NEWS
Rental owners in Eugene can take advantage
of EWEB’s renewed zero-interest loans and
rebates for ductless heat pumps and other
upgrades. A lot of older rental units have electric
ceiling heat, baseboard heat or wall units that
suck a lot of juice. Renters usually get stuck with
the high EWEB bills, but we know some rental
owners who approached their tenants and
asked them if they would be willing to pay more
rent in exchange for cheaper, better heat and air
conditioning. The deal can pencil out well and
add property value. Former EWEB commissioner
Bob Cassidy wanted EWEB to make this a more
formal program years ago with active outreach
to both renters and rental owners. It’s starting to
happen with a mailing that went out to rental
owners recently. Check out eweb.org/
saveenergy/rental or call 685-7199.
TRANS PROTECTIONS TO
GO BEFORE CITY COUNCIL
More than 40 percent of people who are transgender have
attempted suicide, and about 80 percent have considered it.
The attempt rate is 1.6 percent for the general population, and
mental health experts say ongoing discrimination is one con-
tributor to the large disparity. On Monday, Jan. 27, the Eugene
City Council is scheduled to vote on amending the city code
and adding gender identity to the definition of sexual orienta-
tion. The amendment applies to protections against discrimina-
tion in areas such as employment, housing and public accom-
modation.
“For those of us that do legal and medical advocacy, this is
very important in case we need to go to court to support our
clients,” says Allison Cleveland of the Oregon Anti-Violence
Project. “This will help people form their policies and protocols
and know where they stand.”
She adds that the amendment will help agencies make con-
sistent policies and protocols and send a positive message to
people who live in or pass through Eugene. “People deserve
safety.”
Employment status has a significant impact on transgender
people’s likelihood of having attempted suicide, according to a
2009 survey by the National Center for Transgender Equality
and the National Gay & Lesbian Task Force. The study found
that attempt rates rose for people who lost a job because of bias,
were harassed or bullied in school or were assaulted physically
“Building Bridges Between Business and
Education” is the topic at City Club of Eugene at
noon Friday, Jan. 24, at the Downtown Athletic
Club, 10th and Willamette. Speakers include
Robin Scott of the Lane Workforce Partnership,
Kim Thompson of the Oregon Employment
Department, Bob Halligan of Willamette Valley
Company and Laurel Henry and Eric Cullendar of
South Lane School District. See
cityclubofeugene.org or call 485-7433.
The Red Lion Hotel on Coburg Road will be
closing after 51 years, and a farewell party is
planned from 6 to 9 pm Friday, Jan. 24, followed
by karaoke up to closing time. The Red Lion’s
lounge has been a party and karaoke scene for
years. Natural Grocers by Vitamin Cottage, a
Colorado-based natural and organic food store,
has leased the 3.5 commercial acres from the
Hewitt family and plans to redevelop the site.
The chain also has a store in Corvallis.
The ninth annual Good Earth Home, Garden
& Living Show is coming up this weekend with
doors opening for the three-day show at 5 pm
Friday, Jan. 24, at the Fairgrounds. Exhibitors
have been moving in and setting up since
Tuesday. Donations at the show for programs
aiding families recovering from disaster will be
matched up to $10,000 by ShelterBox USA. Call
Berg Productions at 484-9247 or visit
eugenehomeshow.com for more information.
We hear another tobacco and vapor shop
opened in Eugene earlier this month. Cascade
Tobacco & Vapors at 1410 W. 7th Ave. offers all-
natural tobacco, e-cigarettes, e-juice (the liquid
used in vaporizers) and accessories. Hours are
9 am to 6 pm Monday through Saturday. Call
515-6089.
Catholic Community Services has launched
its annual Winter Clothing Drive, which runs
Jan. 15 through Feb. 17. Donations of winter
coats, socks, mittens, hats, blankets, linens and
shoes will be distributed free by CCS to homeless
and low-income families at its community
service
centers
in
Eugene
and
Springfield. Collection boxes have been set up
at more than 30 area churches and
organizations, and any business or organization
can participate by setting out a collection
box. The clothing drive also accepts cash,
which will be used to purchase winter clothing
for those in need of assistance. Visit ccslc.org to
make a donation.
SmartUps at the Pub will meet from 5 to 7
pm Thursday, Jan. 30, at the Oregon Electric
Station, 27 E. 5th Ave. Speakers will include
Doug Porter of designPORT and David Schroeder
of RelianceCM on the topic, “Prototype, Design &
Commercialize.” See eugenechamber.com for
registration. The next meeting will be Feb. 27.
8
January 23, 2014 • eugeneweekly.com
P HO T O: T ODD COOP ER
WILL EUGENE SAVE THE
UNHOUSED OF WHOVILLE?
All the Whos down in Whoville are hoping the city of
Eugene’s heart grows a couple sizes very soon. The city has
posted notices that the site of the homeless protest camp at
Hilyard and Broadway is no longer open for public use and
it will “clear and clean the site,” according to a press release
that went out to the media before the campers themselves
were notified, a move Alley Valkyrie of the Nightingale Pub-
lic Advocacy Collective called “disrespectful and dehuman-
izing.”
Valkyrie questions the legality of shutting down the pub-
lic property, but Mia Cariaga of the Eugene city manager’s
office writes in an email that the property “is not open for
public use of any kind.”
Advocate Mary Broadhurst says that contrary to the per-
ception she’s heard from City Manager Jon Ruiz, Eugene
community members are very supportive of the camp, which
has allowed many of the chronically unhoused, some with
substance abuse and mental health issues, to have shelter and
help one another. Ruiz is “rubbing shoulders with the country
club set,” Broadhurst says, who are the ones who want the
unhoused out of sight.
Sue Sierralupe of Occupy Medical, which also opposes
closing the camp, says, “Whoville exists because people sup-
port it. The bathrooms, the handwashing station, the food, the
tents, the blankets, the medical supplies all exist because our
citizens support it.”
Occupy Medical says that “eviction of Whoville will only
increase the risk of exposure and transmission of illnesses
that have been otherwise successfully prevented or treated
with our partnership,” and the free medical care group says
that it has treated everything from the flu, including H1N1,
to skin conditions.
Community donations have funded two portable toilets
and a handwashing station at the site. Valkyrie says those
toilets mean 1,500 pounds of poop are not winding up down-
town. Broadhurst says that donations are not just in the form
of money; people have spontaneously dropped off wood and
have filled propane tanks for the warming tent. One incident
that has gotten national attention is when 10-year-old Keegan
Keppner, who has terminal cancer, recently came down to
Whoville to provide breakfast for the unhoused campers.
Broadhurst and Valkyrie say they are frustrated with me-
dia reports, based on the city’s press release, that indicate
there is somewhere for Whovillians to go. The city cites
expanded car camping, Opportunity Village and a rest-stop
pilot program, but Broadhurst says while the community has
made efforts to house those in need there are not enough beds
for even a third of the area’s homeless. She says contrary to
the idea that providing housing for the homeless will attract
more homeless, “94 percent of the unhoused are local folks.”
None of the available beds, she adds, are what are called
“wet beds,” which she calls “a terrible, demeaning name for
shelters for folks still using alcohol or drugs, including those
who are addicted.” She adds, “It’s a disability, not a character
flaw.”
The city manager’s office says a fence will be put up
around the site and that the city is “coordinating with a num-
ber of local service agencies to transition from the camp.”
Valkyrie wonders where they will transition to if there are no
available shelter beds. — Camilla Mortensen