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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCity Council Newsletter - 02/01/07 EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER February 1, 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 PROJECT HOMELESS CONNECT AIRPORT MANAGER EARNS SHINING STAR AWARD FROM CHAMBER OF COMMERCE JANUARY STATUS REPORT ON MAJOR CAPITAL PROJECTS NOW ONLINE RECREATION’S Y2MiH ORGANIZES HOLT INTERNATIONAL BENEFIT CONCERT PARKING POLICY EXPERT TO SPEAK IN EUGENE ON FEBRUARY 5 FREE ONLINE HOMEWORK HELP AT LIBRARY’S ALTERNATIVE EDUCATION FAIR AROUND THE CITY Project Homeless Connect One of City Council’s priority issues is to “Help the homeless in th Eugene.” Project Homeless Connect (PHC) on February 8 will provide an unprecedented array of services in one place at one time for Lane County’s homeless guests. These include mental health screening, immunizations, health screening, foot washing, dental evaluation, optometry, social security benefits, Veterans’ Administration, housing assistance, bicycle repair, veterinary services, Senior and Disabled Services, fair housing counseling, voter registration and haircuts. Guests and volunteers will receive hot meals donated by culinary students, local restaurants, and Food for Lane County. Guests will also receive kits with hygiene supplies and other gifts, such as new socks. This event is an opportunity for the community to reach out to neighbors who are poor, isolated and, in many cases, significantly disengaged from mainstream society. PHC is following a model that has been tried in numerous other cities during the last 18 months including Portland and San Francisco. In addition to significant participation from Eugene, Springfield, Lane County and United Way, the event has dozens of sponsors and in-kind contributors. A variety of positive long term outcomes are anticipated. The City of Eugene is a co-sponsor of the event and Urban Services Manager Richie Weinman is co-chair. The City’s involvement includes staff from the library signing people up for library cards and reading books to children, and police staff coordinating security. PHC takes place at the Lane County Fairgrounds Exhibit Hall. It opens to the guests at 9:00 a.m. Shortly after 8:00 a.m., a rally will be held in the café area for service providers, volunteers, sponsors and other invited guests. Members of the City Council are invited to attend and may enter through the south doors to the building. For more information, please contact Richie Weinman, Planning and Development Department at 682-5533 or Richie.d.weinman@ci.eugene.or.us Airport Manager Earns Shining Star Award from Chamber of Commerce Eugene Airport Manager Bob Noble received a Shining Star Award from the Eugene Area Chamber of Commerce. The award is a tribute to members who have provided outstanding leadership or otherwise contributed to the success of the Chamber in building a healthy local economy. EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER PAGE 1 February 1, 2007 With a market of over 600,000 and total annual enplanements of 375,000, the Eugene Airport serves as a crucial element in the future economic health of the region, Chamber officials say. They recognized Noble for strong leadership and a commitment to public private collaboration. Together, those efforts have resulted in growing the number of commercial jet carriers from one to four, adding nearly 500 round-trip jet seats per day, and increasing the number of destinations served from Eugene from four to seven today. Chamber officials say that success has made the Eugene Airport and Chamber efforts a national model for small city air service development. For more information, contact Cathryn Stephens, Eugene Airport marketing and administration supervisor, at 682-6638 or Cathryn.e.stephens@ci.eugene.or.us. January Status Report on Major Capital Projects Now Online The Facility Management Division’s quarterly report for January 2007 is now online. A link to the current project report, as well as previous reports, can be found on the division’s current projects page at: http://www.eugene- or.gov/portal/server.pt?space=CommunityPage&ca ched=true&parentname=CommunityPage&parentid =0&in_hi_userid=2&control=SetCommunity&Com munityID=210&PageID=723 The status report provides an update on the progress of major capital projects under the Facility Divisions management. The projects in this status = report make up a small portion of the roughly sixty active building preservation projects currently managed by Facilities, and represent either the higher budgeted projects or projects with significant public interest. This quarter’s report highlights Airport, Hult Center and safety-related projects. For additional information on Facility Management projects, please contact Mike Penwell by phone at 682-5547 or email michael.j.penwell@ci.eugene.or.us Recreation’s Y2MiH Organizes Holt International Benefit Concert On January 13, Youth to Make it Happen (Y2MiH) hosted the “We are the Dream Makers” benefit concert for Holt International, an organization providing a variety of services to children across the globe. Y2MiH is a program of Eugene Recreation Services that brings a diverse youth population together and reflects the City’s ongoing commitment to serving high school youth. The benefit was conceived by Ana Fenley, a Y2MiH intern and University of Oregon senior, as part of her final project in the Family and Human Services program. Ultimately, the benefit involved 17 high school students, utilized more than 200 volunteer hours and attracted an attendance of more than 100. In addition to raising funds for Holt International (ticket sales alone exceeded $750), the benefit also raised awareness of the organization, provided audience exposure for local high school talent and provided event production experience for high school students. Y2MiH advances youth empowerment through diverse creative expression and community collaboration by providing forums for local youth to share their perspectives on their lives and their communities. Other Y2MiH-sponsored projects include Hip Hop Eugene, Youth Summit, Youth Open Mike at Cozmic Pizza, and the Y2MiH myspace site. For information, contact Recreation Program Assistant Peter Chavannes, 682-6359. Parking Policy Expert to Speak in Eugene on February 5 Donald Shoup, author of The High Cost of Free Parking and professor of urban planning at the UCLA School of Public Affairs, will offer a free presentation on how to manage parking in ways that promote compact, livable cities on Monday, February 5, from noon to 1:30 p.m. in the Bascom/Tykeson Room of the Eugene th Public Library, 100 W. 10 Avenue. The presentation is sponsored by the City of Eugene, Commuter Solutions, and the Oregon Transportation and Growth Management Program. EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER PAGE 2 February 1, 2007 Shoup argues that parking regulations have a large impact on the shape of our cities and often favor driving over other modes of transportation. In his talk, he will discuss how cities around the country have changed their parking strategies to revitalize downtowns, stimulate business, and expand transportation choices. An economist, Shoup received national attention for his analysis of the effects of parking policies on community design, housing costs, and transportation. Shoup's presentation is timely as parking strategies will be a key component of mixed-use center plans that are underway in Walnut Station and Rasor Park. For more information, contact Allen Lowe at the Planning and Development Department, 541-682- 5113 or allen.d.lowe@ci.eugene.or.us; or Rob Inerfeld at the Public Works Department, 541-682-5343 or rob.inerfeld@ci.eugene.or.us. Free Online Homework Help at Library's Alternative Education Fair th Kids, teens, and parents are invited to the 11 Annual Alternative Education Fair at the Eugene Public Library Downtown, Saturday, February 3, 1:00 - 4:00 p.m. Co-sponsored by the Eugene Waldorf School and the Library, the fair is a great opportunity to learn about alternative education programs in Eugene and throughout Lane County. Get information and meet staff and student representatives from local private schools, charter schools, Eugene School District 4-J alternative programs, and homeschooling organizations. Also at this year's fair, see Live Homework Help in action when Library staff demonstrates this new, free, online tutoring service. How does it work? Live Homework Help connects students in grades 4 - 12 to professional, background-checked tutors for math, science, social studies, and English – in real time over the Internet. Students and tutors in the Online Classroom review concepts or specific homework questions using features such as controlled chat, an interactive “white board,” and shared Internet browsing. During the past school year, students nationwide connected with Live Homework Help for more than one million tutoring sessions. All students can use Live Homework Help on public computers at any location of the Eugene Public Library. If you have a Eugene Public Library card, you can also use Live Homework Help from anywhere you have Internet access – just click the logo on the Library’s website: www.eugene-or.gov/library. Live Homework Help is open seven days a week from 3:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. Spanish-speaking tutors are available for math and science Sundays through Thursdays, 3:30 p.m. to 7:00 p.m. Come see how it works at the Alternative Education Fair, or ask Library staff anytime. For more information, call the Eugene Public Library at 682-8316. EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER PAGE 3 February 1, 2007