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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCC Minutes - 03/02/98 Work Session MINUTES Eugene City Council McNutt Room--City Hall March 2, 1998 5:30 p.m. COUNCILORS PRESENT: Pat Fart, Tim Laue, Bobby Lee, Scott Meisner, Nancy Nathanson, Betty Taylor, Ken Tollenaar. COUNCILOR ABSENT: Laurie Swanson Gribskov; Mayor James D. Torrey. The Eugene City Council meeting was called to order at 5:30 p.m.; City Council President Pat Farr presiding. I. WORK SESSION/PRESENTATION FROM CONVENTION AND VISITORS ASSO- ClATION OF LANE COUNTY OREGON (CVALCO) Ms. Nathanson, the council's representative to CVALCO, said the association's Executive Director, Kari Westlund, who was hired in November 1996, was taking the organization to a "new level." She expressed support for her work. Ms. Westlund provided the report and described CVALCO's job as promoting Lane County as a visitor destination. She reviewed the organization's funding, statistics on tourism, industry trends, scheduled activities and events, and its promotion campaign. Ms. Westlund noted that the council meeting packet included other information and invited input from interested parties, adding that she planned to report to the council on an annual basis. Addressing a question from Mr. Tollenaar, Ms. Westlund said the Hult Center was of great importance to the area--adding a sense of sophistication and balancing the outdoor/recreation genre. She noted that about $350,000 million is spent by visitors to Lane County each year and a majority of that is in the metro area. II. WORK SESSION: REVISIONS TO TREE PRESERVATION ORDINANCE Public Works Director Chris Andersen pointed out that the correct topic was "private property permitting ordinance." She acknowledged the presence of staff members Johnny Medlin and Scott Plamondon, and Jerry Lidz, who provided legal assistance. Ms. Andersen recalled that administrative support for the private property tree permitting program was eliminated as part of the City's budget reduction strategy last spring. She said that based on council concern and its subsequent discussion on add-backs, staff is operating under the following direction: the council continues to support the need for removing administrative costs for the program from the City's budget and staff's charge is to look for a way to continue the intent of the program without incurring administrative costs. Ms. Andersen said the proposed revised ordinance shifts the responsibility for permit review and development to the private sector by having registered MINUTES--Eugene City Council March 2, 1998 Page 1 5:30 p.m. professionals certify that development plans meet the requirements under the code. Staff would review the application for completeness and appropriate level of certification, and administer the program "across the counter." She explained that private individuals would not have an opportunity to protest the issuance of the permit; however, they could protest if more trees were removed than permitted or if tree removals occurred without a permit. Ms. Andersen asked the council to reaffirm its previous direction and approve of the proposed approach. Staff will then conduct a public involvement process with interested parties. Ms. Andersen said that if there was interest in the council for expanding private property tree protection, it should be clarified as that will likely be an issue at the public hearing. Ms. Taylor said she favored the existing code over the proposed one. Ms. Nathanson said people will continue to call the City and wondered if ample time had been allowed to response to those questions. Ms. Andersen said material with very specific information will be developed for public consumption and will outline the process. Ms. Nathanson asked the council should be prepared to address the issue of hazardous trees. She asked what recourse the City had if a "credentialed" professional was approving things that demonstrated a lack of understanding or sensitivity for the rules. Ms. Andersen explained that licensing provided a mechanism for monitoring professionals. In this case, the City would have to rely on the professional societies and licensing organizations as the mechanism for enforcement. Ms. Nathanson said she would be more inclined to approve the proposed ordinance if the City communicated with these professional organizations and explained its intent to rely on their credentialing and oversight activities. Mr. Meisner expressed support for the piece on undeveloped properties under 20,000 square feet. He said he did not share Ms. Nathanson's concern about professionals in the field. In response to concern that the ordinance called for injunctive relief and not punitive damages, Mr. Lide said fines could not be imposed because a private individual did not incur damages and could not initiate a civil penalty process for the City. Addressing a concern about deterrent from Mr. Meisner, staff referred to Section 6.990, which allowed for City prosecution for violation but there would not be a staff resource to carry that out. Mr. Meisner reiterated his concern about the lack of a deterrent and encouraged the City Manager to get involved in enforcement. Mr. Lee said he was interested in proceeding with the public hearing and supported Ms. Nathanson's suggestion for working closely with professional associations and licensing bodies. Addressing a question from Mr. Laue, Mr. Medlin said there was one complaint in the last two years that was substantiated and resulted in a penalty. Ms. Nathanson said she expected to hear during the public hearing that the existing code did not work very well, adding that staff should be prepared to address erosion control as well. In response to a question from Ms. Taylor, staff said the public hearing was scheduled for April 6, followed by council action scheduled for April 13. Ms. Taylor expressed concern that few private individuals had resources sufficient to bring causes of action. Addressing a question from Mr. Farr, Ms. Andersen said at least 50 percent of communities in the northwest our size have such ordinances, but the City of Salem does not. Staff will provide that MINUTES--Eugene City Council March 2, 1998 Page 2 5:30 p.m. information at the public hearing. In response to a follow-up question from Mr. Farr, Ms. Andersen said the review of the permit would be conducted by an administrative staff person. Ms. Andersen pointed out that the program for urban forestry as it related to public property has not been changed, and staff continues to expand its Street Tree Program which will result in about 3,000 new street trees going in annually. III. WORK SESSION: ORDINANCE CONCERNING TOXIC REPORTING INSTRUCTIONS Glen Potter, Fire Marshal's Office, acknowledged the presence of the following members of the Toxics Board: Don Upson, Steve Morgan, Madronna Holden, and Mary O'Brien. He said the proposed ordinance would adopt the reporting instructions issued by the board. Mr. Potter said the Toxics Board intended to return to the council annually for similar action as the body of instructions is revised and improved. Mr. Tollenaar expressed concern that some of the proposed items appeared to be in conflict with some of the precise terms of the Charter Amendment. He noted that any citizen could appeal to the Toxics Board, and ultimately to the Court, for any failure to comply with any of the terms of the amendment; and this made the City vulnerable to lawsuits. He asked the City Attorney's Office to review the document and identify conflicts and those provisions that go beyond the Charter Amendment. Addressing a question from Mr. Lee, Mr. Potter said the board voted 6:1 in favor of recommending the proposed ordinance. The dissenting vote was cast by Mr. Morgan. In response to a question from Ms. Nathanson, Mr. Potter said the actual number of affected businesses is unknown since businesses are not required to identify themselves as toxics users under the Charter Amendment until April of 1999. Mr. Farr said the council was obliged to carry out the voters' mandate; but urged efficiency in its implementation, adding that the council did not have a legal obligation to go beyond the "letter of the law." Addressing a question from Ms. Nathanson, Mr. Potter said two members of the Toxics Board are also members of the State Task Force on right-to-know issues. Referring to pages 26 and 27 of the item summary, Mr. Tollenaar questioned some of the items included in the instructions, e.g., enforcement issues. Addressing a question from Mr. Tollenaar, Mr. Potter defined the term "compositions" as referring to the percentages of the combination of chemicals contained in a substance, adding that the term "test" referred to actual testing of substances. Mr. Meisner expressed support for language that in essence said that "a good faith effort to comply" would not be penalized. Mr. Lidz said that the ordinance would not be a part of the Eugene Code and it was meant as a "handbook" for reporting businesses. He added that one model for this would be the council's adoption of the system development charges (SDC) methodology by ordinance. MINUTES--Eugene City Council March 2, 1998 Page 3 5:30 p.m. City Attorney Glenn Klein explained that some parts of the proposed ordinance were not legally binding but expressed an intent; adoption of the ordinance would not prohibit the board from imposing a penalty. Mr. Laue pointed out that many chemicals on the list can be found in research institutes and the University of Oregon should be included for reporting purposes. IV. WORK SESSION: TOXICS RIGHT TO KNOW FEE AMOUNTS Mr. Potter reviewed the board's recommendation for fees, noting that the figures presented were not yet final and would depend on whether the council adopted the original or a reduced budget. He added that the fees would be payable on May 1, 1998, under Charter Amendment. Mr. Meisner expressed support for the interim per-employee approach and asked staff to explain the two budget levels. Mr. Potter said current information justified a reduction in costs. He noted that the Toxics Board has not discussed or adopted the a budget, but was generally supportive of appropriate cost reductions. In response to a question from Mr. Lee, Mr. Potter said the board vote on the fee structure was 6:0 with one abstention. Mr. Tollenaar ascertained that staff needed direction on the budget to prepare for fee calculations and impose fees by May 1. Mr. Farr questioned the amount allocated for travel by the Deputy Fire Marshal, pointing out that the rate remained unchanged regardless of the FTE (full time equivalency) reduction in the reduced budget. He asked staff to review the transportation budget. Mr. Tollenaar said the method for setting Toxics Board fees by the City Council was time- consuming and inefficient. Mr. Potter reported that public hearings on the both Toxics Program items were scheduled for March 9, with tentative action on fees March 16, followed by action on the ordinance on April 6. MINUTES--Eugene City Council March 2, 1998 Page 4 5:30 p.m. V. OTHER A. Oversight Committee Ms. Nathanson recalled the idea of using the citizen component of the Budget Committee as an oversight committee to regularly review the budgets of every program and department, which would result in a review of individual departments every two or three years. She wondered if there was interest in the council to pursue the notion. There appeared to be some interest. B. Staff Position Issue Library, Recreation, and Cultural Services Executive Director Jim Johnson reminded the council of his memorandum describing activity by senior citizens in their attempt to restore a staff position, adding that his position was that using Trust Fund money was not a good way of funding a staff position. He asked for direction from the council. Mr. Lee expressed interest in addressing a meeting of the seniors. In response to a question from Ms. Taylor, Mr. Johnson said funding the position in such a way would require that the council either change or make an exception to its adopted financial policies. The difficulty he explained is that the money was raised for a different purpose, i.e., capital improvements. Mr. Laue said the council would have to take formal action to reinstate the position regardless of the particular staff person involved. The meeting adjourned at 7:25 p.m. Respectfully submitted, James R. Johnson City Manager Pro Tern (Recorded by Yolanda Paule) MINUTES--Eugene City Council March 2, 1998 Page 5 5:30 p.m.