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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCC Newsletter - 11/10/04EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER November 10, 2004 City of Eugene 777 Pearl Street, Room 105 Eugene, Oregon 97401-2793 (541) 682-5010 (541) 682-5414 (FAX) www.ci.eugene.or, us COUNCILOR NATHANSON RECEIVES LEAGUE OF OREGON CITIES' LEADERSHIP AWARD RECREATION'S PEER COURT PROGRAM TEENS ADDRESS LANE COUNTY COMMISSIONERS PUTUMAYO'S LATINAS: WOMEN OF LATIN AMERICA NEIGHBORHOOD PARK IN SANTA CLARA REVITALIZED FINANCE STAFF MEMBER NAMED TO NATIONAL COMMITTEE BUY A RIVERPLAY DISCOVERY BRICK AT BI-MART THIS HOLIDAY SEASON OLD SKINNER BUTTE PARK PLAYGROUND DEMOLISHED TO MAKE WAY FOR RIVERPLAY CAMPBELL COMMUNITY CENTER HOLIDAY BAZAAR SANTA CLARA NEIGHBORS INVITED TO HELP PLAN NEW NEIGHBORHOOD PARK Councilor Nathanson Receives Leaque of Oreqon Cities' Leadership Award At the annual League of Oregon Cities Conference in Portland this weekend, City Councilor Nancy Nathanson was honored as the recipient the 2004 James C. Richards Memorial Award. The award is given to one local elected official each year in honor of city officials who serve the citizens of Oregon through exceptional personal investment in intergovernmental affairs. Councilor Nathanson was recognized for her outstanding public service, including three terms on the Eugene City Council and prior work on the Eugene Planning Commission, during which time she chaired and served on numerous national, state and local intergovernmental boards and commissions. At the conference, Councilor Nathanson also participated in an expert panel on telecommunications, an issue that has earned her accolades state- and nationwide. The City of Eugene has been a pioneer in management of the public right-of-way related to telecommunications. Nathanson was one of the original visionaries, providing tireless advocacy for retaining municipal responsibility, as well as improving access, reliability and affordability of telecommunications. The work of the City Council's Committee on Telecommunications, which Nathanson chaired for two years, led to the adoption of two comprehensive ordinances governing cell tower zoning, site review, public rights-of-way management, compensation, and community telecom re-investment. Resulting telecom fees have provided more than $2 million for telecommunications projects benefiting the Eugene community. In 2002, Nathanson was elected to the National League of Cities (NLC) Board of Directors after serving for several years on the NLC's Information Technology and Communications Committee. She is also on the NLC's Municipalities in Transition panel. Councilor Nathanson's long resume of past and present involvement is testament to the depth of her commitment to public service. It includes currently chairing the Mayor's Parks and Open Space Committee, participating on the Lane County Public Safety Coordinating Council, and past involvement in the Intergovernmental Human Services Committee, the City Council's Committee on Intergovernmental Relations (IGR) and the League of Oregon Cities Resolutions Committee. She has also served as the City Council president and vice-president. EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER PAGE 1 November 10, 2004 The positive effects of Nancy's generous contribution to the City organization, the citizens of Eugene and to intergovernmental partnerships will be felt for many years. For more information, contact Mary Walston, 682-5406. Recreation's Peer Court Proqram Teens Address Lane County Commissioners Teen Court is a community-based program primarily for first-time juvenile offenders. Its function is to provide accountability for delinquent behavior and an opportunity for community restoration. The Teen Court option negates the need for intervention by the formal juvenile justice system. Another benefit is that participants, after successful completion of the program, may petition Youth Services to have their records expunged. At the youth court, juvenile offenders appear in front of a group of peers who recommend appropriate consequences, e.g., community service, restitution to victims, treatment for delinquency-related problems (drug treatment, counseling), etc. The primary goal for youth volunteers is to build leadership skills and civic responsibility. Research indicates that local youth court graduates have significantly fewer repeat crimes than juveniles disciplined through the traditional system. The difference is especially significant over the long-term. Local peer court youths were invited to speak to the Lane County Board of Commissioners as part of its "Youth Voices Matter" project. On November 3, four youth volunteers from Bethel and West Eugene Teen Courts found their way through the construction at the County building and were invited to sit at the commissioners' table. They described the Teen Court process and their own involvement. One youth bravely acknowledged that his original introduction to Teen Court was as a defendant, and said he decided to volunteer because the program helped him. The students invited the commissioners to visit and get to know their local peer courts. For more information, contact Recreation Teen Court Coordinator Bruce Steinmetz at 682-6376. Putumayo's Latinas: Women of Latin America Change-of-season chill setting in? Why not take a break and head to a warmer clime without having to leave Eugene? On Sunday, November 21, the Hult Center presents Putumayo's Latinas: Women of Latin America in the Silva Concert Hall. This diverse and exciting performance is sure to warm the soul and is "guaranteed to make you feel good." It features three extraordinary divas singing Latin American music in contemporary and traditional styles, with unique percussion, guitars and wind instruments. Toto la Momposina (Columbia), Mariana Montalvo (Chile) and Belo Velloso (Brazil) are dynamic female singers who demonstrate the rich history of Latin American music with the influences of European, African and Native American cultures. The performance features each singer as a soloist with her own band and native instruments. Each female vocalist has a distinctive style that reflects her unique background and the combination of the three performers will illustrate the artistic and musical qualities that define the extraordinary music of women in Latin America. The Putumayo label is known for high-quality artists and an upbeat blend of songs. The performance showcases the exciting and diverse music of the Putumayo CD titled "Latinas: Women of Latin America." The theme for the CD was inspired by the fundamental role women play in the musical culture of Latin America. Come on down to the Hult and prepare to "feel good." Showtime is 4 p.m. For more information, contact the Hult Center Ticket Office at 682-5000. EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER PAGE 2 November 10, 2004 Neighborhood Park in Santa Clara Revitalized Thanks to the 1998 parks and open space bond measure, children can now enjoy two new playgrounds at Awbrey Park, located at River Road and Spring Creek Drive. The two new play areas, one designed for children ages 2-5 and the other designed for children ages 5-12, feature multiple slides, climbing structures, spring critters, and a digging station. While the children find endless diversion, their parents and caregivers can enjoy a walk along the many new paths in the park or some of the other new amenities such as picnic tables and park seating. A new accessible parking lot was also added. One of the innovative features of the improved parking lot is stormwater drainage through a bio-filtration swale, where runoff travels through a vegetated area to filter impurities such as heavy metals, oils and other foreign substances related to automobiles. "It's wonderful to see people using this park again," says Sally Markos, who lives near the park. "Children are playing on the new play equipment, and neighbors are walking along the new paths throughout the park." Three-year-old Isaac Milovich enthusiastically corroborates this claim as he scampers from one play feature to another with the playful invitation, "Watch this everybody!" One of his favorite features is the climbable yellow school bus, and Milovich gladly offers thrilling rides to all interested adults at left! The northern portion of the park consists of a wooded natural area with Spring Creek winding through it. A pedestrian footbridge across the creek and a path from the park to the residential neighborhood north of the park are planned for a future phase of development. The park was originally a county park and also includes two barbeque pits for public use. A park dedication is planned for next spring. For more information about Awbrey Park, call Philip Richardson, park planner, at 682-4906 or Scott Milovich, park construction manager, at 682-6086. Finance Staff Member Named to National Committee Sue Cutsogeorge, the Financial Analysis Manager and Treasury Officer for the City, has been named to the Economic Development and Capital Planning Committee of the Government Finance Officers Association (GFOA). GFOA is a professional association of about 16,000 state and local finance officers throughout the United States and Canada. The purpose of the GFO^ is to enhance and promote the professional management of governments for the public benefit. The GFOA accomplishes this mission by identifying and developing financial policies and practices and promoting them through education, training and leadership. As the role of local government has evolved in recent years, the finance officer has frequently been put in an unfamiliar position of participating in economic development projects and decision-making. In addition, it is becoming increasingly important for governments to consider development issues as they prepare and execute their long-term capital plans. These trends prompted the GFO^ to create the new Economic Development and Capital Planning Committee last year. The committee consists of about 20 members representing different levels and types of governments from all across the country. Its mission is to "assist finance officers to become knowledgeable participants in planning, evaluation, and execution of community/economic development and capital issues through the drafting and promotion of policies, procedures, and recommended practices." Ms. Cutsogeorge will serve a three-year term on this committee. For more information, contact Sue Cutsogeorge at 541-652-5559. EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER PAGE 3 November 10, 2004 Buy a RiverPlay Discovery Brick at Bi-Mart this Holiday Season Eugene residents can now buy customized RiverPlay "Discovery Bricks" at any of Bi-Mart's eight local stores and help make the new, destination RiverPlay playground at Skinner Butte Park a reality. This opportunity will provide a significant boost to the "One Brick at a Time" fundraising campaign that the City of Eugene and Eugene Rotary Club, in partnership with local businesses and community members, launched this fall. In order to fund Phase 1 of what will be the area's largest and most unique playground, the City must sell 1,000 bricks by the end of December. "This is a great project for Bi-Mart--and the community--to get behind," says Bi-Mart President John Harris. "We can be most supportive by doing what we do best--getting the word out and making it easy for folks to buy a brick at one of our stores. What a great gift for the person who has everything!" The project is funded in part by the 1998 parks and open space bond measure; but, in order to realize the full scope of the vision, donations are needed from the community. So far, approximately $170,000 has been raised in grants and in-kind and cash donations. The Discovery Bricks that are being sold will form the entry pathway into the playground. The cost of each custom-inscribed brick is $100, and the donation is tax deductible. Individuals and non-profit groups can help sell bricks as well. Individuals can earn free bricks and HuIt Center tickets, and non-profits can earn 10% of all brick sales for their cause or organization. For more information about RiverPlay and the "One Brick at a Time" fundraising campaign, call Carrie Peterson, park development coordinator, at 682-4907. Aisc, look for Bi-Mart's ribbon ads in The Register-Guard every week through the holidays. For more information about Bi-Mart store locations, call 344-0681. Old Skinner Butte Park Play.qround Demolished to Make Way for RiverPlay On Saturday, November 6, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m., over 30 volunteers from the Eugene Rotary Club and others helped City parks staff demolish the old Skinner Butte Park playground to prepare the site for the new, destination RiverPlay playground. The site was buzzing with activity as volunteers jack-hammered select concrete borders and paths (pictured at right), ripped out some of the existing play equipment/furniture, cleared vegetation around restrooms, and stripped and painted picnic tables and benches, while younger children frolicked at the RiverPlay activity zone. All local television stations and The Register-Guard covered the event. Recent Register-Guard stories about the project can be found at: www.register.quard.com/news/2004/11/05/cl .cr. playground.1105.html and www. register.q uard.com/news/2004/11/07/d 1 .ct.demolition. 1107.html. Construction of the hands-on, state-of-the-art playground is scheduled to begin in spring 2005. The playground will include a variety of unique play elements such as a play replica of Skinner Butte, an ancient history sand dig, miniature Willamette River, and Kalapuya and pioneer villages. For more information about this and other volunteer opportunities in Eugene parks, call Matt McRae, Volunteers In Parks coordinator, at 682-4845. For more information about RiverPlay, call Carrie Peterson, park development coordinator, at 682-4907. EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER PAGE 4 November 10, 2004 Campbell Community Center Holiday Bazaar Campbell Community Center's Annual Holiday Bazaarwill be held on Saturday, November 20, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at 155 High Street. This delightful event features a wide variety of crafts, "timeless treasures," plants, jewelry, baked goods (including scrumptious pies), preserves, and Campbell's famous Hot Mustard. A beautiful handmade woven rug and a lovely handmade porcelain doll will be raffled off. Also, a number of Campbell classes assembled lovely baskets for a silent auction, which include baked goods, watercolor originals, gift certificates, and a variety of needlework and wood-crafted items. Mark your calendars and invite your family, friends and neighbors to the center's only fund-raising event of the year. Proceeds will be deposited into Campbell's Trust Fund and used to purchase items not covered by the budget. For example, a recent, very useful acquisition was roaster pans for the kitchen. No need to worry about preparing breakfast or lunch that day, because both will be provided at very reasonable prices: Continental Breakfast: 9:00 a.m. - 10:30 a.m. Hardy Beef Stew Lunch: 11:00 a.m. - 1:30 p.m. (Pie by the slice and coffee will also be available,) For more information, contact Campbell Community Center Manager Yvaughn Tompkins at 682-6315. Santa Clara Neiqhbors Invited to Help Plan New Neiqhborhood Park Neighbors in the North Santa Clara area are invited to the first in a series of workshops to help design Filbert Meadows Park on Thursday, November 18, from 6:30 to 8 p.m. at the Spring Creek Elementary School cafeteria. The 3.3-acre neighborhood park, located off of Naismith Boulevard north of Irvington Drive, was purchased with 1998 parks and open space bond measure funds. Construction is scheduled for summer 2006. The neighborhood workshop will focus on gathering ideas for a new park design. Basic neighborhood park facilities include: a children's play area, accessible pathways, park furniture such as benches, picnic tables, and trash receptacles, and open space for recreation and relaxation. Participants will help decide how these features will fit into the park, as well as discuss other options such as lighting, irrigation, a shelter, natural area preservation and restoration, trees, landforms, and art. For more information about this and subsequent workshops, call Robin Hostick, park planner, at 682-4915. EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER PAGE 5 November 10, 2004