Item 7: Action: Ordinance on Infill Compatibility Standards Code Amendments

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Dear Mayor and City Councilors, My name is Katie Hulse. I live in Ward 3 in a small house. I have no car I ride my bike st everywhere I go. I rode my bike to the city council meeting on September 21, 2009 to listen to the debate concerning MICAP. On the way home from the meeting I encountered several folks who made me extremely uncomfortable. I belong to an at-risk population for sexual assault. I am a young female student at the University of Oregon, and during fall term the number of reported sexual assaults and issues concerning harassment and rapes are higher on campus than at any other time. Because I ride my bike, or walk late at night to and from meetings and events I put myself at risk on a nightly basis. I respect that many people are interested in building green, and infilling at very high rates. On the ground, the situation I run into every weekend is one of a growing number of drunken young men and women, who, when congregated tend to be more violent and prone to take actions they wouldn’t take in smaller groups. Large residential structures provide opportunities for incidents to become out of control much more quickly due solely to the increased number of people present. The proximity of these 4 and 5-story buildings to my home not only worries me because there are children that live near my house, but also because I am forced to bike around late at night. It is my only mode of transportation. I do not have a car, nor do I have a parking space, as those are constantly filled. It would be interesting to ask the folks here tonight if they would feel comfortable with their 22 year old daughters walking or biking home from downtown on a Saturday night th up 19 past huge numbers of congregated drunk people. I imagine many of the parents would not be. I ask that you recognize the potential for an increase in crime rates, especially as the school year begins and football games begin, with alcohol and drug use at a high level. Please protect all the young women of the campus neighborhood who walk and bike at night. Keep the neighborhood safe, by helping to keep populations in and around the residential zone exactly that: residential, not zoned for partying and mayhem. I live here, and want to feel safe. Katie Hulse Ward 3