Council questions Lane County draft IGA for Lowell Covered Bridge wayside

City staff presented a comparison of a 2006 Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) with a new draft from Lane County covering the Lowell Covered Bridge wayside. The 2006 IGA had limited the City's responsibilities to litter and trash removal, graffiti removal, opening and closing the interpretive center, routine cleaning, and payment of electricity, while the County retained responsibility for maintenance and repairs and the City reimbursed up to $2,000 per fiscal year for costs not eligible for transportation funding.

The new draft IGA departs from the earlier framework. Staff noted the draft includes language that could require the City to reimburse Lane County for periodic, routine, and emergency repairs not eligible for transportation funding. Council President Jimmy Murray raised concern that the draft places reimbursement obligations on the City without clear prior approval or a right to contest charges, and he flagged what appears to be a textual conflict between a provision that says the County will "schedule, perform, and fund" maintenance and later sections that impose reimbursement obligations on the City.

Council directed staff to seek written clarification from Lane County about the intent of the provisions, to correct outdated references to "transportation funding," and to bring the clarified draft to the City Attorney for review before any agreement is forwarded. The council did not take a final vote on the IGA at the work session; staff identified the appropriate annual reimbursement threshold (replacing the former $2,000 figure) and the distinction between routine/preventative maintenance and emergency repairs as key negotiating points.