Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Oregon daily emerald. (Eugene, Or.) 1920-2012 | View Entire Issue (May 2, 2002)
VOLUNTEER For VOMEMSPflCE Domestic Violence Services Spring Training May 4 & 11 • Crisis Lines • Children & Shelter Advocates • Legal Clinic • Community & Youth Outreach • Advocacy Center For more info contact Nancy at 485-7262. 014003 dansko regular price shoes adidas over 100+ Simple,* EH COCO fcffl 957 Willamette • 687-0898 www.Lazars.com voted “Best Pizza” in over 70 Markets! South Eugene and u of 0 480-PAPA (7272) Springfield, Duck's Village, Chase village and University Commons 746-PAPA (7272) Santa Clara/River Road 461-PAPA (7272) gs Better Ingredients. S3 Better Pizza. Pick 2 i LARGE PIZZA 99 Coupon required. Not valid with any other otters or specials. $1 charge on delivered orders. Additional toppings extra. Available in thin or original crust Limited delivery area Complete Meal Deal I I I I I LARGE 2 -TOPPING PIZZA with breadsticks & a 2-liter of Coca-Cola £4 >199 Coupon required Not valid with any other otters or specials_ $1 charge on delivered orders Additional toppings extra. .(niriK CM R/n? Available in thin or original crust Limited delivery area 1 Jrut mmm mmm mm mm ■■ mm mm mm mmm mm Kelly continued from page 1 part of the city, and that’s a plus in terms of character, sense of commu nity, established natural features. It’s also a challenge because a lot of the housing stock is old, not in very good shape and not well main tained. It has a high percentage of students. This ward is one of the more progressive, liberal or civic minded wards in the city. One issue that has been dominant is good planning and growth man agement. How do we maintain what people think are the good qualities of Eugene at the same time as we’re growing and developing? Another long-standing concern is rental housing quality. I’m hearing quite a bit of discussion about economic de velopment, but in this ward I hear, “How can we better grow our own, how can we put into place programs and incentives for companies that start here to be able to grow here?” Q: Are students adequately repre sented on the city council? How would you facilitate communica tion between students and city councilors? A: I would say (student) voices have been heard when they speak. I think city issues have been dis cussed by council very thoroughly when they come to our attention. A good example of that was when the special response ordinance was proposed. ASUO got active, reached out to all the councilors, and the ordinance that was adopted was a great deal more equitable than the original proposal. I would like to see some sort of ongoing forum come together, but I’m not precisely sure about how to bring that about. In one sense, ASUO is viewed as the representa tive for the students. But when the turnout at the ASUO election is 5 to 10 percent, who’s speaking for all those who didn’t vote? Q: Recent assaults on campus have heightened concern about public safety. Is the area safe? A: The area is as safe or safer than most cities of this size. Is it as safe as it should be? Certainly not. Some things that can make a difference that are not budget busters are some of the ideas that are actually coming out, like the Yellow Jackets. Just putting out more eyes on the street can be really effec tive. Certainly there’s a need on the University’s end to make students aware of how to take reasonable pre cautions without feeling so inhibited that they fear to walk outside. There is a significant contingent that has some real issues with the Eugene Police Department, not to mention DPS. There’s a double edged sword, with some people say ing we need more police protection, with others saying the police are protecting with a heavy hand. The best thing the council can do is praise our public safety folks when they deserve it, criticize them when they deserve it and try to work more on prevention strategies. Either 80 or 85 percent of crime can be traced back to drugs. I have constantly pushed for funding for drug and al cohol treatment programs. Q: Would you support drafting a city housing code? A: I would like to see something along the lines of the Corvallis sys tem, which sets basic habitability standards in several areas, such as heat, insulation and plumbing — with an enforcement mechanism. The challenge with a housing code is that I’m sure a full 20-page code will not pass the council. I think an approach such as the Corvallis stan dards has a greater chance, and I’d like to see that happen. Q: What should Eugene do to at tract businesses and create jobs? A: I’d prefer dedicated funding for the Lane Venture Forum, which brings together local entre preneurs and local investors. In between, there’s a volunteer panel that reviews business plans from the entrepreneurs before they go to investors so they are more pre pared. We also need to do some very carefully targeted recruitment of outside companies that have high wages, high benefits and companies that are compatible with Eugene’s values. Q: What are your concerns about the departure of Sacred Heart Med ical Center? A: First, call me a cockeyed opti mist, but I’m not sure it’s entirely final that PeaceHealth is moving. There will be changes in health care services. It’s very important that we look at how to keep viable hospitals in business and how do we provide adequate emergency services in the area. Q: Should the city council sup port construction of the West Eu gene Parkway, an $88 million proj ect that would build an expressway in West Eugene to reduce traffic congestion? A: We’re going to hold hearings in May, and we’re going to get a re port from the planning commis sion. It won’t be appropriate for me to comment until I see the report from the planning commission and hear the testimony. Q: The city council has been criti cized for being uncivil and deeply di vided. How would you operate in that politically charged environment? A: I absolutely refuse to get drawn into the name calling or per sonal attacks that have gone on. That’s not productive. It’s good and right that there is vigorous debate of issues. People say it’s terrible coun cil is so divided. Well, the commu nity is divided. The council is re flecting the different opinions in the community, and the way we move forward is to discuss those different points of view. E-mail community editor Darren Freeman atdarrenfreeman@dailyemerald.com. Stewart continued from page 1 student issues than any city coun cilor does or could have. Q: What are the key issues facing Ward 3 residents? A: It’s a really diverse ward. We have a huge number of students but we also have wealthy people in the east hills. It has special needs. But most of all, it is a university ward. It’s centered around the U of O. There’s always a back and forth be tween environmentalists and devel opers. Decent employment is a big issue. Of course, there is the hous ing code issue. Housing is, in some instances, horrible here. Q: Are students adequately repre sented in the city council? How would you facilitate communica tion between students and city councilors? A: I know a lot of people in the ASUO, I know a lot of people from student groups, and I know the Greek system. I’m in constant contact with students and other student represen tatives. One thing that really has been a cause of the division between stu dents and the rest of the community is city government. Things like the party patrol and the special response fee ordinance didn’t have a practical effect. But students feel really affect ed by these things. They feel the city is stigmatizing them, and I personally feel that way too. There are a lot of student voices already speaking, but they’re not be ing heard because there’s no one there that listens — there’s no fo rum. I would make sure student is sues are brought up at every city meeting. Also, I’d be here to listen to what students have to say. I’d like to keep office hours somewhere on campus, if possible. Q: Recent assaults on campus have heightened concern about public safety. Is the area safe? A: It could be safer. What police do for the most part is bust people walking around with open contain ers, bust people smoking weed or write tickets. I’d like to see the EPD take an active role, especially since we have an area that’s been targeted time and time again by predators. I’d like to see them patrolling the ceme tery. I’d like to see them patrolling the area around the Knight Library. Q: Would you support drafting a city housing code? A: We need, maybe not a com prehensive housing code, but housing standards, like what the ASUO endorsed. You outlaw the things you want to get rid of, then you enforce that. Q: What should Eugene do to at tract businesses and create jobs? A: The city has a very bad reputa tion for business. We shouldn’t be giving big tax breaks, but we should be sending messages. One thing we could do is have a unified permit sys tem. Now, if you want to get a busi ness permit, you have to go through three different offices, one at a time, and each has a 60-day waiting peri od. Other cities, like Springfield, have what’s called the unified permit system, where you still go through the same agencies but with only one 60-day waiting period. That would not lower the level of oversight, but would send the message that we want to be more business-friendly. I’m really concerned with the envi ronment and about having a nice place to leave. However, environmen talists and developers don’t speak. They’re just militantly opposed to each other. I’d like to bring them to the point where we’re talking. You can’t have commerce and environmental ists fighting with each other. Q: What are your concerns about the departure of Sacred Heart Medical Center? A: Sacred Heart is, after the U of O, one of the biggest technology re sources this city has. It’s a big employ er, and now that it’s leaving, Eugene isn’t going to be the largest city in Ore gon without reasonable housing stan dards, it’s going to be the largest city in Oregon without its own hospital. Also, it’s a big deal for students, be cause students can intern there; stu dents can get their foot in the door if they want a medical career. Q: Should the city council sup port construction of the West Eu gene Parkway, an $88 million proj ect that would build an expressway in West Eugene to reduce traffic congestion? A: I voted against the West Eugene Parkway. I consider myself an envi ronmentalist. But since then, it’s pro gressed to the point where it would be more harmful not to build it. The state of Oregon has already spent more than $10 million on the project. Once we made the commitment and went to the voters, we passed the point of no return. While I’m con cerned about wetlands, I think that it’s time we pushed it through. Q: The city council has been criti cized of being uncivil and deeply di vided. How would you operate in that politically charged environment? A: I don’t have any enemies in the Eugene city government. I could go in there with a clean slate and could help people sit down and figure things out. I’ve spoken with several current councilors and with the may or, and they’re all reasonable people. But I think a lot of what’s going on is a clash of egos — people commit to one side, take their stand and fight it out for all its worth. I’m not like that. I like to reach agreements. I even like to reach consensus. E-mail community editor Darren Freeman at darrenfreeman@dailyemerald.com.
