Springfield City Council — May 11, 2026

0:04 I'm going to call the uh Springfield City Council work session to order with roll call. Mayor Van Gordon? Here. Councilor Weber? Here. Councilor Moe? Here. Councilor Roddy? Councilor Quadros? Here. Councilor Buck? Here. And Councilor Stout? I'll be present, but I'll be listening in so I can't guarantee I'll be able to participate with everything. Okay. Perfect. Uh and Councilor Roddy is excused for the evening. Uh we have two items this evening. The first one is the Travel Lane County indoor multi-use sports facility presentation with Nancy Newton. I think I'll speak from the my seat here. I'm going to invite our

0:50 partners with Travel Lane County to come and talk to us a little bit. They're If you'll be seated at the at the table there. Um we I received a request from Travel Lane County to come and talk to us about ways that they can optimize the tourism experience throughout the year in Oregon. I don't know if you're aware of this, but we do have a seasonal tourism issue here. So, they have some ideas about that. So, if you go ahead and press your microphone, it'll go to the green and you can speak then. Thank you. Great. Wonderful. Is that working for you guys? Excellent. Thank you so much for making the time for us, Mayor, Councilors, and especially Nancy, your help getting it on the agenda. Uh so, I'm Samara Phelps. I'm President and CEO of Travel Lane

1:36 County. Travel Lane County is the destination organization for all of Lane County. So, our job is to generate overnight stays for a vibrant year-round and county-wide economy. Um and so, we are here with you today to specifically talk about this indoor multi-use sports facility. Um but before I get started, I just want to make sure I have a chance to plug the um what tourism already does for our community and tourism brings $1.1 billion in visitor spending to Lane County and supports one in nine jobs. So when I talk about billion with a B, sometimes that's hard for people to get their their minds around. So like really what what does a billion dollars of spending really look like? Well, that's employment for one in nine of our neighbors and friends living and working here in our communities. So they're

2:22 staying here locally. It's also a billion dollars is going to support local hotels, restaurants, and businesses on Main Street. And it's visitors bringing a great vibe to our community. They show up running or cheering at the marathon or next to us at a performance at the Wildish. So when visitors come, they are coming, they're bringing that economic activity, and they're bringing the vibrancy into our communities that we enjoy as residents. Um today, I'm specifically here to talk about our work around the multi-use indoor facility um and bringing that to Eugene-Springfield. This is an informational session, so we're not asking have any asks before you today. Um we're here because we really want to make sure that we are here to hear from you um and to make sure that you understand what is happening with this project and that we understand

3:08 Springfield's interests and what Springfield needs to see out of a visitor economy and specifically the opportunities around an indoor multi-use facility. And I think I get to control my own slides. Perfect. Don't click too many times. That's what you're telling me, Austin. Okay, great. Uh so what I'd like to do is um to walk us through uh a few things about the the project so that you know what the problem is we're trying to solve, what we think the solution might look like, and where we're currently at, and then we'll open this up in terms of a work session for anything that you have um that you'd like to ask specifically. So, the problems. Um we have two

3:53 long-standing challenges that this facility is designed to help us address. Um it's probably no surprise that a billion dollars isn't coming in in 12 equal increments over the course of the year. There is that significant decrease in visitation in the winter. Like the administrator just mentioned, seasonality is very real for us, and this strains businesses and reduces hours for employees. Winter visitation is not a surprise. Um it's a long-standing need that marketing alone has not been able to solve in our community. So, we need to generate and drive visits in the winter. And to do that, we need to create reasons for people to come all year round. At the same time that our businesses and our employees experience this winter volatility, we also have another need

4:38 identified in the community. There is a shortage of court space for our community to use. Even with the great work of Willamalane and the activation of the Bob Keefer Center, youth need a place to practice, play, and compete. Eugene-Springfield is the home court for not only our Eugene-Springfield residents, but also for families up the McKenzie, Cottage Grove, and Junction City, and throughout Lane County. So, our proposal is one investment that meets these two needs. Weekdays, it would be used by locals. This is an opportunity to add some of that needed court space. Um and then on the weekends, it would be an indoor facility that could generate 37

5:25 tournaments annually, 29,000 new room nights, and what I think is really the key when we think about our mission as Travel Lane County being economic development and vitality uh through tourism is that additional $21 million in visitor spending. Uh these statistics that we have, we just did an updated market study um at the late fall. So, these are numbers as of October and November of 2025. So, those that's the problem and our intended outcomes. And so, what is this facility that we're talking about? When we say an indoor multi-use facility, what is it that we are talking about? Uh the size of the facility is eight basketball courts. We

6:10 use that as a way to give it some sense of scale. That would be 16 volleyball courts. It could also be converted into flat floor space for mat sports, dance competitions, cheer, which is big here in Springfield. Uh so, it it would be a very flexible multi-sport opportunity, but when you think about the size, we're thinking of eight basketball courts to give you some about 130,000 square feet. Yeah, thanks. Great question. So, for perspective, do you know how many basketball courts for a tournament Bob Keefer has? We're 100,000 square feet. So, it'd be 35 So, it's six and 12, I believe. And so, from the audience, >> [laughter] >> we have uh Michael Wargo of Willamette Lane uh confirmed that we're at about 100,000 square feet at uh Bob Keefer.

6:58 Yeah, he's a full-service executive director. Right. >> [laughter] >> That's great. Um and so, those estimates that we had done this uh fall estimate the cost of building and equipping this facility is about $60 million plus the cost of land. So, depending on where we build, that would have an influence on it, but $60 million gets you the the structure that works as well as the equipment like courts and um nets and hoops to be able to deliver the full tournament experience. Um the math for this has it operationally sustainable um in the at year three. So, after three

7:43 years, it's able to sustain the costs of operating it. And then in year five, it's generating about $500,000 of revenue. But that is before we take into account interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization. So, that's that fun EBITDA acronym that shows up a acronym that shows up in most development projects discussions like this. Um and so, what it's saying is that this project is operationally sustainable, but it cannot build itself. It does not generate enough to build a capital investment infrastructure of this scale in our community. So, the facility that we're talking about is a 130,000 square feet very flexible

8:30 space to be able to operate at a regional tourism tournament level and then be able to provide those weekday courts. So, um how do we get something like this built in our community? We have been working in this community with an organization called Sports Facility Company. They've done work around a regional tourism facility sports facility. They've also done work with our recreation partners here in town before. And so, we worked with them to do do these updated market demand numbers that I just shared. And then we brought them in to community in the early April to do a community meeting. And at that meeting,

9:15 we wanted them to be able to share with us examples of how facilities like these actually get built. It can be a great idea, but we know it's a heavy lift to make this happen. So, what does that look like? How have people been successful? And the thing that really stood out with that is two things. One, who showed up in that room. We had over 60 community members show up for a 2-hour discussion on finance bottling for a piece of infrastructure. So, that told us a lot about there being a wide range of interest. We had community stakeholders that included elected leaders, government staff, private businesses, our recreation providers, local club parents, as well as club operators. So, there was very much

10:01 public-private in that room learning from sports facilities company about what it takes to make a facility like this work. And what stands out in that, besides the who was in the room, is this model that has been really clear about what has been successful in the past. And it has two components. One is that a public sponsor or a public entity comes forward and makes a commitment first. It's an initial investment from a public We're calling it a sponsor. It could be one entity. It could be multi-jurisdictional, but it is a commitment of annual revenue support that says we want this to come to our community and we are going to make an investment in it.

10:46 And the second is that the structure that seems to work best for this public-private partnership is to have a nonprofit created that it becomes the hub. So, then this project lives beyond any given political champion or private investment that it is a place where a public-private interest that brought them to the table can be sustained and can be held accountable to it. So, then that nonprofit has room for the public investors, the private investors, and that is who manages the development of the project. So, it has sustainability long-term for its operation meeting the demands of the community that brought it together to say we wanted to invest in

11:31 this to begin with. So, that non-profit model and the importance of a public investment to get it kicked off were the big learnings from that day in April with Sports Facility Company. So, we went from that meeting was a part of a uh bigger collaboration that Travel Lane County has been working on with Lane County government. Um so, where are we right now? Lane County and Travel Lane County Lane County board and Travel Lane County's board has made a commitment to do joint decision grade feasibility work. And so, what we're trying to do is work together to identify where and how a facility like this can get built in

12:16 our community. And so, to do that, Travel Lane County and the county have engaged in a partnership charter. Uh we have posted it's currently posted and live in RFP for a consultant who will do this integrated decision grade feasibility with us. And we have an MOU under development for how Travel Lane County can be a part of a capital project as an entity that has historically been contracted with the county to do destination marketing specifically. Um and then right now we have the Lane County budget deliberations are underway. Those um that conversation, the draft budget includes discussion of the 2% transient lodging tax, which is um added in 2023.

13:02 2% was added to the county's transient lodging tax that's applied to an overnight stay anywhere in the county. So, that's here in Springfield, that's out in Florence, it's up the rural McKenzie River. That 2% for infrastructure was put into place as a TLT to ident- with the identified need of we need some tourism infrastructure. We're not sure what that project is. So, the money's been being collected, but a project hasn't been identified. And this project, the multi-use indoor facility, is what we are working on identifying how and where we can build it. And so, that 2% for infrastructure is really important to Travel Lane County and to the project. It is currently um in deliberations for how the county will be

13:49 budgeting that going forward. And so, what does decision grade feasibility do? Um decision grade feasibility is different than what we've done in the past because what we've done in the past is identify the idea of a project. Decision grade feasibility is an integrated analysis of what it takes to make that project real in our community. So, it will look at site, which is about the location, so that's going to be where the shovel's going to go in the ground. Who owns that land? Who's going to own and operate the building? What kind of funding is available and opportunities exist depending on what kind of owner-operator and site you

14:34 have, and then also your operations, uh which is who's going to ongoing operate this facility and optimize it for its benefits to the the community. So, that is the work that is currently under underway. And so, sites. I said where we're going to put the shovel in the ground will make a big difference. There is no site selected. It is site agnostic, um and so, that feasibility work is considering some models for sites. And right now, those models are the Lane Events Center, which represents a Eugene location. It also operates under a new construction scenario. Uh the former

15:19 Royal Caribbean here in Springfield out in Gateway, is identified as a opportunity for adaptive reuse and to explore adaptive reuse as a scenario, and also gives a Springfield location. And then there's a property in West Eugene on West 5th that is also um potential to be an adaptive reuse scenario that is in the mix. Uh and those were identified through market scans this fall about facilities that could meet the requirements that we outlined at the beginning for um uh sports facilities company. So that brings us to here in front of you today. Um what we know is that projects like this will take multi-jurisdictional public support, and no single entity will end up building

16:04 this. Uh Springfield's participation in whatever form it makes sense as the project comes together will be critical in identifying this as a priority for our community and strengthening the foundation of that public investment that unlocks private capital. So what Springfield's participation looks like we don't know at this scenario, but we do know that the support of Springfield will be important to bringing this into our community. So what we're here today asking for is an opportunity to inform you. Thank you for that. Uh your questions and to understand what it means to be a meaningful partner to you. So with that um I will turn it over to the dais. All right. Do you folks have questions?

16:51 All right. Go ahead, Counselor Buck. All right. Um I got I have a couple of questions. First of all, you mentioned that the um West 5th in West Eugene um and we are reuse opportunity. What's uh currently in that location now? Peterson Arn, it's a distribution center. Okay. Um and just kind of a a comment overall, um all of us, you know, we we we all live here and we all see the same same things. Um an influx of traffic like this is is something we have to consider. Um that's in no way, shape, or form me saying that I think that this is a bad project or I'm not supportive of it.

17:36 I just think that we have to have some consideration around, okay, when we bring this volume of people in uh to the community, um which is which is great, um >> [clears throat] >> how are we going to manage that? Where are they Where are they going to eat? Where are they going to be driving? You know, how is that going to look? Um and I don't think that Eugene's situation is markedly better than ours. I think we I think we share that challenge. So, that would be the one thing that I would put out there is kind of considering how this goes, um because I think that it could be great for both communities, um especially

18:22 especially if it was located kind of where both communities were accessed easily. I mean, I like um I like the idea of the, you know, the location right by by I-5. Can we make that work with traffic flow and things like that? Um and then and then also it'd be remiss to if I wasn't to say, you know, I would very much be interested to see as this project unfolds, you know, the collaboration that happens with Willamette Lane around this, um because I wouldn't want to support any project that would negatively impact My my gut is that this would actually just support what they've already got going on, but I don't know that for sure. And so, as we

19:07 get down the road, I'm be very interested to hear from them. Yeah, great. Thank you for that. And I uh site-specific, the traffic, those uses, absolutely part of what has to be evaluated for anywhere a project goes. And I did call out Sports Facility Company for their expertise that they have brought into our community, but we have had the great benefit of Willamette Lane and Kidsports in our community helping inform the project as well from the the beginning to think about it from the perspective of what's already here and knowing how our community works and what our community needs for this. So, thank you for those call outs. Okay. Councilor Quadras. I think this is my first question so far

19:53 on Council. Um so, where has this presentation been so far and what has been the feedback? Yeah. So, uh you have a as of today version of the presentation, but overall the presentation has been shared. Uh we've done presentations to Rotary, through the Chamber, um to City Club, and we have also been in regular communication with the Board of County Commissioners doing public presentations like this updating the project as we get more information about the data, bringing them along as a partner. And the hands down, the project has received very warm and very active interest. People see the need in the community. They like the idea of something that is

20:39 transformational and take us from where we're at to a new place, like a game-changer if you will. Um and so, it has been really positive in that way. And uh when I stepped into this role as the CEO um uh just under 2 years ago, it was really interesting to hear from the community that there was kind of everyone was in a yes, we need indoor sports space. Yes, we need more indoor space. We need to drive demand. And they were either in the it hasn't happened, so it must not be possible, or I don't know why it hasn't happened because it is a good idea. So, my feedback has been that I've received has been primarily interest and identifying the fact that it is addressing a need in the community, and

21:26 the question is how. And so, that's the work that we're trying to engage in right now is to get closer to the how. Yeah, keep going. So, then on your numbers, um I'm wondering you've built the 3-year sustainable. Um is this a pay-to-play concept? Is it user fees? I know that um the Monday through Friday users aren't exactly excited to be paying uh for the spaces they use. Yep, absolutely. Uh yes, so those numbers that we have are updated as of, like I said, the fall of 2025. And so, they reflect what is both our current demand in our community and the projected new demand and the models that

22:11 work across the country. What comes into play where we're having this conversation about public-private partnership is what does public investment, what does private investment bring to the table for how that stays accessible for the community, right? So, we have an interest as traveling county to make sure that this is generating that economic impact for the community and doing that stimulation, especially during the winter months that are in such high need, and also know that our community needs to see this as a place that is in service to them. So, access will be an important part of the the conversation. The decision-grade feasibility does start to go into some of those funding models, and that'll be part of I refer to it as the dashboard

22:58 with the dials that we have. If you have more public interest investment, you may have different user group funding models from a cost perspective, like the rental fees. You And so, as we make those decisions, we'll start to find that that balance that's right for our community. Excellent point. Uh Counselor Weber. So, as the liaison to Travel Lane County Board, I've maintained neutrality on all of the conversations surrounding this, and they've been going on for months. Um the one thing that I have said and just want to to remind everybody is how

23:43 important meeting space the need for meeting space is in Springfield. So, as we move forward, if we get to a planning stage, just make sure we're keeping that that in mind. Great. Thank you for that. Okay. Um This was a great presentation. I think it is something that we need in the community, and I'm eager and patient to let it develop in its own pace, and I think that's one of the things that Travel Lane County's done very well right in that through this is let this just kind of mature at the rate it's supposed to mature. A couple of questions and feedback that I have, I would go further with Willamette Lane and Kids Sports and just give them an active on or off-ramp.

24:28 Right? It's not enough to to simply sort of engage for their opinion, but if we're looking for partnership, we we we need to kind of give them the the the active choice to be on for something or off for something. Uh you did cite the winter room demand. Mhm. So, I know room demand in the industry has been uh during the winter has been let's just say challenging. When you Does that winter demand that is in the projection solve the problem or does it just make it better? So, how should we think about that? It's an improvement. It is a significant improvement, but it we will still have seasonality in this destination um even with a sports facility. What I like to think of as

25:14 this investment is a investment in um sequence. This is the demand generator that seems most economically resilient and most relevant to our community. And we do this, we prove our success at this, and we'll be looking at what is next to help fill in those additional room nights, but we will make a significant dent. Okay, so if if I was to describe it, what I I think about it is we're going from bad to less bad or bad to okay? We're going bad to okay. Okay. Okay, so no matter what 10 years from now, we're going to still be talking about this as an industry, you know, working on filling up those hotel rooms. Um when you said six sort of $60 million

26:00 to build it and open it, and then whatever the land acquisition, is that similar to all three sites? Right now it is uh relatively similar. We're in a very high-level degree of saying that um and that is what being able to do the decision grade feasibility and bring somebody in and be able to do some integrated analysis for the costs um where we're generating the funding from and also what the site-specific needs are going to be. And have have you considered I mean, the next item we're we're going to talk about opportunity zones, right? So, and one of the things that's in the packet for the opportunity zone is that North Gateway area. Does any decision that we make about opportunity zones improve the viability

26:47 of this project? I and I understand before the staff throws something at me, we're recommending to the governor and there's like seven different steps there. But like if if we were to think about if that was in an opportunity zone, doesn't make this this project more feasible suddenly? I don't know enough about opportunity zones to say that, but I think your interest in visioning and creating opportunity in that North Gateway area only add the potential for us as a as an industry. Okay. Uh I think those were all the questions that I had. I mean it for the stage that we're at, I'm really happy and supportive of the stage that we're at. I know it's going to take time and we we all have to just be patient as it matures. You guys are working on this as quickly quickly as possible. Um and then I think just lastly, like we

27:34 could over engineer and over plan this, right? So I'm hoping that we just get to a point where we get to like vision to get something open even if it may not be perfect, right? If if we got to the point where we started down that path opposed to that third visioning exercise, that would be that would be ideal. Yeah, and that's where the decision grade feasibility model, I think the Board of County Commissioners shares that that value that we're ready to be at that decision decision grade where we're looking at it and making some gating events and decisions happen where we're like, okay, now we're on the path. So we don't want to invest over engineering to be like, but we weren't really that interested to start with. So share that as well that we are hopefully

28:19 driving information that informs decision that gets us on the path that is properly sequenced for our community. Not perfect and open is a really good place to be, right? Um oh, I think >> bad to better. My occupancy rates. Yeah. I think I think my last question is how like we have a lot of needs in the community right now. We're trying to make this work with a lot of different resources and we could spend another hour talking about how to balance all of those. Is there How do we think about those trade-offs? Meaning, do you guys see this as, you know, that we may be able to do everything we want from a economic and a community perspective, we just have to get the sequencing right, or do you think we're going to end up down a path

29:05 where it's going to be we either do this or we do something else? We always have to make those decisions in the short term. I think in the long term, it opens up more opportunities. Uh in the short term, we as Travel and County are really focused on that 2% that was dedicated for infrastructure because that that created a very specific dedicated fund that could go towards a significant part of the capital to be bonded against or structured to be able to get us this facility in our our community that is currently not allocated to something else. If it becomes allocated to something else, then the resources that we have to work with continues to be

29:50 modified and and that then we start making different different choices. But right now, we're very excited about a project that can have industry, economic development qualities, and serve the residents out of a a known resource, which is the transient lodging tax, which is intended to be used for economic activity. And $20 a year is a pretty good return. And North Gateway would be in a great place for it to be. And we would we also would have to work on that intersection a little bit more, but that's a different conversation for a different day. All right, any other questions before Thank you so much. Uh feel free to come back again anytime. We enjoy hearing

30:35 about the tourism industry. Excellent. Thank you for the opportunity, and please do reach out if you you further questions. All right. The next uh item is the opportunity zone redesignation. Good evening, Mayor and Council. Um tonight you have a work session to discuss nomination of our opportunity zone tracks in Springfield. Um from this work session I am hoping to receive direction on which tracks and in what priority you would like to nominate for our community. A little bit about opportunity zones,

31:21 they are a federal tax incentive program originally established in 2017. Why these matter for Springfield is that they can assist in spurring investment in low-income areas through capital gains tax incentives. Um they're dedicated by census tract. Uh in attachment one you can see a map of Springfield's currently designated opportunity zones under the old program rules. Um I refer to them as the downtown tract and the Glenwood tract. Opportunity zone 2.0 has new program rules that were established as part of HR1 or the One Big Beautiful Bill Act. Um what these new program rules do is they make the program permanent, they nominate tracks every 10 years. Um it has stricter family income

32:06 requirements and it has a focus on rural areas. Attachment two in your package shows eligible census tracts under these new rules in yellow. Um a little bit of a difference to point out between attachment one and attachment two, you'll see that the Glenwood tract is no longer available or eligible with the new program rules. Um that could be due to the income requirements being more stringent and Glenwood no longer qualifying or that could also be due to another criteria that they eliminated from opportunity zone 2.0 with these new rules called the adjacency criteria, where before if a census tract was adjacent to one that qualified, it too then qualified. Um Glenwood is adjacent to Eugene's Riverfront tract. Um also on attachment two, you'll see

32:52 that local policy incentives for development are overlaid with these eligible tracts um in situations where we can layer our policy incentives for development that can make an area more appealing to develop in. Um in your AIS, I included a proposed tract list by priority. Uh what this takes into account for your discussion tonight is economic development investments currently underway, available incentives to spur development, the two that I just highlighted on your map, um and economic development conversations of the council. Um the two tracts and the priority are first the downtown tract, which looks like the state of Utah. It ends in 3302. Um and then the gateway tract, which ends in 2101. It's the northernmost tract on that yellow map. Uh whatever

33:38 tracts are discussed and prioritized by council tonight will be applied for by May 22nd. The process invites stakeholder input on the council's nominations from anyone like developers, investors, or community organizations have an opportunity to participate in this nomination process. Um ultimately tracts are applied for and then the governor designates them. The governor can designate up to 25% of eligible tracts in Oregon. Business Oregon is the entity providing the data and the process for this and they have been a huge help in making sure we have this data for your conversation tonight. Um and then finally news that new designations will be active for OZ 2.0 rules to apply starting January 1, 2027. So it's a quick process.

34:23 Um I'm available for any questions you may have, um and I can remind you of the direction that we're looking for tonight, which tracts and in which priority you'd like to nominate. Uh the first question that I had is, do you have an example of how an opportunity zone fund would be used? This is still pretty new for all of us. Yeah, what's interesting about opportunity zones and opportunity zone funds is they're typically a private to private transaction. Um, local government does not have a role in administering this program. Um, our role is to provide nominations for tracks and make sure that people know about it. Um, essentially people set up a fund and that fund can receive dollars from capital gains investments, people who want that benefit on any capital gains that they may have received over a

35:08 certain time period. That money then gets invested into a project in one of these lower income areas and it has a potential to sit there in this project. Someone builds something, someone invests in business. The longer that money sits there, the more incentive they receive. Okay, so it would be like, um, so there's these funds out there, right? These funds are available to invest in these census tracts. Um, if you're a developer, you would you could go out and solicit them as an investor and then they have a private transaction to utilize these funds. Okay. And uh, to date the that that data is not findable. So, we cannot see who's matchmaking with which funds. Um, those are all private to private transactions. And when I we look at the maps, a lot of

35:54 the borders sit on major transac- uh, major transit corridors. So, if if you look at Pioneer Parkway, is Pioneer Parkway in or out of um, uh, the census tract? I would need to get clarification on that. >> Okay. So, I'm assuming that we, you know, as we provide direction, right? Like there's going to be a little bit of give and detail that will get sorted out. Okay, what other questions do you folks have? Uh, I'll keep asking questions then. Um, do you know what tracks areas uh, the other two both the county and are nominating in the city of Eugene are nominating? Um, I do not know to date. Um, but what

36:39 I do know is I believe the county's not planning to nominate any because there is only so many tracks the governor can uh designate. There then develops competition between communities in terms of whose tracks get picked and whose don't. Um, I believe city of Eugene is intending to apply for two or three. Okay. Go ahead, Councilor Buck. Thank you. So, the one that ends in 3302 looks to be an existing tract. Is that correct? Yes, that is the downtown tract. Okay. So,

37:28 we wouldn't necessarily nominate an existing tract. We would want to we would want to be looking at other tracts presumably. Um, that's at least my takeaway. Because the program rules have changed, we're starting with a fresh slate in terms of what is currently in the program and what can be in the program under the new program rules. So, existing nominations do not carry forward. Okay. So, then I guess I share the same question that the mayor put out there in in terms of you know, what might be the vision for these tracts and when we you know, obviously you commented that it's it's private private funds and so we don't really have a role in in steering what does and doesn't happen.

38:16 Um, that for for me that's you know, that's the hang-up because depending on on what you wanted to do and when what the idea is, I I could see it being a positive or negative impact and how that goes. I mean, when you look at the one out in Thurston the 1803, you know, that encompasses Thurston High School and um and that area, but it also, I believe, stretches I mean, it covers actually three three schools um in that area. And and again, it it's it's how do we want those those areas to to kind of fill out and and develop versus,

39:02 you know, 2101, um I could [clears throat] see a very different vision there. And so, it's hard for me to say it's hard for me to nominate without an idea of what would the vision be? Cuz I would hate to nominate something and and then find, oh, well, the direction we're going really isn't doesn't really fit as well and then not have a say in in in kind of directing that. Maybe I'm misunderstanding how that works. Um feel free to say, yeah, that's not how this goes at all. That's fine. But that's that's the what I'm taking away. So, that's that's where I'm stuck. Um maybe this is some helpful

39:48 kind of framing for your conversation tonight is the the reason these tracks exist is to direct private investment into areas that need it. Um It might be helpful to think about opportunity zones and the tracks that they could be as areas that have a lot of opportunity for investment. Um what is challenging about census tracks is they don't take into consideration our local zoning policy or um sites or areas that may be enticing for people to invest in. Um the two tracks on the AIS, the downtown tract and the gateway tract, they have a lot of commercial mixed-use commercial and residential opportunity. Um tracks that are primarily single-family residential may not have that same

40:34 degree of opportunity for investors to then be interested in putting their dollars in that area. Uh Councilman Moore. Explain to me exactly how capital gains is involved in this. Well, um I am not a tax professional, so I don't feel like totally um adept to speak on this, but essentially what it is is someone who has earned capital gains because of a transaction, um instead of paying taxes on those capital gains, they can put those gains in a fund, and these census tracts benefit from those funds. Okay. Could when we think about these zones, and then we'll get to

41:20 uh some direct feedback, can can residential projects access opportunity uh zone funds? Um I would need to confirm that. I don't know. Um right now I would tell you my priorities are like what's in the packet, like the downtown one has got to stay in, going the North Gateway one has got to, you know, has got to stay in. That would help us with that area and that development. Um you could convince me very easily to submit to submit a third a third census tract of something like 1904, but I think the question about what whether or not residential areas could benefit from this would would weigh heavily on it. Go ahead,

42:05 Councilwoman Moore. So I'm I'm just reading here about eligible projects to try to kind of wrap my head around around this a little bit more. Um and it says opportunity zone investments can fund commercial and industrial real estate, housing infrastructure, and operating businesses. Real estate projects must be substantially improved to qualify. Unlike other federal programs, opportunity zones have minimal restrictions. There are no requirements for low-income tenant occupancy, fully private market financing, or oversight boards. Though certain sin businesses are excluded. Is that helpful? Yeah. And I had the same question about maybe adding an additional opportunity zone depending on

42:50 how many we can apply for if if there's a restriction or a maximum or minimum there um and how that compares with what Eugene's trying to do. Um Counselor Book. Thank you. Um I I certainly agree with the downtown track and the North Gateway track. Um I I you know, I feel like those those are super important to what we're trying to accomplish. Um but I also feel like 1904 is is is a great opportunity. Um there is development happening out there as we speak and a anybody that um is live So, I live out there and it's it's easy to see like this is where the development's going to happen. Like

43:37 we kind of know that and at the same token that particular area encompasses um you know, where Cascade just vacated and you know, that that that whole strip mall facility has multiple vacancies there. So, I I think that there is a there is a great opportunity in 1904 for a lot of different uh you know, types of um improvement. But certainly based on what uh Counselor Weber just read, I could see that coming into the mix because not only is there vacant land space out there that could be potentially considered, but there's also existing things out there that could be redeveloped or um

44:24 repurposed. But, again, I I would want to make that like a a strong three. I would I would advocate for a that be a third, but not instead of North Gateway or downtown. All right. Anybody else? Councilor Quandt is I'm just wondering, does the 2101 um have an impact on the conversation we just the presentation we just saw? Um should that tract be nominated and selected, it would be another incentive available for any sort of development of that area. I'm pretty sure the traveling county people are going to get really smart about opportunity zones here in a second.

45:11 Um is that is that enough direction? I I'm okay go going with three. I know that there's a limit statewide, right? So, if you know, I'm not you know, I think it's we give them the first two really strong priorities, right? Like if we got downtown and Gateway, that would be a win for the city. If they're handing out if they're handing out other extra opportunity zones, we'll take as many as we can get. Um and then I think the other thing we should do from a legislative perspective and the how I think is up to staff here, we really need to give our congressional delegation the feedback around around Glenwood here because you can see like if if that wasn't a census tract that didn't include part of um South Eugene

45:57 where it gets a little bit affluent, um Glenwood would be in there and that would That's uh obviously remains a priority for this community. All right. I think we're good. Thank you so much. We are adjourned. We are going to reconvene at 7:00 on a different link um for the Farcita.