Eugene weekly., December 08, 2011, Page 17, Image 17

kitchen’s bank of batteries providing power, designed by
an electrician who donated materials and services, was
a problem for inspectors, while a cheap, possibly poorly
made system from China would meet with approval.
Jonna says the visits from the city have stepped up, and
as the Dec. 15 deadline looms, “It’s the set-up for the fall.”
Civil liberties attorney Lauren Regan is also an Occupy
advocate. She says Occupy Eugene has been offered
services from permaculture to architectural work for free,
and that grants and donations from nonprofi ts are lined
up, but Occupy needs a more permanent site for the camp.
“Volunteers are solving this problem of homelessness that
you’ve had for years,” she says.
Regan says Occupy Eugene is willing to look at a site
that is not a visible protest site for a longer-term camp.
Protests could happen at places like the Park Blocks, while
the camp could set up somewhere else, such as near the
Skinner City Farm and “take on the homeless issue in a
grassroots manner.”
Regan estimates about 250 people use the current site a
organizer Katie Dee from Melissa Mona, a volunteer
with the Egan Warming Centers that provide shelter for
the homeless on freezing nights in Eugene, states, “Last
year we averaged around 220-240 guests total each night
we activated. This year we have activated twice, and the
average is 183 guests. That is a signifi cant drop.”
Other groups working with the homeless have said
that their numbers are not affected by the Occupy camp,
but McCahill points out that social services are already
drastically underfunded in Eugene and Lane County, and
such services might worry about the risk of losing even
more funding if they said the numbers being helped were
going down. He says as well that the Occupy camp gives
people a place to sleep who might not be comfortable with
the Christian ideology of a place like the Eugene Mission.
Occupy opponents also have alleged that the camp has
been allowed exclusions from the city code for its signs
and structures. However, according to McCahill and
Jonna, the camp has had visits from the fi re marshal and
city code inspectors. Jonna says it’s ironic that the camp
night, sleeping in dwellings, some designed by experts, others
with names like “Tarptopia.” A tall tipi, which Jonna says was
a gathering place until the city began cracking down on the
fi re that kept it warm, sits near a tent for women to gather as
well as near a large dome where meetings take place.
As if to punctuate what the Occupiers are saying about
donations of goods and services, one man walks up to
Jonna to talk about volunteering his electrical expertise.
Someone else drops by with bags of oatmeal. “This kind of
thing happens all the time,” McCahill says.
The camp runs on contributions of everything from time
and effort to donations of portable toilets and generators for
electricity. The Occupiers say they hope that on Dec. 12, the
City Council will vote to allow them to continue their activist
experiment in helping the homeless to help themselves. ew
Upcoming Occupy Eugene events include a candlelight vigil at 4:15 pm
Dec. 12 at City Hall before the City Council work session and lasting until
7:30 pm. Some Occupiers will be traveling to Portland for the West Coast
Port Shutdown, also on Dec. 12. Go to occupyeugenemedia.org and
westcoastportshutdown.org for more information
Skills and Labor Needed
An Occupy Eugene Task Force will be developing a
permanent site for temporary unhoused living, as well
as an educational and community space to continue
OE’s community service works. Meetings are currently
taking place between OE and the city, and if there are any
additional architects, electricians, builders, designers or
others that are handy with tools and shovels who want to
participate in this community project, contact one of OE’s
Task Force coordinators, Jeff Gent at jeffgent.eug@gmail.
com to join or fi nd more information. All are welcome as
are fi nancial contributions.
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EUGENE WEEKLY DECEMBER 8, 2011 17