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Home My WebLink AboutCC Newsletter - 05/04/06 EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER May 4, 2006 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 ACCESSIBLE PEDESTRIAN SIGNALS ARE FOCUS OF BARRIER AWARENESS DAY BUILDING PERMIT RECIPIENTS GIVE FEEDBACK CITY’S OUTDOOR PROGRAM RECOGNIZED POLICE VOLUNTEER SENIOR PATROL TEAM RECEIVES STATEWIDE RECOGNITION CHILDREN ON THE JOB LEARN ABOUT VALUE OF EDUCATION AROUND THE CITY Accessible Pedestrian Signals are Focus of Barrier Awareness Day City officials and members of the Human Rights Commission Accessibility Committee will mark National Barrier Awareness Day by publicizing the City of Eugene's progress in installing accessible pedestrian signals (APS). On May 9, City Councilor George Poling, Accessibility Committee member Mary Otten, and City staff will share the latest information on APS at a media event on Coburg Road near Oakway Center, the site of the City's newest APS - equipped traffic signal. APS provide audible and tactile cues to assist pedestrians, especially those with visual disabilities, in making safer decisions when using intersection crosswalks. APS emit a beeping locator tone that helps users to find the button that activates the walk signal. A recorded voice announces when the walk light to cross the street is on, and a backwards countdown alerts the user to how many more seconds the walk light will remain on. The City has made a commitment to include APS at all newly installed traffic signals that have push buttons to activate the walk signal cycle. The Human Rights Commission Accessibility Committee is identifying and prioritizing the need for signals at existing intersections and is pursing funding sources. Community members may request APS at specific intersections by contacting the Human Rights Program. For more information, contact Human Rights Program Specialist Karen Hyatt at 682-5177 or Traffic Engineer Tom Larsen at 682-4959. Building Permit Recipients Give Feedback In a recent telephone survey of people who obtained building permits from the City of Eugene in 2005, the Permit and Information Center (PIC) earned a better-than-average rating for overall performance. The survey was conducted by Advanced Marketing Research, Inc., of Eugene, in March and April 2006. A total of 402 home owners and business owners, designers and contractors participated, responding to questions and offering suggestions regarding the ease of getting information and assistance in areas including State electrical, plumbing, mechanical and structural codes, local land use standards and Public Works requirements. Respondents also rated the City on consistency during plan review and inspection, reasonableness of fees, respectful communication, and service. On a five-point scale, ratings on responses to survey questions ranged from 3.0 to 4.8. The PIC survey occurs every two years, obtaining unbiased and statistically valid results from a sample of those who pulled building permits during the previous calendar year. The most recent survey results shows ratings somewhat higher in every category over the 2002 and 2004 surveys. Nevertheless, the survey also provides valuable feedback on areas where greater consistency, timeliness, streamlining and access would better meet the needs of the diverse group of people using building permit services. Survey EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER PAGE 1 May 4, 2006 results show where there are gaps between expectations and performance, and will aid evaluation and improvement of service delivery. As in 2004, a number of those surveyed would like to see “better hours” at the PIC. The City Manager’s budget proposal includes staffing to support expanded services. For more information about the survey, please contact Keli Osborn, Planning and Development Department, 682-5288, keli.m.osborn@ci.eugene.or.us. City’s Outdoor Program Recognized The City of Eugene Recreation Division’s Outdoor Program was declared the “best of” local outdoor recreation programs in an article that appeared in The Register-Guard “Ticket” on Friday, April 28. The article included a photo of a woman negotiating the Spencer Butte Challenge Course. The author compared the city’s programs to the Obsidians and the UO Outdoor Program (Willamalane does not have an outdoor program), and concluded that, “Eugene Recreation wins out,” noting that the city’s outdoor experiences include park walking, hiking, rafting, sailing, kayaking, surfing, skateboarding, tree climbing, yoga, Poi spinning – and more. Readers were invited to go to www.eugene-gov to find 48 different outdoor experiences offered by the city this spring and summer. For more information about Recreation’s Outdoor Programs, contact Craig Smith, Recreation Manager, 682-6340. Police Volunteer Senior Patrol Team Receives Statewide Recognition On Thursday April 20, the Eugene Police Department Volunteer Senior Patrol team received an award from the Crime Prevention Association of Oregon for its significant contribution to crime prevention efforts in this community. The Crime Prevention Association of Oregon is comprised of crime prevention practitioners from throughout Oregon. The organization recognized the volunteer Senior Patrol team at its annual conference and training held this year in Bend, Oregon. Senior Patrollers Marcia Long, Bill Tabbut and Tony LaMarche made the trip to Bend to accept the award on the team’s behalf. The Senior Patrol team is comprised of 13 volunteer members who have participated in a 40-hour training academy along with 40 hours of field training. Each member has committed to serve 20 hours a month for an 18-month period; however, many frequently serve much more. Senior Patrollers act as eyes and ears for the department, reporting suspicious activity and providing an increased police patrol presence in local neighborhoods and parks. Senior Patrollers wear uniforms and drive vehicles that clearly identify them as police volunteers. They attend daily briefings with officers and carry police radios and cell phones for communication. In addition to police presence and patrol, Senior Patrol duties include the following: home vacation checks, traffic calming measures, disabled parking enforcement, theft from vehicle prevention efforts, Serialized and Valuable Property Identification Project and the recovery of stolen vehicles. Tony LaMarche said, “It was an honor accepting this award and rewarding to see the reaction of the professionals in attendance who understand what it is we do and appreciate it.” For more information, contact Seniors on Patrol Team Supervisor Debbie Janecek, 682-8845 or email debbie.k.janecek@ci.eugene.or.us. EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER PAGE 2 May 4, 2006 Children On the Job Learn About Value of Education About 40 youngsters got a close-up look at what their parents do for a living when several City departments celebrated “Take Our Daughters and Sons to Work Day” on Thursday, April 27. More than 6 million boys and 10 million girls participated in the national event, which is designed to expand opportunities for girls and boys, expose them to what the adults in their lives do during the work day, show them the value of their education, and give them an opportunity to share how they envision their future. Police and Fire provided tours and a barbecue lunch for about 30 children, and Public Works Engineering gave a lesson in surveying, followed by a tour of the EmX project site. For more information, call Pam Olshanski at Eugene Police, 682-5124, Glen Potter at Fire, 682-7118, or Eric Jones at Public Works, 682-5523. Public Works kids learn about construction by touring Kids pose with EPD's "bad guy" Ofc. Larry Crompton during EmX project site a tactical defense demonstration at the Police and Fire BBQ at 2nd and Chambers EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER PAGE 3 May 4, 2006