HomeMy WebLinkAboutCity Council Newsletter - 01/11/07
EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER
January 11, 2007
City of Eugene
777 Pearl Street, Room 105
Eugene, Oregon 97401-2793
(541) 682-5010
(541) 682-5414 (FAX)
www.eugene-or.gov
IN THIS WEEK’S EDITION
PUBLIC WORKS CREWS RESPOND QUICKLY TO WINTER STORM
SITE IMPROVEMENTS BENEFITING FARMER’S MARKET MOVING AHEAD
BICYCLE PARKING AND THEFT WORKSHOP TO BE HELD ON JANUARY 17
FIREMED PROGRAM UPDATE
CREST DRIVE COMMUNITY TEAM HOLDS TRANSPORTATION WORKSHOP
LIBRARY, PARKS, ARTS RATE HIGH IN COMMUNITY SURVEY
BASEBALL, FATHERS AND SONS IN ONE-MAN SHOW AT EUGENE PUBLIC LIBRARY
AROUND THE CITY
Public Works Crews Respond Quickly to Winter Storm
Sanding trucks worked through the night to prepare
local arterials for Thursday’s morning commute,
following overnight snow accumulations of 2 to 3
inches in the Eugene area. Crews concentrated on
the busiest streets, typically classified as arterials,
th
and major collectors such as 6 and 7th avenues,
Coburg Road and Chambers Street. Crews also
focused on the south hills area, where snow and ice
accumulations are generally greater because of
higher elevations.
Public Works opened its emergency command
Sanding truck being loaded Thursday at Roosevelt Yard
center at the public works yard on Roosevelt
Boulevard shortly before 6 a.m. on Thursday to coordinate storm response operations. Operational
goals are to sand the main thoroughfares for the morning traffic, then switch to snow and slush removal
to minimize overnight ice formation on major routes. Residential streets are not plowed or sanded by
City crews. This means residential streets are likely to remain icy for several days if temperatures
remain below the freezing level as predicted.
While the City has not declared an ice-snow emergency at this time, residents are asked to not park or
leave their vehicles on busy streets so these streets can be sanded and remain available for use by
emergency vehicles. Information about safe winter driving and the City’s ice-snow ordinance is available
on the City’s web site at www.eugene-or.gov/pw (click on the ice-snow link). For more information,
contact Surface Operations Manager Eric Johnson at Public Works Maintenance, 682-4904.
Site Improvements Benefiting Farmer’s Market Moving Ahead
The City will be advertising next week for construction bids on improvements to Lane County’s property
historically used during the summer as the site for the Farmer’s Market. Bids are due by 2:00 p.m. on
Tuesday, January 30. In November, the council directed that the project focus on improved electric and
water service, and improved space. Work will be done this winter and spring, in time for the start of the
market season in April. Raised areas and obstructions will be removed, landscaping removed and
replaced nearer to the County parking structure, paved areas repaired, graveled areas along Oak Street
will be paved, and new sod will be placed in the existing lawn area. Electric, water and
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January 11, 2007
telecommunications outlets will be added on three sides of the site. In addition to reducing existing
barriers, the project will increase the paved area available to the Farmer’s Market by 2,600 square feet.
Design services on this project are provided by L. A. Kersh Architecture. For more information, please
contact Steve Loges, project manager, Facility Management Division, at 682-8814.
Bicycle Parking and Theft Workshop to be Held on January 17
Throughout the next year, transportation planning staff
will hold a series of workshops and other activities to
engage the community in developing Eugene’s
Pedestrian and Bicycle Strategic Plan. The first
community workshop of the strategic planning process
will be held Wednesday, January 17, from 6:30 to 8:30
p.m. at St. Mary’s Catholic Church, 1062 Charnelton St.
This workshop will focus on the topics of bicycle parking
and bicycle theft, both of which were identified as high-
priority issues by participants at the Walking and Biking
Summit held in October 2006.
Workshop participants will be encouraged to provide
input and suggest strategies to meet bike parking
demand and to combat the pervasive problem of bicycle theft in the community. Parking issues covered
at the workshop will include types of bike parking facilities, code requirements for bike parking,
innovative bike parking solutions, and options for creating additional bike parking facilities. Theft issues
will include prevention, stolen bike recovery and law enforcement and prosecution.
The Pedestrian and Bicycle Strategic Plan will guide the City’s work over the next several years to
implement pedestrian, bicycle, and transportation demand management elements of TransPlan and the
Regional Transportation Plan. Additional information and project updates can be found at www.eugene-
or.gov/walkbike. For more information, contact Transportation Planning Technician David Roth at
682-5727 or david.f.roth@ci.eugene.or.us.
FireMed Program Update
Eugene Fire & EMS and Springfield Fire & Life Safety have reunited in a partnership to provide FireMed
to the community. The consolidated program will improve program efficiencies, cost savings, and
marketing. Eugene and Springfield have selected a marketing firm, The Ad Group, which will promote
FireMed and increase market share throughout the region. The FireMed Program through another
partnership with REACH is also offering a supplemental air medivac service. For more information,
please contact Acting Deputy Chief of Administrative Services Mike Thrapp at 682-7130.
Crest Drive Community Team Holds Transportation Workshop
The Crest Drive Community Team (CDCT) held
a workshop on Saturday, January 6, to consider
transportation system and circulation issues both
within the study area and as the study area
relates to the greater city transportation network.
The facilitated workshop was attended by 19
members of the CDCT, and provided an
opportunity for focused and detailed
consideration of big-picture transportation
system and circulation issues including
automobile, bicycle, pedestrian, parking, and
emergency services access. Also considered
were environmental issues such as stormwater
treatment, trees, and parks.
In addition to CDCT members, City of Eugene staff from Public Works Engineering and Parks and Open
Space were available as resources to answer questions and provide information to the groups. The
results of the workshop will begin to inform the development of alternative scenarios for specific street
design elements. Next steps for the CDCT will include planning of additional community outreach events
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and assessment of physical constraints and opportunities. The project pace will continue to increase with
the CDCT goal of concluding the design process and forwarding a recommendation to the City Council in
August 2007. For more information, contact Project Manager Lisa Gardner at 682-5208.
Library, Parks, Arts Rate High in Community Survey
City residents gave high marks to the community’s libraries, parks and support for the arts in the newest
edition of the annual Eugene Community Survey. Respondents were asked to rate the importance of a
range of community outcomes and their perception of the community’s performance in achieving those
outcomes. The outcome that respondents perceived the community did the best job of achieving was
providing access to reading materials, which received a 4.2 rating on a scale of 1 to 5 where 1 is poor
and 5 is excellent, followed by providing parks and open space with 4.0 and supporting the arts with 3.9.
Minimizing loss of life and property due to emergencies, protecting the environment, providing safe
buildings and infrastructure, providing an efficient transportation system, and providing recreation
opportunities all rated 3.8.
Preventing crime, minimizing loss of life and property due to emergencies, and providing good value for
tax dollars spent were the outcomes respondents found most important, each rating 4.6 on a scale of 1 to
5 where 1 is not important and 5 is very important. Following closely was supporting youth and child
development with a 4.5 rating, and protecting the environment, developing job opportunities, and
providing safe buildings and infrastructure with 4.4.
The greatest gaps between perceived importance and performance were providing good value for tax
dollars spent and developing job opportunities, with a difference of 1.5, followed by preventing crime with
a gap of 1.4.
One-quarter (25%) of respondents felt their economic opportunity in Eugene had improved in the past
five years, up from 18% last year and up substantially from a low of 9% in 2003.
Respondents support the concept of the City taking an active role in fostering job growth, though the
level of support varies significantly depending on the type of assistance the City should offer and whether
that help is offered to local businesses or outside companies. Nearly four-out-of-five (79%) of
respondents said the City should help local business create and retain jobs and provide problem-solving
assistance to businesses for siting, permit, and development issues, while 69% felt the City should take
an active role in helping outside companies come to Eugene in order to increase economic opportunities.
Fewer than half (49%) felt the City should provide financial support to businesses in targeted areas such
as downtown.
People reported feeling much more comfortable walking at night in their neighborhoods than in business
areas. While 91% felt very or somewhat safe walking alone at night in their neighborhoods, two-thirds
(67%) felt that way in business areas.
Education issues were cited by 13% of respondents as the most important problem facing Eugene,
followed by crime, growth, police issues and traffic; all but police issues are repeats from last year’s top
five most important problems.
The telephone survey, conducted in December of 2006 by Advanced Marketing Research, asked a
randomly-selected sample of 401 Eugene residents to share their perceptions about the community and
the City of Eugene. Survey results are tracked over time to measure significant shifts in those
perceptions and to help inform the development of policy and programs.
The survey report will be posted to the City’s website (http://www.ci.eugene.or.us) and copies will be
available in the Eugene Public Library. For more information, please contact Terrie Monroe at 682-5412
or terrie.e.monroe@ci.eugene.or.us.
Baseball, Fathers and Sons in One-Man Show at Eugene Public Library
On Tuesday, January 16, at 7:00 p.m., popular spoken-word artist Jeff DeMark returns to Eugene as the
Windfall Reading Series presents a free performance of his show “Hard as a Diamond, Soft as the Dirt.”
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Thisfunny, poignant evening weaves together memories, songs, and poems exploring DeMark’s
relationship with his father through their shared love of baseball and storytelling. Included is a visit with
Willie Mays, the creative use of a Beatle wig, an appearance by Hank Aaron on the Home Shopping
Network, and DeMark’s trip to Tiger Stadium for a final farewell to his
dad. Hard as a Diamond, Soft as the Dirt was originally commissioned
by the College of the Redwoods Visiting Writers Series.
DeMark's work has drawn critical acclaim as well as enthusiastic
audience response. The Humboldt Beacon says: “DeMark uses
humor as a tool to show us ourselves . . . you will look at your family
relationships with fresh eyes.” The North Coast Journal review calls
Hard as a Diamond “wonderfully poetic in places, ironic throughout,
tightly unified and universal . . .” According to the Eureka Times-
Standard, "He's a gem -- it doesn't get any better than DeMark."
DeMark has toured widely, including performances at Northern
California’s Mad River Festival and New York’s Knitting Factory. He
began his performing career in Madison, Wisconsin, reciting original
poems and stories with the backing of musical groups including “The Violent Femmes.” DeMark has
written and toured with three other solo theatrical pieces: Went to Lunch, Never Returned; Making Every
Mistake Twice; and Writing My Way Out of Adolescence, which was well-received by a Eugene audience
at DeMark's Windfall debut in 2004.
The Windfall Reading Series features authors reading their own works with a focus on Northwest authors.
The Series is sponsored by the Eugene Public Library, Lane Literary Guild, Friends of the Library,
Eugene Public Library Foundation, and the Cultural Services Division of the Lane Arts Council. For
more information, call 682-5450.
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