June 26, 2014 - City Council Newsletter

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Eugene Transportation System Plan Policy Review On Monday, June 30, the Transportation Community Resource Group (TCRG) will discuss goals and policies that will direct Eugene’s transportation priorities and expenditures for the next 20 years. These policies, once adopted by the City Council, will be a key component in Eugene’s Transportation System Plan (TSP). The TSP will be an element of Envision Eugene, the City’s long-range plan for creating a future that is livable, sustainable, beautiful and prosperous. The TSP is important because it will determine how the City spends its limited transportation monies, for what purposes, and in what order. The goals and policies were structured to integrate “triple bottom line” sustainability considerations (i.e., economy, equity, and environment) into the transportation plan from the outset. The TCRG, a broad-based committee of citizen advisors to City staff, also used this sustainability framework to prioritize a list of potential transportation projects and programs. Next steps include preparing cost estimates for the proposed projects and 20-year revenue projections, analyzing how traffic will function as the city grows as portrayed in Envision Eugene, and packaging the Transportation System Plan for adoption. The public is invited to comment on all phases of Eugene’s Transportation System Plan. The Transportation Community Resource Group will review the draft policies on June 30 from 10:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. in the Eugene Public Library, Bascom-Tykeson Rooms. A set of draft policies, a list of recommended projects, and comment forms are available at www.EugeneTSP.org. For more information about the Transportation System Plan, please contact Senior Transportation Planner Kurt Yeiter at 541-682-8379. Recreation Division’s Summer Camps Begin This week, dozens of children, youth and teens began attending one of 19 summer camps offered by the Recreation Division. Recreation has more than 150 summer camps on tap, all of which will be held by the end of August. The week- long camps range from “Magical Make Believe” for three- to five-year-olds, to “Virtue-Oso-Good,” for six- to 11-year-olds that includes a trip to the AC Gilbert Discovery Museum in Salem; camps for teens such as Junior Aquatics Staff, Opal Arts Camp, the Four Rs: Ropes, Rock, Ride & Raft camp, and Counselor-in-Training. Recreation’s free playground program, Fun for All, will be held each weekday at seven neighborhood parks, beginning June 30. The Recreation Division has 300 camp counselors and 40 lifeguards on staff for the summer. Each received training to ensure that campers have fun and learn new things in a safe, respectful and supportive environment. Many of Recreation’s regular employees got their first job working for the City as a camp counselor or lifeguard. For more information about Recreation’s summer camps, contact Recreation Services Director Craig Smith at 541-682- 5334. Downtown Eugene Public Library to Reduce Sunday Hours Starting July 6, the Downtown Eugene Public Library will be open on Sundays from 1 to 6 p.m. Previously, the Downtown Library opened at 10 a.m. on Sundays. The reduction in open hours is one of the cost-saving measures taken to balance the City of Eugene budget for the coming year (Fiscal Year 2015). The new budget’s effects on Eugene Public Library services are: Bethel Branch will remain open; Sheldon Branch will remain open for one year while options for future funding are explored, and the Downtown Library will be open fewer hours on Sundays. Hours at the Library’s Bethel and Sheldon branches, and all outside book returns, will not change. Open hours at the Bethel and Sheldon branches were previously reduced as part of the 2012 budget. According to Library Director Connie Bennett, “The decision to reduce these particular hours at the downtown location was based on an analysis of patterns of public use. Our goals included ensuring as much access as possible to library services, and best use of tax dollars to meet community needs in a fiscally sustainable manner.” For more information, contact the Eugene Public Library at 541-682-5450 or www.eugene-or.gov/library. EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER PAGE 2 June 26, 2014