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HomeMy WebLinkAbout09/24/2007 Work Session City of Springfield Work Sessiori Meeting MINUTES OF THE WORK SESSION MEETING OF THE SPRINGFIELD CITY COUNCIL HELD MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 24, 2007 The City of Springfield Council ~et in a work session in the Jesse Maine Meeting Room, 225 Fifth Street, Springfield, Oregon, on Monday, September 24,2007 at 5:32 p.m., with Mayor Leiken presiding. ATTENDANCE Present were Mayor Leiken and Councilors Wylie, Ballew, Ralston, Woodrow and Pishioneri. Also present were City Manager Gino Grimaldi, Assistant City Manager Jeff Towery, City Attorney Joe Leahy, City Recorder Amy Sowa and members of the staff. Councilor Lundberg was absent (excused). 1. BLM Forest Lands. Assistant City Manager Jeff Towery presented the staff report on this item. He introduced Anna Morrison, former Lane County Commissioner and current member of Citizens for Sustainable Forests and Communities (CSFC). The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) is proposing to review existing plans to replace the Northwest Forest Plan land use allocations and management direction. Four alternatives (including a No Action Alternative) have been proposed and are currently under review and comment. The comment period is open until November 9,2007. Ms. Morrison said she was here to discuss the recent release of the BLM's Resource Management Plans on all of the O&C lands, of which Lane County had one of the largest holding of that land. She referred to the draft Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) on all four of the alternatives that were released August 9. The comment period would be through November 9. She was here to create community awareness throughout all18 O&C counties that the public needed to be actively engaged in this process. She noted the historical information that was in the BLM "Plan Revisions NEWS" Newsletter Issue #7 that had been put at the Mayor and Council places prior to the meeting. She referred to page XL8 in that packet of information, which showed a diagram of the allocation of the land in regards to each alternative. She described each of the alternatives and gave some background on how the alternatives were developed. The O&C counties were supportive of Alternative 2 with amendments. The impacts of the alternatives were also noted in the packet of information. :~Ms. Morrison referr:ed to the graph included in the packet and discussed the figures in the graph. She noted the stability brought about by the Secure Rural Schools Act as harvests dwindled on public land. She referred to the graph showing the amount of funding the different alternatives would bring in to the counties. Alternative 2 would help, but would still not bring in as much as the Secure Rural Schools Act had in the past. The graph also showed the number of jobs Alternative 2 would create. There would be a deficiency in jobs with the other alternatives. In December the O&C counties contracted with Green and McKetta, two consultants in Idaho, to put together this socio-economic analysis showing the ramifications if this legislation went City of Springfield Council Work Session Minutes September 24, 2007 Page 2 away. Ms. Morrison discussed the financial impacts that would occur. She said the overall financial impact to the greater Portland was greater than any of the 18 O&C counties. Portland would have to figure out how to deal with the ramifications of the socio-economic piece. She referred to page L4 in the packet, which showed the diagram regarding land allocation and how it would be divided, and page L5, which gave the actual board footage that would be harvested. She referred to the amount under Alternative 2. Ms. Morrison discussed the management of the forests and the need for this legislation to address forest management. She said she met with the Governor's staff in June and the State would most likely be coming out supporting Alternative 2 with some comments. She explained why she and a former Jackson County Commissioner were chosen to present this to the jurisdictions. There was a need to get this information out to everyone. She noted the other cities that had passed resolutions to support sustainable management of Oregon's public forests. Councilor Ballew referred to the overview of the O&C. She discussed the amount of Federal forest land in Oregon, Washington and northern California. She asked about the difference in the figures. Ms. Morrison said the larger figure was Forest Service land. She referred to the map in the packet she handed out. Councilor Ballew asked if the public lands were being logged off. Ms. Morrison said very little was being logged. She noted a small amount along the coast that was logged during the last year. Since the NW Forest Plan was implemented, property was matrixed to be logged. She explained. Ms. Morrison noted that the comment period ended November9, 2007. It would most likely take another 6 months for the agency to 'come up with a Record of Decision, which would most likely be litigated, taking an additional three to four years. The agency was not yet prepared to implement the large amount of board feet available. They were advertising for.silva culturists and road engineers to mark up the timber sales. She suggested that the orientation for the new employees with BLM included training on the history of the O&C Act. The citizens group was .. asking that the City become aware, that they weigh in and encourage people to weigh in. They wanted to educate people on what the alternatives would do. Each alternative needed to meet all federal environmental concerns. Mayor Leiken asked what outcome Mr. Morrison hoped to get from the City Council. Ms. Morrison said she would ask that the Council pass a resolution to support sustainable forestry. They could note that they supported the preferred Alternative 2 if they chose. . Councilor Pishioneri said the BLM could only recognize public comment during the public comment time. He asked if a resolution would be recognized if it was not during that period. Ms. Morrison said Council could mail a resolution to the BLM and Council members could visit the web site and weigh in as individual citizens. There was also a way to provide comments City of Springfield Council Work Session Minutes September 24, 2007 Page 3 through the citizens' group website. She discussed the low attendance at the scoping meetings and open houses. They had more attendance in southern Oregon and Salem. May~r Leiken asked what other cities had passed a resolution. Ms. Morrison said Florence, Cottage Grove, Creswell, and Lowell had passed a resolution supporting sustainable forestry, but had not given a preference for an alternative. Most of those were passed before the alternatives had been released. Councilor Pishioneri said he had spent a lot of time on this subject. Based on what he had heard, he would recommend Council pass a resolution and support Alternative 2. He referred to the discussion of scientists at the presentations and their case for Alternative 2. The funds that were generated in Lane County would stay in L~me County. He said a meeting was held at Springfield Utility Board (SUB). Ms. Morrison said there would be a technical meeting in October at the office on Chad Drive. Councilor Wylie asked why they hadn't managed the forests around the fires like the Biscuit Fire. Ms. Morrison said they had tried, but it was litigated. She said the same issue was going on in other states, such as Montana. She discussed her conversations with a California representative about this issue. Mayor Leiken asked that staff bring the resolution to Agenda Review and discuss with each councilor during weekly meetings. 2. Police Planning Task Force (PPTF) Application Review. Police Senior Management Analyst Mike Harman presented the staff report on this item. The Willamalane representative on the Police Planning Task Force, (PPTF), has served a four-year term and has applied for a second term, which is allowed in the bylaws. The School District . representative has retired, and one application has been received to fill that position. Quentin Hogan has done an excellent job representing the Willamalane Park District for the last four years. He is requesting to be reappointed to the Task Force for a second term, which is allowed in the bylaws. The School District Position on the Task Force became vacant when the previous incumbent, Mindy Stinson, retired. One application was received for that position from Assistant Vice Principal James Crist of Thurston Middle School. Councilor Ballew said both applicants looked good. She said her mother liked Quentin. Councilor Pishioneri said Mr. Crist was an excellent candidate. Council consensus was to appoint Mr. Hogan and Mr. Crist during the regular meeting on October 1. City of Springfield Council Work Session Minutes September 24, 2007 Page 4 3. Joint Work Session with the Police Planning Task Force (PPTF). Police Chief Jerry Smith presented the staff report on this item. The Police Planning Task Force was originally established in 1994 and charged with developing a long range strategic plan for police services. The PPTF was made permanent in 1996, and is charged with providing citizen input regarding police policy matters and Long Range Plan implementation strategies. The PPTF further provides input, feedback and evaluation on police goals, policies and strategies; service delivery programs and priorities; and progress in maintaining cooperative working relationships between the community and the police department. After introductions, three of the PPTF members will present components of their work to the Council. The first speaker will present an overview of our regular monthly meetings. As part of the standing meeting agenda, the PPTF hears neighborhood reports, reviews complaints against department staff, and discusses existing and proposed policies with the Chief. The PPTF will review some of those policy issues with Council, including the Department Purpose and Values policy, Animal Control policies, and the deployment and use of Tasers. The second speaker will discuss the successful passage of Public Safety levies in 2002 and 2006. These levies, along with the 2004 Bond measure provided funding for a new police facility and municipal jail, have moved the community and the Department closer to fulfilling the goals of the original Long Range Plan for Police Services adopted in 1996. The PPTF has worked diligently in support of each of the campaigns, and would like to support the Council in working toward including levy funded positions in the general fund. Finally, the current president of the PPTF, Steve Singleton, will address the future of the Task Force. The group will continue to look at the staffing and operational needs ofthe police department and the City grows geographically and in population. The PPTF will experience a natural evolution with the completion of the Justice Center and the Municipal Jail. Changing technology and community demographics will continue to significantly impact the police department. The PPTF appreciates the support and trust of the Council, and would like to hear any questions or comments they may have for us. Chief Smith introduced Steve Singleton, Chair of the PPTF. Mr. Singleton introduced the other members of the PPTF: Pat Mohoney, Quentin Hogan, Mark Molina, Fred Simmons, and Diana Garcia. Management Analyst Mike Harman presented a power point presentation. He gave a brief history of the PPTF. PPTF Member Fred Simmons said the task force met regularly and discussed concerns in each member'.s neighborhood. He discussed the graffiti issue in the community and noted that there was cause for concern. During their meetings, the PPTF also discussed the positive things going on in our community. The Springfield Police Department was an equal opportunity arrester, and did not take into account any other factor than whether or not the law was broken. Each month City of Springfield Council Work Session Minutes September 24, 2007 Page 5 the PPTF went through the complaints issued against the Police. There were less than two negative complaints each month, not many for a community our size and the number of issues we faced. There were a lot of positive reports that came into the office. The policies the PPTF dealt with included pursuit, use of force, animal control. Most recently, they have discussed the use oftasers. All officers in Springfield were now equipped with non-lethal tasers, had been trained and were deployed. The PPTF did ask the Police Department to provide statistics when situations occured where the use of tasers diffused a situation: Chief Smith agreed to provide that data. Councilor Pishioneri recommended documenting not only the decrease in incidents based on the use oftasers, but also any decrease in incidents based on the presentation or announcement of a taser. He would like to see that compared to past experiences that required use of force. He referred to data that showed that the taser had dramatically decreased the use of force, simply with the presentation of the taser. Mr. Singleton said that was the type of data the PPTF was asking for. Mr. Molina discussed the public safety measures. He said in 2002, the citizens passed the first public operating levy. He noted the positive impacts from the levies, included increased staffing levels andresponse times. In 2004, the voters passed the measure for a new public safety facility and municipal jail. The completion date for that building was scheduled for August 2008 and it was currently ahead of schedule. In 2006 voters passed renewal of the levies along with funding for part of the operations of the jail. The PPTF had actively supported the work of the Council to. see that the levies had passed. The PPTF provided citizen connection to the Council and the Budget Committee. The PPTF supported moving police services from the levies into the General Fund, although they knew it would not be easy. Mayor Leiken said he had given the opening speech at the Oregon State Municipal Judges Conference recently. Every judge in the State knew about Springf1eld and the voter approved levies. Thefew other municipal jails in Oregon were very small. Mr. Singleton said he was disappointed that his term on the PPTF would end prior to the completion date of the jail. The PPTF constantly discussed the fact that there needed to be a natural evolution on the Council, PPTF and Police standpoint. He pointed out that the PPTF was not a commission. They were proactive, not reactive, and were not issue driven, but rather helpers. Every member of the committee had the Police Department's best interests in mind. The original long range plan was already ten years old. Many of the goals of the original plan were close to being realized, but there was still that natural evolution of the community. He referred to the geographics, growth, and ethnic changes in Springfield since the committee was formed. He noted the annual surveys measuring the attitudes of the citizens towards the Police Department. They may consider gearing part of that survey to the Latino community to try to build trust with the Latino community. The PPTF would continue to look at staffing needs. The increase ofthe Community Service Officers (CSO's) and their duties had been very positive. They were good at taking a lot of the work load off of the sworn officers. He discussed an accident he witnessed where a CSO assisted the two officers with traffic and cleanup.. The addition of CSO' shad beefed up the capability of the sworn officers regarding the number of calls they could attend to. He discussed staffing levels. As the City grew, the PPTF would like to move the levy positions City of Springfield Council Work Session Minutes September 24, 2007 Page 6 and funding to the General Fund. The PPTF would continue to look at new issues as the City . changed and grew. Chief Smith thanked the citizens that served on the PPTF. Their service had been invaluable to the Police. The levy support and bond measure support were very important in helping those measures pass. The survey was also very important to the Police. There had been a high level of people that had contact with the Police Department. The complaint review gave the Police Department the opportunity to review complaints against officers or policies and make improvements. Having the PPTF review the policy was very helpful. He used the taser data collection as an example. He expected the PPTF would help with the transparency of the jail operations. Mr. Singleton said the PPTF started bringing in CSO's and police officer to their meetings to educate the PPTF. The PPTF needed to live up to the Council's expectations. He asked what the PPTF could do to help the Council. Councilor Ballew said Police Planning Task Force was a complicated name. Also the term 'task force' was usually used for a group with one task to complete. She felt that the group should change their name to better describe who they were. She didn't think they could move the police services off the levies at this time. She said one of the reasons the police were able to do such a good job with limited staff was because of the technology advances that had come along in the last twenty years. She asked that the PPTF look at how the Police could do better technically to get the most out of our physical manpower. Mr. Singleton said things would continue to change technologically with the new facility. Since Mr. Singleton had joined the PPTF, communication had been greatly increased. Personnel were important, but they also needed the infrastructure to support it such as communication, etc. With a lack of personnel, there needed to be an abundance of technology. Councilor Wylie said she served on the Public Safety Coordinating Council (PSCC). During the last meeting, a report was discussed that showed the City of Eugene needed a force twice the size they currently had for a city their size. She said she was proud of what our community did to support our Police Department. She was concerned that about a third of the police services were funded by levies. Prioritizing services was important because money was tight. She felt that was how the PPTF could assist the Council to help determine how to get the most out of our money. Mayor Leiken said it would take a change to the entire tax system in Oregon to get adequate . funding for our services. Getting police services off of the levies was a worthwhile goal and the PPTF played an important role in that goal. The PPTF was the citizen front line with the police and could share the information with the community. The PPTF was strong and professional, which would help with the levies in the future. He respected them all for volunteering and playing in this role. He asked if Eugene or Lane County had a counterpart to the PPTF. Chief Smith said Eugene had an advisory committee, but it was set up differently. Springfield . Council set up this committee to help with the long range plan in 1994. When that project was done, there was a lot of interest, so the committee asked if they could remain a standing committee, keeping the same name. The group evolved into many different responsibilities. Eugene's advisory committee evolved for different reasons. The Springfield PPTF would be City of Springfield . Council Work Session Minutes September 24, 2007 Page 7 reviewing the long range plan again and would include technological issues that would improve Police services to the community. He referred to the study that showed that Eugene needed additional officers and noted that Springfield was also in need of additional officers. Mayor Leiken said the cost of technology could be very high. He discussed the leadership from the Sheriff s Department attending the United Front trips to try to get additional funding. He asked if there were other opportunities to work with Lane County Sheriffs Department and Eugene on technology and infrastructure. Chief Smith said Springfield did work closely with Eugene on large ticket items such as the radio and computer systems. The criminal had gotten into the technical side of crime. Springfield was able to use the City of Eugene's Police services in assisting with some ofthe technical issues. When seizing computers, Springfield didn't have the training or staffing to search criminal files. In the future, there would be more sharing of resources with Eugene. Mr. Singleton said he wasn't sure that was in the purview of the PPTF. He felt the task force had one task in mind - the Springfield Police Department. Personally, he liked that it was done for Springfield and anything for Eugene and Lane County was out of his scope. Mr. Molina said the PPTF had worked hard to educate themselves about the Springfield Police Department. They were looking hard at making this successful. He also recommended that the new justice center be named after Police Chief Jerry Smith. Ms. Garcia said she was moving away from Springfield and would no longer be on the PPTF. This had been a great group. The Ghief did a great job addressing complaints. The PPTF meetings were run very efficiently with the agendas sent out ahead of time and the group provided Chief Smith feedback and input. They also looked at issues in Eugene and addressed how it affected Springfield. They did not want to rely on the levies if at all possible because it was a lot of work. If levies needed to continue, it was important for the Council to work on the public relations part of it at least a year ahead, showing what the Police had accomplished. The PPTF continued to educate themselves and she felt that was why they were able to get things done. She discussed the location of the Police Department downtown and how it was approachable. Police placed themselves at public events where the public could see them as part of the community. She felt it was also important for the City to show more presence at these events to show unity. Outreach to other cultural groups was important. The Police treated everyone the saxp.e and that was how it should be. Mr. Singleton noted that Ms. Garcia was moving to Ontario and would be leaving the PPTF. He also noted that three other members of the PPTF were not able to attend tonight. ADJOURNMENT The meeting was adjourned at 6:53pm. Minutes Recorder - Amy Sowa City Attorney Joe Leahy introduced Mary Bridget Smith, the new attorney with the City' Attorney's office. She was previously from the City Attorney's Office in Yakima, Washington. City of Springfield Council Work Session Minutes September 24, 2007 Page 8 r Attest: ~ bwc Amy So .. . City Rec rder