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About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 29, 1985)
— Pop quiz today See Page 8 Tuesday, January 29, 1985 Eugene, Oregon Volume 86, Number 87 Drivers beware: Speed bumps are a thing of the past. Traffic control of the '80s consists of very ob vious, intrusive planting areas placed in the middle of intersections — much like the one these construction workers are piecing together at the corner of 16th Avenue end Mill Street. The City of Eugene is overseeing this design pro ject, which encompasses the area west of the Universi ty and which won’t be completed until June. Photo by Michael Clapp . and farmers air sales-tax options By Michael Hosmar Of the Emerald SALEM — The House Revenue Committee heard a wide range of opinion Monday as it continued public hearings designed to ease the task of for mulating a sales-tax proposal that Oregonians will approve. Oregon’s community colleges would favor a sales tax “constitutionally dedicated to reduce the property tax bill of all classes of property tax payers,” said Roger Basset, a member of the Oregon Com munity College Association. The current method of fund ing and governing local school districts would not be disrupted if the sales tax is used to directly offset Oregonians’ property taxes, Basset said. “If the governor and the Legislature decide, instead, to distribute the sales tax through local education budgets, our (community colleges') choice would be to have the sales tax distributed through school district and community college budgets,” he said. But sales-tax revenue should not be substituted for state general fund appropriations to community colleges, Basset added. The sales-tax proposal must also be written into the state Constitution, or there is no guarantee that sales-tax receipts will assure long-term property tax relief, he said. And if ex emptions to the sales tax are not specified in the Constitution, the effectiveness of the sales tax will erode as organizations con Graphic by Mike Duncan tinually ask for more exemptions. The AFL-CIO has opposed the sales tax for more than 50 years, but the narrow defeat of Ballot Measure 2 sparked more in terest in the sales tax as a form of property tax-relief, said Bob Baugh, secretary to the treasurer of the Oregon AFL-CIO. The organization has not reversed its position on the sales tax, but it has decided to be more open-minded about the proposal. Its members want to work closely with the legislators in formulating a sales-tax proposal. Baugh said. One of the organization’s ma jor concerns about the sales tax is that Oregonians might be sub jected to some form of double taxation if the tax is im plemented in conjunction with the property tax, he said. Representatives of various farming organizations also testified at the hearing. Their major concern was that the sales tax contain the exemptions needed to make it fair for farmers and growers. Feed, fertilizer, seed and livestock are some exemptions for farmers in Gov. Vic Atiyeh’s sales-tax proposal. But the growers said the proposal also should include exemptions for fuel, lubricants and parts for machinery repair. The committee will continue to hear public testimony throughout the week beginning at 8 a.m. in Hearing Room A of the Capitol. The revenue committee in cludes two prominent Eugene area representatives, Republican Mary Burrows and Democrat Carl Hosticka. They can be contacted by writing in care of the Capitol, Salem, 9 73 10, or by calling 1-800-452-7813, Renters fume over deposit money, upkeep By Scott McFetridge Of the Enmrald One of th< -.ampus area’s largest rental companies has been charged by tenants with failure to return deposit money and with poor general upkeep of facilities. Several tenants say that Greater American Properties, formerly J.P. North Properties, promised them a full return of their deposit when they moved out at the end of fall term. But more than a month after the former tenants left, they say they have not received their money. Brent Olson, who moved from Alders gate Quads, 1436 Alder St., on Dec. 20, says he tried to contact Greater American about his deposit for two days before he was able to reach the campus area manager. Olson says he was told that his check had been mailed already and that he needed to speak to the accounting of fice but that they had no phone. The area manager, who prefers to re main anonymous, says problems have occurred because of the usual rush be tween terms. If there is a hold up, it’s because of the accounting office and not his office, he says. Under Oregon law, rental tenants are entitled to their deposit within 30 days of the time they move out. If owners do not refund the tenants’ money within this period, they are liable for up to twice the deposit amount. John Barlow, a former tenant of Cam pus Quads, 751 E. 16th Ave., says he plans to consult the University Legal Services and sue for double his $100 deposit. He moved out Dec. 15. “I had to clean it up when I moved in and then 1 left it in good shape,*’ Barlow says. "1 would rather live in a more trustworthy place that operates more honorably, instead of working with a sleazy organization.” Olson also says that he plans to sue for double his deposit money. But Jennifer Price, secretary-president of Greater American, says that the com pany records show that both Olson and Barlow were sent their deposit refunds on Jan. 4. Many students don’t give the company their correct forwarding ad dress, and the checks may have gone to a wrong location, she says. Several of the former tenants also com plained about a lack of maintenance in their buildings. They complained that garbage collection was infrequent and that hallways — and the garage — often flooded. During a cold spell, the halls would become sheets of ice, says Cyn thia Combs, a former Campus Quads tenant. In the three months Combs lived at Campus Quads, she says there were Photo by Steven Wall Several former tenants have charged that Gieater American Properties, one of the area’s biggest renters, failed to return their rental deposits in the required 30-day period. three different managers. The managers were good people, but they didn’t like Greater American’s way of doing business, she says. "I want to get my money back, but I’m even more concerned that nobody has to go through what I went through,” Combs says. “I want it to be known that if you’re dealing with these people, you should keep your eyes open.” Price admits that there may be prob lems with some quads, but she insists that Greater American is doing everything it can. One complex tends to have water accumulation when it rains, but the company is working to find a solution to the problem, she says. One problem is that Greater American often has to rely on students to manage its properties, Price says. Students think they can handle a job but then find that they don’t have the time, she says. “Our policy is to respond to any maintenance within 24 hours, and if the manager doesn’t, there will be some turnover” Price says.
