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Home My WebLink About11/10/11 - City Council Newsletter EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER November 10, 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 EDITION BLAIR BOULEVARD PARTNERSHIP SUCCESSFULLY BOOSTS BUSINESSES LOCAL BUSINESSES INVITED TO ‘LOVE FOOD NOT WASTE’ WITH COMMERCIAL COMPOSTING STOCK UP FOR WINTER: USED MYSTERY NOVEL SALE AT EUGENE PUBLIC LIBRARY NEIGHBORHOOD LEADERS LEARN SKILLS AND TOOLS FOR NEIGHBORHOOD OUTREACH INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS DAY COMMUNITY CELEBRATION SET FOR DECEMBER 6 WEST BANK MULTI-USE PATH EXTENSION TO OPEN THIS WEEKEND CITY STAFF PARTICIPATES IN STATE INITIATIVE ON WASTE MOBILE APPLICATION ALLOWS CYCLISTS TO DIRECTLY REPORT BIKE SYSTEM MAINTENANCE ISSUES PLAY IN THE RAIN DAY MEANS FREE FAMILY FUN AROUND THE CITY Blair Boulevard Partnership Successfully Boosts Businesses The Blair Boulevard Small Business Renovation Project brought together local partners to provide $10,000 in renovation grants to local businesses. The public-private partnership included the City’s Community Development Division, eDev Entrepreneurial Services, NEDCO (Neighborhood Economic Development Corporation) and Wells Fargo Bank. Together the partners held a press conference on Nov. 3 and presented an additional $500 check to the business with the “greatest impact.” The goal of the Blair Boulevard Small Business Neighborhood Renovation Grants was to help businesses refresh their appearance, increase their sales space and continue the momentum of building a vital and attractive business district along Blair Boulevard. The three businesses, Nib: A Modern Eatery, the MiTierra Groceria, Carniceria & Taqueria, and Marco’s Salon & Wig Gallery, each received $3,000 in grant money from Wells Fargo. They also received volunteer design help from University of Oregon architecture students and professionals such as Stan Honn of Stan Honn Architecture & Construction, Nir Pearlson of Green Building Inc. and Bradley Cook of Huckleberry Fencing. University of Oregon students consulted with the business owners on their vision for their business, completed new designs for the businesses and helped supervise the Wells Fargo employees who volunteered their time to make the renovation ideas a reality. Three judges awarded MiTierra an additional $500 from Wells Fargo for their project’s impact on the adjacent streetscape and the look of the neighborhood. The improvements included an outdoor, fenced-in seating area, lighting, and new bicycle racks at the prominent intersection of Blair Boulevard, Adams Street and 6th Avenue. The many hundreds of hours in volunteer labor leveraged by the City of Eugene, Wells Fargo, and its non-profit allies highlights what can be done when the community works together to foster economic development. For more information, contact William Ellis, program assistant at 541-682-8367 or William.R.Ellis@ci.eugene.or.us. EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER PAGE 1 November 10, 2011 Local Businesses Invited to ‘Love Food Not Waste’ with Commercial Composting This month a new collaboration between the City of Eugene and local haulers, commercial composters, and businesses hit the ground running. The Love Food Not Waste campaign is a new addition to commercial garbage hauling services that licensed haulers can provide to area businesses. The program is targeting the over 10,000 tons of organic material that is thrown away each year by commercial accounts. The initiative aims to divert 3,200 tons of food waste from local landfills. This is a win-win-win for the City, area businesses, and the environment. The program will reduce the amount of food waste going to Short Mountain Landfill which in turn will reduce the community’s greenhouse gas emissions. Reducing commercial food waste was identified as a high priority action in the 2010 Community Climate and Energy Action Plan. City staff worked collaboratively with licensed haulers to develop a service rate for the new program that would cover the costs of the service, and also provide a financial incentive for businesses to separate out food waste. The new rates went into effect in October and the food waste rate is 20 percent below that of a same-sized garbage service. The City’s roll-out includes providing staff assistance and resources to overcome any hurdles for local businesses to adopt the program. This includes a free employee training that will help each business tailor the program to their individual needs, free 23-gallon bins for food scraps in kitchens and prep areas, window decals of the Love Food Not Waste program, and the opportunity to learn more waste prevention management practices that can further improve the bottom line. For more information, contact Waste Prevention and Green Building Manager Ethan Nelson at 541- 682-5224 or ethan.a.nelson@ci.eugene.or.us. Stock Up for Winter: Used Mystery Novel Sale at Eugene Public Library Mystery lovers: It’d be a crime to miss the Friends of Eugene Public Library’s Used Mystery Novel Sale on Saturday, Nov. 19, from 10 a.m. - 4 p.m., at the Downtown Library. All proceeds will go to support Eugene Public Library programs. Choose from thousands of popular, gently used detective stories and spy thrillers priced at just $1.00 each. From classics to current bestsellers, the books will be sorted by authors' last names, making it easy to find favorites. Admission and parking are free. For more information, contact the Eugene Public Library at 541-682-5450 or www.eugene-or.gov/library. Neighborhood Leaders Learn Skills and Tools for Neighborhood Outreach Neighborhood Services offered a fall training series on neighborhood outreach on Oct. 20 and 27, and Nov. 1. Overall, 17 different neighborhood associations were represented, with 35 - 40 people in attendance at each session. All three sessions focused on what makes outreach successful, creating an outreach plan, and how to get more people, and new people, involved. A common thread was that building relationships is essential. Training evaluations show satisfaction levels were high among participants. The first session focused on the why, or the goals, of outreach. Participants used their draft 2011 Neighborhood Analyses, a compilation of 2010 Census and other City data, to look at who they might need to do outreach with and what assets and needs their neighborhood might have. (Final Neighborhood Analyses will be available in December.) The second session focused on “the power of inclusion” – helping participants explore their own biases and comfort zones and how they affect one’s ability to do outreach. The topics of where and how to connect with people were also addressed. The third session focused on new technologies for building and maintaining contacts, such as Facebook, Twitter and email subscription services, and tips and tools for organizing successful meetings and events. For more information about this training series, please contact Lorna Flormoe of Neighborhood Services, in the City Manager’s Office, at 541-682-5670 or lorna.r.flormoe@ci.eugene.or.us. EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER PAGE 2 November 10, 2011 International Human Rights Day Community Celebration Set for December 6 The City’s Human Rights Commission and the Community Coalition for the Advancement of Human Rights are working collaboratively to host an International Human Rights Day event on Dec. 6, from 5:30 - 8:30 p.m. in the Atrium th Building, 99 West 10 Avenue, in downtown Eugene. Mayor Kitty Piercy will open the event, followed by guest speakers on the topics of immigrant integration and homelessness. Rounding out the evening will be a nationally known human rights advocate and defender, Ajamu Baraka. The evening promises to be a night to remember. The event is free and open to the public. For more information, please contact Michelle Mortensen at 541-682-6378 or michelle.e.mortensen@ci.eugene.or.us. West Bank Multi-Use Path Extension to Open This Weekend Work has been completed on a $1.6 million extension of the Ruth Bascom Riverbank Path in the River Road-Santa Clara area, and the multi-use path extension will be open for public use beginning this weekend. Knife River Corporation, working under contract to the Eugene Public Works Department, began work early this year to extend the path from River Avenue, under the Randy Papé Beltline, along Division Avenue to Beaver Street. The primary source of funding for the project was a federal transportation enhancement grant administered by the Oregon Department of Transportation. The project extends the existing West Bank Trail to connect the River Road and Santa Clara neighborhoods. Previously, bicyclists and pedestrians wishing to cross the Beltline corridor had to use River Road, a busy arterial street with five lanes of traffic moving approximately 32,000 vehicles a day. The extended trail provides a safer option that reduces the number of vehicle conflicts with pedestrian and bicycle movements. The project also provides a connection from Eugene’s Bascom Riverbank Trail System to the street system north of Beltline. The new 12-foot-wide, concrete path is about 3,200 feet long and includes pedestrian-scale lighting, a retaining wall next to the Willamette River under Beltline, and an undercrossing at the main truck entrance to the Delta Sand & Gravel yard on Division Avenue. The extension to the West Bank Path segment brings the total length of the Riverbank Path system to approximately 14.5 miles: 2.7 miles on the West Bank Path, four miles on the South Bank Path, 2.8 miles on the East Bank Path, and five miles on the North Bank Path. The path system is named for former Mayor Ruth Bascom, who was an avid cyclist and a strong advocate for bicycling facilities in Eugene. Also this summer, the segment of the South Bank Path was reconstructed from Greenway Bridge to the RiverPlay Discovery Village Playground in Skinner Butte Park using voter-approved bond measure funds. For more information, contact Project Manager Patrick Cox at 541-682-6854. City Staff Participates in State Initiative on Waste In an innovative, new approach to waste management, the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) is developing a long-term "Materials Management 2050 Vision." The aim is to reduce environmental impacts by managing materials throughout their lifecycle – including extraction, production, use and end-of-life management - not just when the materials become waste. Babe O'Sullivan, sustainability liaison in the City Manager's Office, is part of the stakeholder group helping the DEQ develop a statewide vision and action plan. Information and background materials can be found at http://www.deq.state.or.us/lq/sw/materialsmgmtplan.htm. Oregon DEQ is at the forefront of research and policy exploring the important relationship between consumption, materials management and climate change. The agency recently released a new statewide consumption-based inventory of greenhouse gases that is the first of its kind in the nation. Participation in the DEQ effort supports work on the Community Climate and Energy Action Plan. To see related reports go to http://www.deq.state.or.us/lq/consumptionbasedghg.htm. For more information, please contact Babe O’Sullivan at babe.osullivan@ci.eugene.or.us or 541-682-5017. EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER PAGE 3 November 10, 2011 Mobile Application Allows Cyclists to Directly Report Bike System Maintenance Issues A new mobile application developed jointly by the City of Eugene and the University of Oregon (UO) will allow local cyclists to directly notify Public Works staff of maintenance-related issues on the bike path system. Designed and written collaboratively by staff from the Public Works Maintenance Division and the UO Department of Computer and Information Science, the mobile “app” will be available for both iPhone and Android “smart phone” operating systems. The application provides users with a direct delivery route for requests for service into the maintenance management system used by Public Works Maintenance to assign and track work orders. Direct routing makes it quicker and easier for users to notify Public Works of potential maintenance needs and increases the efficiency and effectiveness for Public Works to respond to service requests. The location of requests will be provided by utilizing the GPS location function of mobile devices. The application allows the end user to include a name, phone number and e-mail, if a response or additional information is sought. It also allows the user to include a photograph to add detail when reporting an issue. The new mobile application is in addition to several other current web-based citizen request forms that tie into the maintenance management system, including reporting potholes, requesting leaf deliveries, and being notified when street sweeping is scheduled in a particular area. Information on how to install the new, free mobile application will be publicized as soon as the app is ready for download from the iTunes and Android stores. For more information, contact Public Works Maintenance Operations Manager Jim McLaughlin at 541-682-4912. Play in the Rain Day Means Free Family Fun The Youth in Nature Partnership presents the fourth annual Play in the Rain Day on Saturday, Nov. 12, from 10 a.m. - 3 p.m. at Mount Pisgah Arboretum, 34901 Frank Parrish Road, in Eugene. Play in the Rain Day is a free, family event for all ages. The day's activities will include tree-climbing, horses, nature crafts, hikes, hay rides, campfire cookery, a visit from Smokey Bear, native plants, fire by friction, archery and more. Parking and all activities, including campfire food, are FREE! Attendees will discover how fun, easy, and rewarding it is to spend time outdoors in nature - in all kinds of weather. More than 1,000 people attended last year. Play in the Rain Day will happen rain or shine, so dress for the weather. For more information, call Liz Karas at 541-349-5055, ext. 201, Peg Douthit-Jackson at 541-747-1504, or Chris Orsinger at 541-344-8350, or visit www.youthinnature.org. EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER PAGE 4 November 10, 2011