URBAN RENEWAL
TO DIVERT
$40 MILLION
Just a week after the failure of Measure 30
threw state school funding into fiscal melt-
down, the Eugene City Council is proceeding
forward with a plan to divert an estimated
$40 million from state school funding and
local government services.
The council held a hearing Feb. 9 on its
push to add 25 acres to the Riverfront Urban
Renewal District and continue it for 20 years.
The Riverfront district would cost state
school funding $22 million in property taxes
over the next two decades, according to city
estimates. The city would lose $15 million in
funding for police, fire, library and other core
services over the period. Lane County would
take a $3 million hit. Property taxes to pay for
local levies and bonds will also increase
about 1 percent to make up for revenue lost to
urban renewal.
A big chunk of the $40 million will likely
go to build a highway along the railway
tracks to pump more cars through the river
front area. Critics have said the highway will
cut off the city and new courthouse district
from the river and spoil a potential natural
area. The city also plans to use a big chunk of
the money for a huge new police station,
which voters have twice defeated at the polls.
“The timing can hardly be worse,” testi-
fied Ray Wolfe in opposition to the tax diver-
sion. Wolfe said the city had already spent
$30 million in diverted urban renewal money
downtown with “questionable benefits” and
built a road to nowhere in the UO’s
Riverfront Research Park.
Wolfe said the city shouldn’t divert
money out of funding for fire protection and
other essential services into urban renewal.
“Is there really nothing in the general budget
that deserves a higher priority? That’s what
your saying.”
Cynthia Kokis said she’s concerned with
the impact on school funding and the envi-
ronmental impact of developing the river
area. She said urban renewal didn’t work for
downtown. “There’s something terribly
wrong.”
Kevin Matthews, president of Friends of
Eugene, called the riverfront urban renewal
proposal “corrosive of an atmosphere of pub-
lic trust.” Matthews pointed out the proposed
highway was defeated by voters as part of the
failed Ferry Street Bridge freeway plan and is
“a really ill-advised transportation project.”
Matthews says the plan calls the river-
front area “blighted” but it’s really a natural
“gem” for the community.
Bryn Anderson, a UO student on the cam-
pus planning committee, testified against the
“wide environmental impacts” proposed de-
velopment along the riverfront will have.
UO professor Al Urquhart said the city
should delete the UO’s planned Riverfront
Research Park of big office buildings along
the river from the district. Urquhart pointed
to “gross differences” between the research
park’s projected benefits and its reality. “The
Riverfront Research Park has been a failure
and should not be included.”
Drix Rixmann testified that Eugene should
save the natural riverfront as part of the
“magic” that makes Eugene an attractive place
to live. “We have this beautiful river and now
we’re talking about taking it and giving a
chunk of it to private business so someone can
have an office with a view of it.”
Representatives from the Chamber of
Commerce and Downtown Eugene Inc. testi-
fied in favor of urban renewal as a way for the
city to accomplish its development vision for
the riverfront area.
But Councilor Bettman questioned the di-
version of tax money. “We can’t fund
schools, we can’t fund human services and
we can’t fund recreation.”
So far, at least five councilors have ex-
pressed support for the urban renewal tax di-
version which is scheduled for a final vote
Feb. 23. — Alan Pittman
NO UO ARENA
As EW was going to press Wednesday,
UO President Dave Frohnmayer announced
he has put plans for the controversial new
$180 million basketball arena on indefinite
hold. Frohnmayer cited problems with
arena’s “scope, complexity and financing,”
but said he remains “committed to our com-
mon goal of creating a premier facility.”
The decision was made after consultation
with the projects’ donors. No information
was available regarding whether a major
donor had pulled out.
BY PAUL NEEVEL
MARY ENOS
“I started sewing when
I was a kid,” says Mary
Enos, owner of 27th
Street Fabrics. “In
those days that’s what
you did — everybody
had a sewing
machine.” A graduate
of North Eugene High,
Enos had a brief
career in accounting
before she married into the family that had founded the Eugene Vacuum and Sewing
Center in 1948. When her mother-in-law looked to retire, Enos was recruited to take over
the fabric department. “I’ve been here 30 years,” she notes. “When I came in, I decided to
expand and offer sewing classes.” 27th Street Fabrics (renamed when it moved across
Willamette Street in ‘86) currently has classes every day of the week, sewing clubs, occa-
sional guest speakers and benefit events. “Sewing has changed — clothing is so cheap it
doesn’t pay to sew your own,” Enos remarks. “Now it’s recreation — also a social thing.”
Quilting, purses and home decoration are popular class offerings. “All day long the phone
rings with questions,” says part-time employee and sewing instructor Viki Neville. “It’s a
wonderful place for people to show off projects and get free advice.”
OLCV SCORECARDS
SPOTLIGHT VOTING
Two environmental scorecards released
this week by the Lane County Chapter of the
Oregon League of Conservation Voters
(OLCV), document the voting records of
Lane County Commissioners and Eugene
city councilors during the past two years.
While the County Commission showed im-
provement, the City Council showed slip-
page.
The Eugene council received a failing
grade, averaging 41 percent on 10 key votes.
The commission averaged 60 percent on 11
key votes, up from a poor 39 percent in the
prior scorecard. The scorecards assign a rat-
ing to each decision-maker on votes that af-
fect whether our region remains a beautiful
and healthy place to life.
“The scorecard separates true stewards of
our environment from those who just talk that
way,” says Kim Leval, spokesperson for the
Lane County Chapter.
A majority of Eugene’s councilors voted
nearly every time against environmental
safeguards, putting special interests before
the public interest on contested issues such as
sprawl, water quality, zoning, toxics report-
ing and the West Eugene Parkway. Scott
Meisner and Nancy Nathanson scored 10
percent (both slipping from better ratings two
years ago). George Poling, Gary Papé and
Jennifer Soloman all scored worst-possible 0
percent ratings.
Bonny Bettman, Betty Taylor and David
Kelly received recognition for their 100 per-
cent pro-environment voting records. The
three were consistently out-voted. There
were only three times when other councilors
joined with them, but in each case Mayor
Torrey broke the tie, ensuring the anti-envi-
ronment position passed, according to the re-
port.
“The developer-friendly majority on the
City Council seems intent on turning Eugene
into Southern California,” says Lane County
OLCV Steering Committee member Tim
Sutton. “Their misguided planning decisions
will lead to increased sprawl.”
In the county scorecard, the average was
60 percent. Pete Sorenson and Tom Lininger
earned perfect 100 percent scores. Bill
Dwyer earned a 63 percent. Bobby Green
was rated 36 percent, an improvement over his
14 percent score in 2001. Anna Morrison once
again received a worst-possible 0 percent.
For more complete information on the
scorecards and how the ratings were deter-
mined, visit www.olcv.org or call
(503) 224-4011. — TJT
EUGENE PHOTOGRAPHER
BACK FROM NICARAGUA
Eugene photographer Paul Dix docu-
mented the Contra War in Nicaragua during
the 1980s. His return there last year provided
him with pictures that he will present in a
slide show and talk at 7:30 pm Wednesday,
Feb. 18, at Harris Hall, 8th and Oak.
Donations will be accepted.
With the help of his Eugene partner, peace
activist Pam Fitzpatrick, Dix managed to lo-
cate and once again photograph some of the
people who became part of his photo album
at the height of the war.
The event, titled, “Living with the
Consequences of U.S. Policy,” is part of a na-
tional tour of the Nicaragua Photo/Testimony
Project.
The program is co-sponsored by CISCAP
and the Eugene Friends Meeting. For more
information, call 342-3647.
BETTY TAYLOR FILES
FOR COUNCIL RE-RUN
Eugene City Councilor Betty Taylor, rep-
resenting Ward 2, has filed for re-election.
Ward 2 is in south and southeast Eugene, bor-
dered by Chambers on the west and 28th and
30th avenues on the north.
Taylor says she advocates for environ-
mental protection in the Eugene area, includ-
ing acquisition of stream corridors and pro-
tection of trees. She supported the resolution
in opposition to provisions of the USA PA-
TRIOT Act that restrict civil liberties. She
supported the ordinance authorizing the
Domestic Registry for unmarried partners,
and says she’s an advocate for “living wages,
open and accessible government, citizen in-
volvement, a performance auditor and an eq-
uitable source of funding for road mainte-
nance.”
She opposes the downtown ordinance that
prohibits gatherings of more than 25 people
without a permit, and “any tax breaks or other
FEBRUARY 12, 2004 7