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HomeMy WebLinkAbout200226 WS MINUTES – Eugene City Council Work Session February 26, 2020 Page 1 MINUTES Eugene City Council Harris Hall, 125 East 8th Avenue Eugene, Oregon 97401 February 26, 2020 12:00 p.m. Councilors Present: Betty Taylor, Emily Semple, Alan Zelenka, Jennifer Yeh, Mike Clark, Greg Evans, Claire Syrett, Chris Pryor Councilor Semple opened the February 26, 2020, work session of the Eugene City Council. Councilor Syrett joined the meeting at 12:25 p.m. 1. WORK SESSION: Parks and Recreation System Development Charge Methodology Update Parks and Natural Resource Planner Carolyn Burke and Interim Public Works Director Matt Rodrigues introduced the topic. Council Discussion  Councilor Clark – asked for clarification on stormwater system development charges; expressed support for Option 4 and interest in suspending SDCs for accessory dwelling units; said that affordable, smaller homes become available as people move out of them because they move into larger homes.  Councilor Zelenka – expressed support for adopting the proposed project list; asked what the comparison was between Portland’s and Eugene’s rates; appreciated that the model supported small housing and transportation access; expressed support for a two-year phase-in of the fee increase.  Councilor Pryor – wanted to figure out how to increase the number of smaller, affordable homes built; was most interested in Options 2 and 3.  Councilor Yeh – agreed with Councilor Pryor in support of Options 2 or 3; was willing to phase in the fee increase.  Councilor Evans – was interested in a fifth option that would include no increase in the first year, a 20 percent increase in the second year, and a phased increase for two years after that.  Councilor Semple – asked for clarification on what would occur between years one and two in Options 5 and 3.  Councilor Syrett – weighed the need to increase housing while also continuing to fund parks development; supported the proposed Option 5.  Councilor Clark – supported keeping the current fees for two more years; interested in a comparison between in-market cities nearby (including Veneta, Creswell, etc.); raised the idea that the increase could occur over ten years’ time.  Councilor Zelenka – thought the comparison between Eugene and its competitors for where people wanted to build were with cities like Corvallis and Bend and that the $500 difference between Eugene and Springfield would not make much of an impact in the overall choice of where to build locally.  Councilor Pryor – said he looked forward to a rate structure that encourages building smaller; supported Option 5.  Councilor Syrett – asked about the impact of the change in the administrative fee.  Councilor Clark – thought Option 5 would result in builders choosing to build elsewhere and wanted to see a slower rate change over ten years; asked how the administrative fee might be used to eliminate fees for SDCs. MINUTES – Eugene City Council Work Session February 26, 2020 Page 2  Mayor Vinis – expressed interest in putting the motions on the table to determine whether a second work session would be needed.  Councilor Taylor – supported the first two motions and wanted to delay voting on the fee structure timing.  Councilor Zelenka – thought there was enough support to adopt Option 5 and wanted to vote rather than delay.  Councilor Semple – noted that when people moved to larger homes, their smaller homes were often demolished; asked what the lost revenue might be depending on each choice.  Councilor Zelenka – offered a rough figure of lost revenue resulting from a delay in implementation of the new fee structure. MOTION AND VOTE: Councilor Semple, seconded by Councilor Yeh, moved to direct the City Manager to prepare for adoption a reduction in the SDC administrative fee from nine percent to five percent. PASSED: 8:0 MOTION AND VOTE: Councilor Semple, seconded by Councilor Yeh, moved to direct the City Manager to prepare for adoption the proposed project list and components of the proposed methodology to ensure funding for 2018 Parks and Recreation bond measure projects. PASSED 7:1, Councilor Clark opposed. MOTION AND VOTE: Councilor Evans, seconded by Councilor Syrett moved to direct the City Manager to prepare Option 5 for adoption. PASSED: 6:2, Councilors Clark and Taylor opposed. MOTION AND VOTE: Councilor Semple, seconded by Councilor Yeh, moved to direct the City Manager to prepare for adoption an SDC adjustment for large multi-family units that implement Envision Eugene and Climate Recovery goals. PASSED: 7:1, Councilor Taylor opposed. 2. WORK SESSION: E-Scooters and Micromobility Transportation Planning Intern Karen Mason and Transportation Planning Manager Rob Inerfeld introduced the topic. Council Discussion  Mayor Vinis – asked for clarification on the definition of a shared use path.  Councilor Semple – shared a personal story about being hit by an e-scooter and did not support having them on sidewalks; said that if a pilot was implemented, she wanted as many options as possible as well as scooters with seats and baskets; wanted to require helmets and consider equity concerns.  Councilor Zelenka – shared his experience with using scooters in a couple of different cities; thought they were an important tool for reducing greenhouse gases; thought parking spots were helpful, technology was very helpful for controlling speed and educating about use  Councilor Taylor – said she thought there were problems with parking and sidewalk use, and that scooters were a hazard generally; thought e-bikes were already a problem on shared use paths.  Councilor Pryor – said he was focused on rider behavior for all mobility devices and that a pilot was an opportunity to see how safely the City could get people to ride.  Councilor Clark – expressed concern about the interaction between scooters and cars; did not think the City should expend any funds for this service when there were so many other more pressing needs.