Budget Meeting Minutes 05/11/05 - Laserfiche WebLink

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continued to have a big appetite to support new park and recreation facilities, it needed to identify sustainable operations and maintenance funding. In response to Ms. Taylor, Mr. Medlin stated that approximately 600 acres were in the riverfront park area and that he did not know the Council Wards the park lands were located in. Ms. Taylor commented that some people feel that the South end of town had more than enough park space. She strongly believed the valuable open space should be saved where it existed, including the riverfront, the wetlands, the Amazon headwaters, the Nectar Way property, and so on. She did not agree that the South area of town had more parks than any other area. In response to another question from Ms. Taylor, Mr. Medlin said it would be possible to acquire more open space. He felt location of the space should be a community decision, but that it would be a mistake if the City did not acquire it. He was uncertain where the funding would come from, but he supported the completion of the Ridgeline Trail, preservation of the area's natural resources, and acquiring property before it could be developed. In response to a question from Ms. Rygas, Mr. Medlin said his division had been working with the Mayor's Committee for the development of a comprehensive plan for approximately two years.. He noted that the third open house for public review of the plan.. was being held that very evening and that three more were scheduled. He stated that at the end of that. process a fmal version of the plan would be drafted and this would be submitted. to the Planning Commission and City Council for review and adoption. Ms. Rygas asked how long it had been since the parks bond had been passed. Mr. Medlin responded that it had been passed in 1998. Ms. Rygas asked when the planning process for this .new plan had begun. Mr. Medlin replied that it had been initiated in 2003. Regarding the Amazon Pool, Ms. Rygas commented that when the new facility was proposed, one of the selling points had been that maintenance costs for the old facility were high and a new one would reduce those costs. She asked why the maintenance costs had increased so much. Ms. Grube explained, in response, that it was bigger and had more amenities, but the real increases to costs had been the dramatic increase in the cost of electricity and personnel costs. She added that swimming pools consumed a lot of power. She said a number of cost saving measures had been utilized, such as the installation of some solar panels. Ms. Rygas remarked that the City when faced with facilities that were aging had to consider the dilemma of whether to renovate or build new. She felt there were times the City should just keep what it had and make it more functional because the rising costs of maintenance for larger facilities drove fees up and limited access for some members of the public. Mr. Medlin underscored that a newer facility did cost less in maintenance because everything was new, but as time went on and things began to deteriorate maintenance costs increased: He said bringing something new on line certainly warranted more forward thinking on how maintenance, operations, and programming would be supported than a renovation of an existing facility minus any expansion did. Ms. Ortiz related that she had attended several of the PROS presentations and extended her compliments to staff on their work. She shared the public's excitement for parks, noting that she had helped garner support for Trainsong Park 20 years earlier. She remarked that parks were places that were accessible to everyone regardless of income level. MINUTES-Eugene Budget Committee February 22, 2005 Page 16