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HomeMy WebLinkAbout250414 MTGMINUTES Eugene City Council Meeting Eugene, Oregon 97401 April 14, 2025 7:30p.m. Councilors Present: Eliza Kashinsky, Matt Keating, Alan Zelenka, Jennifer Yeh, Mike Clark, Greg Evans, Lyndsie Leech, and Randy Groves Mayor Knudson opened the April 14, 2025, meeting of the Eugene City Council in hybrid in- person and virtual format at 500 E. 4th Avenue, Eugene, OR 97401, North Building. 1. CEREMONIAL MATTERS Mayor Knudson mentioned the proclamations for Child Abuse Prevention Month, Fair Housing Month, Education and Sharing Day, Earth Day, and Vietnamese Remembrance Day. 2. COMMITTEE REPORTS AND ITEMS OF INTEREST • Mayor Knudson -noted the Poverty and Homelessness Board is seeking community input for their strategic plan; noted her recent advocacy work during the United Front trip in Washington, DC. • Councilor Yeh -noted the Police Commission is seeking community input on their work plan. • Councilor Keating -stated a $300,000 federal grant to Lane Regional Air Protection Agency (LRAPA) had been paused; encouraged the community to contact their federal representatives; noted his recent attendance at a peaceful protest outside of City Hall. 3. INTERVIEWS: Applicant Statements for 2025 Annual Boards and Commissions Recruitment (Continued, As Needed) Mayor Knudson stated this item as no longer needed as all interviews were completed during the earlier work session. 4. CONSENT CALENDAR 1 A. Approval of City Council Minutes • January 13, 2025 State of the City • January 27, 2025 Work Session • January 27, 2025 Meeting • February 10, 2025 Work Session • February 10, 2025 Meeting • February 19, 2025 Urban Renewal Agency Work Session • February 24, 2025 Work Session • February 26, 2025 Work Session B. Approval of City Council Tentative Agenda C. Approval of Neighborhood Association Charters MOTION: Councilor Evans, seconded by Councilor Leech, moved to approve the items on Consent Calendar 1. Council Discussion: • Councilor Yeh -pulled Item 4C, Approval of Neighborhood Association Charters, from the Consent Calendar. VOTE: 8:0 PASSED IN FAVOR: Kashinsky, Keating, Zelenka, Yeh, Clark, Evans, Leech, and Groves. OPPOSED: None. Council Discussion: • Councilor Yeh -asked about differences in membership; asked about differences in neighborhood association charters; asked if neighborhood associations require access to virtual participation in meetings. • Councilor Keating -asked if there are guidelines for neighborhood associations' use of electronic communication; asked if they are subject to public meetings law. VOTE ON ITEM 4C: MOTION: Councilor Evans, seconded by Councilor Leech, moved to approve a Resolution Approving and Adopting Neighborhood Charters, attached as Attachment A to this AIS. IN FAVOR: Kashinsky, Keating, Zelenka, Yeh, Clark, Evans, Leech, and Groves. OPPOSED: None. 5. PUBLIC COMMENT Mayor Knudson made a statement regarding recent developments in the City's mobile crisis services and the Crisis Assistance Helping Out On The Streets (CAHOOTS) organization. 1. Lin Woodrich -spoke about the effects of homelessness in Bethel. 2. Josh Easterlund -spoke in favor of decriminalizing psychedelics. 3. Sarah Boom -spoke in favor of reinstating the CAHOOTS contract. 4. Ariel Myler -spoke in favor ofreinstating the CAHOOTS contract. 5. Sarah Boehm -spoke in favor of reinstating the CAHOOTS contract. 6. Lydia Scott -spoke in favor ofreinstating the CAHOOTS contract. 7. Rebecca Hill -spoke in favor of reinstating the CAHOOTS contract. 8. Dustin -spoke in favor of reinstating the CAHOOTS contract. 9. Jacob Trewe -spoke in favor of reinstating the CAHOOTS contract. 10. Kevin Kopsco -spoke in favor of reinstating the CAHOOTS contract. 11. Alexander Chamberlin -spoke in favor of reinstating the CAHOOTS contract. 12. Greg Fitz-Gerald -spoke against the fire service fee. 13. Mellinda Poor -spoke in favor reinstating the CAHOOTS contract. 14. Eli Simon -spoke in favor of reinstating the CAHOOTS contract. 15. Katharine Hunt -spoke in support of the library and CAHOOTS. 16. Ralph Parshall -spoke in favor of passing a balanced and responsible budget. 17. Victoria Acosta -spoke in favor of reinstating the CAHOOTS contract. 18. Tracy Tessler -spoke in favor of reinstating the CAHOOTS contract. 19. Mike Mcfarlane -spoke in favor of sending the fire service fee to the ballot. 20. Angela Dunhaw -spoke in favor of reinstating the CAHOOTS contract. 21. Misty Bowman -spoke in favor of dark skies and reinstating the CAHOOTS contract. 2 2. Jack Baer -spoke in favor of reinstating the CAHOOTS contract. 23. Ethan Clevenger -spoke in favor of a transparent budgeting process. 24. Allison Knight -spoke in favor of reinstating the CAHOOTS contract. 25. Vanessa Lepe and Mae Sowards -spoke in favor of reinstating the CAHOOTS contract. 26. Stacy Bierma Welch -spoke in favor of reinstating the CAHOOTS contract. 27. Stefan (Ace Dog) Strek -spoke about municipal fiscal responsibility. 28. Waffles Hildago -spoke in favor ofreinstating the CAHOOTS contract. 29. Laurel Lisovskis -spoke in favor of reinstating the CAHOOTS contract. 30. Debra McGee -spoke against the use of natural gas. 31. Brett Deedon -spoke about the fire department's limited resources and helpeugenespringfieldfire.com. 3 2. Alex York -spoke in favor of reinstating the CAHOOTS contract. 33. Don Heady -performed a spoken word piece. 34. Tizoc Arenas -spoke in favor of reinstating the CAHOOTS contract. 35. Chris Rompala -spoke in favor of reinstating the CAHOOTS contract. 36. Cary Lieberman -spoke in favor of reinstating the CAHOOTS contract. 37. Scott Oakley -spoke in favor of reinstating the CAHOOTS contract. 38. Brittany Farro -spoke in favor of reinstating the CAHOOTS contract. 39. Patrick Driggett -spoke in favor of reinstating the CAHOOTS contract. 40. Danny Patch -spoke in favor of fiscal responsibility. 41. Kamryn Stringfield -spoke in favor of reinstating the CAHOOTS contract. Council Discussion: • • • • Councilor Zelenka -noted the value of the CAHOOTS program; spoke about difficulties managing the contract with White Bird and CAHOOTS; spoke about the impacts of potential budget cuts. Councilor Clark-noted the value of the CAHOOTS program; spoke about the miscommunications around the dissolution of the contract. Councilor Yeh -noted the value of the CAHOOTS program to the community; thanked those who came out to speak. Councilor Groves -thanked those who came out to speak; noted the City has spent almost $2 million dollars this year on CAHOOTS. MOTION: Councilor Groves, seconded by Councilor Clark, moved to extend the public comment period by 45 minutes to give more people a chance to testify. Council Discussion: • Councilor Leech -asked if the speaking time could be reduced from two and a half minutes to one minute to accommodate more speakers. • Councilor Groves -noted people had invested a lot of time to come speak to Council. MOTION TO SUBSTITUE: Councilor Keating moved to substitute 45 minutes to 30 minutes, reducing the time to one minute per speaker. Motion not seconded. Council Discussion: • Councilor Yeh -noted the difficulty of shortening prepared comments when allotted times change during the meeting. VOTE ON MAIN MOTION: 7:1 PASSED IN FAVOR: Kashinsky, Zelenka, Yeh, Clark, Evans, Leech, and Groves. OPPOSED: Keating. Council Discussion: • Councilor Kashinsky-noted the value of the CAHOOTS program to the community. • Councilor Leech -noted her appreciation for everyone who came out to speak; noted she will be working to restore CAHOOTS services. • Councilor Keating -noted he was trying to hear from the maximum numbers of speakers while respecting staffs time; expressed sadness over the loss of CAHOOTS; noted mobile crisis units, while valuable, are not a direct replacement for CAHOOTS. 42. Sarah Kerr-Daly-spoke in favor of reinstating the CAHOOTS contract. 43. Tiffany Monroe -spoke in favor of repealing the fire service fee and aligning the budget with existing revenues. 44. Kelsey Moore -spoke in favor of reinstating the CAHOOTS contract. 45. Katie Coy -spoke in favor of reinstating the CAHOOTS contract. 46. John Barofsky-spoke about the difficulty of the upcoming budget cycle. 47. Nick Austin -spoke in favor of reinstating the CAHOOTS contract. 48. Kaci Spoor -spoke in favor of reinstating the CAHOOTS contract. 49. Phil Farrington -spoke in favor of a review of city services to ensure transparency. 50. Greg Erwin -spoke about the need for collaboration between the business community and City leadership. 51. Travis Johannes -spoke in favor of reinstating the CAHOOTS contract. 5 2. Andrew Simrin -spoke in favor of reinstating the CAHOOTS contract. 53. Lindsey Shields -spoke in favor ofreinstating the CAHOOTS contract. 54. Jasmine Hatmaker -spoke in favor of reinstating the CAHOOTS contract. 55. Brittany Quick Warner -spoke about fiscal responsibility and the need for transparency and public engagement in the budget process. 56. Erik Parrish -spoke against the fire service fee. 57. John Williams -spoke in favor of decriminalizing psychedelics. 58. Mika Scott -spoke in favor ofreinstating the CAHOOTS contract. 59. Mark Peabody -spoke in favor of reinstating the CAHOOTS contract. 60. Linda Ague -spoke in favor of funding the library. Mayor Knudson adjourned the meeting at 10:29 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Katie LaSala City Recorder (Recorded by Cherish Bradshaw J Link to the webcast of this City Council meeting here.