LET TERS
DECLINE GRAVEL PERMIT
On June 11, the Lane County Board
of Commissioners will have a hearing to
help determine whether the board should
review the Lane County hearing offi cial’s
decision to deny Delta Sand and Gravel a
special use permit to mine gravel on land
that is zoned for exclusive farm use.
The hearings offi cial carefully spelled
out in his 20 page fi ndings that Delta’s
application for a special use permit did
not meet the requirements under law for
approval. Unlike the hearings offi cial and
members of the Oregon Land Use Board of
Appeals, Lane County commissioners are
not specialists in interpreting law.
This case is important to both the
applicant, Delta, and to the residents
of the Santa Clara community who
oppose mining in their neighborhood. It
does not, however, possess countywide
signifi cance, a requirement for the Board
of Commissioners to review the case.
Recently the commissioners declined to
review the Parvin Butte mining decisions;
it would be reasonable for them also to
decline review in this case.
The board can save county resources
by declining to review this application for
a special use permit, and relying on the
fi ndings of the impartial hearings offi cial.
Joel Narva
Santa Clara
TAKING SHELTER
I talked to a homeless man who spends
his nights at the Mission and asked him
what he thought about the place. His
main comment was that the Mission is too
crowded and noisy. He can’t concentrate
well enough to read because of the noise
level. He said they’re putting mattresses
on the fl oor to accommodate all the people
staying there. The food has gotten worse
and they no longer give them donuts in the
morning, which matters to him because
he’s about 50 pounds underweight.
The Mission no longer allows them to
pay $2 per might, but requires an hour and
a half of work. This is a problem for him
if he has to do it in the morning because
he needs to get out of there for his “semi-
job” selling The Motivator homeless
newspaper. He said the men have to line
up for the showers because there aren’t
enough of them, and he doesn’t like the
lack of privacy in taking showers.
He said every high school student
HOT AIR SOCIETY
should spend a night at the Mission to
motivate them to do whatever they have to
so they don’t become homeless.
Most of this would probably apply to
any mass homeless shelter. It’s a whole lot
better than having people outside in the rain
and cold, but individual micro-housing,
such as is planned for Opportunity Village
Eugene, is a better idea. Gives people
some privacy, the ability to be alone, less
regimented.
The problem I see with the Village is that
it requires an enormous amount of planning
by volunteers, and wading through the city’s
bureaucracy. The planning and organization
required take a long time. The Village will
probably be great for its residents, but I
think what SLEEPS has in mind, smaller
camps spread around the city, may work for
more people. Needs to be kept simple, so
that it doesn’t need so much organization.
The City Council has just begun to discuss
this, with input from SLEEPS. We’ll see
how it goes.
Lynn Porter
Eugene
COUGARS ON CHARADE
EW should be commended for
its investigative article “Predatory
Nonprofi t?” [5/16] detailing how the NRA
and Safari Club International are funding
a push to kill Oregon’s cougars with packs
of dogs. In 1994 Oregon voters passed
Measure 18 which made it illegal to chase
cougars with hounds. This law has been a
resounding success and no cougars have
hurt anyone! But a small group of trophy
hunters wants to undo this law so they can
wipe out cougars.
Oregon’s voters should be outraged that
such a self-serving small group is openly
coercing the Legislature into undoing a
voter-supported law that protects Oregon’s
wildlife. The Legislature should not listen
to scare tactics or allow themselves to be
bullied by special interest groups
That article in EW blows the top off the
Oregon Outdoor Council’s little charade.
We see this questionable nonprofi t for what
it is: a cover for national and international
groups like the NRA who have unlimited
resources and aren’t afraid to throw their
weight around.
Legislators should beware of anything
BY TONY CORCOR AN
Papa Doc Persists
KITZHABER FIGURES A BETTER DEAL POSSIBLE
R
umors abound in Salem’s Capitol these
days. Summer is two weeks away and the
deadline for completing this legislative
session is only fi ve weeks away. Is there
a deal imminent? Negotiations for a fi nal
budget yet?
It depends on who you ask. A few weeks ago, when
Gov. Kitzhaber signed into law the PERS reform bill SB
822, he said it “was a good start.” After he got the $271
million in good news from the May revenue forecast, he
said: “We can do better.” Read between the lines. Sure
enough, the governor upped the ante by laying out a
new compromise framework on further PERS reforms
coupled with additional revenue. House Speaker Tina
Kotek and Senate President Peter Courtney brought
their Democratic caucuses back to the bargaining table.
But Senate and House Republicans refused to
budge, no interest in coming to the table. Instead they
held a medical provider fee bill hostage in the Senate
for no apparent reason — $2 billion in budget cuts to
Oregon health care, senior care, mental health services.
Economic models show 14,000 hospital or secondary
jobs in Oregon are reliant on this federal money alone.
Several Republicans are already on record saying they
support the provider bill, but only with further PERS
reforms and with no commitment to end tax breaks for
the wealthiest Oregonians. Doesn’t look much like a
negotiation to me.
Last week, the governor announced it was time
to move on: “I regret that Republican leadership has
not indicated a willingness to develop a balanced
compromise proposal involving both PERS and new
revenue.” As late as last Thursday (May 29), I checked in
with House Revenue Chair Phil Barnhart; he confi rmed:
no further PERS reform; the Republicans aren’t moving
on additional revenue. House Majority Leader Val
Hoyle is quoted in the papers: “It’s stunning to me, from
4
June 6, 2013 • eugeneweekly.com
a strategic perspective,” and “PERS is the main thing
they want to do, and they’re willing to walk out of here
without that vote.” Meanwhile, groups like the Oregon
School Boards Association and Stand for Children —
who used to be allies of the Democrats before they
started bashing teachers — were freaking out as time
ran out, telling legislators that there’s still something in
the works. Maybe there is.
Dr. John Kitzhaber was fi rst elected governor in 1994,
the same year I fi rst got elected to the Oregon House.
Before that, Papa Doc served in the Oregon House and
then 12 years in the Oregon Senate; eight of those he
was Senate president. (I named him “Papa Doc” because
his son Logan was born his fi rst term.) I watched him
maneuver four sessions in his eight years as governor
in his fi rst two terms — while Democrats were in the
minority each session! Remember, the Oregon Health
Plan and the Oregon Salmon Plan were passed with
Republican majorities in both chambers for his entire
eight years. The dude knows how the Legislature works
and he loves a challenge. More vetoes than any governor
in Oregon history. But he still got stuff done.
Suddenly, last Thursday, out of nowhere, the
Republicans came up with a counter-proposal. While
it’s a partisan piece of crap on its face, asking for $1
billion in additional PERS savings already rejected by
Democrats, it offers $130 million in new revenue. Papa
Doc is a fi sherman, and this counter-proposal — weak
as it is — is a nibble. Stay tuned.
Earlier in the session, Hoyle introduced me to her
counterpart in the House Republican caucus, Minority
Leader Mike McLane. Good guy. Mike grew up in
Condon, got his law degree from Lewis and Clark and
clerked for Justice Mick Gillette, one of my favorites, at
the Oregon Supreme Court. He lives in Powell Butte and
works for Miller Nash, a prestigious Portland law fi rm.
He has a good sense of humor and doesn’t take himself
too seriously, unlike, say, Rep. Dennis Richardson.
Although Mike’s a rookie, he’s a quick read. And he
has the benefi t of Salem Rep. Vicki Berger, a smart
and reasonable veteran, as his Republican caucus whip.
(No, your eyes did not deceive you; I just said nice
things about two Republicans in one paragraph.) They
at least give me hope that Papa Doc
will get a good outcome from
this session. The Senate
Republican caucus is
much harder to read. But
I’ll bet you Papa Doc can
poach two votes and seal
the deal. We can do better. ■
Former state sen. Tony Corcoran of Cottage
Grove is currently a state employee and his
observations in this column are those of a
private citizen.