• There will be an interfaith prayer service with the
theme “Seeing Light in Darkness,” 6:45 pm, Monday,
Sept. 11 at the First Christian Church (1160 Oak Street in
downtown Eugene). The gathering will “celebrate the
oneness in our diversity through prayers, chants,
readings from sacred texts and many other forms that
come from the teachings and traditions of our
participating presenters.” Those presenters include
people of Muslim, Christian, Hindu and Jewish faiths, as
well as an African-American storyteller, a Buddhist and
the former mayor. For more info go to interfaithprayer.org.
• Lane Rescues is spotlighting the Oregon Coast
Humane Society in Florence. The rescue group says
animals from this small retirement town have a “harder
time finding a home and can end up in the shelter for
years.” Go to lanerescues.com or their ad in EW’s pages
to see photos of and read about adoptable animals.
Email petsponsors@gmail.com for more info.
• Heather Sielicki of Southwest Neighbors will
discuss “Finding Homes for the Homeless,” 9:15 am,
Friday Sept. 8 at the Unitarian Church, 13th and
Chambers with Church Women United — “men have
special invite!” Ruth Duemler tells us, and remember,
“Winter will soon be here!” For more info call Duemler at
541-484-6145.
• There will be a “direct action opportunity for kids
and their guardians at Rep. Peter DeFazio’s office on
Sept. 20, to urge him to be a better advocate for women
and children by being a stronger voice against Trump’s
budget proposal, which puts 80 safety net programs at
risk,” according to organizer Rowan Mason. Mason says
the “final demonstration will be determined by who
participates but may include a group singing adapted
sing-alongs, statements made by school age kids, and
gifting of protesting teddy bears.” All kids welcome.
Practice meeting is 17. Contact activistparenting@gmail.
com for more info.
• Belly Restaurant and Belly Taqueria once had the
same owners, Brendan and Ann Marie Mahaney, but
Belly Restaurant was sold to Diana and Steve Lee in
2015. Now the announcement of the taqueria’s closing
(see our story Aug. 24) has caused some confusion for
the popular downtown restaurant, which has no plans to
close. Belly Restaurant at 30 E. Broadway is still very
much in business. The taqueria at 454 Willamette Street
will become a New Orleans-inspired restaurant called the
Black Wolf Supper Club. A kickstarter campaign for Black
Wolf has raised nearly $30,000, and the Mahaneys have
promised to match donations. Remodeling is planned
inside and out.
• Flavors Catering and Events reported to police
that its portable commercial oven and trailer were stolen
from Oakway Golf Course Friday night, Sept. 1. “It had to
be a group of people as it was pushed through the golf
course and then eventually hooked up to a truck of some
kind,” Jeannie Loomis says on the Eugene Food Carts
Facebook page. “What is wrong with people! This is part
of how we make our livelihood.” She says security video
was working that night.
• Equiano Coffee Company of Eugene is expanding
and has opened a Specialty Coffee Tasting Room at 300
Blair Boulevard in the Whiteaker neighborhood. “We
wanted to create a space to showcase our more rare and
exotic coffees,” says co-owner and roast master Okon
Udonsenata. The tasting room offers unique treats such
as cashew milk cappuccino and espresso milkshakes,
along with local pastries and confections. The company
has also launched a new e-commerce website,
equianocoffee.com. “Today the Whiteaker, tomorrow the
world,” says Udonsenata.
• Hospice Pet Advocates is a new Eugene-based
nonprofit that targets “unintentional pet abandonment
due to a medical emergency or death.” The charity is
directed by Ruth Helle, a medical social worker, and Thea
Peck, a hospice RN. A GoFundMe campaign has been
launched to help build a small animal shelter and raise
start-up funds. Find the group at hospicepetadvocates.
org or call 541-632-3217.
6
September 7, 2017 • eugeneweekly.com
BY CORINNE BOYER
NEW ROADS,
ELECTRIC CARS
Gov signs state’s largest transportation package
G
ov. Kate Brown and several local lawmakers gath-
ered Aug. 29 in Eugene’s Alton Baker Park to ad-
dress a crowd about the passage of the transporta-
tion package — House Bill 2017. It’s the first time
in the state’s history that funding will be dedicated
to statewide public transportation; one aspect of the bill fo-
cuses on electric cars.
Brown thanked local and regional officials for their ef-
forts during the 2017 legislative session and said she was
excited that Republicans and Democrats came together to
pass the $5.3 billion package.
Over the next 10 years, the comprehensive package will
invest in a number of infrastructure improvement projects
aimed at curbing traffic congestion as well as improving
roads, bridges, sidewalks and bikeways.
Public transportation will expand in both rural and urban
areas, and electric vehicle rebates will be available to low
and middle-income families, according to a statement by
the governor’s office.
“We see public transit as a way to lift families out of
poverty, as a vehicle to lift families out of poverty — and to
provide better and more enhanced access to public transit is
a really good thing,” Brown told reporters at the park. “Cit-
ies and counties also will be getting nice checks in the mail
as well, so they can continue their road improvements that
they’re working on.”
However, six to seven families living in their vehicles
parked in the Alton Baker lot were not addressed at the bill’s
signing.
The transportation package will designate more than
$100 million each year to improve public transportation,
and funds will be distributed to Native American tribal gov-
ernments, counties and transit districts that create transpor-
tation improvement plans, according to Oregon Department
of Transportation documents.
Brown thanked the Lane County Transit District for its
work partnering with Tesla Inc. on bringing electric buses to
Oregon. Currently, ODOT is part of the West Coast Green
Highway — a designation for the 1,350 miles of I-5 from
British Columbia to Baja California equipped with charging
stations every 25 to 50 miles.
An estimated 16,000 jobs will be created through ODOT
projects from 2018 through 2025. Furthermore, cities will
receive funding for local transportation projects, increasing
local employment opportunities.
According to an HB 2017 allocation document, Eugene
will receive $3.8 million for local projects; Springfield will
see $1.4 million in funding and Cottage Grove will get
$228,000. In all, Lane County will receive $8.2 million in
transportation funding per year over the next 10 years.
Approximately $12 million of the transportation pack-
age is allocated to the electric vehicle rebate program, ac-
cording to Forth, an organization that advocates for electric
vehicles. Jeanette Shaw, Forth’s director of government
relations, spoke at the bill signing. “We’re extremely ex-
cited about the groundbreaking and the investment in the
transportation infrastructure and in particular Oregon’s new
rebate for electric vehicles,” she said.
The electrical vehicle rebate runs between $1,500 and
$2,500 dollars, depending on the size of the vehicle’s bat-
tery pack and the electric range. The average range of an
electric vehicle is approximately 80 miles — however, new-
er electric cars can drive on one charge for more than 200
miles, according to Forth.
Shaw said Forth is talking with PacifiCorp power com-
pany about installing more charging stations in Oregon and
throughout the U.S. And she added, “We just received a
grant through Washington [WSDOT] to put more chargers
up the I-5 corridor.”
Funding for the new package will be derived from three
new taxes as well as increases in vehicle registration fees
and a gas tax. Right now, Oregonians pay a gas tax of 30
cents per gallon. In 2018, the gas tax will increase by anoth-
er four cents and incremental increases of two cents every
two years until 2024.
Electric vehicle registration will increase incrementally
until 2024, when drivers will pay around $115 annually, be-
cause EV cars won’t contribute to the gas tax.
“In addition, the weight-mile tax on heavy trucks will in-
crease to ensure that trucks pay their fair share for their wear
and tear on the roads,” according to ODOT documents.
Oregon State Sen. Lee Beyer, who represents Spring-
field, said that a group of 14 legislators came together and
worked on the bill.
“What you are looking at is the largest, most comprehen-
sive transportation package that’s ever been passed by the
state of Oregon,” he said. “It addresses climate issues with
the electric cars and also with the buses. We’ve never had a
funding source for transit; we do now from the state level.
We’ve also addressed the seismic issues.”
Improvements made to highways and bridges by ODOT
will be earthquake resilient, according to ODOT.
Safe Routes to Schools will receive a new source of
funding through the package. Safe Routes is a program that
upgrades walkways and bikeways for students walking and
biking to school. It will receive $10 million annually, and
eventually, will be funded at $15 million per year.
“This is a significant investment and making sure that
children have safe paths to get to school whether it’s el-
ementary or middle school,” Brown said.