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HomeMy WebLinkAboutItem 2A: Approval of City Council Minutes ECC UGENE ITY OUNCIL AIS GENDA TEM UMMARY Approval of Council Minutes Meeting Date: March 12, 2012 Agenda Item Number: 2A Department: City Manager’s Office Staff Contact: Kim Young www.eugene-or.gov Contact Telephone Number: 541-682-5232 ISSUE STATEMENT This is a routine item to approve City Council minutes. SUGGESTED MOTION Move to approve the minutes of the November 30, 2011, Work Session, December 12, 2011, Work Session, December 14, 2011, Work Session, February 10, 2012, Retreat. ATTACHMENTS A. November 30, 2011, Work Session B. December 12, 2011, Work Session C. December 14, 2011, Work Session D. February 10, 2012, Retreat FOR MORE INFORMATION Staff Contact: Kim Young Telephone: 541-682-5232 Staff E-Mail: Kim.A.Young@ci.eugene.or.us S:\CMO\2012 Council Agendas\M120312\S1203122A.doc ATTACHMENT A M I N U T E S Eugene City Council McNutt Room—City Hall 777 Pearl Street—Eugene, Oregon November 30, 2011 5:30 p.m. COUNCILORS PRESENT: Betty Taylor, George Brown, Andrea Ortiz, George Poling, Mike Clark, Alan Zelenka, Pat Farr. COUNCILORS ABSENT: Chris Pryor. Her Honor Mayor Kitty Piercy called the November 30, 2011, work session of the Eugene City Council to order. Mayor Piercy read the following resolution into the record: A RESOLUTION RECOGNIZING RICHARD LARIVIERE FOR HIS SERVICE TO THE UNIVERSITY OF OREGON AND THE GREATER COMMUNITY The City Council of the City of Eugene finds that: A. Richard Lariviere was served with enthusiasm and distinction as president of the University of Oregon since July 1, 2009. B. President Lariviere has been a partner, mentor, and friend to individuals across the community and region. C. President Lariviere has, through his words and actions, demonstrated a deep respect for community values around social equity, economic prosperity, and environmental well-being. D. President Lariviere has been a strong voice for excellence and innovation at the University of Oregon and within our larger community. E. President Lariviere has been an enduring presence at community-building events, joining with us in the Eugene Celebration and other activities, and has worked vigilantly with Eugene’s Mayor Kitty Piercy and the Eugene City Council, neighborhood leaders, University of Oregon students, and business interests to help ensure the livability of our city. F. President Lariviere has championed life-long learning and expanded access to education, leading a collaborative effort with Lane Community College and local school districts to make all institutions equal partners in student success. He has visited classrooms throughout the region to support students at all grade levels and met regularly with colleagues to map resources, identify barriers, and develop support resources. MINUTES—Eugene City Council November 30, 2011 Page 1 Work Session G. President Lariviere has made it a prominent part of his administration to be a good neighbor, bolstering the university’s accessibility to our community’s residents. NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF EUGENE, a Municipal Corporation of the State of Oregon, as follows: We, the Eugene City Council, extend our appreciation to Richard Lariviere and hereby adopt this resolution expressing our gratitude for his commitment to the University of Oregon and to the larger community. th The foregoing resolution adopted the 30 day of November, 2011. Ms. Taylor, seconded by Mr. Brown, moved to adopt the resolution. Councilors expressed general regret at the loss of Dr. Lariviere and commended his commitment to increased educational access and his work in the community. The motion passed unanimously, 7:0. A. WORK SESSION: Metro Plan Boundary Adjustment Proposal The council was joined by Alissa Hansen of the Planning Division, who provided a PowerPoint presentation on a boundary adjustment proposal to the Eugene-Springfield Metropolitan General Area Plan (Metro Plan) initiated by the Lane County Board of County Commissioners. Planning Director Lisa Gardner was also present for the item. Ms. Hansen shared a series of maps that illustrated the existing jurisdictional authority, the jurisdictional authorities proposed, and the boundaries as they would appear if the adjustment was approved. Ms. Hansen then called attention to Attachment B of the Agenda Item Summary for the item, which provided an overview of the Metro Plan amendment review process and identified current authorities for zoning and land use administration inside city limits (city), between city limits and the urban growth boundary (UGB) (city administering jointly adopted code), between UGB and Metro Plan boundary (Lane County), and outside the Metro Plan boundaries (Lane County). She reviewed the map included in the attachment entitled Boundary Relationships. Ms. Hansen described the two-phased approach proposed by Lane County, which would address the Springfield side of the map first and the Eugene side of the map following that. She shared maps showing the impacts of the phased approach. Ms. Hansen reviewed highlights of the testimony received to date, which included concerns about drinking water source protection, consistency with the Metro Plan text, the lack of benefits to Eugene and Springfield, concerns about an unequal decision making process for the Eugene phase, and a desire for a more comprehensive approach to Metro Plan changes. She said the Lane County Planning Commission recommended the proposal be denied; the Springfield Planning Commission forwarded a recommendation of approval with a condition that its concerns about the drinking water protection issue MINUTES—Eugene City Council November 30, 2011 Page 2 Work Session be addressed through an intergovernmental agreement; and the Eugene Planning Commission recommended approval of the proposal. Ms. Hansen shared a timeline for the Springfield phase, indicating that a public hearing was scheduled for early 2012 with separate deliberation and action to follow; the timeline for the Eugene phase was not established. City Attorney Emily Jerome added that if the three bodies failed to reach consensus, the issue would be referred to the Metropolitan Policy Committee; if that body could not reach agreement, the proposal would fail. Councilors asked questions clarifying the information presented. Mayor Piercy solicited council information requests. Mr. Poling determined from City Attorney Jerome that the council would have to consider the evidence in the record of the Joint Planning Commissions unless the three jurisdictions agreed to reopen the record. Mr. Poling asked that the council be provided with the minutes of the Joint Planning Commissions deliberation prior to the public hearing. Ms. Hansen agreed. Mr. Brown requested any arguments from the County in support of the proposal as he hoped to see an explanation of why the two cities should give up decision-making authority for directly abutting land and why authority for decision-making would shrink from 19 people to 5 people. Ms. Hansen agreed, and directed Mr. Brown to the Lane County web site for the information available to date. Mr. Zelenka asked if the Eugene Airport would be incorporated into the urban growth boundary (UGB). Ms. Gardner acknowledged the issue had been raised previously and staff was looking into the pros and cons of including the airport inside the UGB. He suggested that staff integrate that process into Envision Eugene. Mr. Clark asked for information about the number of County residents living in the area between the UGB and Metro Plan boundary for both Eugene and Springfield. He also requested information about the percentage of Lane County Planning Commissioners appointed by previous boards as opposed to the percentage been appointed by the current board. B. WORK SESSION: Private Parking Lot Operators—Fines and Practices The council was joined by Parking Manager Jeff Petry, who presented on the fines and practices of local private parking lot operators and responded to questions submitted by the council. Councilors asked questions clarifying the information presented. Mayor Piercy solicited council comments and questions. Ms. Ortiz expressed concern that private parking operators checked the licenses of vehicles in their lots to see if they had outstanding citations associated with past violations at another company property and towed the vehicles if they found a match. Mr. Petry said he spoke to a representative of Diamond Parking, who indicated to him that the company was not currently towing vehicles. He did not know when the company’s policy had changed. Mr. Clark determined from City Attorney Jerome that the City had the authority to regulate private lot operators’ enforcement practices and the fines they assessed. MINUTES—Eugene City Council November 30, 2011 Page 3 Work Session Mr. Brown suggested Eugene might want to take an approach similar to that used by the City of Portland regarding the violations assessed by private lot operators. Mr. Petry distinguished between a time limit violation and a failure to pay violation; Eugene’s time limit citation fine was $16 and a failure to pay violation was $40. The fees charged by private operators were generally higher. Mr. Zelenka requested a fee schedule for City of Eugene violations and a fee schedule for private lot violations for the purposes of comparison. He also requested more information about the Portland model. Mr. Petry said he would provide the council with a link to the Portland program’s Web page. Responding to a question from Ms. Taylor, City Attorney Jerome said people using a private lot implicitly agreed to the terms and conditions of that use by parking in the lot. The citation issued by the operator was actually a bill; a private operator could send the individual receiving the bill to small claims court. Ms. Taylor wanted to protect people from what she believed was persecution related to their use of private lots and asked how people defended themselves when harassed by collection agencies employed by private operators. City Attorney Jerome acknowledged that such individuals might have to go to small claims court. City Manager Ruiz suggested that the situation was no different from any other business transaction; one was buying the right to park on a private lot and if one did not pay the fee, the lot operator could pursue payment. Ms. Taylor continued to be opposed to private parties issuing citations and wanted the council to see options regarding what it could do to protect people from towing and being harassed by parking lot operators. She wanted options for doing something about predatory towing and private lot abuses. Ms. Ortiz wanted to see more standardization among the practices of private lot operators. She asked that the City involved the private lot operators in any such effort. Mr. Clark questioned whether the City could institute an intervention that precluded the need for a resident to go to small claims court and requested a scope of work for that. City Manager Ruiz said staff would send out the link on the Portland model, review the discussion, and determine if there was a path forward to share with the council. Mayor Piercy adjourned the meeting at 1:26 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Beth Forrest City Recorder (Recorded by Kimberly Young) MINUTES—Eugene City Council November 30, 2011 Page 4 Work Session ATTACHMENT B M I N U T E S Eugene City Council McNutt Room—City Hall 777 Pearl Street—Eugene, Oregon December 12, 2011 5:30 p.m. COUNCILORS PRESENT: Betty Taylor, George Brown, Andrea Ortiz, George Poling, Mike Clark, Chris Pryor, Alan Zelenka, Pat Farr. Her Honor Mayor Kitty Piercy called the December 12, 2011, work session of the Eugene City Council to order. A. WORK SESSION: Occupy Eugene City Manager Jon Ruiz introduced the item. He emphasized the ongoing cooperation between the City of Eugene staff and representatives of Occupy Eugene. At the request of City Manager Ruiz, Police Chief Pete Kerns discussed the experience of the Eugene Police Department (EPD) with the Occupy Eugene encampment in Washington-Jefferson Park. He noted the growing number of homeless people now living in the camp. They included homeless youth, homeless people who received services in Lane County, and homeless people who suffered from drug and alcohol addictions, severe mental health afflictions, or a combination of the two. He reported that as the encampment’s population grew, incidents of disorderly conduct and assault also grew. There was a steady increase in the demand for homeless services. Chief Kerns shared examples of the problems EPD officers were encountering when they toured the encampment, which included illegal warming fires, illegal drug use, assault, runaways living in the camp, known sexual offenders living in the camp, and stolen property sales. Campers were carrying knives and axes openly and on occasion those implements were used as weapons. Tents were grouped together with tarps overhead, obscuring the view of officers responding to calls for service. Chief Kerns expressed concern about the safety of officers who entered the encampment, which he characterized as an unpredictable environment. Chief Kerns acknowledged that many things had gone well with the encampment but other issues were very difficult to deal with given the nature of the people residing at the camp. Building Official Stuart Ramsing shared his findings from a tour of the encampment and reported on the building, fire, and electric code violations he discovered and the remediation that occurred. He suggested there was a potential of hazard to the community from the structures that had been constructed on site, which could blow into the street. Councilors asked questions clarifying the details of Mr. Ramsing’s findings. MINUTES—Eugene City Council December 12, 2011 Page 1 Work Session City Manager Ruiz reminded the council of his three objectives: 1) ensure free speech rights were protected; 2) maintain a safe and healthy environment for Occupy Eugene participants, campers, City staff, and the general public, and 3) work collaboratively with Occupy Eugene to find new ways to address homelessness in the community. He thought the Occupy movement had raised interesting possibilities for addressing the problem of homelessness. He believed that one of the positive aspects of the movement was the respect and dignity it demonstrated for the community’s homeless, which he thought worth emulating. City Manager Ruiz suggested the council engage Occupy Eugene and the community at large to explore the lessons of Occupy Eugene. He recommended the council form a community task force to work over the next few months to identify strategies to address the needs of the homeless. He acknowledged that health and safety were still concerns for the current encampment and he was also concerned about the potential of injury or illness at the site. City Manager Ruiz reviewed the four options for proceeding he had e-mailed to the council the previous weekend. City Manager Ruiz recommended that the council not extend the exemption to Section 4.815 of the Eugene Code and that it provide transition services to the homeless until the completion of the task force’s work. Those services could include expansion of the City’s car camping program to include tents. He said regardless of the council’s decision, the City would continue to work with Occupy Eugene. Mayor Piercy solicited council comments and questions. Mr. Zelenka complimented City staff and representatives of Occupy Eugene for their mutual cooperation. He shared Chief Kerns’ concerns about health and safety. He offered the following modification to City Manager Ruiz’s recommendation for consideration at the regular meeting held later in the evening: Modified Option 3 Summary: extend the camping exemption and provide transition services until the completion of the task force’s work. 1) Mayor would immediately form a community task force to report back to the council within 90 days to identify strategies on homeless ness for council consideration. The task force could include council members, Occupy Eugene representatives, nonprofit agency representatives, and other community members. 2) Hire St. Vincent de Paul to lead an effort to mobilize and coordinate transitional human services for homeless campers, and consult with OE about the security and management of the Occupy Eugene camp. These transition human services will not replicate the Occupy Eugene camp experience; however, they could provide opportunities for Occupy Eugene homeless campers to continue to receive basic services, such as: a legal place to camp/stay (see 3c and 3d below), food, clothing, and medical services; while the task force develops recommendations for a more sustainable and effective provision of services. 3) Temporarily increase the funding for the car camping program, and expand the programs scope to include legal tent camping on sites when appropriate. Currently, three vehicles are allowed under certain conditions in parking lots of religious institutions, business or public entities. 4) Create a short-term site, like an Egan warming center, for the rest of the winter specifically for chronic homeless with behavioral and addiction issues; essentially, a secure temporary MINUTES—Eugene City Council December 12, 2011 Page 2 Work Session wet housing pilot program. The facility would be open seven days per week, but with hours restricted to 5 p.m. to 8 a.m. and staffed by nonprofit agencies and trained community volunteers. 5) Extend the camping exemption for xx days to allow full implementation of transition services. 6) Occupy Eugene, nonprofit agencies, and city staff are continuing to meet to discuss these possibilities. The cost for transition services, such as these is likely to exceed 100,000. City manager will provide funding options at your Wednesday, December 14, 2011, work session. Mr. Farr determined from City Manager Ruiz that the costs of transition services could reach $50,000 to $150,000, depending on the extent of the services provided. Mr. Farr observed that $150,000 was approximately the same amount the City provided to human services each year in supplemental funding. He noted the current budget shortfall faced by many current human service providers and expressed some dismay at the proposed expenditure given the demand for such services. Mr. Clark reiterated his belief that the original exemption was a bad idea. He did not believe the City had to waive its camping ban so people could protest. The exemption was justified by supporters on the basis that camping was necessary to the statement being made. He expressed concern about the City’s costs of managing the impact of Occupy Eugene and suggested that if the council had first discussed how much it was willing to spend on Occupy Eugene the outcome would have been different. Mr. Clark questioned why no one was charged with theft of services when the illegal electrical connection was made. Chief Kerns acknowledged that the City could have issued a citation for theft but the connection was discontinued when the matter was brought to the attention of Occupy Eugene representatives. He said that staff had to make such discretionary choices all the time. Mr. Clark asked if Occupy Eugene had applied for permits for the structures that had been built. Mr. Ramsing said no. City Attorney Glenn Klein said if the council decided to extend the exemption, Planning and Development Department would have to pursue enforcement of the Building Code. City Manager Ruiz emphasized the cooperative approach the City had taken to Occupy Eugene to this point. Mr. Clark asked staff to provide the council with information about other ordinances it decided against enforcing at the Occupy Eugene site. City Manager Ruiz said he could provide a list of areas where City staff had used its discretion. Mr. Clark asked what threshold action would compel the manager to shut down the encampment. City Manager Ruiz said he did not think a threshold had been reached yet, although he acknowledged that conditions continued to deteriorate and he believed they would continue to do so as the camp population increased. If the council supported an additional exemption, the city would need to put some resources into the encampment to keep occupants safe. Ms. Ortiz requested information about the costs the City incurred responding to the June 1997 protest. Ms. Ortiz agreed the human services providers all needed additional funding but pointed out allocations to the providers were made by an intergovernmental committee, not the City alone. MINUTES—Eugene City Council December 12, 2011 Page 3 Work Session Mr. Poling was unable to support Mr. Zelenka’s proposal because he perceived it continued current conditions at the camp. He did not want to commit the City to any additional expenditure without knowing the source of funding and other affected services. He agreed with the remarks of Mr. Farr and Mr. Clark. He suggested if homeless was the issue of concern, the mayor and manager could have placed the topic on a council agenda long ago. He believed the chief’s daily reports were incomplete because officers could not be the site all the time. Mr. Poling was concerned about the safety of the City’s police officers and fire fighters at the site. He said the City could work on the homeless problem, but Occupy Eugene did not need to camp for that to occur. Responding to a question from Mr. Brown, Chief Kerns indicated he heard anecdotal suggestions that Occupy Eugene had reduced crime levels downtown but had no statistics to support or refute them. Mr. Brown speculated that the troublesome element in the camp would be a problem no matter where they were. He suggested that if the homeless were scattered across the community they could be subject to violence. He found the camp peaceful and orderly on a recent visit and viewed the operations of the kitchen, which appeared to be well-run. He pointed out there were never guarantees against violence or serious illness. Ms. Taylor favored free speech and freedom of protest but she did not think the council envisioned the encampment would turn into a homeless camp. She said if the council had been planning on such a camp more thought should have gone into the drawbacks, advantages, and costs of such an approach. She acknowledged she would not have voted to establish a homeless camp in Washington-Jefferson Park but did not think the City could make it disappear now it was established. Ms. Taylor reported that she had walked the length of the park and questioned how much it was actually used by other people given she had seen only two people outside of those in the encampment. She understood that Occupy Eugene was receiving donations and suggested that would reduce the funding needed from the City. City Manager Ruiz reported that the encampment had relied on volunteers and donations for food and portable toilets. The City’s expenses included police overtime, some other City staff time, dumpsters, and fencing. Mr. Farr requested information about where the water from the wastewater barrels at the camp was being disposed of. Mr. Farr emphasized the community’s long history of work to reduce homelessness in Eugene. Mr. Zelenka did not think the City was going to solve homelessness but he hoped to provide some basic services to the homeless. He did not think the City had reached the threshold that would cause it to end the encampment but acknowledged conditions at the encampment could worsen. He feared that an abrupt end to the encampment could add to the City’s costs. Responding to a question from Mr. Clark, City Manager Ruiz said his interpretation of the council’s direction was that the encampment would remain open unless immediate health and safety concerns arose, upon which he had the authority to close it. Until this point, he had not found immediate health and safety concerns that required him to take that action. He acknowledged he did not have specific criteria for making such a decision and suggested it would be a judgment call based on conditions. He thought conditions at the site were deteriorating and would continue to deteriorate so unless those at the encampment were transitioned to other situations or the City increased its resources to make the camp safer and healthier. MINUTES—Eugene City Council December 12, 2011 Page 4 Work Session Mayor Piercy distinguished between the City’s costs related to the Occupy Eugene protest marches and the City’s costs related to the encampment. She said the pressures of homelessness had been building prior to the Occupy movement and suggested there was a synergy in their coming together as had occurred all across the country. She believed the Occupy Eugene participants wanted to do more than talk about societal inequities in country. She suggested that the City could use Occupy Eugene as an opportunity to build more capacity in the system. While she liked the concepts behind Mr. Zelenka’s modification, Ms. Ortiz wanted to ensure that it incorporated the concept of accountability on the part of Occupy Eugene organizers. She invited Occupy Eugene to contribute to the costs of maintaining the encampment and wanted to know what Occupy Eugene was doing to make it a safer place. She did not support continuing the current situation indefinitely. Mr. Poling believed the encampment had reached the threshold mentioned by Mr. Clark. He suggested that City Manager Ruiz would have been criticized by many councilors if he closed the encampment without council consultation. He agreed with Ms. Taylor about the importance of free speech but did not think that was what the discussion was about. He believed the City needed to continue to work on homeless issue. However, he also believed it was time for the camp to end. Mr. Poling did not think the City’s past experiments in operating a homeless camp were successful and did not think another homeless camp would be successful. Mr. Brown thought the Occupy Eugene encampment represented an unusual unique situation. He did not think that Occupy Eugene had envisioned that it would be joined by hundreds of homeless people. He thought that Occupy Eugene had done a good job taking care of the homeless and helping them take care of themselves. He acknowledged the encampment did not look good and many residents were angry. He did not think they should be angry at the homeless, who were the victims, or their rescuers, who were highlighting the system flaws that enabled homelessness. Mr. Brown suggested the City had an opportunity to move to “Square 3”; evicting the campers would take the community back to “Square 1” because people’s hopes would be shattered. He advocated for an extension while the human service agencies figured out the problem. Mr. Pryor suggested that both the manager and Mr. Zelenka’s proposals could help the council identify the next steps and preserve what had worked well with the Occupy Eugene encampment, particularly its work with homeless youth. He did not think the current encampment location worked for the long-term. Mr. Pryor believed Eugene was ready to work with Occupy Eugene on solutions in company with the service providers. Mr. Clark indicated his opposition to the further expenditure of public funds to subsidize a protest. He believed continuing the encampment could lead to catastrophic outcomes, and he did not think it was responsible for the City to enable that. Mr. Clark asked that those offering solutions that cost money be prepared to identify a corresponding offset in the budget. Mr. Poling suggested that if the City had to close the camp, the council be prepared to stand behind the Police Department for the actions it would have to take because everyone in the community would want to second-guess those actions. Ms. Ortiz concurred. She would support all actions the EPD took that were within department policy. B. WORK SESSION: Boards and Commissions MINUTES—Eugene City Council December 12, 2011 Page 5 Work Session Due to a lack of time, the item was postponed. 2. CONSENT CALENDAR A. Approval of City Council Minutes - October 24, 2011, Work Session - October 26, 2011, Work Session B. Approval of Tentative Working Agenda Ms. Taylor, seconded by Mr. Brown, moved to approve the items on the Consent Calendar. The motion passed unanimously, 8:0. Mayor Piercy adjourned the meeting at 7:01 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Beth Forrest City Recorder (Recorded by Kimberly Young) MINUTES—Eugene City Council December 12, 2011 Page 6 Work Session ATTACHMENT C M I N U T E S Eugene City Council McNutt Room—City Hall 777 Pearl Street—Eugene, Oregon December 14, 2011 Noon COUNCILORS PRESENT: Betty Taylor, George Brown, Andrea Ortiz, George Poling, Mike Clark, Chris Pryor, Alan Zelenka, Pat Farr. Her Honor Mayor Kitty Piercy called the December 14, 2011, work session of the Eugene City Council to order and noted the agenda had been amended with the addition of a work session on Occupy Eugene. A. WORK SESSION: Occupy Eugene City Manager Jon Ruiz reminded the council that it directed him to meet with representatives of Occupy Eugene to discuss their response to the motion speaking to the future of the encampment that was proposed by Mr. Zelenka on December 12. He called the council’s attention to the responses the council received earlier that day from Michael Carrigan and Lauren Regan on behalf of Occupy Eugene, which reaffirmed the consensus of the General Assembly of Occupy Eugene to remain at Washington-Jefferson Park until a permanent camp was established. City Manager Ruiz reported that Occupy Eugene had no interest in working on a transition plan that did not result in a permanent camp and Occupy Eugene representatives feared any interruption of the camp would mean occupants would lose the spirit of the current camp. Occupy Eugene advocated for a third-party entity to provide outside reports and advice. Police Chief Pete Kerns reported that Occupy Eugene was paying for gray water disposal and agreed to pay the costs of the garage removal previously paid for by the City. Chief Kerns reviewed a list of items proposed by the City to Occupy Eugene intended to improve the safety of camp occupants and Eugene Police Department (EPD) officers. The list included a prohibition on structures other than tents and called for tents to meet fire safety requirements. Organizers were asked to resituate the tents on the sites so that they were no longer in clusters covered with tarps. The City also asked that bows, crossbows, firearms, hatches, axes, and knives be added to the list of weapons prohibited on the site. Chief Kerns acknowledged that Occupy Eugene expressed concern about a prohibition on knives and hatches and agreed to further discussion. Occupy Eugene expressed no opposition on prohibitions on alcoholic beverages and controlled substances, agreed that all propane, kerosene, and gasoline heaters or generators must be code-compliant, and did not debate about compliance with other State and local laws. Chief Kerns reported that Occupy Eugene had asked the City to allow warming fires on the site; allowance of such fires would require a change the City Code. Chief Kerns said he recommended to Occupy Eugene representatives that they establish a clearly marked area for children’s tents and prohibit any adults from being with the children unless they were related or MINUTES—Eugene City Council December 14, 2011 Page 1 Work Session had status as a guardian. He proposed that the City erect construction lamps for increased night time safety. City Manager Ruiz spoke to Occupy Eugene’s desire for open fires, saying that request could be accommodated immediately if the council unanimously agreed to consider an ordinance changing the code. Such an action required a public hearing and six councilors must vote affirmatively for the ordinance to take effect. He called attention to a staff-prepared ordinance provided to councilors that amended the code to allow open fires at the Occupy Eugene site. City Manager Ruiz recommended that the council allow fires for humanitarian purposes if it decided to grant the extension. City Attorney Klein called the council’s attention to another staff-prepared ordinance amending the code to allow a tent to be defined as a vehicle for purposes of the Car Camping Program and indicated the process to move forward was the same as described by City Manager Ruiz for the ordinance regarding open fires. City Attorney Klein then discussed the legal requirements for establishing a permanent camp in Eugene, reporting that such a camp could only be established using the City’s conditional use permit (CUP) process, which took about 120 days in the absence of appeals to the Land Use Board of Appeals. He estimated it would take four months from the date of the completed application to approval. Such a use could be located only on C-4 or I-2 property. The existing site was zoned Public Lands. It would require a code amendment to change the zoning. City Attorney Klein estimated that process would take four months. City Manager Ruiz contrasted the staff-prepared motion to Mr. Zelenka’s motion of December 12. Chief Kerns responded to a question previously asked by Ms. Ortiz regarding the City’s costs for the events of June 1, 1997, reporting that the police response cost $20,000, which would be $32,000 in today’s dollars. Ms. Ortiz requested the cost of associated lawsuits for a better a sense of the overall costs associated with that event. Mayor Piercy solicited council comments and questions. Mr. Clark suggested it was not productive to discuss a transition when Occupy Eugene was not interested in such a transition. It was clear to him that the community that had been created was the protest, and in its absence the organizers were unwilling to do anything else; the encampment was the point. It would require a lengthy process to establish a permanent camp if a site could even be identified. Mr. Clark was unwilling to wait for months while Occupy Eugene developed a solution it found acceptable. Mr. Farr said if the proposed motion passed he would support both staff-prepared ordinances. He was concerned about amount of money the council was being asked to spend on the transition. Mr. Poling indicated there were elements of the motion he could support but acknowledged the considerable constituent feedback he received demanding the camp be relocated or shut down. He understood the issues involved and sympathized with both the homeless and the original intent of the Occupy movement. Mr. Poling agreed there things that were wrong. Some of them the council could address locally and others it could not. Mr. Poling expressed support for maintaining the December 15 deadline while the council continued to work on issues the City could address without taking money from the parks, Buckley House, and the Road Fund. He believed there were more residents counting on those funds than there were camping in MINUTES—Eugene City Council December 14, 2011 Page 2 Work Session the park. They were demanding the council spend their money wisely and did not consider the proposal a wise use of money. Mr. Poling pointed out that local media polling indicated overwhelming support for ending the encampment. Many residents who contacted him said they initially supported the encampment but no longer did. He also spoke to many experts who indicated such camps do not work to solve the homeless problem. Mr. Poling believed it was time for the council to do what must be done to reclaim the park as well as to reclaim its focus on what it was supposed to be doing rather than being guided by outside parties. Mr. Poling disagreed with City Manager Ruiz’s desire to defer a decision to end the encampment to the council rather than end it on his own but did not blame him. He said the council created the situation and now needed to fix it. Mayor Piercy suggested that residents held strong positions, both pro and con, about the basic political principles espoused by Occupy Eugene and that those feelings had continued even when the homeless element was added should surprise no one. She discounted media polls as nonscientific and suggested they were responded to by people who tended to be against things. Mayor Piercy said the homeless issue had been a long-time problem and long before the encampment was established the City was receiving complaints about the homeless from all over the community. Occupy Eugene had tried to address those problems in its own way. The City was now faced with what it would do as a result of that work. She did not think the issue was supposed to be politicized or a taking sides situation but one that called on all councilors to use their deepest wisdom in addressing the social issue of homelessness. Ms. Ortiz maintained that media polls were responded to by those who had homes, computers, and televisions to watch, and were not working two or three jobs. She considered such polls a snapshot of people’s opinions in time. The input she received was 80 percent in favor of maintaining the encampment. Ms. Ortiz had no objections to continuing the encampment because it brought attention to the problems of the homeless. She acknowledged the cost involved and was challenged by the recommendation to take money away from Buckley House. However, she supported the manager’s recommendation. Mr. Brown acknowledged that the last homeless camp did not work but suggested that did not mean another homeless a camp might not succeed now given the community’s support for the Occupy Eugene encampment. He advocated for future discussion on the subject. Mr. Brown asked that the recommendations of the Council Committee on Human Services Funding be moved up on the council’s agenda to inform future discussions of funding for homeless services. Mr. Zelenka agreed with the mayor that there were strong feelings about Occupy Eugene on all sides. He also discounted media polls as meaningless and nonscientific. He believed that Occupy Eugene had highlighted the issue of homelessness. Before Occupy Eugene the homeless were scattered and hidden. The problems and costs remained, but they were just hidden and in different places. He suggested the council now had an opportunity to make an incremental difference in the homeless issue. Mr. Zelenka agreed with Mr. Poling that experts did not believe a permanent camp would work because the dysfunctional occupants would take over. He wished Occupy Eugene success but he was skeptical about the outcome. He reconfirmed the timing of the CUP application process with City Attorney Klein. MINUTES—Eugene City Council December 14, 2011 Page 3 Work Session Ms. Taylor concurred with Occupy Eugene’s suggestion that the council postpone its decision to January 9 because she felt the proposal was too sudden for people to come up with a plan. She also pointed out the weather would be colder in January and questioned what would change between now and the deadline, which she did not support. She asked staff to define “transitional services.” City Manager Ruiz envisioned that the City would develop more near-term ways to help people who were camping move to legal shelters. He pointed to the staff recommendation to expand the camping ordinance to define tents as vehicles and to establish a temporary wet housing facility as examples of transitional services. In the meantime, the task force would develop other strategies. Ms. Taylor questioned whether there would be sufficient legal shelters. She supported the recommendation to expand the car camping program. Mr. Pryor commended Occupy Eugene for drawing attention to the plight of the homelessness. He did not want to return to a situation where the homeless went back into the bushes and under the bridges. However, he had been clear with representatives of Occupy Eugene that he did not support a permanent camp. He wanted to work with Occupy Eugene in a meaningful and effective way but did not think a permanent homeless camp was the solution. Mr. Pryor said that raised the question of the purpose of the extension and its results. He did not support an extension intended to provide time for a permanent camp location to be found. He did support an extension that allowed time for the homeless now living at the Occupy Eugene encampment to transition into more appropriate situations. Mayor Piercy observed that she was not hearing sufficient council support for a permanent camp. She interpreted that as meaning that extending the exemption to the camping ban did not mean an extension to create a process for a permanent camp but rather an extension to create time for a transition. Mr. Clark questioned Occupy Eugene’s willingness to leave Washington-Jefferson Park site. He pointed to Occupy Eugene’s Facebook site, where posters had demanded the City work with it to make substantive changes and threatened that if it did not, they would protest where and when they wanted for as long as they wanted. He believed if the council approved the exemption it would be “kicking the can” 45 days down the road days to another impasse. Mr. Clark believed the funding being spent on Occupy Eugene could be much better spent serving the larger community. He pointed out the council had not yet addressed the long-term costs of the police coverage required for Occupy Eugene. Mr. Farr did not think the subject of homelessness was a political issue. He believed it was a human condition issue that transcended politics. Speaking to the subject of media polls, Mr. Farr noted that a scientific poll had been conducted that indicated about 35 percent of Eugene residents approved the City’s expenditures on Occupy Eugene. Mr. Farr noted the community’s long history of work on the homeless, beginning in 1947. He believed that Eugene residents were keenly aware of the problem of homelessness and had done a lot about it. He referred the council and audience to a five-page chronology of the City’s work on homelessness that could be found on his Web site, Forum Lane. Mr. Farr questioned the nexus between the funding proposed and the service to be funded. He suggested that the funding come from the next year’s public safety and human services budgets rather than already funded capital programs. Mr. Brown believed the council had been asked to approve a straightforward, sensible, rational plan for transitioning the homeless now staying at the Occupy Eugene encampment. He did not know or care what the Occupy Eugene organizers would do. He was focused on the needs of the street youth and the homeless. He did not think the council needed to get into the topic of a permanent camp because the task MINUTES—Eugene City Council December 14, 2011 Page 4 Work Session force could discuss that subject. He believed a wet bed facility represented a step forward and would result in a tremendous savings. He suggested the lack of a wet bed facility contributed to the failure of the City’s previous homeless camping program. Mr. Brown expressed concern that 45 days was not sufficient time for a resolution to be reached. Mr. Zelenka agreed with Mr. Farr that the issue regarded the human condition. Speaking to Mr. Brown’s remarks that the task force could discuss a permanent camp, Mr. Zelenka pointed out the lengthy time line associated with that process and concluded that such a camp was not an option with the timeline contemplated. Mr. Zelenka, seconded by Mr. Brown, moved that the council create a community task force on homelessness, to be appointed by the mayor, to develop a set of recommendations over the next 90 days for council consideration, with the task force composed of council members, Occupy Eugene representatives, non-profit agencies, and other community members; Authorize the City Manager to create, or contract, with a non-profit agency for a short- term site, like an Egan Warming Center, for the rest of winter specifically for chronic homeless with behavioral and additional issues that would be open seven days per week from approximately 5 p.m. to 8 a.m.; Authorize the City Manager to contract with one or more nonprofit agencies to lead an effort to mobilize and coordinate transitional human services for homeless who are now camping at Washington-Jefferson Park, including an expansion of the car camping program; Authorize the City Manager to spend up to $300,000 for transitional services for people camped at the Occupy Eugene site and for police and other City services at the Occupy Eugene site, with the first $35,000 coming from Council Contingency, the next $100,000 from funds approved in Supplemental Budget #1 for parks maintenance, the next $100,000 from the funds approved in Supplemental Budget #1 for street maintenance, and the final $65,000 from the funds approved in Supplemental Budget #1 for Buckley House and street gang issues; Amend the council’s November 9 motion to extend the exemption under Section 4.815 of the Eugene Code one final time until noon on January 29 and direct the City Manager to ensure all campsites are removed from Washington-Jefferson Park as soon as practicable after the January 29 ending date; and Direct the City Manager to request that the mayor schedule an emergency meeting of the council to consider revocation of the exemption if the City Manager believes the Occupy Eugene camp poses an immediate or ongoing risk to public health or safety. Responding to a question from Mr. Zelenka about how the City could improve safety at the encampment, City Manager Ruiz reminded the council of the list reviewed by Chief Kerns and anticipated that as the list was implemented safety conditions would improve and the demand on City resources would decrease. Mr. Zelenka reiterated that he was not supportive of extensions intended to lead toward a permanent camp because he believed the time line involved was unrealistic. MINUTES—Eugene City Council December 14, 2011 Page 5 Work Session Mr. Pryor asked Mr. Zelenka what benefit he perceived from extending the camp to January 29. Mr. Zelenka suggested that the added time would allow the council to discuss the potential of a permanent camp. Mr. Pryor was willing to extend the deadline to early January to help in the transition but he did not support the later date because he did not support establishment of a permanent camp. He sought to establish a meaningful transition period that would allow the homeless at the camp to receive services and suggested January 11 instead. Mr. Zelenka and Mr. Brown accepted Mr. Pryor’s suggestion as a friendly amendment to the motion with the expectation that the council would discuss the subject on January 9. Ms. Ortiz supported the earlier date. She asked what would happen if the homeless at the site did not want to transition to another situation. She was not interested in seeking a permanent camp site but did not object to allowing Occupy Eugene to stay in place for a while. She determined from City Attorney Klein that the City did not own any sites that were appropriately zoned for use as a camp. Mr. Clark supported a transition period. He did not think the council could just “slam the door” on Occupy Eugene, although he acknowledged he had heard from many constituents who wanted the City to do just that. While he did not think that was reasonable, he reiterated his concern that the council would find itself in the exact same position in four weeks. He believed the council was capitulating to Occupy Eugene in a way that was both reckless and irresponsible. It was reckless to put more people the encampment in danger because of poor safety conditions and bad weather, and irresponsible to redirect funding already dedicated to other services to help the homeless campers at Occupy Eugene transition to other situations when they refused to. Ms. Taylor pointed out that Occupy Eugene had never asked the City for money but instead relied on donations. She did not support the sources identified for transition assistance and agreed with Mr. Farr that the funding should come from human services. She suggested that “everything is political.” Ms. Taylor moved that the council postpone voting until January 9. The motion died for lack of a second. Mr. Brown clarified he was not advocating for a permanent camp right now. He mentioned the possibility because of the community’s past experience because he thought it might be a discussion topic for the community task force. Mr. Brown perceived the manager’s proposal as calm, reasonable, and sensible. It addressed an unusual situation that the council had not faced before. He did not think that it was capitulation to work with Occupy Eugene. He emphasized the transitional nature of the proposal. He reiterated his concerns about the proposed deadline and suggested the council be prepared to extend the deadline another 45 days. Mr. Clark, seconded by Mr. Poling, moved to extend the meeting for 15 minutes. The motion passed unanimously. Mr. Poling, seconded by Ms. Taylor, moved to separate the motion. The motion passed, 7:1; Mr. Brown voting no. The council considered the first element of the motion: That the council create a community task force on homelessness, to be appointed by the mayor, to develop a set of recommendations over the next 90 days for council MINUTES—Eugene City Council December 14, 2011 Page 6 Work Session consideration, with the task force composed of council members, Occupy Eugene representatives, non-profit agencies, and other community members. Mr. Farr said the reality was that the homeless in Occupy Eugene were homeless before and would be homeless when the encampment was gone. He recommended that the Council Committee on Homelessness and Youth be reformed to consider the issues that had been highlighted by Occupy Eugene in a controlled environment with individuals who could actually make binding agreements with the City. Mr. Clark understood the challenges faced by the homeless and was willing to address those challenges in a structured, council-based manner. He was not willing to have a discussion with those who insisted the City “negotiate or else.” Mayor Piercy emphasized the proposed task force would be a City creation. The vote on the motion was a 4:4 tie; councilors Ortiz, Pryor, Zelenka, and Brown voting yes, and councilors Taylor, Poling, Clark, and Farr voting no. Mayor Piercy cast a vote in support of the motion and it passed on a final vote of 5:4. The council considered the second element of the motion. Authorize the City Manager to create or contract with a non-profit agency for a short- term site, like an Egan Warming Center, for the rest of winter specifically for chronic homeless with behavioral and additional issues that would be open seven days per week from approximately 5 p.m. to 8 a.m. Responding to a question from Mr. Poling, City Manager Ruiz did not envision the City would create a new nonprofit agency to provide the services contemplated, but rather would contract with a nonprofit for a temporary wet bed facility. He anticipated a cost of $40,000 to $50,000. Mayor Piercy believed the reference in the motion to “additional issues” should actually be to “addiction issues.” Mr. Clark, seconded by Mr. Poling, moved to amend the motion to remove the words “create or” and to replace “additional issues” with the phrase “addiction issues” and to direct the dollar figure to be $35,000 maximum from Council Contingency. Mr. Clark believed the coming winter would be cold and he perceived the motion as a humanitarian effort to expand the Egan Warming Center program. Mr. Pryor pointed out that Egan Warming Center was operated by St. Vincent de Paul in various locations. The current contract was for about $50,000 and he doubted the City could provide the service with less than that. He recommended the motion be revised to indicate the manager was authorized to spend up to $100,000. Mr. Pryor further proposed that the additional $65,000 would come from the funding approved for parks maintenance in Supplemental Budget #1. Mr. Clark and Mr. Poling accepted that as a friendly amendment to the amendment. Mr. Brown believed it was a mistake to put a dollar amount on the proposed facility. He pointed out the facility was a new mechanism for the community that would require very specialized supervision and the City had no real concept of the need. He suggested that such details be left to the task force. MINUTES—Eugene City Council December 14, 2011 Page 7 Work Session Mr. Poling expressed concern about the impact of the motion on parks maintenance. He considered it a poor management of funds to use that funding given the many people who used City parks. He predicted the City would find itself with the same gap in funding for parks maintenance it faced with road maintenance with the result that some of the parks will be in such poor condition they would be unusable. Responding to a question from Mr. Zelenka about the cost of the proposed wet bed facility, City Manager Ruiz believed the facility would easily cost $50,000 for three months. If the council placed a dollar limit on the service, staff would design it accordingly. Mr. Zelenka pointed out to Mr. Brown that the proposed facility would be operational before the task force met. The amendment to the motion passed, 5:3; councilors Taylor, Poling, and Farr voting no. The amended motion passed, 5:3 councilors Taylor, Poling, and Farr voting no. Mr. Clark, seconded by Ms. Ortiz, moved to extend the meeting for another 15 minutes. The motion passed unanimously, 8:0. The council considered the third element of the motion. Authorize the City Manager to contract with one or more nonprofit agencies to lead an effort to mobilize and coordinate transitional human services for homeless who are now camping at Washington-Jefferson Park, including an expansion of the car camping program. Mr. Clark said he would vote against the motion because he did not believe the Occupy Eugene participants would take advantage of transitional services. The motion passed, 5:3; councilors Poling, Clark, and Farr voting no. The council considered the fourth element of the motion. Authorize the City Manager to spend up to $300,000 for transitional services for people camped at the Occupy Eugene site and for police and other City services at the Occupy Eugene site, with the first $35,000 coming from Council Contingency, the next $100,000 from funds approved in Supplemental Budget #1 for parks maintenance, the next $100,000 from the funds approved in Supplemental Budget #1 for street maintenance, and the final $65,000 from the funds approved in Supplemental Budget #1 for Buckley House and street gang issues. Councilors acknowledged that the amounts involved in the motion had changed because of their action on the second element. City Attorney Klein recommended that the motion be revised to refer to $200,000 for transitional services, $35,000 from parks maintenance, $100,000 from street maintenance, and $65,000 from the funds approved for Buckley House, so the motion now read (struck text deleted; italicized text bolded): Authorize the City Manager to spend up to $200,000 $300,000 for transitional services for people camped at the Occupy Eugene site and for police and other City services at the Occupy Eugene site, with the first $35,000 coming from Council Contingency, the next MINUTES—Eugene City Council December 14, 2011 Page 8 Work Session $100,000 from funds approved in Supplemental Budget #1 for parks maintenance, the next $100,000 from the funds approved in Supplemental Budget #1 for street maintenance, and the final $65,000 from the funds approved in Supplemental Budget #1 for Buckley House and street gang issues. Ms. Ortiz determined from Assistant City Manager Sarah Medary that the motion would not impact the City’s funding commitment for Buckley House. Mr. Farr believed the funding sources identified were outrageous. Mr. Clark agreed with Mr. Farr, saying they were both outrageous and wrong. The council had already debated the expenditures involved and the only thing that had changed since its decisions was Lane County’s decreasing ability to fund Buckley House. He said the motion put Buckley House at risk and he did not support it. Mr. Poling believed that the council would be sending a terrible message if it passed the motion. The average resident did not understand public budgeting and how dollars were earmarked for specific purposes, and when residents heard the City planned to spend $100,000 from the Road Fund they were less likely to support a road repair bond. He believed the expenditures in question needed to remain in place. Responding to a question from Mr. Zelenka, Ms. Cutsogeorge recalled that the Budget Committee adopted a motion that provided $450,000 for Buckley House and gang prevention, with those expenditures to be determined by the manager. Mr. Zelenka suggested that the funding could come from the amount needed for gang prevention, leaving Buckley House untouched. City Manager Ruiz concurred. Mr. Zelenka, seconded by Ms. Ortiz, moved to amend the motion to remove the reference to Buckley House. Mr. Pryor determined from City Manager Ruiz that he recommended the revenue sources being discussed because they were already appropriated in the budget and accounted for in the forecast. A different funding source would merely add to the City’s revenue gap. Mr. Pryor further determined that the proposed amount was predicated on the January 29 date. Mr. Pryor asked if a January 11 deadline decreased those costs. City Manager Ruiz believed that the money the City spent on public safety could go down somewhat. Mr. Clark, seconded by, Mr. Brown, moved to extend the meeting for ten minutes. The motion passed, 7:1; Mr. Farr voting no. Responding to a suggestion from Mr. Zelenka that the fund sources be left to the manager’s discretion, City Manager Ruiz indicated he was likely to employ the same funding sources if given that direction. Mr. Zelenka shared some of Mr. Poling’s concern about the public perception of the shift from Road Funds. City Manager Ruiz pointed out the council could use more of funding intended for gang prevention. Mr. Zelenka preferred that course. Mr. Clark reiterated his belief the motion was irresponsible. He pointed out the community had a growing gang problem, which was an immediate public safety issue, and the council had wisely chosen to MINUTES—Eugene City Council December 14, 2011 Page 9 Work Session provide some funding to the EPD to address it. He objected to changing that direction because of pressure from Occupy Eugene. The amendment to the motion passed, 6:2; Mr. Farr and Mr. Poling voting no. The vote on the amended motion was a 4:4 tie; councilors Ortiz, Pryor, Zelenka, and Brown voting yes, and councilors Taylor, Clark, Poling, and Farr voting no. Mayor Piercy cast a vote of support for the motion and it passed on a final vote of 5:4. The council considered the fifth element of the motion. Amend the council’s November 9 motion to extend the exemption under Section 4.815 of the Eugene Code one final time until noon on January 11 and direct the City Manager to ensure all campsites are removed from Washington-Jefferson Park as soon as practicable after the January 11 ending date. Mr. Poling, seconded by Mr. Clark, moved to amend the motion to direct the City Manager to ensure that all camp sites are removed from Washington-Jefferson Park no later than seven calendar days after the December 15 deadline. Mr. Poling said the issues that Occupy Eugene had raised did not require that people camp outside. Mr. Clark believed the motion was the responsible thing for the council to do; otherwise, he feared the council was “playing Russian roulette with people’s safety.” The amendment to the motion failed, 5:3; councilors Poling, Clark, and Farr voting yes. Mr. Brown expressed concern that January 11 might not be enough time. While he hoped it was, he wanted to be sure that the council had the opportunity to consider such an extension. Ms. Taylor, seconded by Mr. Brown, moved to change the deadline to February 28. The motion failed, 6:2; councilors Taylor and Brown voting yes. The motion passed, 5:3; councilors Poling, Clark, and Farr voting no. The council considered the sixth element of the motion. Direct the City Manager to request that the mayor schedule an emergency meeting of the council to consider revocation of the exemption if the City Manager believes the Occupy Eugene camp poses an immediate or ongoing risk to public health or safety. Mr. Poling noted that many councilors might be unavailable over the holidays and questioned if the motion was necessary. He believed the City Manager could make that decision. He asked the manager what threshold would trigger a revocation. City Manager Ruiz suggested it was likely no single incident but rather the totality of the camp’s condition that would cause him to request an emergency meeting. He would work with Occupy Eugene to ensure that conditions for campers and the police were as safe as possible and consider the situation on a day-to-day basis. City Attorney Klein noted that only the council had the authority to revoke the exemption. MINUTES—Eugene City Council December 14, 2011 Page 10 Work Session Mr. Clark wanted the council to define the threshold for the City Manager and wanted the manager to make the decision in accordance with that threshold. He did not want to remove the manager from the decision loop, however, given the manager’s administrative responsibilities. City Manager Ruiz acknowledged that was generally his preferred position. He felt the decision would have policy implications that only the council could decide and his decision would be as contentious as a council decision. Ms. Ortiz indicated support for the motion because she felt the council had responsibility to make the decisions involved. Mr. Zelenka concurred. Mr. Brown also supported the motion. He said the council was elected to make such decisions. The motion passed, 5:3; councilors Poling, Clark, and Farr voting no. Ms. Ortiz, seconded by Mr. Brown, moved to extend the meeting for 15 minutes. The motion passed, 7:1; Mr. Clark voting no. Council Coordinator Beth Forrest distributed copies of a draft emergency ordinance temporarily allowing tent camping in areas where car camping was permitted and a draft emergency ordinance that provided an exemption to the ban on open fires. City Attorney Klein asked if all the councilors were willing to proceed with the proposed emergency ordinance with abbreviated notice to the audience. Mr. Poling declined to proceed. City Attorney Klein said in that case, the council could not move forward. B. WORK SESSION: Envision Eugene – Implementation Due to a lack of time, this item was not addressed. Mayor Piercy adjourned the meeting at 2:12 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Beth Forrest City Recorder (Recorded by Kimberly Young) MINUTES—Eugene City Council December 14, 2011 Page 11 Work Session ATTACHMENT D M I N U T E S Eugene City Council McNutt Room—City Hall 777 Pearl Street—Eugene, Oregon February 10, 2012 9 a.m. COUNCILORS PRESENT: George Brown, Pat Farr, Betty Taylor, Andrea Ortiz, George Poling, Chris Pryor, Alan Zelenka. COUNCILORS ABSENT: Mike Clark A. CITY COUNCIL RETREAT The City Council was joined by members of the Executive Management Team: City Manager Jon Ruiz, Assistant City Manager/Planning and Development Director Sarah Medary, Police Chief Pete Kerns, Public Works Director Kurt Corey, Library, Recreation, and Cultural Services Director Renee Grube, City Attorney Glenn Klein, Fire and EMS Chief Randy Grove, and Central Services Director Kristi Hammitt. The executive team presented progress reports in the following areas: Safe Community Police Chief Pete Kerns Decreased property crime Greater sense of safety (especially downtown) Visible and accessible police presence Better police/community relations Sustainable Development Sarah Medary and Kurt Corey Strategic job creation/decreased unemployment Support for small and local business Decision-making that weighs economic, social equity and environmental (triple bottom line) effects Increased downtown development Accessible and Thriving Culture and Recreation LRCS Exec Director Renee Grube Accessible to all incomes Preserve strength in arts and outdoors Invest in arts and culture as an economic engine Effective, Accountable Municipal Government Fire Exec Director Randy Groves Transparent and interactive communication Public engagement that involves the community broadly Stronger partnership between government entities MINUTES—Eugene City Council February 10, 2012 Page 1 Retreat Fair, Stable and Adequate Financial Resources Central Services Exec Director Kristie Hammitt A long-term sustainable budget New or expanded revenue sources Accessible and transparent financial information The Executive Management Team shared updates on several topics, including streets and infrastructure, the Diversity and Equity Strategic Plan, the work of the Council Committee on Human Services Funding, the Opportunity Eugene Task Force on Homelessness, downtown revitalization efforts and public safety, ambulance funding, and community trends in demographics and employment. The council discussed organizational strategies and desired outcomes related to the topic areas. The council took a walking tour of several downtown projects (including LCC and downtown lighting efforts) right after lunch. Mayor Piercy adjourned the meeting at 2:45 p.m. Respectfully submitted, Beth Forrest City Recorder (Recorded by Kimberly Young) MINUTES—Eugene City Council February 10, 2012 Page 2 Retreat