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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCC Minutes - 08/09/99 Mtg MINUTES Eugene City Council McNutt Room--City Hall August 9, 1999 7:30 p.m. COUNCILORS PRESENT: Scott Meisner, Nancy Nathanson, Bobby Lee, Betty Taylor, David Kelly, Gary Pap~. COUNCILORS ABSENT: Pat Farr, Gary Rayor Mayor Torrey called the meeting of the Eugene City Council to order. He provided an overview of public forum policy. 1. PUBLIC FORUM Jim Hale, 1715 Linea Avenue, called for a wage for the mayor that equaled the pay of a county commissioner. He outlined his thoughts behind paying the mayor. Sherry Franzen, 2635 Oak Street, raised concern over the placement of controversial items on the agenda. She also called for more consistency from the council while conducting the public forum part of its meetings. Christopher McCoy, 120 Monroe Street, spoke against the proposed emergency ordinance. He raised concern over the wording of the ordinance. Andrew Jackson Kocher, 1032 West 3rd Avenue, spoke against the proposed ordinance. He questioned its wording and suggested that the power should fall on the mayor and not on the city manager. Timothy Cook, 1032 West 3rd Avenue, spoke against the proposed emergency code ordinance. He claimed that it dishonored veterans who had fought for the United States. Nick Urhausen, 2858 Warren Street, spoke to the issue of City Council compensation. He outlined the merits of per diem pay versus a salary. He expressed his desire to help in any decisions that were made on the subject. Harold Gardner, 1270 West 20th Avenue ,spoke against the proposed emergency ordinance. He called for more community involvement in council decisions. MINUTES--Eugene City Council August 9, 1999 Page 1 7:30 p.m. Kevin Early, 2152 Carmel Avenue, spoke against the proposed sports complexes in the city. He said that the money for the facilities should have been given to younger children to help them try new sports. Tim Lewis, Whiteaker Area, related a stow that he heard from witnesses that dealt with behavior of local police on the downtown mall. He said that similar occurrences were happening in the Whiteaker area. Randy Shadowalker, Whiteaker area, said that the stow Mr. Lewis related was the result of people who felt that there would be no repercussions for their actions. He spoke against the proposed emergency ordinance, saying that it was one more way for officials to have no accountability for their actions. He urged the city council to think carefully before approving the ordinance. Wayne Ford, 1019 Filmore Street, emphasized that he was speaking for himself. He spoke against the proposed emergency ordinance. He called for a specific definition of civil unrest. He also questioned why the mayor would not be put in charge in the case of an emergency declaration. He suggested that the ordinance be tied to a requirement for a request of a declaration of a state of emergency by the Governor. He also called into the question the definition of the word weapon in the language of the ordinance. Serena Rainey, 1069 West 3rd Avenue, spoke against the proposed emergency ordinance. She said that it would interfere with the constitutional rights to assemble and to bear arms. Mayor Torrey closed the Public Forum. City Manager Johnson commented on the changes made in the wording of the emergency ordinance. He outlined the changes made. Councilor Taylor commented on Mr. Hale's remarks about a stronger mayor that was paid. She said that a stronger mayor would diminish the duties of the City Manager and would take a change in the City Charter. She also called for more information on the stow related by Mr. Lewis. Councilor Kelly noted that the Citizen Charter Review Committee on Council Compensation also worked on compensation for the mayor. Addressing Ms. Franzen's comments, he explained the ordering of the agenda. He noted that he had already heard Mr. Lewis's stow from other citizens and expressed a desire to see the person in the stow working with the Human Rights support system. Mayor Torrey commented that Mr. Early did a service to the community when he came to the City Council with his comments. He expressed his hope that Mr. Early would continue to come to council meetings. Commenting on Ms. Franzen's remarks regarding providing addresses during the public forum, Mayor Torrey said that some people did not have addresses to give since they were homeless and he was of the opinion that anyone coming before the City Council should have an opportunity to speak. MINUTES--Eugene City Council August 9, 1999 Page 2 7:30 p.m. II. CONSENT CALENDAR A. Approval of City Council Minutes June 21, 1999 Joint Work Session with the Planning Commission; June 23, 1999 Joint Work Session with the Human Rights Commission; July 12, 1999 City Council Work Session B. Ratification of Intergovernmental Relations Committee Actions of August 4, 1999, and approval of Resolution No. 4700 in support of an Oregon Economic Development Department loan to Caffe Orsini, Incorporated. Councilor Meisner, seconded by Councilor Nathanson, moved to approve the items on the consent calendar. Councilor Pap~ noted that he was not present for the June 21meeting or the June 23 work session. Councilor Nathanson made a wording correction to the June 23 work session minutes. She requested that the July 12 minutes be pulled until confusion over a staff request had been addressed. Councilor Kelly noted that the June 14 minutes were pulled because they were incomplete in the council packet. He added that the June 21 council meeting minutes were pulled because a person in the public forum was inadvertently left out. He offered a correction to the June 21 minutes; on item 7 in the second paragraph he added the word "amending" after the word "for". For the June 23 work session meeting, Councilor Kelly stressed that he never called the anarchist gathering a "riot". The motion passed unanimously. iii. PUBLIC HEARING: ORDINANCE GRANTING TO ADVANCED TELECOMMUNI- CATIONS GROUP (ATG), A NON-EXCLUSIVE FRANCHISE TO USE THE PUBLIC WAY TO CONSTRUCT AND MAINTAIN PUBLIC COMMUNICATION FACILITIES WITHIN THE CITY OF EUGENE Franchise Manager Para Berrian introduced Carlos Rosan who was the representative for the applicant "Advanced Telecom Group". She added that ATG was certified by the Oregon Public Utilities Commission and had recently announced its purchase of Shared Communications. She said that franchise agreements did not include rate, programming, or marketing conditions which were the purview of either the Public Utility Commission of Oregon or the Federal Communications Commission, but govern conditions for their access to and long-term occupancy of the public rights-of-way. She expressed her desire to answer any questions the council might have. Councilor Meisner asked why action could not be taken on the item at the current meeting. MINUTES--Eugene City Council August 9, 1999 Page 3 7:30 p.m. Ms. Berrian said that the City Charter requirement of public notice precluded action on the item on that evening as the third and final notice would be running this week. Mayor Torrey opened the public hearing. Seeing no one wishing to speak he closed the public hearing and called questions from the council regarding the issue. There were no requests to speak. IV. PUBLIC HEARING AND POSSIBLE ACTION: ORDINANCE AMENDING SECTIONS 7.010, 7.705, 7.715, 7.720, 7.725 AND 7.740 OF THE EUGENE CODE, 1971 City Manager Jim Johnson noted that the title should have made mention that these revisions are necessary to allow for proposed amendments to methodology for the existing systems development charges. Mayor Torrey opened the public hearing. Eric Hall, 304 Waite Street, addressed the elimination of language in section 7.725. He raised a concern that elimination of the language would thwart the efforts of policy 14 in the Growth Management Study. As an example, he cited a building at 11th Avenue and Jefferson Street, he said that the systems development charges had been calculated at $10,000 for $25,000 to $35,000 worth of improvements. He said that the owner would have been better off to demolish the existing building and build a new structure. David Hinkley, 1308 Jefferson Street, also addressed the language in section 7.725 regarding exemptions for Iow-income housing. He spoke against the exemptions saying that, while he supported public subsidy of Iow-income housing, the methodology used was not the way to do it. He suggested paying systems development charges for Iow-income housing from the general fund to eliminate shortages in the SDC fund. As an alternative to that idea he suggested placing "lOU's" in the SDC fund to be paid by the general fund. Mayor Torrey closed the public hearing and called for questions from the council. Councilor Lee questioned City Manager Johnson regarding the use of general funds to compensate for the SDC waivers for Iow-income housing. He suggested an allowance in the general fund that would cover anticipated SDC gaps. Councilor Kelly asked Les Lyle to address Mr. Hall's concerns regarding section 7.725 and whether passage would go against goal 14. Mr. Lyle said that he did not believe that would be the case. He said that the language that was proposed to come out of the code would go into the administrative rules that the City Manager would be adopting verbatim. He said that the owners Mr. Hall was referring to could go through the appeals process to request the SDCs be adjusted. Councilor Kelly asked about the public notification and input process was for the administrative rules. Mr. Lyle said that staff was required to notify interested parties 45 days in advance of the proceeding to make the changes. He added that 30 days prior to the proposed changes being MINUTES--Eugene City Council August 9, 1999 Page 4 7:30 p.m. made staff was required to have the proposed rules ready for public review so that the public would have that time to provide input and written comments. Councilor Nathanson questioned whether the item needed action at the current meeting. Mr. Lyle replied that he preferred action at the current meeting so that the 30-day delay in the effective date for the ordinance could be completed to allow for new rates to be implemented in September. Councilor Nathanson raised concern with the wording of section 7.725. She stressed a desire to encourage adaptive re-use as well as in-fill and redevelopment. She did not want to pass something that would discourage those things. Mr. Lyle noted that applicants had the appeal process to verify that the City was appropriately applying the intent of the code. Councilor Pap8 commented that he did not want to see City codes pushing economically against the objectives of the City. He agreed with Councilor Nathanson about not taking action on the item at the current meeting. He complimented Mr. Hinkley on his comments. Councilor Meisner clarified that the ordinance changes had primarily to do with the wastewater SDC. City Manager Johnson commented that the City Attorney also had questions that needed to be answered before the council could take action. Mayor Torrey postponed the item until a later date. V. ACTION: PLANNING COMMISSION RECOMMENDATION FOR THE PLANNING AND DESIGN CRITERIA FOR THE SALE OF SEARS BUILDING AND LIBRARY PROPERTIES Mayor Torrey adjourned the meeting of the City Council and opened the meeting of the Urban Renewal Agency. Councilor Meisner, seconded by Councilor Nathanson, moved to direct the City Manager to issue an Request for Proposal for the sale of the Sears Building and adjacent 1/8-block surface lot utilizing the planning and design criteria recommended by the Planning Commission, with the goal of maximizing the value of the Sears Building site for the benefit of the new library, while at the same time assuring a future use of the property which furthers the City's growth management goals of creating a dense, vital, more attractive downtown by encompassing a variety of different uses such as retail, office housing and entertainment. The Planning Commission shall review the responses to the RFP, and make a recommendation to the City Council acting as the Urban Renewal Agency, with the final project selection approved by Council acting as the Urban Renewal Agency. Councilor Meisner noted that the item was discussed extensively before any deliberation by the Planning Commission. He added that some of the councilors asked that this item come back to MINUTES--Eugene City Council August 9, 1999 Page 5 7:30 p.m. council to ensure that the planning and design criteria matched the concepts of earlier discussions. He commented that he thought the Planning Commission had captured the concept very well and that he looked forward to seeing the proposals. Councilor Kelly stated his pleasure with the recommendations of the Planning Commission, and his appreciation that the Planning Commission had been brought into the process. Councilor Kelly, seconded by Councilor Pap~, moved to amend the original motion by adding an additional sub bullet under "high quality pedestrian environment" saying; outdoor public space such as plaza, courtyard or informal performance area. Councilor Meisner clarified the wording of the amendment. Councilor Nathanson called for clarification on the wording in the preferred and required sections regarding 2/3 ground floor retail frontage or residential. Land Use Planner Nan Laurence replied that staff wanted to see, in any proposal, a minimum of 2/3 ground floor retail or residential frontage for new construction. Ms. Laurence added that in any project they preferred more than 2/3. She said that if the existing building remained, 2/3 retail would not be required, but it would be preferred under any circumstances. Councilor Nathanson asked if the amendment, calling for more open spaces, would contradict the preferred amount of street level retail or residential frontage. Ms. Laurence said that there would be room for the ground floor retail as well as accommodating open spaces. The motion to amend passed unanimously. Speaking to the main motion as amended, Councilor Pap~ called for clarification on the solar lighting language. Ms. Laurence provided clarification on solar lighting requirements. Councilor Nathanson raised concern with the part titled "Scale of the project". She wanted to clarify that there were no clear goals stated. Councilor Nathanson commented that she wanted to see something built sooner rather than someone purchasing the building and holding it for a decade. She asked if language should be added to make sure building took place in a timely manner. Mr. Bowers commented that there was language in the RFP to that effect. He said the language was left a little vague because sometimes circumstances would mean that "absolutely the soonest" would not necessarily be the best for the site. He added that staff was trying to discourage any unnecessary delays in building. Councilor Lee noted that the proceeds from the Sears Building would be for the benefit of the library. He asked how a land swap would benefit the library. Mr. Bowers said that a developer could swap land to the City that could be later used for the benefit of the library or sold with the proceeds going to the library. He said that the City was open to arrangements of a land swap, but nothing had been agreed to. Mayor Torrey clarified that the City retained the ability to reject any proposal. The motion, as amended, passed unanimously. MINUTES--Eugene City Council August 9, 1999 Page 6 7:30 p.m. Mayor Torrey adjourned the meeting of the Urban Renewal Agency and reconvened the meeting of the Eugene City Council. Councilor Meisner, seconded by Councilor Nathanson, moved to direct the City Manager to issue RFP's for the sale of the existing library and surface lot east of Olive Street utilizing the planning and design criteria recommended by the Planning Commission, with the goal of maximizing the value of the properties for the benefit of the new library, while at the same time assuring a future use of the property which furthers the City's growth downtown by encompassing a variety of different uses such as retail, office, housing and entertainment. The planning Commission shall review the responses to the RFP's, and make a recommendation to the City Council, with the final project selection approved by the council. Councilor Kelly, seconded by Councilor Nathanson, moved to amend the original motion using the same language of his previous amendment to be placed under the heading of "High Quality Pedestrian Environment". Councilor Nathanson suggested that the amendment be a "friendly" amendment. Councilor Kelly acknowledged that a friendly amendment was acceptable. Councilor Meisner noted that the friendly amendment would apply to pages 118 and 122 of the council packet. Regarding the unnecessary removal of existing vegetation or trees, Councilor Nathanson asked who defined the word "necessary." Ms. Laurence said it depended what the proposal looked like when it came in, and additional expertise would be sought if it was determined that a tree on the site was endangered. Councilor Pap~ commented that he would be voting against the motion. He said that the highest bidder for the property would not want to purchase the site under the motion's restrictions. The motion, as reworded, passed 5:1 with Councilor Pap~ voting against. VI. ACTION: ORDINANCE CONCERNING THE EMERGENCY CODE; ADDING SECTION 2.1055; AMENDING SECTION 2.1990 OF THE EUGENE CODE 197'1 City Manager Johnson stated his desire to answer any council questions and introduced Chuck Solin who was also present to answer questions. Councilor Taylor asked what the City Manager could do with the ordinance that could not be done without it. City Manager Johnson replied that the ordinance provided specific powers to the City Manager in the event of an emergency. He added that there would be no guesswork in addressing situations. He said that section 4 of the ordinance granted him powers, in a declared emergency, that were not specifically allowed currently. Mr. Solin added that the powers granted to the City Manager would only take effect in the event of a level three emergency. He used price gouging by stores during a declared emergency as an example of a situation when the City Manager would exercise power to keep prices at pre-emergency levels. MINUTES--Eugene City Council August 9, 1999 Page 7 7:30 p.m. Councilor Lee asked for clarification about how a level three emergency was defined. Mr. Solin said that the City Manager would make that determination based on staff recommendations. He added that there was no mechanism currently on the books to declare an emergency. Councilor Nathanson questioned the wording of the causes of a disaster. City Manager Johnson replied that the wording was referring to a kind of disaster rather than looking for causes. Councilor Pap~ commended the City Manager and the City Attorney for considering the questions and comments made by councilors and members of the public during the hearing for the ordinance. He recommended changing the wording of the ordinance to say that a declaration of emergency could be accomplished upon the recommendation of the City Manager or in his absence, the Mayor, or in case of both their absences, any member of the City Council. Councilor Kelly suggested that a motion be made. The City Manager asked the City Council to consider Council Bill 4699, an ordinance concerning the emergency code; adding section 2.1055; amending Section 2.1990 of the Eugene Code 1971 Councilor Meisner, seconded by Councilor Nathanson, moved that Council Bill 4699, with unanimous consent of the council, be read the second time by council bill number only, and that enactment be considered at that time. Councilor Kelly thanked everyone involved in the evolution of the emergency ordinance. Councilor Kelly, seconded by Councilor Pap~, moved to amend the ordinance, in Section 4 (b) second line, by dropping the word "use" and in Section 4 (m) changing the words "this paragraph" to "Section 2.1055." The motion to amend passed unanimously. Councilor Kelly brought up the comments of Mr. Ford in the public forum regarding the definition of weapons. He asked if the word weapon was defined in Eugene Code. Councilor Pap~ moved to remove the final sentence of proposed code 2.1055 Section 2 (b) and replace it with language stating that the Mayor, or in the Mayor's absence, the president of the City Council, or in both their absences any member of the City Council, upon the recommendation of the City Manager, may declare a state of emergency. There was no second. Councilor Pap~ questioned whether the sale of and carrying of weapons would be banned in the emergency area in particular or banned citywide. City Attorney Glenn Klein said that the ban would not be limited to the area of the emergency. He said the City Manager could prohibit the sale and carrying of weapons anywhere in the city. Councilor Lee clarified that an emergency could only be declared by the City Council approving the ordinance. He commented that he preferred that emergencies be handled by local agencies rather than State agencies. Councilor Taylor, seconded by Councilor Lee, moved to amend the ordinance to require the vote of the entire city council to declare an emergency. MINUTES--Eugene City Council August 9, 1999 Page 8 7:30 p.m. Councilor Taylor stressed that the entire city government should be involved before making a decision as drastic as declaring a level three emergency. Councilor Lee commented that it was completely appropriate for the City Manager to at least try to convene a meeting of the entire City Council before declaring an emergency. Councilor Kelly questioned the legal aspects of the amendment. He cited Councilor Taylor's comment that if a majority of the council could not be contacted that those present could act, and that would require a City Charter change to allow less than a council quorum to act. Mr. Klein stated that the amendment would have to be a conceptual amendment and that he was working on the wording changes that would have to take place in the ordinance. Councilor Kelly suggested an alternate amendment that simply said the City Manager would attempt to contact the Mayor and the councilors and if he/she could not contact them then the two person rule could come into effect. Councilor Meisner reminded councilors that the amendment dealt only with the process of declaring an emergency and not with invoking the powers granted by the ordinance. He called attention to page six of the ordinance that said that the City Manager shall consult with the Mayor and the majority of councilors prior to invoking any of the powers. Councilor Taylor commented that emergency powers could only be invoked with the declaration of an emergency and that it was important for the entire council to be involved with making that decision. She offered to remove her motion to amend and replace it using the wording Councilor Kelly suggested. Councilor Lee refused to let the motion be removed. He said that it was important for the public to know who was in charge during an emergency and that having all the councilors present at a declaration would help to show the public that action was being taken. Councilor Nathanson agreed that there would be symbolic value in all the councilors meeting at City Hall during an emergency but noted that the City Council did not have the authority to give orders to city departments. She raised concern over delays in mitigating action by the city during an emergency because of waiting for the City Council to be convened. Councilor Pap~ reiterated Councilor Nathanson's position. He commented that if there was an emergency he would rather be in his neighborhood and added that there were provisions for the council to repeal a declaration of emergency by vote at a later time if necessary. The motion to amend failed 4:2 with Councilors Taylor and Lee voting in favor. Councilor Taylor stressed that no one was saying that disasters could not be dealt with before a council meeting. She stressed that there would be time to have a meeting on whether to invoke specific things like curfews. Councilor Kelly, seconded by Councilor Taylor, moved to amend the ordinance by changing the words in subsection 2(b) from "a majority of" to "the City". The motion to amend passed unanimously. MINUTES--Eugene City Council August 9, 1999 Page 9 7:30 p.m. Councilor Lee provided context for the issue. He stated his belief that the creation of a plan to preserve order during an emergency was a reasonable thing. Councilor Kelly brought back the question of a definition of weapons. Mr. Klein said that the definition would be supplied at the time of the ban and would be covered in the order from the City Manager. Councilor Kelly, seconded by Councilor Meisner, moved to amend the ordinance in section 4 (g) to change the word "weapons" to the word "firearms." The motion passed unanimously. Councilor Meisner raised questions as to the line of succession in case the City Manager was not available in an emergency. He asked about a line of succession. Councilor Meisner, seconded by Councilor Nathanson, moved to amend the ordinance to say that the first available of the emergency interim successors would invoke the powers of the emergency ordinance. The motion passed unanimously. Councilor Meisner stressed the significance of the disaster that would need to occur before the City Manager could declare an emergency. He also stressed the number of limitations of power that the City Manager would work under in the event that an level three emergency was declared. The motion passed unanimously. City Manager Johnson asked that the council consider Council Bill 4699 by number only. Councilor Meisner, seconded by Councilor Nathanson, moved that Council Bill 4699 be approved and given final passage. Councilor Nathanson commented that the public was generally not aware of the impending action on the ordinance. She expressed a desire for the City to prepare a statement that provided examples of the kind of uses the powers granted to the City Manager during an emergency might be put to. The motion passed unanimously and became Ordinance No. 20164. Vii. ACTION: ORDINANCE CONCERNING GRAFFITI; AND AMENDING SECTIONS 6.005, 6.010, 6.080, 6.100, AND 6.990 OF THE EUGENE CODE, 197'1 City Manager Johnson asked the council to consider Council Bill 4700, an ordinance concerning graffiti; and amending Sections 6.005, 6.010, 6.080, 6.100, and 6.990 of the Eugene Code, 1971 Councilor Meisner, seconded by Councilor Nathanson, moved that Council Bill 4700, with unanimous consent of the council, be read a second time by council bill number only and that enactment be considered at that time. Councilor Meisner reported that he had to leave the meeting and, although the Mayor had left the decision to pull the item from the agenda, he left that decision to the councilors remaining. He MINUTES--Eugene City Council August 9, 1999 Page 10 7:30 p.m. added that if the council decided to take action that evening they would be doing so without Councilors Rayor, Farr, and himself. The item was pulled from the meetings agenda by general consensus. Mayor Torrey adjourned the meeting. Respectfully submitted, James R. Johnson City Manager (Recorded by Joe Sams) MINUTES--Eugene City Council August 9, 1999 Page 11 7:30 p.m.