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HomeMy WebLinkAbout250618 WSMINUTES Eugene City Council Work Session Eugene, Oregon 97401 June 18, 2025 12:00 p.m. Councilors Present: Eliza Kashinsky, Matt Keating, Alan Zelenka, Jennifer Yeh, Mike Clark, Greg Evans, Lyndsie Leech, and Randy Groves Mayor Knudson opened the June 18, 2025, Eugene City Council Work Session in a virtual format. 1. WORK SESSION: Police Auditor's Office and Civilian Review Board Annual Reports Interim Police Auditor, Lindsey Foltz, provided the Police Auditor's Office annual report. Councilor Discussion: • Councilor Clark -noted the presentation was clear and easy to understand; asked staff to clarify what a blue team report is. • Councilor Keating -asked staff to confirm the number of complaint calls in the last year; asked if the number provided represents unique callers or repeat callers; asked staff for future annual reports to provide more information about the complaints that resulted in an action. • Councilor Zelenka -asked staff to explain the vehicle pursuit policy; asked staff to explain intake information provided in the slide presentation; noted the number of internal complaints indicates trust in the auditor's office and process. Civilian Review Board Chair, Jose Cortez, and Vice Chair, Carolyn Williams, provided the Civilian Review Board (CRB) annual report. • Councilor Zelenka -thanked the members of the Civilian Review Board for the work they do. 2. WORK SESSION: Public Health Standards City Manager, Sarah Medary, introduced Land Use Supervisor, Reid Verner, who presented information on Public Health Standards. Councilor Discussion: • Councilor Clark -noted the City's decision to promote denser living comes with risks, like placing housing near industrial areas; stated concern over amending the land use code before understanding the risks; stated more data is needed to assess potential risks; noted the need to balance safety with the City's goals to expand manufacturing, grow the economy, increase wage and strengthen the tax base. • Councilor Groves -recognized the challenges in obtaining outside assistance with this assessment; encouraged to hear the University of Michigan may be involved; asked if there are internal staff capable of completing the assessments; believes a solution can be found to allow industrial and residential communities to coexist; stated the need to balance economic needs with protecting public health; asked staff for more information regarding how regulatory intervention failed to prevent the J.H. Baxter situation; noted regulations are insufficient without investigation and enforcement. • Councilor Zelenka -stated the J.H. Baxter situation has multiple responsible parties; believes monitoring bad actors is difficult; stated concern over weakening regulations that may cause more harm in the future; noted environmental protection is not a top concern of the public, which may lead to repeating harmful patterns; stated option one presented is a modest safeguard; noted option two is complementary to option one; is supportive of new high-wage manufacturing jobs but not at the cost of public health. • Councilor Evans -noted addressing these issues is a challenging process; stated many residential areas in his ward were previously industrial; would be in support of code amendments after the hazards risk analysis is complete. • Councilor Leech -stated appreciation for the careful and thorough approach to this work; asked staff if there are steps that can be taken while the analysis study is in process; noted community concerns over fueling and transfer stations being permitted; suggested a temporary buffer zone for such projects; asked staff if there is a way to create a more refined category list for hazards; stated support for moving forward with understanding and strengthening the City's ability to control what is built within city limits; noted concern for the broad use categories in zone verification. • Councilor Groves -asked staff to provide an estimated timeline for the hazard analysis study; stated private industry has no regulatory authority; stated regulation is the responsibility of the government. • Councilor Zelenka -stated that the business community needs to play a bigger role in the process and cannot rely solely on the government to regulate and oversee. • Councilor Clark -noted J.H. Baxter was not a member of the Chamber of Commerce. MOTION: Councilor Evans, seconded by Councilor Leech, moved to direct the City Manager to draft land use code amendments to require that an applicant demonstrate prior to the issuance of the City development permits that either 1) the applicant has been issued all necessary licenses and permits for pollution control agencies like Lane Regional Air Protection Agency (LRAPA) and Department of Environmenta Quality (DEQ), or 2) the applicant has applied for necessary license and permits and permits and licenses are likely to be issued. VOTE: 8:0 PASSED IN FAVOR: Kashinsky, Keating, Zelenka, Yeh, Clark, Evans, Leech, and Groves OPPOSED: None MOTION: Councilor Evans, seconded by Councilor Leech, moved to direct the City Manager, upon completion of the Hazard and Risk analysis study, to draft land use code amendments informed by the results of the hazard and risk analysis. Councilor Discussion: • Councilor Clark -stated the motion should not be voted on until after Council receives information from the analysis. • Councilor Groves -stated more information is needed before making responsible decisions. VOTE: 5:3 PASSED IN FAVOR: Kashinsky, Keating, Zelenka, Yeh, and Leech OPPOSED: Clark, Evans and Groves Mayor Knudson adjourned the meeting at 1:35 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Katie LaSala City Recorder (Recorded by Sara McKinney) Link to the web cast of this City Council meeting here .