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Home My WebLink AboutCC Newsletter - 12/08/05 EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER December 8, 2005 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 COUNCIL PRIORITY ON HOMELESSNESS ZONING MAPS ARE NOW AVAILABLE ON LINE ‘THREADS’ DISPLAY AT THE GALLERY AT THE AIRPORT OPENS DECEMBER 19 EUGENE’S NEWEST STREET SET TO OPEN DECEMBER 12 PARKS AND OPEN SPACE DIVISION ASSISTS UNIVERSTITY OAK SAVANNA RESEARCH AROUND THE CITY Council Priority on Homelessness Last week, the City Council unanimously approved the Homelessness Action Planning Team’s proposal to address the council’s priority to “Develop a Strategy to Help the Homeless in Eugene.” The team, led by LRCS Executive Director Angel Jones and Administrative Manager Mike Magee, is composed of 10 City staff members, each of whom has either direct or indirect contact with Eugene’s Homeless residents, and a strong commitment to improve their quality of life. The group began meeting in May to develop a plan. Action Planning Team members: CS: Human Rights Program Manager Greg Rikhoff; Municipal Court Operations Supervisor Char Mauch EPD: Patrol Lieutenant Carolyn McDermed; Investigations Lieutenant Ron Roberts LRCS: Executive Director Angel Jones; Executive Assistant Maureen Robeson; Administrative Manager Mike Magee; Library Services Director Connie Bennett PDD: Urban Services Manager Richie Weinman PW: Parks and Open Space Natural Resources Manager Sarah Medary Over a period of several months, information was gathered to identify existing needs, service provisions, and service gaps. Special thanks go to Pearl Wolfe and the other members of the Lane County Health and Human Services Department staff for their expertise and coordination efforts. They enabled the team to have very productive meetings with numerous local organizations that provide services to the homeless, and with many members of the homeless population, as well, to hear firsthand what services they need most. A giant step in the right direction has been taken to improve this long-time, complex situation. For more information, contact LRCS Administrative Manager Mike Magee at 682-2858. Zoning Maps Are Now Available On Line. As of December 6, 2005, the City’s zoning maps are available for viewing via the City’s Web site. These maps, which are in PDF format, provide users the ability to zoom into a specific area and view the base zoning and the overlay zoning for individual properties. The maps are housed on the Web in the Planning Division under Zoning Maps, or can be reached via the following address: http://www.eugene- or.gov/portal/server.pt?space=CommunityPage&cached=true&parentname=CommunityPage&parentid= 0&in_hi_userid=2&control=SetCommunity&CommunityID=228&PageID=1473 For more information regarding regulations relating to each zoning district, view Chapter 9 of the City of Eugene Code, call the Planning Division at (541) 682-5377, or visit the Planner-on-Duty between 1 and 5 p.m. at the Permit and Information Center at 99 West 10th Avenue in Eugene. For additional information regarding the zoning maps or other questions, contact Alissa Hansen at 682-5508 or via e- EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER PAGE 1 December 8, 2005 mail (alissa.h.hansen@ci.eugene.or.us) ‘Threads’ Display at The Gallery At The Airport Opens December 19 The Gallery At The Airport, located at the Eugene Airport, showcases a collection of fiber art from the Pacific Northwest. The show opens December 19 and will run through March 16, 2006. Fiber art is created using many materials: thread, cloth, paper, and plastics; even animal, vegetable and mineral! The exhibit can be viewed by airport passengers or by appointment. The Gallery At the Airport is sponsored by Eugene Airport to present three showings each year. The Lane Arts Council coordinates the exhibits using funds provided by the airport. For more information about the exhibits, call Dena E. Brown at 744-0909. Riffle by Sally Metcalf (waxed linen, maple bark, copper, acorns) For more information about the Eugene Airport and its sponsorship of the gallery, contact Airport Manager Bob Noble at 682-5430. Eugene’s Newest Street Set to Open December 12 A street rich in local history, connecting Lincoln and Pearl streets on the north side of the railroad tracks in downtown Eugene, is scheduled to reopen on Monday, December 12, as a fully improved roadway. The badly deteriorated east-west route, known informally rdrd as the 3-4th connector because it runs from 3 th Avenue and Lincoln Street on the west to 4 Avenue and Pearl Street on the east, has been closed to through traffic for almost four months to allow the City and its project contractor, Delta Construction Co., to upgrade the street to create safer traveling conditions for bicyclists, pedestrians and motorists. The $1.8 million Public Works project also realigned the intersections at each end of the connector to further improve traveling safety. The finished project includes a 32-foot wide concrete Project Manager Steve Gallup and Sue Parmer-Boyd of Delta roadway with two travel lanes, landscaped medians, Construction discuss final project details. bicycle lanes, curb and gutter, sidewalks, colored and stamped concrete median tips, street lights, street trees, traffic calming, and wastewater and stormwater drainage systems. The Whiteaker Area Refinement Plan provided guidelines for the street project, including a recommendation that the street name recognize the historical significance of the area. Eugene’s newest street is also one of the city’s oldest routes. Photos from 1890 show an access path serving the granaries and lumber yards next to the railroad tracks. The growth of the railroad, the opening of a new train depot in 1908 and the construction of the Oregon Electric Passenger Station and Freight Depot in 1925 added vigor to the north downtown area and the street that served the properties on the north side of the tracks. As businesses flourished on the north side of the tracks, the dirt lane evolved into a narrow paved roadway. However, over the years, the street and the surrounding area fell into disrepair. Now the area is being renovated, and the improved street leads to the future as much as the past. “Today, the revitalized street provides a safer route for all those who use it,” said City Engineer Mark Schoening. “In the years to come, it will also play an important role in connecting the newly renovated depot, the restored Shelton-McMurphey-Johnson House, Skinner Butte, and other neighborhood landmarks.” For more information, contact Project Manager Steve Gallup at 541-682-8460. Parks and Open Space Division Assists University Oak Savanna Research EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER PAGE 2 December 8, 2005 Before the introduction of modern agriculture, oak savanna was the predominant habitat in much of the United States. It is now considered one of the most endangered habitats in North America. In contrast to a forest, which has a closed canopy, the open canopy of a savanna allows the growth of a wide diversity of grasses and flowering plants, and serves as critical habitat for numerous plant and animal species. The University of Oregon has been conducting research on oak savannah in the Willamette Valley, including a site located on City park land on the north side of Spencer Butte. The UO’s goal is to collect information about existing conditions in Eugene’s oak savanna habitats and compare it to potential conditions after restoration. Researchers have gathered information about soils and tree and shrub cover in order to create computer models of future scenarios of oak savannas under different management trajectories. To develop their model they invited a variety of experts from the community including government land managers, botanists, wildlife experts, private land owners, fire experts, and Parks and Open Space staff members. Once complete, this model will help City staff with future land management decisions. For more information contact Trevor Taylor, natural resource operations supervisor, 682-4880, or at trevor.h.taylor@ci.eugene.or.us. EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER PAGE 3 December 8, 2005