Springfield City Council — April 6, 2026

0:05 to call the Springfield City Council work session to order with roll call. >> Mayor Van Gordon >> here. Councelor Weber here. Councelor Mo here. >> Councelor Rodley. Councelor Buck >> here >> and councelor Ste >> here. Thank you. Excuse me. Um and councelor Rodley is excused for the evening. We have two items this evening for the work session. One item is interview work for interimm council candidates. Turn over to Mayor Bruce. >> Well, good evening mayor and council. Uh welcome back. Uh we're here tonight uh meeting uh early to do the interviews for the council vacancy for ward 4. Uh the item tonight is a long item. We have 90 minutes for this item with the number of candidates. We're estimating about 15 minutes per person per interview and I thought we go in alphabetical order for

0:52 the interviews. Um starting with Miss Nap when we start. I wanted to check with you first about the questions in the packet to see if those were okay in terms of going through those questions and if you just wanted to start um with maybe uh board one asking the first question and moving around from there or however you want to work it >> that work and as we discussed uh this item tonight is just the interviews uh deliberation is going to be on uh the meeting on April 20th. You have um the candidates are Miss Acklland, Quadros, Larson, man, and Mallister. And we'll go in that order. You have a second item um for the

1:37 payroll text this evening and the regular session tonight at 7. So, we'll be watching the clock to try and switch over at 6:30 will be the plan. We don't if we aren't ready by now. Uh any other questions? >> Okay. Um could you guys could everybody take a quick look at the questions and make sure they are happy with the questions? Okay. So, plan when as we do the interview is to start with councelor Weber and then we will do round robin with councelor stout and go all the way around until we are done. >> Okay. I think we are good. >> All right. on that. I know you just asked if we were good, but uh for

2:23 question number two is the whole question. Quite a quite a mouthful in that one. Just want to make sure. Okay, >> it's a long one. Yeah. >> Good. >> Multi. >> All right. >> Okay. >> Thanks. >> You good? All right. >> And then the candidate can sit here for the interview. So, and we first you want me to go ahead and call. Yep. >> Welcome. >> I'm going to ask the first question.

3:09 >> Ready to dive in? >> Yeah. >> Okay. What do you value most about Springfield and how would that perspective shape your priorities and decisions as a counselor? >> Well, first I do just want to say thank you all for this opportunity to speak here. I've had the opportunity to speak with most of you over the last couple months to start learning from you and to share some of my perspective and I really hope that we can soon work together to serve the people of Springfield. One of the things that I value most about Springfield is that it's a small town community that also has the energy and the opportunity of a growing city. And I really enjoy our downtown area, especially the historic buildings and all of the murals um and the painted crosswalk. And I'd love to see even more

3:55 public art in the future. I think it makes us an attractive tourist destination, which is important for our economic development. Um, we're also very blessed with an abundance of green spaces and recreational opportunities, especially the Bob Kefir Center in my ward. And I think that Springfield is a great place to start and raise a family. And I want to prioritize policies that will help improve the quality of our working families. Um, because that's what that's what makes Springfield special. It's the people and the community and the sense of belonging here that I really value deeply. Um, and looking ahead, I am really excited about where the city's going, especially with opportunities like the Glenwood development and um, potential for further gateway

4:40 development. So, at the end of the day, I see Springfield as a city of opportunity and that's what I value most about it and what I want to help continue building. >> Thank you. The council is currently addressing several major issues including the general fund general fund structural imbalance, economic development in Glenwood and downtown infrastructure needs and Eugene Springfield fire governance. Which one or two of these areas would you prioritize? And what specific actions or policy changes would you propose to address them separately? Are there any new policy ideas or initiatives you believe council should consider? I've been attending city council meetings for over a year and as a citizen I think I have a pretty decent understanding of the major issues that the city faces but of course I haven't

5:25 yet had the opportunity or the the information and the resources that are available specifically to city councilors um or the opportunity to dig deep into issues from a council's perspective. So that's my first order of business is sitting down with the experts both city staff and other industry leaders um to learn from their experiences and understand their perspectives. I have some thoughts now but I still have a lot to learn and a lot of people to hear from before I can begin making datadriven decisions on behalf of the city. I do believe that the structural imbalance of our general fund is by far the most pressing problem that our city faces without addressing this. We can't

6:11 work on economic development or infrastructure needs or pretty much anything without it just being a band-aid solution. Um, you know, we can't kick this problem down the road. It's here now and tough decisions do need to be made about what core services a city can afford to provide. The fiscal stability task force made several good recommendations and I've been a big uh public supporter of the payroll tax and I'm really looking forward to Nathan's presentation tonight learning more about what about that and how general fund and I also know that the root cause of our structural imbalance and that of many other towns and districts across Oregon is our property tax system and so without or as

6:56 inflation continues to rise we can't address our budget deficit long-term in a sustainable manner without reforming measures five and 50, which was another uh task force recommendation that I'd like to continue. I'd like to prioritize exploring. And I've heard that there's increasing interest on the state level to reconsider our tax system. And so I would want to make sure that our council has a strong voice that process and how it affects Springfield. um especially with pushing back against any more unfunded youngs. And as for new uh policy initiatives, um first and foremost, I have uh both professional and personal experience with how dire our housing crisis is. We

7:42 need thousands of new units, especially affordable apartments and middle housing here in Springfield. And so I'd like to explore a variety of solutions including community land trusts and a vacant uh creative reuse of vacant commercial properties as well as more promotion of our building uh our pre-approved building plans and the SDC waiverss for ADUs. And then I would also like to engage with the Chamber of Commerce to support our small businesses because as a small business own a former small business owner myself I really understand those challenges that come with that especially in this economy and one thing

8:27 that's come up a lot in recent conversations is how our businesses need a better transportation corridor to I5. And so that's something that I'd like to hear more input on. And I also plan to hold a series of town halls and office hours so that I can hear directly from the public as to what initiatives they'd like us to consider. And then lastly, I want to support my fellow counselors on their projects, whether that's the Glenwood development or working with our East Springfield counselors and community to develop a vision for the Bob Stro area and the infrastructure that's needed there for future city growth.

9:15 Representation. So, uh, how would you work with, uh, councelor manager form of government with the council manager form of government to advance your policy priorities? How how did the city's atlarge election systems shape the way you engage and represent with the community? Did I say that clearly enough? >> Yes. I felt like it was a law. So, >> I am going to answer it backwards though. It's fine. That just Yeah. Um, so I I do strongly support counselors being elected citywide. Um, I think that that encourages a more unified approach to governing and with each counselor being accountable to the entire city, that naturally pushes collaboration and helps ensure that decisions are made with the entire city

10:02 in mind and not just one ward or one interest group. I also think that there's that that's really important to have individual representation for each ward as well because the people who live in a neighborhood understand it on a street by street level. They know what's working and what's not working and what the niche uh issues are and that insight is important to align the council priorities with neighborhood needs. For example, my ward has a pretty significant chunk of industrial businesses that are vital to Lane County's economy. So, that's something to consider as the ward for counselor. And as far as advancing policies that the city manager and staff are able to successfully execute,

10:47 I always want to talk to as many people as possible to understand the options and to help guide my decision uh towards what's best for the city. First, I want to hear from the people who are directly impacted from the policies or by the lack thereof. I think that their lived experiences are the foundation from which we should begin our work. And then I also really value the expertise of our city staff. They are the experts in their field and they have more educated opinions on how to address multiaceted situations and and problems. And then when it comes to what's doable, what's practical for us, Nancy has that well-rounded knowledge on what do we have the resources for or how might we

11:33 be able to shuffle resources around? And so at the end of the day, it's Nancy and our city staff who figure out the details. And it's important to trust their expertise and give them the space to do their work. >> My turn. Your turn. Okay. decision making and funding. When faced with a complex issue that has multiple possible solutions and varying costs, what process we can use to evaluate the options and select a solution that is both effective and financially sustainable? Well, there's a lot of complex issues that we're facing and I've had the opportunity over the last year to observe the council and start getting to

12:19 know you and each counselor brings a different perspective and a different area of expertise to the table. For example, I bring a young millennial perspective and being a current student well as both professional expertise and lived experience as a renter and a militant background and all of which would be new and valuable additions to the council. So, we're each bringing something different to the table and that's really powerful for our collaborative governance and we won't always see eye to eye, but we do have the same end goal to do what's best for the city. And so, I believe that there's always common ground that can be found to ensure council cohesion.

13:04 And there's never a one-sizefits-all situation um or solution to any difficult financial decision. And um I definitely don't have all the answers myself and I always want to seek out as much information as possible before I make a decision. I learned in the military to think strategically and to consider all angles and to remember my objective and once a decision is made whether you like it or not you get the job done. Okay. >> All right. Um, I have one additional bonus question and the closing question for you. Um,

13:49 as you might be aware, right, I my understanding is that you currently serve on a temporary on call librarian role and are you aware that there's a restriction in the charter about city employees serving on council? And if so, could you share some of your thinking about how to approach that challenge? >> Yes. So, since last summer, I've helped out a few days a month at the library as an on call assistant, and it's been a really incredible insight into how the library serves the public. And beyond my experience seeing how the library department operates, I also have served on the I serve on the planning commission. Um, so I've learned a lot about zoning and land use. And I've really enjoyed working with Sandy Bellson and her planning staff. And when this council position opened up, the

14:35 library director, Emily David, was one of the very first people that I got in touch with to let her know that I was considering applying and what that would mean for my job at the library. And she confirmed with the city attorney for me that I could apply for city council and that if appointed, I will immediately stop working at the library and no longer be on the planning commission. So, I believe that my experience working with multiple city departments is an asset as a counselor and um I I already have firsthand experience with how the city side or excuse me, how the staff side of our city government works. And as a counselor, uh one of my first priorities will be getting to know the other departments as well. And I know that some people only know me for

15:20 the library advocacy work that I've done in my personal time off the clock as a private citizen. Um, but as you've seen in my application and hopefully in my interview, that's not why I applied for council. The library is just one of many, many things that I care about. And I've advocated for the library because I believe that it's such a valuable asset to the city of Springfield. And I'll bring that same enthusiasm to all of the work that I do here. All right. Thank you. And the last question is, what questions do you have any questions for us or is there anything else you would like us to know? >> Um, I just wanted to say thank you again for the opportunity to be here. Um, in my one-on ones, it was important to me to hear about your experiences as counselors and hear what you are each looking for in a colleague. And I think

16:06 that we all found common ground and have shared goals. And I just want to reiterate that I understand the commitment that this takes and that I have a lot of respect for it being such a complex role that deals with a lot of thorny issues and I've already done my homework to begin preparing for this role and I have the time and the energy and the experience to perform these duties and I'm ready to roll up my sleeves and get to work on day one. >> Thank you so much.

16:58 >> Are you ready? Ready. >> Okay. What do you value most about Springfield and how would that perspective shape your priorities and decisions as a counselor? >> So, I moved to Springfield in 1988 to attend LCC. Um, it was a detour on my college path. I actually started college in Southern California after growing up in a little coastal town uh here in Oregon called Port Orford. >> Excellent. Uh, however, after a fairly serious broken leg, I was unable to sta sustain that independence down there in Southern California. So, I jumped on the phone and secured student housing on Lindale Drive. Um, the LTD stopped right in front of my apartment, so it was perfect for the

17:44 condition that I was in. Uh, I had physical therapy over on G Street, and I always enjoyed that ride down Pioneer Parkway. was so beautiful and green. Um, I used Wamlene Swim Center uh to sort of get back on my feet and I found a church over by Mackenzie Wamut Hospital. That little routine and the friendly people got me a job at Wamla Lane. They were building the swim center at that time. Um, I jumped on the committee that named it the Lively Park Swim Center and that was it. I was a part of Springfield. Uh, so when you ask me what do I value? I value our systems. I value our education. I value our services, our

18:29 green spaces, and I value our people. Um, those parts and pieces of Springfield shape how I think about decisions. I look at how things are connected, housing, economic opportunity, schools, and basic livability. When those are stable, the community is stable. So, as a counselor, my priorities will be grounded in maintaining that accessibility and stability that was there for me in 1988. Uh, supporting thoughtful housing growth, strengthening local economic opportunity, and making fiscal fiscally responsible decisions that protect the long-term health of this city that went from being my detour to my forever home. Uh just as importantly, I approach decisions with

19:14 an understanding of who is who is actually living and working in this community because I've been a part of it for such a long time both professionally and personally. >> The council is currently addressing several major issues including the general fund structural imbalance, economic development in Glenwood and downtown infrastructure needs and Eugene Springfield fire governance. Which one or two areas of these areas would you prioritize and what specific actions or policy changes would you propose to address them separately? Are there any new policy ideas or initiatives you believe the council should consider? >> So the two areas that I would prioritize are the general fund structural um imbalance and then the economic development because they're directly connected. on the general fund. My

20:00 experience managing public budgets has taught me that you have to understand not just what's visible, but what's underneath um how decisions are made across departments and how resources are aligned. Before we look to new revenue tools, I think it's critical that we've taken a disciplined and transparent approach internally. That means a comprehensive depart I guess department uh reviews of programs and expenditures ensuring that resources are aligned with council priorities and that we're operating as efficiently as we possibly can. When we're talking about impacts to services like the library, those decisions need to be made within that broader citywide context. So, we're protecting core services, but while also

20:45 addressing the financial reality of our situation at the same time, I recognize that the structural issues. This is not a one-time problem. So, if we consider new revenue options like payroll tax, I would want clarity on whether that revenue is stabilizing existing services or funding new initiatives and the confidence that we've demonstrated strong fiscal stewardship first. So, this leads directly into the economic development side. In my experience working, uh, in downtown Springfield, uh, early on, I saw how even small barriers, I remember there was a $10,000 fee to open a small business in downtown Springfield, and that barrier uh,

21:30 upfront cost for small businesses was very limiting. At the same time, we've also seen examples where we've expected returns from corporate incentives that we've given and that didn't end up materializing. The companies left before those long-term benefits ever translated back into our community. Um, one area I would focus on is continuing to reduce those barriers for the small and local businesses. uh I looking at things like startup costs, permitting processes, and accesses to space while being more intentional and selective about how we use incentives for these larger developments. Um I also think we need to recognize that housing and workforce are part of our economic development. Supporting housing growth and aligning with job opportunities helps us build a

22:17 sustainable tax base over time, especially within our constraints that we have, measure five and measure 50. Um, as a broader approach, I would be interested in exploring ways to better align economic development strategy with small business growth and housing development. So, we're building long-term sustainable revenue rather than relying on our short-term solutions and or our one-time fixes. So for me, the focus on long-term sustainability, strengthening our local community, supporting housing growth, and making fiscally responsible decisions that align with what our community can support over time.

23:05 >> How would you work within the counselor manager form of government to advance your policy priorities? So in a counselor manager form of government, I see the role of the counselors as any board um setting direction, establishing policy and providing oversight while respecting the expertise of the city manager, the mayor and the staff to implement that work. In my current role, uh I operate in a similar environment. So I'm very comfortable working within that structure. I under I absolutely understand the importance of staying in the policy lane um and asking for thoughtful informed questions that help surface assumptions, the tradeoffs and the long-term impacts. It's my intention that decisions are grounded in both data and practical reality. Um to advance

23:50 priorities, I would focus on collaboration, working with the fellow counselors to find alignment, understanding your different perspectives, building consensus where possible. And I don't see this role working independently. I see it as being a part of a governing body that has to make thoughtful collective decisions together. Uh yeah. >> And then the second part of that is the how would you how how would the city's atlarge election system shape the way you engage and represent the community? >> Absolutely. So in terms of representation at the at large system reinforces that responsibility. While I bring a perspective of W four, I also approach decisions with the understanding uh that my decisions impact the entire city. This means I will listen broadly by engaging with

24:36 residents, businesses, and community partners across Springfield, and I will make sure that my decisions are grounded in overall health of the community. At the same time, uh, I do feel it's important to me to make sure that voices are heard, especially community members whose voices are under represent or haven't necessarily made their way into this room uh before. My approach would be to stay accessible, to listen carefully, and to bring those perspectives into the decision-making process as a thoughtful and balanced way. Ultimately, I approached this role with focus on collaboration, a respect for the process, and making decisions that support that long-term livability of the entire community.

25:28 >> Very good. When faced with a complex issue that has multiple possible solutions and varying costs, what process would you use to evaluate the options and select a solution that's both effective, financially sustainable? >> Okay, so when I'm faced with complex decisions with multiple options, uh I I I plan in this situation to start by grounding within the council's adopted priorities and long-term goals. If a solution doesn't align with those, it's not sustainable, no matter how appealing it might look. So from there, I would look at the full picture. What are the costs? What are our trade-offs? What are the long-term impacts? And what unintended consequences come from our decisions, not just the immediate

26:13 outcomes. Um, I also think it's important that we're operating as efficiently as possible. That means what? Asking whether we've taken a disciplined look across the city, where we can streamline, where we can improve processes, and whether resources are aligned with our highest priorities. At the same time, I don't rely solely on what's in front of me in a report. I think it's really important to listen to both the information that I'll be provided as well as by the staff um and as well as what I'm hearing from the community and from my both my ward and across the city. Ultimately, I do make decisions independently based on that full picture using data impacts and community input. But once that decision is made, I believe in supporting the

26:58 direction of the council uh and moving forward together. So for me, financially sustainable decisions are the ones that are aligned with your the council's priorities and goals that are well informed and they're realistic about what we can support for this city in the future. >> All right, I think I've got the easy one. What if any questions do you have for is there anything else you would like to know? >> Well, I'm not stepping forward with the idea that I have all the answers. Uh, I'm stepping forward because I bring experience working in complex complex public systems. I understand how decisions impact both the operations for the city staff and the people in the community and I'm prepared to contribute in a steady and thoughtful way. Um,

27:43 Springfield has shaped my life in a very real way and I'm at the point where I have the experience and capacity to give back at this level. So, if I was selected, I would come in ready to listen, to ask grounded questions, work collaboratively, and support the council in making decisions that are grounded, fiscally responsible, and aligned with the long-term health of Springfield. I do have some questions. Uh, how would you describe the current working dynamic of the council and what would what would help strengthen it? >> This is where I tap my friends. Go ahead, councelor B. >> So, um I guess I want to tackle this from kind of like the the new counselor perspective because getting appointed um

28:31 it is like jumping into the deep end of the pool. Um and there's just no two ways about it. So, what I found is that um it's been a great experience with all the counselors. Everybody has a different perspective. if they bring a different experience and um I haven't found anybody telling me like this is what I think or what you should think but what's super valuable is they're like these are the questions you should ask this is the person you should talk to these are the places that you should kind of go to get connected and um these are the best uses of your time and so I' I've found that issue to issue to issue

29:16 um and there's Everything has multiple layers to it. When I sat down with with Nathan, he's around here somewhere. I saw him earlier. I know he's here. Um he's like, "Well, here's this level. Like, do you want to go into all 30 of these funds in each of these buckets?" It's like, "Well, not today, but yes." >> And so, just knowing who I can go to, what questions to ask, and how to start wrapping my head around different things. Um and so I found it incredibly supportive uh group of people and um like I said everybody's gives we each give ourselves like the space to come up with your own conclusion but at the same token kind of

30:03 guide you into like this is how you can do that like this is where the information is because there's a lot out there. So that's been my experience. So, I heard you say that you understand everyone's perspective. So, um what um areas do you feel the council would benefit from an additional perspective or experience right now? >> I I'll take this one. This one This one's I've seen a couple >> I think I think um there's federal councils and several groups of people councils. Every council finds its own way. So I don't know that I would I would say we're we're missing a certain perspective but so much as hey

30:49 you have to sort you have to trust the kind of appointment process that we'll find we'll find the right person and then we'll figure out who we are as a body and even the addition of one person can change how we operate substantially. So anybody that we appoint will have, you know, will will have a place in a role and be valued and um this perspective we we actually we actually do need. Um but it just always takes a minute that you know we're six people plus me. So seven total people. It takes a minute always to find out who we are as a body and how we want to operate. Sometimes we're fast, sometimes we're slow, sometimes we ask a ton of questions, sometimes we're good. Right. So >> perfect. Any questions? >> Thank you so much. >> Thank you all.

31:39 >> Mayor Council, the next candidate is Ben Lo and welcome. >> Dive in. >> Sure. What do you value most about Springfield and how would that perspective shape your priorities and decisions as a campus? >> Um, Springfield has been just a really um interesting place for me to watch grow. Um, I grew up in Creswell and just moved

32:24 here a few years ago. um and grew up coming coming here for sporting events or going to parks and um visiting family and um yeah, I just really uh it's been cool to see the community like growing together uh through a lot of a lot of changes. Um, and I, yeah, just enjoy like the the fresh energy that I feel like has kind of transpired over the last decade or so. And um, there's just a lot of like

33:09 community support like our local utility feels like really accessible. when I think about other other options elsewhere and um community centers and um yeah, just all of the parks and protected spaces that uh people come to recreate in and enjoy. And um yeah, I guess also I mean primarily like the the people making it happen. um like everybody that's coming together for uh >> for work in this community and um

33:58 yeah keeping keeping a smile on their faces for for most of it and uh yeah just making it a really nice place to be. The council is currently addressing several major issues including the general fun structural imbalance, economic development in Glenwood and downtown infrastructure needs and Eugene Springfield fire governance. Which one or two of these areas would you prioritize and what specific actions or policy changes would you propose to address them? Separately, are there any new policy ideas or initiatives you believe the council should consider? Um, I've been really excited about the um the plans for Glenwood. I think that there's a bigger

34:44 opportunity over there. It's like kind of this middle zone between some like very dense uh metro areas and yeah, a lot of lot of space over there to get people and um yeah, also like improve the the habitat for wildlife as well. Um and so yeah, I think there's that that that's the one that's like the the most exciting for me. I think is like something that could really change what it feels like to like enter Springfield. Um and yeah, get like a lot more people

35:33 um in like quality housing close to services and um yeah, just like in a in a really beautiful spot where it's yeah, just close to things and um yeah, a lot a lot of opportunities there. Um, and yeah, I would also, I guess kind of in that vein, like want to be prioritizing the housing affordability and access um, beyond Glenwood, but I think there's

36:19 certainly opportunities there and just like throughout um, Springfield, opportunities to get more people into um quality housing through um different city programs or looking at zoning and um just encouraging uh more more construction to occur. >> Carter here. How would you work within the counselor manager form of government to advance your policy priorities and how would the city's atlarge election system shape the way you engage with and

37:04 represent the community? Um yeah, so I think it's important that um we listen to each other as like sort of experts in our own areas and our own um with our own backgrounds just like using using that as additional information to help inform all of our decisions. um and being like very respectful in that so that you know it's clear that we're like one body working together for a common purpose. Um

37:51 and so yeah, I think that looks like listening for the most part and you know staying curious, asking questions when you have them. Um and just yeah paying special attention to like when people are presenting challenges um so that you know he can really tease out like if if they're presenting a solution if they're trying to like brainstorm a solution. um and yeah helping use that to help guide the future direction. Um but yeah, I think I mean I'm not saying

38:38 anything new here. It's primarily like a a policy setting, strategy setting and evaluation. Um as well as like looking at sort of yeah performance metrics I guess and um providing feedback like respectful feedback when when we can uh to help like improve our >> processes as a as a city. Um and again, yeah, like leaning into trusting staff that they they're the experts in what they're doing and um using that to like really >> make make us be able to like focus on,

39:25 you know, those those policy and strategy objectives. My turn. When faced with a complex issue that has multiple possible solutions and varying costs, what process would use to evaluate the options and select a solution that is both effective and financially sustainable? Uh yeah, I think it's really important to keep keep coming back to seeing if like the goals that we've set, the goals that we believe in are um being achieved by those different possibilities and to

40:12 what degree. Um, so yeah, keeping keeping like the goals of what we're trying to do like front and center and making sure that it's not getting lost. Um, and evaluating that by like bringing in lots of different perspectives that have, you know, lived experience or are experts in sort of what um, what is being evaluated. Um, so yeah, I think it takes a lot of a lot of listening, maybe saying some things that you're not sure and you're like clear that you're not sure about that, but it's just kind of something that's coming coming out as a thought so that

40:59 um, you know, you can bounce it around your uh, peers and and see kind of where where other people are. feeling like they're heading towards. Um, and yeah, kind of making making that like a move together so that it's not like, all right, I said this and now everybody should get on board, but we're like, you know, trying to trying to get to the same place and and being uh thoughtful about that. Um, and the last piece I'll add to that is like thinking thinking about the problem like holistically like what's the what

41:44 are all the um outcomes of this decision? Making sure that we're not like, you know, having something very bad come out of a decision that uh, you know, didn't seem like it was thought about. Um and so yeah, just making sure that complex issues get the attention that they need and um you know, if that means like it or having an extra session to discuss it, doing that rather than like forcing a decision um just because of the pressure of of doing that.

42:29 Um, and also like making sure that you are being being efficient with like resource use and like does this thing already exist in a different form that we can repurpose or like connect to something that's already happening? Um, >> thank you very much. >> What questions do you have for us or is there anything else you would like us to know? Um I just uh yeah excited about the opportunity to serve a bigger body local local service and uh yeah thank you for thank you for your service. >> Thank you.

43:14 >> Thanks. >> Everybody, >> welcome. Thank you for joining us. board. >> What do you value most about Springfield and how would that perspective shape your priorities and decisions as a counselor? >> Um, I grew up in a coastal community between San Diego and Los Angeles and

44:00 when I came to Springfield to go to the University of Oregon, I was shocked by how few people um I could connect with um in terms of cultural diversity. Um, in for many decades it pretty much stayed the same. But recently, um, our population has become more diverse and my family and I feel a lot more comfortable here than we used to. I raised two biracial sons in Springfield and raised four of my eight grandkids here for a period of time. Um, so we are very um critical of some of the things that happen to people of color in our community and um I think I bring a unique perspective on how we can

44:48 make people feel safe and welcome and um respected. Um our concerns as a multicultural, multithnic family are the same as anybody else's. We want to feel safe. We want to feel valued and we want to feel respected. And I think um that's my perspective on um the thing that I like about Springfield. According to the United Way recent Alice study, 25% of our citizens are of people of color. And unfortunately, that comes with um a higher rate of poverty than we're used to seeing in our community. And so those are two issues that I am very passionate about. Sorry, emotional about the issues. Um, but um, yeah, I hope I

45:36 answered that question. Sorry, I started to ramble. I'm more of a keeper person than a speaker. >> That's great. Um, the council is currently addressing several major issues, including the general fund, structural imbalance, economic development in Glenwood and downtown, infrastructure needs, and Eugene Springfield fire governance. Which one or two of these areas would you prioritize? And what specific actions or policy changes would you propose to address them separately? Are there any new policy ideas or initiatives you believe council should consider? >> Um number one priority I believe uh is the general fund in balance. Uh without balancing our budget um we can't provide the public services that we have promised our citizens.

46:22 um families need to survive their cha challenges on a day-to-day basis. We cannot overlook the needs for economic development and the needs of providing services to our citizens. Um so economic development is kind of like right in there. It's like A1, A2. Um because we need to keep businesses here. We need to attract new businesses. The answer to poverty is jobs and money and economics and uh we can't have all those without um working on those issues. I would be remiss if I didn't try to sneak in a third one. Um fire station 3 is uh eight houses from me. I worked really hard to make sure that levy got passed and um I

47:09 worked very closely with IAFF 851 and um we'll continue to work with them on their governance issues. Um but first we have to provide services and we have to have money and we'll work that all in. Yeah. >> So, um, how would you work within the council or manager form of government to advance your policy priorities? And the second part of this is how would the city's at large elections system shape the way you engage with and represent the community? >> What was the first part of that question again? How would you work within the counselor manager form of government to advance uh

47:56 policy priorities? >> Uh as many of you know I'm on the Wama Lane Park and Recreation Board and it's run very similar to this where you ran to them and told them how to do it all. So we are I am used to um getting information and advice from um as many people as I can and I think it's uh it's a very similar structure. Um the staff brings us all the research and the data and options and then the board of directors wrestles with that and um comes up with um a consensus building answer to some of the challenges that we face. So, I'm kind of used to that whole structure. Um, also as a trained union

48:42 person, there was a lot of management, board of directors, union workers. So, I uh have decades of experience in that uh venue and understand the um the restrictions, though I was sort of surprised how legal ramifications are when keeping people in their boxes and in their lanes. And I've gotten kind of used to that. Um, as anyone here in the room who knows me, I have trouble staying in my lane when there could be more lanes built and more exits and more entrances. Um, so yeah, uh, that's that part. And the second part of the question was, >> sure, how would the city's atlarge election system shape the way you engage with and represent the community? Um, I

49:30 came here in 1974, lived on campus the those first four years and then lived in Eugene for a little bit, but I've lived in Springfield 40 plus years now. And I've lived in five of the six wards. Sorry, thirst. Never quite made it out there. Um, so kind of know a little bit about a little every little neighborhood and we all have our unique perspectives on uh how things work and so I'm sort of used to the whole situation. I also worked for the housing authority for 38 years and if there's a rental on a street I've been in it and on it and so I have that sort of unique perspective of of how our families struggle and how they succeed um on a citywide basis.

50:22 Thank you. >> Thank you. >> When faced with a complex issue that has multiple possible solutions and varying costs, what process would you use to evaluate the options and select a solution that is both effective and financially stable sustainable? >> Thank you. Um I mentioned that I was in a union. I still am in a union. I'm in the retirees union for ASME and so I've been paying union dues for over 40 years. Um, and when you're that involved with people and lives and their jobs, um, for me it's a lot of brainstorming to find winning solutions, you know, the whole SWAT, what's good, what's bad, what's positive, what's negative, pros and cons. Um I work with a lot of folks in a

51:09 lot of variety of ways and um I'm a trained mediator and arbitrator and negotiator and so I like to work through all of that with the folks that um are going to be affected by our decisions. And um so I use that training that I've had all my life as a an adult on how that um can come to um a good answer to the problems we're facing. >> Okay. Uh do you have any questions for us or anything else to add? >> Um what I don't think it's a special question. I will I do not intend to give up the lama lane or the wildish. Um I turned 70

51:55 this year and I still have the energy of hopefully of a 40year-old not quite sure maybe 35. Um so I enjoy um all the coalitions that I have built um in this community. Um I have listed them. Hang on one sec. Um I have friends on the subboard and the police board. I've been working with Lane Transit District on the River Road Santa Clara transportation issues and some of that is also reflective of some issues in Springfield, Springfield Arts Commission. I worked in the library as friends of for two years. Um, I helped my neighborhood get speed bumps and reduce the speed on my street, helped with the fire levy, and now I'm working on the local uh option for Wama Lane. I

52:42 have lots of uh friends in the arts world and allies of mine and of course I have a lot of connections with unions. >> Great. Thank you so much. Mayor and Council, the last interview is Luke Udon.

53:27 >> Hello, my notes app. Sorry. To make sure I stay on on topics. Uh, can I make a couple comments before we start? Is that okay? Is that allowed? >> Uh, how about we start with questions and you fill them in as we go. So, since we do it, we did it the same way for everybody. That's fun. All right. >> What do you value most about Springfield? And how would that perspective shape your priorities and decisions as a counselor? >> Um, you know, I uh I moved to Springfield in 2019, my wife and I did, and we had lived in a number of larger cities. Um, and as I was thinking about this question and reflecting, um, the the the word that kept coming to mind was community, right? Um I have the opportunity to sit here in front of you guys today because of the community um

54:12 that accepted me as an outsider from De Mo Iowa, grew up in Atoria, Oregon, right? Um so I think that you know that sense of community is what I really enjoy about Springfield. um you know and so I think as a a city counselor um continuing to make sure that that sense of community is there and and is accessible for everybody in the community and like easily accessible um I think is is important. >> Thank you. >> Sorry. Yeah, I'm in a few words. My bad, guys. The council is currently addressing several major issues, including a general fund, structural imbalance,

54:57 economic development in Glenwood and downtown, infrastructure needs, and Eugene Springfield fire governance. Which one or two of these areas would you prioritize? And what specific actions or policy changes would you propose to address them? Separately, are there any new policy ideas or initiatives you believe the council should consider? >> Yeah. Um well I think the lowhanging fruit is the budget because it's a decision that needs to be started to talk about like once the w position gets filled is like priority number one. Um but I think when you break down the you know the budget and economic initiatives they kind of start going hand inand right one solves the other. Um, and so,

55:42 um, that being said, you know, it it it will be a position where it's like you're we're not going to be able to be like, "Hey, let's get the Glenwood district up and running um to solve our 2027 budget issues." Like, that's really not um not realistic, but I think it is something that should be a priority. Um, as for individual initiatives, I know there's a lot of talk about the payroll tax. So, I think, you know, working once again with like the city manager and understanding what that payroll tax will look like, um, how it's executed, what the intent is behind, uh, putting some guide rails on it to make sure that it's not something that will be detrimental over the long run because it has the ability

56:28 to all of a sudden make Springfield very unattractive for uh, businesses of all sizes, small businesses or much larger businesses like international paper in Roseboro. So I think you know once again understanding it a bit better um before a decision made is really important. >> Great. How would you work within the councilor manager form of government to advance your policy priorities and how would the city's atlarge election system shape the way you engage with and represent the communities? Um, I think just having as much open dialogue as possible uh is is how I would handle the counselor mayor um

57:15 relationship. Uh, you know, once again, getting uh uh as many differing opinions as possible, right? like um I know a lot of people don't like hearing a dissenting opinion or a different opinion but uh to me it it it allows you the opportunity to take a different approach or to see a different you know a different side of things which means that you could come up with a totally different opportunity or or come up with a new solution um by once again getting a different approach. Uh so um I am excited at the opportunity if it presents itself to take the ward 4 opening to to to get to learn more and and hear some different views from people. Um as for the second part of

58:02 that question, um as a local small business owner, I'm already engaged in the community as much as possible. Um, and that's just the nature of being a small business owner, trying to be out there all the time, understanding what the community is wanting and needing. Um, on that note, I'm totally open if I once again get the opportunity um to be the Ward 4 city councelor. I would be open to any feedback where I can do better, where I can engage a community um in Springfield or in W 4 that I might not um have been able to otherwise. So, uh if if that opportunity does arise um I would happily happily um get feedback.

58:48 So, I can do better. I think I'm the last one. So, this is the bigger Okay. When faced with a complex issue that has multiple possible solutions and varying costs, what process would you use to evaluate the options and select a solution that is both effective and financially sustainable? >> Yeah. So once again, I think gathering as much information as possible um is really important in those situations. Um, you know, once again, hearing the good, bad, and the ugly is is important. Um, when considering something like that, I will say that in my personal life, once again, being a business owner, it's really like I always joke

59:34 around. Um, my wife probably doesn't like when I say it, but it's like plan B is making sure plan A works, right? Um, because at the end of the day, it's like that decision that's being made, like I have to have weighed as many options as possible. there's always stuff that you can't um consider or might happen. And and I think when when that happens, it it goes back to like accountability. And accountability doesn't need need to be like a bad word. I think accountability is like we made a decision with all the information we had at the time and it just didn't go well. Why didn't it go well? And if we don't want accountability, then we don't ask that last question to help grow and and do better. >> Thank you. Oh, that was so bad.

1:00:21 >> What question? Do you have any questions for us or is there anything else you want to add? >> Well, no, I just did want to start off with a light-hearted joke that I'm a man. A few words. Um, and then also too, like I think Ward 4 is in great hands. Like the amount of candidates that we had and the interview that you guys I wanted to clap after everyone and I know Sean would have got mad at me. So, um, great job every candidate. Um, yeah, made my job hard because I went last and I was like, "Oh my gosh, how am I gonna how am I gonna do a good job on this question?" So, appreciate that. >> Thank you, man. We're so far on time. We still are 25 minutes ahead of schedule. >> I know. >> Better add one more question and bring everybody. >> All right. So, that was the interviews.

1:01:08 You're next scheduled for April 20th to do deliberations. Um, and that'll be during the regular session. Do you have any questions of me or anything else? >> Any non-deliberation questions for uh I wanted to say something in the past selecting counselors over the years, it's been pretty hard to get people to step up and go through the election process. Very few and some of them have been pretty poor candidates who we've had to deal with. I've never seen so many people from one or more stand up to want to be a part of the community and I think it's great that that's very cool. >> Okay, councelor Buck, >> I know we all wanted to jump into deliberations because we're just pre-programmed to get stuff done. >> No, no. Um

1:01:54 uh for for you um just kind of a point of point of process. I know that she CJ mentioned um number of things that she's involved with. To my knowledge, none of those are exclusive in the charter that they wouldn't cause any issues, but um with this position, but if you could look into that before deliberations and let us know if there could potentially be one. >> That's a great question. I made a note. >> Yeah, I I don't I'm not aware of any, but we should probably know that. >> We'll have that information for you on the 20th. And and B, uh, the one thing I had was I'm expecting we're going to continue to get public input the next couple of weeks since there's a such a big delay between when we interviewed and where we uh when we're going to

1:02:39 decide. Um, so if we can just get all of that into the to the packet going into that night, that'd be great, too. >> Okay. So, we'll incorporate what we receive up until the packet deadline into the next packet, and then if anything becomes after the deadline, we'll just get that to you in a different way. >> Great. Thank you. >> All right. Thank you. >> Great. Uh the next item is payroll tax ordinance council review and feedback. >> Bell

1:03:38 ready to go. Okay. Um, good evening, council and mayor. For the record, Nathan Bell, finance director from the city. Uh, in tonight's work session, we're looking for feedback on a proposed payroll tax rate, uh, as well as a definition of wages. Um, I have an updated 5-year forecast uh to provide a context for that conversation. Uh, before we get started on that conversation though, I'd like to just quickly summarize the conversations that preceded this evening's uh work session. Uh, going back to January of 2025, the mayor convened a fiscal stability task force to look at the city's uh general fund finances and make uh recommendations to address the structural imbalance. uh they met for nine consecutive uh weeks and out of

1:04:23 that came a final report with nine actionable uh recommendations. Uh one of those recommendations was a payroll tax. Uh the task force recommended a shared employer and employee payroll tax to generate an approximately 2.3 million annually to support the city's general fund. Um they recommended that it be evenly shared between the employers and the employees. Uh simple to understand and administer. uh no tiered rates except for legally required exclusions uh and guardrails to ensure uh transparency and accountability. Previous uh council discussions uh so on September 2nd uh 2025 in work session, council reviewed a payroll tax structure. Uh in an October 27, 2025 work session, council reviewed a

1:05:08 preliminary payroll tax model and five-year forecast impacts. Uh in a December 8, 2025 regular session, uh council adopted a resolution dire staff to develop a payroll tax ordinance for council review. And then more recently uh in a work session on February 2nd, 2026, council reviewed drafts of a payroll tax ordinance, amendments to the city's municipal code and uh the administrative rules framework. At that time, we held off on a rate discussion uh recognizing that we needed to consult with the tax attorney on a definition of wages. Uh subsequently, we brought in Gwen Griffith from the law firm of Tonkan Torbot of Portland, and she's been a great asset as we work through uh those issues.

1:05:57 >> Uh that brings us to this evening. Uh the goal of tonight's work session is to review a proposed uh payroll tax rate, a definition of wages uh and the impact of that rate on the five-year forecast. Um I've included the uh ordinance and exhibit A, the amendments to the city's municipal code as part of your packet. I'm not going to go into them uh in the same level of detail that I did in the February 2nd uh work session. I do want to note though that the only significant changes uh to those documents were to include a definition of wages uh and to tighten up the language around self-employed individuals. And actually uh those adjustments are mostly in the exhibit A. Um I think the ordinance is pretty similar to the one that you saw on February 2nd.

1:06:45 Uh going straight to the recommended uh payroll tax rate, uh staff is recommending that we stay with the original intent of the task force recommendation uh which was to keep the rate as low as possible uh and uh to generate approximately 2.3 million. Um the rate that we had talked about in those task force conversations was a rate of of 0.1 and that is the rate that we're recommending going forward. Uh that's onetenth of 1% or 0.001 001 and that's uh that's paid by both the employee and the employer and that rate would uh generate generate approximately up to 2.45 million in the first year and that's if we were to implement that on January 1st 2027. Uh I say up to uh approximately 2.4 million um is we're

1:07:30 being pretty ambitious in how we uh uh implement this program. uh recognizing that we need to get this tax in place and working on our general fund as soon as possible. Um you know, looking across the freeway to our neighbors, I know that uh they took over a year to implement their uh program and I know that their first year collections came in significantly lower than what they had originally estimated. Um, we're being uh optimistic with this rate, but recognize there are a lot of assumptions that are going into this. Um, and also recognizing January 1st is now uh less than nine months away. Uh, we still have to go through the process of a first and second reading. So, that's closing the time frame that we have to do all the public outreach and education to get this uh program set up.

1:08:18 >> Um, I can pause for questions or I can keep moving right into the definition of wages. Are there any questions at this point? I'm sure we'll have plenty of questions here in a minute. Okay, >> so getting to the definition of wages, our original intent was to do uh gross wages with as few uh uh exclusions as possible. Um when we started working with Gwen, uh we discovered that it wasn't as easy as we thought it might be. Um so in working with her and kind of looking for a recommendation um and getting as close as we can to those gross wages uh she recommended uh box one wages uh with box 12 deferred compensation added back. Uh so what that means is it would exclude uh healthcare premiums and section 125 deductions

1:09:06 which are flexible spending account medical independent care contributions. But with the box 12 deferred compensation added back, that's adding back um deferred compensation which is contributions to 401ks, 403s, and 457s. Um looking at this as one of the lenses that uh tax attorneys look at everything as it relates to taxes and it's a big issue with taxes is equity. Um in in talking through this as a group, we felt that this provided an equitable approach. The other nice thing is by tying this to federal tax law, there's a lot of case law around this. Um, and so it's much more defendable if we were to have any appeals, especially complex appeals. So, at the end of the day, for us, tying it to federal tax law and to

1:09:52 the W2 is it's simple, it's defendable, and it's equitable. All right, moving on to the five-year forecast. Uh and here um we're going to look at the impact of that payroll tax rate on our 5-year forecast. Um but I want to start with uh the first question I think anyone asked when we're looking at a 5-year forecast is uh what does this include? What does this not include? So this uh forecast uh includes our uh proposed fiscal year 27 budget. Um I'm going to point out one exception on there and that is uh looking under the fiscal transactions to transfer to the ambulance fund. Uh that is not reflected in the budget right now but um based on

1:10:39 our best estimates that's what we anticipate uh a shortfall being in the ambulance fund in fiscal year 27. It's not uncommon for us to not budget that transfer and then to um if we end up having that shortfall to do the supplemental in the following year to make that fund whole. I can tell you that last year uh we had a transfer of over a million dollars um to make the ambulance fund whole. So, uh we're not anticipating that large. I think that was an anomaly, but I think we are now at a period where our general fund is going to be subsidizing our ambulance fund. Um otherwise, uh that's the fiscal year budget, fiscal year 27 budget as we've put it together and then we've projected on that budget uh over the outward uh years. So, it includes the uh

1:11:25 recent passage of the fire levy at 53 cents uh which goes into effect on July 1st of this year. Uh the levy will now be supporting the full cost of the fifth engine crew uh eliminating the subsidy from the general fund. Uh it also includes a uh $300,000 cut uh to the library. Um what it does not include is it does not include any deferred maintenance on city facilities. Um which is significant and growing. That includes uh city hall. It includes our justice center which I think is now approaching 20 years old. And uh it includes all five of our fire stations. Uh and it does not include the financial impact of new fire governance structure. Uh those conversations are happening right now. uh we know that that

1:12:12 structure is going to change. We just don't know what it's going to look like. Um but what we can say is whatever structure it is is going to cost more than the current structure that we have. Uh and then I think lastly too, I'd also like to point out that personal services are our largest cost and uh we've factored in an inflation factor returning to preandemic levels of inflation. Um I think as recently as a year ago there were indicators that that's the direction we were headed. However, in the past uh month um there's been some events on the global stage that are starting to make us question whether those assumptions are going to hold. Um if inflation was to pick up again, it could have a serious negative impact on the elder years of this uh

1:12:57 forecast. So before adding the um payroll tax in um we're looking in fiscal year 27 a deficit spend of roughly $800,000 again growing from that point forward. Um then below that we have a payroll tax. We're estimating two full quarters of collections in fiscal year 27 if we're able to uh successfully implement as of January 1st, 2027. And then that grows into a full program beginning in fiscal year 28. It results in a surplus in fiscal year 27 of $400,000. Uh a surplus of just under 200,000 in fiscal year 28. Um but returning to a

1:13:42 deficit spend of just over 100,000 in fiscal year 29, growing to almost 600,000 in fiscal year 30 and um 1.4 million in fiscal year 31. Now yes. I I wanted to if you could please um language is important in this context and so I think when we're talking about in the case of this forecast and this slide it it does demonstrate a surplus but like Nathan mentioned there are significant costs that are not included in here that will eat that out. Um, one of the things I'm thinking about immediately is we we went to you in the fall about the the facility, the city hall facility and our HVAC units that are, you know, I'm shocked they haven't died. Um, so that's one thing I'm really

1:14:29 nervous about, which I know is an imminent expense on us. and also some of the decisions that we're going to be making around how we do buyer services um as a merged separate entity or separately as two different cities. That's a massive uh policy change and potentially organizational change. Um and thirdly, the other thing I'm thinking is I I agree with Nathan's assessment about inflation looking at if we were to take for example the commodities market with oil asphalt. You know, I was talking with councelor Stout about this, you know, just the the cost of constructing roads, the cost of conduct construct doing business is already going up and we know that people are feeling it right now. So, um I

1:15:14 anticipate this is a a forecast that we continually look at even though we bring it to you twice a year, but there are a lot of conditions that can rapidly change. I just want to point that out. >> Thank you. Um, something else I'd like to point out as we talked about with the guardrails is having a separate fund um to handle the accounting for this program. And the plan is then to transfer um it'll be revenue coming in plus the cost of administering the program uh netting to the net revenue available and then transferring over to the general fund as much as needed to just balance the general fund. So when we have years that there's a surplus, that surplus would remain in this fund to help offset future year deficits. So when I look at

1:16:00 the surplus from 27 and 28, that could potentially get us through 29 and almost through 30. Uh but then we're back to a deficit um without having that extra available uh to address that. So that's another way I'd like to kind of look at the surplus in the early years. And then lastly, if we look down at the ending cash as a percentage of operating expenditures um in fiscal year 27, it shows us at 28% which is very healthy. Uh one of the things that we learned when we went out for our last bond issuance uh and we went through the ratings process with Moody's uh we maintained our current rate with them and we learned a number of things though. um given a lot of demographics about our community that we cannot change, it will be difficult for us to get that rate any higher than it

1:16:46 currently is. So, we have an excellent rating. Uh however, there are things that could happen that could cause our rate to decline. And one of the strong things that kept our rate steady was that we had a ending cash balance of 20 greater than 25%. They specifically called out that if our ending uh fund balance of uh that ending cash as a percent was ever to dip below 25% that could result in a decrease in our rating. And what that uh um could result in is uh increased borrowing cost and future bond issuances. And again, I'm going to pause for any questions. I I think we're going to start having questions as soon as you get to Was this the last slide?

1:17:31 >> Um, it's not the last slide. It's a good point of conversation. >> Well, this is the last meaty slide, so I don't Yeah, go ahead. Council, >> you have a question? >> Um, I guess I do, but I'm happy to dive in now. >> All right. So, um, as we're looking at, as we're looking at this, um, I'm curious, and I think you've answered this when you talk, but, I just want to make sure that I'm clear on the answer. Um, so, we don't include the infrastructure costs um, in the budget. Is is that because we don't really know what they are quite yet, or what was the why are

1:18:17 they not in there? I know we talked about this before, but I can't remember the answer. >> Well, what we would be doing is how those would be included is is if you think of it more along the lines of is you save for those types of costs in the future. So, if you're a homeowner and you know your roof last um 30 years, then you want to be setting aside dollars over 30 years so when that day comes again, you've got the funds available to replace your roof. And think about that against any major kind of infrastructure that you have with your home. We should be doing that as well at the city. We should have significant reserves so that we can address a lot of these deferred maintenance needs. A lot of them should be deferred at this point in time. And I'll be honest, it's hard for me to talk about this because in in some ways it feels negligent in the fact that we don't have this in our budget. But we are struggling just to fund our um daily

1:19:04 operations, let alone save for anything in the future. And that's not unique to us. I think if you went any city across the state, you would hear the same thing. And then so the the part about using a payroll tax as a solution and and again this is something that's been talked about but I want to make sure that I'm understanding it clearly and if I'm not somebody will correct me now. Um it's it's it's a tool that we want to implement so that um so that it's there not to necessarily increase the rate but increase the tax base as we're as we want to attract more businesses. is bring more businesses into the community. That's how um we're going to get more leverage out of this

1:19:49 tool as opposed to kind of looking at it as something like well let's look at the rate you know periodically. Our our goal here is to let's look at the tax base. Let's let's bring businesses in here. Let's increase payroll. Um let's increase that revenue so that um the percentage stays the same but but the benefit uh rises. So right now we have a lot of our eggs in the basket of the payroll tax. Uh we have compression and then we have the fact that it's taller at 20%. So what this does is it diversifies our revenue portfolio. Uh we now have another revenue stream that behaves uh differently could behave similarly in some circumstances but differently in others. Um hopefully uh wages I think historically what we have

1:20:35 found over the last 10 years have grown at 4.1%. Which is um higher than what our property taxes have been growing at which I think has been at around 3.3%. Um so and then I think the last thing is is that you're when you look at your base of taxpayers right now it's all going um at the homeowners. Um, you know, one of the things that we've learned, especially with Eugene implementing a payroll tax, is we have a significant number of people who live in Springfield but work in Eugene and pay that payroll tax in Eugene. Uh, likewise, I think we've put numbers uh in front of you um that to the tune of 70ome percent of the workforce working at Springfield is coming from outside of Springfield. They don't pay property taxes in Springfield, yet they enjoy the benefits of having um our police, um our

1:21:22 fire and rescue. And so this is just a way to I think uh diversify the base and have a more equitable kind of demographic of paying those taxes. >> Okay, other questions. Councelor Stout. >> Um quick one. We talk about not wanting to lose our high rating but Moody's. I'm curious hypo um you know we're talking about some of these deferred maintenance costs and we it's possible we may have to borrow to do to do those things. I'm just curious, would there be a meaningful increase in the overall cost of those improvements when we are trying to borrow from a bank at a slightly lower rating that we have currently? And is that is that a meaningful >> I can't quantify it for you on the spot, but when you look at typically when you go out and do a geo bond and you're

1:22:08 looking at borrowing 30 40 $50 million uh over 20 years um yes a half a percent can have a significant impact um in terms of what you pay possibly a half a percent as much difference or you just we're not sure yet? >> We're not sure. >> Okay. Thank you. >> May I add to that? But I would say that given the the scale of capital projects with cities tend to be fairly large, especially, you know, if we were trying to um do um significant like improvement or structure, then you are looking at a larger borrowance. But also just in my profession as city manager, one of the things that uh is an indicator of the overall health, fiscal health of of a city is their bond rating. So that's something that um when you look at the

1:22:54 annual comprehensive financial report and then also um the bond rate it paints a picture about how well the city is is being run in general. So that's something that I pay attention to. >> Great. >> Just a clarifying question and just to make sure that we're um continuing to have this conversation publicly and just be very clear Um when we say proposed budget FY27, what time frame is that? I just it's July 1. >> That is July 1st uh 2026 to June 30th, 2027. Okay. So that is uh 3 months away. >> Okay. So I just want to make sure that we understand what that time frame is.

1:23:40 But also um as we're talking about this and getting ready to enter the budget conversation um these are two different conversations, right? This the budget conversation we're getting ready to have and this conversation are not tied together and like directly, right? >> Not directly. Um so what we're really trying to address is our long-term fiscal sustainability. we don't want to be back here uh next year or even three years from now saying, "Okay, we're back in the same place. We need to do something." That was something um we heard from the task force and I can just say for us personally, it's hard to do business when every year you're just kind of fighting these deficits and just kind of death by a thousand cuts. So, we're focused on long-term fiscal

1:24:26 sustainability. The budget process is typically looking at just a year year that's part of that longer term but looking at proposed uh services uh uh for that particular year and Nancy if you want to >> so it's it's even though we have a fiveyear forecast nothing is um solid like it's it's guesstimates on you know with a lot of factors that we don't know about yet. So just um just keeping that in mind as we're talking through this that we that we know that this is these are numbers that we don't necessarily guarantee are accurate at you know six months from now. >> Correct. >> Right. Just our best guess. >> Yeah. And they could be worse um or they could be better.

1:25:16 >> Sorry. Um, so I I think that's something that is of concern to me is we've talked about guard rails on this uh the rate that we want to set. And the problem is we began this conversation through no fault of your own by talking about the uncertainty that we have. We don't know what's going to happen with materials costs, all these different costs, fire governance, everything that's going on with this. I I'm I'm struggling when I see some of these long-term conversations say, "Hey, we're back here, but now we we we we have kind of like this hybrid promise of keeping this rate the same, but also we have these major u major expenses coming down the pike. I'm very concerned about I don't want us to get, you know, married to a certain rate, per se. I mean, this is my I'm more just making a comment than asking a question, a current rate, unless I know kind of what's the guard

1:26:02 rails on a budget level. how bad could it be with fire, with materials, with uh capital outlay, and versus how good could it be, you know? And I think those are I I think there's an evolving conversation we have to have because as we've mentioned, we really don't have a lot a lot more levers we can pull in order to generate a diversified revenue stream for the city. >> Yeah. I mean the thing too is is um one thing I can say with certainty said how bad things could be or how good things could be. We're going to see those kind of fluctuations in the short term from year to year. Sometimes years the property tax revenues kind of just surprise me. Um you know sometimes we carry a number of vacancies and we have a lot of fiscal savings and that just

1:26:47 kind of really shores up our reserves. So we we can have a good year. Um what we can say with certainty is that under the uh structure of measure five and 50, we are always losing ground. Um if if and so what we're trying to come up with is short-term solutions. And you could say that's what's happening in any single given budget year uh in the budget process. Mid-term solutions. Um I think that uh this would qualify as a midterm solution. And then we have long-term solutions. We're trying to bridge ourselves to the long term. One of the ways that we can have a long-term solution is through growing our AV, our uh assessed value. Um, and we have other programs that we're actively working on. So, we're trying to balance all this

1:27:32 together. Um, we recognize that the public is not a um, you know, kind of open wallet that we can just, you know, they're they're like all of us are, you know, just struggling with the inflation of the times and the high cost of housing in this community. Uh we know that other agencies are also going out for additional revenues and we're trying to balance all that together and make the best decision possible to shore up our finances without overwhelming the public maintaining our service levels to the best of our ability. >> So is the proposed uh fiscal year 27 budget public yet? Are are you guys still polishing it out? >> U it is a big document. So even though we got the numbers entered into our budget and software, then we have to

1:28:18 convert that into a document. Um the plan is to have that on our website uh on April 20th. >> And if I was the public and I was looking at this slide, right, the column that's fiscal proposed fiscal year 27, those are the assumptions that are roughly built into built in the budget that we're going to see in budget committee. Everything is identical to what you'll see with the exception of the one line item I mentioned the transfer to the amplance fund that 350,000. We didn't budget for that but we anticipate it. >> So when you think about the proposed fiscal year 27 budget, are we are you are we going to be asked to adopt a budget that effectively has an $800,000 deficit in it? Are we assuming revenue off of from from a payroll tax yet? Um,

1:29:04 we have not put any revenue from a payroll tax in there as of yet. Um, so it' be the 800 minus the 350. We will be adopting a budget with a $450,000 deficit. >> Okay. So, our starting point while we're well like to Council Weber's point is these are kind of two separate conversations. We're working the the payroll tax conversation and as we get more information, we're going like we're going to budget off of what's real at this point and wrap in the the payroll tax conversation as it becomes more real. >> Yes. >> So the other question that I have is when I look at um the payroll tax progression, how certain do you feel in that progression? I know you're making a lot

1:29:49 of assumptions about timing and when receipts hit, should we feel like this is that number is a relatively conservative assumption or is that a relatively um aggressive assumption? >> Well, I think the first year is a that's the year 27 that we implement and we're stood up and we bring in that 1.2 million. That's um I think an ambitious assumption. Okay. But um by the time we get out to fiscal year 28, we will have a full year's um program uh stood up in place and revenue coming in. I want to say close to that number. So um you know the 27 number could be less. Um but I don't see us given the time frame not achieving a full 28 implementation.

1:30:37 And when you see when you discussed the not included column the deferred maintenance and fiscal impact of the new fire government structure it should should I be thinking about that as a couple hundred thousand dollars or or is that completely unknown or is it bigger than the Titanic? Is it should are those multi-million dollar you know uh sort of cliffs that are out there or are they a couple hundred thousand? Um for the impact of the uh new fire governance structure um I can comfortably say that um that there's probably roughly two structures that we will land at and um neither structure is less than $1

1:31:22 million more dollars annually and it's not in this budget >> added to the budget. >> Added to this budget. >> yeah the last question that I had or when I look at this and I think about this from a long-term perspective if we backed up a year ago the cliff would would have been basically this year right and we've now effectively moved the cliff and four years out and get to buy us some time from a policy perspective am I reading this right that's saying maybe the next bit like after we deal with The next big conversation really is around uh assumptions around the ambulance fund and you know and essentially street maintenance right

1:32:08 because of those huge transfers. >> I'm going to look to the MC the order. >> Thank you. I think fire is going to be an outstanding issue as long as well as the ambulance fund and it's a larger issue. It's been a a countywide conversation and I know that Lane County is having a separate conversation about the provision of ambulance services. But what we do know is that we do not recover the costs of providing that service by at the level that that is set at. It's a a federal appropriation that's that's set and we know that that is too low. So, we're we're faced we're losing money based on the the mix of patients that you're bringing in and we don't want to necessarily deep dive, but just trust me when I tell you that it's it's not looking good. And I think we've

1:32:53 we've shown that we've demonstrated that in our budget historically. That's why we're obviously, you know, we can't put in when you have something coming in as a supplemental budget that in the past fiscal year was a million dollars. I think it's a little disingenuous not to show something in our projected forecast because that's just a a million-dollar hit that, you know, we're not showing you up front. And so if we have some sort of reasonable knowledge that then I think that we need to show that. The other part of that is, you know, um are issues kind of beyond our control, right? So, for instance, the state uh transportation funding um that was kind of a a political hot topic in the Oregon legislature and you know, there are various iterations of that that has a

1:33:39 direct impact on us. We've already made a reduction going forward into this budget in the street fund. You don't see it here because we're talking about the general fund, right? Um but the net result means that there will be less ability for us to do street upkeep and maintenance because those funds are already reduced. We've already put that in the budget because we know that those state dollars are not worth coming right now. >> I think we can safely say right that like good fiscal stewardship and fiscal discipline will be you know on the conversation topic for many many years

1:34:24 many years to come. I do appreciate the fact that we're starting to look five years out and talk about what we can do and how we can how we can either trim adjust um deal with the budget in a broader sense so it doesn't feel so doesn't feel so yeartoear and I think the commitment that we've talked about from a guardrail perspective and then we'll swing back to Nate to make sure that we've given him direction on things that we're comfortable with has been that that we were going to have some sort of conversation in that in that three-year window, which would be, you know, roughly in the fiscal year 29 to fiscal year 30, we'd be potentially talking about what the program looks like long term. >> Mayor, if I may, Sure. One final thing on on addressing this the structural

1:35:10 imbalance is that one thing that we you know, we've done a lot of research around this. We had Portland State uh review our entire budget. You remember that report that was presented to the mayor's task force. We did we um hired Echo Northwest to help us with all of our data uh modeling and our projections. So you know these numbers have been vetted not just internally but also externally. Um we know that the sooner we can make force corrections to the good to help our fiscal sustainability the better the the impact it will have. Right? So if you know you need to say a dollar that you save today is worth five you know $5 three years from you know what I mean like the val just the value of the dollar. So the sooner we can course correct and try to make decisions around uh the fiscal

1:35:58 strength of the organization the better and I know that these are difficult decisions but that there is a timeliness element to them as well. That was um you know, one of the things I just want to kind of put out there is I really appreciate the amount of support um that we as council and the city have gotten from the business community around this recognizing this is a challenge that we all have to tackle together. How can we um be collaborative in doing so? Um, I know the chamber has been instrumental in in that in those conversations and just really recognizing that there are there are not really short-term solutions. It's the long-term problem. And, you know, and likewise us understanding their concern that this

1:36:44 isn't the fix all, right? This isn't this isn't okay, we have a payroll tax and we can and we can go to that rate or those kind of things. Like, this is this is just part of a solution. and and I really appreciate um how how supportive our business community has been in coming to the table with those those things and engaging with us on how can we solve this together. Um it's not really felt like a our problem versus not our problem. This is this is everybody's issue to tackle. So I just wanted to say I really appreciate all the collaboration we've gotten. >> Okay. Do we have questions that we have to answer for you? I know we've kind of had a had a lot of our questions answered, but do you know is there something specific you need for direction on the 20th? >> Uh yes. So, uh I need direction on a

1:37:31 rate if you're comfortable with a rate of 0.110 of 1% paid by both the uh employee and the employer and then a definition of wages. That would be box one plus box 12 deferred comp added back um as our definition of wages. Those are the two questions we need answered to bring you back uh a ordinance and exhibit A um for that uh first um reading in public hearing. >> Is box one plus the deferred comp the easiest and simplest answer. >> Um I I can't say that it's the easiest simplest definitively but it is an easy simple answer. Yes. Um, you know, when

1:38:16 we arrived at that, as we were working through things and I threw out the box one, I can see that Gwen was like, "Oh, that's great. That's easy." So, if if that's worth anything. >> Okay. So, what do people think about the definition of wages? Comfortable with that. Okay. >> And I I can add one more thing to that. Um, you know, one of the things I also heard is do something that's already being done locally. Um, and the only things we have to point out locally for a payroll tax are uh, city of Eugene and the state transit tax. Uh, the state transit tax doesn't include self-employed individuals. So, we run does not. So, we run into an equity issue there. Uh, and then, um, the city of Eugene is a very complex um, um,

1:39:01 payroll tax. Um, and so, um, no matter what we do, it will be unique. The thing is we've reached out to uh payroll processing companies to software companies and you know talked to them about what it would take to uh program this and all of them have kind of basically said we can do it in three months or less. So this will be easy for them to program. Okay. So now the question is about the rate and then I'm sure we're going to talk about next steps because when the hearing is does m you know there's going to be a reflection people that are sitting behind me are going to have people comfortable with the sending that rate to public hearing. Remember that's the proposal we'll take public input and then finalize everything. >> I'll I'll go I'll jump in. Um I'm

1:39:48 comfortable with that rate. where I'm not 100% comfortable is and is really the guardrail on being able to adjust that rate because of all the uncertainties we may have in the future. That said, if we're only talking three fiscal years, be being able to I can tolerate that rate for three fiscal years, it's when we get to years four and five that I get scared where I'm like, "Okay, we need to really reassess things." But based on your projections, I'm okay with that rate for the three years uh time. >> So if I repeated it back, so you're okay going forward with the rate assuming that we're we have some sort of discussion about what we need long term in uh after three fiscal years.

1:40:35 >> Yeah. because even though we're already starting towards the red and I know that that's not the perfect uh picture there. I think there's so much information we just cannot know that that being able to have that and obviously we can we can if it's if there is a true emergency there's a true emergency but there's stuff we just can't know in order for us to pretend it's it's too much hubris to think we can predict the future and so we just have to continue to iterate and ask the question so I think if I'm if I'm expressing a discomfort it's just a matter of not being able to course correct quickly enough and I think that's the one thing where I want to be respectful to what the task force did and came up with, but at the same time recognize just what might be necessary

1:41:20 uh for our local governments. So, but otherwise, I'm okay with rate one as a starter rate. >> Okay, this might be a good time to just quickly revisit the guard rails because I think it addresses your concerns. Um these guardrails are important to the task force as well as we've been hearing feedback from the larger community. Um the guardrails that we've put in there is the rates established by council adopted ordinance which means it's going to take an ordinance council adopted ordinance to change. Uh no rate increases or structural changes for three years. Uh required annual reporting to council and the public. Uh revenues budgeted and accounted for in a separate fund and then a formal program review after year three. I I think I can get behind that with that. But because it is it is

1:42:07 uncomfortable all the way around as opposed to uncomfortable on just one side. >> Um you know uh you know I absolutely appreciate everything that you you said councelor stud and I I think that those are those are very important things to keep in mind. Um and I think that I think that sticking with whatever rate we choose for three years, I mean my hope is it gives us that flexibility. I also feel at the same time um like the rate we've been talking about, the rate that you know has been out there that the public has given us feedback on is is the rate that we we had on the screen tonight of point of

1:42:52 one of 1% from the employee employer side. And so I'm not comfortable changing that now since we've talked about that all the way along. I feel I feel like that almost is it just doesn't feel it wouldn't feel right to to change that now. So I feel like since we've talked about that and we've kind of that's been the number that we've been using and we've gotten to a place where we're comfortable with it. I feel like we have to see what that rate is like um going into the proposal. I wouldn't want to see it change um kind of not that it would be the last minute, but I wouldn't want to see us get up to this point and say, "Okay, we're going to switch that right now." I mean, that that just wouldn't feel

1:43:38 right to me. >> So, I agree. The 0.1% is a is a starting point. Um, I share the concerns about the long-term uh challenges that we face and but I really do want to to councelor Buck's point thanking with us where the business community is on this. um we understand from that that that.1% is supported by them and I think it's really important that we we remember that as as we're moving this thing forward and that this is not at whatever rate we set today is not a fix all for all of the other challenges that we have. >> So I'm comfortable with 0.1 for the three years.

1:44:28 >> Council mode you you're good I'm against the long run but we'll talk about that later. Okay. Um I think we've got enough direct given enough direction here. The other piece that I'm really conscientious of, right, is we keep using the term comfortable, right? And I and I've having talked to the community about this for a year. There's a lot of people very uncomfortable right now. And I think we need to be thankful that people are going along in this journey with us as we start to sort this thing out. It is not easy. It's got impacts on a couple of different fronts that are not uh far from my thoughts. Um, I think the thing that I keep thinking about when I look at this from a five-year perspective is there is another clear

1:45:15 and serious conversation out there that is going to this may be involved with as a uh as a tool and my willingness to go on with a 0.1% doesn't mean that some of those needs don't need to be get met eventually in the long term. It's I think I recognize that we're going to get one more good conversation with the community about this. Um and with with the amount of significant needs we have, especially around fire, we need to make sure that there's uh enough tools on the table to work the community where it needs to be to be successful in the long term. Um so when I think about five years from now, I really am thinking that this is going to turn into another serious conversation. Um, and uh,

1:46:02 there's a very clear reminder outside of fire, there are a bunch of levers on there, including work that we do around streets, including work we do around ambulances that we're going to continue to have to work on to make sure that the uh, the city's in a good fiscal place. >> So, I think do you have enough direction or >> I do. >> All right. So, uh, next steps, uh, we've scheduled a, uh, public hearing, first reading for April 2020 26 regular session and then a second final reading at the May 18, 2026, uh, regular session. >> Okay, >> that's it. Thank you. >> All right. Thank you. We are adjourned. We are going to all make our way over to Council Chambers in the next 10 minutes for the regular session.

1:46:52 Welcome everybody. I know we've got a lot of folks here this evening. There's a couple seats still up front. Um if you're looking for for a spot. Okay. I'm going to call the Springfield City Council regular session to order with roll call. >> Mayor Van Gordon >> here. Councelor Weber >> here. >> Councelor Mo >> here. Councelor Bradley. Councelor Buck here. And councelor Stout >> here. Thank you. Uh councelor Rodley is excused for the evening. Please join me for the pledge of allegiance. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States.

1:47:46 There are two designated times for public testimony this evening under public hearings and business from the audience. If you're attending in person, please complete the request to speak card located at the front of the council chambers and turn them into the city recorder. If you're joining us online with a tablet, smartphone, or computer and wish to speak at either of those times, please use the raise hand feature in Zoom, the order of public testimony is as follows. Anyone in anyone in person in the council chambers and then anyone who has raised their virtual hand. First item, please. First item is one of three items under Springfield upbeat. Number one is the Thirstston High School state champion boys wrestling team and boys swim team.

1:48:32 Do we have any of the swimmers here? Come on up. Well, we're going to have the team hang out in the back. We're going to let your coach make a couple comments about just come up right up here and then we'll have you guys up. Uh if you want to sit down and um at the microphone. >> Yeah. But we have people virtually. We have people virtually. You you want them to be excited about wrestling online, too, right? Okay. All right. Hit the button. It's >> Here we go. Uh this is our uh 2026 boys state championship wrestling team. It's been a a pretty good uh spell since we've won a state title as a boys team. 2002 was the last state championship. So, this was a big deal for this uh

1:49:17 group right here. Um fairly young team. Most of them will be uh returning next year, losing a few of them. So, we're probably uh probably have a bullseye on us to get knocked off by other teams next year. So, uh it's been an outstanding group this year. And uh we appreciate um you guys inviting us to downtown here, City Hall, and meeting you guys. And um uh it's neat for the kids to see this and um be a part of something this big, something they'll remember forever. So, >> what was your best memory of that whole season? >> Oh, the whole season. There was too many of them. Yeah, it was Yeah, it was a great season. We won just about every major tournament that we uh competed in. Uh we beat uh well, just about every team in the state at all levels, 6A all

1:50:03 the way down, and we're in the 5A division. Um and I know this group of young men, our girls team, has been pretty successful over the years. They've won six state championships and I know these it's been chipping away at these guys to uh get back up on top and here they are and uh I I know they want to defend their title and uh it's neat for them. And the coolest thing for me as a coach is uh uh they're scholar athletes as well. It's a really uh great academic group. Probably the best academic group that we've had in a long time and and that pays off. Uh obviously if you're good academically you're going to do good on the wrestling mat as well. So >> good. Anybody else want to go ahead to councelor Stout >> as your thirsten uh city councelor? I can't tell you how proud I am of you guys. Great work. Amazing job. Thank you

1:50:50 for your hard work and dedication. It inspires the whole community, especially Thirstston, but the whole community. So, cheers. >> Yeah. Thank you. We appreciate you having us here. >> Hi, Council Buck. >> Yeah, I'm I'm super proud of you guys as as well. Um you guys's neighbor over there in Ward 5. My daughter is a is a Colt this year as a freshman. Um, so I'm super super excited for you guys and I'm I'm even more excited for what's to come because I I think the future is just as bright as it was this la this last year. I mean, I don't know what it was like for you on day one when you're like, "Okay, how's this going to look this season?" Um, but I I think that with greater expectations, um, just screams greater opportunity. So,

1:51:35 congratulations. Well done, Colts. Thank you. >> And don't I got to say, Steph, too, who we're super proud of you like across the community, uh I think there was a lot of excitement um when we started to see it reported in the news and I know that thirsten your thirst community is behind you as well. Um before we have you guys up and have a picture, Alise, do you think we are all going to fit in the wall here or do we have to divide this thing up? I'm going to defer to a professional public information officer here.

1:52:23 >> All of us. You guys come on.

1:53:09 You're going to need two rows, at least two rows, and come in at least three feet in from each side. >> One, two, three. >> Pulse. Yay. Congratulations.

1:54:41 Next item, please. >> Mayor, the next item is Springfield number two. It's child abuse prevention month proclamation. I have a proclamation to read and then we have folks here uh to take a quick picture and then we'll move on to the next thing. Whereas our community's most valuable and vulnerable menu members and their safety, well-being, and ability to thrive are fundamental to the health and future of our city. Whereas child abuse and neglect are serious public health issues that can have lifelong impacts on a child's physical, emotional, and mental health well-being, as well as lasting effects on families and communities. Whereas Kids First, Lane County's Child Advocacy Center, which provides intervention and advocacy for children

1:55:26 who are victims of abuse, saw an approximately 800 uh approximately 800 cases of child abuse from July 2024 to June 2025. Whereas preventing child abuse requires a collective commitment to strengthen and caring for children and ensuring that caregivers have access to resources, education, and support. Whereas, April is recognized nationally as child abuse prevention month, a time to raise awareness and encourage community engagement and reaffirm our shared responsibility to protect children and support families. I, Sean Van Gordon, mayor of Springfield, proclaim April 2026 to be child abuse prevention month and encourage all residents, organizations, businesses, and leaders to join in efforts that promote the safety and wellbeing as well

1:56:11 as healthy development of all children. I believe we have somebody from Kids First here.

1:57:43 Okay, next item, please. >> Your final Springfield update this evening is the Fair Housing Month proclamation. Mayor, this is your item as well. Um, I've got a couple of bullet points that the Fair Housing Council shared and then I'm going to read just the whereas I'm sorry, the final proclamation. Uh, Steven Crawford from the Fair Housing Council of Oregon is here this evening to accept this proclamation. Um, the Fair Housing Council of Oregon is Oregon's only independent nonprofit dedicated to ensuring housing uh ending housing discrimination in the state of Oregon. And if folks would like to learn more about your fair housing rights this fair housing months, please uh visit the Fair Housing Council on or uh of Oregon's website where there's live courses on that happen every day this

1:58:31 month for free. So, I'll read this real. Whereas, April 2026 marks the 50th anniversary of the signing of the Federal Fair Housing uh act under the Civil Rights Act of 1968. Whereas the Fair Housing Act prohibits discrimination in the sale, rental or financing of housing. Whereas, fundamentally fair housing means that every person has the right to live where they choose free from housing discrimination and hostility. Whereas the city of Springfield is committed to equal opportunity and affirm uh affirmatively furthers fair housing. I Shan Van Gordon, the mayor of Springfield, declare April 2026 to be fair housing month and encourage all citizens and residents to learn about

1:59:17 their rights and responsibilities under the Fair Housing Act and reaffirm their commitment to creating equal opportunity in this community.

2:00:17 Okay, next item, please. Next item is the consent calendar. >> I move approval of the consent calendar. >> Second, could you call a vote, please? >> Yes. Councelor Weber, >> yes. >> Councelor Mo, >> yes. >> Councelor Rodley, Councelor Buck, yes. And councelor Ste, >> yes. Thank you. Motion passes. Four yeses, zero nos, one uh absence. Next item, please. >> You have three public hearings this evening. Public hearing number one is the liquor license endorsements for the renewal period of 2026 through 2027. And Robin Hullman is here for this item.

2:01:08 Good evening, Mayor and Council. I'm Robin Hullman with the Development and Public Works Department. Tonight marks our annual review of liquor license renewals. A total of 185 businesses licensed through the Oregon Liquor and Cannabis Commission are anticipated for renewal. Liquor licenses within the city are governed by our Springfield Municipal Code section 7.3 through 7.304. This section of code included in your packet outlines the review criteria. One of the criteria evaluated is police police activity with licensed establishments. I would like to thank our police department for their assistance in preparing the detailed report. According to the report, call volume has decreased compared to the same time period as last year. No other concerns

2:01:53 have been identified. Therefore, following a public hearing, staff recommends that the council provide a favorable motion of approval for the liquor license renewals. Okay. Does anybody have any questions? All right. Uh, I'm going to go ahead and open the public hearing. I do not have any cards for this item. Neil, do we have anybody online? >> Appears we have no hands for this item. >> All right. I close the public hearing. >> I move to approve the staff recommendation to the Oregon Liquor and Cannabis Commission, OLCC. >> Second. Neil, could you call the vote? >> Yes. Councelor Weber. >> Yes. Councelor Mo. >> Yes. >> Councelor Rodley. Councelor Buck. >> Yes. >> And councelor Stout. >> Yes. Thank you.

2:02:38 >> Motion passes. Four yeses, zero nos, one absence. Next item, please. >> Next item is your second public hearing. It's an annexation of territory to the city of Springfield and the Lenoline Park and Recreation District. Annexing 1.94 acres of R1 residential property located at map 18-02-05-24 tax slot 061000 withdrawing the same territory from Will Kenzie Springfield Rural Fire Protection District. This is just a first reading and no action is required. Tom Severs is here for this item. Before you hear the staff uh the staff report, the city attorney will provide a statement regarding the procedures for tonight. >> Uh thank you, mayor. The hearing tonight

2:03:25 is characterized as a quasi judicial hearing. This means that the applicant and the public are entitled to certain rights in this process. These rights include the rights to notice, to present evidence, and to have a written decision based upon standards, and to also have an impartial decision maker. Any person with an interest in this annexation and withdrawal from the Willackeny Rural Fire Protection District may offer relevant oral or written testimony or both. If you want the City Council to consider your testimony and to preserve your right to appeal the decision to the Oregon Land Use Board of Appeals, you must testify orally or in writing to the city council before the council closes the record. You must raise an issue clearly enough so people can understand what it is and offer evidence in support

2:04:11 of it. Or else you cannot raise that issue on appeal at the land use board of appeals. If you're the applicant, you must raise concerns about any of the conditions of approval clearly enough to allow the city council to respond to preserve your right to seek damages in circuit court. If you feel you need more time to prepare evidence or testimony for the city council, you can ask the council to hold the record open or continue the hearing, but you must make that request before they close the public portion of the hearing. Please make sure your testimony is related to the applicable criteria of approval. Criteria for annexation is in the Springfield Development Code section 5.14.135. They're described in more detail in the staff report posted in tonight's packet

2:04:56 and will be summarized by staff in the presentation. The criteria for withdrawal from special districts is development code section 5.7160 whether the withdrawal is in the best interest of the city. Last, Oregon land use law requires that the city council act as an impartial decision maker. Counselors must disclose any exparte contacts or conflicts of interest related to this matter. A conflict of interest is a situation in which the decision maker or their family or business would benefit or suffer by the decision maker's decision. And an exparte contact is a communication to the decision maker that includes substantive issues regarding the application and occurs outside of the public venue. Bias is an actual personal

2:05:41 interest in the outcome of a decision or prejudgment by the decision maker as to the outcome without regard to the evidence and argument submitted. Mayor, please query the council about any exparte contact and state any you have as well. Uh, >> council Mo, could we start with you to declare any exparte contact or uh potential biases? >> I have no exparte contact. >> All right. Um, I have no exparte contact or no conflicts of interest. >> No exparte contact or conflicts of interest. >> No exparte contact or conflicts of interest. >> No exparte contact or conflicts of interest. All right, I think we are ready for the staff report.

2:06:28 >> All right, good evening, mayor and counselors. I'm Tom Sever, senior planner with the current planning section. Tonight, the council is requested to consider an ordinance to annex an approximately 1.94 acre area that includes one tax lot in South Springfield. This is a first reading of this item. Sorry about that. All right. Uh, so more specifically, the proposed annexation area is highlighted in yellow and is currently improved with a single unit

2:07:13 dwelling. The applicant is the property owner. Uh the site is zoned R1 residential with the urbanizable fringe UF10 overlay seen here by the opaque hatched shading. As you can see by the orange dashed line, it is contiguous to the city limits along the southern, eastern, and western boundaries. If annexation is approved, no other zoning changes are requested except for the removal of the UF10 overlay. With annexation, the subject property will be removed from special districts such as the UF10 overlay depicted here by the absence of the opaque shading and removal from service areas such as the Willilakin Springfield Rural Rural Fire Protection District. Again, no other zoning changes will occur with this

2:07:58 application. There are four approval criteria for annexations in the Springfield Development Code, which were fully analyzed in the staff report and summarized as follows. Criterion A, within UGB and contiguous to the city limits. As previously stated, the subject property is contiguous to the city limits along its southern, eastern, and western boundaries. The subject territory is within the city's urban growth boundary and is currently covered by the urbanizable fringe overlay. Criterion B, consistent with policies of the Springfield Comprehensive Plan and Metro Plan. Policies 27, 29, 33, 34, and 35 of the 2030 comprehensive plans urbanization element are met through this application as the annex land will

2:08:43 be fully within the Springfield urban service area. Criterion C, within boundary for minimum level of key urban facilities to be received in a timely and efficient manner. Policies 29, 31, and 32 of the 2030 comprehensive plans urbanization element are met through this application as well. If annexation is approved, the subject territory can easily obtain key facilities and services from the South 43rd Street and South 43rd Place rights of way. These facilities and services will include sanitary sewer connection, subwater and electric service, fire protection services from the Eugene Springfield Fire Department, and police services from the Springfield Police. The subject site is not currently within the service area of the Wamlain Park and

2:09:29 Recreation District, but will be brought into the district upon approval of the annexation. Lastly, criterion D, annexation agreement. An annexation agreement has already been signed by the applicant. The agreement covers obligations for the applicant and for the city including any financial responsibilities. The agreement includes details on future connection to urban to key urban facilities and services within the uh with and withdrawal from special service districts. Um if the annexation is approved by city council at the second reading, which uh we are shooting for April 20th on that one, then the agreement will be ready for execution by the city manager. Uh because all applicable annexation criteria have been

2:10:15 met and the annexation will help facilitate future residential development. Staff recommends that this application be considered for approval. Thank you all and I'm here for any questions you have. >> Hi councelor Stone. >> I I have one one grammar um question which is on on your agreement in page six library services. just the use of the ter of the word while I might suggest since in that case but then above that I'm curious about our water policy will the site continue to use its on-site well and how is that just tell me in a quick nutshell what is our current policy as far as wells on site and when we get annexing when we annex a property into >> sure there yeah so annexing uh implies

2:11:01 that it will be served by urban facilities the Well, specifically at this property as a relic uh that was serving that site, you know, up until this point. Uh so once uh the annexation is approved, we can have sub extend water lines to that area. Uh obviously, one well is not going to serve the uh residential development that will be occurring there. So that will cease to exist uh upon approval of annexation. >> Any other questions? Okay. Um, I'm going to go and open the public hearing. I don't have any cards for this item. Neil, do we have anybody uh hands on line? >> No hands for this item. All right, I close the public hearing and this is

2:11:47 first reading only. No actions required. So, next item, please. >> Next item is business from the audience. Okay, we're gonna It's going to take us a minute to get organized, so just be patient, please. Um, No. Um, we have 18 cards. So, we need to chat about uh because it's agended for 20 minutes. So, we need to chat about how if we're going to allow additional time. My given that it's 18 cards, my recommendation would be that maybe we let we go at 45 minutes and then check

2:12:33 in to see how many more cards that we have left. >> Can I take that as head nods or do we need a >> uh the operating policies say it's a decision by the presiding officer or a council vote? So, I think you can make the um put on the record that you're going to extend the time for business from the audience to 45 minutes. Um, and do you still want people to speak to three minutes or do you want to reduce that time too? >> I think I think we can let people speak up to three minutes. I have a feeling given the size of the cards and that it's around a swath of topics that people will do their best to be concise and you know and fold in you know similar information. >> Okay. Okay. And then two more procedural aspects would be um not to forget the

2:13:18 folks who are online and uh perhaps when you have 10 minutes left of the 45 to switch to online to make sure you don't have anyone um who is appearing online tonight who wants to testify. And then to make sure that the um audience knows that there are alternative ways to um testify for the council. There'll be another regular session on April 20th with more opportunity for business from the audience. And then um people can always uh email the council uh to the CMO email address or the city councelor's email address. >> Yes. And and also I know that this is a b like this is a budget item. We have budget committee coming up. Do we have the dates? >> May 4, 5th and 6. >> So each one of those days we will take

2:14:03 public comment around around the budget process. Neil, how many folks do we have with hands on up? >> Currently two. >> Okay. So I think that is a good idea to to wait for 35 minutes and then we will check and see if we can't switch to uh uh switch to the online folks to make sure that they get it. Um second thing I would like to do uh the first I don't know a after after about the first three cards it really does switch to it really does switch to the library. Um, I thought it might be helpful if I just turn it over uh to the city manager for a couple of minutes to just share some of the things that's been going on the last couple of weeks is grounding for

2:14:49 this um before we start into the into the public testimony. So, with that, I'll turn it over to the city manager. >> Thank you, mayor and council. I appreciate everybody being here tonight and I want to give a little bit of context about the process around decision- making uh with respect to our upcoming budget. Um I think there um has been some perhaps some some mis misinformation online. So I want to really clarify what what the process is for tonight. Um earlier this evening the council had a work session around the general fund forecast and that's something we do every year. The council receives this presentation twice a year. And so there's a number of factors that go into creating that forecast. One of

2:15:36 which is um including um you know we're close to uh having our budget time with um our budget committee. So trying to get as close to real time numbers. We included what would likely be um projected for um what we present to the budget committee. It's a starting point. So, what my job is as city manager is I work with all of our departments. We I meet with them prior to the budget and then I work with our finance department. We look at a lot of factors um one of which is the uh general fund um projections, but we also look at other issues um such as state funding. Sometimes there's federal funding that

2:16:22 gets passed down to cities. not as often. That happens more with counties, but it can come into play. Um, so we take all of those things into consideration as well as um all of the services that the city provides um roads, public safety, certainly the library um and some of our internal services. We have already um made some cuts uh going in or thinking about going into this next budget year that haven't been made uh public be yet because they simply aren't part of the general fund. The general fund is the part of the budget where the council has them more discretion. Um some of the other funds that we received are are what are called dedicated revenues and they can only be spent for a certain purpose. Um I'll

2:17:08 give an example. Um, in the legislative session this past year, there was a lot of discussion around transportation funding statewide and that has a direct impact on how much money cities receive to uh build and maintain roads. Um, that was kind of a hot topic in the legislature and it did result in a reduction in funding for our road fund. So, we are we've already accounted for that in our budget. You just aren't aware of it because it wasn't part of the general fund discussion. Um so what that ultimately means is that um we will have less capacity to build and maintain roads because of those cuts that were made on the state level. So part of my job is to produce a balanced budget

2:17:53 every year. We're required to do that. Um all all local government is including the state. And then um that budget then is given to our citizen budget committee. Oregon is unique. Um there's not a lot of I I I'm not aware of any other state that has the same kind of structure that we do with regard to budget law. So in Oregon, there are a number of we have an equal number of citizen budget committee members um to council members that review and then um make comments or recommendations and then hope hopefully um approve a budget to then move forward to the governing body. During this process, it's a we we

2:18:38 do both the city's budget and CEDA's budget, which is the Springfield Economic Development Agency. We do that over a three-year period, and on each evening, there's opportunity for uh public input. We have that on all three nights. And then finally, when that process is is done, it then goes to the council for another look and another conversation with the public. Um, I spent part of my career in Sacramento County and when I went to California and told them about Oregon's budget law, they all kind of looked at me bewildered because they're just kind of used to making a budget and taking it to the elected officials and you're kind of done. Um, and I said, well, that's not really how we do things in Oregon and we have a lot of process and we we that's something that Oregonians truly value.

2:19:24 I'm I'm an Oregonian. Uh, I think my brief stint in California doesn't yet disqualify me. Um so that's the process that we're that we do. Um and then you know the the forecast that um came into play for this you know we had to make a decision as staff um we try to when we have a presentation to council bring them the most up-to-date information that we possibly can to help them um inform them their decision making. and it was it it is just in close proximity to when we're going to be um having our budget meetings. So, those meetings will be happening next early next month and we get the materials out well in advance

2:20:11 of that for our budget committee so that they have the opportunity to go through those. They're all volunteers as well, so they it takes them a while to go through those the materials. So when those are available to the budget committee, that's when that is also available to the public and to our council. Um there's been some discussion around um you uh potential layoffs. Those are things that I really feel are not appropriate to have in a public meeting because we are talking about HR type of information. uh employees in our city, most of them are represented by labor unions. And so there's there's some guidelines around that. And again, I think the key word on this is that this is a proposed budget.

2:20:56 So for me to say um that this is exactly what's going to happen, I would have to be able to predict uh the future, which I haven't been able to do. Um so bear that in mind. Um, and I understand that it is a difficult and challenging conversation and I recognize that. Um, the budget is um, something that's I track all year. something. It's very important to me and I know it's very important to our community and I will say in terms of the library and I appreciate you coming out here as um it's it's something that I've been very reluctant to um to cut as since coming um as city manager here. Um of the few

2:21:42 things that I have the ability to really direct um that's part of part of the general fund. So understand that when I am proposing something to be considered by the budget committee and then the council, I have to come up with something for them to a starting place. So we give them a proposal. That's part of my my job in in coordination with the department directors. That proposal goes for further deliberation with the community budget committee and then again for further deliberation and these are all public meetings with the city council. So, I hope that gives you some understanding about the context of um this information and how this is really

2:22:28 a proposal that we're working on currently. Thank you. >> Okay. I have two quick clarifying questions here. So, when you say proposal, it really is that we're at the stage of you're proposing a budget to the budget committee. >> That's correct. >> Okay. And then the place that we're going to have a hearing about the about that budget and proposal and weigh all the potential service impacts in public is the budget committee that is in and Mayor Bridget you just told me the dates. >> It's May 4th. Mayor, if you're a Star Wars nerd, just remember it's May the 4th be with you. >> Okay. So we so we will hear we will hear that those three days in with with the citizens and then we will have a scheduled public meeting to adopt the

2:23:14 budget at some point before the end the end of the fiscal year. >> That's correct. There are certain procedural legal steps that need to be taken at the council level in order to adopt the budget and levy taxes for the upcoming fiscal year. >> I know that a lot of folks in here are deeply concerned about this topic. Um, the reason why I asked Nancy to go through that was to make sure that budget law is very convoluted sometimes and if you're an average person citizen in the public, you know, it's like, what are you guys doing again? Um, but I want to make sure it's clear what stage that we're at knowing that the budget committee, if you want to show up and share public comment about that, that would be a good place to show up. Show up and do that. And there's no like

2:24:00 we're going to take your public testimony. We will consider it. We will respond. But there's no actual action item for for this tonight. And so I want you to be aware that all the action items come in meetings that are in early May and potentially potentially in June. So you should please um just keep caught up on the the city's uh the city's calendar for when those when those public meetings are coming up. With that, unless council's got any other question, I am going to call you up two at a time. So, there's two spots. We'll do your first person for three minutes. You We'll do the second person. And then it is green. You have to hit the button until it's green. You see that they're all red right now. And then you will be you will be on. Um you're going to state your name and address, ward, or location in the city depending on your comfort

2:24:46 level. For the record, uh first two people are Terresa Ror and Tony Rush. be kind of hard to follow up on. They spoke Friday. >> Uh could could you just take a seat? >> Yeah, but we do have a virtual um meeting that's going on right now. And so if you don't speak into the microphone, the people that are in the virtual part of the meeting can't hear you. Well, I really appreciate it. The uh so you're going to hit the button until it goes green. Hit the button right in front of you and it's going to go from red to green. >> Okay, >> perfect. >> Okay. My name is uh Tony Russ. I live at 2332nd 32nd Street in Springfield. Uh

2:25:33 I've lived in Springfield for many years and for the last three years I've been trying to get the public works department of Springfield to seal crack the street that I live on because there's half inch wide cracks in the street. So I've talking to the street department for three years in a row and the answer I get is every time is we have no money. So, I looked at that situation and I'm trying to think of ways that Springfield could have more money in their budget. And I would ask, "How many people in this room buy gas at Costco?" And I would imagine it's over 20%. Every time you fill your gas tank up at Costco, you're paying Eugene 5 cents a

2:26:18 gallon for their street repair. Are you aware of that? What are you doing about that? This isn't a back and forth. Um, so just finish your comments, please. Thank you so much. >> My proposal is to this city council to get in touch with Costco and some way get their de uh you have to buy uh your gas at Costco with a credit card. They could put some kind of a device on your credit card to make that money go to Springfield because Springfield and Eugene are divided by a freeway. It's not like I'm talking about Salem and Eugene, one city versus the other. We are separated by a major gas company by

2:27:04 one and a half miles. And so if you have an executive card at Costco, you get 5% back. The Springfield service stations cannot compete with Costco. There's just no way they can do that. Uh, but I make a proposal that if the council would contact Costco and get something on the device of their credit card to send that money to Springfield instead of Eugene. I um have some rentals in Eugene and they done some street repair um near my uh addresses in Eugene. I called the city up and said, "Why did you not at least seal coat the street that those buildings are on?" and I went over there a week later and the job was finished.

2:27:49 All I had to do was make a phone call. Um, I'm three years into this and I I'm about ready to go repair the street in front of my house myself because the longer this goes on, the worse it gets. Uh, I know you got a budget problem. You got things in the mix about um um bonds and raising the gas tax and voters are getting tired of of taxes. I looked at my taxes before I come down here and Wama Lane gets 12 and a half% of my taxes that I pay at my address every year. I don't drive my car and on Wama Lane. >> All right. Thank you.

2:28:42 Good evening. I'm Teresa Ror. I'm in Ward 2 and I want to start by thanking all of you to for your service to our community and I also want to thank everyone who has applied to serve on the Springfield City Council. I'm here this evening to speak in support of Cali Acklland for city council. Um, I think her professional experience serving our country in the US military as a small business owner and more recently working directly with people experiencing housing and security will be valuable for the city council. I also think that her experience working in support of the Springfield Public Library, a public institution um that welcomes everyone in our community and builds trust between

2:29:30 the government and the community is a really beneficial illustration um of her work to strengthen public process and our community. Thank you. >> Thank you. The next two uh folks are Amanda Walberg and Amelia and Alyn Py. Why don't we do this? Why don't you hang out for a second and then we'll have you up. Thank you so much for your patience, Amanda. Go. Go ahead. Hi, my name is Alyn. I am 5 years old. The library is

2:30:17 important. We should keep the librarians. The library is important because the librarians help us to read and help us to find books. Story time helps us us learn to listen and to pay attention and it helps us to learn to be quiet when other people are reading something. I love the library because we get to pick out new books and do other fun stuff. I love the library. The library should stay the same, if not better.

2:31:02 There are a lot of kids who come to this library. The library teaches many things like learning how to read, getting better at reading, and just playing enjoying it. Story time is very popular, too. Without story time, the library probably wouldn't get a lot of people in it, and possibly even go out of business. This town needs a library, a good one. So, I was thinking we could raise taxes by $5, and that money could go to the library. Also, we should get our filed librarians back. They help the kids to find a lot of books. Also, many people would be very devastated. They would probably go to a different library. Also, I give this star library five star rating, and I don't want that to change. We should really keep our library how it is.

2:31:55 >> All right, Mom. You should be super proud. That was pretty amazing. >> They stole the show for the night. Amanda, >> should I start? >> Uh, yes, please. >> All right. Hello, ladies and gentlemen. My name is Amanda Walberg, and I'm a student at LCC studying criminal law. I'm here today to ask you to implement a local police oversight committee. This would not be an expensive thing to do, as in my proposal, I would strongly insist that it runoff volunteers. All you would need is a place to operate out of. Whether you lean left or right, I think we can all agree that corruption in our country is at an unprecedented, sorry, unprecedented level. The level of corruption I have personally experienced is alarming, and I wrote an essay I'm

2:32:40 asking you to read detailing what I know. It is disturbing to say the least. It touches on topics like child trafficking, murder, and abuse in the system. And I assure you, it's not somewhere far away. It's in our own backyard and has been for a long time. Public safety is at stake, and law enforcement's duty is to protect and serve society, to keep the community safe. We are owed transparency. Lane County, according to police scorecard.org, has a 1% rate of misconduct complaints being upheld. Instituting a volunteer-based civilian oversight committee would be beneficial for a number of reasons. To keep track of the inmates in jail and their safety and welfare. To make sure people are not just disappearing into the system and that their housing conditions are safe. To hold police accountable to the law they are sworn to serve. and to aid citizens who are crime victims that are not being taken seriously or receiving

2:33:26 justice. I would believe that it would be um healthy to bridge the gap and create more understanding and interaction between police and civilians. The police need oversight and intervention to make sure they are doing their job rather than abusing their power. I spoke to a cop who told me the two things that cause corruption are money and sex. If money is not a thing in this committee and is simply formed by volunteers who care about community safety, transparency, and justice, this is far less likely to become corrupted. Furthermore, it would bridge the gap between civilians and law enforcement. I think right now there is a real us and them mentality between police and civilians as you can see in the protest sometimes. But even in our pledge of allegiance, it says we are one nation under God. More interaction with citizens would perhaps humanize both sides to each other and create more

2:34:11 unity and safety in the community. I have more ideas about what would be involved in this. So, if there's a way for you to like read my essay and we could discuss this further or schedule discussing it further, that would be a good first step. Unfortunately, this is just a foot in the pond, and if you read the essay, you will be drawn into the deep, murky waters of systemic corruption. I have nothing to gain by sharing this information with you. I put myself at risk to be ridiculed. But when considering if you should believe someone or not, consider what they have to gain or lose by sharing the information. I have received various degrees of threats from law enforcement. That being said, I am not anti-law enforcement. Cops that uphold the law and do their job, I have great respect for. and I think this would be a a step towards ensuring that this happens as well as public transparency. Thank you for your

2:34:56 time. >> Thank you. The next two cards I have are Ariel Ston and Mary Harwood. I let it go for the clap clapping for kids, but if we could please hold that. Thank you so much. >> Hi, my name is Ariel and I'm a Springfield resident. I'm here to show my support for the Springfield Library and to implore you to listen to the residents of this town as we demand accountability and transparency. You say we need to wait until next month to discuss the budget, but you are already making budget decisions without us. We need to know why two librarian positions were terminated prior to the public meeting next month. Who authorized this and why was it done behind closed doors?

2:35:41 Why did you recently authorize, excuse me, a 5% wage increase to the city manager when she was already earning over $218,000 a year? Every resident of this town has to budget our finances and prioritize spending. This council needs to do the same and hear us as we say that the library is a priority. >> Thank you, Mary. >> Thank you. My name is Mary Harwood and I live at 738 Aspen Street. There's two things I wanted to talk to you about tonight. Um the first is concerning the um ease with which you can find the meetings that are scheduled for the city of Springfield on your website. It's difficult to search for these. A quick

2:36:26 search today showed that there are no meetings scheduled for May because the search function looks for agendas and not for scheduled meetings. Think what message that sends about the ease of um about the transparency of these meetings that we're having. Other local government agencies have much simpler systems. Look to Springfield public schools, 4J or Bethl school districts, Eugene City for example. You can even look to the website of the city of Creswell for great examples of ways that your um citizens can easily find these scheduled meetings and not just the uh agendas and recordings once the meetings are passed. If you value transparency and public participation in government, then you need to do better. And if you don't, then you need would continue to

2:37:11 do what you've already been doing. The second thing I wanted to talk to you about tonight was regarding the library. As you know, uh this weekend on social media, it was reported that library staff have already received layoff notices. Is this the proposed budget being implemented before the city council has a chance to vote on a budget plan? That's certainly putting the cart before the horse. City management is making this process harder by acting before the council has voted. These cuts are on top of the position which was already cut last year according to Lookout Eugene Springfield. And um I'm wondering how many other departments have cut three positions in the last two years. Why is the library bearing the brunt of forming a balanced budget? This is a significant cut in personnel for a

2:37:57 library that is already the lowest funded for a community of this size in Oregon. More troubling for me is how this action circumvents the city's process and the role of you, the council. What who is making the decision about the proposed budget and acting on it? It appears that either the city council has directed managers to implement a plan before a public vote on the proposal or city managers are acting with their own accord outside of the purview of the council. Either scenario is troubling and likely a violation of the law. The city council needs to be asking their city managers about this precipitous action and demand an explanation. There's no action item for tonight, but apparently city management

2:38:43 didn't see the need to wait to act. If transparent, ethical government is the aim of this body, you have some work to do. Thank you. >> Hey guys, you no the So please, we do not accept applause. you can get. So that'll make it go faster and quicker for e for everybody. The next two people are Aloha Heart and Donna Riddle. I'm going to move this toward Hope you can hear me. >> Okay, we can hear you. >> Okay, thank you. Go first down.

2:39:33 I'm Aloha Hart, 2147 Centennial Boulevard, Springfield, Oregon 97477. I appreciate what I have heard from previous speakers about the process of decisions being made about the library and also about decisions being made, no offense to anyone, but about who's getting raises, how and why. um and whatever. I am here because I love Springfield. I called s the um Springfield High School and I called Thirstston High School today because I was curious about how many young people what's the percentage of young people in their school in their

2:40:19 schools that are Latino. Springfield High School has 33% Latinos and and Thirstston High School has 17%. That's a lot of kids that are in this city. I have neighbors who are not white. They are scared. They talk to me about it. Their kids are scared. But the one place that I can say is absolutely safe for everyone is the Springfield Library. They do a stellar job of taking care of all people and they speak they speak Spanish. They they celebrate the Latino community as well as everybody

2:41:06 else. And to think about the fact that two people, if it's correct, and I have heard that more than once, have already been let go. I think that is really shortsighted. It does not show heart for the people that live in this city. And it doesn't take into consideration the absolutely stellar and magnificent job that our librarians do and the the services and safety the safety and inclusion that they provide. And that's what I have to say. And I know I get emotional, but it's in my blood. I'm Italian, so I've kept it peaceful. So,

2:41:54 thank you. Thank you. Thank you. >> Thank you. >> My name is Donna Riddle. I live on I Street in Springfield 19th and I and I'm very upset at the proposed cuts for the library. I go to the library usually once a week. I donate jigsaw puzzles which they sell to be able to buy a few more books. But I have never been so impressed with any library and I've visited several including the University of Oregon library but

2:42:39 it please don't cut it. and I need to be able to go there on a Monday and I understand that they'll only be able to do 5 days a week if you guys go through with your cuts and I'm very upset that it was done and people and layoff notice went out before the budget process and that is not transparent and it's not something that I'm proud of our government for doing Thank you. >> These two folks are Kai Fireside and Vicky Charelle.

2:43:42 Congratulations on getting my last name correct. It is Charelle. Um, so enough I think has been said about the lack of transparency and the lack of process. So what I'm going to talk about is what I feel needs to be saved in this um seemingly looming budget cut for the library. I have to say that um I'm sorry about our previous speaker, but libraries need to stay open on Saturday. And if you are going to cut two days a week, um please don't cut a Saturday because parents need to be able to take their children to the library.

2:44:28 Um it's important that kids are brought to the library so that reading becomes a family value. I also believe that you must keep the prek programs in place. Um I am a special education teacher with the Springfield school district and studies have showed that dyslexia has an inherited component. I've seen many parents of kids with dyslexia who um who just don't read because reading is hard for them. But it is very important that they can bring their young children to the library and get story time. Um the other thing that has also been talked about a little bit is the importance of keeping the um Hispanic

2:45:14 cultural programs going. Imagine walking into a place where basically everything is in a language you don't know, but you're trying to get your kids to learn that language. It's very important that it continues to be welcoming for our Hispanic neighbors. Um the bilingual aspect is so important, but so are the the cultural aspects there to make it feel like it is their place as well. Um that also goes for other people such as the um parents with dyslexia. um they need to feel like it's not just all about reading, which is uncomfortable for them. So,

2:46:00 budget will be what it is. Um processes are important. Having people feel like they're being heard is important, but please keep in mind that the library serves more than just a place where people can look at books. Thank you. >> Thank you, KFire. Sergeant. Hi, my name is Kai Fireside. I live uh inside Ward 1. I remember being a teenager and learning the word on and latching on to it because it's a French word that means crushing boredom. And that's what being a teenager felt like because there was nothing to do. There are so few third places for teens to go and the library is one of them. But this library in

2:46:45 particular has incredible teen programs that they run. And the employee that was given notice runs those programs. And I don't know how she does that because that is the most terrifying job in the world to me. I think it's some kind of magic. But that that loss is absolutely gigantic. And I'm hoping that we can find some creative way to fix that because it sort of sounds like this is not a fully made decision, but also she's received paperwork. So that does seem like the decision is set in stone. This is very confusing. Um, like I said, I I live inside W1, but

2:47:32 not technically in the city limits. So this is my library card, and I have to pay $100 a year for it. And I would do that and more to keep these teen programs going because I don't know what anyone is supposed to do with a teenager these days if they can't go to the library. So some some kind of creativity here. I've I've heard about cutting the the materials budget instead of the salary budget. And you know to me that sounds like a better idea. But I I trust that you can find some way here to figure this out because otherwise these kids are going to be roaming the streets. Thank you. >> Thank you. Uh the next two cards I have

2:48:17 are Stephanie Ruin. It's clearly with an R. I cannot read. Oh yes, it is. Rivera and Rob Sheldon. Okay, it's green. Hi, I'm Stephanie Rivera. Uh, I still don't know what ward I'm in. 12th and Centennial, longtime lurker, first time poster. Um, I mainly just want to speak to the

2:49:02 library cuts um and the funding. I really appreciate the city manager explaining the process. I haven't had dinner yet, so I didn't understand a lot of it. But, um, it does sound like this group is passing the buck back and forth between each other and the state and it doesn't inspire confidence as a resident of this city and a patron of the library. I've gone to this library since I was in fifth grade. I still patronize this library. I use Libby. I request books. Um, and this isn't the first meeting I've been to here to talk about it. I've

2:49:47 been to action item meetings, I think two of them last year, and the library is still on the chopping block. I appreciate city manager saying that she's reluctant to make cuts, but that doesn't inspire confidence. So, if that's the plan, however reluctantly, I just wanted to come out and say that I'm really disappointed and I wish different choices were made by whoever is going to take the blame for making the choice. Thank you, >> Sheldon. Thank you. >> Good evening. My name, for the record, is Rob Sheldon. I live on Hayden Bridgeway. Uh, I'd like to start with a public statement of appreciation for

2:50:33 Springfield Police Department's handling of No Kings 3 here. Springfield was one of 3,300 cities across the country that hosted demonstrations that nationally attracted over 8 million people, setting a new record for the largest single day protest in our country's history. Thanks also to the looks like he's left, but the first gentleman that spoke this evening, I wasn't aware of the gas tax difference between the two cities. I think a small public information campaign could probably be helpful here. Uh, I'd also like to make an unequivocal statement of support for the Springfield Public Library. I was able to become a software engineer thanks to a public library. Your public library is a beautiful facility in a fantastic downtown location and supports its community not just in providing the kind of services that someone would expect

2:51:18 from a public library, but also in providing resources like meeting rooms and in community outreach programs. Two library positions have now been cut in the last few days as a result of action or inaction by this city council. One of those positions was the teen services librarian, which will likely lead to the cancellation of teen oriented programs at the library. I appreciate some of the uh explanations by the city manager, but I think it's incredibly disingenuous to describe this as a proposed budget uh that where there's decisions yet to be made and have layoff notices be going out already. Uh decisions like this clearly communicate your priorities. There has been some fingerpointing at the city manager, but you have power to act here.

2:52:04 If in fact the city manager isn't handling this or other issues the way you want them handled, then you have a duty to act immediately to reverse this damage. If you don't act, then the city manager is acting with your tacid approval. And that means that cuts to library services is a decision that you made and you own it. Some of you are campaigning for other positions right now. I encourage you to fully embrace the cuts to library. Brag about it. Don't hide from it. Tell voters, "I don't believe that libraries are important, so I did nothing to defend ours." Take pride in the outcome you helped achieve. Springfield is following a longtime pattern of national decision-making by people in positions of authority who are terrified of controversy, terrified of taking a principled stand on any issue. This is not just a problem of national politics, but also in our state and local politics

2:52:49 where the stakes are so low that it leaves many of us wondering why political systems are so particularly good at attracting invertebrates. And so I ask you to have the courage to make good decisions. Thank you. Thank you. Next two, please. No. Thank you. Blake Helm and Andrew, I think it's Gim Gimma. Uh, good evening. Uh, my name is Blake Helum. I live at 46235th Street in Ward

2:53:36 4. I am speaking tonight to express my frustration and disappointment with recent reductions in library staffing levels and proposed cuts to the library budget. The library is a vital community service as important as police or fire. Some of the most vulnerable in our community rely on the essential services provided by the library. When police and fire need funds, this group and the community are often quick to support a property tax levy or other efforts to ensure service levels are maintained. But the library seems to always be on the chopping block when the budget is tight. I cannot in good conscience vote or support property tax levies put forward by the city or other local entities for

2:54:21 that matter and I encourage others to do the same until solutions are presented and the community has a real say in the outcome of the library. I will end with this. Two families in this community now have a harder time because of these cuts. The ripple effects of this will continue long after this year and the next. I remind you that your hands are not tired or are not tied and to do better. >> Thank you. >> Yeah. Okay. My name is Andrew EMTT. I have a student at Gley Elementary, another at Hamlin Middle, and yes, I have a wife who is a public librarian here at SPL.

2:55:08 Uh my wife has taken so much pride in the library programs that she has put together over the years and especially over how she has gotten attendance to them to increase year after year after year after year. And I say this as a not only as a reminder that the library drives foot traffic to our small businesses downtown, but that it has only improved at that over time. And it it has done that despite being very underfunded per capita relative to state norms. So to repeat, you have an underfunded, overperforming library that consistently brings foot traffic to

2:55:53 small businesses downtown. Now, last time I was here, Mayor Van Gordon made it sound like the issue of library cuts was going to get its moment for public input. Instead, without public input, city management has cut two positions from the library and reduced its operating hours to Tuesday through Saturday. Which means starting in July, my wife and every other parent who works at the library will never spend another Saturday with their children again. that these cuts are ever touted as efficiency is insulting and irresponsible, especially when you look at the numbers. Again, last time I was

2:56:38 here, council president Wood pointed out that the library budget was 2.2 million. Perhaps we were supposed to bulk at this number and that it needed to be right-sized. What she didn't mention is that 2.2 million is less than 5% of the entire budget. So you could cover the cost of the library by making every department take a just a 5% cut. And if you were to rightsize the library, that is fund it to the state median per capita funding, you would increase its budget by 1.1 million. In 2024, police overspent on their overtime by more than that amount. And

2:57:23 yet the mayor's task force only suggested maybe asking the police to maybe work out their overtime issues. Um so if the pro and if the proposed payroll tax was increased to match Eugene's maybe it shouldn't but if it were that would easily raise another $4.4 million which is more than enough to cover library. Apparently we have staffing issues with the police department too. more cops if that makes it more palatable to some people. The point is there's a lot of daylight between how the library is being treated and what actual solutions are. My time's up, but so I'll cut it off. >> Thank you.

2:58:10 >> Uh the next two folks that I have are Sue uh Manderville and Elizabeth is with an H. Thank you. Thank you for this opportunity. My husband and I wrote a letter in support of Ward 4 candidate uh Cali Acklland. It was sent to the mayor and all the city councilors on February 28th, but it was not included in the written community comments packet packet. I understand there are more

2:58:55 letters of support for Miss Acklland that were also never entered into the public record. Looking at the written com community comments, one would think most of Springfield is for Mr. Mallister. Yet the picture would be much different if my letter and the letters of other Miss Acklland supporters had not been excluded. I asked why. I asked why and was told that counselors are under no obligation to forward citizen emails for publication. So the situation is that all the counselors and the mayor received many letters of support for Miss Acklland but only forwarded the letters of support for Mr.

2:59:41 McAllister to be included in the written public comments. As a Springfield citizen, that makes me both sad and angry. I'm sad because our voices aren't being heard. Actually, it's more than that. Our voices are being silenced. I'm suggesting three things. One, make the process of getting citizens opinions into the written public comments much more clear. and two, correct the existing public record to include the letters of support for Miss Acklland. I've been told this cannot happen. But if you read the Ward 4 interim counselor appointment process memorandum from the

3:00:26 city attorney to the city from city attorney to the city manager's office and I quote, "The interviews, deliberation, and voting must occur at an open public meeting. The council has agreed to share written communications they receive about appointing an interim counselor and they will be all compiled in a council packet. End quote. And finally, three, from what I've experienced, it appears as if the council has already decided Mr. Mallister is to be the new ward for counselor. I hope this is not the case.

3:01:13 Thank you. >> Hi, I'm Elizabeth Halverson. I'm in Ward 2 and I am very happy to be here as a parent, as a Springfield citizen, someone who grew up here, graduated from Springfield High, and has been going to the library for a very long time. I know you've all let us know all the information we have, and I also really know that you all are going to hear about this in May. The problem is following the process. We're here because positions have been given notice. So, please just pretend that we are all here as well on the night that we have the deliberations and take all of this to heart. I don't I don't know much about much, but I've been watching body language and I had my heart melted when those little girls who worked very

3:01:59 hard came to support their library. I really think Springfield gets rzed on a lot for not being civilized, maybe by uh Eugene, maybe by others, but we need to recognize that in order to have a civilized society, we need to make sure that we don't reduce the last free space we have in our community, the last clean air location we have in smoky um summers, the last warm place in the winter, the last bathroom that you can use without paying for it. This is a civilization need that we are resting on the laurels of history and we are failing right now and that is why we are all here and I am so heartened by everyone who has already shared and I

3:02:44 just implore you to understand we care about this. This is important and I'm sure you guys too too and you have huge hurdles to try to cover. We have street cracks to to fix too. And so I know there's a lot of problems here, but I really need you to understand and please hear us. We really do not want our library to be cut. And we appreciate all that you are doing. And I want a second that this the Springfield police did a great job at the protest. It was beautiful and wonderful. And I'm very grateful for this community. Thank you. >> Thank you. All right. So, we're past 35 minutes. We've got two more cards left. My suggestion would be that we finish the two cards that we have and then we'll go to the online folks. I want to make sure we have two cards left. Yes, we have two

3:03:30 cards left. Uh James Anderson and Christopher Fiser. Fisher. Thank you. >> Thank you. >> Right. You know who I am. My name is James Anderson. I live on South Redwood Drive. I worked for the city of Springfield for a decade. I was a founding member of the city's diversity committee. Okay. Based on my experience going through that, city manager Nancy Newton, assistant city manager Neil Lady, and HR director Jame Herz are serial liars and shouldn't be trusted.

3:04:16 All right. You knew about it because I emailed you a copy of the tort claims notice when I sued the city of Springfield for discrimination and retaliation. One of many, many lawsuits that was covered by local legacy media registered guard uh for discrimination and retaliation. Many employees have uh city of Springfield employees primarily. After our publicly funded independent investigation, I filed a foyer request to city attorney Mary Bridget Smith who refused it. All right. This was publicly funded. We paid for this. And she used two different excuses to prevent the release of these public files. Sean, you were you've been a part of this. You knew about it. Okay? You

3:05:02 were part of the systemic racism in Springfield. and all of you on city council lack the courage and the integrity to make public statements denouncing the discrimination and retaliation from the city of Springfield employees uh police employees specifically many lawsuits. So I urge you to take a stance as leaders in the community and uh yeah and and stop putting up with uh with admins lies. city manager Nancy Newton got a raise and then he turned around and uh decided to close down the city library uh parts of it. You took cuts out of that and uh well he gave her a raise. So uh why don't you hold admin accountable and uh

3:05:49 as the city uh uh city charter calls on you to do, hire and fire the city manager and the city attorney. All right. Why don't you do what your uh your uh political uh position requires you to do before you think about running for another position? I yield my time. >> Thank you. >> Okay. My name is Christopher Fister. Um I go to the A3 and I live in Springfield W 2. Um, I go down to the library. It is one of the best places for me to do when I'm grounded, have nothing to do.

3:06:35 Um, when I need to go talk to a friend, when I want to have a meeting down because there are meeting places all over the library. I think there's five of them and there those won't be open as much. won't get be used as much if the library funding isn't there. Um, I also want to talk about the teen programs. Uh, there are about I would say 10 to 15 people there almost every single time I go to a teen Tuesday. Um, from 4 to 6 I believe. Um and there is always um just fun activities. Um and it is

3:07:25 volunteers of the Springfield teens to actually go and pick the activities that we do there. Um I also want to bring up that the library is where I uh found many opportunities for myself. Um I have was able to find a summer program called Young Leaders which is completely free. It was something that was um brought up for the library that was an entire day camp at the library which they have no other place in Springfield to do this at. They are underfunded but um anyways um I would never have met

3:08:10 that. never would have been to the spelling be as a judge because of that. Um, I also know that um, people like me, people who were adopted, people who have PTSD, they need places to be able to go and talk about that and be able to um, not have their librarians that help them out just get cuts before the entire um, it has been passed. Um, also I I know that I knew about the likelihood of it being cut like at least a month or two ago and so it was really

3:08:55 frustrating to not be able to do anything about it as far as I knew um about my librarians that I've been talking with um being able to uh be part of and Yeah, it was frustrating to see that they literally were um sorry. Yeah. >> Thank you. >> Online, please. >> Yes, we still have two hands. The first speaker is Theo Campbell. And Theo, you should be able to unmute your microphone.

3:09:48 Yeah. Can you hear? Can you say something? >> Working on it. Oh. >> Oh, there you are. >> There we go. Okay. How do I sound? >> You sound great. Could you state your name for the record and your location in the city and you have three minutes? >> Okay. Thank you. Hello, I'm Theo Campbell. I live in Springfield in Ward 3. I'm a member of and I'm here to represent the teen advisory board for the Springfield Public Libraryies teen focused programs. It's come to my attention that the library has been subject to budget cuts. And due to those budget cuts, our beloved teen services librarian is at serious risk of losing her position if she hasn't already.

3:10:34 Without her, the library's teen services programs can no longer happen. This news saddens me to my core as the teen programs, especially Teen Tuesday, have become a weekly event of some of the best educational activities that I have had the pleasure of helping to host. Thanks to them, I've been able to learn so much about our city and our world and have made so many new connections that would never have been possible without them. If adjusting the bud budget isn't feasible, I propose that the library or city hall has a system that allows and encourages donations from the public. I strongly believe that a better decision can be made that ensures the library remains a place where minds grow. Thank you for your time.

3:11:22 >> Thank you. >> And the next speaker is Austin Faggi. And Austin should be able to unmute your microphone. >> Excellent. Can you hear me? Okay. >> Yes. Yes, we can, Austin. >> Excellent. Uh, for the record, my name is Austin Figgy. I am a board member of Lane Community College. I live up the Mackenzie River Valley area. Um, and I don't represent the board's opinion in uh my position here today. Um, but I do want to uh stand up as a local elected public official to support uh the library and the staff of the library. Um, mayor and city manager, I appreciate the presentation before this um public meeting because it is important to understand public meeting law and how it

3:12:07 works and so forth. Uh, so I appreciate you talking about that beforehand. Um, and I do want to speak to the city council, uh, as well as the city budget committee that a big part of my decision as an elected official is to approach decisions with an equity lens. Meaning, the decisions I make, is it going to be impacting marginalized communities? What groups of people are going to be impacted by my decisions? And I feel that this library is one of those uh, decisions that is going to greatly impact um, the citizens of Springfield and the surrounding community. As I said, I live out the Mackenzie River Valley and during the 2020 September 2020 fires, the Holiday Farm, um our rural library was completely destroyed. We weren't able to get our library back

3:12:52 until 2024. And the devastation of that was immense within our community uh of the Mackenzie River. And um it might seem like minor reductions to the library um won't necessarily have that same impact, but it can be very devastating not only to your young people, your teens, Hispanic communities, people who are fleeing from uh natural disasters, but also just the opportunities of learning and understanding because a library isn't just a building full of books. It is with people, staff that help people learn and understand their world and the history of our world, the history of our community. And what can we learn from that? In education, we teach people um

3:13:40 how to think as opposed to what to think. Libraries do the exact same thing. And I asked the city council as well as the uh budget committee and city managers to consider other options here because as I stated, we lost our library and reductions uh to your library hours and staff can just as equally be as devastating as a natural disaster like a wildfire taking out your library. I appreciate the time to speak here tonight and thank you for all the speakers and supporters uh of your library. Thank you. >> You Austin, do we have anybody else? No other speakers. >> Okay. So, um we have a opportunity for council response. Does anybody want to provide council response? >> Not yet.

3:14:27 >> Councelor Buck, you know, um I really appreciate everybody that came out to speak on the various topics. Uh it's one of the things that I really value about Springfield and one of the things that um counselors myself and and others really value. Um if we don't hear from you then we don't have your perspective. And so um I I just always want to appreciate everything you guys bring bring for some some things are great to hear. Some things when we have tough decisions and and tough things coming up, they're not always comfortable. Um, but we didn't sign up for this to be comfortable. We signed up for this to to hear the the good and the bad. And so, thank you guys for bringing bringing that out to us um

3:15:12 this evening. Um, not all of us have been here for a long time. Um, some of us have, but it doesn't change that we appreciate your perspective and we appreciate what um, we can't do our jobs without your support um, and your voices to telling us what our community needs from your perspective because at the end of the day um, that's why we're here is to try and bring your perspective to our our leaders here in at the city. So, thank you for everybody that came to speak um and everybody that sent emails and talked to us about the things that are important to you and your thoughts on the subjects. I appreciate it very much. >> Um I've got a couple of comments and then I'll just chat chat about the uh

3:15:58 chat about the library. Mary, could we could you send do you have a written copy of your comments? Could you Yeah, the the question around searching like searching for um uh future meetings and I I've seen other sites that you're having, but we definitely would like like to take a look at it. We're scheduled to meet every Monday, but that is a muscle for us and continuing to to uh uh communicate better to the public is some place that we're we're looking to do. Uh I did Sue leave. Oh, okay. Um I will check my email. Um, I I saw your I saw your email. I read your email. Um, and I read Mike's email as well. I will double check to make sure I have sent all of them over when we did the interviews. That was one of the asks that we had was when we go into

3:16:45 deliberations on 420 to make sure we had everything. Um, you know, forwarded to everybody so that they can see it. It my guess I saw it as part of the like I couldn't tell you. I I would just be I would be speculating. I'm telling you, I hear you. We'll fix it. You know, we'll look for we'll look at we'll look at it for, you know, for uh uh for the 420 meeting to make sure everybody's in there. For most folks, if you're sending in emails and you want to be have it be part of it, it's really got to be in by, you know, the week prior. Otherwise, they're going to bring us copies of it. And if you watched the meeting from before, we t we chatted about just bringing all the letters and all the public input to make sure you know everybody's got the uh got the same

3:17:31 information. Uh Vicki, I wrote wrote your notes down. Um it was that was really great feedback. Look, I know we're trying to work through a very complicated situation. I hear you guys. But you telling us, you know, what you prioritize is is very impactful um to make sure that we we keep that in mind. And then I do not know somebody mentioned that I think you mentioned that we you know that we're not maybe going to all be here, you know, together on when it comes to for budget committee and to take this into account. And I just wanted to tell you guys like even though we're not acting on the situation, I took a lot of notes. It is something that I'm thinking about as we get into this next uh is is this next set of uh budget conversations

3:18:18 um to take into account that you've come out here tonight. You shared your feedback. We've heard I've heard you clearly um and as we go through this next little bit um I will take it into account. With that, Council Mo earlier asked me if I had anything to say about what was going on tonight. I think I'm gonna have to wait till we go through the entire budget process and see what what is real. So, that'll be my time. >> All right. I really appreciate folks coming out tonight. I know it is warm in here and I know we've been going for a little while. We still have a couple items left um to go through. Um you're more than welcome to stay. Um, but if it

3:19:06 will not hurt our feelings if you uh if you decide that you don't want to talk about the home consortium IGA. So, we'll give you about a a couple of minutes if if you want to scoot out. Thank you so much for coming. I was like good in a while.

3:19:54 can still uh clear the room because we do have another item. I'm going to call the next item. CJ, if you could clear the room. We still have more items and we still got staff folks and news folks here to cover those. Lizzy, Lizzy, if you guys can continue to clear the room, that would be great. All right. Next item, please. >> Next item for the record. Correspondence and petition. A letter has been added from Robert Supply regarding the payroll tax. Um I I have a procedural question because it's been so long. I don't think we've had these since I've been mayor to uh a motion to file it.

3:20:40 >> I don't believe so for this one. I think it's in the packet and you're okay. >> All right. >> You guys came up with the curveball on this one for me. >> All right. Next item, please. Next item under resolutions. Resolution number one is the home consortium intergovernmental agreement renewal. Aaron Field is here for this item. Good evening, mayor and council. I'm here tonight with a resolution giving authority to the city manager to sign a three-year intergovernmental agreement with the city of Eugene in order to continue being a part of the home consortium and receive federal home funds for the development of lowincome qualified housing units in Springfield. Some examples of recent uh home funded projects in Springfield include the Alma

3:21:26 Apartments over on 16th, um Hayden Bridge Landing just north of Fred Meyer on Fifth, and then recently funded, though not completed yet, uh Loris Street Apartments as well as Sawyer Station, a proposed 40unit uh development at 16th and Main Street. Uh the city has been in a home consortium with the city of Eugene since 1992. The city of Springfield is not large enough of a city to receive home funding on its own, but by partnering with the city of Eene, uh we can bring more funds into the region um and have a direct role in selecting projects for home funds. This resolution is one of the federal requirements um we need to fulfill in order to receive home funding. And I'm happy to answer any questions.

3:22:12 >> Are there any questions? I think we're ready for a motion. >> I move to adopt a resolution of the city of Springfield authorizing the city manager to execute the federal fiscal year 2027 2029 Eugene Springfield home consortium intergovernmental agreement. >> Second. >> Could you call the vote, please? >> Yes. Councelor Weber, >> yes. >> Councelor Mo, >> yes. >> Councelor Rodley, Councelor Buck, >> yes. >> And councelor Stout, >> yes. Thank you. Motion passes. Four yeses, zero nos, one absent. Next item, please. >> Any business from the city council? >> I do not think we have any business. >> Any business from the city manager? >> Just a few quick items, please. Um, I

3:22:58 wanted to follow up on a couple of the items of testimony. Mayor, you uh accurately kind of predicted what what I was going to say. Um, earlier, Miss Harwood talked about could we be better about looking for future meeting content. I think that's a really good suggestion to look into. Um we've made some changes on our web page and also um also in our agenda management system. So I think it is a good suggestion that we could um look into that and see uh what our capability is. If it's if we don't have the capability to do that now, it's certainly worth a look to see how we could make that a a more robust feature. So I appreciate that feedback. Also, Miss Mandavville's um I al really appreciated her thoughtful suggestion

3:23:45 about providing uh clearer instructions about how to provide written feedback to council. I think it's incredibly important that our community understand uh how they can provide input to their elected officials either verbally or in written form. So, I think we can definitely beef up that section as well and also look at uh the correspondence that she sent. I know that our clerk has sent it forward to all of you. So, I know you've had it at least a couple of times, but we will also make sure that it is included in the next packet for the next public record. So just wanted to reiterate that um because of the cut off for uh publishing deadlines in order to meet the legal notice for this meeting. Sometimes we just have to cut a

3:24:31 line in the sand when we p um publish the packet, but then we can catch up to take the ones that occurred after the deadline and put them in the next um public meeting for the council in that packet. So we'll certainly make sure that we do this. We know that this is important issue. Thank you. >> Any business from the city attorney? Uh, wait, hang on. Let me move. Sorry, >> Nancy. Just as a a comment on that topic of uh public record, I know I forwarded a couple for Luke Mallister as well that didn't make it into the packet. So, it's not just uh Miss Acklland's that didn't make it in there. >> Counselor, thank you. We will make sure that any if there's any stragglers out there or any comments that didn't uh we'll cross reference that to what we've

3:25:16 received and then make sure it gets included into the packet for the 20th. >> Just wanted to make sure I'm clear. Um cuz who do we need to be forwarding those to? Cuz I want to go back and I want to forward everything that I I received to make sure that you guys have it. Um and that's probably my error in not doing doing that. um I kind of thought that it had been um captured already. So that that was a learning lesson for me. But who needs to what email box does that need to get forwarded to? >> Counselor, I I can answer your question. And you're actually this is an interesting distinction if you guys don't mind nerding out with me for just a minute. When anyone um sends an email to a city employee or to a council

3:26:01 member, it is it becomes a public record. So it is retained um from in in the public record so to speak, you know, being this nebulous concept of a public record, but we retain those emails and they there's different retention schedules for correspondence. So the act of emailing a a city employee or government official is in itself uh submitting something to the public records as it stands with our tension policies. The distinction is if you want your comment to be included with the packet of information as a written comment to council. Our council receives both. And so, um, I think there's some constrnation among with people that feel like, oh, I might have sent an email, but that doesn't

3:26:46 mean that the council read it or that it's not part of the record. In fact, it is part of the record because we retain that. But we I think we could be clear and I'll work with the city attorney on this as well in our language about how to submit written testimony and and how to to direct that testimony. As as far as you as a counselor, you can certainly send that to the general city manager's um email or that gets checked or you can send it directly to uh the city clerk recorder. Thank you. Uh we have done this process a couple of times. The first few times we didn't find an an area for improvement and now we have found one. >> All right. Just apologize for speaking over you, Councelor Weber. Um didn't see

3:27:31 your microphone. Any uh next item? >> Anything from the city attorney? Uh >> no business. Thank you. >> Joined. Thank you.