SLANT
• Lane County Commissioner Faye Stewart’s convoluted
attempt to get all of Lane County residents and businesses
to pay for his ill-advised industrial development plans in
Goshen is raising eyebrows even among the pro-growth
crowd. As regional economic development veteran Bob
Warren points out in his Viewpoint this week, “It’s time for a
reality check.” Looks like the garbage fee idea, Senate Bill
248, died this week, at least in its present form. This is not
Stewart’s fi rst bad idea and it follows his inaction over the
destruction of Parvin Butte and its impact on the residents
of Dexter. These issues, and others, will plague him in 2014
if he seeks re-election. We hear former
EWEB board member Joann Ernst has her
sights set on Stewart’s seat. Ironically,
Stewart and other conservatives on the
commission did some gerrymandering of
district lines in 2011 and Ernst got shifted
from Commissioner Pete Sorenson’s South
Eugene district into Stewart’s East Lane
district. We expect her to make a formal
announcement soon, and others may
follow.
the inside than the outside. Lots of natural light pouring in
from all directions, great city views all around. You get the
sense you are in a true urban environment. Check out the
automated water bottle fi llers in the hallways. One instructor
told us she’s not sure about teaching classes on the street
level with the downtown crowd parading along right outside
the big windows. Might be good classrooms for teaching
human behavior.
• It’s curious that when the 4J School Board convened
a work session recently to answer questions about the 3x5
schedule at high schools, the only people
they invited to speak were administrators
and others supportive of the change. None
of the 91 percent of teachers at North
Eugene, the 81 percent of teachers at
Sheldon or the 74 percent of teachers at
South Eugene who signed a petition asking
the board to delay implementation of the
schedule change were invited to speak.
So the result, a board that seems intent on
moving ahead with the plan, shouldn’t come
as a surprise. As Tad Shannon, president of
the Eugene Education Association, said:
“It was a foregone conclusion what the
conclusion would be because the people
who were here were all singing from the
same hymnbook.” Board members are scheduled to visit
Churchill, which implemented the 3x5 schedule this year, in
the coming weeks to meet with students and get their input.
We hope that information will be made public because, even
though Churchill’s switch to the 3x5 was not considered
A Senate bill to
ban gas-powered
motors on Waldo
Lake makes its
way to the Senate
floor this week
• Any brilliant ideas for the old LCC/
Montgomery Ward building on Willamette
street? LCC President Mary Spilde told
the City Club March 15 that her board “is
committed to not leaving that building empty,” and recently
decided to put out a request for proposals for all options.
That same day, LCC held a grand opening for the classrooms
and offi ces of its new Downtown Campus Academic Building.
We took a tour. The architecture is much more appealing on
a pilot, it would be wise for 4J and the community to learn
what’s happening there.
• A Senate bill to ban gas-powered motors on Waldo Lake
makes its way to the Senate fl oor this week and it includes
an amendment that allows electric motors. The original bill
did not. Electric motors enable boaters who cannot easily
paddle or row to enjoy the lake, and provide a backup for
sailboats and rowboats that can get in trouble when big winds
unexpectedly kick up. Waldo without any motors would be
best, but this compromise should help get the bill passed.
Legislative action on Waldo is welcome as it will fi nally resolve
some longstanding issues over jurisdiction, and prevent future
Marine Board and Aviation Board members from changing the
rules and endangering the water quality in this gem of the
Cascades, one of the cleanest lakes in the world.
• The U.S. invaded Iraq 10 years ago and it was an
unmitigated catastrophe from the beginning, leading to 6,017
U.S. military and contractor deaths, untold thousands of Iraqi
soldiers blown to bits, at least 122,000 Iraqi civilian deaths
(one study estimates more than 1.2 million civilians have
perished due to the war), ongoing civil war and corruption,
damage to our moral standing in the world community, the
exacerbation of Muslim hatred toward the U.S., burdening
our economy with potentially trillions of dollars in debt and
overloading our VA medical system for generations to come.
Have we learned anything? We still hear the drum beat of war
and all-too-familiar propaganda, this time directed at Iran. The
chicken hawks and war profi teers can hardly wait for our next
foreign invasion and occupation, and they hope it drags out
for decades.
SL ANT INCLUDES SHORT OPINION PIECES, OBSERVATIONS AND RUMOR-CHA SING NOTES COMPILED BY THE E W STAFF. HE ARD ANY GOOD RUMORS L ATELY? CONTAC T TED TAYLOR AT 484-0519, EDITOR@EUGENE WEEKLY.COM
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eugeneweekly.com • March 21, 2013
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