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15 City Council Regular Meeting Minutes • August 22, 2000 Page 14 1 issue while an elected representative and is happy to be held accountable. Thuesen stated 2 most of the conversations have been peaceful and productive dialogues but along the way 3 it turned into an emotional, nasty debate. He stated he had received a call whereby he 4 was treated with abuse which showed him something had gone astray. Thuesen 5 commented on the high regard he holds his responsibility as a teacher in being 6 responsible for children, which he finds to be the most precious commodity and worth 7 more than anything, including Apache Plaza. He stated in comparison,the Apache Plaza 8 consideration was not pressure to him. 9 Thuesen commented on the impact of this project on the City and suggested there is a 10 fine line between analyzing a situation and losing objectivity and your viewpoint. He 11 stated he asked himself if.he,was remaining objective and not locking himself into a 12 position too early. Thuesen stated he finds the redevelopment as proposed stands on its 13 own merits and he judged it on its own merits, suggesting that a yes vote is not an act of 14 desperation on the part of the City Council. He stated that he would vote against the 15 project without hesitation if he believed it was a bad deal for the City, even if there were 16 no other deals "waiting in the wings." He noted the overwhelming vote of confidence 17 and support from the Planning Commission which is a body of diverse residents who did 18 an outstanding job in analyzing this project. Thuesen commended the Planning 19 Commission for their effort and congratulated them for a job well done. .He noted the l0 consultants that worked on this project in an effort to guide the City through these issues. l Thuesen noted there are little or no financial risks to the City, even with the 22 condemnation process should that occur. 23 Thuesen noted that Hillcrest.Development has hit targets at a high level and you cannot 24 ignore history as it is a great predictor of what will occur in the future. He stated there 25 will be pros and cons and a level of uncertainty and risk but, after weighing those issues, 26 he still believes residents will benefit in the short and long term for Hillcrest 27 Development to work their preferred plan in the redevelopment of Apache Plaza. 28 Thuesen stated he is not on the Hillcrest payroll and owes them nothing but wanted to 29 thank them for coming in and putting up with the "games" played. He congratulated the 30 community Liberty decides to move to-and thanked Hillcrest for being above board, 31 incredibly honest, and straight forwar&..Thuesen stated he hopes St. Anthony is that 32 lucky the next time. 33 Cavanaugh stated it has been 12 to 15 years since the tornado hit Apache Plaza and it has 34 been on the decline since that time. He stated the question before the Council is the 35 redevelopment of 35 acres,which is no small matter and he appreciates the frustration and 36 anxiety of his colleagues. He-noted that CUB Foods was not a stand alone project but 37 part of what was expected to be a renaissance of retail development, however,that did 38 not happen. Cavanaugh stated previous Councils supported retail so that was the driving 39 force sent to developers as the preference of the Council. As a result, two movie theater •