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About Eugene weekly. (Eugene, Oregon) 1993-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 26, 2017)
LET TERS ANTIFA AND VIOLENCE In response to the discussion of the use of violence in the Oct. 19 article “Antifa,” I would like to offer the following: If you seek to change the hearts and minds of those in your community, committing acts of violence will not help you achieve that goal. It may be tempting to forcefully si- lence opposing voices, but I implore you to consider non-violent alternatives and to engage others in open and empathetic dia- logue. Richard Griscom Eugene NOT 'WHY DOESN'T SHE LEAVE?' I was the Americorps attorney at Lane County Legal Aid in 1999 when the Do- mestic Violence (DV) Clinic began. I served the same client base as the clinic and clients from Sexual Assault Support Services (SASS). I appreciated your article about DV and Michael Quillin’s interview VIEWPOINT (“Discussing Domestic and Sexual Vio- lence,” Oct. 19). However, I am tired of the same old why-doesn’t-she-leave rhetoric. Domestic violence is the number-one cause of home- lessness among women, and support sys- tems are still extremely inadequate. Call- ing the police means legal fees if he is arrested and you can’t get out of the re- lationship, making things worse. There’s also a high incidence of domestic violence in the law enforcement community. Leaving someone who has degraded you as a means of controlling you is like escaping a captive situation. At the time when women need the most support, I have seen social workers and volunteers stalk my clients to make sure they weren’t having contact with their abuser, instead of giving my clients the support they needed so they didn’t need support from their abuser anymore. Leaving is the most dangerous event in a domestic violence relationship. It’s not the time to judge the survivor. It’s the time the most support is needed. Instead of asking "Why doesn’t she leave," when will we start focusing on and asking, “Why did he do it?” That’s the proper starting point. Instead of examining what she did before she was sexually as- saulted, let’s ask the same question. Nyla Jebousek Newport SUPPORT ROAD TAX Have you appreciated smoother, pot- hole free driving in Eugene? The improved streets result from projects financed by past bond measures. The League of Women Voters of Lane County urges voters to support Eugene Measure 20-275 so that we can continue to receive the benefits from street repairs and other improvements. This measure would generate $51.2 million to maintain the city’s road network and develop bike and pedestrian improvements. As with two previous street repair bond measures, this measure clearly spells out which streets will be fixed. The city is providing accountability for the spending of the renewed tax revenue by commit- ting to work on 88 specified road segments throughout Eugene, and to make average annual improvements of $1 million for bike and pedestrian safety and access. The money will not be spent for new streets or to expand vehicle capacity. An outside auditor will review all spending to ensure that these promises are met. Eugene has successfully reduced about half its backlog of needed road mainte- nance projects through the work financed by two previous bond measures similar to measure 20-275. The projects have been well distributed throughout the city. The estimated property tax rate autho- rized by measure 20-275 is the same as that levied for the two prior measures. We urge a “yes” vote to continue to strengthen our transportation system with necessary investments. Linda Lynch, president League of Women Voters of Lane County Eugene B Y J O S H U A S K O V A N D E M I LY S E M P L E Approve the Street Repair Bond Measure MEASURE 20-275 ALSO FUNDS BICYCLE AND PEDESTRIAN IMPROVEMENTS M any Eugene Weekly readers will remember that the two of us were opponents last year in the most contested City Council race in Eugene’s recent history. Now we’re coming together today on a common cause: We urge Eugene voters to get out and vote for Measure 20-275 on the Nov. 7 ballot. This street repair bond measure is about more than just potholes. Yes, the money will allow us to responsibly maintain our local streets. But it also provides increased funding for bicycle and pedestrian improvements, puts us in a position to take real action on climate change and pushes for safer streets for all users. When we campaigned last year for the Ward 1 council seat, we heard from many people that they cared about street repair. Over the past nine years, the city of Eu- gene has reduced a backlog of potholed, crumbling streets with two successful bond measures. This bond will continue that important work, keeping the same tax rate in place to do more of the same important work. We also heard that people want accountable government spending, and this mea- sure delivers that as well. As a spending measure, this bond is exactly what we should all hope for. First, it clearly identifies where the money will go. There is a project list determined by careful deliberations of city staff and the citizen Street Repair Review Panel. Second, there is accountability in the spending. An independent external auditor certifies that the money is spent as voters intend, and the citizens on the review panel track the expenditures over time. Third, this measure is the most cost-effective way to take care of these needs. With smart ongoing maintenance, we avoid having to pay far more in the future to rebuild badly degraded streets. Finally, many Ward 1 residents share our passion for addressing climate change. One important thing we need to do is make walking, biking, and riding the bus easier and safer options. As candidates, we both stood for strong action on climate change, both pledging to support improvements to our walking and bicycling infrastructure, and to improve safety for all users of our streets. This bond measure will take impor- tant steps in this direction and support future steps. We have stood up for you on these issues before. As members of the city’s Budget Committee, the two of us, Semple and Skov, were the only votes against last spring’s update in the Capital Improvement Program. Why? Because the plan — which in- 4 October 26, 2017 • eugeneweekly.com cludes many good and necessary investments in roads, the airport, our wastewater treatment plant and more — simply failed to embody recent policy goals around climate change and transportation safety. Some observers who share those types of concerns have questioned this bond measure as well, saying that it simply subsidizes the use of cars. While many street investments do that, we believe this is the right measure at this time for Eugene. First, our streets are not just for cars. People in bicycles and buses also want streets to be in good condition, and we all benefit from freight. This is about good management of our shared assets. Second, this street repair bond measure, compared to the last one voters passed, doubles the amount of money dedicated entirely to pedestrian and bicycle projects. Even this modest funding, about 10 percent of the total bond, is unprecedented. We believe it represents an important step in turning our infrastructure away from total dependence on the automobile. And since this dedicated money is often matched by state and federal grants, it will go a long way. In short, it will be a key source of funding specifically earmarked for bicycle and pedestrian improvements. All that said, we want voters to keep an eye on these issues. We ask you to ap- prove this measure because it advances our shared aspirations for our transportation system. We envision a city of walkable and bikeable neighborhoods, a great transit system, streets that are safe for everyone, especially the most vulnerable users — and people who are healthier and happier because of how they get around. We both strongly believe that making “alternative” transportation safer and more convenient is good for public health, for the environment, and for connecting us to each other. And yes, we want streets that are in good condition that work for cars as well. This bond measure is one step toward this vision. Will this measure get us all the way to that perfect transportation system? Ab- solutely not. But without it, we will struggle to fund basic street fixes, and we will have almost no money for the kinds of important changes we want to see in our transportation system. We ask you to join us in voting yes for Measure 20-275 — and also that you remain engaged to support meaningful action on climate, transportation safety, our bike and pedestrian network, and transit. Emily Semple is the city councilor for Eugene’s Ward 1, which encompasses much of south Eugene and most of downtown. As a councilor, she sits on the City of Eugene Budget Committee. Joshua Skov is the board president of Better Eugene-Springfield Transportation (BEST) and a citizen member of the Eugene Budget Committee.
