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HomeMy WebLinkAbout09/15/2003 Work Session lI:eol.~ . City of Springfield Work Session Meeting MINUTES OF THE WORK SESSION MEETING OF THE SPRINGFIELD CITY COUNCIL HELD MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 15, 2003. The City of Springfield council met in work session in the Jesse Maine Room, 225 Fifth Street, Springfield, Oregon, on Monday, September 15, 2003 at 6:02 p.m., with Mayor Leiken presiding. ATTENDANCE Present were Mayor Leiken and Councilors Woodrow, Burge, Fitch, Malloy (6:10 pm) and Ralston. Also present were Assistant City Manager Cynthia Pappas, City Attorney Joe Leahy, City Recorder Amy Sowa and members of the staff. Councilor Ballew was absent (excused). Mayor Leiken asked Chief Murphy to update council on the hydrogen leak from the tanker that was in the Springfield city limits. Chief Murphy explained the events leading to the truck driver diverting to Springfield's off-ramp. Eugene Haz-Mat, Springfield Fire, Eugene Fire and Lane Count)' arrived on the scene. He described the evacuation process and the decision to evacuate nearby residents and businesses. He discussed the venting process and the time involved. . Chief Smith described some of the traffic issues that occurred today and the possibility of the same tomorrow if this is not resolved soon. He discussed the location of evacuation centers and the phone number for citizens to call. Ms. Pappas discussed the school issue and how they will notify schools when they can return to respective sites. Discussion was held regarding costs and the responsible party. The transporter is responsible for costs incurred. They discussed the offload vehicle and the distance it was from our site. Chief Murphy said there will be an 11 :00 pm update available. 1. City Prosecutor Update. Assistant City Manager Cynthia Pappas introduced City Prosecutor Dave Logan. Mr. Logan has served as our City Prosecutor for nearly 20 years. He is here to update council on city prosecutor functions and activities. . Mr. Logan gave a brief work history, focused on Springfield. He is an independent contractor supervised by the Assistant City Manager, Cynthia Pappas. He still maintains some private practice as part of the contract and teaches a class in Criminal Law at Lane Community College. He discussed some of the cases he prosecutes that include a large number of misdemeanors, which he described. He explained the decision four years ago to incorporate all the state statutes so all could be tried in Springfield Municipal Court, which he feels was a good decision. He described his current staffmg and the additional staffthat will join his office resulting from levy funding. He commended his staff for their hard work. He explained the different classes of ..... City of Springfield Council Work Session Minutes, September 15,2003 Page 2 misdemeanor and the fines that accompany those charges. He discussed briefly the lack of jail bed space. . Mayor Leiken asked Mr. Logan about the cost of the jail beds and if he thought it would be worth it to have those beds at the County guaranteed or are there other alternatives. Mr. Logan feels that we do need some beds we can rely on to be open for the worst of offenders. He gave some examples and the need for these beds. Councilor Fitch asked how many dedicated beds we would need to create a cultural change. Mr. Logan said approximately 40-50 beds would be needed to really make a change. Councilor Burge discussed the system in Mariposa County's Tent City in Arizona and the effectiveness and positive reception it receives. Mr. Logan and Chief Smith addressed this question and discussed the jail bed issue. They discussed length of time to book someone in jail. Councilor Fitch said she would guess that Mr. Logan settles more cases in other ways because he knows there aren't enough jail beds. Mr. Logan agreed and discussed some of the alternatives, such as road crews. He discussed diversion and the positive impact it can have on specialty cases. He explained the increase in traffic fines from the Oregon Legislature. He feels that this should be explained and posted for citizens so they realize it is not City driven._- Discussion was held regarding the exclusiveness of the jail beds being used just for the city and those beds rented out to the federal government and whether or not this is revenue generating. . Mr. Logan noted the assistance his office receives from Harold, Leahy, and Kieran's office. He noted the balance with Police, Municipal Court and the City Prosecutor's Office and commended Kathy Cunningham. Municipal Court Supervisor. ADJOURNMENT \, The meeting was adjourned at 6:40 pm. Minutes Recorder - Amy Sowa Attest: Am~~ City Recorder .