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Jeff Wilson, 1090 Satre Street, spoke in favor of the adoption of the proposed charter for the <br /> Downtown Neighbor's Association that was an item in that evening's Consent Calendar. Speaking <br /> as the chair of the Neighborhood Leaders Council (NLC), he urged the adoption of the charter. He <br /> noted that the downtown area was home to over 1,000 households who could not currently <br /> participate in the neighborhood association program. He went on to say that the NLC believed <br /> that every citizen should have the opportunity for information and input into community building. <br /> Tracy Olsen, 795 Willamette Street, spoke as the chair of the proposed Downtown Neighbors <br /> Association. He said that downtown residents were looking forward to having a voice in how <br /> downtown was shaped and expressed his pleasure in being their liaison to the NLC. <br /> Mr. Olsen expressed concern that the needs of downtown were not really understood by the <br /> council and commented that, while change was scary, empty storefronts downtown were even <br /> scarier. <br /> Nick Bratton, 2865 Oak Street, called for BMX bikes to be allowed in skateboard parks or to have <br /> a BMX -only park be built. <br /> Jeremy Copperman, 190 Sunshine Acres Drive, said that every time he road his bike in Eugene <br /> he became an outlaw. He commented that he had been chased away by security guards and <br /> police and stressed the need for a facility that would allow BMX bike riding in the City of Eugene. <br /> David Sonnichsen, 2435 Skyline Boulevard, spoke on behalf of the East Alton Baker Park Citizen <br /> Planning Committee. He thanked City staff for their hard work on the Autzen parking lot expansion <br /> proposal. He said the committee felt that the University must make a continuing monetary <br /> commitment to the park for restoration efforts to reclaim lots 8 and 9. He asked the council to <br /> amend the draft intergovemmental agreement by requiring such a commitment. <br /> William Ivanoff, 1209 Garfield Street, applauded Councilor Bettman's idea of putting a tax on <br /> parking lots outside of town. He said that downtown would be on a more "level playing field" with <br /> the rest of the Eugene if everyone had to pay to park. He suggested that businesses be given tax <br /> breaks if they built multi use buildings in the downtown area to allow more residents to move in. <br /> Riley Peetz, 2666 High Street, called for a BMX facility in the City of Eugene. He noted that there <br /> were several skateboard parks in the City where BMX bikes were not allowed. <br /> Chris Otto, 1588 West 25 Avenue, called for the passage of the Autzen Stadium parking plan <br /> that would eliminate the call for a parking structure. Speaking as a fan, he said that the last thing <br /> he wanted to see was the University of Oregon spending money on a parking structure that they <br /> could be spending on bringing more programs to the stadium. <br /> Tim Owen, 27007 Siuslaw River Road, said that he had to take his son to Salem so he could ride <br /> his BMX bike at a facility legally. He noted that there were merchants selling bike parts in town <br /> and raised concem that the City considered it criminal to use the parts purchased at local <br /> merchant's shops. He called for a facility dedicated to BMX bikes in Eugene. <br /> MINUTES — Eugene City Council January 22, 2001 Page 2 <br /> Regular Meeting <br />