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HomeMy WebLinkAbout02/18/10 - City Council Newsletter EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER February 18, 2010 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 W.S. MERWIN DELIGHTS AT LIBRARY HUNDREDS OF AQUATICS PATRONS “COMMIT TO FIT” IN JANUARY NEW SYSTEM ALLOWS PUBLIC TO CONVENIENTLY REPORT CERTAIN CRIMES ONLINE CITY PROGRAM RECEIVES GRANT TO HELP VETS WITH DISABILITIES OVER 100 VOLUNTEERS AUGMENT EUGENE POLICE OPERATIONS IN 2009 CITY BOOTHS AT ASIAN CELEBRATION HIGHLIGHT CITY SERVICES AND PROGRAMS AROUND THE CITY W.S. Merwin Delights at Library Poet W.S. Merwin drew more than 700 avid fans to the Downtown Eugene Public Library on Sunday, February 7, for the largest single program ever held at the Library. Poetry-lovers of all ages filled chairs, stood, listened from between bookshelves, and employed the 3rd floor overlook as a balcony. Expectations were high, and by all accounts, they were met or exceeded. Merwin held a question and answer session before reading poems from his decades of books, leading up to a very special surprise: new, unpublished works read from handwritten sheets of lined paper. Adult Services Manager Nancy Horner reports, “He told me that he doesn’t write on the computer because he wants to touch the words he writes.” Community partners in making this event possible were the Lane Literary Guild and the University of Oregon (UO) Humanities Center Endowment for Public Outreach in the Arts, Sciences, and Humanities. The UO Bookstore/Duck Store, made books available for purchase on-site with a percentage of sales going to benefit the Friends of the Library. Hundreds of readers waited, happily chatting, to have books signed by Merwin. One of few individuals to have won two Pulitzer Prizes, Merwin is one of the most acclaimed and widely-read poets in the U.S. In addition to his writing, he is well known as a pacifist, deep ecologist, and Buddhist. For more information, contact the Eugene Public Library at 541-682-5450. Hundreds of Aquatics Patrons “Commit to Fit” in January Sheldon and Echo Hollow Pool hosted the annual “Commit to Fit” program last month. In this very popular program, patrons pick up red “Commit to Fit” cards at the front desk at the beginning of the month. Each time they come in for a lap swim, fitness class, or to visit the weight room, staff punches out one of the five spots on the bottom of the card. When they complete five workouts, they submit the card for a prize drawing. Winners of these drawings received 10-visit punch cards as first prize, and towels, healthy cookbooks, flutter mini-massagers and two-day passes as other prizes. Participants turned in a total of 528 cards; 178 cards at Echo Hollow and 350 cards at Sheldon. That equates to 2,640 workouts and thousands of calories burned. For more information, contact Rich Fay at 541-682-5331. EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER PAGE 1 February 18, 2010 New System Allows Public to Report Certain Crimes Online The Eugene Police Department (EPD) is providing a new online police reporting option for the public. Online reporting allows citizens to conveniently file crime reports on frequently occurring types of property crime that occur in Eugene. This removes the delay often associated with taking the information and waiting to be re- contacted by a community service officer or police officer hours or even days later. It will free up staff and officer time and allow them to focus on other field duties and improve the services provided to the community by the Eugene Police Department. This web-based reporting system will allow the public to file certain incident types (bike thefts, vandalism and graffiti) over the internet at their convenience. There are also two tip lines (one a general tip line and one a drug tip line). For those without internet access, the system can be accessed at the citizen’s use computer at the LINK! Eugene Public Library at http://www.eugene-or.gov/policereportsonline. The service will allow the public to file a report when it is best for them without having to wait for an officer to respond or call back. The user will be able to print a temporary copy of a report upon submitting the report. The report will be reviewed by police personnel and, once approved, the person filing will receive an email with a copy of the report attached, free-of-cost. The report will transfer into the EPD records management system and have the same investigation and statistical analysis potential as if the report had been filed by a police officer. This web-based reporting option will allow officers more time to address community needs while keeping pace with the public expectation of complete services via the internet. EPD will be using the Desk Officer Online Reporting System from San Ramon, California, software company Coplogic, Inc. www.Coplogic.com. For more information, contact Police Data Records Manager Jean Stronach at 541-682-5492. City Program Receives Grant to Help Vets with Disabilities Adaptive Recreation Services is one of 12 agencies in 10 states across the country to receive a grant to provide support and mentoring to American servicemen and women who have sustained physical injuries. The $6,000 grant was awarded by the National Recreation and Park Association’s (NRPA) 2009 United States Olympic Committee (USOC) Paralympic Grant Initiative, sponsored by the U.S. Paralympics, a division of the USOC. The grant will enable the Adaptive Recreation program to introduce veterans to adaptive sport techniques and opportunities through clinics and camps that are already connected to City of Eugene and other sports programs in the community. The Adaptive Recreation Program will partner with the Eugene Veterans Center, as well as service members of the Oregon Army National Guard, to provide weekly recreational outings that will introduce service members to a variety of physically active recreation opportunities. More than just sports, the program is also about attitude, camaraderie and promoting healthy, active lifestyles. With 21 million Americans experiencing physical disabilities, including more than 35,000 military personnel who have been injured during the conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan, sport and recreation is an important community need. For more information, contact Patty Prather at 541-682-6365. Over 100 Volunteers Augment Eugene Police Operations in 2009 In 2009, 101 Eugene Police volunteers donated 22,756.34 hours of service to the department and community, with an added value of $460,815.88*. Current volunteers range in age from 20 to 85 and include students, full-time employees, retirees, citizens who support law enforcement and want to give back to their community, Citizens’ Police Academy graduates, and individuals who hope to ultimately work for the Eugene Police Department (EPD). EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER PAGE 2 February 18, 2010 By involving volunteers, EPD is able to provide additional services – services the public wants, but the department is unable to provide or unable to make a priority due to budget and staffing limitations. Examples include home vacation checks and enforcement of disabled parking space violations. Volunteers maximize existing resources. By assisting with focused crime prevention operations targeted at property crime hot spot areas, department resources are expanded. EPD is able to reach more citizens and provide them with important crime prevention information and services. Volunteers also provide support at department outreach events including Police Activities League summer camps, National Night Out, Safety Town and the Prevention Convention. They assist with administering the Crime Stoppers Program, purge property for the Property Control Unit, photograph events, provide chaplain services and role- play for disaster preparedness and team training exercises. Because volunteers relieve paid staff of routine duties, employees are better able to concentrate on other responsibilities. Examples include filing police reports and citations for the Records Section; assisting the Property Crimes Unit by entering transaction data from metal recyclers into a database; preparing certified copies of audio tape records for the 911 Center; filing adult arrest fingerprint cards and entering data for the Forensic Evidence Unit; providing reception at neighborhood substations; and entering details concerning allegations of child abuse and neglect into a spreadsheet for the Violent Crimes Unit. Seasoned volunteers further relieve paid staff by serving as trainers for new volunteers. Other highlights for 2009: ? Established in May 2009, Image Retrieval Team volunteers picked up surveillance videos from businesses that were victims of financial and property crimes. ? Twelve volunteers provided support at the Oregon Association of Chiefs of Police Conference which was hosted in Eugene. Volunteers registered attendees, transported attendees to an off-site event, provided support at a conference auction and delivered the invocation. ? Nineteen Seniors on Patrol volunteers spent 6,012 hours patrolling streets, bike paths and parks, providing a theft-from-vehicle prevention service, issuing warnings (782) and citations (464) to violators of signed disabled parking spaces, assisting with traffic calming efforts and digitally photographing serialized and valuable property. Members of this team also recovered 37 stolen vehicles and conducted vacation checks at the homes of 177 Eugene residents. ? Twelve Huckleberry Patrol Team volunteers located, digitally photographed and removed 493 graffiti tags in the midtown area. ? Eighteen Squad Car Maintenance Team volunteers spent 4,418 hours shuttling police cars needing mechanical work (1,479 times), washing cars (908 times), inventorying and restocking trunks (626 times), performing minor repairs (184 times) and changing tires (58 times). Volunteers are being recruited for the Seniors on Patrol, Squad Car Maintenance Team, Subpoena Service Team and the Crime Prevention Operations Support Team. Comprehensive program information including full volunteer position descriptions can be found at www.eugene-or.gov/policevolunteers. For more information, contact Volunteers in Policing Program Manager Carrie Chouinard at 682-5355 or carrie.f.chouinard@ci.eugene.or.us. City Booths at Asian Celebration Highlight City Services and Programs This weekend, the City of Eugene will host two adjoining booths at the annual Oregon Asian Celebration. One booth will highlight the range of City services and programs, while the other will focus on public safety and crime prevention. The booths will be staffed by representatives from City departments and City boards and commissions. “Reflections of 25 Years” is the theme of this year’s event in celebration of the 25th anniversary of this popular community festival. During both days of the festival, visitors can enjoy a bustling array of Asian culture through a colorful marketplace of vendors, Asian and Asian-American dances and entertainment, a fine arts exhibit, crafts, EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER PAGE 3 February 18, 2010 martial arts and cooking demonstrations, youth and educational activities and a wide selection of tasty Asian delicacies. The festival will be located at the Lane County Fairgrounds this weekend, February 20 and 21, 2010. Event hours are 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Saturday and 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Sunday. For more information about this year’s Asian Celebration, visit: http://www.aaforegon.com/asiancelebration or contact Shawna Adams at 541-682-2653. EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER PAGE 4 February 18, 2010