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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCC Minutes - 03/10/99 WS MINUTES Eugene City Council McNutt Room--City Hall March 10, 1999 11:30 a.m. COUNCILORS PRESENT: Scott Meisner, Pat Farr, Bobby Lee, Nancy Nathanson, Betty Taylor. COUNCILORS ABSENT: David Kelly, Gary Pap~, Gary Rayor. I. CALL TO ORDER The adjourned March 8, 1999, Eugene City Council meeting was called to order at 11:30 a.m.; His Honor Mayor James D. Torrey presiding. As Mr. Lee had not yet arrived, Mayor Torrey noted a lack of a quorum. II. ITEMS FROM MAYOR, CITY COUNCIL, CITY MANAGER A. Environmental Issues Citing a memorandum distributed to councilors, Ms. Taylor asked for more information about the stormwater problems the City was experiencing. She also asked for an update on environmental issues raised by employees earlier. Ms. Taylor said she preferred oral reports from the City Manager with an opportunity for questions from the council. B. Council Support of Bill Ms. Taylor asked for the rationale for the council's apparent support of a bill before the legislature that calls for increasing penalties for assaults on police officers, specifically as it applied to the council's goals. She asked that the Council Committee on Intergovernmental Relations (IGR) keep the council better apprized of legislative issues. Addressing Ms. Taylor's request about increasing penalties for assaults on officers, Mr. Farr said the council's number one goal, Community Safety, included the rights of officers to do their jobs without fear of personal injury. C. Skinner Butte Flag Mr. Farr asked for an update on progress made to install the flag on Skinner Butte. City Manager Jim Johnson noted a Hearings Official public hearing this evening on the issue and indicated that, barring an appeal, and following a final opinion, the City would proceed with the construction. Minutes--Eugene City Council March 10, 1999 Page 1 11:30 a.m. D. Erosion Control Enforcement On behave of Mr. Rayor, Mr. Johnson raised the issue of erosion control education and enforcement evidenced by citizen complaints. Mr. Johnson said he would report back. E. Telecom Lawsuit Mr. Johnson distributed a memorandum submitted by Mr. Pap6 on the Telecom Lawsuit. The item will be discussed further later. F. Washington Lobbying Trip Mayor Torrey thanked staff and public officials who participated in the Washington, DC, delegation, singling out Ms. Nathanson's leadership in presenting a united front on environmental issues. He emphasized how surprised federal legislators were that such a diverse group of governmental bodies could be so unified around the different issues. Mayor Torrey noted that six of the ten issues raised by area representatives during a September meeting in Washington that was attended by communities who had experienced school violence, had been chosen for federal national grant programs. It will be released on March 15, 1999, and will support prevention and intervention programs related to youth problems. G. Shelton McMurphey-Johnson House Mr. Meisner said the exterior of the Shelton McMurphey-Johnson House continues to deteriorate and asked for a status report on funding the City has allocated for the work, including future plans for maintenance. H. Skinner Butte Park Mr. Meisner said the Rotary Club has indicated that the Police Department would like to close the gates to the top of the butte at 10 p.m. instead of 11 p.m. because of costs and shift changes. The club has suggested other options and asked staff to report back on those. Mr. Meisner commented that all other City parks close at 11 p.m. until 6 a.m. and wondered why this is the only site gated and locked, and he wondered why that was the case. J. River Road/Santa Clara Representation Mr. Meisner recalled public testimony at the March 8, 1999, meeting and noted that residents of the River Road/Santa Clara area were not complaining about taxation without representation but were instead "demanding representation without taxation." He said he understood the City's responsibilities under the intergovernmental agreement between the City and Lane County, but wished for more information on the issues important to the area, specifically the balance between revenues collected and the one-time and ongoing costs and difficulties to the City. Mr. Meisner Minutes--Eugene City Council March 10, 1999 Page 2 11:30 a.m. said the intergovernmental agreement appeared to "cost the City" and "irritate" the residents. He addressed the assumption of annexation and said it was not the City's goal and it seemed unlikely, given the cost implications. He said he anticipated that this subject would be a future council work session topic, followed by a joint meeting session with the Lane County Board of Commissioners. F. Washington Lobbying Trip (Continued) Ms. Nathanson reported on her role on the delegation to the capital, saying that her responsibilities were to: 1) explain the wetlands program and the acquisition request; 2) explain a request for a demonstration funding for a metropolitan integrated water resources study, a wetlands education center concept; and 3) explain the City's desire to participate with the fFederal government in planning for the new downtown federal courthouse and invite their participation in the North End Scoping Group. Ms. Nathanson described her itinerary for the period and elaborated on the Metropolitan Integrated Water Resources Study, saying she explained it as having three different federal mandates, each with separate agency rules and requirements: The Clean Water, Stormwater Management, and the Endangered Species acts. She called the study a prime opportunity to develop a demonstration project to address on the federal mandates in a comprehensive manner within an urban metropolitan environment focusing on results rather than just meeting the letter of the law. Ms. Nathanson said she "pitched" it by referring to the City's past successes. Referring to the City's interest in the new federal courthouse, she indicated the primary message was that "we want to see a project that builds on the successes and enhances the downtown, and contributes to the vitality of the area. We think it really can turn out that way, and what we don't want to see is a project that ends up creating an unfriendly environment for pedestrians and that is unwelcome for civic and commercial activities; therefore causing a decline in pride of ownership, a decline in interest in visiting the area and ultimately leads to deterioration." Ms. Nathanson reported on her activities with regard to Telecom, saying she would distribute a written report as well. She indicated that she was now on the Policy Committee as well as the National Steering Committee for Information, Technology, and Communications. She said she raised issues in the areas of official municipal policy, taxation, and the bundling of services. Ms. Nathanson explained what she believes is happening within the National League of Cities and Eugene's role in it, saying that the City was part of a game that was happening in many cities and states across the country as well as in Congress and in some boardrooms. Ms. Nathanson said the stakes were huge and the potential impacts to citizens and neighborhoods that get bypassed was only now being recognized as a problem. She commented that the stakes for players in the industry was also great because of increased competition for customers. She argued against myths promoted by the industry: fees were a barrier to entry; right-of-way fees should only represent cost recovery; that the concept of "rent" is inappropriate when players within the industry use it to charge each other. She emphasized the importance of the topic for the National Minutes--Eugene City Council March 10, 1999 Page 3 11:30 a.m. League of Cities during the last two years. Ms. Nathanson said the federal government is acting now because it wants to increase competition and ensure a thriving environment for technological innovation. However, she said, the mechanisms have three dire consequences: 1) removing the ability to advocate for citizen interests; 2) closing the avenues for accountability for costs and service delivery; and 3) while conserving the ability to collect revenue at the federal level, eliminating a major revenue source for cities across the country. Ms. Nathanson said a related aspect is that Internet companies that are "e-commerce" are "everywhere and nowhere" and their impact on local retailers is going to be felt increasingly, with consequences on land use, zoning, transportation, as retailing and warehousing change. There will also be a change in taxation and fairness because local merchants will continue to pick-up the burden for those who engage in e- commerce only. Those who cannot afford to do all their business by home computer, she explained, will be shopping at main street merchants and be disproportionately impacted. In response to a question from Mr. Meisner, Ms. Nathanson said she raised the issue of bundling of services. The committee voted to include the topic as one of the three priorities. She described the two aspects: 1) the potential of bundling to avoid paying fees and taxes; and 2) citizens may be forced to spend more for services they do not want or need. Citing public testimony from the March 8 meeting, Mr. Farr asked that an appointment be made to the Metropolitan Sports Commission. Mr. Johnson added that the intergovernmental agreement was still in effect and Mayor Torrey will need to appoint representation eventually. iii. WORK SESSION REGARDING CITY LITIGATION Mr. Johnson introduced Bill Gary from the City Attorney's Office to provide information to the council on litigation before going into specific cases during the executive session. Mr. Gary said there were two objectives for the sessions: 1) explaining the general issue of litigation; and 2) hold an attorney/client discussion on pending cases. He reviewed the five basic categories of City litigation: risk management claims, land use litigation, labor litigation, policy and program litigation, and City Initiated Litigation. He noted a sixth category: municipal court prosecution, which was not be covered at this meeting. Mr. Gary also discussed the relative costs to the City for each of the categories. Addressing a question from Mr. Meisner, City Attorney Glenn Klein said that the great increase in land use cases costs was relative to the timing--challenges to the Local Street Plan and other issues having to do with the Growth Management Study. Mayor Torrey called the council into executive session pursuant to Oregon Revised Statutes 192.660(1)(h) to discuss litigation with the City Attorney's Office. He asked everyone to leave the room except for designated staff and representatives of the news media, and directed the news media not to report on any of the deliberations during the executive session except to state the Minutes--Eugene City Council March 10, 1999 Page 4 11:30 a.m. general subject as previously announced. Mayor Torrey indicated that no decision could be made by the council in executive session. The public meeting was adjourned at 12:30 p.m. Respectfully submitted, James R. Johnson City Manager (Recorded by Yolanda Paule) Minutes--Eugene City Council March 10, 1999 Page 5 11:30 a.m.