Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutCC Minutes - 04/26/99 WS MINUTES Eugene City Council McNutt Room--City Hall April 26, 1999 8:30 p.m. COUNCILORS PRESENT: Scott Meisner, Betty Taylor, David Kelly, Gary Pap~, Gary Rayor. Mr. Meisner called the council meeting to order at 8:30 p.m. 1.PUBLIC FORUM Mr. Meisner reviewed the rules of the public forum. Larry Mann, 2247 North 10th Street, Springfield, acknowledged Mayor Torrey's efforts in attempting to make the Bond Sports Complex available for the upcoming softball season and thanked Mr. Rayor for visiting the site. He said that Lane County had taken an interest in the subject because of the Convention and Visitors Association of Lane County's (CVALCO) interest in the many tournaments scheduled for the upcoming summer. Also, Mr. Mann said, City parks staff and Willamalane Parks and Recreation District had agreed to meet with him to identify alternative sites for those tournaments. Mr. Mann asked the councilors to keep their minds open to any proposals that may arise from the County. He expressed appreciation for the students who spoke the previous week in favor of the fields and said programs for high-school aged youth were lacking in the community. Diane Mann, 2247 North 10th Street, Springfield, thanked Mr. Rayor for visiting the Bond site. She said that because of improvements made last year the ballfields would not require much work this year and there were volunteers available to do the work. She said that her organization had a contract for the use of the fields and had paid $13,000 in rent for the fields through May 15. The organization had not been on the fields since December and it had some time left on that contract that it could have used to work on the fields. She did not understand the situation and asked that it be looked into. Ms. Mann said that after her organization used the ballfields in 1998, AYSO was allowed to use the fields, and the parents of the participants had liked the fact that they could use the same fields continually for a period of time rather than move from field to field. Bill Richie, 310 Pitney Lane, Junction City, said that his organization had softball teams ready to play and no place to play. He spoke in support of Mr. Mann's remarks and said that his organization was ready to volunteer to assist. Nick Antone, Jr., 512 Honeysuckle Lane, spoke of his concerns about the ten-year problem that had existed on Honeysuckle Lane. He said that the City appeared to want his father to die. He MINUTES--Eugene City Council April 26, 1999 Page 1 8:30 p.m. said that the situation continued to upset him and he had to work to keep calm in the pressure situation. Mr. Antone said that his family continued to have problems with their neighbors. He spoke of the Municipal Court processes that had occurred to this point and said he was outraged by the City's participation in what he termed intimidation and harassment by the neighbors and City. Mr. Antone said that he had been pepper sprayed by police in his own house. The police had turned back an ambulance and had failed to check on his condition. Mr. Antone said the City would not address the issues involved and was part of the cause. His residence was unliveable and there was no results from the City. Start Paulic, 1373 Garfield Street, objected to the fact the City had provided tax breaks to Hyundai, a company that had been successfully sued for racism and sexism. He said that the president of the company had promised Eugene residents that Hyundai would obey all laws, and that had not occurred. Mr. Paulic said that the country had worked for many years to erase the plagues of racism and sexism. He asked the council to respond decisively to the court decision. He said that the situation must be addressed in no uncertain terms and the perpetrators of the injustice punished. Mr. Paulic did not think that the amount levied against the company by the courts was sufficient. He said that it would be appropriate to withdraw the company's tax breaks and ask it to leave the community. He noted his own work as a tutor for Hyundai employees' children and said that he stood to benefit by its presence in Eugene but felt that some values were more important than money. Mr. Rayor asked staff if the City had any sanctions that it could pursue against Hyundai either through the human rights program or through the State enterprise zone program. Mr. Pap8 said he viewed Mr. Antone's property from the street and from a neighbor's window and found the situation despicable, repugnant, and sad. He invited other councilors to view the property. Mr. Meisner noted his concurrence with Mr. Rayor's remarks. 2.CONSENT CALENDAR A. Approval of City Council Minutes February 17, 1999, Lunch Work Session February 22, 1999, Dinner Work Session B. Capital Campaign Gift Committee Recommendations and Criteria Ms. Taylor moved, seconded by Mr. Pap~, to approve the consent calendar. The motion passed unanimously, 5:0. 3. PUBLIC HEARING AND REQUESTED ACTION: AN ORDINANCE VACATING A PUBLIC EASEMENT FOR BIKE PATH PURPOSES ON THE SOUTH SIDE OF RIVER ISLAND ESTATES (EV 99-5) MINUTES--Eugene City Council April 26, 1999 Page 2 8:30 p.m. Jerry Jacobson, Planning and Development Department, introduced the item. He said the public hearing concerned a proposed vacation of a 15-foot public easement on the south and east sides of River Island Estates, located between Goodpasture Island Road and the Willamette River. The vacation would vacate the bicycle path purpose of the easement, but would retain an easement for emergency vehicle access. Mr. Jacobson said the easement currently extended from the East Bank Bicycle Path into the River Island Estates property but does not connect to Goodpasture Island Road. He referred the council to the meeting packet, which contained maps showing the relationship of the easement to other bicycle path facilities in the area. Mr. Jacobson asked City Attorney Glenn Klein to address the issue of whether the council should act tonight or wait until May 10. Mr. Klein indicated that if the council approves the vacation River Island Estates would withdraw its appeal of the Greenway permit before the Land Use Board of Appeals (LUBA). He said that would reduce the City's administrative burden. If the council acted before River Island Estates filed a brief in the matter, it ensured that such a brief would not be filed and there would be no arguments made to LUBA. He recommended the council take action at this time, although delay would not be significant. Mr. Rayor referred to Exhibit A in the meeting packet and asked if the text or the drawing was correct in terms of the location of the easement. Mr. Jacobson responded that the map showed the correct location. The description is general, as it was only the plat map that was recorded when the easement was approved. Mr. Rayor stated that the trail appears to intersect a private street, Wimbledon Court, which has a recorded ingress and egress easement. Mr. Jacobson agreed. Mr. Rayor said he wished to establish for the record that the easement was not for the traveling public. Mr. Jacobson agreed. He said that the easement provided legal access for the homeowners' association. He said that the easement was recorded on the plat. Mr. Rayor asked City Attorney Glenn Klein if he agreed the existing path could not be connected to the Goodpasture Island right-of-way. Mr. Klein responded that the City did not have the right to extend the path. The City would have to acquire or condemn the property. Mr. Klein noted he had researched the issue of the connection during the City's preparation of the Greenway permit. The City has an easement for phase 1 and phase 2 of the planned unit development, but not for phase 3. He referred to page 31 of the meeting packet, and said that Exhibit A was correct in that the easement extended to the northeast corner of phase 2, but not on in to phase 3. Responding to a question from Mr. Rayor, he confirmed that the general common area was located in phase 3. Mr. Meisner opened the public hearing. Michael Robinson, 900 Southwest 5th Street, Suite 200, Portland, represented River Island Estates. He endorsed the staff recommendation to vacate the easement. Mr. Robinson said that residents of the River Island Estates appeared to be supportive of the vacation. He indicated appreciation for the assistance of Eugene City staff in resolving the issue and concurred with Mr. Klein that action taken now would allow River Island Estates to withdrew its appeal to LUBA. He invited questions. Peter Drobac, 676 Wimbledon Court, chair of the board of directors of River Island Estates, supported the staff recommendation for the easement vacation. He said that the solution was a fair and equitable one and he looked forward to the council's support. MINUTES--Eugene City Council April 26, 1999 Page 3 8:30 p.m. Mr. Meisner closed the public hearing. Mr. Kelly indicated he was willing to take action and expected to support the easement after some technical questions were satisfied. He commended staff and River Island Estates for reaching an agreement that avoided a court decision. Mr. Kelly asked how the existing easement would be closed to bicycle riders given that it was already partially improved. City Engineer Les Lyle said that as part of the agreement with River Island Estates, a gate, landscaping, and/or signage would be installed by the City on the west end of the existing, to-be-vacated path; River Island Estates would take care of the east end. Mr. Klein added that the Planning Commission had included as a condition of approval of the Greenway Permit the installation of barriers to preclude the path's use. Mr. Kelly asked if the existing public access easement north of River Island Estates were paved. Mr. Lyle said yes, the paving came to a stop near the East Bank Bicycle Trail route. The City would create a permanent connection to that path as part of trail construction. Mr. Kelly asked if the easement to the south connected to Alexander Loop. Mr. Lyle said yes. He added that when development between River Island Estates and Alexander Loop occurred, the City would also consider that development proposal to determine if additional connections were warranted. Mr. Rayor asked about the width of the easement to the north through The Boulders. Mr. Lyle estimated the easement's width at between 10 and 15 feet. Mr. Rayor said he was willing to consider action at this time, but was concerned about the cost of the easement. He asked if the value of the easement was similar to the value of the right-of-way. Mr. Lyle said no. He said that because the City was retaining emergency access rights, staff responsible for property appraisals determined there was no net value in the transaction, so the City was not recommending an assessment for the vacation. He confirmed, in response to a follow-up question from Mr. Rayor, that emergency access would be retained and was included in the ordinance. Mr. Rayor asked if any mechanism existed to reimburse the residual value for the easement to avoid setting the precedent of vacating easements without cost. Mr. Lyle said appraisal staff had recommended that no value be assigned to the transaction because of the retention of emergency access. If the City was not retaining emergency access, there would be a residual value, and staff would work with the council to address that issue. Mr. Pap~ indicated a willingness to take action at this point. He asked if the City had completed easements from the proposed bicycle path to Alexander and Goodpasture Island roads. Mr. Lyle said yes. Mr. Meisner said he was also willing to act at this time. He commended staff for its work with River Island Estates on the agreement and said that his concerns about the issue were assuaged by the provision of access to Goodpasture Island Road. He agreed with Mr. Rayor he did not want to set a precedent regarding residual value, but believed his concerns were addressed by the staff analysis. Responding to a question from Mr. Pap~ about whether he should declare a conflict of interest because a company he had an interest in property adjacent to the bicycle path, Mr. Klein said Mr. Pap~ did not have an actual direct conflict and could participate in the decision. MINUTES--Eugene City Council April 26, 1999 Page 4 8:30 p.m. Mr. Johnson said that the council would consider Council Bill 4685, an ordinance to vacate an easement for River Island Estates (EV 99-5). Ms. Taylor moved, seconded by Mr. Pap~, that the bill, with the unanimous consent of the council, be read by council bill number only, and that enactment be considered at this time. The motion passed unanimously, 5:0. Mr. Johnson said the council would consider Council Bill 4685 by council bill number only. Ms. Taylor moved, seconded by Mr. Pap~, that the bill be approved and given final passage. The motion to adopt Ordinance # 20153 passed unanimously, 5:0. 4. PUBLIC HEARING AND POSSIBLE ACTION ON AN ORDINANCE WAIVING THE BUDGET COMMITTEE TERM LIMITATION FOR THE 1999 APPOINTMENT; AND DECLARING AN EMERGENCY Mr. Meisner noted that the council needed six votes to pass an emergency ordinance and only five councilors were present. Mr. Johnson provided an introduction to the topic, reporting that the council had requested the ability to amend the ordinance to be more flexible in its committee appointments. Mr. Meisner opened the public hearing. There being no requests to speak, Mr. Meisner closed the public hearing. Mr. Kelly indicated appreciation for the staff work that went into the ordinance and noted his intent to support passage of the ordinance. He noted that the council intended to address other related appointment issues at a future meeting. Mr. Meisner concurred with Mr. Kelly's remarks. Ms. Taylor also appreciated the staff work done to make the ordinance ready. The meeting adjourned at 9:16 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Jim Johnson City Manager (Recorded by KimberlyYoung) MINUTES--Eugene City Council April 26, 1999 Page 5 8:30 p.m.