letters
TO THE EDITOR
SOURCES WERE WRONG
EW inaccurately wrote on Aug. 16
[Slant] that Juan Carlos Valle [reportedly]
resigned as chair of the Police Commission
because members were dissatisfi ed with
his leadership. I am a member of the
commission and that was not the case.
Juan Carlos is an important and active
member of the Police Commission. He
was an effective committee leader and the
commission voted him to be its chairperson.
Two dissatisfi ed “credible sources” were
wrong if they made statements that Juan
Carlos would be voted out of leadership.
Jesse Lohrke
Eugene
INTEGRITY & HONOR
THE CARETAKERS
LEARN FROM CORVALLIS
Several Occupy Eugene committees
are collaborating on caretaking an empty
downtown house which is involved
in foreclosure. We have been at 1191
Lawrence for three weeks now, with the
cooperation and support of the neighbors
and the owner, who lives out of state.
We learned that the owner was misled
by Bank of America, who told her they
were about to take possession of her house
after refusing to work with her on a loan
modifi cation or other options for resolving
the situation. She handed in her keys in 2009
and the house still stands empty today. It had
become a public safety and health hazard
before the present Occupation hauled off the
garbage and posted a 24/7 watch.
Here’s a shout out to sisters and brothers
who support our work for economic
fairness and housing as a human right.
We’re painting the fence down at 1191
Lawrence on Labor Day Monday, Sept. 3,
starting around 10 am. Come on down and
paint yourself a picket or two, maybe meet
the neighbors. You can also visit us during
the First Friday Art Walk for an exhibit of
Art of the Occupation on Sept. 7.
Fergus Mclean
Occupy Housing-Foreclosure Action
Committee
Eugene is still struggling to re-energize our
downtown, although there have been some
positive improvements in recent months.
Perhaps our city leaders should have a
discussion with their counterparts in Corvallis.
I visited Corvallis recently and was
amazed at how vibrant its downtown core is:
plenty of independent shops and restaurants
that appeared to be doing well, tons of free
street parking and a bustling farmers market
that nonetheless didn’t feel crowded and
overwhelming (as ours often does). They
shut down the entire street for it, rather
than forcing it onto narrower sidewalks. I
don’t know what they’re doing (other than
prioritizing small businesses and the Saturday
Market), but they’re doing something right!
Maybe we could learn from their
success and apply it to our own city. A good
start would be shutting down two blocks of
8th Avenue on Saturdays to car traffi c so
our wonderful market can expand and be a
more pleasant experience for shoppers. And
perhaps instead of spending so much energy
trying to rid ourselves of “undesirables”
downtown, we could focus on making it
a more appealing and inviting place for
everyone to relax, shop, eat, play and enjoy.
Kate Winter
Eugene
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.
I was surprised to read the piece in the
Aug. 16 issue of the Weekly regarding a
reported move to force out Juan Carlos
Valle as chair of the Police Commission.
I work with Juan Carlos and he was
an effective, dedicated and energetic
chair who has served the city and Police
Commission with integrity and honor. He
has a full time job, a family, serves on a
nonprofi t board, volunteers as a Rotarian
and at other venues, and is running for a
seat on the City Council — he is a busy
guy! I look forward to continuing to serve
with him on the Police Commission.
Bob Walker
Eugene
EDITOR’S NOTE: The Police Commission is made up of
12 members nominated by the mayor and appointed by the
City Council.
A NEW PLOY
On Aug. 1, we attended the public hearing
for a permit application that would allow 47
housing lots to be developed in Eugene’s
Amazon headwaters (end of West Amazon
and Martin). This is the fourth time the owners
of this property have proposed building in this
fragile, natural area. All past applications were
denied. Now, a revised strategy presents the
project under new, locally untested criteria for
“needed housing.”
Oregon’s statewide planning Goals
and Guidelines say that “needed housing”
plans must consider the carrying
capacity of land, air and water resources;
should not exceed that capacity; and must
consider environmental consequences and
“the optimal use of existing urban land.”
The headwaters area is popular with
hikers and runners for natural beauty, great
trails and unique geology which shields
out urban noise. Trees and vegetation stem
the fl ow of water downstream. Slopes are
steep — in places exceeding established
limits for new building. Neighbors have
testifi ed that drainage is already a huge
problem for this area.
From our perspective, “optimal uses”
of this urban land are for truly needed
soil stability, water quality, safe drainage,
recreation and wildlife.
Lots for housing can be developed on
land that is not so unique and important to
the livability of our city. “Needed housing”
is an inappropriate pretext for developing
this ecologically sensitive watershed that
has been recommended for protected status
by the Army Corps of Engineers.
Elaine Weiss,
Emily Fox & Lora Byxbe
Eugene
MENDING FENCES?
Regarding “County Funds Killing Coyotes
and Bears” in News Briefs Aug. 9: The
fences mentioned at the Rattlesnake dump
are repeatedly destroyed by another kind of
predator, not bears but desperate meth-users
stealing metal. Camilla Mortensen’s article
indicates that the county budget for wildlife
control is being thrown away at Rattlesnake
and other dump sites, while in reality most of
the money is spent at Short Mountain keeping
birds out of airplane engines. Our compostable
food waste is mixed with recyclable materials
and turned into the disaster we call landfi lls,
attracting hungry wildlife. Meth-using fence
cutters are victims of failed drug policies and
a lack of social services.
The humane professionals in Wildlife
Services should not be characterized as
“against wildlife” — they are dealing with a
situation that we all create. The examples from
California cited in the article (use of cyanide,
etc.) have nothing to do with my experience of
what is happening in Lane County.
I answered Mortensen’s question: “What
sort of predator problems do people in Lane
County have?” Our sheep, though well-
fenced-in and in an area that has been safe,
have been attacked and killed by coyotes. But
that was the wrong question. The implication
in her article is that Lane County funds the
killing of predators for livestock producers,
something that doesn’t happen here, for
small farmers like us anyway.
Lively Organic Farm Stand
Tuesdays Friendly St. & 28th
11am - 5pm
Saturdays - Lane County
Downtown Farmer’s Market 9am-3pm
Come on out and surrender to summer’s
sweetness! Peaches, Melons, Nectarines,
Sweet Peppers, Onions and Tomatoes!
Eggplant, Basil, Cucumbers, Potatoes,
Shallots, Delicata, Honey & Flowers!
Call Ahead for Flats 541.461.2737
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
AUGUST 30, 2012
EUGENE WEEKLY
WWW.EUGENEWEEKLY.COM