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West University Task Force Final Report June 2003 West University Neighborhood Scoping Re0ort In 1995 and 1996 a variety of partners closely studied the West University Neighborhood to examine neighborhood conditions and to set goals. The partners included the City of Eugene, The University of OregOn, PeaceHealth, The University Small Business Association, the neighborhood's religious organizations, university students, community lenders and property owners/managers. They came together over concerns about crime, nuisance behaviors, and a decline in appearances. The partners recomraended the implementation of a multi-year .revitalization effort. Four ,'immediate strategies" were presented: 1) increase police patrols; 2) identify a permanent Public Safety Station, 3) increase staffing at the public safety station;and 4) request City Council to support a proposed public safety tax base measure. Each of those strategies was adopted. In addition eleven short term strategies were recommended (ple .ase see Appendix A) and most were . enacted- at least for awhile. The Seeping Report also included long term strategies relating to housing standards, property maintenance, the closed park, and automobile storage. The neighborhood, by all accounts, impwved aider the 1996 Seeping Report. There was a marked impwvement on 13th Avenue in particular. Unfortunately, due in part to the budget cuts related to Ballot Measures 47 and50, most of the longer term objectives have not been realized. Task Force Accomplishments The WUN Task Force was convened in late October 2002 and met more than a dozen times to discuss potential solutions to improve the neighborhood. The first several meetings were devoted to brainstorming ideas to prevent future riots, but also focused on opportunities to address some of the underlying issues that have been facing the neighborhood for many years, such as vandalism, pan handling, and deterioration of th6 physical environment. The group took a walking tour early in the process to get a feel for the general atmosphere of the neighborhood and saw first hand some problem properties, unimproved alleyways and other challenges to the physical environment. The group also reviewed background information on past WUN improvement plans, crime statistics, demographic information, and model pwgrams/s, trategies in other comm~lnities. The Eugene Police Department, the University of Oregon and Oregon Liquor Control Commission gave presentations on their past and proposed future strategies relevant to the task force's charge. In'January, the task force was ready to narrow down a huge list °fpotential solutions .to a set of priority short-term strategies that would provide immediate benefit to the neighborhood. These strategies were submitted to decision-makers in the form of an interim report, dated January 10, 2003. One of the priority short-term strategies cited in the report was to host a Neighborhood Forum to expand public participation and input into the task force's work and to §eilerate interest in a neighborhood association. The forum, held on February 23"~, was attended by more than 60 residents, property and business owners. Forum participants were actively engaged in'helping , .. ~.. identify additional solutions for the area, as well as provide feedback on the ideas developed by"