the April 29 commission meeting, and the board agreed to
have the agenda team decide whether or when to schedule
this item for future board agenda. This does not mean the re-
quest will actually come before the board, unless the agenda
team schedules it. A new county administrator, Steve Mok-
rohisky, starts Monday, May 5.
Sorenson says since those times, “the county has radi-
cally increased the cost of public records and radically in-
creased the costs to nonprofit organizations to use public
spaces for meetings.”
He says that “It’s important that the county recognize the
importance of providing public information in a timely fash-
ion and also that the information is provided at a reasonable
expense.” Sorenson adds, “Opening up the public buildings
to the public for reasonably priced space is vital.”
Lane County once asked former commissioner Rob
Handy for more than $2 million in fees to complete a public
records requests. At the hearing over that case, which Handy
lost, former administrator Liane Inkster said she had never
granted a fee waiver for a public records request.
While the cities of Eugene and Springfield have provided
terminals where members of the media and of the public can
access the emails of elected officials for free, Lane County
does not, and charges fees for searching emails in public re-
cords requests.
EW asked Farr for comment on when Sorenson’s request
will be considered. Farr says, “I will review Commissioner
Sorenson’s request at an agenda meeting as early as next
week.” — Camilla Mortensen
TRANSIT GROUP SEEKS INPUT
ON LOW-INCOME NEEDS
The nonprofit Better Eugene Springfield Transit
(BEST) will host a meeting May 14, during which they
will hear concerns from Lane County human services pro-
viders about the community’s public transit needs. Laurie
Trieger on the BEST board of directors says she anticipates
the conversation will be about transportation needs of low-
income individuals.
“A lot of working poor folks don’t work a traditional
Monday through Friday, 9 to 5. So they’re folks who are
needing to get to a job at all different kinds of hours of the
day and days of the week,” Trieger says, “which is really
challenging with our current transit system that doesn’t al-
ways have public transportation available at those off-peak
hours or on the weekend.”
City of Eugene grants manager in community develop-
ment Stephanie Jennings will present the results of a fo-
cus group and survey of low-income housing residents at
the meeting. She says low-income housing residents have
higher rates of use of alternative transportation modes —
walking, biking and public transit. She says they also have
concerns about affording monthly bus passes, getting to a
bus stop, and night, weekend and holiday service.
ShelterCare Executive Director Susan Ban says most
of the people ShelterCare serves are heavily transit depen-
dent, including individuals with disabilities.
“Having a good transit system is really part of their
quality of life,” Ban says. “All the activities of daily living
that engage them in the community usually require some
kind of transportation.”
Ban says investing in public transit is as important as
investment in other forms of transportation such as roads
and bridges.
This meeting is part of a series of community conver-
sations BEST is having with business groups, commu-
nity organizations, people with environmental concerns,
neighborhood organizations, schools and school district
representatives. Trieger says Lane Transit District respects
BEST and is interested in hearing what the organization
learns during the series of conversations.
“We will be synthesizing everything that we hear and
learn and reporting back to the community later in June
to put together what BEST understands might be the next
steps with the themes that emerge from these conversa-
tions,” Trieger says.
The meeting will be from 10 to 11:30 am Wednesday,
May 14 in the Bascom-Tykeson room of the Eugene Public
Library. — Missy Corr
PHYLLIS HADDOX
HAPPENING PEOPLE
BY PAUL NEEVEL
The daughter of parents who each became
a teacher while she was growing up in
Sacramento, Phyllis Haddox majored in
education at Sacramento State and found
work as a reading specialist at racially diverse
Del Paso Heights Elementary, where she had
gone to grade school. “The district had
adopted the Direct Instruction model,” says
Haddox, who came up to the UO in 1971 for
training in DI, a highly scripted and fast-paced
teaching method for young children, with its
founder, Siegfried Engelmann. “The motto of
our model is, ‘So that they shall not fail.’” She
finished a master’s degree and began a career
in DI, training teachers, establishing and
evaluating programs in low-income schools
around the country. She also earned a
doctorate in special education in 1984 and
became an assistant professor at the UO.
Since retiring 10 years ago, Haddox has had
time for Argentine tango and volunteering.
She stepped down as board president of
NextStep Recycling last year to devote more
of her efforts to KindTree-Autism Rocks. She is
in charge of decorations and entertainment
for the third annual KT-AR Adult Prom
fundraiser, to be held at 7:30 pm Saturday,
May 17, at the Vet’s Club Ballroom, 1626
Willamette, featuring live music by the Joanne
Broh Band with guests Gus Russell and Deb
Cleveland. Fancy or funky prom attire is
encouraged. The prom will also serve as
Haddox’s wedding reception. She will marry
John Marshall on Friday, May 16. Find details
about the prom at kindtree.org.
Whole Foods has its eyeballs on Eugene again, but
no $8 million taxpayer-subsidized parking garage will
be attached this time to get folks riled up. The Texas-
based corporation tried to build at the same location just
south of Ferry Street Bridge in 2006. We noted then that
the chain averages $537,000 in sales per store each
week. Even half that sales volume in Eugene would
have an impact on established local stores, but Safeway,
Albertson’s and Trader Joe’s are also chain stores, and
the Natural Grocers chain is building on the north side of
the bridge at the old Red Lion site. We are more
concerned about the impact on smaller, independent
grocery stores such as Kiva, Sundance and Market of
Choice. Will Whole Foods try to wrangle some kind of
subsidies or tax breaks from the city? We appear to be
pushovers for such pressure. And we are concerned
about what the store will look like and how it will affect
pedestrian, bike and auto traffic in that key location. Do
we trust city planners? Planners recently bent over and
allowed Capstone to erect an uninviting concrete
fortress downtown.
Nearly 100 McKenzie-Willamette Medical Center
workers, elected leaders and community members
rallied last week for “good jobs and quality patient care.”
Hospital caregivers who are members of SEIU Local 49
have been in contract negotiations with hospital
management for six months. “The most recent available
data shows McKenzie declaring a profit three times
higher than the state average,” reads a statement from
the union. “Despite these profits, the hospital has
recently laid off workers while remaining caregivers
continue to face rising health-care costs and eroding
benefits.” A federal mediator is now involved in
negotiations.
Negotiations are beginning with School District 4J
and the Eugene Education Association. The two sides
will exchange first contract proposals from 4 to 8 pm
Thursday, May 1, and the session is open to the public.
Track progress (hopefully) and find a meeting schedule
at eugea.org or at 4j.lane.edu.
In other labor news, a coalition of unions, community
groups, student groups and social justice organizations
will host the third annual May Day Solidarity Fair from
noon to 5 pm on Saturday, May 3, at Central Park in
Corvallis. Music, art, food and a broad spectrum of
activist conversations will be “celebrating the broader
labor movement and all struggles for social, economic
and environmental justice.” Free. Contact Tony or Lisa at
anarres@peak.org or find the event on Facebook.
Startup Weekend events will begin Friday, May 2, at
the UO EMU building. Local CEOs, founders and “startup
veterans with track records building and selling
companies will be there to assist you in pursuing your
own success,” according to organizers. Find details at
eugene.startupweekend.org or call (503) 539-8014.
Mid Lane Cares, a nonprofit serving the Fern Ridge
community, will host Project Community Connect from
11 am to 3 pm Saturday, May 3, at the Olivet Baptist
Church, 88150 2nd St. in Veneta. The event is a one-day,
one-stop opportunity for anyone in need to receive free
medical and dental services, haircuts, social services
referrals, a hot meal and more. Families are welcome
and child care and face painting will be provided. See
midlanecares.org or call 935-4555, ext. 102.
Mountain Rose Herbs is organizing the second year
of the Free Herbalism Project with a celebration from 11
am to 5 pm Sunday, May 4, at Mount Pisgah Arboretum.
The free event is a benefit for Occupy Medical and the
American Herb Association and will feature a plant walk,
lectures, workshops and information booths. See
mountainroseherbs.com.
May is Historic Preservation Month and a reception,
presentation and tour are planned at 7:30 pm Sunday
and Monday, May 4-5, at the nonprofit WOW Hall, 291 W.
8th Ave. The WOW Hall, aka Community Center for the
Performing Arts, is undergoing a restoration project
funded in part by the Oregon Cultural Trust, the Kinsman
Foundation, the Historic Street Lamp Restoration
Project, the UO Archives and others. Call 912-4721,
email jpincus24@gmail.com or visit wowhall.org.
eugeneweekly.com • May 1, 2014
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