HomeMy WebLinkAboutCC Newsletter - 02/17/05EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER
February 17, 2005
City of Eugene
777 Pearl Street, Room 105
Eugene, Oregon 97401-2793
(541) 682-5010
(541) 682-5414 (FAX)
www.ci.eugene.or, us
ORI TO PURCHASE SEARS SITE
MIDDLE SCHOOL STUDENTS WORK A FULL WEEK AT MORSE RANCH PARK
VOLUNTEERS PLANT OVER 1,300 NATIVE TREES AND SHRUBS ALONG WILLAMETTE RIVER
HEALTHY WEIGHT INITIATIVE FROM NATIONAL HEART, LUNG AND BLOOD INSTITUTE
ORI to Purchase Sears Site
The City of Eugene and the Oregon Research Institute
(ORI) have signed a Purchase and Sale and
Development Agreement to convey the downtown Sears
site to ORI for the construction of its new downtown
facility. The property was originally purchased by the
City's Urban Renewal Agency in 1993, and was part of a
larger piece that included the development site for the
new Eugene Public Library. "Considering the Library
development and the potential impact of the ORI project,
the return to the community on this original investment
will be extraordinary," said City Manager Dennis Taylor.
ORI, founded in 1960, is a non-profit organization
specializing in diversified fields of behavioral research. The company currently employs 250 locally, and
is expected to have approximately 300 employees at the new site. ORI is proposing the construction of
a five-story, $20 million office building. The sale is expected to close no later than June 1,2005, with
construction beginning this summer. The building is expected to be complete by the end of 2006. For
further information, please contact Denny Braud, Planning and Development Department, 682-5536.
Middle School Students Work a Full Week at Morse Ranch Park
During the week of February 7-11, the City's Volunteers
In Parks (VIP) Program put 25 middle school students
from Ridgeline Montessori School to work at Morse
Ranch Park. The young volunteers, two teachers and
two parent volunteers devoted the entire school days to
hard physical labor at this community park, and,
according to VIP Coordinator Matt McRae, park users
and surrounding neighbors should notice a significant
improvement. Approximately 70 top boards on the
fence surrounding the off-leash dog park were replaced,
and nearly three-quarters of the fence received a new
coat of paint. The students also cut willow whips from
local plants and plugged nearly 1,000 of these cuttings
into both of the creeks that run through the dog park.
EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER PAGE 1
February 17, 2005
Supervised by teachers, parent volunteers, and parks staff, the students performed this week of service
as part of their year-long curriculum of community service and experiential learning in the outdoors. "An
integral component of the Montessori system of learning involves connecting with the land and earth and
using the whole body," says Jennifer Wyld, middle school teacher at Ridgeline Montessori School.
"Working in our parks represents an urban opportunity to work outside and contribute to the community."
The VIP program supports citizen involvement in activities such as park beautification, litter control, trail
development and maintenance, weeding, and other special projects in Eugene's parks. For more
information about this and other park improvement projects, call Matt McRae in Parks and Open Space
at 682-4845, e-mail him at volunteersinparks@ci.eugene.or, us, or visit
www.ci.eugene.or, us/parks/maint/vip.htm. For more information about Ridgeline Montessori School, call
681-9662.
Volunteers Plant Over 1,300 Native Trees and Shrubs Alonq Willamette River
In just over a week, close to 80 volunteers from the
community and 30 students from the Rachel Carson
program at Churchill High School came out to help the
Eugene Stream Team plant nearly 1,300 native trees
and shrubs along the Willamette River. This diverse
group of volunteers, ranging in age from 3 to 75,
accomplished this feat cheerfully and in record time--in
less than six hours over three work parties! The effort
went a long way to realizing the long-term vision of
creating a substantial riparian forest along the Willamette
River in the Whilamut Natural Area of Alton Baker Park.
"It was amazing to watch several dozen people preparing
and planting an area and then leap-frogging down the
path to the next available site," says Stream Team
Coordinator Lorna Baldwin. "They all appeared to be
having a good time, and one participant commented how nice it was to be able to contribute her time to a
project with a known positive outcome."
The project was made possible through a team effort by City parks staff with contributions ranging from
grant writing, outreach and coordination to mowing the site in preparation for the volunteer work parties.
Stream Team provides the opportunity for people to do hands-on environmental work, restoring and
caring for the city's waterways and natural areas. For more information about this or other restoration
projects across the city, contact Lorna Baldwin in Parks and Open Space, at 682-4850 or
Iorna.j.baldwin@ci.eugene.or. us.
Healthy Weight Initiative from National Heart, Lung and Blood Institute
The Lane Coalition for Healthy, Active Youth (LCHAY) was recently selected as one of the country's 10
"Intensive Sites" for the Healthy Weight Initiative (HWI) by the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute
(NHLBI). In fact, LCHAY was one of the two top applicants.
The mission of LCHAY, which is only four months old, is working to strengthen childhood obesity
prevention efforts in Lane County. Executive Director of Library, Recreation and Cultural Services Angel
Jones, and Recreation Manager Sandy Shaffer, both recognize the importance of this initiative and are
actively involved.
The following benefits are just a few of those awarded this distinct honor:
· Serving as a model community for obesity prevention efforts around the country.
· Receiving national and local media recognition as a leader in this community.
· Helping to lead the nation's fight against youth obesity.
· Helping to reduce the burden of chronic disease in this community.
· Receiving free material, partnership support, and training opportunities.
EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER PAGE 2
February 17, 2005
The Healthy Weight Initiative (WHY) is a new national consumer education program developed by
NHLBI to encourage a healthy weight for youth. (NHBLI is congressionally mandated to support an
integrated and coordinated program of basic research, clinical and epidemiological studies, and
demonstration and education projects into the cause, prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of diseases of
the heart, lungs, and blood vessels, and sleep disorders.) For more information, please contact Sandy
Shaffer, Recreation Division, at 682-6348.
EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER PAGE 3
February 17, 2005