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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCC Minutes - 06/28/99 WS MINUTES Eugene City Council McNutt Room--City Hall June 28, 1999 5:30 p.m. COUNCILORS PRESENT: Scott Meisner, Nancy Nathanson, Pat Farr, Betty Taylor, David Kelly, Gary Rayor, Gary PapS. COUNCILORS ABSENT: Bobby Lee. DINNER WORK SESSION OF THE EUGENE CITY COUNCIL City Attorney Glenn Klein followed up on an earlier communication regarding the James Family Trust. He said that the council's earlier action on the Metropolitan Plan amendment request was to direct staff to prepare findings denying the request. The council was not scheduled to take action until the next meeting in July, so at that meeting the council would consider final action, making a motion to reconsider unnecessary. City Manager Jim Johnson apologized to the council for not realizing its action was tentative. Councilors asked questions clarifying Roberts Rules of Order as it applied to the action in question. Mr. Johnson called the council's attention to some information distributed by staff prior to the meeting related to the Joint Elected Officials meeting of June 30. Mr. Meisner noted his attendance at the most recent Public Safety Coordinating Council meeting, at which a funding proposal from former City Councilor Ken Tollenaar was discussed. That information was reflected on the last page of the distributed document. Mr. Torrey announced that Kurt Willcox was the final member appointed to the charter committee. A. Emergency Preparedness Plan Chuck Solin, Human Resource and Risk Services, provided an update on the Year 2000 situation and a broader overview of the City's Emergency Management Plan. He first introduced other members of the City's Disaster Operations Task Team, Bob Hammitt of the Public Works Department, Myrnie Daut of Human Resource and Risk Services, and Ruth Obadahl of the Fire Department. Mr. Solin noted that the team included representatives of each City department. MINUTES--Eugene City Council June 28, 1999 Page 1 5:30 p.m. Mr. Solin described the City's emergency preparedness for a full-scale emergency. He noted recent staff trainings and emergency exercises as well as the pending move of the City's Emergency Operations Center (EEC) to the Sheldon Fire Station. Ms. Nathanson noted there was no formal role for the council in the emergency planning and management process, but the plan did suggest the councilors would be conduits of information. She asked if the councilors would be contacted about emergencies and solicited for assistance and provided information, or would the council have to contact staff? She noted that there had been incidents in her ward of which she was unaware until the incidents had been over for some time. Mr. Solin responded that should the Eec be activated, the public information section of the emergency plan outlined how communication with councilors would occur. He said that specific staff would be assigned to communicate with councilors. He said that staff believed such communication was vital because councilors would be contacted by the media for information. Mr. Johnson noted that for Level 3 emergencies, the entire community would be informed. Ms. Nathanson indicated she would like to raise at a future meeting the issue of how councilors were contacted regarding incidents that did not rise to the level of a disaster. Ms. Nathanson noted her long-time concern about the potential of an urban wildfire in the south hills. Mr. Pap~ arrived at 5:50 p.m. Mr. Farr said the plan appeared to be well-organized but he did not think the City had done a good job telling the community how to react in case of an emergency. He said that the City was working on a plan to teach neighbors how to respond in the case of emergency, and suggested that the Year 2000 situation created a good opportunity for emergency training of citizens. Mr. Farr asked what progress the City was making on that plan. Ms. ebadal responded that she was working on Community Emergency Preparedness and hoped to begin offering classes to the community in mid- to late August. People would have the opportunity to sign up in a variety of ways. The course would be three hours in length and would include information on citizen preparedness and when and when not to call 9-1-1. Mr. Farr suggested that ideally, packets of information on the class be sent out to everyone in the City. Mr. Johnson indicated that the class would be video-taped and shown on government access television. He also anticipated that there would be a citywide newsletter mailed later in the year comprised largely of information on Year 2000 and emergency preparedness. Mr. Farr suggested that the packet include a checklist of items to have and prepare for, and asked that it also be included on the City's Web page. Mr. Meisner endorsed the citywide newsletter. He did not think the neighborhood newsletters were adequate to communicate that information given their limited distribution. He said that it was getting late to rely on neighborhood newsletters. Mr. Meisner contrasted the role identified for the council in the plan and the role identified in the ordinance, and asked how the two worked together. The plan called for an active role for the council, while the ordinance stipulated the council's role was to defer the City Manager's decision about a declaration of emergency. Mr. Solin interpreted the council's role as being no different from its current role; for example, during the flooding in the midwest, councils were required to declare states of emergency and in some cases surrender territory lost to flooding. Mr. Meisner interpreted the ordinance as stipulating that those actions must be consistent with the MINUTES--Eugene City Council June 28, 1999 Page 2 5:30 p.m. manager's actions. He said that if the council questioned any manager action, there was nothing the council could do to countermand it. Mr. Klein said that authority was implicit in the City Charter. Any powers granted the manager by the council could be taken away by the council. The council could override an action of the manager by ordinance at any meeting. Mr. Meisner asked if there had ever been a declaration of emergency. No staff could recall such a declaration; Mr. Solin said that the EOC had been activitated only once, when a severe windstorm was expected. Mr. Meisner asked if the implementing ordinance and plan were similar to what was adopted by other cities. Mr. Solin said that the plan was modeled after a plan used by the State of Oregon as a template for all counties and cities throughout Oregon. Mr. Johnson said that ordinances vary in terms of the powers they granted to local officials. Mr. Kelly asked where the plan would be available once adopted and printed. Mr. Solin said there was a copy at the Library, in the council library, and the plan was distributed through numerous avenues. Mr. Kelly referred to page 5 of the plan, and suggested that it should mention the council could repeal the state of emergency by majority vote to avoid the need to consult the ordinance. Mr. Kelly said that the Level One: Potential Emergency Action item should be modified by the addition of the council and mayor. Mr. Johnson agreed. Mr. Kelly said he would like to see the plan modified with language about staff making the best effort to consult with the City Council and mayor. Mr. Johnson said that staff spent considerable time discussing its communication with the mayor and council about emergencies so they could respond to questions. Staff discussed which staff would call which councilors. He said that although the plan may be general, that communication was important to staff. Mr. Kelly said that he would suggest that beyond notification, staff be required to consult with the council in instances such as wage price and rent controls and other economic control measures. Regarding Oregon Revised Statue 401, Mr. Kelly said that he would like to see the language cleaned up to reflect the revised statute. He said that the ordinance appeared to establish a line of authority he was not sure existed. Mr. Rayor asked if there was anything in the plan that allowed the City to take proactive steps to address a pending emergency, such as a wildfire. Mr. Johnson said yes, although the council might prefer to take another approach, such as an emergency exercise. Ms. Obadal noted that the department had an emergency plan for a conflagration in the south hills. She suggested that the potential could be handled in other ways, such as through the removal of brush. Mr. Johnson said that going through the exercise would allow the council to determine what other ordinances might be needed. Mr. Solin noted that the plan had an annex for conflagration and an annex for an airport disaster. Public Works Department Director Christine Andersen said that during the most recent drought staff had prepared a plan that called for the removal of dry fuel and could have prohibited fireworks and other activities with a potential for igniting a fuel source. There was also a budget for the plan. She suggested that rather than MINUTES--Eugene City Council June 28, 1999 Page 3 5:30 p.m. look to the plan, which represented an identification of risk, staff would return to the council as appropriate for recommendations to address the risk. Responding to a question from Mr. Rayor, Mr. Klein said that the City Council held a public hearing prior to adoption of an ordinance unless there was unanimous agreement among councilors present such a hearing was not needed. Mr. Johnson added that the council could meet on 24 hours' notice. Ms. Nathanson said that there were two issues; how to reduce fire risk, which was different from what she was discussing, which was what to do when there was an imminent, immediate hazard. She did not believe the City was prepared to act quickly in the case of a fire emergency. Previous suggestions that fireworks be banned was not received well in the community because many youth groups had based their annual budgets on the sale of fireworks. She suggested that the City might wish to work with those groups to transition them away from the sale of fireworks to another source of income over time. Ms. Nathanson wanted the City Manager to return to the council with information about the Fire Marshal's ability to declare an emergency and mandate certain activities, the City Manager's authority, and what gaps existed in terms of authority so the City Council was aware of the sorts of ordinances it might be required to pass. Responding to a question from Mr. Papd, Mr. Solin clarified that the Operations Room and Incident Command Room were the same, and that would be clarified in the plan. Mr. Solin was asked why the EOC was at the Sheldon fire station rather than the new fire station at 2nd Avenueand Chambers Street. Ms. Obadal said that the City wanted to separate the existing EOC physically from the EOC at the Public Works Maintenance Division buildings. Mr. Johnson said that there may be more room at 2nd Avenue and Chambers Street, but there were sufficient adjacent rooms at the Sheldon fire station. Mr. Solin described the soon-to-be-installed Community Emergency Notification System. Mr. Papd requested clarification of the Federal Emergency Management Agency reimbursement. Mr. Solin said that both private and public entities could be reimbursed for eligible expenses. Mr. Fart interpreted the council's role in emergency preparedness as ensuring that the City was actually prepared. Responding to a question from Mr. Fart, Mr. Klein described the council's emergency meeting and notification processes. Mr. Meisner said that Mr. Rayor's comments were directed at preventing disaster-related losses. He said that the plan did not call for regular testing and it did not mention prevention. Nothing in the plan obliged the City to address those issues. Mr. Solin said that staff would prepare more text related to mitigation of emergencies. Mr. Torrey asked the council to resist the temptation to micromanage staff. If it did not think the staff was doing the right thing, it could replace the staff. He said that the emergency plan was not a political issue at the time it was needed, and the manager and staff ought to be able to deal immediately with any emergency. Mr. Torrey recognized Councilor Pap6's birthday. The council sang Happy Birthday to Mr. Pap6. MINUTES--Eugene City Council June 28, 1999 Page 4 5:30 p.m. B. Work Session: An Ordinance Concerning the Emergency Code; Adding Section 2.1055; Amending Section 2.1990 of the Eugene Code, 1971; and Declaring an Emergency Mr. Solin reviewed the contents of the emergency ordinances. He said that staff realized the need for ordinances allowing the City to declare a state of emergency, and had examined the ordinances of several cities for input to the City's ordinance. Mr. Kelly said that he did not want to micromanage in a crisis, but the ordinance granted extraordinary power to a single individual in the form of the City Manager, and he wanted to ensure that the law provided a mechanism for the mayor and council to be involved in decision-making. He was not satisfied with the implicit power mentioned by Mr. Klein, preferring to have the council's authority specifically delineated. Mr. Kelly said that the ordinance seemed to be incomplete, and there were a couple of references to the need for more legal research. Mr. Kelly referred to the ordinance provision granting the City Manager other power as needed, saying that it seemed overly broad. He wanted consultation with the mayor and council where possible. Mr. Kelly asked if Section 2.1055 implied that a private property owner would be responsible for cleaning up the debris from, for example, an airplane crashing upon their house. Mr. Johnson pointed out the word "may," adding that he did not envision such a situation. Ms. Obadal said that the ordinance referred to a situation where the party involved created the debris. Mr. Kelly asked that be reflected in the code. Mr. Pap~ questioned whether the definition of "emergency" could be tightened. City Attorney Jens Schmidt said that the definition mirrored the State emergency statutes. He said (2)(a) stipulated that findings of certain conditions must exist before the condition was declared. Ms. Nathanson said that the rules under which a state of emergency could be declared seemed to be focused on large-scale events such as a disaster or earthquake rather than small-scale events the City could handle itself through cooperative agreements with other agencies. She said that if the City could handle the problem on its own, the powers granted the manager were not likely be invoked. Mr. Johnson concurred. He said that the ordinance was directed at large natural disasters that required extraordinary action, not for incidents such as small floods. Ms. Nathanson asked for an example of the type of permits that might be issued under (j). Mr. Solin said that removal of underground storage tanks required a permit, and the City might want to expedite permits for removal of tanks in the case of flooding. Ms. Nathanson asked for clarification of (m); the City would pay market value for the item in question. Mr. Johnson said yes. Mr. Rayor referred to (g) on page 4 of the ordinance and asked if the term "to the extent allowed by law" should be added to the powers granted to the City Manager. He also asked if the law allowed citizens to carry explosives now. City Attorney Jens Schmidt said that (g) was taken from Portland's ordinance. Mr. Rayor asked staff to follow up on the legality of carrying explosives. MINUTES--Eugene City Council June 28, 1999 Page 5 5:30 p.m. Ms. Taylor said that the ordinance granted the manager a tremendous amount of power, and she was particularly concerned about the provision related to congregations of people. She asked if the ordinance could be revised to ensure the manager consulted with the council when circumstances permitted. Mr. Johnson did not object to such a provision. Mr. Fart understood the concern voiced by other councilors regarding the broad authority granted by the ordinance to the manager, but he said that in emergencies a single authority was required. He suggested that, to address the council's concerns, the City form an advisory group for the manager to consult with. Mr. Johnson suggested the ordinance be tied to the plan so that it was clear the ordinance was triggered by a level 3 event. Mr. Fart endorsed that approach. Mr. Kelly liked Mr. Johnson's suggestion. Mr. Kelly referred to the penalty section of the ordinance and said it was unclear what constituted a violation of the section of the code. He asked if a violation was failure to follow the City Manager's orders, and asked that be made more clear. Mr. Kelly said that the existing code included information on interim emergency succession that included an incorrect charter reference. Mr. Meisner believed the council's authority over the manager should be specifically noted in the ordinance. He did not find the powers granted to the manager in the ordinance were draconian, particularly given the circumstances. Responding to a question from Mr. Johnson, Mr. Torrey suggested that staff determine whether to request another work session following the receipt of additional input from the council. Mr. Torrey requested a definition of when a riot was legally a riot. C. Work Session: An Ordinance Concerning Theft-Related Offenses and an Ordinance Concerning Alcohol-Related Offenses Sergeant Richard Stronach provided a brief staff presentation on the proposed ordinances. Mr. Farr asked for information on Section 4.131 and how it applied to situations where a family member was visiting other family and allowing younger family members to consume wine. Sgt. Rich Stronach said that State law allows for a parent or guardian to provide alcohol to a minor if the minor was under the control of the parent or guardian. He said that the ordinance attempted to address the out-of-control keg party where there was no controlled access to alcohol. Mr. Farr said that he was interesting in avoiding unexpected circumstances, and instances where neighbors complained about a minor's use of alcohol because of a personal dislike. Sgt. Stronach said that the ordinance was more focused on the extreme situations. Mr. Schmidt said that the ordinance was identical to State statute. He said that the police had a certain amount of discretion in issuing citations in such cases. Mr. Farr asked if the ordinance could be modified to address his concerns. Mr. Johnson questioned if such a modification was necessary given State law. Mr. Schmidt indicated he would research the issue. MINUTES--Eugene City Council June 28, 1999 Page 6 5:30 p.m. Mr. Fart asked about a situation where a child sneaks alcohol at a family party. Mr. Schmidt pointed him to the phrase "knowingly allow." Mr. Rayor referred to (a) on page 1 of the ordinance, and recommended the reference to the University of Oregon be struck. He said that alcohol abuse was an issue in all areas of the community. Mr. Rayor asked that "or is present and in control" be added to 4.131 to reflect situations in which apartment managers hold parties in vacant units. Mr. Rayor referred to the penalties for violating the ordinance and said they were too high for college students to pay. He suggested the penalties for violations of 4.191 and 4.908 be lowered to $1,000. Mr. Kelly asked that staff included the statute number cited when referring to State statute. Mr. Kelly concurred with Mr. Rayor regarding the reference to the University of Oregon. He said that it was inappropriate to single out a single institution in a citywide ordinance. Mr. Kelly shared some of Mr. Rayor's concerns regarding fines, and noted that the State fines for the two violations cited by Mr. Rayor were higher. Regarding the fine for violation of Section 4.131, Mr. Kelly said that the State statute differentiated between first and second offenses. Mr. Schmidt noted that the original draft was reviewed by Municipal Judge Wayne Allen, who had specifically requested the text that appeared in the ordinance. Ms. Taylor agreed with Mr. Rayor's suggestion to strike the reference to the University of Oregon. She was also concerned about the fines, and said they should be eliminated. She was concerned about their impact on college students. Ms. Taylor asked if the City did not have laws on the books to address egregious violations. Sergeant. Stronach said that the laws currently exist under State statutes, and staff was proposing to incorporate them into local ordinances for more local control. Marilyn Nelson, Municipal Court Administration, said that staff had discussed the fines with the judge, and understood the suggested fines were maximum fines for the most egregious situations. The ordinances were intended to provide the maximum flexibility for the court. For example, if other alcohol-related charges were involved, the judge could review that history before making a decision. She said that the judges had discussed other remedies outside of fines to address such situations, such as attendance at the Victim Impact Panel in lieu of a maximum fine. Mr. Pap~ said that students needed to face the same penalties as other individuals. He asked that the ordinance be structured so that it had the needed specificity for criminal codes. Mr. Schmidts referred him to page 2 of the ordinance and said that the State law could be cross-referenced. Ms. Nathanson said it was important that the council have good findings to explain its reasons to the public. She did not think the findings in the ordinance were sufficient. She said that alcohol abuse in some cases was a private matter, and if the ordinance was addressing parties and mob behavior, that should be specifically mentioned. Regarding Section (b), Ms. Nathanson said that the language was awkward, and asked that it be revised to define the offenses referred to. MINUTES--Eugene City Council June 28, 1999 Page 7 5:30 p.m. Mr. Meisner agreed with Ms. Nathanson. He also agreed with Mr. Rayor's suggestion regarding the reference to the University of Oregon. He said that the intent of the ordinance was to alert the public to the consequences of the behavior and prevent it, and suggested the purpose statement be modified accordingly. Mr. Meisner supported the inclusion of State statute into the ordinances. He was not disturbed by the size of the fines, and related penalties. He did not support the distinction between offenses made in State law. He said that students were not always poverty-stricken. The meeting adjourned at 7:28 p.m. (Recorded by Kimberly Young) MINUTES--Eugene City Council June 28, 1999 Page 8 5:30 p.m.