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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCC Minutes - 07/12/99 Mtg MINUTES Eugene City Council Council Chamber--City Hall July 12, 1999 7:30 p.m. COUNCILORS PRESENT: Scott Meisner, Nancy Nathanson, Bobby Lee, Gary PapS, Betty Taylor, David Kelly, Gary Rayor, COUNCILORS ABSENT: Pat Farr Mayor James D. Torrey called the council to order at 7:30 p.m. i. PUBLIC FORUM Mayor Torrey outlined the procedure for the public forum portion of the agenda. Margaret Thumel, 1285 Alfaretta Drive, notified the City Council that the Ferry Street Bridge Association had been formed. She also raised concerns over the repaving of Coburg Road and asked if it could be delayed. She provided figures of lost revenues and jobs in the area. Shari Franzen, 2635 Oak Street, raised concerns over the accountability of City officials. She opined that there were no consequences for acts perpetrated by City officials. Nick Urhausen, 2858 Warren Street, raised concerns over the public forum portion of the Citizen Charter Review Committee on Council Compensation. He explained that there had not been adequate time given for public input. He suggested per diem be paid to each councilor to cover their expenses. Mark Rabinowitz, 2423 Friendly Street, raised concerns over the emergency ordinance being considered by the City Council. He opined that such an ordinance would be unconstitutional. He urged the councilors to think of civil rights over natural disasters. Trish Bender, 10 Crest Drive, spoke against the emergency ordinance being considered by the City Council. She raised concerns over what she termed urban terrorism by City officials. Jim Hale, 1715 Linnea Avenue, expressed a desire to see more police on the street. Councilor Nathanson commented that part of the charge to the Citizen Charter Review Committee on Council Compensation was to provide a forum for public input. She said there were no specifics on what form public input would take. MINUTES--Eugene City Council July 12, 1999 Page 1 7:30 p.m. Councilor Kelly noted that neighborhoods in the Coburg Road area were in favor of getting the construction done as early as possible. He also addressed the comments of Mr. Rabinowitz regarding the emergency ordinance and its constitutionality. Councilor Rayor expressed his desire to see more public input at council meetings. He stressed the need for effective communication between the City, its police, and its citizens. Mayor Torrey addressed the concerns of Ms. Thumel and stated that within five or six weeks the area would see significant progress in the construction in the Coburg Road area. Councilor Lee supported the projects of the Ferry Street Bridge improvements and the resurfacing of Coburg road. He stressed the need to complete the projects as soon as ~ossible. CONSENT CALENDAR Councilor Meisner, seconded by Councilor Nathanson moved to approve the items on the consent calendar. Councilor Nathanson reported on the actions of the day's Council Committee on Intergovernmental Relations meeting. She commended the excellent staff work. Regarding Item A. She recommended that the council support the resolution regarding the Lane Council of Government growth management application. She also reported that the committee recommended the transportation grant application. Councilor Kelly requested to pull item C from the consent calendar. Mayor Torrey acknowledged that item C was pulled. Roll call vote; the motion passed unanimously. Councilor Meisner, seconded by Councilor Nathanson, moved to approve item C on the consent calendar. Councilor Kelly commented on a recent appointment to the Lane Workforce Partnership. He raised concerns that the appointee did not live within the city or within the urban growth boundary. Mayor Torrey stated that it was the council's choice to approve the appointee or recommend that he provide another appointee. Councilor Meisner commented that the Lane Workforce Partnership was an intergovernmental body. He said that the position to be filled did not require the applicant to live within the city limits. Councilor Lee expressed a desire to move ahead on the vote. Mayor Torrey urged councilors to support the appointment if they could. Roll call vote; the motion passed unanimously. MINUTES--Eugene City Council July 12, 1999 Page 2 7:30 p.m. III. PUBLIC HEARING: ORDINANCE CONCERNING THEFT-RELATED OFFENSES; AND AN ORDINANCE CONCERNING ALCOHOL-RELATED OFFENSES Mayor Torrey opened the public hearing. Cindy Noblitt, PO Box 12225, spoke against the proposed ordinance. She said that the City was already making thousands of dollars in citations of alcohol-related offenses. She urged the council to reflect on the values of all the people and not just a few City officials. Mayor Torrey closed the public hearing. Councilor Kelly raised concerns over the financial penalties that would be the result of the proposed ordinance. He called for a distinction in code between first time and repeat offenders. Councilor Rayor was disturbed by the amounts of the fines. He asked for clarification on whether people who could not afford to pay could make other arrangements. Councilor Taylor stated that she thought the penalties were excessive and that the ordinance was ill-timed because the people that it would be primarily aimed at, college students, were not currently in the community. She asked what result was hoped for by passing this ordinance. She stated that the current laws were sufficient. Councilor Pap~ disagreed with Councilor Taylor. He said that alcohol-related offenses increased with better weather over the entire city. He said that the high fines were only a part of the options a judge had to choose at his/her discretion. He suggested that probation or community service might be an option for certain individuals. Councilor Lee raised concerns with students paying fines with their financial aid checks. He noted that students contributed tremendously to the local economy and that he did not believe in stiffening penalties for them that they could not afford to pay. Councilor Nathanson concurred with Councilor Pap~ and stated her support for the proposed ordinance. Councilor Taylor stated that laws should protect people from authority figures as well as protecting them from criminals. She went on to say that there needed to be strong limits on people in positions of power and that a society could not retain its freedom and prevent everything that was dangerous. She observed that the council kept passing new ordinances when the City did not have the ability to enforce the ones already in place. She said that there were other ways to address problems related to alcohol. Councilor Lee clarified that there were no new laws being proposed. The ordinance would only bring City Code to the same level of State law. He questioned the need for this since the State laws were already in place. Councilor Nathanson suggested penalties of community service rather than monetary fines. Councilor Kelly was supportive of bringing the ordinance into Municipal Court because it had a smaller group of judges that knew the local situation much better. He went on to say that the law MINUTES--Eugene City Council July 12, 1999 Page 3 7:30 p.m. needed to stand independent of whoever was the presiding Municipal Court judge. He urged staff again to provide wording in the ordinance to provide a two-tiered structure that would create a distinction between first time and repeat offenders. Councilor Pap~ suggested having offenders attend Alcoholics Anonymous meetings. Councilor Rayor recommended wording in the ordinance that community service be included with penalties for offenders. Mayor Torrey stated that the City needed to do more to get the problem of under-aged drinking under control. He believed that the options the judge had in handing down penalties were reasonable. He expressed a desire for the City to have the same laws as the State in regard to alcohol-related offenses. IV. ACTION: ORDINANCE VACATING A PORTION OF THE STREET RIGHT-OF-WAY LOCATED NEAR THE SOUTHWEST CORNER OF OAKMONT WAY AND SORREL WAY (SV98-06) The City Manager asked the council to consider Council Bill 4691, an ordinance vacating a portion of the street right-of-way located near the southwest corner of Oakmont Way and Sorrel Way. Councilor Meisner, seconded by Councilor Nathanson, moved that the bill, with unanimous consent of the council, be read the second time by council bill number only, and that enactment be considered at that time. Roll call vote; the motion passed unanimously. The City Manager asked the council to consider Council Bill 4691 by number only. Councilor Meisner, seconded by Councilor Nathanson, moved that the bill be approved and given final passage. Roll call vote; the motion passed unanimously, and became Ordinance Number 20158. V. ACTION: ORDINANCE AMENDING THE SPRINGFIELD-EUGENE METROPOLITAN AREA GENERAL PLAN TO ADOPT A NEW "RESIDENTIAL LAND USE AND HOUSING ELEMENT" AND RELATED CHANGES TO THE PLAN TEXT AND GLOSSARY; ADOPTING A SEVERABILITY CLAUSE; PROVIDING AN EFFECTIVE DATE The City Manager asked the council to consider Council Bill 4692, an ordinance amending the Metropolitan Area General Plan to adopt a new "Residential Land Use and Housing Element," and related changes to the plan text and glossary; adopting a severability clause; providing an effective date. Councilor Meisner, seconded by Councilor Nathanson, moved that the bill, with the unanimous consent of the Council, be read the second time by MINUTES--Eugene City Council July 12, 1999 Page 4 7:30 p.m. Council Bill number only, and that enactment be considered at that time. Roll call vote; the motion passed unanimously. The City Manager asked the council to consider Council Bill 4692 by number only. Councilor Meisner, seconded by Councilor Nathanson, moved that the bill be approved and given final passage. Roll call vote; the motion passed unanimously, and became Ordinance Number 20159. The meeting adjourned at 9 p.m. (Recorded by Joe Sams.) MINUTES--Eugene City Council July 12, 1999 Page 5 7:30 p.m.