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HomeMy WebLinkAbout04-30-15 - City Council Newsletter City of Eugene 125 East 8 Avenue, 2 Floor thnd Eugene, Oregon 97401 (541) 682-5010 (541) 682-5414 (FAX) www.eugene-or.gov EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER April 30, 2015 IN THIS EDITION LANE TRANSIT DISTRICT AND CITY OF EUGENE KICK OFF “MOVINGAHEAD” WITH MAY WORKSHOPS NORTHWEST WOMEN WRITERS SYMPOSIUM AT EUGENE PUBLIC LIBRARY SOUTH WILLAMETTE STREET IMPROVEMENT PLAN: PILOT PROJECT CONSTRUCTION AHEAD PUBLIC WORKS DIVERSITY COMMITTEE GARNERS NATIONAL AWARD FOR ACTION PLAN PARTICIPATE WITH A TEAM IN THE 2015 BUSINESS COMMUTE CHALLENGE PUBLIC WORKS DRAFT AMERICANS WITH DISABILITIES ACT TRANSITION PLAN AVAILABLE FOR REVIEW LOVE FOOD NOT WASTE PROGRAM SUPPORTS SEED TO SUPPER OPEN HOUSE ON FINAL PHASE OF I-5@BELTLINE INTERCHANGE PROJECT RAIN RECEIVES INTERNATIONAL RECOGNITION FOR EXCELLENCE IN TOWN-GOWN RELATIONS AROUND THE CITY Lane Transit District and City of Eugene Kick Off “MovingAhead” with May Workshops Starting this month, the City of Eugene and Lane Transit District (LTD) – with the support of other regional partners – are launching MovingAhead - a new effort to determine how to improve the main streets that connect neighborhoods, shopping areas, and jobs in the region. MovingAhead will result in prioritized projects for people who use transit, walk, bike or drive. The goal is projects that will support great neighborhoods and help keep residents and the region’s economy healthy. The study is focused on important travel corridors identified in City of Eugene, LTD, and regional plans. Corridors under consideration include: Highway 99, River Road, 30 Avenue to th Lane Community College, Coburg Road, Goodpasture Island Road to Valley River Center, Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard, Centennial Boulevard, and Randy Pape Beltline. MovingAhead is hosting workshops in the community to gather input and understand how these streets should work in the future. Supervised children’s activities and snacks will be provided. Presentation and group activities will begin at 5:30 p.m. Workshops will be held at the following locations: Highway 99 Corridor Monday, May 18, 5 - 7:30 p.m. Willamette High School, 1801 Echo Hollow Road River Road Corridor Tuesday, May 19, 5 - 7:30 p.m. North Eugene High School, 200 Silver Lane 30th Avenue/Lane Community College Corridor Wednesday, May 27, 5 - 7:30 p.m. Eugene Public Library, 100 West 10 Avenue th EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER PAGE 1 April 30, 2015 Northeast Corridors (Coburg Road, MLK Jr. Boulevard/Centennial Boulevard, Valley River Center) Thursday, May 28, 5 - 7:30 p.m. Monroe Middle School, 2800 Bailey Lane Community members may learn more about the project and participate in the first phase online from May 11 – Jun. 5 at MovingAhead.org. For more information, contact Terri Harding at terri.l.harding@ci.eugene.or.us or 541-682-5635, or Chris Henry at chris.c.henry@ci.eugene.or.us or 541-682-8472. Northwest Women Writers Symposium at Eugene Public Library In May, the Eugene Public Library will host a number of free events as part of the fourth annual Northwest Women Writers Symposium sponsored by University of Oregon (UO) Center for the Study of Women in Society. This year's symposium theme is “Our Daily Bread: Women’s Stories of Food and Resilience." On Thursday, May 7, at 6 p.m., writer Diana Abu-Jaber will speak at the Downtown Library. Beloved by both readers and reviewers, and known by many Eugeneans from her time living here and teaching at the UO, she is also a sparkling speaker. Her first novel, "Arabian Jazz," was honored with an Oregon Book Award. "Crescent," her second novel, won the PEN Center Award for Literary Fiction and the American Book Award. She has also written a memoir-with-recipes, "The Language of Baklava," the novel "Origin," and the novel "Birds of Paradise." On Saturday, May 9, at 4 p.m., writer Novella Carpenter, the author of a bestselling memoir, "Farm City: The Education of an Urban Farmer," will give a talk at the Downtown Library. Widely published in magazines and online, her most recent book is "Gone Feral: Tracking My Dad through the Wild." The Library will also host a panel discussion on Saturday, May 9, at 9:30 a.m., and writing workshops starting at 1:30 p.m. (pre-registration required; details at http://bit.ly/1NroXPY). For more information, contact the Eugene Public Library at www.eugene-or.gov/library or 541-682-5450. South Willamette Street Improvement Plan: Pilot Project Construction Ahead A project is scheduled to begin in mid-summer to construct permanent components and test improvements to Willamette Street between 24 and 32 avenues. thnd Permanent components include construction of a traffic signal at the Woodfield Station driveway north of 29 Avenue, as well as widening th Willamette Street north of 24 Avenue to tie in to the existing bikeway th system and leave enough space for a left-turn lane for southbound traffic on Willamette at 24. th The project also includes the test restriping of Willamette Street in the study area. In the vicinity of 29 Avenue, the test restriping will include two th southbound travel lanes, a center turn-lane, one northbound travel lane, and bicycle lanes on both sides of the street. North of the 29 Avenue area, th the test restriping will include one travel lane in each direction, a center turn-lane, and bicycle lanes on both sides of the street. Several sidewalk access ramps in the project area will be brought into compliance with current federal ADA standards. Two business driveways on Willamette Street will be closed to allow the safe operation of the new traffic signal at Woodfield Station. The test restriping is scheduled to last a full calendar year following an adjustment period after construction. The restriping will provide an opportunity to test traffic modeling data and learn from actual experience before permanent changes are made to that section of Willamette Street. Lessons learned from the testing can also be applied to other transportation corridor projects. A report to the Eugene City Council detailing the test results from transportation, economic, and user experience perspectives is expected in early 2017. Following a final decision on the South Willamette Street configuration, a pavement preservation project is planned for construction in 2018 when the final street configuration decision will be implemented. EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER PAGE 2 April 30, 2015 The one-time cost of the test is estimated at $150,000. That will pay for monitoring the test from transportation, economic and public opinion perspectives. The permanent improvements to be constructed in 2015 (including purchasing right-of- way, installing the new traffic signal and doing the widening work north of 24 Avenue) are estimated to cost about th $750,000. The right-of-way, widening and traffic signal costs would be incurred even without the one-time cost of the test. For more information about the South Willamette Street Improvement Plan, visit www.eugene-or.gov/SWillametteStreet or contact Transportation Engineer Chris Henry at 541-682-8472. For information about this summer’s construction project, contact Project Manager Chuck Mueller at 541-501-0370. Public Works Diversity Committee Garners National Award for Action Plan The Eugene Public Works Diversity Committee has earned a national award for its equity and human rights action plan. The award is presented annually by the American Public Works Association (APWA) to recognize individuals and organizations that have made outstanding contributions to diversity. The equity and human rights action plan is built on the foundation of the City of Eugene’s Diversity and Equity Strategic Plan, which guides the City’s efforts to ensure that the City organization provides access, removes barriers, and is inclusive of all community members and employees. The Public Works Diversity Committee develops and implements action items to achieve the overarching goals of the strategic plan. The 12-member Public Works Diversity Committee, chaired for the past two years by Julie Schafer from the Roosevelt Yard, has integrated diversity and equity through a number of practical actions and activities:  Learning to Connect/Connecting to Learn workshops, which are designed to strengthen internal and external working relationships, encourage diversity discussions in the work place and provide new connections and ideas for problem- solving, team-building and communication.  An inclusive environment self-assessment of the Public Work Department, which led to work actions such as adding more visitor parking spots, making forms available in other languages, painting the main building, and adding an automatic opener button for the entrance door to improve accessibility at the Roosevelt Yard.  Publishing the Kaleidoscope newsletter (available online), which contains articles reflecting diversity in Public Works .  Encouraging employee growth through Seeds of Diversity, a monthly email series of diversity topics to promote discussions during crew, supervisor and manager meetings. “The Public Works Diversity Committee has enhanced employee growth and development, strengthened public works leadership and enriched cultural competencies of the department,” said Public Works Director Kurt Corey in his letter of support for the national award. The Public Works Equity and Human Rights Action Plan is available online. The award will be formally presented to the Public Works Diversity Committee at the APWA International Congress in Phoenix, Arizona in August. For more information, contact Robert Tintle, Public Works Administration director, at 541-682-8476. Participate with a Team in the 2015 Business Commute Challenge The Business Commute Challenge (BCC) is a weeklong, friendly competition among local area businesses and organizations. The event encourages employees to walk, bike, bus, carpool, or telework for their daily commute as an alternative to driving alone. Participants have the opportunity to win great prizes, have fun, promote teamwork, and help reduce carbon emissions all at the same time. The 2015 BCC will be held May 9 - 15. The event is coordinated by Point2Point and sponsored in part by the City of Eugene. There are 12 City of Eugene teams registered so far, including Cultural Services, Library, Police Department, City Manager’s Office, Public Works Engineering, Public Works at Roosevelt, Public Works EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER PAGE 3 April 30, 2015 Administration, Finance, Recreation, Information Services, Planning and Development, and Cultural Services Administration (with the team name Elite Feet). Members of the City Council are encouraged to participate, either by forming a team or joining one of the existing City teams. City teams have fared well in past competitions. Last year, more than 1,900 people representing 175 teams participated in the Business Commute Challenge. In just one week, the BCC participants reduced more than 68,987 drive-alone miles, and reduced more than 70,200 pounds of carbon dioxide. Visit the website at www.commutechallenge.org for a list of activities and to sign up to participate. For more information, contact Claudia Denton, BCC team captain for Public Works Engineering, Claudia.M.Denton@ci.eugene.or.us, or 541-682- 5059, or contact Point2Point directly at commutechallenge@ltd.org. Public Works Draft Americans with Disabilities Act Transition Plan Available for Review The City of Eugene Public Works Department has conducted an evaluation of its public rights-of-way and drafted a transition plan that outlines how the organization will continue to comply with Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) regulations and provide, to the extent possible, safe access within the rights-of-way for all individuals. This plan will be a separate companion plan to the City’s existing ADA Transition Plan. In compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990, phase 1 of the City’s existing ADA Transition Plan was adopted in 1993, and included a three fiscal-year schedule for completing prioritized accessibility projects. Subsequent phases of the existing plan have been prepared and implemented. The existing plan represents phase 7. As part of this new draft companion transition plan, Public Works collected detailed data on over 15,000 sidewalk ramps and 250 pedestrian signals to develop transition schedules specific to these facilities. In addition to the inventory of ramps and pedestrian signals and schedules, the transition plan for the public rights-of-way also includes a system of barrier removal prioritization, information on how to request barrier removals from right-of-way facilities, and an appeals process. The draft plan is available for public comment through May 31. An electronic copy of the draft transition plan is available on the City website at www.eugene-or.gov/adaplan. Paper copies of the draft transition plan for facilities in the public rights-of-way are also available at multiple locations: the Human Rights and Neighborhood Involvement Office (99 West 10 Avenue, Suite 116), the Downtown Library (100 West 10 Avenue), the City Manager’s Office (125 East 8 Avenue, ththth Second Floor), and Public Works Maintenance Office (1820 Roosevelt Boulevard). For more information, contact Nancy Burns, ADA Transition Plan project manager, at 541-682-6887. Love Food Not Waste Program Supports Seed to Supper Seed to Supper is a comprehensive, five-week beginning gardening course that gives novice, adult gardeners the tools they need to successfully grow a portion of their own food on a limited budget. The curriculum was written by the Oregon Food Bank and Oregon State University’s Extension Service, and this year, for the first time, FOOD for Lane County is offering the classes at partner agencies. Huerto de la Familia will be offering classes in Spanish starting in May and FOOD for Lane County will also offer a class in Spanish later this year and a few other classes this fall. Volunteer educators who are either Master Gardeners or experienced vegetable growers are trained to teach the five-week class series. Classes are held at FOOD for Lane County partner agencies, including food pantries and low-income housing sites. Students have to attend four out of the five classes to receive a certificate of completion and some donated garden supplies, including Love Food Not Waste compost, Down to Earth organic fertilizers, seeds, and vegetable starts. For more information about this partnership, please contact Waste Prevention and Green Building Analyst Stephanie Scafa at 541-682-5652. EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER PAGE 4 April 30, 2015 Open House on Final Phase of I-5@Beltline Interchange Project The Oregon Department of Transportation will hold an open house to provide information and answer questions about I- 5@Beltline Unit 4 which will be the final phase of this multiyear construction project that has made major changes to the interchange of I-5 and Randy Pape Beltline. The open house will take place on Wednesday, May 6, from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the PeaceHealth Riverbend Annex located at 123 International Way in Springfield. I-5@Beltline Unit 4 has the following elements:  A new eastbound travel lane on Randy Pape Beltline from Coburg Road to I-5;  A new eastbound Beltline to northbound I-5 on-ramp including a new bridge over I-5;  Extension of the existing I-5 shared use path north towards Chad Drive;  Extension of the existing I-5 shared use path under Harlow Road and south to Garden Way; and  A sound wall south of Beltline and east of Coburg Road. For more information about the project, contact ODOT Project Manager Ann Sanders at 541-747-1310 or ann.i.sanders@odot.state.or.us. For more information about City of Eugene involvement in the project, contact Transportation Planning Manager Rob Inerfeld at 541-682-5343 or rob.inerfeld@ci.eugene.or.us. RAIN Receives International Recognition for Excellence in Town-Gown Relations The International Town and Gown Association (ITGA) has announced the selection of the Regional Accelerator & Innovation Network (RAIN) for one of the association’s inaugural ImpACT Awards. The ITGA ImpACT Awards: Putting Practice into Action, are awarded to university- and community-involved projects and initiatives that exemplify best practices in the fields of town-gown relations. The award highlights not only the impressive achievements that RAIN has already realized in promoting and nurturing local entrepreneurs but also the success of the regional collaboration between the University of Oregon, Oregon State University, Eugene, Corvallis, and other jurisdictions in the four-county area that made RAIN possible. The award is a significant recognition of the City and the University’s strong and long-standing partnership that continues to grow and benefit the community. A representative of RAIN will accept the award at the annual ITGA conference in Washington, D.C., in June. More information about the award will be included in an upcoming City Council Newsletter article. For more information, contact Laura Hammond at 541-682-6021. EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER PAGE 5 April 30, 2015