HomeMy WebLinkAbout04/28/11 - City Council Newsletter
EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER
April 28, 2011
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
MOTORCADE DRAWS HUNDREDS TO HONOR OFFICER KILCULLEN
TAP YOUR TOES TO THE TEXAS TOASTERS AT EUGENE PUBLIC LIBRARY
PARTNERSHIP WITH LOCAL CLUB EXPANDS PROGRAM
SCHOOLS SHOWCASE GREEN SCHOOL EFFORTS ON EARTH DAY
BUDGET COMMITTEE BEGINS REVIEW OF THE PROPOSED BUDGET
COMMUNITY LEARNS ABOUT SMALL DOG AREA PROPOSAL IN AMAZON PARK
AROUND THE CITY
Motorcade Draws Hundreds to Honor Officer Kilcullen
A motorcade to honor fallen Eugene Police Officer Chris Kilcullen is expected to draw more than 500 emergency
vehicles in a procession preceding a Celebration of Life at Matthew Knight Arena on Friday, April 29. The City has
received support from public safety agencies from around the region and as far away as the Midwest and Canada.
The route passes by several landmarks important to Officer
Kilcullen, including streets he patrolled for traffic enforcement,
near the downtown Police Station, Emergency Services
nd
Center at 2 and Chambers, and City Hall. The route also
passes by the scene of the incident, creating a powerful
connection to Officer Kilcullen.
Theprocession is for emergency vehicles only and is
expected to depart from Autzen Stadium at approximately 11
a.m. However, the public is encouraged to view the
procession from vantage points along the route, which is as
follows:
From Leo Harris Parkway behind Autzen Stadium
East on MLK/Centennial
North on Pioneer Parkway to I-105/OR 126
East on I-105/OR 126 to 52nd Street in Springfield
U-turn back westbound on I-105/OR 126
To 6th Avenue off-ramp in Eugene
Onto 6th Avenue to Chambers Street
nd
West to 2 Avenue to Garfield
th
South to 7 Avenue
East on 7th Avenue/Franklin Boulevard to Matthew Knight Arena
More information about the procession and Celebration of Life is available at www.eugene-or.gov/kilcullen or call toll
free: 1-855-277-8172.
Tap Your Toes to the Texas Toasters at Eugene Public Library
The Downtown Eugene Public Library will host a free concert by the Texas Toasters on “First Friday,” May 6, at 6
p.m. The Downtown Library stays open until 8 p.m. on First Fridays. The Texas Toasters play western swing classics
by Bob Wills and the Texas Playboys, Milton Brown, the Mills Brothers, and more. The band features "Jumpin’ Jon"
EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER PAGE 1
April 28, 2011
on steel guitar and mandolin, Greg Roberts on fiddle, Jim Krowka on guitar, Hilary Dearborn on standup bass and
“everybody on vocals!" For more information, contact the Eugene Public Library at 541-682-5450 or www.eugene-
or.gov/library.
Partnership with Local Club Expands Program
Recreation’s Aquatics program is partnering with members of the Eugene City Water Polo (ECWP) Club to provide
an additional section of the Summer Swim and Water Polo League at
Amazon Pool this summer. This always popular program provides an
introduction to both competitive swimming and water polo for youth
ages eight to 14.
At just $60 for 10 weeks of activities, Summer Swim and Water Polo
League is one of the City’s best summer camp values and, not
surprisingly, the four sections offered at all three City pools fill up
quickly every year. ECWP’s $1,650 sponsorship will allow an
additional 40 youth to experience the fun of diving, sprinting, and
hurling their way through a summer of basics and on to careers in
competitive aquatics.
For more information, contact Tim Westerman at 541-682-6335.
Schools Showcase Green School Efforts on Earth Day
Eugene’s Oregon Green Schools used a beautiful Earth Day to highlight a successful new Cafeteria Compost Grant
Program and to celebrate the city’s first Premier Level elementary Oregon Green School. Cal Young Middle School
celebrated with Slug Queen Slugasana who added the first bucket of food scraps to the school’s new compost
system. Cesar Chavez Elementary celebrated by raising their Premier Level Oregon Green School flag up the flag
pole, signifying nearly a decade of successful waste
prevention efforts.
The City of Eugene Waste Prevention and Green Building
program’s new Cafeteria Compost Grant brought cafeteria
composting to 10 new schools in Eugene and the Lane
County area. To qualify for a compost grant, each school had
to join the Oregon Green School program. Schools that were
already Oregon Green Schools were able to participate by
increasing resource conservation at their school and in the
community and by working toward moving up through the
Oregon Green School program. This new two-pronged grant
program filled quickly as 10 schools took advantage of $500
in Cafeteria Compost Grants and an additional $500 for the
Cesar Chavez Students in front of their flag pole with their
Oregon Green School Incentive Grant.
Premier Level Certificate, $500 Incentive Grant Check, and
Premier Flag.
Collaboration with the School Garden Project, Partners for Sustainable Schools and Lane County Waste
Management made it possible for each school to receive:
A $500 grant;
Hands-on school support for starting a new compost program;
A new three-bin compost system; and
Ongoing support for the waste conservation programs.
Currently there are 22 Oregon Green Schools in Eugene. For more information, contact City of Eugene’s Compost
and Urban Agriculture Program Coordinator Anne Donahue at 541-682-5542 or anne.c.donahue@ci.eugene.or.us.
Budget Committee Begins Review of the Proposed Budget
On April 27, City Manager Jon Ruiz presented to the Eugene Budget Committee a balanced $454 million FY12
budget proposal that continues to focus on maintaining quality City services and moves toward a sustainable budget
while minimizing impacts to the community. Although facing a continuing decline in anticipated revenue primarily due
to a decrease in property taxes, the FY12 Proposed Budget maintains most current service levels, continues
strategic investment in a few high priority community and organizational needs, while minimizing additional taxes and
fee increases. The proposed General Fund budget is $164 million.
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April 28, 2011
“Because of the hard work accomplished over the last few years to restructure the City
organization and find efficiencies, we are able to ‘stay the course’ with this budget, even
with a revenue forecast that is lower than expected,” said Ruiz. “Over the past two
years, the City has reduced 80 staff positions and achieved $17 million in budget
reductions by implementing cost-saving measures and reducing the overall footprint of
our organization as we strive to live within our means. At the same time, we managed
to minimize impact on community services, sustained few increases in service fees,
minimized employee layoffs, and rebuilt a responsible budget reserve. We also
continued to strategically invest in priority initiatives in public safety, human services,
sustainability, downtown revitalization, and ambulance transport. The savings we
achieved allow us to hold the budget at about the same level this year and avoid service
cuts, while we watch the economy carefully and plan for our financial future.”
As a result of its hard work to achieve savings, last spring the City projected financial stability through the six-year
General Fund forecast period. However, over the past year, the financial landscape continued to change, resulting in
an unanticipated FY12 General Fund budget gap mostly due to a decrease in property tax revenues. When the
City’s executive team realized the gap in FY12 would be larger than predicted, they took action to under-spend FY11
budgets by $1 million to get a head start on closing the General Fund gap. The FY12 Proposed Budget includes an
additional reduction of $2.2 million to department General Fund budgets. The increased reserves have helped to
even out some long-anticipated ‘financial potholes’ such as PERS rate increases and the expiration of the Library
Local Option Levy.
The FY12 Proposed Budget document is now available at www.eugene-or.gov/budget. The budget includes more
information about the General Fund situation as well as other funds. For a quick overview, read the City Manager’s
FY12 Budget Message. The Budget Committee is scheduled to discuss the FY12 Proposed Budget at its upcoming
meetings on May 10, May 11, May 17 and May 18. For more information, and to provide feedback on the proposed
budget, visit www.eugene-or.gov/budgetcommittee.
Community Learns about Small Dog Area Proposal in Amazon Park
The Parks and Open Space Division held a public meeting on Wednesday, April 20, at Hilyard Community Center to
involve community members in considering a change to the Amazon Park Master Plan. A group of concerned
community members has proposed a separate enclosure for small dogs, in response to a series of violent, and
sometimes deadly, encounters between large and small dogs at the existing dog park. The community group has
proposed fundraising to cover the cost of both the construction and
maintenance of the new facility if it is approved.
Approximately 50 community members attended to learn about the
proposal, the process for updating the master plan, how to provide
feedback to the Parks and Open Space Division, and how public
input would inform the process. A 45-minute staff presentation was
followed by a half-hour of questions and answers. The majority of
attendees came in support of the small dog area proposal, while
other community members expressed concerns about the planning
process, and pointed to other needs in the park that are not being
addressed.
Staff explained that public feedback on the proposal would be collected through a web survey, via the project
webpage www.eugene-or.gov/smalldogs. The survey will be available through Friday, May 13. For more information,
contact Parks and Open Space Planning Manager Neil Bjorklund at 541-682-4909 or
neil.h.bjorklund@ci.eugene.or.us.
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April 28, 2011