Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About Eugene weekly. (Eugene, Oregon) 1993-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 21, 2023)
slant • Enjoy this week’s Give Guide and the Winter Solstice and ponder all that is good in the world. Also ponder how much you love Eugene Weekly because, as of now, this will be our last print issue until after the New Year. But fi nd us online at EugeneWeekly.com and get your fi ll of news and snark in our Tuesday and Thursday email newsletters, which you can sign up for at EugeneWeekly.com/newsletter. FIND YOUR Y $0 Joining Fee until Dec. 31! • The city of Eugene reports that there were more than 220,000 scooter rides in the fi rst eight months of the year-long e-scooter pilot program. The city also reports that you e-scooter-haters will be happy to hear that the program is no more. Locally, the scooters were administered by Cascadia Mobility, but Super- pedestrian — which operates in 60 cities across the globe, owns the scooters and the software used to run the program — has shut down for “fi nancial reasons.” • It’s nice that Gov. Tina Kotek fi nally made it to Lane County on the fi nal stop of her not-quite-whirlwind around-the-state listening tour. We hope she enjoyed the visit — but we also hope she comes back real soon. As the more rural parts of the state have complained, Oregon isn’t just Portland and Salem, and those of us living in the southern end of the Willamette Valley wouldn’t mind a little more attention now and then. YOUR NEW Y IS OPEN! COME EXPERIENCE: Youth spaces featuring a S.T.E.A.M. lab and maker spaces 14,000 sq. ft. of cardio and strength equipment A 6-lane Lap Pool, Spray Pad and more in the light-filled Aquatics Center • The new Eugene YMCA’s ribbon cutting and open house was Saturday, Dec. 15. Welcoming hundreds of folks to the fancy new athletic digs were several local muralists whose art decorate the Y’s walls — Esteban Cama- cho Steff ensen, Ila Rose, Liza Mana Burns, Nick Rusnock and Eugene Weekly’s own Chelsea Lovejoy. • Correction: Rep. Val Hoyle’s communications director disputes a claim made in a letter to the editor published Dec. 14 that Hoyle “slunk off around the corner” to avoid demonstrators against the Israeli war in Gaza at her congressional offi ce. The demonstration was at Hoyle’s Eugene offi ce, says Hoyle staff er Shamma Matalbert, and Hoyle was at her D.C. offi ce that day. Letter writer Susan Shafroth responds, “I am fi ne if you want to remove that part of my letter, as the part about funding the military over the homeless man in front of her offi ce is by far more important to me.” • In this week’s keeping tabs on the New York Times, the Dec. 18 story headlined “How College Football Is Clobbering Housing Markets Across the Country” raised our eyebrows as we hear tales of students and fi xed income folks struggling to aff ord housing in Eugene. The NYT writes that around the U.S., “in small cities reliant on college sports to keep their economies humming, short-term rentals are destabilizing housing markets, fueled by wealthy fans and investors who transform single-family homes into de facto hotels for a few weeks out of the year, and often leave them sitting empty the rest of the time.” Huh. F INE S ILKS & T RIBAL A RT Traditional Arts Handcrafted by Independent Artisans in Hill Tribe Laos and Vietnam • Exquisite Silk Scarves & Shawls • Handwoven Hemp and Cotton Textiles • Basketry, Jewelry, Tools, Ritual Art 1801 Willamette St. (Meridian Bldg., next to Folkways & Yumm) Open 10-5 (Thru Dec. 24; Closed Mon/Tue) A BOVE THE F RAY: T RADITIONAL H ILL T RIBE A RT HilltribeArt.com: traditional textile art, education, and tours E U G E N E W E E K LY . C O M JOIN TODAY! Photo by Todd Cooper Welcoming spaces designed for community building And so much more! Just Transition Series : Weatherization Workshop When:: Jan 11, 2024 When Time: Time : 5:30-7 PM Where : Unitarian Where: Universalist Church Learn how to keep your home cozy yet efficient, and save money at Beyond Toxics, the Eugene Springfield NAACP, Springfield Eugene Tenant Association, and Fossil Free Eugene’s Weatherization Workshop. Just Transition events are geared toward BIPOC, renters, and low-income community members. Scan below to register, space is limited Presentations | Demonstrations | Free Weatherization Supplies | Stipends | Pizza D E C E M B E R 2 1 , 2 0 2 3 5
