D ONALD D EXTER J R DMD LLC
BY CHUCK ADAMS
DENTISTRY
Housing Goes Underground
Demand high for swank Olympic Trials digs
B
uying tickets to next summer’s U.S.
Olympic Track & Field Trials in
Eugene is easy enough; just enter
your credit card data and click “buy.” This
process was so easy, in fact, that all ticket pack-
ages have sold out. But now the big question
for the estimated 1,200 athletes, 15,000 daily
spectators and 1,200 members of the media
(not to mention the huge influx of law enforce-
ment officers and Oregon Bach Festival atten-
dees) is: Where are you going to stay?
According to information from the
Convention & Visitors Association of Lane
County Oregon (CVALCO) website, 20 of
the 51 Eugene-Springfield hotels, motels and
bed & breakfasts listed are completely
booked for the 10 days of the trials (June 27
to July 4, 2008). Others, such as the Campus
A Eugene family
offered to rent
their home near
Oakway Center for
500
per night.
$
Even at that price
there is a caveat:
the renter ‘will
need to care for
two indoor cats.’
Inn & Suites, won’t be accepting reservations
until October or other dates closer to 2008.
The UO Housing and Catering &
Conferences departments will soon be open-
ing up portions of their residence halls and
campus housing for rental by trials attendees,
says Food Services Director Tom Driscoll.
But even with local lodging options at full
capacity, there is strong demand for more
housing options, particularly in private resi-
dences.
The Eugene ’08 website (www.eu-
gene08.com) states that athletes and specta-
tors “may choose to stay in private homes,
but because of potential liability issues, the
Local Organizing Committee will not be pro-
viding home-stays as one of the standard op-
tions it provides to athletes and their families.
Community members who wish to offer this
service to athletes and their families might
wish to post on Craigslist or similar message
boards.” In essence, the promoters of the tri-
als are encouraging an underground accomo-
dation market to develop apart from their
central website location.
A search on Craigslist reveals that specta-
tors and locals are already in contact.
Jonathan Olszyk of Virginia Beach, Va.,
posted a request on July 2 that specified his
age, that he would be traveling with his father
and that he was “willing to pay good money
(cash upon arrival).”
Asked via email, Olszyk said he’s willing
to pay up to $1,500 for 10 days accomodation
in a private home. Despite making it clear he
needed only two bedrooms, he has received
offers of four bedrooms, a swimming pool
and transportation to the events, all for a cool
$4,000.
On July 1, a family of four requested a
three-bed, two-bath accommodation and of-
fered to pay from $2,000 to $3,000 for 10
days. But they had one preference: “a private
location with hot tub.”
On July 11, a Eugene family offered to
rent their 2,900 sq. ft. home near Oakway
Center for $500 per night. Even at that price,
there is a caveat: the renter “will need to care
for two indoor cats.”
Despite Craigslist’s power to connect
renters and rentees, some are hesitant to use it
just yet. Karen Alvarado, who plans to use
her house in the Fairmount neighborhood “in
some capacity” for either accommodation or
to host receptions for the athletes and
coaches, is suspicious of Craigslist, she says,
because of the frequent “scams and frauds”
found there. Just as well, there will be little al-
ternative to posting a classified ad some-
where online, though trials attendees and
hosts won’t find a “one-stop” solution such as
the Eugene ’08 website.
Alvarado and Barbara McKeown, another
Fairmount resident planning on renting out
her home, are fortunate to have a connection
through Alvarado’s son, who works for a
catering and banquet company with access to
media markets. The main advantage in part-
nering with this company, McKeown says, is
so she can be “under the umbrella of their lia-
bility insurance.” Insurance wasn’t some-
thing she factored in when she first decided to
rent out her house, she says. But even with
the coverage, McKeown says she would still
frequently check on her Colonial house to
make sure it wasn’t trashed in an after-party
run amok.
McKeown says she may use her member-
ship in the Affordable Travel Club, a
hospitality exchange group, to find guests for
her extra bedrooms. While she is open to
giving up her entire house to the right renters,
McKeown concedes that just having an ath-
lete or track fan renting out a room would be
an exciting prospect. “It will be an adventure
to meet up with new people,” she says.
It’s no surprise that the Fairmount and
south university area residents will profit the
most from their proximity to Hayward Field,
both for viewing (and hearing) the
excitement themselves and mingling with
world-class athletes. According to John
Barofsky of Beppe & Gianni’s Italian
Restaurant, the Fairmount Neighbors
association made a request for all residents to
consider opening up their homes to trials at-
tendees in some capacity. As the availability
of traditional accomodations dwindles,
Eugene residents may realize the financial
and social windfalls of an underground net-
work of private housing options.
ew
All that is good
begins with good health.
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JULY 26, 2007 13