[0:31] Good afternoon everyone. This Tuesday, September 15th, 2026 meeting of the Lake Oswego City Council is now called to order. Miss Hawkins, would you please call the roll? Mayor Buck here.

[0:40] Councilor Wendland here. Burdick. Corrigan. Edmonds. Man's here and here.

[0:48] Thank you. And now, everyone, would you please stand and remove your hats and join us in the pledge?

[0:55] I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America. And to the Republic for which it stands one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.

[1:14] Now first we have a proclamation, Hispanic Heritage Month, which is celebrated September 15th through October 15th, is an opportunity to recognize the rich histories, cultures, and contributions of Hispanic and Latino communities. This year's theme is Unidos Somos Mas, or Together We Are More. It celebrates the strength of our diversity and the ways it brings us together. Here in Lake Oswego, we celebrate our Hispanic and Latino neighbors and invite everyone to learn, celebrate and uplift their voices and contributions. You'll find these proclamations, as well as all other City Council proclamations on the city website. Uh. Next, I'd like to invite Republic Services to please come forward. You'll be hearing from Cindy Rogers and John Olivares about their return to excellence plan and the steps they're taking to improve service reliability for our residents. We're looking forward to hearing this update, and we appreciate you all taking the time to be here. Good afternoon.

[2:12] My name is Cindy Rogers and I'm your municipal relationship manager for Republic Services. And then I'll let, um, John and Steve introduce themselves.

[2:21] Good afternoon. My name is Steve Baker. I'm the operations manager for the hauling divisions and the, uh, garbage company that services Lake Oswego.

[2:30] Good afternoon, mayor and council members. John Olivares, general manager for Republic Services. I've been with Republic Services since 2018. First four years I was Steve's position. Then I got promoted to general manager up in Seattle in 2022 and then in 2026, five months ago today, I came back here and I'm a resident of Lake Oswego, living in the uplands neighborhood, and my stepdaughter started her freshman year at Lake Oswego. So glad to be back.

[2:57] Great. Good to have you here.

[3:00] Thank you.

[3:01] Our presentation this afternoon will. We will provide a brief overview of the services that we deliver for Lake Oswego residents and businesses. We'll also address some staffing challenges that we've recently experienced. The actions that we have taken to address those challenges, and then ongoing efforts to continue to improve on service reliability. Before we move on to the next slide, I want to draw your attention to the two trucks that we intentionally chose for this slide. The larger of the trucks is our electric truck, and the smaller truck is our tight access truck. I think it's a kind of a stark difference between the two different styles of trucks. We use the the small truck in areas where our normal sized garbage truck will not fit because the roads are narrow, narrow. So think about Lakefront Road as an example.

[3:58] In 2025, we serviced 11,000 411,846

[4:04] residential customers. Each one of these customers is serviced by three separate trucks every week, totaling 35,000 stops every week. There is, of course, a trash truck, a yard debris truck, and you can also put your food waste in your yard debris. As a reminder, a truck for your co-mingled recycling, which includes your glass bin and in your glass bin, you can place your batteries in a Ziploc, a Ziploc bag, and then motor oil in a labeled milk jug. We also offer additional services for residents, including bulky waste pickup for items that will not fit in your roll cart and drop boxes for larger projects. We serviced 412 commercial customers in 2025, and then commercial customers with dumpsters can receive trash service six days a week, four days a week for recycle and four days a week for food waste. And the service level is based on the needs of the business. In 2025, we did 1769. Industrial halls and industrial halls are big drop boxes or compactors.

[5:18] We also do two bulky waste events every year, one in the spring and one in the fall, and these events are very, very popular. We had 186 vehicles at our spring event last year, and we had over 500 vehicles in our fall event. Something new that we started last year was partnering with the Mattress Recycling Council. So now the mattresses at those bulky waste events are collected separately and recycled instead of landfill. So as a reminder, Lake Oswego's next bulky waste event is October 3rd at our transfer station in Wilsonville.

[6:01] Community involvement and support is important. Important to our partnership with Lake Oswego. Most of our events are ones that we've done year over year. We do Tatra trucks, birthday drive bys and Earth Day e-waste event. This is. And the Sustainability Resource Fair. We also provide in-kind donations for the Lake Run, the Rotary Lobster Feed, Lakewood Festival, Lakewood Theater, Festival of Arts, Girl Scouts, Christmas Tree Recycling, Oswego Heritage Council Car and Boat Show, and then the upcoming annual Pumpkin Toss, just to name a few. So please feel free to reach out to me about any other opportunities where we can work with the city or any nonprofits, especially if there are opportunities for us to volunteer our time. And I will hand it off to Jon and he'll talk about our Return to excellence plan.

[7:01] Thank you. I wish that just said operational excellence and not a return to excellence. So why a return to excellence? Um, going back to 2018, when I started here again, Steve has continued that trend except for a slight hiccup here recently. Uh, Lake Oswego has always been ranked as one of the organizational leaders when it comes to our customer zeal metrics. Customer zeal metrics include service reliability, customer satisfaction, and on time pickups. Unfortunately, starting in March, continuing into April and May, we had some unforeseen staffing issues. Uh, so we were shorthanded drivers and we struggled to meet our customer zeal standards that the Lake Oswego residents have been accustomed to and deserve. So giving I started gave Steve and the supervisors the autonomy to staff appropriately. They decided that we needed to staff up to 26 drivers, uh, twice a week. We peak at 21 routes within Lake Oswego, and that's just residential and commercial, 21 routes. A couple days we run 19, but we peak at 21. So they told me they want 26 drivers. And as of the middle of August, we got to 26. So we're staffed appropriately where we need to be. This will allow us to easily cover scheduled vacation time, unforeseen sick days, bereavement days, FMLA days, and so forth. Right? We got to overstaffed by five on those two peak days. So staffing is fixed, which led to the big problem of some service issues other than staffing have been working with city staff and corporate communications department on how we can better enhance our communication with the residents. Um, this primarily hinges on us having an accurate phone number for our customers. Um, anytime that we are going to have a service delay due to staffing issues, which that should be a thing of the past. Weather delays, uh, holiday changes because of the holidays. We'll send out a call blast and everyone should get a voicemail automated message that tells them of the schedule change or the delay. So if we have the correct number, you all are getting that communication. But if we don't have the right number, everyone's out left in the dark. So we're still contemplating what we're going to do, whether to send out postcards, put a flier inside an insert inside your bill and how we're going to do that, but that will help us better communicate with the residents. Um, when we do that. Also, the last couple of months, we have increased the supervisors, managers myself's presence out in the community doing audits. Uh, I've been out there lifting lids on the afternoons, been approached by a couple residents thinking that I was dumpster diving, but had to quickly show them my shirt with the Republic on it or my business card. Uh, Steve, as you can see, he's in a safety vest right now. I know he was out visiting drivers before he came here, and knowing Steve, he's probably going to go visit 1 or 2 on his way home this afternoon.

[9:58] Um, finally, we are not perfect. Um, we have not performed specifically March through July to the standards that we think we should perform at. Uh, we are a very metrics and scorecard driven company. Um, referencing back to that earlier slide, right? We do a little bit less than 12,000 single family homes a week, which again, that's three times they see three drivers garbage, recycle yard waste. So we have 36,000 attempts with just residents to impress how good we are at service, 77 multi-family dwellings that get picked up multiple times a week. 412 commercial customers picked up multiple times a week. 101,700 industrial halls. So lots of opportunities to show you what we could do. I believe on the 2025 annual report, we disclosed that we had 90 complaints. 45 of which were missed pickup related. So that was for 2025. So that breaks down to around eight complaints a month. Four of those being missed pickup related March through July. Because of our staffing issues, that almost doubled in both categories, where we 2025, we averaged eight complaints a month, March through July. That was 11 per month and then missed. Pickups were around eight, so missed. Pickups doubled but returned to. Excellence has was very evident and clear in month of August, where we only had three total complaints. Two of them being missed pickups. So back on track with staffing. Have a lot of new drivers. There'll be a little bit of a learning curve, but if August is any indication of the direction we are going forward. You guys will get back to having great service from Republic Services. That's all I had to share. I think as a team, that's all we had and we're open to any questions.

[11:51] Well, I want to thank you all for being here. John. Steve. Cindy. Um, Lake Oswego has enjoyed a long relationship with Republic. You know, over the years, we've had the opportunity to look at other providers, but we've always maintained the relationship with Republic in large part because of the service that you provide. And I think we all understand that it's things always aren't going to flow perfectly, but it's always in the response how we, um, you know, measure the service of a company. And, um, we appreciate your responsiveness here to the concerns that we heard from residents about these missed pickups. And I think they were even more acutely felt because it is so unusual. Um, many residents who've been here a long time are used to this, you know, never happening, perhaps even in decades. So then when it starts happening, people start wondering what is, you know, what is going on because you've set the bar so high. As we appreciate your commitment here, but my colleagues all have a lot of questions. So we'll start with Councilor Mansell. Oh, did you have a question? Well, you'll take it.

[12:52] Thank you for your time to come before us and the public to explain.

[12:58] What's going on. I think that is absolutely helpful to all of us. I have not experienced problems that some folks have had. I don't know why Laurel Street must be the happy street, but I have heard from other citizens. So it is so lovely to be able to go back and report to them and for them to hear you say that we're seeking excellence. So thank you.

[13:31] Councilor. Councilor.

[13:36] John, thank you so much. Uh, I think I heard once that a good relationship has accountability, vulnerability, and empathy. And what I heard you today exhibited all those three things similar to any other industry. You've gone through your challenges now, and we've seen this from Covid forward that every industry has done this. I ask that you sit down and go, what's our lessons learned and make sure that doesn't happen again. You don't have to share it with us here, but as an industry, I think you need to sit down and do that, if not already. So these 12 new drivers. What happened? Where could you have seen that happening and then pull the trigger on it? I think in the past when your team was here presenting, I've always said your drivers are most professional, kind and caring service that I've seen in my neighborhood. I try to run out there so I can wave at them. That professional, professional and the services you provide.

[15:01] It's highly needed and people count on them. You're like the Swiss clock that everybody expects to be on time and they count on it. So you have set a very high standard, and I'm glad to hear that you're trying to return back to excellence. Thank you.

[15:22] Yeah. Thank you for those kind words. And I know Steve knows this. I was in operations going back to my days at UPS, Iron Mountain and other companies. I've had three models be properly staffed Always have good coffee in the morning for the drivers and never screw up their pay. Yeah. Thank you, Councilor Corrigan.

[15:46] Um. Excuse me. Republic industries invited us out to visit in August, which I really appreciate. And I went and I was glad that I went. Um, what I learned was, um, they have pretty strong sustainability ethic. They operate, uh, trucks with natural gas and EVs. Now I, I, I can go buy a truck and I can tell you what kind of truck it is. And so they are, they are moving, they are moving to modern sustainability standards. It's a big business, but they are definitely heading that direction. Um, they have company values that support opportunities for all. And I saw that when I was out there walking around talking with, with the staff. They have people from everywhere and they're working hard. They have high they have a very high retention rate for employees. It's 91%. I think that's pretty good. I think one of the things they didn't say, but I think that I understood was Fnma has had an impact on their business as well. I know anybody who operates a business has experienced that and they are certainly, certainly the same. So I had a great experience. I appreciate I appreciated all the information they shared with me. And one of the things that we talked about, they asked me if I would bring it up, is tell us about what the cameras on your trucks do. Thank you.

[17:06] So safety, um, they make sure that our drivers are doing what they're supposed to be doing. Uh, they have, uh, harsh braking or maybe they don't have their seatbelt on or, um, going too fast. All these different things. There's all kinds of alarms, uh, systems that tell them, you know, if they're too close to another vehicle in front of them. So a lot of it has to do with safety and is making sure that they're doing what they're supposed to with the trucks. You know, it's a $500,000 truck out there. We want to make sure that they're driving it correctly and taking care of the community. So.

[17:43] Of course.

[17:44] Concern always with communities like ours is mass surveillance. So what are your how much of your footage is shared? What can you tell us about that?

[17:53] So what do you mean as far as with the driver or with others.

[18:01] That the trash trucks might pick up just because they're everywhere. Um, that could be conveyed to another, another party. Um, aside from just from like John perhaps.

[18:11] So. So most of the cameras are in cab facing, so picking up what the driver does so we can share that information with the driver. Um, knock on wood, we haven't had any serious accidents or anything like that, but I'm sure the police could ask for. in cab footage, right? For seatbelt usage or distracted driving. Um, the camera can pick up side view coming out of the side of their mirrors and stuff like that and so forth. Um, but I'm not, I don't know. We switched companies who run the cameras for us like three years ago. And the main reason was because the prior company we used did not give us 100% authority to just have it be our own information. They were able to share it with others. So now this new company that we started using three years ago, it's our information. It can't be shared with anybody else unless we okay it, which we don't. It's just really used for safety purposes. It has dramatically increased the safety of our drivers. Um, across the nation specifically on it alerts them very loud if they're not wearing their seat belt, alerts them very loud if they're using their cell phone. Um, and then again, it pings them. If they're going over the speed limit and it pings them, if they're doing harsh braking, and then we get alerted, and then we can look at the video and share that with them for training purposes.

[19:38] It's only in the cab.

[19:40] There's a couple of outward facing cameras as well, but that is more to where if there's a harsh brake alert or a it senses an accident, those cameras will turn on.

[19:51] Turn off recording license plates.

[19:53] No, no.

[19:54] Okay. I think that's what counts. Good question. Councilor woodland.

[19:59] Yeah, they're getting the numbers off of each little bin. That's what they're getting. Um, I just want to thank you. Um, I expressed the same comments as my colleagues. One other thing that is not part of your presentation, but was part of the packet was the financial part. And I think something that I want to stress, um, Republic has been an exceptional partner with, uh, keeping costs in line and our rates very effective and efficient. Um, and they've worked very hard at ensuring that we have the right staffing with balancing the right financials. And, um, as many business owners that are on the council know, the, the extra costs with some of the legislative policies that we've had in Oregon, um, you have to, I mean, we even had it at the city where we have to hire two additional people to fire, um, people to cover all the leave acts and everything else. Um, and I'm not saying good or bad, I'm just saying it's a cost of doing business. But when you look at the financials that were in your packet, um, I think you've met your targets of getting the profitability that you need as well as the money for capital expenditures. And you continue to buy newer equipment like the propane and electric, which is fabulous. And so I've been on council for a long time, and I've had the pleasure of having you with us many times. And I just value the partnership and your attention to making sure that we're getting the biggest bang for our buck. Um, and, um, and I recognize my driver and the, um, picture that I.

[21:49] Say.

[21:49] Good morning to every, every Tuesday morning and we wave. So, um, I won't tell you which one it is, but.

[21:55] Yeah.

[21:56] Um, he's the second one from the left. But anyway, uh, and uh, just great staff any time. Um, and they're very accommodating when cars get in the way and park, they get out and they move cans. They do everything. So exceptional service. Everyone gets a, a little burp every once in a while. So I would say, don't worry about it. You've learned, you've done, you've reacted, and you continue to. Great. Give us great service. So thank you for everything you do. So thank you.

[22:32] Thank you Councilmember.

[22:36] Thank you. But I thank you. Uh, city manager pro tem, because when the question was in front of us, you went your way, meet with them and talk. That's wonderful. I really appreciated that. But, you know, I am a business person. I have I have racial problems. Sometimes when teachers are sick or stuff, I'm obliged to be there. And I don't know that you folks can go drive a truck when someone is not here. But the question I was asking is, is it, uh, because of labor related problems, because from March to July, it's a long time for a problem to linger around. And I don't feel okay with it because five months to serve a community like each community, whatever. Like I can't like me personally, if I tell my parents I'm having stuff problem, it will be solved in five months. They they won't accept that. And I did not have the I have a business account. I have a residential account I never experienced and I. I also really appreciate the fact that you always send messages. I was in Europe and I was receiving the message on. I say, what is that? So that's good. But I think five months is a long time. And my question is why it took that long to stuff the. Is it a labor related question like the Union and we. I would love to know about that. And. Okay.

[24:23] I'll take that one. Yes. So we kind of got surprised in early March with two retirements out of the blue. Uh, then I think that was quickly followed up by two employees in March, April, surprising us that they were moving to the Midwest or East Coast. Um, we had to terminate a couple of employees for some safety issues. Um, and then we had two employees relocated here within Oregon, but to other companies. So I think that accounts for like eight people right there. It was just, it all happened right there in March or April. That's also no fault of Steve. But that's right. When we had the transition of the other GM retiring and me starting. So there was really no eyes on it for like probably march through the middle of April. All right. And then I started. And then Steve came to me and we were able to jump on staffing. So now when we hire somebody, um, to have them go through a background check interview with Steve supervisors, Steve HR, me, we try to get through that 4 or 5 interviews as fast as we can. We demand then that the candidate come and ride with one of our drivers for at least a couple hours, so they see what they're getting into. Then we make them the offer, and then it could take 5 to 10 days for a background check to come back to say the employee is cleared. Then we afford them the opportunity to give their current employer a two weeks notice. Um, so the timing of it all starts to add up. So we were able to start hiring employees. If we hired an employee April 15th, it's probably May 15th until we see their first day on the job. And then there's a 25 business day training period that they will be out with a what we call a behind the wheel instructor driving. I think when Lynn, when we visited in front of your house, right. Patty was out there with Jess as she was training towards the end of her day. So the whole onboarding period when we hire a new driver from the first interview until they can go do a route by themselves, can be like 70 to 90 days.

[26:35] Yeah, it's close to three months.

[26:36] Yeah.

[26:40] I really understand, I do the same. I background check people, but like for me, five months is a long time. Yeah.

[26:48] So I think where we dropped the ball was there was really no, no fault to Steve, but there was no eyes on it. There was no general manager here for that month and a half time frame. And we fell behind.

[27:00] Yeah.

[27:00] And so it should have been.

[27:01] And you know, that's what I want. Also we hear that it's a you know, the fault is not our customers. They need to be served by reliable. You've always been to us until now. Like we have that problem. And is there any remedy? You know I'm speaking French. Any remedy, you know. Because that thing happened. What did we tell our customers who had missed pickup, who had some problems struggling? Because if you have trash in your home for some houses, having it one more day is a challenge. It's really. So what was the the remedy to that.

[27:43] To the staffing, you.

[27:44] Know, to, to the, but to the people who were impacted.

[27:48] Okay.

[27:49] Yes.

[27:50] Yeah. So we would get the customer.

[27:53] Call and say they had a missed pickup. We would try to get to them within the next morning, we'd have what they call a go back. They go back in the morning, just leave your card out and we'll get it in the morning instead of putting it out at 6:00, just leave it there and we'll take care of it the very next morning. Um, and some, some people, you know, got credits, um, you know, uh, but the thing we were running up against also was being short staffed, but uh, dot hours. So we can only run 57 hours per dot so they would get right up on those hours and then we can't run anymore. So that was part of the issues with FMLA dot hours not making excuses, but that's just the reality. Um, but we would take care of the customers as best we could.

[28:40] Thank you very much. Councilman says a quick follow up here.

[28:46] Yes. Thank you. Um, at one point in time, it was discussed that we would be able to co-mingle our glass with our recycling. I'm assuming that, um, will not be happening for whatever reason, the logistics of it or the practicality of it is, is that true? Because that seems to take a lot of time.

[29:11] So yeah, we have the glass bins. We want to keep those commodities separate.

[29:15] Okay.

[29:16] Yeah. It's a it's a single stream. We try and keep them separate. Of course.

[29:21] And, and I can jump in just to add a little bit more. The reason that glass and hair cannot be commingled in with your other plastics and paper is because the facilities, the sort facilities where the material goes, they can't have the glass be commingled. So it's not, it's not really our um because of the Recycling Modernization Act that just recently went into effect July of last year. So what can be put in your co-mingle is, uh, through that piece of legislation is, is dictated by that, that piece of legislation recycling.

[29:54] I just wanted to clarify that. And could you explain to the cameras how people would arrange for a drive by Birthday.

[30:04] Ooh!

[30:05] Yes! Yes! Call me. Uh, yeah. Um, we can reach out to us either through staff or to our customer service or, uh, yeah, just if they, if have a, a little one that, um, it's their birthday and they love the garbage truck, which they all do. They all seem to do. Uh, our drivers love to go by there and they'll do a little, little garbage recycling yard debris parade for them. And we usually reach out and chat with them for a while and give them a little birthday gift. And yeah, so.

[30:34] There's many.

[30:34] Children in my neighborhood.

[30:36] So.

[30:36] We do quite a few of them. Yes. Yeah. There's, they're fun for all of us. Yeah.

[30:41] Thank you, thank you. That's it. Thank you mayor.

[30:43] Thanks.

[30:46] Technically, no, technically, no.

[30:50] But.

[30:51] Uh.

[30:52] I just want.

[30:52] To say thank you to the Republic team for their professionalism. And, um, as Councilor Afghan, uh, noted, just being up front, letting us know what the problem is, solving it and moving on. So thank you. Uh, that's that's true leadership. I really appreciate that. Um, and I also just want to note Sarah Stith, our sustainability program manager in the back, um, manages this contract and has been doing a bang up job. And so thank you, Sarah for making this all happen as well as the tour. Thank you for that.

[31:22] Thank you Lynn. And if there's anything that we can do to help get the word out around people updating their contact information, the phone numbers, e mails, I get a lot of email things. Um, uh, I mean, we could definitely, uh, I would think we could do that. Yeah. Glad to do that because yeah, that's key. We saw that even recently with emergency alerts. I mean, it's great. We have all the tools to get the alerts out, but they do have to be you do have to sign up for all these things. So it's a good reminder. But again, thank you all very much for taking the time to be here. We appreciate it. I know we're going to be seeing you again soon.

[31:54] Thank you. All right. Thank you, thank you, thank you, thank you.

[32:03] Okay, next on the agenda we have our 2026 Council Goals update. We have Assistant City Manager Megan Phelan joining us to give the update.

[32:14] Hi, Megan. Good afternoon.

[32:19] Good afternoon, Council and mayor. Thank you for having me today. To give you our third quarter council goals update. It's hard to believe we're at that time in the year. Just seemed like yesterday. We were doing all of our council goal setting. You'll see in the report in the packet that there's been progress made on some of the goals, and yet some of the goals will still continue as we head into the fall. Um, I am here with members of the exec team and other staff that represent some of these initiatives. And so we're here to answer any questions that you may have.

[32:51] Colleagues.

[32:55] Questions on the goals.

[32:57] Gosh. Councilor Corrigan.

[33:01] Um.

[33:03] I just open right up. And here it is. The tabletop exercise using AI modeling to determine how quickly wildfire is likely to spread in natural areas. So if someone else would like to speak to that, I think it's important. But the three of us went yesterday out to Clackamas Fire training and had quite an experience and discovered that the AI representation is the stuff that nightmares is made of. I don't quite know how else to say it, how how impactful it is to realize what would happen if someone threw a cigarette butt out in the wrong place in our city. And the other piece of that is the interaction between the how you have to fight a wildfire and how you fight a structure fire. So I would like to bring everybody's attention to that. And I think that I would encourage all of us to go out there and understand that. And then I'm hoping that will be something that will continue to work on in terms of raising public awareness. That's really I'm sorry I needed to get that pitch in. It was quite an experience for us all.

[34:02] I'm glad you all had the opportunity.

[34:04] Yeah. Thanks.

[34:04] Thank you.

[34:06] Questions? No. Okay.

[34:08] Thank you. Thank you.

[34:09] Thank you very much.

[34:13] Folks, now is the time on the agenda for public comment. And if you are here to provide public comment have not already done so. There's white slips like this on the back table if you please fill one out. Um, but I have one person signed up. Steve. Dull. Steve, come on forward. You have three minutes to give your comments. We're glad you're here.

[34:36] Just say your name. We know that you're Steve, but just start.

[34:41] Good afternoon, mayor, and members of the City Council. My name is Steve Dull. I am a lifelong Oregonian and I have lived here in Lake Oswego for 53 years. As part of my testimony today, I'm submitting a packet of correspondence with the mayor, city manager and council regarding the anti-Semitic trope displayed on the Lake Oswego marquee earlier this summer. I've also supplied you with newspaper stories about these issues. Let's be completely honest. If a local business used its marquee to explicitly single out and prod any other minority community in Lake Oswego, this council wouldn't be hiding behind boilerplate emails about the First Amendment. You would be racing to a podium to condemn it. The fact is, the manager explicitly admitted he was targeting Jewish residents. And you are choosing silence. A double standard the community sees right through and is unacceptable. This isn't a one off mistake. It's part of a documented pattern. In 2016, it was an offensive concentration camp poster in our high school cafeteria. in 2021. It was an anti-Semitic fliers in our community, in our county. Excuse me. And recently, a community members car was vandalized with swastikas. He'd hate. Does not happen in a vacuum. Mayor Buck, you wrote to me saying that issuing a council statement is too challenging because you might get trapped by competing demands from other groups. Let me clear up two things. First, I am not asking for government censorship. The First Amendment protects private speech, but it absolutely does not restrict this government body from using its own voice to condemn bigotry. Second. Standing up against anti-Semitism on our main street isn't a matter of political scheduling. It is about setting a basic standard for civic respect. Hesitating to speak out sets an administrative precedent and is an abdication of elected responsibility. History shows that staying silent to avoid political complications costs way too much in the long run. To solve your problem of getting trapped by competing statements, I'm asking you to take three concrete actions. First, adopt a baseline condemnation policy. Establish a permanent standing rule that this city will officially condemn any public targeted rhetoric against any religious, racial, or minority group. Removing the need for a council debate every single time an incident occurs. Second, utilize public media channels, use the city's official newsletter and press releases to explicitly state that antisemitic tropes have no home on the streets of Lake Oswego. Third, engage local community support. Partner with regional organizations like the Jewish Federation, Greater Port of Greater Portland, and other organizations that represent minorities in our community to provide actual resources for local businesses. On keeping messaging respectful. Thank you. Please schedule a public hearing on this. If you are not going to do this, please advise. In the movie, do the right thing. The mayor says always do the right thing. I ask this council to stop deflecting, enact these measures and simply do the right thing for the City of Lake Oswego, its citizens and its minority citizens. Thank you. Thank you. I'm happy to take any questions and encourage you to do so. About me, my background, or my motivation.

[38:36] Thank you Steve. We appreciate you being here.

[38:39] Thank you.

[38:41] There's no questions. Thank you very much. Next is Andrew Edwards.

[38:51] Hi, Andrew.

[38:54] Hello, mayor and councilors. I'm here as a private citizen today in support of our Lake Oswego Public Library. And I am or have been a volunteer with the Friends of Lake Oswego Public Library for nine years. And I am the current president and have been for two years. The friends of the Lake Oswego Public Library assist the library. As many of you know, in fulfilling its mission through advocacy, funding, promotion, and volunteer support. The friends support more than 100 special programs every year at the library, which is beyond their regular budget, and we're proud to be a primary supporter of Lake Oswego, reads a. Multicultural events and other activities throughout the year through our work, the friends with the library, we've seen firsthand how much these opportunities mean to the people in Lake Oswego. We are currently engaged in our fall membership drive, and I invite you to become members as well as our community. The community support allows the friends to continue funding programs, events, and opportunities that expand, access and enrich the library experience. One example is the Summer Library Challenge, for which the friends provided a free book for every child who participated. This, I think, is amazing.

[40:28] 1731 S15:

[42:10] Thank you.

[42:11] Thank you, thank you.

[42:12] We appreciate you being here. And what is the what is the baseline cost of membership to join the friends?

[42:19] Why? I thought you'd never ask. Um, the, um, it's $25 up to 10,000.

[42:29] So what should I put you down for, mayor? S1:

[42:30] Congratulations.

[42:31] All my colleagues. Member. We'll start calling you out right now. That's not a library card thing.

[42:39] Library cards also provides you with free movies and free music and everything. But sir, you cannot be a leader of this community and come and say I am just a citizen.

[42:53] So well.

[42:53] I don't.

[42:54] Thank you for very much for that.

[42:56] Andrew, thank you for being here.

[42:57] Thank you, councilors, for your support. I appreciate.

[42:59] It. Thank you.

[43:04] Okay. All right. Is there anyone else who would like to provide public comment? No. Okay. Then we are going to move on to the consent agenda. On the consent agenda? Oh let's see. We got a few things. A few things on the consent agenda. Three items. We have our meeting minutes from May 15th. May 28th. Resolution 26-34 is adopting a tree retention deficit fee, and resolution 26-48 approves. Megan Phelan as our City Manager pro tem for the remainder of this month into the 1st of October. There.

[43:36] Is there a motion to adopt the consent agenda? S10:

[43:38] Second.

[43:39] Motion was made by Councilor Corrigan, seconded by Councilor Manns. All those in favor, say aye. Aye. Any opposed? That motion passes seven zero. Okay. On to council business. The first item on council business is consideration of resolution 26-38. This is the approval of municipal grant awards. And I'd like to invite our management and program analyst, Tio Ramirez to talk to us about the grant awards.

[44:07] Good afternoon.

[44:07] Mayor and Council.

[44:08] It's good to be here with you all. Um, my name is Tio Ramirez. As we mentioned, I'm the program management analyst in the city manager's office.

[44:19] Uh, so to give you a quick overview of the 2026 2027 grant applications that our subcommittee reviewed. Uh, thank you, Councilor and Councilor Corrigan for serving on that committee. Um, and reviewing 19 applications. Uh, we had 62,000 total funding requests and council goals, grants, applications and 46000 and Social services grant applications. The recommendation from our Municipal Grants Subcommittee is to award eight initiatives in the Council. Council goals category totaling 43000 roughly in total awards and for initiatives and social services totaling roughly 27000 um, with some remaining funds being available for this council to allocate in the future to different initiatives, uh, and remain flexible.

[45:08] These are the eight initiatives that were recommended to be funded. Um, all of these applications were recommended to be fully funded before their request amounts. Um, so this includes the Lake Forest Neighborhood Association for Emergency Preparedness, evergreen Neighborhood Association, also for emergency preparedness and emergency cash, the Oswego Lake Watershed Council for doing emerald ash borer outreach that expands on the city's initiatives to also do outreach. This kind of. Doubles down on those initiatives and goes wider to reach out to more homeowners associations, businesses to make sure that they know the effects on private property. Uh, the Asian American Student Union to expand their cultural education to two additional holidays, uh, gifting year, which expands, uh, safety gear and volunteer support at an annual biking event, Lake Oswego sustainability network for, um, feasibility of affordable clean energy district and thermal energy energy network technology in the foothills district. Sorry. Some of these are mouthfuls. Um, they're going to do really great work. Old Town neighborhood association for first aid and CPR and some more emergency preparedness related activities. And the Oswego Heritage Council for some different design and weather resistant outdoor exhibits to transform their rose garden and make it more accessible for their history walk. So this totals 43,450 initiatives. Eight initiatives. And that is a dollar amount. And then moving on to the four initiatives that were not recommended to be funded for funding. Some of the conversation that came out of the subcommittee was there are remaining funds left over, but to be good stewards of those funds, if an application came in that did not meet a certain threshold, which was determined by the committee to be about a 75% score on the application. Um, those applications should not be awarded, and those applicants should come back in the next round for funding, ideally with a stronger application, so that the committee knows where and how those dollars will be used, and that there is a great impact for Lake Oswego with those initiatives. Um, we give feedback to the applicants in different ways that are denied. In the last two cycles, applicants have reached out. Often they reach out on their own. Just saying, hey, can we meet and get feedback to understand how to strengthen our application, where we provide the scores for the different categories to them, and express the comments that were made by the subcommittee on why they were not selected to be awarded. Um, in addition, there's this notes section on the far right that just breaks down what their score was, why they were not funded in the case of council goals, because they were below that 75% threshold. And then what categories were the strongest on their applications. And then the categories that um, need improvement in the future.

[48:04] Moving on to the funding recommendations for social services, there were four organizations that the subcommittee recommended for funding. Uh, one is the Tualatin Food Pantry, which supports about 3000 Lake Oswego residents annually through shopping styled food pantry. Uh, the Children's Center, which does trauma informed medical assessments, follow up care and therapy for Lake Oswego children who have experienced maltreatment. Clackamas Women's Services for advocacy, safety, shelter, counseling and prevention services for Lake Oswego survivors and children affected by violence. And Lake Oswego monsters. Robotic, which just stem outreach events, camps and school programs for Lake Oswego elementary and junior high school students. This total is $27,000 in awards and funds for initiatives. And again, there were three organizations that were not recommended for funding by the subcommittee. They were below a 70% threshold. So this is about a 5% difference from council goals. One of the comments from the subcommittee was that, um, one of the scoring criteria is how this directly relates to a specific council goal, which doesn't necessarily fit. So that was um the threshold was lower. Um and that would be taken into account as we make recommendations or modifications to the scoring criteria in the future for different um, grant categories.

[49:21] And then as you may remember from March, uh, we talked about pursuing a sponsorship pathway, and we're continuing to work on that. Some of the organizations have evolved from recurring. Um, you know, into recurring funding, uh, relationships. And that not only is applicable on the council goals side, which has a rule, um, that was established with the, the pivot of the council or the grant program of three years of the same initiative being funded, um, is no longer eligible to receive those grants, but one of the recommendations from the subcommittee was also um, exploring bringing some of the social services grant, like recurring grant applications into a sponsorship pathway as well. Um, this would ideally provide less hoops for them to jump through on an annual basis, um, potentially on a biannual basis. They can apply to receive grant funds. It's one application over two years versus two applications, one each year. Um, they'll have more certainty for funding. Um, those are just some things that we're looking into exploring, and we'll come back with recommendation for this council and winter to be adopted and approval to continue to move forward. Um, one of the recommendations is also to reserve $10,000 for low for love. This is the first initiative that is maturing out of that three year initiative from being funded under council goals. Uh, so our recommendation is to continue to fund them through this year as we figure out the sponsorship pathway and come back with you for a plan that is the route that they'll go into. But just that this money is kind of set aside for them. Um, and there is that plan for that. Um, and then the consideration, as I mentioned on the social services side is to bring the children or the Children's Center and Clackamas Women's Services into that sponsorship pathway. It pulls them out of the normal pool of applicants that continue to apply each year, um, and provides them a more sustainable pathway forward, a strengthened partnership with the city to fund those partners that continuously score very high on the applications and, um, less administrative work on their teams to continue to receive funding. Uh, so that is about the sponsorship pathway. Uh, the recommendation is to adopt the resolution before you, and I'm happy to answer any questions that you all have. Great.

[51:34] Thank you very much. Tio a great presentation. Um, can you give us a little reminder here? So we had give me a little reminder. So we had this two step process. We had like one set of grants. And then there was a second set of grants. And some of these I, I think we, I mean, some of them have happened, right. Like there were, I think we gave some money to LOSN and they had an event around the thermal. Was that the event funded by this.

[52:03] These are new applications and new initiatives. So it's not the same. Yeah.

[52:08] But it was that event. So okay. So yeah. Oh I see. Oh. So it's a different event. I see. So these are different than ones we. Even though some of them might be similar, different. We have not approved any of these yet.

[52:25] Yes that's.

[52:25] Correct. Okay. Is the process going forward this kind of like one stop, um process allocation process for these community grants or is it this two step? We give out some and then we wait. And then there's another round of applications.

[52:40] Yeah. The feedback that we received from this council back in March was to only do one cycle per year. Um, so that's the plan that we have moving forward unless this body decides to do otherwise. And then we can go do that. But we only plan to come before you one time this year to do the allocations. Um, and then the remaining funds will ideally be flexible. Like last year in November when we saw federal cuts to Snap programs in this, you wanted to allocate funding to local food pantries. Ideally, these funds would be flexible in those situations to respond to community needs.

[53:11] Right. Okay. So so the cadence of this, we can expect that next fall. We will we will not be hearing about these until then. Every year, once a year in the fall.

[53:21] Like a report back on the progress.

[53:23] Well, the new grants. No, no, no, on the next batch of grants.

[53:25] Yes.

[53:26] Okay. And then reporting on the progress. Yes. When do we hear do we.

[53:31] Yes. We will come back to you to report on the progress. We're still getting the cadence worked out, but ideally, we're coming to you at the beginning of each fiscal year to go through sponsorships and to go through the newest grant applications that were scored and recommended for approval for that fiscal year. I remember one of the comments that we took into consideration was, we need to get the dollars out the door as soon as possible at the beginning of the fiscal year, and give them the entire fiscal year and flexibility into the next fiscal year, which we've worked out with the finance department. Um, it's a lot easier if it's within the same biennium, but there's also those extensions that they're able to request on the front end of their applications that they need, you know, 30 to 90 days after a fiscal year ends to continue to complete their initiative.

[54:18] Okay. That's great. Thank you. And thank you. And to you and to the committee who served on this committee. You did, counselor and counselor. Okay. Thank you both. Oh, and Counselor Vance.

[54:31] Oh, you served on the committee? S8:

[54:31] No, I have my light is on, I don't know.

[54:34] Well, we haven't gotten to you yet. Okay. Yeah.

[54:39] Okay. Go. Go ahead. Counselor. Don't worry. All right, go ahead. Counselor. The floor is yours.

[54:48] Um, thank you for all of the work that you did. Also, thank you to counselors Afghan and Corrigan. It is a lot of work. And your deep consideration for doing the right thing and going through it. I know you spent far more time than you thought you were probably going to spend on it. Also, I want to thank the council who was here in 2025, who changed the program. Um, it is so much better than it was before. Uh, the way it's set up. So thank you. I know our community greatly values these grants. And, uh, I cannot thank you enough for all that you did. Thanks.

[55:38] Thanks, councilor. Mantz. Councilor Willard.

[55:43] Ditto to what Councilor Mann said. Um, I know it's a lot of work because we've all served on the committee and it, um, it's like choosing which child you want to support, but, um, we have a lot of wonderful requests. I guess I've got two questions. Um, I don't get the. Do we have a three year policy that's so how do we like ELO for love, which I'm not saying to support or not support. But if we have a three year policy. So we're just going to let love just kind of go around that.

[56:22] Is that kind of the idea? S16:

[57:06] Okay. So then love for love will get 10,000, but from a different source.

[57:12] Yeah. And that's going to be the sponsorship program that we're going to pathway that we're going to develop is where is this money coming from? Some of the comments from the subcommittee members was that we should not be asking for the council for additional money. It should be coming from the same pot of grants that is already allocated each year. So at what level does that need to what pot of money does that need to be from the resources that we already have allocated? Um, and as well, what is the review and application process look like for that sponsorship pathway? Obviously we're not going to fund these initiatives in perpetuity. But what is that review process look like to where it's not a huge administrative lift on the organizations, but the city can, um.

[57:51] Remain confident that the initiatives that they're funding are true to the initiatives at the, you know, five years ago versus now that the initiative hasn't moved away from how the city wants to be involved.

[58:03] Okay. I'm still confused. Um, I so we're taking the money out of the same funds. Well, you have the money and the funds, but if we're going against the policy, that's where I'm. I just it has more to do with future. So future groups could go four or 5 or 6 years.

[58:26] Is that correct? S10:

[58:37] And but the but there are funds remaining in this cycle. I believe if we could do that. Correct me.

[58:47] So the idea from the three years came out of discussions about about two years ago was that this money should be treated as an incubation. So when community groups are saying, I have this idea, how how do I start it? It's they're able to apply for the money. And once they have three years of successful track record, then they are then allowed to You apply for a long term sponsorship? The idea is not long term indefinitely that they'll get money every year, but we get them in a cycle that it's probably a 2 to 3 year contract that says this is the money, here's the expectations, as opposed to them applying year after year. But the goal is that we're not necessarily, um, funding every organization that's on the current grants for perpetuity for the rest of the time. So that's how that carve out would happen.

[59:33] Okay.

[59:34] Madison, can you introduce yourself?

[59:35] Sorry. I'm Madison Theisen. I'm the deputy city manager. I've been working peripherally on the grants since the city manager's office took them over in now 2024.

[59:47] Okay.

[59:48] Yes. Thank you.

[59:49] Okay. So, um, okay, the other thing, um, and I think you guys did a great job of picking and choosing. I have a concern with the, um, Workshop on feasibility of a clean energy district and thermal energy network for the Foothills District. I kind of think that's government and not really community. I mean, I think that's going for one of our projects that we should be funding that if we want to do that with Foothill Money. Um, I really think this is sacred ground when we have community grants that are really towards, um, uh, giving people the resources to do a project or an event or so on that that everybody gets into. I just have a problem with especially $15,500, which is a substantial amount of the total. Um, and it's not that I don't think the work should be done. I think this is in the wrong place for it to be paid for, because I, I really feel that like anybody could take on an initiative of something that they, you know, the library group could come in and say, we want to do a study on, on libraries and get a community grant. Does that make sense? I, I would like to have community service, um, separate from, uh, what I would call a specific initiative for a, um, a Lake Oswego city government, um, approved. So thinking about that. What's your thoughts.

[1:01:32] Here? Councilor Corrigan has may tell us a little bit.

[1:01:37] It is the largest one right? S10:

[1:03:03] Thank you, Councilor Corrigan. It was also the the way they did their application that supports the council goal with combating the climate change. And what they want to do is bring people, consultants, local residents together and see what are the opportunities that we can explore. I don't think the city does those kind of things as opposed to the community wanting to do it. So it's a pull versus push. So it is a lot of money. We did have a lot of conversation about it, but, uh, that's why we're here to have those kind of conversations. If it's supported the council goals and they got the highest score, uh, we went that direction.

[1:03:55] Okay. Yeah. No we I that sounds I.

[1:04:01] Free workshops for under ten.

[1:04:04] I'm just saying that that we're doing a lot of education. And I just look at traditionally, I would say that if you look back 20 years on all these grants, um, primarily it's to help neighborhood associations. It's to help community groups. Um, it's, you know, especially like earthquake supplies and whatever. Um, I don't want these funds to necessarily be in this advocacy, um, role of education per se, um, for our, for our, I think it's in the wrong column. That's what I think these are educational funds, um, versus community impact funds. So, um, you know, because I could pick ten different subjects, um, that we're working on as a city council, um, to use this grant money to put a, a A group together and hire a consultant and talk about things. That's all I'm saying is, um, you know, and I just think that's my viewpoint of what these, these, uh, funds have, have traditionally been used for, um, to support culture activities, um, events and so on, uh, in the community for the betterment of, of everyone versus, uh, just educational.

[1:05:18] I think what you're referring to is the social, uh, the other categories we have, these are supporting the city council goals and our goals. One of them is black and white combat, uh, climate change. So if we don't want to do that, then we should start from the beginning of the year and say, we're not going to do this because this, this group have come forward supporting what we have set forward. Now you can you can say, if this is so serious and the group want to do this and they're following our council goal, I'm cringing at the dollar amount and reduce the dollar amount. But this is black and white supporting this council goal.

[1:06:09] Right. But I think we also have a sustainability advisory committee that could probably do this for free. So anyway, that's just.

[1:06:16] We'll put you on the committee next.

[1:06:18] Year. Yeah. I'm just.

[1:06:20] No thank you.

[1:06:21] It's good I get a voice.

[1:06:22] Your comments are well taken. Thank you councilor.

[1:06:25] I will be supporting this, but I'm just I just think we have to be aware of that.

[1:06:29] Thank you. Thank you. Councilor. Councilor.

[1:06:32] Thank you. So yeah, I, I really talk, I think maybe the context, John, I talked to the lady who explained what is thermal energy. I really never heard like I heard it, but I have never thought that there was that concept, and she was saying that he could even give all like electricity to a new thing that we build there, but it's in the making. So I think it's a the right place for the sustainability network. If they could do it for us, it's great because probably if you were doing it as a city, it would cost more. And I was happy on your questions, on funding some organization and like not following the three years I was when I first saw it, I said, why? I mean, because I'm glad you explained that it's organic. And I really like all those three organizations. A law for love. I love Clackamas Women Services. They're doing wonderful work. And honestly, them, for example, they should always be part of what they're serving. I know what they do every time. And Children's Center. I mean, the only problem I have, why we didn't find the Lake Oswego Film Festival, because we should have a film festival. And I know you have. You know, I really appreciate the work. I've been in there with the mayor. It's very. It was the hard time when it was hard to give money because we didn't. There were a lot of politics or something behind. So thank you. And the only reason I'm talking is for. I'm very giving you a. Cheer up. It's the first time you come here. You. We are very proud of the work you're doing in the city, so people should know. And thank you very much for your.

[1:08:37] Thank you councilor.

[1:08:38] Yeah.

[1:08:39] The second.

[1:08:39] Thank you.

[1:08:40] Third.

[1:08:40] Actually, no.

[1:08:42] I may have been here a time or two before.

[1:08:43] Yeah, yeah.

[1:08:45] I see you Three councilor.

[1:08:48] I also wanted to add that one of the conversations we had in the team was fiscal responsibility. So if we have long term support for any organization, we cannot come back to the city Council and ask for more money. So we said we need to set good role models and stay within our budget. Even though we're coming forth with new recommendations. So staying within the budget. And second thing is special thanks to Mr. Ramirez and Miss Thiessen, because they had to do a lot of going back and forth to the applicants, making sure that if the intent is good, but there are missing information and there are.

[1:09:39] We go back to them and not black and white reject them because their application wasn't perfect. So credit to you two. Thank you so much, especially Mr. Ramirez. Thank you so much for making those calls and making sure that we honor the intent of the process as opposed to managing the process. Thank you, thank you.

[1:10:02] And and thank you all the it's, it's we're looking at these groups, you know, whether it's neighborhood associations, the a SULOSN heritage Council, I mean, it's, it's great use of, of public money, leveraging just an immense amount of community knowledge and volunteer time on the part of all these groups. And I think these are, um, important dollar amounts that can help leverage the good work that they're doing. Like you said, Councilor Afghan supporting the, the council goals that are broadly shared amongst many people in the, in the community as well. So we appreciate these, these groups helping to continue moving forward. And thank you all for your work helping do the hard work of deciphering through all these applications.

[1:10:46] And would someone like to make a motion to adopt resolution 26-38? S18:

[1:10:50] Second.

[1:10:51] Okay. Motion made by Councilor Burdick and seconded by Councilor Willard. Any further discussion? Okay. All those in favor, say aye.

[1:10:57] Aye.

[1:10:58] Any opposed? Motion passes seven zero. Thank you to you. Don't you go. Don't. Don't.

[1:11:03] Thank you. Mayor Council. Have a great evening.

[1:11:05] Oh. Hold on. I thought my friend behind me was next.

[1:11:11] And next on the agenda item 8.2. We are going, uh, Madison is going to talk to us about the League of Oregon Cities 2020 728 Legislative priorities.

[1:11:22] Yes.

[1:11:23] Thank you. I'm Madison facing the Deputy City manager, and I am here before you for the League of Oregon Cities. Um, legislative priorities. And so as we are gearing up for the long session in 2027, the League of Oregon City sends out a survey to every single city Council to ask their feedback on the set priorities that they have as a running list. They form policy committees throughout the year. Through. Then summer. And they. They begin by a starting list. And then all cities have a vote to narrow that down. And then that is what the league focuses. That's not to say that we can't focus on other areas, or that we can expand on what they currently have listed, but that is at least the guiding force for the league as they carry into the long session. These priorities also carry into the short session. So that's another thing to be mindful of. Um it does carry for those two years. Uh, what I provided in the council report are top eight policies that I have narrowed down. But you are allowed and have the privilege and right to add or um, any that were not listed on that. Eight and the goal is to narrow it down to top. Five and then I will submit our survey on your behalf. And so, um, what I have listed down as what I identified as the top eight, which again, if you saw any that you would prefer to discuss or um, or want to expand on. Um, these were the top eight to at least get us started to then again, narrow down to the top five, the top eight identified based off of what I have seen not only as council's priorities, but the community and our organization's priorities are one the right of way authority, continuing to preserve that, including revenue sources to public meeting law, clarity. As you know, in the last session that did not move forward all the way after a governor vetoed at the end. Number three is full funding and streamlining for housing production. As you know, we've had an extreme amount of volume of housing policies, but comparing with additional resources to do that, as we have found, we can have housing goals. Um, and some of those goals are, are, are for affordable housing, but that's not necessarily what we're able to fund out of our general fund dollars as, as for the amount that they need. So that's identifying more capital funding from the state and then streamlining some of the policies and processes that have been adopted in the last few years with all the mandates. So that's not only the ones from the governor's bill, but it's also the climate, energy, some of those things from previous years, parking mandates, things like that. Number four is the energy grid hardening and modernization. As we know, after the many storms we've been having, uh, we have PGE as our largest provider and is hit the hardest during natural disasters. And so that's not only, um, hardening and modernizing, meaning maybe potentially that's undergrounding, but it's not bearing the full weight to our utility ratepayers as well to do that work. Number five is a pretty long list of economic development and workforce development opportunities as a priority area. Uh, there has been a work, uh, workgroup work task force, workgroup Task force has been developing an economic plan that that has been guided through the governor. Uh, Representative Nguyen has been on that as well. And so we know there's going to be quite a bit of bills that are coming out of that work. Number six is the 2027 transportation package. As you know from the last few sessions, it has not moved forward. And so we're trying again for that. Number seven is the infrastructure funding. So again, as we talk about housing, the backbone of housing is having adequate funding for infrastructure. So being able to connect to water, sewer, streets and all that, some of the most untapped areas of the state right now need significant infrastructure dollars in meaning billions of dollars. And so again, tying those two things together. And then lastly, number eight is the ratepayer assistance. So as we all have experienced, um, the rate of doing business is getting more and more expensive. And so how do we provide programs at the state level that provide some relief for some of our more low income families. So that is the starting place for eight. Um, the goal would be to narrow down to top five. That's what the survey is asking for. And then again, if there's anything that I did not include in that list right now, but you want to talk about, you are more than welcome to add or subtract from that list too.

[1:15:54] This is just a way into that. Thank you. Madison. This is just a way in so that the League of Cities can they're collecting this information from all of the member cities to kind of further hone their legislative agenda.

[1:16:04] Yep.

[1:16:06] Okay. All right. Well, colleagues, what do you think? We have the list here.

[1:16:14] Councilor Manns, did you chime in there? S7:

[1:16:14] Question. Um, in reading through all of the other, um, recommendations of the LOC1 stood out to me and that was the cyber security combined with um well I guess you would say hardening.

[1:16:32] Are.

[1:16:32] Our cybersecurity. Um, and I know that's not included. I do not know how relevant that is to our community. We do, however, have infrastructure projects. And I, um, had talked to our director of it about that of off the record, off the cuff. Um, but in building the water treatment plant, that seems to me that that might be something that might be more interesting to us. I don't know if my colleagues agree on that. Um, if that's something that we should elevate. Um, I don't know what to swap out on this list because they're all vitally important. Um.

[1:17:26] It's a difficult thing, but I was wondering what your thoughts were around that and what you brought back from LLC meetings and your understanding.

[1:17:36] Um, I don't have anything specific as from the LLC. At the end of the day, I think this is the reality of the, the climate that we're in that there's cybersecurity, there's hackers, there's, we are becoming more and more of a threat or excuse me, we, we as an entity, um, we know organizations throughout the state have been targeted for ransomware. Um, so I think that's just where we might want to be mindful of moving forward. Um, and not only in the large scale projects, but even our day to day data that we have, including our, our, I hate to call out, but utility billing and things like that and making sure that we as an organization are protecting confidential private information as well. And we know that those data breaches are happening more and more.

[1:18:32] So, um, I don't have anything specific from the league that said, this is what the bill would look like, but I think as more of this is happening, and especially when you think about the league representing small cities who are not necessarily equipped to handle that themselves either? S8:

[1:18:52] But again, I see that as a rising challenge for particularly for our city and all municipalities across Oregon. Thank you.

[1:19:06] Thank you.

[1:19:09] Councilor Corrigan.

[1:19:12] The one that jumped out at me was public meetings law clarity. So yeah, I just I've discovered when you're working with boards and commissions, boy, this applies to those people who are kind enough and generous enough to donate their time to help us be a better city. And they are confused and worried about how they how they speak at these meetings and the things that they do otherwise, even tabling and all the other things that they're required to do. And I think that's uniquely unfair. And the fact that this made it all the way to the governor's office makes me think there's probably some pretty good agreement. Maybe they just need to put some more time in on that and clarify it. But we need clarity. So I would I would escalate that one for that reason.

[1:19:55] Okay. So we have one. I saw a lot of head nodding for that one. Okay. Mark that one down. Okay. Public meetings, law clarity, Councilman. Thank you, Councilor Corrigan. And I give all five. It has to include that one though. What are the other four.

[1:20:12] Eliminating like the ratepayer assistance now now. Yeah, that's it's important. But if we are taking five we need to take it out. And honestly, I'm not worried about public meeting law because the governor himself is subjected to to it. And I'm pretty sure he'll change. She'll change her view on that. So wish I wish yeah, it's important, but we should not put on it. I think I'll take it out of the of the list. I'll take it off the list. And uh, the.

[1:20:52] The energy grid hardening and modernization. So the rest is right, right of way. That thing, we shouldn't give it to the state. It's not. It's a matter of our independence, our cities and our survival. Even so.

[1:21:12] You got it. I got you my five.

[1:21:15] Did you? Oh, you.

[1:21:19] What were your five? S19:

[1:21:21] Okay, As soon as you get the file.

[1:21:23] Did you?

[1:21:23] Yeah. It's full funding. Housing, economic development, transportation and infrastructure funding.

[1:21:29] Okay.

[1:21:29] You have four technically.

[1:21:30] Four.

[1:21:31] Well that's fine.

[1:21:31] You can have.

[1:21:33] The public meeting.

[1:21:34] Okay, then. Public meeting. Oh, yeah. Yeah. Okay.

[1:21:37] Okay. Thank you. Councilor. Councilor Wilson.

[1:21:43] Uh, I'm with Councilor Corrigan. I think number one for me is public meetings, law clarity. Um, I think full funding and streamlined for housing production is number two for me. And basically maybe just to pause for three years until we can get caught up. Um, uh, for is the energy grid, uh, six is a transportation package and seven is infrastructure funding.

[1:22:15] I had to, I had those five. Two. Yeah.

[1:22:18] Okay. That's the key.

[1:22:20] That.

[1:22:20] The rest. You know, I just.

[1:22:21] Okay, counselor, how does that sound? Good to you?

[1:22:25] Uh, I think a little different, but almost consistent.

[1:22:31] Really?

[1:22:32] Yes. When I look at what are we doing at the city council and municipality, I look at three, four, five, six and seven. So those are the type of things that we either must do or we're faced against it. And um, so housing production, grid hardening, economic and workforce development, transportation and infrastructure funding. So those are the ones that come priority in my head. But I know what Councilor Corrigan and Councilor Wetteland says. If, if we don't clarify what, how we're going to conduct business. All of this may fall apart because we don't have the ground rules clarified. So I'm struggling which one I'm going to drop in order to pick that one. Or how do I look at the residences who cannot afford paying their utilities? How do I look at them? And it's it's a struggle for me right now. I'm on the struggle bus going back and forth. So.

[1:23:44] I can see your points, but I, I'm, I'm struggling. So I want two through eight.

[1:23:55] That's seven.

[1:23:59] Are you a leader? Five.

[1:24:02] I it's, uh, you know, this legislative session is going to be very difficult because the state is is hard pressed with the budget. So this is not going to be kind of a spend. I mean, they have got to figure out a The transportation package in in a way that's going to be meaningful and something that that the residents are going or going, are going to support. And they're dealing with a lot of these cuts to health care, social services, um, that impact residents. So, you know, just thinking about what we, we're kind of always left picking up the pieces, uh, in a way at the local level and how we support residents on the margins. Uh, given those, given those cuts that the state is facing. Um, I didn't see, I mean, it's more of a, there's also these like preemption things that keep getting into, again, like right out of the gate they're talking about this is not to say anything that we'd want to do here, but, but why is the state wanting to just blanket preempt like the license plate reader cameras and, you know, data centers? It's like, leave that to local communities. You have many local communities in Oregon who, who, who love having data centers. Now, we don't even have a Costco here, right? So it may not be for us.

[1:25:08] But.

[1:25:09] It's.

[1:25:09] Like we don't have a lot big enough, right?

[1:25:11] For some communities, they really like it. I just don't see why the state continues to, like, poke its nose into things. It has enough to worry about. It can't pass a transportation package. Then it comes and gets its nose into local government and tries to make local decisions for everyone. So I really think, I mean, as much as we can with the league, we're always pushing back on that, but we definitely have it just right out of the gate. I mean, here they are poking their nose into things. They just just for political because they know they're big topics and everyone's interested in them. So like oh well we'll do something about that. So we don't need you to do something about that. You know, let your county commission, let your city council go talk to those folks about it. Um, so, uh, I mean, these are, I think for me, these are fine topics I agree with Councilor Wendland on, uh, you know, the ones he picked. I think just the broader challenges we're seeing out of the state, I think we're going to have to continue watching for more, um, housing, you know, legislation coming through, um, that will end up having to implement while we are still implementing all these other, um, pieces of housing legislation encouraging the state, the money They do have, you know, to, um, start taking more of a carrot approach and helping to fund, you know, infrastructure in communities that are doing good work around housing that are, um, streamlining their codes that are encouraging production, I think would be good. Um, and, um, but I think they're just going to have to focus on some of these big, you know, we saw what happened the last session. They just did not focus on the big, the importance of the transportation package and then brought it up at the last minute.

[1:26:40] They left it to the last week. Crazy. I mean, it was the number one issue.

[1:26:44] It was number one issue. And the public meetings law clarity, you know, as, uh, important just for all of us volunteers being able to do our job.

[1:26:52] Yeah.

[1:26:53] Oh. Oh, okay. Yes, please. Councilman. Then councilor verdict.

[1:26:59] How do they line up public meetings?

[1:27:05] Faster. That will be clarified.

[1:27:17] Uh, energy grid hardening and modernization S8:

[1:27:50] Um.

[1:27:56] Do you want some help?

[1:27:57] It's it's really tough. It's really tough. Um, and again, it's kind of the sky full funding and streamlined for housing production. I just don't see the full funding part. But the housing production, those streamlining. Yes.

[1:28:19] Those match what councilwoman put out. Yeah. Okay.

[1:28:22] Except for my.

[1:28:24] Fiber.

[1:28:25] Yes, my off book.

[1:28:26] Okay.

[1:28:26] You're off book. Okay. Thank you, Councilmember. Councilmember, like on the same page.

[1:28:31] Can we do the off books next? No.

[1:28:33] So I I'm in complete agreement with Councilor Corrigan. I think the public meetings law clarity, it needs to happen and it needs to happen quickly. Um, I'm also I, I'm right along with the mayor and Councilor Wendland as well in terms of my top five. Um, and I just want to say, I concur with Councilor Wendland that I think we just need a pause on any more changes for housing. Let's see how things are going to play out and give our staff a break. Um, I also concur with the mayor in terms of get out of the weeds. So I'd ask the state to get out of the weeds. I think they're getting a little too deep into what I think cities can manage, and I'm good with overall goals and objectives, but let us then figure out how to do it. So anything that's kind of getting too in the weeds, I definitely would like us to step up. And finally, though it's not a top five, I have to say I do concur with Councilor Mahon's in terms of the cyber. I think that is a big risk. I think it's not discussed enough and the more we can do around that. But again, I'll stick with my top five in alignment with Councilor Whelan and the mayor. But that one is right up there as well.

[1:29:52] Thank you councilor. Councilor Korgan, big surprise.

[1:29:56] I concur with councilor one.

[1:29:58] Okay, okay.

[1:29:59] Okay.

[1:29:59] Yeah, I really think that's the way to go.

[1:30:01] Yeah. Okay. That's good. I was asking just to the league, You know, this is just.

[1:30:05] Yeah no I anything works. But what's the difference between 3 and 7. I mean four and seven because hardening and modernizing the grid is infrastructure.

[1:30:18] That's a big that's a big difference.

[1:30:20] I mean yeah no there's.

[1:30:22] Infrastructure funding is is um.

[1:30:24] But.

[1:30:24] It's with water, sewer, all that kind of stuff.

[1:30:27] Yeah. But that's infrastructure too in terms of. Yes.

[1:30:31] Yeah.

[1:30:31] So no, I agree with you on that. Yeah.

[1:30:35] But so do we have we have the. Thank you Councilmember. Do we have the five.

[1:30:38] Yes.

[1:30:39] Transportation infrastructure energy grid housing production public meeting.

[1:30:43] Yes.

[1:30:43] Okay. Everyone's great input. Yeah. Everyone's on board.

[1:30:47] Yeah. How about that.

[1:30:49] And I've made note of the additional topics and we will incorporate that in our legislative agenda.

[1:30:56] Okay. Yes. Again this is just the league. We can have our own thing too. Okay. So thank you.

[1:31:01] Very.

[1:31:02] Much. I appreciate you bringing this forward. Thank you.

[1:31:06] Okay. Next item of business is Arts Council of Lake Oswego annual public art plan. Nicole. Nathan, so glad to have, uh, so pleased to have you here. Thank you for taking the time.

[1:31:27] Thank you, mayor and councilors. It's a pleasure to be with you here today. Um, as you saw in your packet, um, we have a annual work plan before you, which is a new thing. Uh, it is something that we have not done before, but in regard to our public art master plan, which was passed in 2024, that was one of the recommendations that we implemented. So, uh, that is the, what, um, under section two of that new of the new public art guidelines, which went along with the public Art master Plan. The Mayor and City Council are to review and approve the biennial artwork plan. So how this work plan is proposed this year as an annual one year plan just to keep, um, the alignment as to our budget, the city's biennial budget as well as, um, the contract between the city and a CLL. And as we know, this is the first time that you've been asked to approve a work plan. Um, and it was intended to be developed after the approval of the contractual agreement between the city and AC lo. And that was just passed in June of 2026.

[1:32:50] So in your packet you have, um, the work plan document. And so what I'm going to do is just help illustrate some of those things that are in the work plan, so you can see how that happens. So it will show our contractual commitments in service to Lake Oswego, as well as other programs that we do, which also serve the city and help us to be thinking about identifying, prioritizing funding, and implementing new public art projects to further enrich our life here in Lake Oswego. So one of those things is maintenance and conservation of the city's public art collection. As you'll see here, um, we are currently like right this minute working on the elephant on Boones Ferry Road. So we're mitigating some of the rust that has become prevalent on there, as well as taking care of some biological growth and corrosion. So that is happening as we speak that will take place this week. In addition, are one of the pieces over at Glenmore Park. In the flow, that plaque needs to be replaced, which ends up being on the shorter, uh, the shorter basalt piece there. So that has weathered really needs to be replaced in whole. So we're doing that, uh, also acquisition of art on behalf of the city. Also happening right now over at the library, uh, echoes of belonging by Sahara Defrees is being installed. The panels went up today and the rocks are already done. And we look forward to the dedication of this on Saturday, which I know a couple of you will be joining us at.

[1:34:46] Deaccessioning of Art. We talked about this a little bit when we came to you with the contract. Fairy tree has a lot of different problems. And so it has, um, it has gone through both the public art committee as well as to you to recommend Deaccession. And what you see there on the right is actually the first step in documenting the piece. So that actually was a, the piece has been 3D scanned. So, uh, in a, um, in a different kind of presentation, you could see a super cool video, but now you just get to see a picture. But um, a few weeks ago, uh, early in the morning before dawn, which we hear is the good time to do a 3D scan. Uh, we, um, one of our staff members met a contractor over there and they took a 3D scan of fairy trees. So we will be able to have that as a digital file to be able to, um, put in the record. We have, we know what it looks like, we know how big it was, all of those things we could reproduce it in some way, shape or form. But then that provides a historical context for that piece.

[1:36:01] Look forward to Christmas tree ornaments. Yeah, little mini Christmas tree ornaments at the fairy tale.

[1:36:08] So fundraiser.

[1:36:10] Fundraiser. Huge huge. It's going to be huge.

[1:36:15] Excellent. So also, one of the things as part of our contractual agreement is a annual exhibition about life in Lake Oswego. So that is on view right now. It's called What We Behold. And that's up through the 30th of October. It was curated by Kendra Roberts, who is the director at Blackfish Gallery down in the Pearl. So she and she also is on the public Art Committee. So she did that for ACL, which is a beautiful show. You should come see it. I don't know that I've seen any of you down there. Just saying. Um, we're also working on our percent for art projects, including South Shore. This is just some, uh, inspirational images that we have, uh, that we've shared with, uh, the fire department. And so we are in the midst of putting together our selection committee for that. So that's moving right along. Very exciting. Also, one of our percent for art projects that we're managing is over at Rissik. So phase two, uh, we are at the point now where we are, um, being, we are going to be soliciting submissions for artwork. Uh, and that will happen here in the coming months. Uh, a selection committee decision. We anticipate that in the fall and, um, the artwork would be installed in spring. The area that we're looking at, uh, putting the putting a potential mural is on the restroom building and a portion of the maintenance building. We know that there's going to be some fencing and some other aspects where you won't be able to see a lot of that, but there is we have, we think, a good combination of areas that will be visible to the general folks who are visiting the park. Gallery without walls, of course, we have the eight new pieces that are installed and part of this year's cohort. So those are what you see here. And we will also be celebrating those at the Cultural exchange on September 27th with docent tours, as well as the presentation for People's Choice. The next cohort. That call opens shortly here, October 1st, and we start that process all over again. So that will happen between the fall and then into spring and summer of next year.

[1:38:53] The cultural exchange, as I mentioned, will be part of that on the 27th. These are some of our attendees from last year. They were very excited about making paper bag puppets. Um, grow grew figured heavily in the, um, in the characters. So that was amazing. Um, we're going to have some other stuff for them to do this year. And then as I said, pup by Ben Dye is the 2026 People's Choice winner. So that will be awarded to him at that time. Here are the some of the other things that we do that are not specifically part of our contractual agreement with the city, but still provide a lot of great things to the city. So our 2020 627 exhibitions, um, again, what we behold will be followed by our annual holiday marketplace, which everyone loves and enjoys. Um, Art Mart will be happening over at, um, at marylhurst in January. Uh, we did a, a p student art show this year and we will be repeating that in mid-February. And then our winter spring exhibition will be late February through April, and then spring summer will be May, June and July.

[1:40:14] Some of the wonderful programs that go along with what we do as part of the AP Art show. We had some great student work. It was really amazing to be able to see work from high school students that you just wouldn't believe that they were in high school. It was pretty fun. Uh, we also do, of course, all kinds of, uh, docent tours for both students as well as adults. So this is a group from the International Learning Academy that came by, and we got to take them around to the sculptures as well as see the exhibition inside. Also, we have programs that align with the exhibitions. So that includes, um, things like an ikebana demo, which happened in March in conjunction with our exhibition Thinking Through Mud.

[1:41:10] Public art and private developments. So we are working both with Hacienda as well as habitat for humanity to place some sort of artwork or piece, um, at both of these locations. So at um, at Hacienda, it is located on the corner of Boones Ferry and the cross street. So that's, that's mostly a public, um, that's a public corner for the building. That's where the community room is and other such things. And so we're working with them on that, as well as helping them to formulate a process, see how that goes. Um, in regard to habitat for humanity, we are looking at a, some sort of artwork that would be in the shared green space, which is both public and publicly accessible as well as part of the development. So those are both really exciting things that are happening on Boones Ferry. Uh, please pardon the spelling error building connection between and with our community. We have been working, um, informally with the cities of West Lynn as well as Oregon City to be able to highlight highway 43 as an art corridor. So the piece you see there on the left, Lotus tower that is located on the Marylhurst campus. So that is one of the pieces. There are some that have been identified in Oregon City at the end of 43, which would also be there. Um, Lynn, there have been some staffing changes in their parks and recreation department, and that's who we were working with. So that's, we're on a temporary hold at this point, but we expect that to pick back up once that, um, once that position has been filled in, the mystery is the next piece you see there, um, with the rainbow that is at the, the new ELO middle school. It's very fun. It's right on the, it's right on country club. And so it's really visible. Um, it was a great way to work with the school district to be able to site pieces at the new, at the new schools. So we've been working on, on doing that for a long time. And it was great to see this come to fruition. Sponsorships of Gallery Without Walls sculptures. So everyone from individuals Two businesses sponsor the sculptures that come to town. So we have everyone from individual families to Edward Jones and Farmers Insurance. Lastly, you'll see that we work pretty extensively with the Chamber Wine Walk. 2025 is just one of the items and ways that we work with them. We hosted networking this past Friday, and there were 90 some odd people who were able to to come in and see what we do, see City Hall and really know what art does in their community and volunteers. We've heard a lot about volunteers today. They are the they're really the engine that helps keep us going. Um, we have guided tours that happen only because we have volunteer docents. Um, we have conservation volunteers who assist with a number of different and aspects of taking care of the collection. And then we had a terrific summer intern this year. So she helped us do quite a number of different things and was able to do anything and everything, which was terrific.

[1:44:52] And then of course, fundraising. Um, what we have to, what we do throughout the year is funded partially by the city. Um, but then also we raise money to support our programs and our staff. And that includes fun things like holiday marketplace. Again, coming up, um, art elevated art auction, which happens in the spring and of course, art Mart, which happens every January. Love Art Mart. That is all that I have for you. So if you have any questions, I'd be happy to take them.

[1:45:29] Thanks, Nicole. Great presentation. You guys are doing a lot of really good work. It's exciting to see all the different mediums, all the different programs are running, all the outreach. I think it's very cool getting the art installed at the at the new housing along Boones Ferry. It's very cool, really help, um, uh, integrate those spaces into, you know, the rest of the community here. Um, yeah. Um, colleagues, uh, councilor verdict, please. Uh oh, the other verdict.

[1:45:59] I heard.

[1:45:59] Verdict.

[1:46:04] So I just wanted to thank the Arts Council for all the work that you do, because one of the things that does stand out flower baskets and the artwork within our city, and you do so much. And I really appreciate the, um, it seems like you're doing a little more partnerships with other members of the community. I think you've always done some, but especially with the, the schools and then all the way down. 43. I think that's really exciting to see and I really appreciate that. And I love the events. Um, so I'm looking forward to the holiday market again. And, you know, uh, Gallery without walls is dear to my heart after serving on that committee for many years and just being able to go out and see the rotation of the art. So it keeps it exciting. It's always kind of moving is just fantastic. So thank you for all the work.

[1:46:51] Thank you.

[1:46:52] Thank you.

[1:46:53] Councilor Manson.

[1:46:56] Okay, um, I echo what my colleague said and the growth of the Arts Council and our arts programs in Lake Oswego has been phenomenal. And the fact that we're able to get art into buildings that often in other municipalities don't have art is stunning to me. I just love that the amount of volunteerism that happens in the Art Council, I don't think people Fully understand. I mean, some of our colleagues who've worked in this understand, but it's amazing. They don't expect any grand gesture. They just want to see the art out there. And on a personal note, I would like to on air give a shout out, um, to a student artist who you mentioned, uh, Fifi Pollock, who is a fabulous artist. I have a couple of her pieces in my house. As a matter of fact, she is now off to college studying fine art. So our own Lake Oswego up and coming artist.

[1:48:17] Exactly, exactly. Yeah. Her work was pretty incredible.

[1:48:20] Her work is amazing. So.

[1:48:23] And her whole family came to the opening and it was really fun to see.

[1:48:27] I know they are very supportive of her art, which is a fabulous thing to to see. But thank you for all you do.

[1:48:36] Thank you.

[1:48:37] Thank you. Councilor. Councilor Gordon.

[1:48:41] Yeah. Thank you for everything you do. I think you you help us express to the rest of the world who we are. And I think the only thing that I would add to what my colleagues have said is you guys deliver an amazing bang for the buck. Thank you very much. And thank you for all of all, you know, all the volunteer, uh, interest that you get. Do a great job. Thanks.

[1:49:01] Thank you.

[1:49:02] Thank you, councilor.

[1:49:03] Yeah.

[1:49:04] I mean, I'm very proud of you. I, I've been introduced to gallery without walls by the vessels for my dear friends. And ever since our school, every year, every single year, our school tours, the gallery without walls, like elementary school, because we know that art Is an anti destiny. It's a what gives forms and shapes their styles and you are giving Lake Oswego its style by putting all this art everywhere. It's really amazing. I if there is any program I want to fund, it's that one. Because it's what make us human. And you know, it's a. And Saturday we'll see great things happening also. And I'm glad, uh, Councilor Corrigan and I were there when we were making the decision on that. And thank you for your work.

[1:50:01] Thank you.

[1:50:02] Thank.

[1:50:02] You.

[1:50:02] Yeah.

[1:50:03] Councilor. Thank you, Councilor.

[1:50:04] Peter, what the other councilor said. But I want to especially thank the council art Council for including art pieces at Hacienda and the habitat for humanity. This is a. act of inclusiveness and welcoming those who are going to come to our city. So job well done. Whoever came up with that strategy, they they need to be thanked. Thank you.

[1:50:40] Councilor Wilmot.

[1:50:41] Ditto. But I think we need to highlight one thing that you forgot. Um, and this is extensive and we art is everywhere. But this group does an exceptional job of maintaining our art collection, which I think they're they don't get enough credit for that because Gallery Without walls is exposed to the environment 12 months out of the year. And there's a group of volunteers and we have expertise on the Arts Council and, uh, of making sure that we're taking care of everything that we have out there. And so kudos to you guys. I mean, you should really have that as part of your part of your presentation, because that's a huge effort to to manage an art collection as big as art as ours. And, um, Nicole, you do a fabulous job on making sure everything is, you know, every piece by name, you know, when it was done, you know, I mean, it's like the Encyclopedia of Art for Lake Oswego is sitting right there. So you do need to do a download someday. So, um, but, uh, very appreciated all the, the efforts and, and again, our community volunteers are just exceptional at, um, stepping up to the plate. So I just want to give a shout out to you. Thank you.

[1:51:55] Thanks.

[1:51:57] Councilor Wendland, councilor Manns.

[1:52:04] Again, I promise I'd be remiss and I think my colleagues hopefully will agree that I would like to thank all of the sponsors over the year who have sponsored our large art pieces, um, in order that, we have those throughout the city. So that that is my thank you to all of them.

[1:52:28] Thank you councilor. Thank you very much, Nicole. We really do appreciate you bringing this forward. The art in Lake Oswego is one of the things that makes the community very special and unique, draws lots of visitors, is enjoyed by all of the residents and enlivens, um, every kind of corner of, of the city provides a lot of culture. Um, if we were ever, I will say we are bringing one new piece of property on board and that's the cemetery. And I'll tell you what would fit really well in the cemetery is those armless and headless figures that we have down. Don't you think? And then yes.

[1:53:00] You know.

[1:53:01] What? That is something that the public Art Committee can consider.

[1:53:04] Okay, put that on the agenda.

[1:53:06] Can I make a motion?

[1:53:07] Yeah.

[1:53:08] I'd like to move to approve the Arts Council of Lake Oswego. Annual public art plan.

[1:53:12] Second.

[1:53:13] Move to the art in the cemetery.

[1:53:16] No. Yeah.

[1:53:17] That's up to the Arts Council, right?

[1:53:19] Yeah. Motion was made by councilor and seconded by Councilor Burdick. Any discussion? All right. All those in favor, say aye.

[1:53:27] Aye.

[1:53:28] Any opposed? Okay. Motion passes seven zero. Thank you. Nicole.

[1:53:32] Thank you very much. It's always a pleasure to come see you.

[1:53:35] Thanks very much.

[1:53:36] All right, folks, we're going to take a brief five minute recess.

[0:03] Okay, we are back in order. Thanks everyone for waiting. Uh, next up on the agenda, we have consideration of ordinance 2980. This is a micro mobility device usage. I'll invite Police Chief George Burke and Captain Clayton Simon to come forward. And while they're getting set up, we'll ask Erica to please read us the hearing procedures for this public hearing.

[0:29] We will now open the legislative public hearing on ordinance 2980, amending chapter 32 of the Lake Oswego City Code. We'll start with a presentation by staff and then public testimony.

[0:40] Thanks, Erica. All right. Chief. Captain. Good evening.

[0:44] Good evening, mayor. Members of council. I'm George Berk, chief of police. And I'm accompanied by Captain Clayton Simon. Um, back in July of this year that we came before you during a study session, presented some information regarding some micro-mobility and, uh, and an ordinance, proposed ordinance or at least a draft. Um, we took feedback during that study session, went back to the drawing board, incorporated the changes that were directed by council. And, uh, I'm going to kind of get ahead a little bit and tell you that ultimately what we're going to be doing is asking for you to adopt the resolution as proposed. Um, I would also like to say that I, I owe a lot to Captain Simon because he did the heavy lift on this, did the research and really did a lot of the work to make to put this ordinance together for all of you. So I'm going to turn it over to him to give you the details of the changes that we put in place. He's pretty well bullet pointed. There's not a big presentation for you to look at and admire and go through. Um, pretty much seen it. And we just want to make sure we're here to answer any questions.

[1:43] Good evening.

[1:43] Everyone. Good evening, Mr. Mayor. Council. Uh, yeah, we are the presentation. So sorry. No visuals. Just what you see up here. Um, but, uh, just really quickly, I appreciate chief's words and and support there, but it was also our city attorney's office. It was our city manager's office. There were a lot of folks that helped contribute to this, including yourself. So there was a lot of folks that helped out. And I really appreciate that. Um, we, uh, to kind of quickly get into it, we simplified, uh, certain device terminology when we looked through it, you know, it's, it's a complicated subject. We wanted to make it simple. So we tried, uh, we updated the antiquated, uh, provisions related to bicycles and where they could park and how they could be ridden to make sure that they align with state statute. Now, we added clarifying information regarding device types, their lawful operation and locations, and where those devices can be operated. We also added some more descriptive language identifying what both unsafe operation um and what unreasonable speeds are. So it's not an all inclusive list, but it gives a good framework for people, anyone reading it to understand, hey, this is kind of what they mean by by those two things. We added an escalation of penalties. So if you get subsequent violations within 12 months, it escalates the fine. And we work with our municipal court on, on some of that. Uh, let's see. We developed public information materials that isn't necessarily within the ordinance, but we sent out, you know, those things on our social media sites. We work through the city's website. Uh, I appreciate parks and the library and the ACC for letting us put up our literature there for, uh, for folks to see. And we distribute those materials all throughout the community. And, and again, the revisions, uh, everything that we've kind of put forth is intended to improve clarity for riders, parents, community members, and law enforcement. Well, obviously maintaining the approach that supports education, safe use and reasonable enforcement. And that's what we've done.

[3:36] And really just to reinforce what we're talking about is really we're looking at safe behaviors. And it's not it's nothing against micromobility devices. Certainly encourage especially creating accessibility for a lot of folks who may not otherwise have that accessibility or that that ability to, to be mobile. Um, it's just about how people behave while they're using the devices. I also want to comment on the fact that we've had conversations with the school district, um, and future plans roll out will do some education pieces with the school district. And I look forward to some agreements between us and the school district on how we can work together on school properties.

[4:13] Great. Okay. Any questions for chief captain? No. No questions. So Councilmember question.

[4:20] Yeah.

[4:22] I, I.

[4:24] I agree like with thank you very much, Clayton and chief, I mean, these are we have a lot of folks reaching out to us sometimes very angry that the city has to do something. But the problem I have. There are some of these devices that should tell people they are outright unlawful to to, to do some of the e-bike that they remove the stuff. Um, is it right or.

[4:56] Yeah. Uh, no. Councilor so the only device really that is completely on public roads and public property that we say, hey, you can't ride, you know, regardless of age are the non-compliant mobility devices. And those are those kind of motos that you see. They look like dirt bikes. They don't have any pedals on them. And you're riding those if they can fall within the classification of a moped. In other words, the person is riding, it has a driver's license. You don't need an endorsement for it, and you can get it registered with the state. And it doesn't go above 30mph. And it doesn't essentially produce more than 50 CCS. Those can still be actually ridden in compliance with the moped laws here in the state of Oregon. But those are the really the only devices that we're saying you can't, um, everything else you can. It just depends on where and by whom. And so we're the goal really is we know how important these are for folks to get around. Uh, I was talking just at the break, you know, my mother, I think I mentioned before, she's got one, you know, to ride around at the coast, big fat tire e-bike, you know, just so she can get around. And so certainly we do not want people that are able to lawfully ride these things and do it in a safe way. We do not want to prohibit that at all. And I don't believe that our ordinance amendments do that.

[6:08] Okay. No, that's because I just want people to know I'm we are not against progress. These are new stuff that happens. I was discussing with the mayor, you know, which I always do, that I'm against this. But the idea even of not riding for a child like real bike is even not healthy. Like kids should pedal, No, no and no. That's it. No. It's true. We should. We have to be. I'm an educator. I mean, we have some time. The same way we are saying no cell phone at school. I think we should even go to tell if you are, like, between 12 and 18, you should pedal your bike to school, not like go. It's like and it's the parents also like that have to take their responsibility that it's not good to give your 12 year kid a, an electric bike. They should, you know, go, you know, move, do something and get healthy. So for that reason, I really am, you know, 100% against for these things the enforcement of the these rules for our city. Thank you. Thank you.

[7:21] Councilor.

[7:22] And I appreciate the the educational component of it as well. That's seems to be the biggest problem is that, you know, if people are very confused about the difference between e-bikes and these other types of micromobility devices, the e motos. People probably think that they're buying their kid an e-bike. You hear things like, oh, age has been reduced on class one e-bikes. Most people probably don't even know what a class one e-bike class two class of the e-bike classification. So we see these non, um, things that aren't really e-bikes. You know, they are more like electric motorcycles of some kind, which again could be ridden with a little license plate and a driver's license and with the endorsement and all that kind of stuff. So they can be operated safely, but by the right people with the right licensure insurance and whatnot. Um, so I think that education will help because I mean, that's the nationwide problem is the confusion that's been kind of injected into the, into this market, the proliferation of devices and the ease with which people can get them. It's not like you go to the local bike shop and they say, oh, well, we understand the rules. I mean, you're just buying it online. And, um, And so it's kind of confusing so that this approach of keeping everyone safe, I mean, these bikes in our infrastructure, I mean, we do want everyone to be able to get around the community using different modes of transportation, but they've got to be able to do it safely and not in conflict, um, not in conflict with other, um, with other modes, you know, people walking with cars. And I think there is something because these are particularly vulnerable road users because they are oftentimes kids or anyone who's walking or on a bike, whether it's adult or kid is, you know, of course, a, a more vulnerable road user. And we're sensitive to the fact that already those road users are vulnerable because they're up against large cars, you know, and so we want to make sure we're, uh, cultivating an environment here where it's safe for everyone. We're not just saying, well, cars will do what they're going to do, and everyone else has to kind of adapt. But we're creating a safe environment for all the different, um, for all the different types. And that's complicated because I mean, we have created, you know, car centric thing. I mean, it's hard to unwind that, obviously. Um, but other safety initiatives the department and the city are undertaking with infrastructure investments all play a role in that. So this is just, I think a nice piece of the overall, um, kind of safety puzzle and investments that, uh, and policies that we've crafted to keep everyone safe. So I appreciate your good work. Um, Councilwoman.

[9:49] Uh, two questions on, uh, love the policy. I think it's for policy. It's pretty straightforward for us, but we look at policy a lot. Um.

[10:01] I guess my question is when I'm assuming this is going to pass, what's your plan on figuring out how to get the message more clearly, um, without somebody having to read through a 14 page document? Are we going to have like a postcard or something that gives you basically the, the three main elements that we're after.

[10:26] I'll deal with the first part of that, which I think the first outreach for us is to work directly with the school districts. We take a look at the population that's really utilizing the micro mobility devices, especially in ways that are that are more unsafe. So that education piece will happen directly with the schools. We already have some meetings set up where we get to, where we'll invite parents and students in, and we can have the presentation and kind of go over the details of that. I'll turn it over to Captain Simon over any other outreach that we're doing or materials.

[10:55] So it's like you read my mind. And so we actually have a postcard with all that information on it that actually directs folks right to our website via a QR code. We have other additional flyouts. This is what's out at some of the other city locations for people to see and what we've posted on our own website. We're actually meeting. We worked with Madison and the city manager's office to connect with the schools. And so we actually have a presentation set for, I think it's the 5th or 6th of October. Don't quote me. It's one of those two days. over at the new Lake Oswego Middle School, and we're going to invite folks in so we can answer questions with what is clearly a large group of folks that are probably wondering, hey, how does all this really apply? And what is it we can do? So we're going to we have that that coming on and we'll obviously be reaching out in many, many of the ways that we've already done so in the past saying, hey, if this is successful, hey, this is live, this is what to be expected. So people know. And then we've actually given a lot of these postcards out. Uh, appreciate Lauren quickly putting these things together because, uh, we've been giving them to our officers who are given out to folks, whether it's through an enforcement contact or just a community contact saying, hey, you guys need to know about this stuff. So.

[12:01] Well, you can get on the district email blasts, which would be very helpful that go out to all the parents with your information. So make sure you do that because you can blast that out to all the kids, uh, parents who should know. Um, the other part, um, enforcement, um, Well, we see a kind of a gradual change. Or are we going to be like, make a statement so that people wake up and go, okay, we're we're serious.

[12:32] I think we've been making, uh, we've been doing a lot in education over the last couple of years. Um, I'm not going to say that we're going to go from education to immediate enforcement. I think there's a there's a happy medium in there. And I think we will. Our officers have the ability to figure out what's appropriate at the time when they're making those contacts. There are a lot of people we've had repeat contacts with, so I would say there's probably less leniency with them and more more leniency with folks who are were just now having contact with the first time.

[13:02] One of the benefits of folks that if they end up being cited under this particular ordinance and working with our municipal court is there's kind of a first time defense diversion or safety class. So there is the ability, even with enforcement, to have education on the front end and nothing count against you.

[13:17] Great.

[13:18] Thank you. Councilor Afghan.

[13:22] This is going to be a cultural shock for our city. And I, for one, will volunteer to hand out as many cards as you give me. So I'm your ambassador to reduce that cultural shock. And if you wish, the next couple three farmers market, I'll be standing there with a volunteer badge and handing things to people so they understand these are the grown ups who buy the devices for their kids. So they also understand that this is coming and this is serious. So I think you should use us as your ambassadors to make it happen.

[14:05] Appreciate that.

[14:05] Thank you.

[14:08] Okay. We will, um, go ahead and open the public hearing and I'll ask if there. But I don't know if there's is there anyone here who wants to testify on the ordinance? I don't see anyone. So we're going to go ahead and close the public hearing, and then we'll entertain a motion to enact ordinance 2980.

[14:24] Move to enact ordinance 2980.

[14:26] Second.

[14:27] Okay. Motion made by Councilman Booth and seconded by councilor. Verdict. Any discussion? Thank you. Kevin. Okay. All those in favor, say aye.

[14:34] Aye.

[14:35] Any opposed? Okay. Motion passes seven zero. All right. Thank you, chief. Thank you captain.

[14:42] And can I just add a thank you to them as well? Uh, thank you to both captain and our chief, uh, for moving this pretty fast. I mean, it's been a growing concern, um, but really kind of reached its peak this spring, and they did a great job thinking about how to move this through and make sure that the cultural shift happens. So thank you to both of them.

[15:02] Yeah, it's good work.

[15:03] Good cross jurisdictional.

[15:07] Applause. Okay. Um, okay. Moving on. We now have, um, a study session this evening on the code audit. Kind of a 2 in 1 here. We're going to talk about the code audit project. I'll invite Associate planner Evan France to please come forward. And we're going to talk about the formation of a technical advisory committee related to the audit project work as well.

[15:28] Is it the last one?

[15:35] Well we have executive session. I know this.

[15:40] Around.

[15:43] Okay.

[15:44] Good evening to you all. Good evening.

[15:49] Good evening. Good evening, Mayor and Council. Okay. So, as mayor Buck said, we are here to talk about the code audit project. And our project team is myself. I'm Evan France. I'm a senior planner with the City of Lake Oswego. I've been here for a little bit over 12 years. Um, also our team is Jessica Lu, our community development director, and Eric Olson, the long range planning manager. To my left are our consultants 3D3J consulting Lee Alligood.

[16:30] She's a project manager, and Karen Tolstedt, she's our community engagement coordinator with various collaborations S25:

[17:07] The request to Council is to provide feedback on the consultant's findings and areas of focus on initial review of the CDC, provide feedback on the draft public involvement strategy and improve resolution 26-52 to form a technical advisory committee to provide technical input throughout the project.

[17:30] As background, the subject of the code audit is LLC. Chapter 50 is Community Development Code, and this regulates land use and development within the city. The CDC is a framework that guides how development occurs in Lake Oswego. Over time, the code has become increasingly complex due to many factors, including multiple code amendments, adoption of detailed overlay districts and infill design standards throughout the city, and new state requirements. The need for an in-depth, comprehensive analysis of the development Code was identified in both the 2022 Economic Development Strategy and Resource Plan, as well as the city's housing production strategy and is supported by City Council initiative to begin comprehensive review of the development code to identify barriers to housing production and economic development, and implement code amendments to address those barriers.

[18:28] So the Community Development Department currently has two projects that are working in tandem. Um, we have the rezoning for housing project and we have the code audit project. Um, the, the rezoning for housing project will evaluate city's mixed use, mixed use and commercial zones in order to increase housing capacity to address the city's deficit of land needed for housing in the next 20 years. The code project, as I discussed, already addressed the city regulations and development review processes in the CDC to make housing, construction and business development more predictable and efficient. The audit will look at code, rules, procedures and requirements that make it harder to build housing or support local businesses and economic development. The project will also provide recommendations for how how to ensure compliance with new state housing mandates while maintaining community standards. The rezoning for Housing project evaluates commercial mixed use other non residential areas while where zoning map changes may allow for more housing, especially multifamily housing. It will identify focused areas, focus areas and analyze them to determine appropriate zoning scenarios.

[19:43] And here the main focus areas for the The Code audit project, we look at usability, efficiency, housing economic development and compliance. The it's organized basically in five areas. We're looking for how to make it easier to use code and streamline the development process, better support housing and economic development, and ensure the code complies with state requirements.

[20:05] Here's an overview of the process. Basically there's there's two phases. So the first phase is currently underway. We're in the research and analysis phase right now. The next phase, which will begin in October, is the code audit itself, where we review the CDC and identify regulatory barriers and process inconsistencies and opportunities to for improvement. That will be followed by the the final audit report, which incorporates staff, stakeholder and public input and provide recommendations for addressing identified issues. The next phase is implementation. This is where we get into the code amendments. We'll develop proposed code amendments on the based on the audit report and obtain public and advisory, um, body feedback at that time. And then after that we will planning commission will review recommendations and followed by City Council consideration for final adoption of the code amendments.

[21:01] And here's an overview of where we are at currently. The first task was to conduct research and analysis that is, providing the background report that was attached to the the works. The study session materials attachment one. This was completed in July and it. Um. Three consulting will provide more details after I finish up here. Uh, the first step was to do interviews with staff that includes city staff with planning, building, redevelopment, economic development and engineering department, as well as representatives from the Lake Oswego Chamber of Commerce to identify key issues that need to be addressed. Uh, we're in the process of conducting focus groups with different stakeholders and in the local housing and business communities and the neighborhood chairs group. We'll talk to them at the end of the month. And this is to gather input regarding barriers to housing and economic development, city review processes, and other issues that impact timely, efficient and predictable permitting. Three J will is currently in the process of drafting a public involvement strategy, which Karen Will will discuss. The final strategy will be completed at the end of the month. A City Council study session is scheduled for November where we will. We can discuss the final public involvement, strategy and whatever else you would like to discuss. You can talk about tonight and we can cover it in November.

[22:26] And here's the project schedule. So the project will be completed in approximately 18 months. So that's in the winter of 2027 2028. That phase will start in October and end in in April with a final audit report. Then we begin the code audit phase, which will begin in May through January of 2027. Both the PC and the council will be consulted throughout the project. Um to ask for to provide direction on the key policy issues and priorities. Review and refine the findings and recommendations of the report itself. Provide feedback on the proposed code amendments. Consider and adopt final code amendments at a public hearing. Next three J consulting will give an overview of the background report and public involvement strategy, and we can answer any questions at the end of their presentation. So here is Lee with with their presentation.

[23:19] Great.

[23:19] Thank you Evan. Good afternoon, mayor and council members. I will provide a pretty brief and high level update, but I'm also happy to answer any questions you might have when when we're through. So as Evan mentioned, my name is Lee. I'm a planner with three J consulting. We're based in Beaverton and our team, though we have just two of us here tonight and includes a number of people with specialties in urban design and planning and public involvement and all different areas of this project. So it's not just us. We have a team behind us. This is the first time we're with you here tonight. Although you've heard about the project, I believe a number of times. This is our first meeting with you all, so we're excited to talk to you and let you know what we've been up to. Next slide. So the objectives of the project, as Evan mentioned, is to remove regulatory barriers to housing and economic development to retain standards for high quality development, which Lake Oswego is known for. To comply with recent housing related state legislation. As you all are aware, there's been quite a bit of activity on that front in the last few years. And also to streamline the community development code and make it more user friendly and easy to apply. Next slide.

[24:33] So the background report is a review of existing plans and previous efforts. So that includes your comprehensive plan your economic development strategy your housing capacity analysis, housing production strategy, neighborhood plans, all the documents that the city has adopted over the years that then feed into the CDC. We also did kind of a preliminary review of the Community Development Code. High level, just to see where we need to focus our efforts on the next part. And we had interviews and focus groups with a number of people. City staff, as Evan mentioned. We also talked with developers and builders who are active or have been active in Lake Oswego. Architects and consultants. Planning consultants that represent applicants in Lake Oswego and employers to hear from them what their thoughts are about how the code functions and where it might be able to be improved. Next slide. So the issues that came out of those conversations, and I don't know that any of these are surprising, but the code is difficult to use for applicants and staff. Over the years. It's become kind of unwieldy. It's been updated a number of times to respond to specific issues, but there hasn't been a wholesale evaluation of the code and the structure of the code and how you can find information that you're looking for. And I think universally, the users of the code recognize that it has opportunities for improvement. Lake Oswego also has a number of overlays that apply in addition to base zoning throughout the city. And sometimes those overlays conflict with the base zones. They have different standards for the same things, and they can be very confusing and difficult to navigate. And finally, there are some building code thresholds that can prevent people from building some of the middle housing types that are permitted, but perhaps not as desirable because they're subject to commercial building code rather than residential building code.

[26:29] And so I'll go through just the the areas that Evan lined out. So the code structure, we are recommending reorganization of the code based on the conversations we had with city staff as people who apply the code and as applicants who are trying to find information in the code. There's also an opportunity to combine a number of design standards to create a simplified menu of design requirements, not necessarily to change them, but they exist in a lot of different locations, and it would be easier for people to find them if they were in one place. And then our team also did an analysis of the overlays design districts base zoning, and found that there are at least 52 combination zones in the city. When you apply all of these different regulations together and then subareas within each area. So there's certainly an opportunity to consolidate some of those overlays and design districts and make them more streamlined to, to find and to apply for housing. This is another variation of the theme. There are neighborhood overlays that have been adopted by various neighborhood associations, and that are applied on top of underlying zoning, and again, can have some some conflicts and be difficult to interpret and to apply and some development design standards in our conversations with developers at regulation and complexity, but don't necessarily improve the outcome. So it doesn't necessarily result in a different or better product. It just creates another layer of difficulty. And I will say it's, I think, important to note that no one said we should just throw everything out. No one said we shouldn't have design standards or development standards. They appreciate the role of those standards in creating a unique Lake Oswego feel and community, but they did have some really constructive thoughts about ways that it could be streamlined and result in high quality development while removing some of these complications. And finally, I noted that development standards for middle housing are the same as for single detached dwellings. And among the developers we spoke with, they mentioned that that does make it difficult to develop middle housing, um, because of those standards being the same. Next slide. Economic development. The sign code came up over and over again as a challenge for businesses particularly and for staff. Uh, also the use categories in the code are for the most part current, but they don't necessarily accommodate hybrid or evolving business concepts that are just being developed. And staff spends a lot of time trying to figure out where things should be categorized. There's also tenant improvements, and this isn't a fault of the CDC, but there are also a lot of unanticipated code requirements. If someone's changing the use of a business or if they want to expand a business, and maybe now it has to meet updated fire code requirements, things like that, things that tend to come as a surprise to people when they're doing tenant improvements. And food carts and food cart pods were mentioned a couple of times as a potential opportunity to increase foot traffic downtown and bring in a different type of client or, um, you know, families, younger people that might not currently be coming down as much, but they're currently permitted only as part of temporary events. So that's something that came up in those conversations. Legislative compliance. You all know, again, there's been a lot of this happening and it's generally around review procedures, standards and then housing types. So there are a number of slightly distinct but not the same review procedures for housing applications. And then limited land use decisions, which basically don't allow any discretion have been expanded to include subdivision plots, partition plots, and expansion of non-conforming uses. City staff is aware of this. They've been applying these these new standards, um, while we're updating the code. But those are things that will need to be codified. There's also been some rulemaking around middle housing. And so one that just was adopted at the end of August is around cottage clusters. They've increased the average square footage. It used to be 900ft² footprint. Now it's 1400ft² in area. And also adopted rule making. That minimum lot size and dimensions for middle housing types have to be the same as single detached. Under the previous regulations, there was some leeway to have larger minimum lot sizes to have slightly different standards. That's no longer the case. And then housing types, middle housing can now be attached or detached. So a duplex could be two detached units or 1 or 2 attached units. There's also provisions for bonus units for certain types of middle housing developments. And then a new housing type that's come out of the recent legislation is single room occupancy. So those are things we'll be looking for as we're going through the code audit. And the timeline for this project is great because it allows us to reflect the house, the rule making that's going on, and that won't be completed in some cases until January 2028. So we'll be able to incorporate those into these amendments and make sure that we're covering all of our bases. Next slide. So there were a number of items that came up in conversations that we feel are important for you all to be aware of. there outside of the scope of this project. But the sign code, as I mentioned, came up a lot. Um, the permitting and post land use tracking process. Um, people had a lot of really positive things to say about the planning staff and the land use process, but things could be improved on the back end as they're going through the development permitting process. People mentioned reviewing the system development charges. We understand that that will be happening when you do the transportation system plan update in a few years. And also, as I mentioned, food carts and food cart pods, which is kind of a different conversation than just economic development. So I'm going to hand this over to Karen to talk about the draft public involvement strategy.

[32:23] And she gave me this one.

[32:28] Um, before you is a at a glance chart of the different audiences and some plans, but I wanted to take a minute to talk about the strategy first. Um, obviously code audit isn't a very sexy topic when it comes to public engagement. It's like, oh, that's a that's an exciting one. It's not really a magnet for public engagement, particularly at the outset, like right now where there aren't specific proposals, there's just an evaluation of, you know, the code. So the team has recommended doing the public engagement later after the code audit is underway. And there are very specific proposals and changes and then go out to the public for that. Um, there are different categories of public, of course, there's stakeholders and we know that the stakeholders have a very vested interest and we won't have trouble getting input from them. And many of those interviews have already taken place. Neighborhood associations are both public and stakeholders as property owners, and it is critical to have them involved. Normally there really isn't much public interest in code audits, but because of the cottage clusters and the foothills redevelopment project, clearly you've already seen some public interest from specific sets of folks. What is going to be absolutely critical is that we have a clear and easy to access tools for those folks to weigh in and to get up to date information prior to actually having that information. We're we're going before the Neighborhood Associations Chairs committee this month. Again, there's really no information to share, but to really let them know how transparent we're going to be going forward and to have them in the loop now on what that plan is going to be. So the first three categories there are the stakeholder groups and the neighborhood associations. That presentation is happening. And then later, when we actually have some potential decision points for you to make. We will be going back to the neighborhood associations and giving them content, getting them to be able to invite their members directly to each of the neighborhood associations so that those folks can weigh in. There will be a large set of what I would consider more traditional tools for all of those people who are dying to weigh in. Now there's a lot of them. We're going to have a robust website, web pages with detailed information that they are going to want to just really get in and see the nitty gritty and have some tool that allows them to weigh in when there is an opportunity. We know that there's a lot of things that are going to need to happen in code, that there isn't much opportunity because of the state mandates. So we also want to be careful that we're not setting up expectation that people can weigh in on things that they really can't influence. For that reason, we're we're suggesting taking a very educational approach for people to really understand what some of these mandates are and what the city can influence and cannot. That those more traditional online robust tool with lots of information. Um, and two public meetings for those folks who are really eager to, to come in, in person. Um, will be promoted through, you know, media releases, social media newsletter, copy fliers in public places. You know, a lot of the traditional things, um, also work sessions with the city commission, with the city Council, with planning Commission, and with the Technical Advisory committee. However, code changes influence the character of the city and, and affect everybody, not just those people who are dying to give input today, but the rest of the community. And they aren't going to be very interested in going through a multi-page website of details to understand. And so basically, anybody who is not coming to city council meetings now and is not going through detailed web pages.

[36:45] Those are underrepresented audiences. You're not hearing from them. You'll hear loud and clear what a lot of folks think and want and need. What we need to reach out to those that aren't being heard now in a way that they can, that is relatable to them. We're not going to promote code audit. Come give me much. So I have some examples of how that might look. But one of the things the project team is recommending is more of what I call a quick and dirty, um, survey tool that's particularly for mobile devices. And that's more of a visual and a caption that are relatable to people, you know, not not bureaucratic talk, not technicalities, but really where people can weigh in, but the tool itself is only as good as how we promote that tool. And there's only so many people who hang on. The words of all the city newsletters, no matter how fabulous they are. And all of that, and a lot of those in Lake Oswego and in many, many cities are busy families of childbearing age. You're not seeing those in public hearings very often. And in public meetings. Lower income residents, renters, people from ethnically diverse communities, we don't really hear from them, and we need to reach out in different ways. And that's one of the things that Veritas Collaboration specializes in. And to put it in a technical term, we'll call it intercept conversations. But what it really is is people talking to people. So while we want to have, well, there's a need to have two public meetings for those folks who want to come to that. And we're recommending that we use budget, that would be for a third one to actually have face to face conversations with people that we, we bump into in casual settings. And we have, um, a program that we initiate that we kind of call it following the breadcrumbs. And that's reaching out to, to regular folks in the community right now. And we've already started doing that in communities, in neighborhoods all around the city. Just saying, hey, there's this code audit thing going on. And I know it doesn't sound very interesting, but let me tell you, here's a couple of the things that it's going to do. Like, you know, the Adu that was just built behind your house and they're like, so we've had people saying, oh, wow, that is interesting. I want to weigh in on that. And so we already have a handful of people throughout the community that are saying, when it's time, reach out to us and we'll help you. And oftentimes we get invited to, oh, church coffee hours, PTA meetings, um, just casual things that's happening in the community, So on the next slide I believe oops. Well go to key messages. So also with that public, um, talking in terms that they understand and care about, one is that there is the need for about a, there's different data out there, but at least 2000 new housing units over the 20 years. So for folks who really aren't in favor of middle housing or even more increased density, the data shows there is housing that is needed, and thoughtful and strategic planning now can help ensure that we maintain the unique qualities of the neighborhoods while expanding opportunities. So that is where people can weigh in. The code. The code amendment decisions that you make can have some influence on those things that are already mandated. So to help people understand that and have them weigh in in order to protect the character of the community that they value so much will be important also on the educational component. You know, middle housing is here to stay. I don't think this is the opportunity to let people say that we don't want to do that. It's going to happen. But, um, we can shape it. City can shape it to some extent. So on the next slide, I think we just have it's awfully small, but this is kind of an example of specific changes that might come your way. And I hesitate to even put examples. These are just kind of made up to show a little bit of an example. And, you know, there's been a lot of discussion about the courtyards in the cottage clusters. This example doesn't talk about whether we're talking about easements or tracts, but having it just be as simple as, you know, a courtyard in cottage clusters can, you know, improve the appeal of this, you know, and then once you have a proposal like, should we mandate tracts or should we let it be an easement or whatever. Putting that in everyday terms and saying, we are thinking this. What do you think? And it's just a very simple hate it, love it, think about it. Um, also we are wanting to incorporate some of the rezoning for housing, even though it's not part of, of the code audit project to not overtax the community engagement activities. So in hours when there are very specific proposals, like perhaps changing the zoning in certain underused, um, commercial areas for mixed use can provide these benefits. What do you think? Just very, very casual. So they're not reading pages and pages about it. They're doing that. This isn't going to give you qualitative, you know, facts and figures about how many people think this and that, but it gives you it'll give you a sense of what the community members think and feel that aren't weighing in in other ways, and also whether that input will be different than the input of the folks that are giving input in the traditional ways. What it does do is show, you know, the residents of your community that you are, you care about their opinion, you're going above and beyond, not just having a public hearing or a public meeting, but really want their input. It will expand that outreach and hopefully introduce a whole new group of people to the beginnings of civic civic engagement. So I don't know if you can see, but the the we're proposing a little card. It's funny, we were just talking in the last session about a postcard. So we also in this intercept conversations would, you know, just approach someone, hey, you know what this is going on and here's a, here's a QR code. And in, in the past, we've had good luck with having people right there. Go, oh, let me scan it and see and kind of walk through it. If they're not really interested, we'll just give them the card and go. But the terms, the expressions would be casual, colloquial and friendly in order to engage a whole new group of folks.

[43:26] That's my update.

[43:27] And well, as I mentioned, have time for questions if you want to get more into that in terms of next steps. As Karen mentioned, we're meeting with the Neighborhood Chairs Coalition next Saturday. We'll be presenting to the Planning Commission on the 28th and then taking the inputs from those conversations into the final public involvement strategy. And so September kind of wraps up our initial task, this background review and initial review. And then as Evan mentioned, we get into the nitty gritty of the code audit, and we will be coming back to you with some questions about how you'd like us to approach the action plan that we're putting together as we go through that process and questions for you all. Um, really generally, do you have any questions about the initial findings of the background report and the review and any comments or suggestions about what Karen described in terms of the public involvement strategy.

[44:20] Okay, great. Thank you all very much for the presentation. It's so nice to get to meet the two of you. Evan, thank you for bringing them in. And this is a you know, you did a nice job outlining because we have kind of several things going on here all in one. You can see how it might get a little confusing and how to break it up between, you know, our rezone project, this code audit project, these economic development type opportunities, and then different plans that are interfacing with the housing production strategy. That's kind of our little economic development plan that we have, our new economic development strategy that we're going to hear about here more in or adopt in October. Um, and then learning about how we will engage with the community on that and really appreciate what the philosophy of your firm, Karen, and what you guys are great at, because that is the big challenge. You know, um, is, is getting especially on a topic like this, you know, so my colleagues have questions, comments, counselor, we will start with you.

[45:15] Yes, I, um.

[45:19] The only I know this is a big job, but and we are working if I like I look at this a little bit late. We are working on a grant, right. And the grant ends. The problem I have is for I don't know if I can. There's someone who is who disagree on our zoning and there's something going on on. And people will most likely challenge this thing. Like when we finish, they're going to challenge it. There will be Luba appeal and stuff. So do you think that the timeline on February 28th, like when it ends, the grant and the submission do we like there is a time because people will challenge when they challenge it what we are going to do. That was one of my questions And I if you can respond. And my second question.

[46:17] Was, I can tell you that.

[46:19] Um, I don't think you have to be concerned about, uh, land use. This isn't a land use issue that can be appealed to. This is going to change the law, the code, and that's not going to be affected by what's currently underway in Luba.

[46:35] Thank you. I'm just I was worried about that. And the other.

[46:39] Yeah.

[46:40] Just like today we had a legislative public hearing for the micro micro mobility devices. We would have the same thing when these code amendments are proposed in 2020 828. So people who are dissatisfied will have an opportunity to come and testify.

[46:54] Testify.

[46:54] Okay. And good. So the other thing is, just like people like me, like when we talk the language of overlay of which is even like for me when like, oh, this neighborhood have this overlay, this other one woman has and I I'm kind of lost because I'm not in construction. I don't know, and that's why I would like if you were asking us what to do to have like concrete questions like, say, do you want the overlay to be removed? And like those questions, those would be very helpful for a person like me because I'm a layperson on this.

[47:37] Mhm.

[47:38] Absolutely. When we come back to you, we'll have some concepts that we'll have developed and we'll want to get your input. Basically, how far do we go? You know, um, because there are a number of different ways that the city can pursue removing barriers. And some of them are mandates, but a lot of them aren't. So there are a lot of decision points that will be coming up that will be wanting to talk to you. And to your point, asking pretty specific questions about how we should proceed.

[48:07] Other than that, thank you. It was, I was very happy to read all of this and. Yeah. Thank you. Yeah.

[48:14] Well, uh, similar to counseling group, I was saying there might be other categories, but it really, it would be helpful to understand what is kind of legally required and what is administrative, you know, kind of more like policy neutral. And then and then what is discretionary policy change another category. But that would be because, I mean, some of this I know is clean up. And then some of it is we have no choice. And then where to really identify for the council with the actual decision points are would be.

[48:44] Kind of must, may, should kind of thing. Yeah, absolutely.

[48:49] Uh, counselor.

[48:50] Thank you, Mr. Mayor. Uh, these are comments. We don't have to debate them. Uh, I read a lot of overlays. And I also saw in your presentation about hybrid. Uh.

[49:08] Let's be kind to the overlay. They were there for a reason, and there are going to be issues coming up that we don't have a choice because of the new legislative. We have to cross those out black and white. But they were there for a reason. And I if I look at some of the conversations I've had, they were there. So the neighborhood character is preserved. And we know that there has been a lot of new construction to every neighborhood that has had overlays, and nobody came here and say, this overlay caused me to do X, Y, and z. I know councilor, uh, Wetteland can bring up some examples, but my thinking is that let's be kind to the overlays because of a specific reason on the hybrid. I don't know where we're going with that conversation. I support.

[50:12] Businesses in homes, but I don't know if I want to see a storefront all of a sudden in a neighborhood showing up. And I think those are the conversations that I'm sure you will have with general public and the stakeholders. I'm thinking a school district. We need to talk with them because they're a school district and they're the large property owners also, and maybe also Chamber of Commerce. We're talking to the brokers who are in the real estate business. But Chamber of Commerce, from a business point of view, may have some ideas also. Thank you.

[50:53] Councilor. Councilor Manson, over to you.

[50:56] Thank you.

[51:00] Thank you for the presentation. Um, if I'm not mistaken. We've gone through some iteration of this in the past, obviously not to this degree, um, and not with these issues, but what is the number one issue that you see in putting this together as far as our stakeholders are concerned?

[51:31] I think the common theme, um, is not that we should get rid of all the overlays or any of those things, but that it's just, it's just really, really, really hard to find the information you're looking for. And it's really hard to figure out how all of these different layers interact. And it's really easy to get things wrong. And so I think both on the city staff side and on the development community side, they want to do the right thing. It's just hard for them to find what that is. So I think that's the biggest one.

[52:01] Okay. And the neighborhood overlays are not disappearing, per se.

[52:08] Or is that legislative? S26:

[52:56] And in neighborhoods that have no overlay, are eclectic, have no sidewalks or sporadic sidewalks. How will that. How will they be impacted by any of the work that you're doing? Is that a part of it or not necessarily.

[53:20] It could be. Some of what we're looking at are development standards that apply to all residential zones, for instance, setbacks, floor area ratios, things of that nature. So it could affect neighborhoods even without overlays. Things like sidewalks tend to be part of public works standards, things like that. We probably won't get to that too much.

[53:40] Okay, good.

[53:40] But I think, you know, the code updates will affect the entire city. So that's a really important reason. Um, for Karen's approach to make sure that people who wouldn't normally care are aware that, you know, this is going to touch their lives in some way.

[53:58] Perfect. Thank you so much and thank you for all the good work. It's awesome.

[54:03] Just one one thing that follow up on something Councilor Manns mentioned the, um, I noted in the report, you know, one of the barriers listed was, you know, right of way dedications and infrastructure requirements. But we find those are very important to be able to develop safe, safe infrastructure. So I just did not like that it was even listed as, and I don't know if that was.

[54:26] I think that the issue wasn't so much that they exist as that. There are some areas of the community Development code that address the same requirements as public works standards, infrastructure codes. And there's some confusion that comes from that, like the CDC includes stormwater requirements, which are also in other documents and regulations. So it's less about the fact that people have to provide infrastructure. I agree that's critical, but more about it can be difficult to understand what rules apply when they are located in several different places.

[55:00] Okay, that makes good sense. Thank you for clarifying that. Uh, Councilwoman.

[55:05] I've been waiting for this project for a long time, I think almost forever. Um, and I guess the, my overarching part is to keep Lake Oswego character while really simplifying the complexity. And I like, I loved your reporting and your slides because I think you're exactly right that we have so many things that have been developed over so many decades that they're good for the time. And then somebody else had somewhat of the same idea and added it ten years later, and then somewhat the same idea. And so there's 3 or 4 things in there that say the same thing, but they're all different. And so cleaning it all up is, um, I think a huge challenge. And I think it's it's going to make life for the person that is interacting with, uh, project, um, so much more efficient and so much better. So I'm super excited about that. Um, I agree that the, our chapter 50 is, um, very clunky and, uh, confusing. Um, now to the experts in city Hall, it makes total sense. But, um, the question is how long did it take you to master chapter 50? It took probably a while, right.

[56:31] I'm not sure if I have.

[56:32] Oh you haven't. Yeah. Right. Right. It's um.

[56:35] Yeah, it's you learn things new about it all the time, right?

[56:38] Yeah. And I'm hoping my hope for this whole project is that, um, while you still have to be a professional, probably to read it because I don't think the normal person can ever read city code, regardless of what chapter we're reading. But the big picture is that it's, um, it helps our planners to become more efficient. And it helps our community members who are working with planning to be, um, clear and objective. Um, so that's, that's my big thing. Um, I think on the communication part, um, we've been dealing with this as a council for, gosh, for a long time. And I think we've, uh, yeah. And we've been, um, I think the overarching message, which you've probably been told is that, um, we don't want this, we don't want that. And we say, well, unfortunately, we have a state mandate that says we have to, well, you're the city council fix it. So in gathering your information, it's the what our mayor said, what we what can we control versus the state law? And to have that super clear so that we are Giving you good input instead of just complaining. Um, which, um, we don't complain like us, we just give advice. So that's kind of what we do. Um, and then the big, I guess question is, is there going to be like one author to start at the beginning and write a new chapter 50? Or is it who's going to actually writing the code? Because I, I look at it sort of as in biblical terms where there's 42 chapters, whatever, all different authors and whatever. I mean it, I just want to make sure that it's a, a well written device. So will you be writing the code and we prove it is, is it all on poor Evan's shoulders? I mean, I hope not.

[58:42] How is that going to work? S26:

[59:15] Yeah.

[59:16] But and then I don't know really how you're going to approve this as you go through in chunks. I mean, it's, it's going to be an interesting process. And I just give my future colleagues just all kinds of accolades for getting to deal with this next year. Um, but the yeah, but, but the big picture, I guess is, um, I mean, if I could write the rule book on this is that I mean, getting the input from community members is, is always kind of our secret sauce in Lake Oswego. I mean, there's a lot of engaged people and whatever, but when it gets down to really defining what we want, it's the fine art of writing that we're going to have the need to keep this character. Um, and I can't speak for the council, but I'll speak for me. I mean, it's like to the state. I mean, I'm like, um, they've shoved a lot of stuff down our throats. We actually took the, the deliberate process for three years to go through to do our own plan, which a lot of cities didn't because we care so much about Lake Oswego and, um, all the work before us, people really making the character of Lake Oswego, the character of Lake Oswego. And we've got a great thing going here. And so we're trying to maintain that. And so having the the grace, as Councilor Afghan said, maybe for overlays, but maybe instead of 52, we have five. I don't know whatever. I'm not saying, but simplifying it, but get it so that we do have the ability to, um, be Lake Oswego. And I don't want the cookie cutter approach. We spent way too much time to not be the cookie cutter and just take the downstream force of Salem. Um, to us, we spent the time to fight back. Um, and we're still willing to fight back. Um, and I think councils are willing to put the time and the effort in to making sure that we have, um, as much as we can and then maybe some, um, to maintain, um, Lake Oswego. So anyway, I think your outline of exactly what you're doing, um, is spot on from somebody who knows nothing about planning. So anyway.

[1:01:33] Thanks Councilor Woodland. I mean, I, it's a good point here. Thinking about um some of the objectives and goals of this work. and we've just been talking about the overlay. So I use that as an example. So once upon a time, you know, the community thought it's a great idea to do these overlays, but some of the feedback, you know, like as you know, unique as the community is that we have heard from people is like, well, we just have a few people building all the same houses. So it's like, well, is that what we intended with the overlay? Probably not. Um, and because of the complications of the code, you know, it blocks out people who could come build in the community because they just, it's just too complicated. So you have folks who specialize and this is not unique to, although they specialize, they work in El, they work in Westland, they work in Taiwan. They just know that code really well. And then, you know, they build what they build, which is kind of like the same thing. So and they're good people, you know, and, and all that. It's not any shade on them, but, um, it is worthwhile to maybe like at the time to say, what are our goals with these overlays? And then at some point in time, maybe now to look at, are we meeting those goals with the overlay? Or are they actually maybe working against us a little bit like if we want unique housing types, is that are we getting unique designs or are we have we kind of channeled this into, you know, kind of a one size fits all because that's kind of what we end up getting because it's so complicated. Like, well, I'm just, I'm not going to mess with it. I'm just going to build this thing. I know it works. It's low code compliant and a chunk to chunk to chunk. So when we do this work, I think similarly it is worth looking at what are our goals and and objectives and how can we measure them so that down the road, like we'll go through the work of, of engaging with the community and making these revisions, but then down the road, a future council can look at this and say, okay, are these things working as intended? And some of this, again, because we have these different goals that we are trying to meet here. So we have our housing production strategy. Very quantifiable is in in rezoning, we can rezone to provide X number. We could say this rezone would allow this X number of housing units. Great. Okay. And then we have a production strategy that sets some targets and whatnot, and that's just a piece of that overall strategy. And then when we look at these code, the code audit, are we trying to, you know, do we have like time metrics? I mean, we heard feedback, at least on the staff level, that actually they feel like the, the permitting process is pretty smooth, you know, and that they are turning permits around. And the biggest problem is just incomplete applications. So are we trying to reduce the number of incomplete applications by making the code simpler? Is that a reason for the incomplete. I don't know. It would just be good to set some of these metrics. So then down the road we can say, hey, we spent Metro's great money, which is, you know, our money, our tax money, and, and, and it was a good exercise because we streamlined the code. Um, but did it also met these metrics that we were trying, you know, um, to, to, to gauge the work against. So that would be a helpful thing, I think to kind of set that from the, like, what are our goals in regards to these different parts of this overall audit and when are we going to. How can we measure them? And some of it, not all. Everything is quantifiable, but to the best of our ability. I think that would be helpful in general because we all like accountability in this work. So we're not just doing it because it was a thing to do. And we see this like in housing production, right? Nationwide housing shortage. What's everyone doing? Oh, well, we're going to streamline the code. That's great because it's like a thing that everyone can do. But is it actually producing more housing? I mean, it's not bad. Having my code is a great thing, like we all agree with that. But then what is actually going to produce? And a lot of that's outside of our control, which is which is actually such a big question. That's why everyone just goes to these little things. Oh, well, let's, you know, do away with this. Oh, let's do away with public input, you know, but those are not really the things that are standing in the way of housing. And, and then, you know, especially with regards to public input, it just undercutting people's faith in government. And it's, I think going to have it has the opposite effect. And people find other ways to, um, to stand against these instead of bringing people along and understanding how these can be really positive changes for the, for the community. Um, so there's a lot of challenges. Um, but I think that we can, I mean, we always try to, um, uh, always try to validate that, um, faith people have in, in the local government process by, uh, and, and demonstrating that trust by doing this, by being accountable to the things that we're doing. So this is a great, great project complicated. And I think if we can set those, those goals and desired outcomes and then a timeline at which to kind of look and review them, it would be be be great. And even looking back on some things we've done before, like have these been, if they've been effective, um, and then involving, um, I guess I'm curious how, how this work on economic development, like how will that, this kind of, this is kind of code related stuff and tying it into like, then our upcoming economic development work plan a little bit to kind of fit in there.

[1:06:37] That's our understanding. So we're focused on the code piece. There's a lot of other components like the sign code, like permitting building permits that are going to be outside the scope, but we're going to do what we can to make sure, for instance, the, the desired business types that people would like to see that those are uses that are permitted in the commercial zones, things of that nature. And if there's a certain kind of tenant improvement that's triggering land use review frequently, maybe we want to look at, um, you know, changing the thresholds or something of that nature. We haven't gotten too deep into that yet, but that will be part of our next.

[1:07:12] So you mentioned there's like, so there's just types of businesses that aren't found in the use table.

[1:07:18] There are, and there's some flexibility for staff to interpret or the director to interpret, but they're also just emerging business models or businesses that include two types of uses that are, you know, struggle to define. And that goes from the use all the way through SDC charges. What what are we classifying this for? System development charges, things like that.

[1:07:40] So I think.

[1:07:41] We have some zones to that really that really restrict the type of business. And it's not really logical because it's supposed to like, for instance, a zone that's supposed to be less intense, but it allows the more intense businesses it doesn't allow the less intense, I don't know who came up with the the list, but there's some of that business. When we found that even down downtown, it.

[1:07:59] Wasn't, you know.

[1:08:00] It was not you. Well, we found that downtown at Lakeview Village. I mean, we said, well, it's going to be this retail center. And then, of course, they kept coming over the years and saying, well, we can't find these kind of tenants, but we. And we just kept, I think at one point we just said, yeah, just I mean, whoever you can put in there, just like put.

[1:08:15] Them in.

[1:08:15] There. Well, so do you have future modeling that you're working off of for commercial development? I mean, in the sense of, I mean, it used to be a kind of a model saying, okay, you have to have this much retail, this many. Um, I think we need guidance as a city to say, hey, we need flexible code to take us into the future because, um, there's just not. I mean, when was the last time that a retail store started? I mean, it's, we're hoping that we have the retail stores and they're going to stay in business. I mean, and survive. Um, but I don't know, I guess from your expertise in, in suggesting the types of flexibility, I guess, in our zoning to make sure that we attract, um, as many businesses we can, that would fit the right formula of what's to come. So, um, if that makes sense.

[1:09:11] We do have a marketing specialist on the team who's been doing a lot of work in Lake Oswego. And so we're working with her to identify, you know, what's kind of the sweet spot for making sure that you're activating the public realm and all the things that the code is trying to do, but also allowing some flexibility for perhaps new types of businesses. I think the brick and mortar business world has changed quite a bit in the last several years.

[1:09:37] I mean, I know we need a ton more hair salons face Botox. We need, you know, all the all the I mean.

[1:09:45] Specialty stores.

[1:09:47] Well, yeah, but I mean, I'm saying we we've almost become over inundated with exercise studios. I mean, it's, um, they're great because the parking lots are full, but, um, but it's just trying to figure that part out for us.

[1:10:01] So, so yeah, we did, and I didn't mention that, but we do have a marketing specialist on the team who's very familiar with the Lake Oswego market as well.

[1:10:09] Okay.

[1:10:09] Well, so to guide this work, we're going to put together this ad hoc technical advisory stack. So we have a resolution.

[1:10:17] That's the next thing on the last thing to last request unless anybody else wants to speak about the project. But yes, we're requesting that you approve resolution 2652 to form an ad hoc, um, code audit Technical Advisory committee, and at the next um, council, uh, probably will be on the consent agenda to assign the members.

[1:10:42] Yes.

[1:10:42] So we're going to work on that.

[1:10:44] We're going to work on that.

[1:10:45] I got ideas. Yes. Um, Evan, the I did want to ask because as I was mentioning before, it's great. We have, I think one of the, one of the billets on the TAC is, um, you know, for a builder with experience in Ela, which of course makes sense, but it might be good to get someone who doesn't, who has been kind of, you know, uh, code coded it out of ELO, um, because of, you know, the gospel according to Evan and, um.

[1:11:13] The, uh, somebody who's maybe somewhat familiar.

[1:11:17] Just to get that perspective for someone who works in a different, you know, because we're just going to get, you know, there's an element of this that's a little protectionist too. So I think we got to be careful. Yeah. Put it out, I don't know.

[1:11:29] Yes. We should get together and discuss it.

[1:11:32] Maybe there's enough flexibility on there for us to.

[1:11:34] Yeah. We can add add other members. Okay. Right now the list is kind of small. Okay. Yes we can, we can do that.

[1:11:41] Just don't make it too big that it's in motion.

[1:11:44] Yes. That's what we're trying to prevent.

[1:11:46] Yeah.

[1:11:46] Approve resolution 2652 to form an ad hoc code audit technical advisory committee.

[1:11:55] I second okay. Well motion was made by. Okay. Councilor Manson seconded by Councilor Afghan. Uh, is there any further discussion on the tech? No. Okay. All those in favor, say aye. Aye. Any opposed? Motion passes, seven zero. All right. Um, Evan Lee. Karen, thank you all very much. We really appreciate it. Thank you so much. Thank you, thank you, thank you.

[1:12:15] Good luck. May the may the force be with you.

[1:12:20] Um.

[1:12:22] Well, tonight is a notable night because. And it's a sad night in a way. Um, but a night of gratitude because this is Lynn's last meeting with the with the council. It is not an easy job to come in and serve in a temporary position in the city. There's there's limitations, you know, on it, but it's a very important job. And Lynn came into ELO. Well, of course, Lynn has been in ELO. It's been kind of very special to have a long time neighbor like Lynn, someone who's been so engaged at a statewide level, at a regional level and a local level for so many years, serve in this really critical role and give back to the community in this way. And, and coming at a challenging time. It is never easy to come into any organization that's in the middle of a transition, um, at a time where many people are learning of that transition, right at that, at that moment and come in as, as, as the leader. Um, when people know that it's time limited to, you know, we all know that those dynamics can be very challenging. But Lynn, definitely you did not operate like someone who was only going to be here for six months. Uh, you really, um, shepherded the organization through this time of change. You brought in so many new ideas, new energy, um, new you. You did so much community engagement out, meeting with neighbors, meeting with folks. I mean, of all types in the business community, um, uh, dealing with the kind of day to day issues of people. I mean, really wanted you to be here a long time. We heard so much good feedback from folks on you being your so solutions oriented to their problems. So proactive. Um, you provided me just individually so much support on the regional, um, things that I do, um, that I honestly had never had in my time as mayor. So it was so great. I felt like I had the biggest expert right in my ear at all times. Um, and so I'm really going to miss working with you, but just wanted to extend on behalf of the community, our most sincere gratitude to all the, um, all the energy, all the care, um, and passion you brought with you to this, to this job. You've touched this organization in a special way and really prepared us for this next transition. With Denzel coming in, you set everyone up here for success, and I just can't thank you enough.

[1:14:53] To come back. But it is also humbling when you all are looking at a code audit on things that I passed 20 plus years ago.

[1:15:01] So you made these overlays.

[1:15:03] Apologies for all the overlays.

[1:15:06] As you we know.

[1:15:09] Everybody is special. Everybody is unique. Um, it has been an honor. I couldn't have done it without your leadership. Uh, you guys were open and, uh, always there and available. And I really appreciate that. And the staff were just amazing. Thank you to all of you who are still here waiting. Um, and it is, it has been refreshing to see the level of dedication inside the agency to make the city the, the amazingness that it is and why we all want to stay here for so long. So thank you. Keep doing the good work. I will be cheering from the sidelines. We'll serve on any committee in the future. Um, and, uh, really look forward to this next phase of Lake Oswego and, uh, the shepherding that you're all, whether you're here for 3 or 4 months or whether you're back out in the community or you're on council, I know that there will be shepherding going on. To make sure that the big things that you all started get done. So thank you. Thank you for your thank you. Your leadership.

[1:16:24] Thank you. Thanks.

[1:16:36] Colleagues. For. No. Okay. I know we're all eager to go and celebrate after the meeting, but first we have an executive session. I'm sure all these people are still hanging out here.

[1:16:52] So, Erica, would you like to, um, read us into executive session, please? S22:

[1:17:21] Thank you very much. We are going to conduct the executive session in the side room. We will. As Erica mentioned, this will conclude the broadcast portion of the meeting, but we are going to recess and then we'll reconvene in the side room.

[1:17:43] So.

September 15, 2026 Lake Oswego City Council Meeting

Transcript