HomeMy WebLinkAbout160713.WS.SIREMINUTES
Eugene City Council
Harris Hall, 125 East 8th Avenue
Eugene, Oregon 97401
July 131 2016
12:00 p.m.
Councilors Present: George Brown, Betty Taylor, Alan Zelenka, George Poling, Mike Clark, Greg
Evans, Claire Syrett, Chris Pryor
Mayor Piercy opened the July 13, 2016, meeting of the Eugene City Council.
A. WORK SESSION: Retail Cannabis Sales Tax
City Attorney Glen Klein gave a brief update on the legal requirements from the State to add a
retail cannabis sales tax and information on the process.
Council discussion:
• Proposed ordinance represents an opportunity to take advantage of a potential new revenue
source; important to note it won't apply to medical marijuana sales.
• The extra three percent in tax revenue can be dedicated to parks, human services, arts, and the
general fund.
• Consideration should be given to adding a residency requirements at some point.
• Need to clearly communicate to voters where the money will go and how it will be spent.
• Proposal sets a bad precedent and the ballot measure will fail; the City does not tax tobacco or
alcohol.
• In favor of 1,000 ft. buffer zone between businesses to start; this will help moderate competition
factors.
• Staff input on potential uses of revenue is needed
MOTION AND VOTE: Councilor Evans, seconded by Councilor Zelenka, moved to direct the City
Manager to move forward with the public hearing on July 18th on the proposed ordinance, and to
schedule an additional work session to discuss possible regulation of retail marijuana sales
businesses. PASSED 7:1, Councilor Brown opposed.
B. WORK SESSION: Rental Housing Code Overview
Code Compliance Supervisor Rachelle Nicholas and Planning Finance Director Lori Kievith gave
a PowerPoint presentation discussing the history of the rental housing program, complaint
procedure, program activity, examples of code violations, recommendations, fund overview,
and next steps.
Council discussion:
• Support expressed for eliminating sunset date completely; program has proven its value.
• Sunset dates are a good idea and allow council to review and make changes to the program.
• Suggestion made to remove the sunset and add a review requirement into the ordinance.
• The program is a necessary and important safety and health function of the City.
MINUTES —Eugene City Council July 13, 2016 Page 1
Work Session
Support expressed for the Housing Policy Board recommendations; review of price per unit
needed.
Stronger education and outreach for the program recommended.
MOTION AND VOTE: Councilor Evans, seconded by Councilor Zelenka, moved to direct the City
Manager to prepare an ordinance to extend the sunset date to March 1, 2017 to allow time for
further discussion of Housing Policy Advisory Board recommendations. PASSED 8:0.
The meeting adjourned at 1:15 p.m.
Respectfully submitted,
Chuck Crockett
Deputy City Recorder
MINUTES —Eugene City Council
July 13, 2016
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Work Session