmental Relations (CCIGR) was in concurrence with whatever steps it took to forward the issue of SDCs. He added it was own belief that SDCs were a vital funding source, but acknowledged that if there was no legislative support, the commission should not proceed. Mr. Kelly, seconded by Mr. Pap~, moved to extend the item for eight minutes. The motion passed unanimously. Mayor Torrey solicited further council comments. Mr. Kelly was excited to see the public safety SDC proposal and concurred that a coalition approach could be very powerful. He recommended working through the League of Oregon Cities. He suggested that the most appropriate time for public comment was when Eugene was actually at the point of considering a public safety SDC. Mr. Kelly, seconded by Mr. Pap~, moved to approve the Police Commission work program for fiscal year 2003. Mr. Meisner supported the motion. He said that partnering with other jurisdictions in seeking a public safety SDC was vital. He asked that the commission work with Intergovernmental Relations Manager Jason Heuser on the issue. MINUTES--Eugene City Council September 23, 2002 Page 7 Work Session Mr. Fart said the City should work with the League of Oregon Cities to determine the sentiments of other cities. He said that it would be interesting if a member of the commission could attend CClGR meetings at which police-related legislation was discussed. Mr. Rayor supported the motion. In regard to SDCs, he said that it took a long time to build up sufficient funds to construct anything, and they generally did not pay the full cost. He supported the concept, but said it would still require bond measures to build new buildings. Ms. Bettman supported the motion. She said that a public safety SDC could help the City build new substations that helped the City accommodate new growth. She thanked the commissioners for their presentations. The motion passed unanimously. Mayor Torrey thanked the commissioners for their efforts. C.Work Session: Discussion of Results and Effects of the September 17 Election and Special Legislative Session The council was joined by Mr. Carlson and Intergovernmental Relations Director Jason Heuser for the discussion. Mr. Heuser reviewed the results of the September election, noting the successful passage of both ballot measures 19 and 20. He said that the legislature had finally adopted a budget that spared the schools large cuts. To balance the budget, the legislature used a three- year temporary income tax referral to voters; borrowed from tobacco settlement payments; and made $47 million in targeted cuts throughout the budget. Mr. Heuser said that the rebalancing came with several questions. He cited the referral to voters as an example. Mr. Heuser discussed the impact of the targeted cuts on Eugene. He referred the council to a handout prepared by Tony Bieda of Lane County, entitled Lane County's Share of the Pain: Programs and Services At-Risk Now and More so if January 28, 2003, Ballot Measure Fails..." Mr. Heuser reviewed the handout, which identified cuts to social services that he anticipated would also have an impact on law enforcement services. Mr. Heuser noted the action taken by the legislature in regard to Amtrak funding and expressed concern about the message that sent to the federal government. Mr. Heuser invited questions. Mr. Farr commended the work of Mr. Heuser. He said that the State needed to consider its tax burden and consider changes that ensure draconian reductions to important programs can be avoided. Mr. Meisner said that both political parties failed Oregon during the last session. He was very concerned about the funding situation as he did not think the outlook for the January election was good. He continued to be concerned that pressure would be placed on the council to provide funding for education. He did not know how the City could do so. He thought the budget picture for all levels of local and State government was frightening, and did not want to threaten the City's ability to provide basic services by diverting funding to education. He said that the City needed to pay attention to what its mission was. MINUTES--Eugene City Council September 23, 2002 Page 8 Work Session Mr. Kelly suggested that the information provided by Mr. Heuser could be used to educate the voters. He wanted a similar document focused on the impact of the reduction on City residents. He thought the more the council could inform the voters, the more likely they were to support new taxes or further budget reductions. Mr. Rayor said that the January measure may not be successful. He wanted his taxes to be used for the correct purposes, but because it was being used for PERS he would find it difficult to vote for it. He added that the Tier II employees were not the problem. Ms. Bettman was unclear of the reason for the work session, given uncertainties about the projections. She pointed out that over the last two decades the tax burden in the state of Oregon shifted from an equitable split between taxes on businesses and taxes on residents to the degree residents now paid 60 percent or more of the cost of government. Establishing equity in that allocation would be a step in the right direction. Ms. Taylor also was unclear as to the reason for the work session. She suggested, however, that the council could make recommendations on which taxes to lobby for. She agreed that property taxes were a burden on residents and people were tired of them. She asked if the council was to discuss the types of taxes it wanted to get support for. Mr. Meisner said that the council would review and approve the City's legislative policy document. Mr. Carlson clarified that the State levied no property taxes, and its crisis was generally income-tax related. Ms. Taylor said that all taxes were related. Mr. Pap8 said that the legislature needed the courage to find a new and creative revenue. He agreed with Mr. Meisner that the City needed to discuss its funding priorities and stick to them throughout the budget process. Mayor Torrey suggested that the CCIGR develop a short, tight list of priorities. He said that the "big elephant in the middle of the room" was education funding. If local governments did not force resolution of the issue, everyone would be dealing with it. Mayor Torrey noted that other groups, such as the League of Oregon Cities, were also working on the issue of funding. He thought local options would be under real pressure at the next legislature. Many people were working to undermine local governments' option to fund their programs. He noted that the Oregon Department of Transportation wanted the legislature to consider a statewide systems development charge for transportation, which could compete with local priorities. He suggested that the City should focus on what was "doable" in Salem. Speaking to Mr. Rayor's comments regarding PERS, Mayor Torrey said that nothing the State did regarding PERS was going to solve the budget problem. Mr. Rayor said that Oregon cities have to make the State legislature solve the problem. He believed the City's school funding measure gave the legislature less incentive to handle the funding issue, and in addition it did nothing to help the other school districts in Lane County. He did not see the equity in that. The meeting adjourned at 7:16 p.m. Respectfully submitted, MINUTES--Eugene City Council September 23, 2002 Page 9 Work Session James R. Carlson City Manager pro tem (Recorded by Kimberly Young) MINUTES--Eugene City Council September 23, 2002 Page 10 Work Session