letters
TO THE EDITOR
WOW HALL PR0BLEMS
Eugene has a rich and lively arts
community. Theaters, galleries, clubs,
venues and artists of all stripes, and all of
them contribute to our colorful environment.
Part of this scene is the Community Center
for the Performing Arts in the historic WOW
Hall. The CCPA is a tax-exempt nonprofi t
run by a volunteer board of directors elected
by WOW Hall members and the building is
long since paid off. It belongs to you! It has
a secure base and lots of potential.
There are problems, however. The CCPA
represents itself as an equal opportunity
employer, but it’s not. Folks who work there
just hire their friends, partners and relatives.
They write each others’ performance reviews.
There is no oversight of CCPA policy because
there is no general manager. (The last one was
harassed out and not replaced.) No one ever
gets written up or asked to improve. There is
no capital improvements plan, no diversity
plan, no overall staffi ng plan, no movement to
improve. It’s questionable whether the CCPA
could survive a routine IRS audit of 501(c)3
compliance.
What keeps the board from taking
responsibility for fi xing it is that the board
is elected at the annual general meeting, an
event largely controlled by the staff who
nominate their friends and relatives and
former employees (some of whom were
dismissed from their jobs for behavior
issues or violation of CCPA policies). If
anyone who supports change slips past the
goalie, it can get very unpleasant. My year
as a board member was not a happy one.
Intimidation, yelling, insults, going behind
others’ backs may not be the characteristics
of successful collective enterprises, but
they are notoriously present here.
The current board has seen several
resignations. There is currently no
treasurer. Most are inexperienced in
serving on boards of nonprofi ts, or in
community-owned organizations or in
arts administration. They give the staff
what it asks for (hours, raises, new hires,
etc.) because they are in the staff’s pocket.
There are people of good will involved, but
the board as a whole is a rubber stamp for
the staff.
What can be done? The next general
meeting is 6:30 pm May 15. If the election
is decided by 40 or 50 people, as it has been
in the past, we’ll get more of the same. If
the community has an interest and shows
up in numbers great enough to manifest
some diversity, things could improve.
Membership is $15 a year or you
can work it off by volunteering. You can
become a member at any time before the
meeting. Anyone interested in running for
the board must be a member for 30 days
before the meeting (by April 15).
Chico Schwall
Eugene
INVIGORATE DOWNTOWN
If Capstone wants to spend its
money to build these student apartments
downtown, let them. With all the services
and infrastructure falling apart in this town,
it is not in Eugene’s best interest to give
them a $16 million tax break over 10 years.
Many on City Council seem to be all for
it, mainly because it would increase population
density downtown, a long-held community
goal, and invigorate the area. That plan will
work if you only want young people, fast food
joints and more bars. Seems to me that we’d
like to get everybody downtown, yes?
The way to re-invigorate downtown
might be to have something going on down
there all the time. Plant some trees on the
streets and in Kesey Square, install lots of
benches under those trees, allow musicians,
small street businesses and food carts to
open in wider sidewalk areas or empty
lots. Change the restrictive law(s) against
people sitting on, or even touching walls
and planters. Make it clear to all where the
clean public restrooms are located.
Hire some of the street people to help
keep downtown clean and earn a living.
Give them a good reason to be there, too!
Then, just maybe, it might be more fun
to come downtown and spend some time
checking out what’s happening. And hey,
it’s OK if someone wants to take a nap on
one of those benches on a nice day!
Robin Bloomgarden
Eugene
WALDO AS MICROCOSM
This issue surrounding Waldo Lake
(cover story, 4/29) is much more than a small
debate around motorboats, but it’s rather a
DIABETES DOESN’T
HAVE TO WIN
YMCA’s Diabetes Prevention Program
HEALTH AND WELLNESS
You know diabetes runs in your family.
You know you could probably move more and eat better.
You may even know that you live with “elevated numbers.”
D ONALD D EXTER J R DMD LLC
DENTISTRY
"The first wealth
is health."
-Ralph Waldo Emerson
Invest in your health, the returns are abundant.
2233 W ILLAMETTE S T , B LDG B • 541-485-6644
w w w. d r d e x t e r. c o m
4
APRIL 5, 2012
EUGENE WEEKLY
What we know is that the YMCA’s Diabetes Prevention Program
is proven to reduce the incidence of diabetes by nearly
60%. If you are ready to take control of your health, join us for
the next session of classes and reduce your risk.
April 11 th 6-7pm at your Y. The class will meet at this time for
16 weeks. After that, you’ll meet monthly for the remainder of
the year to maintain your healthy habits and motivation!
Contact Kari Porter today: 541.686.9622 or
prevention@eugeneymca.org
For more on healthy living, follow your Y:
EUGENE FAMILY YMCA
2055 Patterson Street
P 541 686 9622 W eugeneymca.org
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