CC Minutes - 02/26/07 Meeting - Laserfiche WebLink

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M I N U T E S Eugene City Council Regular Meeting Council Chamber—Eugene City Hall February 26, 2007 7:30 p.m. COUNCILORS PRESENT: Jennifer Solomon, Andrea Ortiz, Betty Taylor, George Poling, Chris Pryor, Mike Clark, Alan Zelenka. COUNCILORS ABSENT: Bonny Bettman. Council President Andrea Ortiz called the regular meeting of the Eugene City Council to order. She stated Mayor Kitty Piercy and Councilor Bonny Bettman were in Washington, DC, and would not be in attendance at the meeting. 1. PUBLIC FORUM Ms. Ortiz reviewed the rules of the Public Forum. rd Bob Dougherty , 479 East 53 Avenue, represented the Masonic Lodge on Martin Luther King Boulevard, and addressed the conversation concerning alcohol consumption around Autzen Stadium. The organization provided a letter to the University of Oregon (UO) that allowed use of the Masonic Lodge parking lots during football games. He worked with Eugene Police Department captains Chuck Tilby and Pete Kerns to develop a handout regarding proper conduct for distribution to all vehicles entering the parking lots. He stated that while the Masonic Lodge would prefer staff’s proposed Option 2, it would work with the City of Eugene and the UO on any of the options. His organization had no problems in its lots last year and encouraged people to place their bottles in containers prior to crossing the street. It had done everything required by the Fire Marshal related to access and egress from the parking lot. David Walbridge , 2447 Melrose Loop, expressed his concerns regarding spiritual and religious freedom and human rights. He felt he was being denied his rights by the Church of Scientology. Lois Harvick , 1865 Parliament Street, identified herself as the Executive Director for the Eugene office of Mothers Against Drunk Drivers (MADD). Addressing the issue of tailgating at UO football games, she said MADD collaborated with the Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) in a campaign called Over the Limit Under Arrest in September and October 2006, that was used as a strategy to study what factors among 21-to-34-year-old males would deter them from drinking and driving. The four factors considered were: 1) monetary punishment; 2) injury to themselves or others; 3) escalating insurance premiums; and 4) jail. The study found the fear of being arrested and going to jail was the primary deterrent that kept them from drinking and driving. While MADD could support decreasing opportunities to drive while intoxicated, expansion of the current City ordinance to allow drinking on game days in the proposed areas was a concern that the roads would continue to be at risk MINUTES—Eugene City Council February 26, 2007 Page 1 Regular Meeting