HomeMy WebLinkAbout04/20/2009 Regular
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City of Springfield
Regular Meeting
MINUTES OF THE REGULAR MEETING OF
THE SPRINGFIELD CITY COUNCIL HELD
MONDAY, APRIL 20, 2009
The City of Springfield Council met in regular session in the Council Meeting Room, 225 Fifth
Stfeet, Springfield, Oregon, on Monday, April 20, 2009 at 7:05 p.m., with Mayor Leiken
presiding.
ATTENDANCE
Present were Mayor Leiken and Councilors Ralston, Lundberg, Wylie, Leezer, Woodrow and
Pishioneri. Also present were City Manager Gino Grimaldi, Assistant City Manager Jeff Towery,
City Attorney Joe Leahy, City Attorney Matt Cox, City Recorder Amy Sowa and members ofthe
staff.
PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
The Pledge of Allegiance was led by Mayor Leiken.
SPRINGFIELD UPBEAT
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1. Earth Day Poster Contest Winners.
Environmental Services Public Information and Education Specialist Rachel Chilton presented
this item. The 3rd Annual City of Springfield 5th Grade Earth Day Poster contest was a great
success. In honor of Earth Day 2009 5th graders in the Springfield School District were
challenged to draw "How I Do My Part." Students were asked what kind of actions they take (or
will take in the future) to keep the environment healthy.
We received over 150 entries, making it very difficult to choose the winners. The top 20 were
displayed in the hallway. The first through fifth place winners are as follows:
. 1 st Place: Cheyanne Haley
. 2nd Place: Angie Reyes
. 3rd Place: Dylan Biggs
. 4th Place: Mckenzie Journey
. 5th Place: Vanessa Tiller
Mayor Leiken said all of the entrants were outstanding and it was very difficult to choose the
winners. In addition to receiving their award, the winning entries were on display in the lobby of
City Hall through the month of May.
2. Earth Day Proclamation.
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Mayor Leiken proclaimed April 22 as Earth Day. He said Earth Day had been in place for many
years and had become part of our community. The City of Springfield proudly recognized April
22, 2009 as Earth Day.
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City of Springfield
Council Regular Meeting Minutes
April 20, 2009
Page 2
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3. Groundwater Guardians Plaque Presentation.
Planning Supervisor Linda Pauly presented this item. Springfield Groundwater Guardians had
received its designation as a Groundwater Guardian community for 2008, our twelfth year. Ms.
Pauly introduced Amy Chinitz, SUB Drinking Water Protection Coordinator.
Ms. Pauly said this was a chance to remind Springfield of the good things we did to protect our
groundwater.
Ms. Chinitz said the Groundwater Guardians were a volunteer group made up of agencies,
businesses, and private citizens who protected drinking water sources from contamination. The
City of Springfield drew approximately 90% of its drinking water from groundwater. With our
shallow water table and largely unconfmed aquifer, the groundwater could be vulnerable to
contaminants that spilled or leaked onto the ground's service. The Groundwater Guardian team
worked to educate the community about protecting this resource that was so vital, yet invisible, to
so many of us.
Ms. Chinitz said more and more well head protection signs were now posted at many Springfield
businesses. These signs notified people to call 911 in the event of a spill. This was one example
that groundwater education was an ongoing effort and a team effort.
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In 2008, the student crew from Thurston High School's community water quality testing lab,
continued service to the community by testing private well water samples for another 100
households. The Guardians partnered with Lane County Waste Management and other agencies
to sponsor a one-day household hazardous waste roundup in the Middle Fork Willamette
Watershed, where 78 participants disposed of almost 6500 pounds of hazardous waste. Teams of
students had continued to get hands on field training by conducting weekly water quality and
aquatic invertebrate sampling at local streams. They partnered with other local water systems to
obtain grant funding for education programs.
In keeping with Earth Day and celebration of our precious groundwater, the Groundwater
Guardian Team thanked the Council for helping to keep Springfield, a Groundwater Guardian
community.
Ms. Chinitz presented the plaque to Mayor Leiken.
Mayor Leiken thanked the partnership the City had with the Springfield Utility Board (SUB).
When the Groundwater Protection Plan was first passed, businesses were nervous and not sure
how this would affect them. He said former City Planner Sarah Summers and current Economic
Development Manager John Tamulonis met with members of the business community to put
them at ease back in 1999 when this started. Springfield had a good decade of economic
development since then. The City had worked with the businesses, who had adopted it and we
had flourished since then. He thanked staff and the SUB.
4. Springfield High SGhool Cheerleaders Recognition.
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Mayor Leiken introduced the Springfield High School Cheerleading squad and their coaches
Janet Fryback, Jaime Fryback Gaskill, Jennifer Fryback and Chris Pereyra. He congratulated
them for not only winning every competition in their class during the 2008-2009 school year, but
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Council Regular Meeting Minutes
April 20, 2009
Page 3
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for winning the United Spirit Association National Championship, Small Co-Ed Varsity Show
Cheer.
A video of the squad's winning performance was shown for the Council and audience.
Mayor Leiken read the accomplishments of the Cheerleading squad over the 2008/09 school year.
He said he would be proclaiming a day as Springfield High School Cheerleading Squad Day in
the near future. He congratulated the coaches and the squad.
Coach Fryback said the video showed the work the squad put into this every day and the
athleticism of these students. Their priority was to support their school and the athletic programs,
but the squad were also athletic.
Coach Fryback-Gaskin said it was nice to be recognized in this way. It took a lot offundraising to
get their uniforms and pay for their trips to competitions.
Coach Fryback said they did a lot of community service and fundraising. She introduced the
members of the squad who were present and Jenny Fryback, another assistant coach.
Mayor Leiken said on behalf of the Council, they were very proud. He had watched the squad
cheer at Mac Court when the college squad was not there.
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Councilor Wylie said her granddaughter had been on the cheerleading squad for Sheldon High
School and she knew the personal commitment it took to show up for practice and for fundraisers
and what a hard job it was. She congratulated the team on their first place finish.
CONSENT CALENDAR
IT WAS MOVED BY COUNCILOR RALSTON WITH A SECOND BY COUNCILOR
LUNDBERG TO APPROVE THE CONSENT CALENDAR. THE MOTION PASSED
WITH A VOTE OF 6 FOR AND 0 AGAINST.
1. Claims
2. Minutes
a. March 9, 2009 - Work Session
b. April 6, 2009 - Work Session
c. April 13, 2009 - Regular Meeting
3. Resolutions
4. Ordinances
5. Other Routine Matters
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a. Approval of Liquor License Endorsement for Dari-Mart Store #48, Located at 995 Hayden Bridge
Road, Springfield, Oregon.
b. Approval of Liquor License Endorsement for Thurston Flowers, Located at5892 Main Street #7,
Springfield, Oregon.
City of Springfield
Council Regular Meeting Minutes
April 20, 2009
Page 4
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ITEMS REMOVED
PUBLIC HEARINGS - Please limit comments to 3 minutes. Request to speak cards are available
at both entrances. Please present cards to City Recorder. Speakers may
not yield their time to others.
1. Stormwater Management Plan Update Adoption.
RESOLUTION NO. 09-14 - 1 RESOLUTION OF THE COMMON COUNCIL OF THE
CITY OF SPRINGFIELD ADOPTING THE STORMW ATER MANAGEMENT PLAN.
Environmental Services Supervisor George Walker presented the staff report on this item. The
Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) and staffhave completed the annual review and
update of the Stormwater Management Plan (SWMP or Plan).. The Plan identifies Goals, Policies
and Implementation Actions regarding storm water management activities in Springfield. The
Plan is intended to meet State and Federal requirements for compliance with National Pollutant
Discharge Elimination System Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System discharge permit, which
was issued to the City in 2007. Council adoption of the updated Plan to include a revised
schedule and other modifications requested by the DEQ, is requested.
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The Stormwater Management Plan was adopted by Council February 17,2004. The Plan in its
original form has guided City activities to ensure compliance with State and Federal Clean Water
Act and Endangered Species Act requirements since that time. It also addressed the Council's "7
Key outcomes for Stormwater.
During this period of time, Springfield has applied for and received a required Oregon
Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System (MS4)
permit. That permit includes a requirement for an annual report to be filed with DEQ. The report
must include review of the implementation actions included within the Plan and consideration of
adaptive management of those actions. DEQ review of the annual report produced a request for
several updates to the Plan.
Those updates and the inclusion of additional actions have been addressed in this updated SWMP
document. A legislatively formatted copy of the document was presented to Council in work
session. The edits were primarily changing of dates and schedules to correspond with the DEQ
issued MS4 permit. Other updates include formatting changes to clarify tables and identify areas
of actions that have been completed. Page numbers and table of contents now reflect the current
content of the Plan. Council re-adoption of this Plan is needed to provide for continued
implementation of the Springfield stormwater management program consistent with the State and
Federal requirements and to meet the clean water goals.
Stormwater management is an ongoing program carried out by the City's Public Works and
Development Services Departments. Funding for these functions is derived primarily through
storm drainage user fees, development application fees, and system development charges.
Implementation of the DEQ regulatory components are funded in the proposed FY 09-10 City
budget.
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Mr. Walker said a public open house was held on March 31 to invite public comment to this plan.
Staffs recommendation was to adopt the Stormwater Management Plan Update.
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Council Regular Meeting Minutes
April 20, 2009
Page 5
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Mayor Leiken opened the public hearing.
No one appeared to speak.
Mayor Leiken closed the public hearing.
IT WAS MOVED BY COUNCILOR RALSTON WITH A SECOND BY COUNCILOR
LUNDBERG TO ADOPT RESOLUTION NO. 09-14. THE MOTION PASSED WITH A
VOTE OF 6 FOR AND 0 AGAINST.
2. Fiscal Year 2009-2010 Community Development Block Grant and HOME Investment
Partnerships Program Recommended Funding Allocations.
Housing Manager Kevin Ko presented the staff report on this item. The Springfield Community
Development Advisory Committee (CDAC) has reviewed six proposals and prepared CDBG and
HOME funding recommendations for the FY2009-20 1 0 program year. The recommendations are
being forwarded to the City Council for consideration and approval. The CDAC's funding
recommendations are consistent with Springfield's local funding priorities and identified
community development needs as documented in the Eugene-Springfield Consolidated Plan.
Also being recommended for approval is an allocation of $2,500 of CDBG funds to assist with
the 2010 Project Homeless Connect for Lane County event.
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The City of Springfield will receive FY2009-1O HUD grants of approximately $605,018 in
Community Development Block Grant (CDBG) funds and $421,298 in HOME Investment
Partnerships Program (HOME) funds to develop viable urban communities. The exact allocation
amount has not yet been confirmed by HUD. Please see the attached Council Briefmg Memo
(Attachment 1 in the agenda packet) for details and discussion regarding the CDBG and HOME
programs allocation process, the downtown set aside and the 2010 Project Homeless Connect for
Lane County.
Mr. Ko said exact figures for the CDBG funds were not known at this time as they were waiting
for the Federal government to make that determination.
Councilor Pishioneri asked about the elevator inside the City of Eugene location. It was indicated
that about thirty-two percent ofthe clients were from Springfield. He asked what percentage of
the project costs they were requesting.
Mr. Ko said they were requesting about thirty percent of the project cost.
Councilor Pishioneri referred to the Project Homeless Connect and that the City had supported it .
with $2500 for the past two or three years. Attendance at this event had been growing steadily.
Mr. Ko said there were over 1500 homeless or at risk people attending this year. Given the state
ofthe economy, the figure would most likely increase next year.
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Councilor Pishioneri asked if $2500 was sufficient with this growth or if the City could invest
more to this event. This was a very significant project that helped a lot of people. He would
suggest investing more into that project.
Mayor Leiken opened the public hearing.
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Council Regular Meeting Minutes
April 20, 2009
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1. Rick Medlen. 57 Sandalwood Loop. Creswell. Oregon. Mr. Medlen said he was Board
President for Springfield/Eugene Habitat.for Humanity. He wanted to thank the Council for
all of the support they had given Habitat for the past twenty years. Councilor Ralston was at
the last dedication ceremony where they dedicated two homes. It was amazing to see what
words on paper and votes tonight could accomplish. It didn't just help the families that
moved into the homes, but went to their friends who wanted to have a home of their own.
Habitat was able to help those people through the funds the City provided and the support of
City staff. Once the project on this year's list was completed, the last 15 homes out of 45
would have been in Springfield. That was because Springfield staff made it easy. He thanked
Housing Management Analyst Jodi Peterson and the Council for their support.
Mayor Leiken closed the public hearing.
Mayor Leiken said if Charlie Snellings from Springfield/Eugene Habitat for Humanity called, he
would get you working.
Councilor Woodrow asked Councilor Pishioneri if he had a motion.
IT WAS MOVED BY COUNCILOR PISmONERI WITH A SECOND BY COUNCILOR
WOODROW TO APPROVE INCREASING THE FUNDING TO $3500 CDBG
ALLOCATION FOR 2010 PROJECT HOMELESS CONNECT EVENT.
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Councilor Woodrow asked if we had funding for that amount.
Mr. Ko said we did.
Discussion was held regarding the motion. This was separate from the other allocations.
Councilor Lundberg said there had been many years of tough decisions. when applicants spoke
before the CDAC for these funds. This was a year when things went well, with wonderful
projects and enough money. She was looking forward to using downtown setaside for downtown
development. The GoodWill building was being purchased by NedCo and would be rehabilitated.
This was a historic building. It was exciting to be part of the process and see all of the worthy
projects come forward. She was happy to support Habitat for Humanity and all the other great
projects. She felt it was a nice addition to the Project Homeless Connect because it was an
important part of what we did. She was happy with the work done by staff.
City Attorney Joe Leahy said Council could take action on this first before moving forward to the
other items.
THE MOTION PASSED WITH A VOTE OF 6 FOR AND 0 AGAINST.
Councilor Ralston said one of the goals of the Housing Policy Board was to have affordable
housing, but much of it was heavily subsidized. Habitat for Humanity was the best expenditure of
funds to get people into houses. He had personally worked on at least 12 houses and thought it
was a great program.
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City of Springfield
Council Regular Meeting Minutes
April 20, 2009
Page 7
IT WAS MOVED BY COUNCILOR RALSTON WITH'A SECOND BY COUNCILOR
LUNDBERG TO ADOPT THE FY2009-2010 FUNDING ALLOCATIONS. THE MOTION
PASSED WITH A VOTE OF 6 FOR AND 0 AGAINST.
IT WAS MOVED BY COUNCILOR RALSTON WITH A SECOND BY COUNCILOR
LUNDBERG TO APPROVE CONTINUATION OF CDBG DOWNTOWN SET-ASIDE.
THE MOTION PASSED WITH A VOTE OF 6 FOR AND 0 AGAINST.
Mayor Leiken said when he attended the Project Homeless Connect event this year, there were
many people there you would not normally see due to tough economic times. He thanked staff,
particularly Kevin Ko, for his work on this event. He also thanked the volunteers that were taking
their time to make this successful. He thanked Councilor Pishioneri for increasing the amount.
3. Public Hearing and Adoption of Resolution Adopting an Inmate Housing Fee.
RESOLUTION NO. 09-15 - A RESOLUTION OF THE COMMON COUNCIL OF THE
CITY OF SPRINGFIELD ADOPTING AN INMATE HOUSING FEE.
Police Chief Jerry Smith presented the staff report on this item. The City of Springfield incurs
substantial expenses for housing persons convicted of violating City Ordinances under the
contract with Lane County Adult Corrections. The City will also soon be incurring the costs
directly through the operation of the Springfield Municipal Jail. Staff was asking the Council to
adopt a fee of $60 per day. This fee would be imposed upon inmates that were incarcerated at the
Springfield Municipal Jail. Until the jail opened, inmates sentenced to the Lane County Jail
through the Municipal Court would be charged this fee.
Chief Smith said he believed these were the people incurring the cost to the taxpayers and should
pay.
City Attorney Matt Cox said his office proposed two ways this fee could be handled under
Oregon law. The first way, under ORS 161.150(1), allowed the Springfield Police Department to
take individual cases to local small claims court within one year of someone being sentenced and
. ~btain al~gment. That was how the County claimant had done it. The second way, under ORS
~- 137.549, ~thorized the Municipal Court judges to. impose this fee as a general condition to
probation. The fee would be set in total upon sentence based on the number of days the individual
was sentenced to spend in jail. At the end of that sentence, if the person was released early for
good behavior, the Court would be notified by jail staff and credit would be given on the general
judgment. The ordinance authorized staff to do either of those options. Staff had held many
meetings and it was agreed upon by jail staff, the City Prosecutor and Police Department that the
best ~ay for the City of Springfield to do this was through general condition of probation (Option
2). The other option (Option 1) would be burdensome on police. He explained. Option 2 was
authorized by statute, and when it was recently challenged, was upheld as a valid provision.
Mayor Leiken opened the public hearing.
No one appeared to speak.
Mayor Leiken closed the public hearing.
City of Springfield
Council Regular Meeting Minutes
April 20, 2009
Page 8
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Councilor Pishioneri referred to the second option. He said in small claims service, he understood
that public funds could not be used to investigate or track down small claims, so this could be a
conflict for our officers. He asked if they were looking at using private process servers.
Mr. Cox said they hadn't looked into that, but they would. The plan wasn't to use small claims.
Klamath County had chosen to use small claims because they didn't have a Municipal Court.
Councilor Pishioneri said the City being the process server could be crossing those bounds. He
would like to see what type of policy would be used regarding inmates' qualifications for
indigence.
Mr. Cox said staff had looked into that. Under the statute, each defendant had to be given the
opportunity at sentencing to present his or her fmancial status. The Court would make an
independent decision regarding waiving or applying part or all of the fee at that time. The Court
had full authority to do what was appropriate.
Councilor Pishioneri said he would like to see how objective or subjective the policy was. He
clarified that this was a housing fee only and did not include the booking fee.
Mr. Cox said that was correct. It only applied at sentencing upon conviction.
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Councilor Pishioneri discussed people that had money on them at the time of arrest and were held
for arraignment. He asked if there were provisions if they had money in a trust fund, to attach that
money immediately based on the probation sanctions.
Mr. Cox said staff was working on that. That was not the focus of the ordinance, but would be the
focus on implementation. That had been discussed and that, along with other issues such as bail,
would need to be discussed further.
Councilor Pishioneri asked about money owed from a subsequent arrest and if liens or quasi-
garnishments could be placed on any trust funds to pay past fmes and fees.
Mr. Cox said that was accurate. There would be an accounting upon release and if moneys were
owed for past debts and there was cash that was brought in, that cash could be held by the City.
Councilor Pishioneri spoke regarding collections and the potential listed in the agenda packet of
$18,000.
Chief Smith said that figure was from the consultant (Heery). If someone came in that owed the
City money, the jail staff could garnish that money. It would be easier if a warrant was issued by
the court that they add the fees to the amount of money already owed to the City on top of the
bail. The mechanics of the paperwork between the jail and the court had not yet been finalized.
Councilor Pishioneri asked about due process and small claims.
Chief Smith said they hadn't evaluated small claims. That was just an option available to the jail,
but may not be worth the time, except in some situations.
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Councilor Pishioneri said it was fine and noted that the legislators had put that into the statute for
a reason. He questioned the ability to fiscally carry this policy forward and have it worth our
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April 20, 2009
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while. He would support this with the caveat that it needed to be closely watched to make sure it
was worth our while. There was a reason many institutions did not charge the housing fee
because it was not worth it.
Councilor Leezer asked about the costs involved for those taken to small claims court.
Chief Smith said they would evaluate each case on its own merit and determine whether or not it
was worth it.
Mr. Cox said in talking with the City Prosecutor and the Judges at the Municipal Court, every
defendant would get a sentencing hearing and this would only add about a minute to their time.
The City Prosecutor would not be able to plea bargain or waive this fee as part of a plea bargain,
but it would be a fee that only the Court dealt with. The Court would hear about each individual's
fmancial situation through the defendant or their attorney and make a decision based on that, so it
shouldn't be much time or burden on the Prosecutor. There would be some work upon release
because someone at the jail would need to notify someone at the Court if there was reduced time
and someone at the Court would need to enter that into the computer to recalculate. Every day at
the Municipal Court, people were paying on fmes monthly and the clerks had to subtract that
amount. They believed it could be done with the staff in place. Most counties they had talked to
said they broke even. Roseburg had lowered their fee and was now actually making more money.
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Councilor Lundberg said this didn't look equal between those that did or did not have money.
Those with money had to pay the full amount, and those with little or no money did not. It was
different than the fines that were imposed, which were the same for everyone. Many people
ended up in jail because they didn't have money. She was struggling with the logistics and
needed more specifics.
Mr. Cox said this item could be tabled for a future date when jail and court staff could be
available to answer questions.
Councilor Lundberg said she would love to see people pay, but the logistics didn't seem to work.
City Attorney Joe Leahy said this was new and they were concerned with all of the questions
brought up by Council. They wanted to be sure to get this right. Running a jail was a new concept
for everyone. They were working with the Finance Department and the Court staff. He concurred
that this could be delayed if they needed more information, but he wouldn't recommend building
the logistics into the ordinance because of the need for flexibility to get what worked in terms of
prisoners' constitutional rights. .
Councilor Lundberg said the City needed to be in a defensible position. To do that, it needed to be
a logical position of the intent and what we were trying to accomplish. She agreed the logistics
should be taken care of separately, but there needed to be more clarification.
Councilor Ralston asked if the person arrested could avoid paying the housing fee by paying bail.
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Mr. Cox said they were separate and the bail was for presentencing. Once the person was
sentenced, they would have a hearing when sentencing for a certain number of days would take
place. They couldn't bailout of that.
Councilor Ralston said if they couldn't pay the bail, they might be held in the jail.
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April 20, 2009
Page 10
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Chief Smith said yes. If a person got arrested and bailed out, they wouldn't be spending time in
the jail, so would have no housing fee. If they were not sentenced at their hearing, they would not
spend any time in jail and would have no housing fee. .
Councilor Woodrow said the Municipal Court Judge would have the determining amount based
on the hearing after the person was convicted. If someone had a lot of money, the Judge could
charge them $60 a day, but if they were indigent, he could charge them less. Correct.
Councilor Pishioneri asked if the housing days would be assessed including pre-sentence days.
Someone that couldn't afford to pay could be there longer, costing the City more and not having
to pay versus someone with the ability to pay being there a shorter amount of time.
Councilor Woodrow said it would cost the City either way, and this offered the potential to
recover part of the cost.
Councilor Pishioneri said he was uncomfortable with this because people committing crimes that
had money would be paying the housing cost. People would be singled out, similar to the fact that
only male inmates would be housed in Springfield.
Mr. Cox discussed the gender issue. The fee would apply to female inmates that were taken to
Lane County jail. The City would have some beds at the Lane County jail.
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Chief Smith said they were making an agreement with Lane County where we could accept a like
number of male prisoners for female prisoners as an exchange. He felt that those that had money
needed to pay.
Councilor Ralston said he didn't have any problems with this fee. He wanted to send the message
that it didn't pay to commit crimes. in Springfield.
Councilor Woodrow said he didn'thave a problem with this either. It was structured so that
someone that violated the law paid for their keep while in jail. The City was paying for both those
that could pay and those that were indigent and couldn't pay. It was equitable for the citizens to
expect the City to be compensated for somebody being in jail at the citizen's expense. He did not
feel it was discriminatory to make those pay that had money. The idea was to compensate the
City for what it paid for people in jail. It was left to the discrepancy of the judges, whom the
Council employed, and he felt they needed to trust them.
Councilor Wylie said there had been a sliding fee scale at the Buxley Detox and Treatment Center
for a long time. There was nothing wrong with people paying for services they were getting.
Mayor Leiken asked if this would increase administrative costs.
Chief Smith said there would be no significant increase in cost.
Mayor Leiken asked what the typical time in jail would be for a municipal offense.
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Chief Smith said he was not able to answer that because of many factors. The jail did plan to
work with the Court regarding pre-sentencing and evaluating each inmate as they come in. He
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April 20, 2009
Page 11
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explained. Springfield operated a jail once and at that time, a lot of people bailed out of jail so
they didn't lose their freedom.
Mayor Leiken asked if we had a work program to offset people that couldn't payor if it was too
cost prohibitive.
Chief Smith said there were some inmates that could be conducive to work. Those inmates could
be put out on road crews or cleaning up downtown graffiti. He felt it was a good idea. Some
would not be trustworthy. It would be dependent on the inmate.
Mayor Leiken spoke regarding trust funds and retirement funds, and asked staff to check into the
legality of the City accessing those funds for payment.
Mayor Leiken said the health care sector was paying an enormous amount of charitable expenses
for people that couldn't pay. If enough of the Council wanted to table this for more information,
that was fme. He also suggested Council consider passing this tonight with a report from staff at
least every six months. If it turned out the housing fee was not working as expected, the Council
had the opportunity to remove the resolution. Council could table this if they chose.
Councilor Pishioneri said he was supportive of a housing fee, but wanted to make sure it was
done right and fairly. With his knowledge base in this area, he wanted to make sure his thoughts
were out there. He didn't want to see the City in court and wanted to be defendable.
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Mayor Leiken said if Council was uncomfortable about making a decision tonight and would
prefer to table this item until staff could bring back additional information, that was fme. They
could also pass it with a requirement that staff come back in six months to report on how it's
working.
Councilor Woodrow asked if staff could go forward with the suggestions heard tonight.
Chief Smith said yes. They were still trying to put a process in place to imPlement the fee in the
resolution and they would get there. He would like to see it now, because the City was paying
Lane County a lot of money to house criminals. Staff could report every six months. .
Councilor Woodrow asked if the changes suggested by Councilor Pishioneri could be
incorporated in a. way to approve the resolution tonight.
Mr. Leahy said Councilors Pishioneri and Lundberg had raised all the questions staff had
continued to think about in this matter. They talked about the process all the time. They could
come back with a fine tuned ordinance (resolution), but either way would continue to discuss
those issues.
Councilor Woodrow said he was comfortable going forward tonight and checking in at a three
month interval. The City Attorney and staff would continue to refine the process.
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Mayor Leiken said six months gave more lead time and a better look at how things were going.
The fact that staff would report back to let Council know how things were going needed to be part
of the motion. If this was something that was not working for the taxpayers, there would be no
reason to continue.
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April 20, 2009
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Councilor Pishioneri asked when the old City jail was shut down.
Chief Smith said in the late 1980's, about 1986 or 1987.
Councilor Pishioneri pointed out that in 1988 the Federal cap came to Lane County. Prior to that,
no one was getting out on overcrowding. Initially, the City jail would have a lot of bite, but
eventually would get over crowded and would no longer have room.
IT WAS MOVED BY COUNCILOR RALSTON WITH A SECOND BY COUNCILOR
LUNDBERG TO ADOPT RESOLUTION NO. 09-15 WITH REGULAR UPDATES ON 6
MONTH INTERVALS. THE MOTION PASSED WITH A VOTE OF 4 FOR AND 2
AGAINST (PISmONERI AND LUNDBERG).
Mr. Leahy said six months from tonight, staff might not have much information to share. If they
waited until six months after the jail opened, they could have more information.
Discussion was held regarding whether or not the fIrst report would be six months from tonight or
six months from the date the jail opened.
Mr. Leahy said if there was opportunity for staff to bring an update on the jail before it opened,
he would recommend providing this information at that time.
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Mayor Leiken said Councilor Pishioneri and Lundberg were supportive of the housing fee, but
had questions. He respected that and respected Councilor Pishioneri's personal knowledge about
this issue. He was comfortable asking for an evaluation from staff.
Mr. Grimaldi said staff could respond in a Communication Packet memo.
COUNCIL RESPONSE
BUSINESS FROM THE AUDIENCE
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1. Dennis Shine. 2923 Game Farm Road. Springfield. Oregon. Mr. Shine gave the City
Recorder a copy of his remarks to distribute to the Mayor and Council. He thanked the City
Manager and his staff for becoming members of the Friends of the Library and he hoped the
Council would do likewise. He said he was speaking as a member of the advocacy committee
for senior and disabled people of Lane County. The director of that program, Kay Metzger,
received a complaint about the roundabout at the intersection of Pioneer Parkway and Hayden
Bridge. Their question was about pedestrian traffic. Their contention was that if automobile
traffic was going north, in the right hand lane, those drivers would be looking to their left for
automobile traffic, and might not see a pedestrian to their right. A group from his committee
met with Brian Barnett twice, the second meeting with the addition of Tom Boyatt
(Transportation Manager), Gino Grimaldi (City Manager), Joe Leahy (City Attorney) and
someone from the Police Department. The issue was whether or not this was safe for
pedestrians, particularly those that were senior or disabled. He asked Council as
representatives of the citizens that lived in Springfield and could be at risk, to talk to the City
Manager and other staff and reassure themselves that they were not in violation of the
American's with Disability Act (ADA).
City of Springfield
Council Regular Meeting Minutes
April 20, 2009
Page 13
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Mr. Grimaldi said there was agreement at the second meeting that a subsequent meeting would
take place to address the issues that were raised. This meeting was scheduled in May.
Mayor Leiken thanked Mr. Shine for bringing that issue forward.
CORRESPONDENCE AND PETITIONS
BIDS
ORDINANCES
BUSINESS FROM THE CITY COUNCIL
1. Committee Appointments
2. Business from Council
a. Committee Reports
1. Councilor Ralston said he and Councilor Lundberg were on the JEO Subcommittee
on the Metro Plan. The issues Lane County had with the Metro Plan were not issues
for the cities. It could take many meetings to work through the issues.
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Councilor Ralston said Human Services Commission (HSC) met today and there was
a lot of discussion regarding the budget and how the State cuts would affect their
services. The Buckley House was a very important service for our community and he
had heard that program could be cut entirely, which would be a total disaster. If there
was no place to take people that needed that service, they would go to the hospitals,
which could be even more costly than funding the program.
Councilor Wylie said the revenue forecast from the State was scheduled for May 15,
and she had heard nothing. They had been told there was some money for the road
fund money swap from Lane County and a portion of that could go to the Buckley
House. Right now there was no guarantee for any funding and it was the most
difficult year she had faced regarding putting together a budget.
Councilor Ralston said it would continue to be an issue and the HSC would be asking
Springfield for an additional $20,000 during budget time.
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2. Mayor Leiken said he attended the Oregon Highway Users group in Salem. At that
meeting, he learned that potentially there could be an additional $ 100M coming to
the transportation bill. It was still on the House side and had not yet gone to the
Senate. They were also looking at a moratorium on cities passing their own gas tax,
with a potential four year moratorium with a sunset after the four years. The key
would be how those funds were allocated to the cities and counties. They were still
deliberating how it could be funded. When they originally talked about it with the
Governor's committee, it was a .02 gas tax with the rest of the money coming from
fees. That was when gas prices were over $4 per gallon and automobiles were selling.
Now they were considering a .06 statewide gas tax and a reduction in fees.
Fortunately, it was in Representative Beyer's committee.
City of Springfield
Council Regular Meeting Minutes
April 20, 2009
Page 14
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3. Councilor Leezer said she was heavily involved in the political action committee
(PAC) for Ballot Measure 20-153, the .02 gas tax. She asked for everyone's support
and said their meetings were held every Wednesday afternoon at 5: 15pm at the
HomeBuilders Association. The meetings lasted about one hour. She would
appreciate the Council's support.
BUSINESS FROM THE CITY MANAGER
1. Bid Award for Project P21020, Sanitary Sewer Rehabilitation 2009 Basin 19A.
Civil Engineer Jeff Paschall presented the staff report on this item. This project is the fourth of
nine contracts that are part ofthe larger sanitary sewer rehabilitation project which will complete
the remaining work outlined in the Wet Weather Flow Management Plan (WWFMP). These
rehabilitation projects protect the City's investment in the wastewater collection system assets,
prevent overflows of and public exposure of raw sewage, and implement the City's obligations
under State laws and an Environmental Protection Agency (EP A) compliance order. All nine
projects are on a fast track to be completed by December 31, 2009. The timing has been
beneficial to the City due to a currently advantageous bidding climate.
The following bids were received and opened on April 2, 2009:
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Engineer's Estimate
Harold Primrose Excavating, LLC.
CPM Development Corporation
K & R Plumbing Construction Company
Landis & Landis Construction
Wildish Construction Company
$658,787.20
$534,619.50
$555,595.50
$611,419.00
$674,091.00
$684,102.00
Harold Primrose Excavating, LLCis the low bidder on this project. Sufficient funds exist
through the recent sale of Wastewater Revenue Bonds and action approved in Supplemental
Budget 3 on April 6, 2009 to recognize funding in the construction project account 850205 to
allow award of the contract.
Councilor Pishioneri asked what the original projected cost was.
Mr. Paschall said it was about $800,000.
IT WAS MOVED BY COUNCILOR RALSTON WITH A SECOND BY COUNCILOR
LUNDBERG TO AWARD THE SUBJECT CONTRACT FOR PROJECT P21020 (BASIN
19A) TO HAROLD PRIMROSE EXCAVATING, LLC, IN THE AMOUNT OF
$534,619.50. THE MOTION PASSED WITH A VOTE OF 6 FOR AND 0 AGAINST.
2. March 2009, Disbursements for Approval.
Finance Director Bob Duey presented the staff report on this item. The March 2009,
Disbursements for Approval were attached for Council review and approval.
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Checks totaling $5,168,327.22 were issued in March 2009. Documentation supporting these
payments had been reviewed.
City of Springfield
Council Regular Meeting Minutes
April 20, 2009
Page 15
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Councilor Lundberg declared a conflict of interest because one of the payments was to her
employer. She recused herself from the vote.
IT WAS MOVED BY COUNCILOR RALSTON WITH A SECOND BY COUNCILOR
WOODROW TO APPROVE THE MARCH 2009, DISBURSEMENTS FOR APPROVAL.
THE MOTION PASSED WITH A VOTE OF 5 FOR AND 0 AGAINST (1 ABSTENTION -
LUNDBERG).
3. Agreement with Attorney Al Johnson for Special Legal Services.
Planning Manager Greg Mott presented the staff report on this item. HB 3337 and the urban
growth boundary (UGB) land supply study currently underway have presented the City with a
unique opportunity but one with challenging land use issues. Oregon's established legal
standards for expanding UGBs are complex. Litigation and case law pose a moving goal-post
even as Springfield's planning work advances. Since November 2007, the City has utilized the
services of preeminent Oregon land use attorney AI Johnson to help guide Springfield through
this maze. Last month, staff sought a new agreement with Mr. Johnson to continue his expert
services while containing cost.
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With encouragement and assistance from the City Attorney's Office, Development Services
negotiated an agreement that continues Mr. Johnson's services through February 2010, by which
time the Council can be positioned to make a decision about establishing Springfield's first
discrete UGB. The agreement provides for a retainer of $5,000 a month for this period, with
services valued at $160 per hour. Any services requested above 31.25 hours per month during
this period will be billed at $250 per hour.
Development Services Department (DSD) is budgeting $75,000 for these services (but hopes to
spend less), allocated between FY 09 and FY 10. The funding is budgeted.
Mr. Mott said the Safe Harbor Population was an example of an issue where Mr. Johnson had
provided his expertise. That was one of many issues that Mr. Johnson was working on for the
City. It was likely that several individuals and groups would be pushing back on the actions
regarding HB3337, which was scheduled for action in early 2010.
Mr. Leahy said Mr. Mott was one of the most well respected planners in the area and was the
voice of experience. AI Johnson had a very keen mind, was well respected by the City of Eugene
,and statewide. If the City was going to have an encounter regarding HB3337, he was someone
that added to the team. It was well worth the expense.
Mayor Leiken agreed. Al Johnson was probably the best land use attorney in the state.
IT WAS MOVED BY COUNCILOR RALSTON WITH A SECOND BY COUNCILOR
LUNDBERG TO APPROVE THE ATTACHED AGREEMENT, WmCH WAS
PREPARED BY THE CITY ATTORNEY'S OFFICE AND APPROVED BY MR.
JOHNSON. THE MOTION PASSED WITH A VOTE OF 6 FOR AND 0 AGAINST.
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Mr. Grimaldi reminded Council that the first Budget Committee meeting was on Tuesday, April
21 at 6:00pm.
City of Springfield
Council Regular Meeting Minutes
April 20, 2009
Page 16
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BUSINESS FROM THE CITY ATTORNEY
Mr. Leahy referred to the discussion regarding Habitat for Humanity and noted that former City
Attorney, Tim Harold, was spending about five days a week building homes and acting as a
foreman for Habitat.
ADJOURNMENT
The meeting was adjourned at approximately 8:40 p.m.
Minutes Recorder Amy Sowa
Attest:
City~
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