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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCC Newsletter - 09/30/04EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER September 30, 2004 City of Eugene 777 Pearl Street, Room 105 Eugene, Oregon 97401-2793 (541) 682-5010 (541) 682-5414 (FAX) www.ci.eugene.or, us MINOR REPAIR WORK ON FERRY STREET BRIDGE BEGINS THIS WEEK FIRE DEPARTMENT AWARDED FEDERAL GRANT "WORKING" CITY DEBUTS AMAZONES, THE WOMEN MASTER DUMMERS OF GUINEA - OCTOBER 6, 2004 NEW ADAPTIVE TECHNOLOGY AT EUGENE PUBLIC LIBRARY CONTROLLED BURN USED TO RESTORE NATIVE PRAIRIE IN WHILAMUT NATURAL AREA MOON GAZERS GATHER ON NEW DECK AT HENDRICKS PARK SHELTER Minor Repair Work on Ferry Street Bridqe Begins This Week Minor repair work on the Ferry Street Bridge is scheduled to begin this week. The $500,000 project is fully funded through the Oregon Transportation Investment Act of 2003 (OTIA III), approved by the Oregon Legislature to address a serious backlog of bridge repair projects around the state. The Ferry Street Bridge was one of six bridge projects in Lane County approved by the Oregon Transportation Commission to receive OTIA III funding. The other five projects are for bridge repairs on the county's rural road system. The repair work on the Ferry Street Bridge includes repairing shear cracks by crack injection and then strengthening the shear capacity of the concrete girders by adding external reinforcing. The contract was awarded to Contech Services from Vancouver, Washington. The contractor plans to start work on September 30 and finish in mid-November. No significant traffic delays are anticipated because most of the work will be done under or on the sides of the bridge and viaduct structures. For more information, contact Project Manager Steve Gallup at 682-8460. Fire Department Awarded Federal Grant The Eugene Fire and EMS Department has been awarded a federal grant of $348,703. This funding, from the Fire Operations and Firefighter Safety area of the Assistance to Firefighters Grant Program, will enable the department to purchase and install a source-capture vehicle exhaust extraction system for eight fire stations. The grant provides 70% of the total cost of the project, with the City's General Capital Projects Fund making up the remaining 30% local match required. All work must be completed by September 2005. Every time an apparatus or vehicle enters or leaves its station and during daily routine pump testing, exhaust is released into the air in the station. Currently, a ventilation system exhausts air in the apparatus room much like an exhaust fan system in a bathroom. Air and exhaust fumes are drawn from the building but only after the occupants and equipment in the room have been exposed to the fumes. The new equipment is designed to remove all exhaust fumes and particulates directly to the outside and will be similar to the system recently installed in the Danebo Fire Station. This grant award marks a major achievement for the department. It was a cooperative effort, involving Fire and EMS Department members, Facility Management staff, and our elected officials in Congress. For further information, please contact Planning Chief Ruth Obadal at 682-7114. EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER PAGE 1 October 1,2004 "Workinq City" Debuts The premier episode of "Working City," a new television show featuring City of Eugene programs, projects, and achievements, will air at 8 p.m. on Wednesday, October 6, on Metro TV (Comcast channel 21), the local government channel. Viewers of the inaugural program will learn about planning efforts to develop mixed-use areas, the 9-1-1 Communications Center, and the work of a crime prevention specialist in a local school. "Working City" is a collaborative effort, financed by the City of Eugene's 2% telecom tax fund and produced by LCOG's Metro Television, with coordination by the City's public information staff. The program's half-hour news show format includes a variety of segments highlighting services that directly affect the public, as well as city trivia, interesting city jobs, calendar information and public service announcements. A new show will run each month. November's program is already in production and will feature the Eugene Airport and backstage operations at the Hult Center. The show will repeat five times each week: Sundays at 11:30 a.m., Mondays at 5 p.m. (before Eugene City Council meeting cablecasts), Tuesdays at 2:30 p.m. (after City Council meeting replays), Wednesdays at 8 p.m., and Fridays at 9:30 p.m. More information about the cablecast schedule is available online at www.metrotv.or.q. "Working City" is a unique opportunity to let the public know about the diverse, high-quality services the City of Eugene provides every day. Please tune in and let us know if you have comments or suggestions. Jan Bohman, City Manager's Office, 682-5587 Amazones, the Women Master Drummers of Guinea - October 6, 2004 Direct from West Africa to the Silva Stage for their United States premier, Amazones, the Women Master Drummers of Guinea, will astound their audience with African singing, dancing and drumming. They will perform with world-renowned and respected male musicians and dancers Les Percussions de Guinee. Named after famous women warriors, the Amazones were once homeless, jobless and desperate. Guinean women were forbidden to drum, but the extraordinary ensemble, founded by Mamoudou Corde, who also founded Les Percussions de Guinee, boldly broke with tradition to become internationally recognized musicians. While here in Eugene, the Amazones will take part in many outreach activities. They will partner with the UO Department of Dance for a drum and dance workshop on October 4 from 6:30 to 8:00 p.m., be a part of the City of Eugene's Diversity Celebration by leading two diversity training workshops for employees on October 5 in Studio One, and will perform for over 2,300 area elementary and middle school children at 10:15 a.m. on October 5. They will wrap up their visit with the 8:00 p.m. performance in Silva Hall on October 6. A not-to-be-missed experience! For more information, call the Hult Center Ticket Office at 682-5000. New Adaptive Technoloq¥ at Eugene Public Library Starting in October, the Eugene Public Library (EPL) will provide several state-of-the-ad tools for patrons who have visual impairments, hearing impairments, and physical or learning disabilities who might otherwise have difficulty accessing some library resources. You're invited to try the new equipment and software at an Adaptive Tech Day to be held at the Library on Sunday, October 24, from 2 - 5 p.m. Drop in and let the staff introduce you to the new equipment and capabilities. On the third floor of the Downtown Library, an electronic magnification system (a closed-circuit TV monitor connected to a color enlarger) makes small print items, such as labels, easier to read. The machine is easy to use, with adjustable contrast and color settings to meet a wide range of visual needs. Also on the third floor, a Braille embosser translates onscreen text or graphics into Braille notation on paper, allowing the user to type a document in Microsoft Word and print it out in Braille. EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER PAGE 2 October 1,2004 Five adaptive technology computer stations (three in the Downtown Library, and one each at the Bethel and Sheldon branches) will offer the following: · A 19-inch monitor, for a larger screen view · A roller trackball in addition to a standard mouse; these large, sturdy, easy-to-roll balls offer better control. · A keyboard with extra-large letters and numbers · "OpenBook" software, which uses a scanner to "read" a printed page, then speaks the text aloud through headphones. · "ZoomText," which magnifies the onscreen view up to 16 times and reads onscreen text aloud. · "JAWS," (Job Access With Speech) offers the blind or visually-impaired access to nearly all the functions of the Internet without any loss of speed in comparison to sighted users. Many thanks to the community partners who consulted with EPL on the adaptive technology project, including Rob Cook and Cora Jones, Lane Independent Living Alliance (LILA); Kathleen O'Gieblyn and Mary Lee Turner, Oregon Commission for the Blind; Mike Thomas, Access Technology consultant; Karen Hyatt, City of Eugene Human Rights Program; Bob Joondepth; and Heidi von Ravensberg. New Videos in American Sign Language EPL is the only library in Oregon--and one of only a few dozen in the nation--to acquire a collection of more than 200 videos in American Sign Language. About one third are geared to hearing parents and their deaf children, including children's stories in ASL and parenting information. The others are for deaf and hearing adults and young adults, and include biographies, health issues, history, how-to, reference, learning ASL, and ASL interpreting skills. The videos will appear on Library shelves later this year. As a reminder, the Eugene Public Library is wheelchair accessible and a sign language interpreter can be provided with 48 hours notice for any city-sponsored meeting. To reserve this service, or for more information on adaptive technology, please call 682-5450 or e-mail libraryoutreach@ci.eugene.or, us. Controlled Burn Used to Restore Native Prairie in Whilamut Natural Area Blackberries and other non-native vegetation on an eight-acre portion of Alton Baker Park will be removed through a controlled burn on Monday, October 4. Unless the weather is too wet or too hot and windy, the burn is scheduled to begin at approximately 1 p.m. in the Whilamut Natural Area, located in the eastern section of the park west of I-5 on the north bank of the Willamette River. For public safety reasons, access to the burn area will be restricted. However, the prescribed fire, unlike a wildfire, is quite safe and will be completely controlled and contained by the Eugene Fire Department. The Fire Department is partnering with the Parks and Open Space Division of Eugene Public Works to perform the controlled burn, which will serve two purposes. The Fire Department will use it as a training opportunity to practice wildland firefighting methods and test a new soy- based foam product that is fish friendly. The Public Works Department will use the fire as a restoration tool and follow Controfled burn in Alton Baker Park in 2003 the burn by reseeding the area with native plants. Historically, prairies in the Willamette Valley were burned frequently by Native Americans. By reintroducing this ecological process, Park and Open Space staff hope to reduce weedy exotic species, remove built-up thatch, and provide an opportunity to restore the area with native prairie species. For additional information, contact Natural Resources Specialist Trevor Taylor at 682-4880 or trev°r'h'tavl°r~'ci'eu'qene'°r'us' EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER PAGE 3 October 1,2004 Moon Gazers Gather on New Deck at Hendricks Park Shelter As the moon rose over the new deck that overlooks the native plant garden at Hendricks Park, nearly 40 community members gathered to dedicate the Moon Terrace by celebrating the Chinese Moon Festival. Guests enjoyed Chinese moon cakes, tea, and stories about the Moon Festival, while Jerry Blakely, who spearheaded the project as a memorial to his wife, Mary Rear Blakely, spoke about the project and the partnership with the City of Eugene. Jin Chen, renowned landscape architect, David Moon, president of the Friends of Hendricks Park, and Robin Hostick, Hendricks Park planner also participated. Blakely closed the ceremony with readings of moon poems by his late wife. The deck is called "Moon Terrace" because it is shaped like a crescent and positioned to view the moon as it rises over the horizon. The Moon Terrace lies in the heart of the Native Plant Garden at Hendricks Park. The garden, which was dedicated in May 2002, was designed to inspire a better knowledge of and appreciation for the native plants of the southern Willamette Valley. An added benefit of the Moon Terrace is that it will significantly expand and enhance the historic F.M. Wilkins Shelter, built in 1938. Natural stone complements the design of the shelter, and the Moon Terrace provides a lovely outdoor area in which to socialize. The deck was funded and constructed with donations of money, labor and materials from the community. For more information about the Moon Terrace or the Native Plant Garden, contact Ginny Alfriend, head gardener at Hendricks Park, at 682-5324 or (www. ci. eugene, or. us/parks/hendricks/npgarden, htm), or the Friends of Hendricks Park, one of the primary non-profit organizations involved in the development of the native plant garden, at 607-4066 or (www. friendsofhendrickspark, org). EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER PAGE 4 October 1,2004