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EUGENE CITY COUNCIL <br />AGENDA ITEM SUMMARY <br />Work Session: City Council Goal -Downtown Initiative Action Plan <br />Meeting Date: July 11; 2007 ~ Agenda Item Number: A <br />Department:. Fire and Emergency Medical Services Staff Contact: Randy Groves <br />www.eugene-or.gov Contact Telephone Number: 682-71:15 <br />ISSUE STATEMENT <br />The purpose of this work "session is to ask'the City- Council to provide guidance to staff on refining the <br />Downtown Initiative of facilitating a significant revitalization of the downtown core. Final approval'of <br />the.Council Goal. language and. Downtown Initiative Action Plan is requested. <br />BACKGROUND <br />At the January 2007 goal-setting retreat of the Eugene Mayor and City Council, revitalizing downtown <br />Eugene was launched as a council strategic goal. An interdepartmental staff team (hereafter referred to <br />as the CC Downtown Goal Team) was formed to act as the catalyst, facilitator and agent of information " <br />between community members, Mayor, City Council and staff, in order. to keep moving toward the goal <br />of revitalizing the "downtown core. The CC Downtown Goal Team will work to ensure that every level <br />of the City organization involved in public projects or project review downtown works together in <br />'" support of the vision for downtown. <br />A great deal of planning work has already been done towards the revitalization of downtown. There <br />. have been a number of plans. and policies for downtown adopted within the last several decades, In <br />2000, the Eugene City Council appointed a Committee for Greater Downtown Visioning to develop a <br />'vision for downtown since the last plan was adopted in 1984. The vision that"emerged promoted ~ , <br />downtown as a thriving, active urban center with ties to the community's rich natural heritage, a variety <br />of intermingled activities, and safe, inviting streets.. In 2001, the City Council accepted the Vision for <br />Greater Downtown Eugene and directed the City Manager.to use it as the basis for an updated <br />downtown plan. The current Eugene Downtown Plan, adopted by ordinance in 2004, and deeply rooted <br />in public process and stakeholder involvement, is the result of those efforts. .' <br />Using the adopted Eugene" Downtown Plan as a foundation, the attached draft Downtown Initiative <br />Action Plan was created. The Downtown Initiative Action Plan provides a framework for defining the <br />. objectives.and"outcomes the council envisioned when identifying the. goal of revitalizing downtown. <br />The Downtown Initiative Action Plan is framed around four key values: vision; teamwork, commitment <br />and communication, and the implementation strategies from the Downtown Plan. The four key values <br />are as follows: <br />• Vision: Downtown Eugene is an active and thriving city center filled with people. It is the heart of <br />the community, tying together a rich natural and cultural heritage. Downtown is a safe and inviting <br />place fostering opportunities for a wide range of social and cultural activities, a variety of local and <br />national business, and innovative spaces for modern living. <br />L:\CMO\2007 Council Agendas\M070711\5070711A.doc <br />