County new-home fee to help fund parks.

Byline: County Beat by Joe Mosley The Register-Guard

THOSE WHO BUILD and buy new homes in the county are now on the hook for at least a portion of what it will cost to keep local parks in step with population growth.

County commissioners, after noodling the idea for two years, approved a system development charge this week that will be added to all new-home building permits for unincorporated areas of the county, beginning next month.

The $404 fee will build a fund that can be spent only on expansion and enhancement of the parks system.

After hashing and rehashing the proposal for so long with Parks Division staff, commissioners had little more to say before approving the fee Wednesday.

The system development charge originally was intended to apply to building permits in cities as well as unincorporated areas - a means of paying for growth in the county parks system with money derived from all additions to the local housing stock.

But the Home Builders Association of Lane County maintained that a countywide fee would increase building costs and be unfair to Eugene and Springfield residents who already pay separate system development charges for park additions in their cities.

The scaled-back proposal is expected to raise about 20 percent of the $13.7 million likely to be needed for parks to keep pace with growth in the next 20 years.

Cable promises

The Board of Commissioners and the Metropolitan Policy Committee each signed off on a resolution this week that seeks - get this - improved customer service from the giants of cable television.

The county, Eugene and Springfield are parties to a franchise agreement for cable television service throughout the metropolitan area. The franchise originally was held by TCI Cable, then AT&T Broadband. It's about to be picked up by Comcast, another coast-to-coast conglomerate.

But there have been numerous complaints about AT&T's handling of the local franchise - the company backed away from its promise to upgrade its system in the River Road and Santa Clara areas, and last year closed its local subscriber complaint office in favor of a nationwide system of complaint-handling.

"AT&T's change in service was done to save money. Whether or not it has saved money, it has increased subscriber dissatisfaction with the service," county staff member Milo Mecham wrote in a background memo explaining this week's resolution.

So the Metropolitan Policy Committee - an intergovernmental group that takes up matters of mutual interest to the county, Eugene and Springfield - will ask Comcast to keep the upgrade promises made by its predecessor and to ensure that customer complaints are "received expeditiously and resolved promptly." "They're basically looking for assurances that this new company ... will honor those promises," Lane County Administrator Bill Van Vactor said.

Online information coming

Internet access to county records - approved on a limited basis in August - was opened up to all county departments this week, along with the caveat that a little discretion would be a good thing.

Agencies have the authority to place any and all of their public records on the Internet, which many see as an easy means of increasing public access and awareness.

But when the idea first came up two years ago, pleas for privacy came from prosecutors, judges, police officers and others. They maintained that increasing access to records that people already can get over the counter at county offices would make crimes such as "identity theft" easier and may subject some people to stalking or harassment.

So after proceeding last summer by making available Land Management Division records - primarily building and planning permits - and sheriff's office activity logs, commissioners asked their Technology Management Team to seek more public input on privacy concerns. They also asked the team to consult law enforcement officials on ways to minimize risks.

A Lane Manual amendment approved this week specifically directs the county's various departments to avoid disclosing over the Internet such information as Social Security numbers, driver's license numbers, mothers' maiden names, credit card or bank account information, home telephone numbers, medical records and places of birth.

"The interest to exceed legal requirements to protect certain personal information is in response to those members of the public who want some additional protection," said a written analysis of the policy by Information Services Department staff.

However, the amendment still opens the Internet door to information including property tax and transaction records, voter registration data, court records, marriage license applications and birth records.

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COUNTY BEAT Joe Mosley