Author: swhillsadmin

From the editor

Change in Meeting Plans

I’m sorry to tell you that the speakers we scheduled for our March 15 meeting have unexpectedly withdrawn. As a result, we are going are canceling the March 15 meeting. Rather than have the meeting with only a few items, it seemed better to delay. The next general meeting will be in April, focusing on garden advice and events. WE will have expert gardeners to answer your questions, we’ll have displays, and we’ll have music, too!

One item we will delay until June. This is the issue of private roads in the city, which came up at our January meeting. We will try to find a speaker from the city to address this, and we will provide more accurate information on our neighborhood’s private streets, including Horizon Rd.

Traffic Comment

A neighbor writes: “I have a comment on the curve near Courtney and Storey. Not only are cars going too fast but I nearly got hit driving when someone coming in the opposite direction in a large truck was half way into my lane taking a short cut around the curve. There was no way to go to avoid him but fortunately he reacted quickly enough to correct his course shortly before a near accident.”

Crime Note

A neighbor writes: “A number of slimy, hot pink markings have appeared on/near three houses on Lorane Highway (that I know of anyway, there may be more). The patio door at a neighbor’s house, sn entrance gate, a camper were marked. There also was an orange marking there that said, “no EWEB”. At our house, a dot was marked on steps, a few inches from the house.

One neighbor called EWEB and was told these are legitimate markings, that someone had asked for excavation, and to call 811 for more information. I called 811 and was told these are not utility markings, that pink usually indicates land surveys. When I told the operator where the markings are she said that did not sound right at all and she suggested I check with non-emergency police re tagging.

I contacted EWEB. They said EWEB does not use pink for markings, their markings are red, and these are not EWEB markings. She said there is a request for new water service at Lorane Highway but would not give any information about the location, so I am not sure that is even relevant. I asked about the name of the survey company they use and she would not give that information. I told her we are concerned because these houses are not very close together and we wondered if this could be tagging.

I also talked with a surveyor. When I explained the markings he said that no, they made no sense and if they WERE done by a surveyor, it would be “cause for a serious complaint”.

I am not sure what this is, but it makes little sense for a survey company to go through someone’s gate, walk quite a way into the property, and spray the gate and a patio door with slimy goo. It makes no sense to spray a camper. And there is no reason to come onto our property and spray next to our house. The neighbor who initially contacted me this morning said he was particularly concerned about burglary because they are often away for extended periods.”

Disaster Preparedness Class

I received the following note from the Red Cross. Disaster preparedness is important, and what the Red Cross is proposing fits very well with our hopes of encouraging smaller groups within the neighborhood to meet with their neighbors. It’s a way of getting to know the resources and problems in your own area. So I encourage you to think about finding a group of 15 or 20 neighbors and asking the Red Cross to come and do one of their disaster sessions with you. It might be the start of a new kind of community.

Here’s the text of their proposal; take advantage of it!:

“The Red Cross Oregon Pacific Chapter is offering free emergency preparedness classes to your 15+ person group so they can be better ready to deal with natural and man-made disasters. We cover all potential disasters in the Pacific Northwest but focus on the Cascadia Subduction Zone 8-9 Earthquake and Tsunami as well as home fires. The presentation can be adjusted to last from 20 minutes to one hour, based on your time constraints. The emergency preparedness presentation discusses the types of disasters (both man-made and natural) that can occur in our geographic area and how to prevent, prepare for and respond to disasters by establishing family meeting places, addressing emergency communication strategies, making personal and family disaster plans, and building emergency supply kits. Each audience member will receive a Red Cross Prepare! booklet.

Research published in the 2013 Oregon Resilience Plan by the Oregon Seismic Safety Policy Advisory Commission indicates there is high probability the Willamette Valley will experience a very large earthquake within the next 50 years; it’s not a matter of if, but when. The 2013 report expects that all utilities in the valley, including water, will be disrupted for at least several months.

For smaller groups and individuals – we offer a *Free Public Red Cross Emergency Preparedness Presentation – the Second Wednesday of Each Month 6-7pm at OPC Red Cross 862. Bethel Drive, Eugene*

Local KEZI news did a report on our emergency preparedness presentation. If you are interested, have a look at this video: http://www.kezi.com/red-cross-teaches-disaster-training/

If you would like to schedule a presentation, you can use this link to select a time that works for your group: http://www.redcross.org/or/eugene/preparedness/schedule-a-red-cross-presentation

Or – email henry.soderberg@redcross.org to schedule a free Red Cross emergency preparedness presentation and ask any questions you may have. You can also reach Henry on his cell at 630-631-6221. We look forward to hearing from you!
”

The Data: Who we are:

Our new name: Southwest Hills Neighborhood Association
Our old name: Crest Drive Citizens Association

Our area of the City: west of Willamette, extending south to the city borders, with a north boundary along 28th to Chambers then along 24th to City View.

Our contact information
For the newsletter: dkolb@bates.edu
For all other matters: vallecomm@gmail.com

The officers of our Association
Chair: Juan Carlos Valle
Vice Chair: Rachael Young
Reporting Sec.: Francina Verrijt
Corresponding Sec./Treas.: David Kolb

Purpose: Our purpose is to promote community at the neighborhood level and improve the livability of the neighborhood, and to educate neighbors and provide a forum for members to identify, discuss, and resolve neighborhood issues by encouraging and facilitating communications and participation among the members on matters of common concern.

How to keep up with news about our area and our activities:
You can check our Web site: crestdriveca.com
You can join the hundreds who receive our weekly email newsletter. Sign up using the form on the web site.
You can join ongoing discussions at our nextdoor.com web page. Sign up at that site.

We will have a board meeting of the Association on Tuesday, March 3, at Market of Choice, 7 pm, on the balcony. Anyone who has ideas or opinions or is just curious is invited to attend.

Our next general gathering will be in March, a celebration of spring gardening with a collection of people ready to answer questions and give advice. Sunday March 15, 2-4 pm, at the farmhouse in the Morse Family Farm Park on Crest Drive.

From the editor

A number of interesting city announcements and cautions today.

You may notice that this email newsletter is coming a bit late. For travel and health reasons, these emails may be irregular in March and will probably settle into a schedule of every week and a half or so later on.

Projects on our streets this spring and summer.

1) The South Willamette Street Pilot Project will re-stripe Willamette from 24th to 29th to test a different arrangement of lanes on the street.

2) Full repaving for the following street segments:

39th Ave: from Willamette St to Braeburn Dr;

Brae Burn Dr: from 39th Ave to Willamette St;

40th Ave: from Donald St to Hilyard St;

Donald St: from 32nd Ave to 40th Ave.

Another street issue.

A neighbor writes: “I am a neighbor on Shalar Ct. Most days I walk my dog up Crest Dr. to the school. The blind curve right before Storey and Courtney Place is extremely dangerous. People speed around the curve and with the sidewalk so close to the street, pedestrians are put in peril if a car skids when it is wet or just goes off the road as it is going too fast. There is a ped crossing sign the but no one ever stops and it cannot be seen before entering the curve. Down below there are flashing lights when a ped is in the crosswalk, and I propose the same be done is this area, or some measure to prevent cars from speeding around this blind curve.”

Your editor admits he at times drives too fast around that curve. Do others have observations, either as drivers or walkers?

Dog News

1) Ridgeline Leash Law Enforcement

Incidents regarding dogs off leash in the Ridgeline Trail System have caused concern for people who use the park and property owners who live in the vicinity of the park. There has been an increase in complaints in regard to people who use the trail and property owners not feeling safe allowing their children to play in their backyard with dogs on the property.

Dogs are required to be on a leash not more than 8 feet in length and must be kept under control at all times. Dogs may only be allowed off-leash in officially designated and signed areas (i.e. dog parks). Eugene Animal Services is reminding people to be aware of park rules and to be mindful of other people who use the Ridgeline Trail and all Eugene parks.

Failure to abide by the rules can result in a $500 fine and/or up to 30 days in jail.

2) Call for volunteers

Can you spare a few hours to help a four-legged friend find a forever home? West Coast Dog and Cat Rescue is in need of volunteers. Hours are flexible, and opportunities are diverse, including fun events, fostering, animal care and cleaning, helping with adoptions, and more. You can visit WCDC’s adoptable pets in Eugene at PetSmart North, 2847 Chad Drive; PetSmart South, 2858 Willamette Street; PetCo, 1169 Valley River Drive; and Wags Dog Emporium, 485 Coburg Road. Learn more or apply to be a volunteer at: http://www.westcoastdogandcat.org (click on “Volunteers” in the top green bar of the page). With the support of community members like you, WCDC (an all-volunteer nonprofit) has found homes for over 1,700 animals in need since 2007. Brighten your life by helping brighten theirs!

City notices

1) Local Grants Available for Arts & Culture

Funded by the City of Eugene Cultural Services Division and administered by Lane Arts Council, Community Arts Grants are available to all creative and cultural arts media and disciplines for projects and programs that make an impact on Eugene residents. “We are grateful for the City of Eugene’s ongoing investment in the arts. These projects make Eugene a creative and dynamic place to live,” states Liora Sponko, Executive Director of Lane Arts Council.

Community Arts Grant Goals:

• Enrich the lives of Eugene residents and visitors
• Increase opportunities for residents to engage in the arts in its many forms
• Encourage emerging artists and art forms
• Preserve and commemorate local and multicultural traditions and histories
• Represent the community in all of its diversity
• Encourage partnerships among artists, performers, businesses, organizations, and agencies
• Build existing audiences and develop new ones for arts and culture
• Provide comprehensive arts learning experiences for Eugene’s children, youth, and adults
Community Arts Grant Application Deadline: May 8, 2015
Visit http://www.lanearts.org for guidelines and applications

Community Arts Grant Informational Session: Monday, March 9, 4:00-5:30pm

Community members can attend this free workshop to learn more about this grant program.

Maude Kerns Art Center1910 East 15th Ave., Eugene
RSVP online at http://www.lanearts.org/workshops/ or call Lane Arts Council at 541-485-2278

2) Proposed Vehicle Fee Information

In May, Lane County voters will decide whether Lane County should establish a county vehicle registration fee. If authorized by the voters, 40% of the funds will be shared with the incorporated cities throughout the county.

The proposed Lane County registration fee amount is $35 per year for most vehicles and $20 per year for motorcycles and mopeds. $35 per year is equivalent to $2.92 per month.

If adopted, the county fee would be collected by Oregon DMV at the same time motorists obtain or renew their state vehicle registration. Most new vehicles are registered for a four-year period; subsequent renewals typically occur every two years. Certain vehicles would be exempt from the county fee under state law. Disabled veteran, government, school, farm, antique, special interest and recreational vehicles and heavy vehicles paying the weight-mile tax would be exempt from the fee under state law.

If adopted the $35 annual fee would generate approximately $11 million countywide. Approximately $6.6 million would go to the county and $4.4 million to cities based on population. The eight largest cities and projected revenues are: Eugene (about $2.7 million); Springfield (about $1 million); Cottage Grove (about $165,000); Florence (about $145,000); Junction City (about $94,000); Creswell (about $85,000); Veneta (about $80,000) and Oakridge (about $55,000).

Oregon’s Constitution requires taxes and fees on motor vehicle fuel and use, including vehicle registration fees, to be used exclusively for the construction, reconstruction, improvement, repair, maintenance and operation or use of public highways, roads, streets and roadside rest areas in this state.

http://www.lanecounty.org/Departments/PW/TransPlanning/Pages/VRF.aspx

3) (Repeat notice) Reserve A Community Garden Plot

Enjoy the bounty of the earth! Since 1978, Eugene’s community gardens have been growing friendships, community involvement, and an appreciation of the land. By giving participants the opportunity to cultivate their own gardens, the Community Gardens Program helps people experience a special connection to the earth and their community.

With six community gardens to choose from, new gardeners should look at several garden sites before registering if requesting a specific location. Please note demand is high for garden plots, and turnover rates are very low. In order to provide a process that is as fair as possible the Community Gardens Program will use a lottery process to determine the order of plot assignment and registration for available plots. Registration for new gardeners closes at 5 p.m. on Monday, March 16, 2015.

http://www.eugene-or.gov/index.aspx?NID=496

From the editor
More flowers, more sun, not enough rain and snow, so good times now, but worries about water in the summer.
There were 60 responses to our poll on whether to remove or keep the roundabout at Lincoln and Crest.
Responses were divided: Remove 33 (55%), Keep 27 (45%).
The poll included an optional box for writing comments, and 37 people did so, with and 23 arguing for removal and 14 for keeping.
At our upcoming board meeting (on the 3rd, 7 pm, Market of Choice, open to anyone who would like to attend) we will discuss whether we should take more steps on the issue.

Notes from the city:
1) Envision Eugene Revised UGB Recommendation for Housing
The revised recommendation does not include a UGB expansion for housing. The reasons why, and information about how the city is planning to accommodate our 20-year housing needs, will be presented at the meetings below for community input:
• February 23rd Planning Commission update on UGB housing recommendation in the Atrium Sloat Room, 11:30 am
• February 23rd City Council Public Forum on UGB housing recommendation at Harris Hall, 7:30 pm
• February 25th City Council Direction on UGB housing recommendation at Harris Hall, 12:00 noon

2) Safe Routes To School Action Plan for Southeast Eugene
The 4j Safe Routes to School program is working on Action Plans that look at different ways to improve the walking and biking environment for students throughout the Southeast region. We are engaging Spencer Butte Middle School, Edgewood Community Elementary, Charlemagne Elementary, and Ridgeline Montessori parents, staff, and students to create their Action Plans while Camas Ridge will be updating their existing plan.
We would also like to talk to the broader community about ways to improve the active transportation options for families in the Southeast region. A community meeting to discuss Safe Routes to School and active transportation issues will be held February 25th at 5:30 pm at Spencer Butte Middle School.
There will be a brief presentation on the SRTS program and existing conditions followed by a community input session that will help us address the top active transportation priorities for community members in the region.

3) Reserve A Community Garden Plot
Enjoy the bounty of the earth! Since 1978, Eugene’s community gardens have been growing friendships, community involvement, and an appreciation of the land. By giving participants the opportunity to cultivate their own gardens, the Community Gardens Program helps people experience a special connection to the earth and their community.
With six community gardens to choose from, new gardeners should look at several garden sites before registering if requesting a specific location. Please note demand is high for garden plots, and turnover rates are very low. In order to provide a process that is as fair as possible the Community Gardens Program will use a lottery process to determine the order of plot assignment and registration for available plots. Registration for new gardeners closes at 5 p.m. on Monday, March 16, 2015.
http://www.eugene-or.gov/index.aspx?NID=496

4) 2015 Northwest Permaculture Convergence
The 2015 Northwest Permaculture Convergence will take place at the River Road Park Recreation Center August 28-30.
Join us for a coming together of people from all over the Northwest who are making their homes, neighborhoods and communities safer, more healthy and green.
The Convergence will include presentations and site tours featuring front yard gardens, solar design, edible landscaping, green preparedness, collaborations between neighbors and much more.
A priority for the event is to bring neighborhood leaders together from all over the Northwest to compare notes about greening their neighborhoods.
Jan Spencer is one of the core organizers and would be glad to make a presentation for Eugene NAs to show and tell about permaculture, the Convergence and what can be done with an average suburban property for taking care of more needs closer to home.

We received a note seeking signatures on a Petition to Silence the Train Horns in Eugene

The City Council and Mayor Piercy are actively pursuing the creation of a Railroad Quiet Zone in Eugene. This would effectively silence the hundreds of train horn blasts which occur in Eugene on a daily basis — and at all hours — by installing supplemental safety measures at each railway crossing in according with federal law.
Although Council members are supportive of the creation of a Quiet Zone, they need to be made aware they have the support of Eugene citizens in order to pursue the necessary funding.
A petition has been set up to let the Council know they have broad community support for a railroad Quiet Zone. The petition can be found at:
http://eugenequietzone.com/

Currently, over 500 Eugene citizens have signed the petition, and their personal comments are telling — they cite everything from lost sleep, increased stress, lost business opportunities, and many other reasons for wanting an abatement in unnecessary train horn noise.
The petition is particularly timely at the moment since the Council is right now actively considering implementing a Quiet Zone.
Over 600 Quiet Zones across the country have been established — showing that citizens overall greatly support a quieter community (especially at night) and that funding for such projects has often been made available.

Please see the petition text for more information on the Quiet Zone. Please contact me if you have any questions or would like additional information.

Best regards,
David A. Caruso
Eugene, Oregon
davidacaruso@gmail.com

February 15, 2015

Upcoming

Meetings

We will have a board meeting of the Association on Tuesday, March 3, at
Market of Choice, 7 pm ,on the balcony. Anyone who has ideas or opinions or
is just curious is invited to attend.

Our next general gathering will be in March, a celebration of spring
gardening with a collection of people ready to answer questions and give
advice. Sunday March 15, 2-4 pm, at the farmhouse in the Morse Family Farm
Park on Crest Drive.

On our last email, our May meeting was mistakenly listed as on May 19. The
19th will be the annual open house and celebration at the farmhouse in the
Morse Family Farm Park, well worth attending. Our meeting there will be on
May 24.

From the editor

While my friends back in Maine and Massachusetts have been getting snowed
under, we have been seeing daffodils and blooming trees. We have crocus
blooming, too, for the brief time before the deer eat them. Welcome Spring!

As our January meeting some neighbors asked if the signs posted on Horizon
Street are meant to stop pedestrians from walking there. Your edito
examined the signs did not get that impression. Your board talked with the
family that owns the street and were assured that the signs were showing
the conditions under which people could walk on the private street, namely,
that pedestrians stay on the pavement and not trespass on the lawns on
either side, and that people keep their dogs on leashes.

We have been asked by many people if the city plans to anything about the
small roundabout at the intersection of Lincoln and Crest Drive. At our
January meeting councilwoman Betty Taylor said that while of the city
Council had held a hearing on the issue at her request, the city would not
make any decisions unless it was presented with a request from a sizable
group of people. So, in order to gauge opinions on this issue, we have
prepared a one question poll. If you are concerned about the roundabout,
either to keep it or to remove it, please give your opinion at our poll.

https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/7C5NN6M

At their February 9 meeting, the City Council voted unanimously to extend
the suspension of the MUPTE (Multiple Unit Property Tax Exemption) program
until September 1, 2015. That program provides tax breaks for those who
develop multiple housing units in certain designated areas of the city.
There are proposed changes to the MUPTE program that neighborhoods may want
to comment on. For instance there are proposed requirements that MUPTE
developments include a specified amount of workforce (“affordable”)
housing, that refinement plan policies cover areas in which MUPTE is
available to developers, and that a portion of the special fees that
developers pay for city infrastructure be reserved for the area around the
development.
An organization that is seeking to have these requirements added is
http://trusttheneighbors.org/mupte-sdc/.

This week we have more city announcements.

1) Hands-on Creativity at Eugene Public Library
The Library’s a great place to learn – and for self-expression! Creative
activities coming up soon include free hands-on workshops for adults to
make “pop-up cards” at Sheldon Branch on Saturday, Feb. 21, at 1 p.m., or
at Bethel Branch on Saturday, Feb. 28, at 1 p.m. Join artist Amanda Puetz
to learn basic techniques – then get inventive.
Kids will make colorful “kaleidoscopes” with Heather Campbell of MECCA at
Family Fun on Sunday, Feb. 22, at 2:30 p.m., at the Downtown Library.
There’s a different activity for kids and family every week – and they’re
free!
For more information, contact the Eugene Public Library at 541-682-5450 or
http://www.eugene-or.gov/library.

2) Boards & Commissions Recruitment Underway!
The City of Eugene is now recruiting for City boards, committees and
commissions. The recruitment will conclude on Friday, March 27, 2015.
Applicants are being sought for advisory committees to the City Council,
department advisory committees and intergovernmental committees. (Read
more)

3) Police Report: Suspicious Behavior
Eugene Police have received disturbing calls regarding women and girls
being followed by suspicious male subjects in vehicles. Three incidents
were reported in February. Police are asking people to please be especially
mindful of personal safety practices, and if at all possible try to get a
license plate and descriptions of vehicle and suspicious subjects inside
and call 9-1-1 to report incidents.

From the editor

A rainy week with lots going on. At the Association’sboard meeting this week we discussed plans for the future. We designed a tentative schedule of topics for our gatherings over the next few months. We hope that the topics may interest you.

February – no general meeting
March 15 – a city discussion of the state of Eugene’s parks
April 19 – our spring gardening event, and more about CERT emergency response teams
May 17 – discussing how to resolve disputes among neighbors, and how and when to file complaints with the city
June 21 – defending your property against wildfires
July – no general meeting
August 9 – our annual summer potluck picnic and play time

General meetings are held in the house at Morse Family Farm Park on Crest Drive, the third Sunday of the month from 2 to 4 PM.
Note, though, that the annual picnic will be on the *second* Sunday of August.

Board meetings are usually held at the Market of Choice on 29th Ave., on the upstairs balcony, 7pm. Board meetings are eagerly open to anyone with concerns to express.

We hope this year to sponsor the formation of smaller groups for emergency preparedness and getting to know your neighbors. At least two are already at work within our area but every few blocks would benefit from forming one of these groups. You’ll be hearing more about this in the coming weeks.

Another hope we have for this year is more participation from all parts of our area. We need more board members from south of 39th, and from McLean and Chambers to City View. We hope some of you might help your neighbors by voicing their concerns on our board

Coming events

The emergency preparedness and CERT exercises this month will be going ahead. We noted these last week but thought it was worth repeating them for emphasis. More new events are listed below.

1) Neighborhood Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) Workshop

Talk about improving communication in the event of a disaster as well as during “normal” times and share ideas for using the CERT program to its fullest extent across our neighborhood.

Neighborhood maps and city maps will be available.

Anyone interested in emergency preparedness and safety response in S Eugene is welcome.

• DATE: 2/19/2015 (Thu 5:30PM – 7:30PM)
• LOCATION: Hilyard Community Center, 2580 Hilyard Street
•
For more info and to RSVP, go to http://www.signupgenius.com/go/20f0e49abab23a7fe3-southeast

2) Wildfire Exercise

What if the South Hills caught fire..?

A team of national, regional, state and local agencies and organizations have undertaken an effort to help communities assess their capability to prepare for, respond to and recover from a variety of natural disasters through a series of disaster exercises facilitated via the internet entitled “Formidable Footprint”.

Southeast Neighbors will be hosting a neighborhood wildfire exercise on Saturday, February 28 from 10am to 1pm at the Hilyard Center at 2580 Hilyard St.

This program is free for all participants but pre-registration is required. There are several important reasons to register: Preparing for emergencies is everybody’s business but we tend to put it off. There will be an event at the end of February which might be of use to you.

Prior to the exercise important situational awareness materials will be e-mailed to all registered participants.

Each participant in the exercise will be required to submit an evaluation after the exercise has ended.

Individual exercise Certificates of Participation will only be generated for registered participants.

To register for the exercise, go to
http://www.onxsystem.com/?q=onx/ex/2431.

Location Information

Hilyard Community Center is located in south Eugene at 2580 Hilyard Street across the parking lot from Amazon Pool. Hilyard Community Center houses the City of Eugene’s Adaptive Recreation Program and was designed for maximum accessibility including: wheelchair accessible bathrooms, full kitchen, FM loop systems, large raised print signs and easy access to the outdoors.

Fun event

Oregon Asian Festival
February 14-15, Lane Events Center

Bring family, friends, and loved-ones to the two-day Asian cultural heritage festival, the Oregon Asian Celebration, on Feb. 14 and 15, at the Lane Events Center. Enjoy cultural performances, music, fine art, children and youth activities, as well as demonstrations of crafts, cooking, and martial arts.

Celebrate Valentines’ weekend with special activities such as the canoodle-noodle eating contest and more. Visitors can tempt their taste buds with exotic and traditional cuisine of different Asian countries, and spend time strolling through the Asian Marketplace for special souvenirs, trinkets, and keepsakes.

The doors at the Lane Events Center open at 10 a.m. on Saturday and Sunday, Feb. 14 and 15, and close at 7 p.m. on Saturday, and 6 p.m. on Sunday. Admission is $6 for one day; $10 for two days; and free for children ages 12 and under. Tickets are available for pre-sale at all Oregon Community Credit Union branch locations or at the door on event day. The event is produced by the Eugene-Springfield Asian Council. For an up-to-date schedule of activities and events, visit http://www.AsianCelebration.org.

Beat back the invading monsters

Ivy Pulling Extravaganza at Hendricks Park
Monday, February 16

Join Friends of Hendricks Park and Eugene Park Stewards on Presidents’ Day to fight against ivy invaders!

Join Friends of Hendricks Park and Eugene Park Stewards on Presidents’ Day to fight against ivy invaders! Pulling ivy is vigorous work, but as George Washington once said, “The harder the conflict, the greater the triumph.” Help us be triumphant! Tools, gloves and snacks will be provided. Dress in sturdy shoes and clothes that can get dirty. Contact Mieko at mieko.e.aoki@ci.eugene.or.us or 541-510-4636 to RSVP or for more information.

City notes: The city is seeking input for future plans.

1) We received this note from Envision Eugene about the revised calculations about housing expansion. (A mistake was discovered in the data used for the original calculations.).

Things are moving along on the update to the UGB Recommendation for housing. As you may recall, staff and community members are analyzing information raised through the Technical Resource Group over the last month or so. The information relates to the capacity of land in Eugene’s south hills to accommodate single family housing. While the numbers are still being finalized, it is likely that Eugene’s expansion need for single family housing will decrease and we want to be sure to give you advance notice of public meetings where we plan to walk through the updated results. The tentative meeting dates include:

* February 18th City Council Work Session on UGB housing recommendation at Harris Hall, 125 E. 8thAve., 12:00 noon
* February 19th Community Open House on UGB housing recommendation at the Atrium, 99 W. 10th Ave., 4-6 pm
* February 23rd Planning Commission update on UGB housing recommendation in the Atrium Sloat Room, 11:30 am
* February 23rd City Council Public Forum on UGB housing recommendation at Harris Hall, 7:30 pm
* February 25th City Council Direction on UGB housing recommendation at Harris Hall, 12:00 noon

2) Capital Improvement Plan Update

Find out about the projects being planned in your neighborhood!

The Capital Improvement Plan (CIP) outlines plans for improvement and construction in parks, transportation (pedestrian, bike, and auto), and City-owned facilities such as community centers.

On Wednesday, Feb. 11, at 5:30 p.m., the Eugene Budget Committee will meet in the Bascom-Tykeson Room in the
Downtown Public Library, 100 West 10th Avenue, to discuss the Draft Capital Improvement Program (CIP) for fiscal years
2016 through 2021 (FY16-21). The CIP provides a six-year funding plan for the City’s capital improvements, including
transportation, airport, public buildings, parks and open space, stormwater and wastewater projects. The CIP also
documents unfunded capital needs over the next six years.

At the meeting on Feb. 11, the Budget Committee will provide an opportunity for the public to comment on the Draft CIP
and will formulate its recommendation to the City Council. The Draft FY16-21 CIP is available for public review online at
http://www.eugene-or.gov/CIP. Hard copies of the draft CIP document are also available for public review at the Downtown
Public Library reference desk, 100 W 10th Avenue, 2nd floor; Eugene Finance Division, 100 W 10th Avenue, 4th floor; and the
City Manager’s Office, 125 East 8th Avenue, 2nd floor.

Members of the public are encouraged to provide feedback on the capital projects proposed in the Draft CIP by
commenting at the Budget Committee meeting or via the comment form on the Budget web site

The Budget Committee meeting on Feb. 11 will be broadcast on Metro TV, and a webcast will be available at
http://www.eugene-or.gov/webcasts.

Here are two items important for transportation and recreation, repeated from last week:

LTD Proposes New Routes
Participate in the Annual Route Review
LTD has put together a package that addresses our communities desire to run the buses more often, earlier and later, or to increase coverage to more areas. Please take a minute to review the plan and add your comments!

Take the Survey! Go to LTD.org and click on the survey to submit your comments on the proposed changes.

Or attend an Open House and weigh in:
Open Houses:
Customer Service Center Lobby
February 11 & 12
7:00 – 9:00 a.m.
3:00 – 5:00 p.m.

Or attend LTD Board Public Hearings:
March 18, 5:30 p.m. -Eugene Library/Bascom-Tykeson Room
April 6, 5:30 p.m. – Eugene Library/Bascom-Tykeson Room

Of course you can always send your comments to LTD@LTD.org or call LTD at 541-682-6100

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Eugene Trail Plan – Update

Draft Plan Map and Guidelines will be based on your feedback!

A year ago the City of Eugene Parks and Open Space Division held a kick-off meeting for the Eugene Trails Plan – a plan to help guide and coordinate Eugene Parks and Open Space decisions about soft-surface trails. After a hiatus due to a number of factors including limited staffing resources and focus on implementing new trail construction efforts, this winter the project has kicked back into gear:
• A consultant has been hired to assist, Jeff Krueger of JK Environments;
• A second survey is being conducted by Oregon State University, http://oregonstate.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_bg3yCuvaSQPOA0l
• A draft plan map and guidelines are being prepared based on input from citizens, local trail advocates and organizations, and city staff;
• The second public meeting has been scheduled for Thursday, February 26th, 6-8PM. Meeting details will be shared in a follow up email soon, but please set aside that time and date if possible so you’ll be able to attend.
During the hiatus, we have continued progress on a number of trail related projects including:
• The Dillard Connector Trail. This new section of the Ridgeline Trail was completed in October, a beautiful and much safer shared-use segment connecting the Fox Hollow Trailhead to the Dillard East Trailhead through park land, replacing the former route along the shoulder of Dillard Rd.
• The Spencer Butte Summit Trail project. Contractor’s bids are due this week for a reroute of the very heavily used trail from the treeline to the summit. This reroute will provide a much clearer and safer experience while also reducing negative impacts to the sensitive habitat on the rocky top. The project is expected to be complete by the end of this summer.
• Skinner Butte Columns Trail. This renovation of a badly eroded trail section above the rock climbing columns in Skinner Butte Park also has a contract out for bidding, with construction expected to be complete by the beginning of summer.
• Wild Iris Ridge connector. This new mile-long segment of the Ridgeline Trail will create an additional trailhead and looped trail connection through Wild Iris Ridge in SW Eugene. The alignment is currently being refined, with construction expected to be complete by the end of this summer.

Finally, and most importantly, the City is welcoming feedback and asking that community please take the second survey. On our behalf, Oregon State University is conducting this survey based on the recent statewide trails survey done for the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department, but shorter and focused on soft-surface trails in Eugene (including use of waterways by non-motorized craft). It only should take about 10 minutes.

Please take the survey and then send it to anyone you think might have an interest in Eugene’s Trails. Your responses needed – and the results will be presented at the upcoming meeting.

From the editor

A busy week and many items to ponder during the rain.

Website difficulties — this site was down temporarily but as you can see it’s now up again.

We hit the airwaves!

At the Eugene City Club last week, a panel of neighborhood representatives spoke about projects the various neighborhood associations have been involved with. Southwest Hills (CDCA), Southeast, Friendly, and other associations all spoke. David Kolb spoke about what we learned from the Crest Drive Street project about the difficulties of communication within neighborhoods. If you would like to hear the program, go to http://klcc.org/post/just-what-do-neighborhood-associations-do

Crime Note

A neighbor writes: “I live in the 600 block of west 31st. Not sure of the exact date (sometime earlier this month) but someone tried to steal our late model Subaru from the driveway. It was premeditated in that they used a Slim Jim type device, but amateur enough the only result was damage to the door, both inside and out. Nothing of value was in the car, hence the supposition the intent was to steal the vehicle. Additional deterrents besides garage lights have since been installed.”

Emergency preparedness news

1) Neighborhood Community Emergency Response Team (CERT) Workshop

Talk about improving communication in the event of a disaster as well as during “normal” times and share ideas for using the CERT program to its fullest extent across our neighborhood.

Neighborhood maps and city maps will be available.

Anyone interested in emergency preparedness and safety response in S Eugene is welcome.

• DATE: 2/19/2015 (Thu 5:30PM – 7:30PM)
• LOCATION: Hilyard Community Center, 2580 Hilyard Street
•
For more info and to RSVP, go to http://www.signupgenius.com/go/20f0e49abab23a7fe3-southeast

2) A neighbor writes: “I noticed there is a Southeast neighborhood emergency prep session at Hilyard about FIRE on 2/28. Will there be a southwest session? or do we attend this one?”

The fire emergency prep session is for anyone living in Southeast or Southwest. So if you’re interested we’d suggest attending this upcoming session. Here are the details reprinted from last week:

Community Emergency Response Teams (CERT) and Neighborhood Watch programs along with Neighborhood Associations are invited to participate in a Wildfire disaster tabletop exercise being facilitated via the internet at the Hilyard Center in South Eugene. This exercise has been designed specifically for organizations that work to support the disaster caused needs of community and neighborhood residents during and following a disaster. By participating in this exercise, you will be able to assess your organizations existing disaster response capabilities.

This program is free for all participants but pre-registration is required.

Last summer’s wildfires had many of thinking about the potential for wildfire in South Eugene. How would our neighborhood respond if the South Hills caught on fire?
A team of national, regional, state and local agencies and organizations have undertaken an effort to help communities assess their capability to prepare for, respond to and recover from a variety of natural disasters through a series of disaster exercises facilitated via the internet entitled “Formidable Footprint”.

Southeast Neighbors will be conducting a neighborhood wildfire exercise on Saturday, February 28 from 10am to 1pm at the Hilyard Center at 2580 Hilyard St. Join us as we discover our community strengths and weaknesses and help make South Eugene stronger and better prepared for emergencies.

Date/Time
Saturday, February 28, 2015 from 10:00am to 1:00pm

Location
Hilyard Center Main Hall, 2580 Hilyard St

Exercise Registration
This program is free for all participants but pre-registration is required. There are several important reasons to register: Preparing for emergencies is everybody’s business but we tend to put it off. There will be an event at the end of February which might be of use to you.

Prior to the exercise important situational awareness materials will be e-mailed to all registered participants.

Each participant in the exercise will be required to submit an evaluation after the exercise has ended.

Individual exercise Certificates of Participation will only be generated for registered participants.

To register for the exercise, go to
http://www.onxsystem.com/?q=onx/ex/2431.

Location Information

Hilyard Community Center is located in south Eugene at 2580 Hilyard Street across the parking lot from Amazon Pool. Hilyard Community Center houses the City of Eugene’s Adaptive Recreation Program and was designed for maximum accessibility including: wheelchair accessible bathrooms, full kitchen, FM loop systems, large raised print signs and easy access to the outdoors.

Environmental news

An organization called DriveOregon is asking the Oregon Legislature to pass a Clean Car Rebate to lower the cost of electric vehicles for Oregon families. If you would like to join our coalition, please send an email to Zach@driveoregon.org

From the city:

1) First Fridays Event
Communities of Color Network Social

Join Communities of Color Network for an afternoon social on Friday, February 6 at 5:30 PM – 6:30 PM.

Good food, good music and great company await you at this free community event! Check out the collaborative project display: “Stories of Exclusion and Inclusion: Owning our History; Creating our Future”

Event is followed by the BIG 5th Annual Black History Month banquet. For tickets to banquet conact 541-852-9782.

2) LTD Proposes New Routes

Participate in the Annual Route Review

LTD has put together a package that addresses our communities desire to run the buses more often, earlier and later, or to increase coverage to more areas. Please take a minute to review the plan and add your comments!

Take the Survey! Go to LTD.org and click on the survey to submit your comments on the proposed changes.

Or attend an Open House and weigh in:
Open Houses:
Customer Service Center Lobby
February 11 & 12
7:00 – 9:00 a.m.
3:00 – 5:00 p.m.

Or attend LTD Board Public Hearings:
March 18, 5:30 p.m. -Eugene Library/Bascom-Tykeson Room
April 6, 5:30 p.m. – Eugene Library/Bascom-Tykeson Room

Of course you can always send your comments to LTD@LTD.org or call LTD at 541-682-6100

3) Eugene Trail Plan – Update

Draft Plan Map and Guidelines will be based on your feedback!

A year ago the City of Eugene Parks and Open Space Division held a kick-off meeting for the Eugene Trails Plan – a plan to help guide and coordinate Eugene Parks and Open Space decisions about soft-surface trails. After a hiatus due to a number of factors including limited staffing resources and focus on implementing new trail construction efforts, this winter the project has kicked back into gear:

• A consultant has been hired to assist, Jeff Krueger of JK Environments;
•
• A second survey is being conducted by Oregon State University, and;
•
• A draft plan map and guidelines are being prepared based on input from citizens, local trail advocates and organizations, and city staff;

• The second public meeting has been scheduled for Thursday, February 26th, 6-8PM. Meeting details will be shared in a follow up email soon, but please set aside that time and date if possible so you’ll be able to attend.

During the hiatus, we have continued progress on a number of trail related projects including:
•
• The Dillard Connector Trail. This new section of the Ridgeline Trail was completed in October, a beautiful and much safer shared-use segment connecting the Fox Hollow Trailhead to the Dillard East Trailhead through park land, replacing the former route along the shoulder of Dillard Rd.
•
• The Spencer Butte Summit Trail project. Contractor’s bids are due this week for a reroute of the very heavily used trail from the treeline to the summit. This reroute will provide a much clearer and safer experience while also reducing negative impacts to the sensitive habitat on the rocky top. The project is expected to be complete by the end of this summer.
•
• Skinner Butte Columns Trail. This renovation of a badly eroded trail section above the rock climbing columns in Skinner Butte Park also has a contract out for bidding, with construction expected to be complete by the beginning of summer.
•
• Wild Iris Ridge connector. This new mile-long segment of the Ridgeline Trail will create an additional trailhead and looped trail connection through Wild Iris Ridge in SW Eugene. The alignment is currently being refined, with construction expected to be complete by the end of this summer.

Finally, and most importantly, the City is welcoming feedback and asking that community please take the second survey. On our behalf, Oregon State University is conducting this survey based on the recent statewide trails survey done for the Oregon Parks and Recreation Department, but shorter and focused on soft-surface trails in Eugene (including use of waterways by non-motorized craft). It only should take about 10 minutes.

Please take the survey and then send it to anyone you think might have an interest in Eugene’s Trails. Your responses needed – and the results will be presented at the upcoming meeting.

4) Oregon Asian Festival
February 14-15, Lane Events Center

Bring family, friends, and loved-ones to the two-day Asian cultural heritage festival, the Oregon Asian Celebration, on Feb. 14 and 15, at the Lane Events Center. Enjoy cultural performances, music, fine art, children and youth activities, as well as demonstrations of crafts, cooking, and martial arts.

Celebrate Valentines’ weekend with special activities such as the canoodle-noodle eating contest and more. Visitors can tempt their taste buds with exotic and traditional cuisine of different Asian countries, and spend time strolling through the Asian Marketplace for special souvenirs, trinkets, and keepsakes.

The doors at the Lane Events Center open at 10 a.m. on Saturday and Sunday, Feb. 14 and 15, and close at 7 p.m. on Saturday, and 6 p.m. on Sunday. Admission is $6 for one day; $10 for two days; and free for children ages 12 and under. Tickets are available for pre-sale at all Oregon Community Credit Union branch locations or at the door on event day. The event is produced by the Eugene-Springfield Asian Council. For an up-to-date schedule of activities and events, visit http://www.AsianCelebration.org.

5) Good things happen to people who share!
Point2Point introduces CarpoolKarma

Point2point at Lane Transit District, Cherriots Rideshare, and Cascades West Rideshare are pleased to introduce Carpool Karma, a regional carpool incentive program set for Feb. 1 – May 1, 2015.

Carpool Karma has been developed to help Willamette Valley commuters explore their carpooling options and will reward carpoolers with great prizes and good karma. Prizes include free drinks at Dutch Bros, Fred Meyer gift cards, iPads, weekend getaways, and more!

To get started, simply register at DriveLessConnect.com (the Oregon Department of Transportation’s free statewide ridematching database), then complete a pre-survey (link below) and log a minimum of two days of carpool activity each week throughout the campaign to be eligible for weekly prizes.

Whether you are an experienced carpooler, or are just starting out, Carpool Karma is for you!

No carpool partner? No worries, we can help! Just create a ridematch trip in the Drive Less Connect database to view your potential partners. Contact them directly through the database. Your personal information remains private. You determine how much of your information is visible to others. From Woodburn to Springfield, there are thousands of people looking for a carpool partner just like you! Transportation options mean good karma for your community, your wallet, and the planet.

For more information and to get started, visit DriveLessConnect.com/carpool-karma and let the good karma begin!

From the editor

The Eugene Weekly section on Happening People this week features our own Dan and Barbara Gleason, bird experts and artists extraordinaires, for their efforts to improve care of and education about our avian residents and visitors. Congratulations to the Gleasons! You can seek advice at their Wildbirds Unlimited store on south Willamette, across from Tsunami Books.

Our January meeting gathering on the 18th brought neighbors together to vote and approve the new charter, the name change, and our approval of the new borders. The official enactment of these changes will happen through the city Council sometime in the next months. But we will begin using the new name in our internal communications starting with this newsletter. Gradually we will change over the websites. For the moment the official Web site remains crestdriveca.com, and the nextdoor site is still named Crest Drive, but that will be changing as we negotiate with the nextdoor company.

City Councilor Betty Taylor attended the meeting and spoke about what was coming up soon before the city Council: the multiple property tax exemption, the expansion of the urban growth boundary, and the library financing proposal. If you have an opinion you want to express about these issues, get them to the Council by email or mail soon.

She also urged that if neighbors want to bring issues before the city Council (for instance, the little roundabout on Lincoln and Crest), working through the neighborhood organization increases the impact on the Council.

The meeting discussed Rest Haven. The owner of the cemetery, Tim Wiper, has proposed changing the designation of the land in the Metro Plan from “parks and open space” to “low density residential” – the land is already zoned “R-1” — the lowest density residential zone. Hower the Metro plan overlay designation controls usage. Changing the designation will allow future development on the site. Such development will be coming, but what form it would take is unclear at the moment. Any development proposals will go through the usual conditional use permit discussions with chances for public comment. Neighbors expressed their concern about preserving the forested slopes on the edges of the property along Braeburn.

The meeting also featured and spirited discussion about what topics what concerns the Association should be taking up in the coming year. You can find the full minutes of the meeting at crestdriveca.com — click the button in the top bar.

This weekend the annual Green Home and Garden Show is open in the event center at the fairgrounds on 13th. See http://www.eugenehomeshow.com/GoodEarthHomeShowOverview.html for details.

EMERGENCIES…

Preparing for emergencies is on everyone’s mind, but we tend to put it off.

Our Association is hoping to encourage small local groups to organize themselves as local teams for their block or two, to help prepare. This would also enable us to get to know our neighbors better and to know the strengths and weaknesses of our local areas should outside help be unavailable during a serious emergency.

In this connection, there will be an event at the end of February:

Community Emergency Response Teams (CERT) and Neighborhood Watch programs along with Neighborhood Associations are invited to participate in a Wildfire disaster tabletop exercise being facilitated via the internet at the Hilyard Center in South Eugene. This exercise has been designed specifically for organizations that work to support the disaster caused needs of community and neighborhood residents during and following a disaster. By participating in this exercise, you will be able to assess your organizations existing disaster response capabilities.

This program is free for all participants but pre-registration is required.

Last summer’s wildfires had many of thinking about the potential for wildfire in South Eugene. How would our neighborhood respond if the South Hills caught on fire?
A team of national, regional, state and local agencies and organizations have undertaken an effort to help communities assess their capability to prepare for, respond to and recover from a variety of natural disasters through a series of disaster exercises facilitated via the internet entitled “Formidable Footprint”.

Southeast Neighbors will be conducting a neighborhood wildfire exercise on Saturday, February 28 from 10am to 1pm at the Hilyard Center at 2580 Hilyard St. Join us as we discover our community strengths and weaknesses and help make South Eugene stronger and better prepared for emergencies.

Date/Time
Saturday, February 28, 2015 from 10:00am to 1:00pm

Location
Hilyard Center Main Hall, 2580 Hilyard St

Exercise Registration
This program is free for all participants but pre-registration is required. There are several important reasons to register: Preparing for emergencies is everybody’s business but we tend to put it off. There will be an event at the end of February which might be of use to you.

Prior to the exercise important situational awareness materials will be e-mailed to all registered participants.

Each participant in the exercise will be required to submit an evaluation after the exercise has ended.

Individual exercise Certificates of Participation will only be generated for registered participants.

To register for the exercise, go to
http://www.onxsystem.com/?q=onx/ex/2431.

Location Information

Hilyard Community Center is located in south Eugene at 2580 Hilyard Street across the parking lot from Amazon Pool. Hilyard Community Center houses the City of Eugene’s Adaptive Recreation Program and was designed for maximum accessibility including: wheelchair accessible bathrooms, full kitchen, FM loop systems, large raised print signs and easy access to the outdoors.

Repair2Reuse Cafe’s
on Jan 30

Lane County will host the Repair2ReUse Cafe’s with the first one to be held at MECCA, January 30 and at other locations in the following months.

Currently there is a need for a repairer of modern sewing machines for January and a need for folks who have skills with consumer electronics for February.

From the editor

There are daffodil bulb shoots peeking up in our garden. We take this as an encouraging sign.

The text of our new charter is available at crestdriveca.com. Click on the menu item in the banner at the top of the page.

This week we have crime notes, an exciting film opportunity for teens, and a number of city announcements.

Crime notes

Mail theft spree continues; two neighbors write:

The co-housing neighborhood on Tiara (south of 29th between Adams and McLean) also had one of their two group postal mailboxes crowbarred open on 12/29/14. Whatever mail not picked up by residents was stolen. The installation was destroyed and unusable. It is now repaired.

The upper section of McLean Blvd experienced mail theft over the holidays. The post office notified me that my box had experienced a theft.

The New Generations Film Fest will encourage students to use the latest technology to create films about their own situation and issues here in the city.

Love Where You Live! It’s free and open to all Eugene middle school and high school students.

Create an original video featuring a neighborhood highlight, project or problem you want to resolve.

Go solo or form a team of up to three partners to assist you in your quest!

Here is a great opportunity for neighborhood involvement. Please share with the middle and high school students in your life.

Here is more detail from one of the organizers:

Hi, my name is Nathan Yeh and I’m a middle school student in Eugene. I am here to talk to you about the New Generations Film Festival, a film making competition for middle and high school students.

Do you want more young people involved in your neighborhood association? Would you like to find a way to get them thinking about their communities? Are you looking for a way to connect with students who may already be interested in their neighborhoods?

If so – you’re going to want to get involved in the New Generations Film Festival today!

The purpose of the film festival is to give students a place to have their voices heard on issues in our community.The theme this year is “Love Where You Live,” to get students thinking about and involved in their neighborhoods. Films should be about a neighborhood highlight, project o problem they want to solve.

I wanted to create a project that would get students thinking about their community and involved with their neighborhood associations because I have a lot of fun doing things with Harlow.

I’m currently working with the City of Eugene’s Youth to Make it Happen program at the Petersen Barn to do this – but I really want neighborhood associations involved. I’m currently looking for a few people who want to get involved with following up with potential sponsors, general organizing and 1-2 judges.

If any of this sound like something you’d like to do, you can email me at newgenerationsff@gmail.com or nathanhyeh@yahoo.com

My ultimate goal, if it’s successful this year, is to continue this next year with a new theme – but continuing to link back to neighborhoods and community involvement.

Thank you, Nathan Yeh

Video submissions must be received by Monday, April 27, 2015.
Want more information? Send to newgenerationff@gmail.com

Notes from the city

1) Martin Luther King Jr. Day
March, Events all day Monday, Jan 19

Each year on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, the City of Eugene Human Rights Commission recognizes an individual in our community for their contribution in the area of human rights and race relations.

Celebrate Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day by joining the march that begins with a rally at 9 AM located in the PK Park parking area (parking for event in Serbu Youth Center), The march begins at 10 AM at PK Park and down MLK Blvd over the Ferry Street Bridge and ends at the Shedd Institute. Following the march is the community event where the MLK Jr. Community Leadership Award winner will be announced by members of the Human Rights Commission.

Reserve your tickets to see Holly Robinson-Peete, keynote presenter, at Lane Community College Monday, Jan 19 at 6:30 PM. Ms. Robinson-Peete is an accomplished actress, author, talk show host, activist and philanthropist. Contact evansg@lanecc.edu for ticket information.

2) Consolidated Plan Community Survey

City of Eugene / City of Springfield

The Cities of Eugene and Springfield are developing the 2015 Consolidated Plan, plan which provides an assessment of local housing, homelessness, and community development needs and establishes a five-year strategic plan for use of federal funds received from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). The goals of this plan are defined by HUD and designed to address the needs of low- and moderate-income residents to:

• Provide decent, safe, and affordable housing
• Create suitable living environments
• Expand economic opportunities

In order to make this plan meaningful in this community, we are seeking your input to help determine how these broad goals will be accomplished here. The information obtained from a survey (that should take approximately 10 minutes to complete) is critical for us to help us in that determination.

https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/CWJH3VM

In order to assure your input can be incorporated in the report, please respond by January 23.

3) Urban Growth Boundary

Take the Recommendation Survey

The UGB Recommendation is out for public review. How our city grows affects us all – what do you think of the four areas recommended for UGB expansion for jobs, parks, schools, and single family homes?

• Clear Lake: 3,000 Jobs, Community Park, and School
• Santa Clara: 35 Acre Community Park
• Bailey Hill/Gimpl Hill: 135 Homes
• Bloomberg/McVay: 400 Homes
•
Take our survey to add your voice to the discussion. Surveys completed by January 22 allow us to prepare a survey summary for the City Council’s January 28th work session on this topic.

https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/UGBrec

You can also attend the City Council Public Forum on January 20 at 7:30 pm in Harris Hall, 125 E. 8th Ave, or email comments to envisioneugene@ci.eugene.or.us.

4) One-on-One Job Hunting Help
Assistance available at the Downtown Library

New at the Downtown Eugene Public Library: One-on-One Job-Hunting Help. At these sessions, job-hunters will get individual, expert advice and assistance to address specific questions and concerns.

Employment counselors can help participants find employment opportunities, complete applications, write online and traditional resumes, learn and practice interview techniques, or explore new job or career directions.

Sign up in advance for individual 30-minute appointments by calling 541-682-5450. Appointments will be available between 5 p.m. and 7 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 22; Thursday, Feb. 12; and Thursday, Feb. 26.

“One-on-One Job-Hunting Help” is provided through a partnership of the Eugene Public Library, Prosperity Program of Goodwill Industries of Lane and South Coast Counties, and United Way of Lane County. For more information, contact the Eugene Public Library at 541-682-5450 or http://www.eugene-or.gov/library.

If you follow the link in the ribbon above, you will find a draft of the proposed charter for the Association currently known as the Crest Drive Citizens Association.

The charter includes the new name and a description of the new boundaries. We will propose this draft for a vote on Sunday’s meeting. It includes changes suggested by city staff, and is ready for our vote.

You might ask what is the difference between a charter and bylaws? The charter is what defines the organization and must be approved by the city Council. The bylaws specify concrete procedures which carry out the definitions in the charter; these are more variable and can be changed by vote of the Association.

From the editor

We would like to remind you once again of our meeting on Sunday, January 18, 2-4 pm in the house at Morse Family Farm Park, just uphill from the dog park. We will vote on our new charter, name, and borders.

The proposed text for the new charter will be posted HERE ib crestdriveca.com, on Tuesday. Charters and bylaws are hardly exciting reading, but they do sketch our our purposes and the ways we hope to fulfill them.

When your attention returns to mundane things after Monday’s game in Texas, you might want to take a look, then come to our gathering next Sunday to discuss and vote. We will also be looking for your suggestions and ideas about what we should be doing in the next 12 months to help the neighborhood.

One thing we both certainly be doing is responding to the plan at Rest Haven to redesignate their vacant land for Low Density Residential. This has been a goal of the Envision Eugene process, but Rest Haven is maneuvering to do this on its own time and in its own way.

There are issues with any Rest Haven residential development: especially the potential environmental and economic effects on existing homes located near the edge of the Rest Haven property, on Braeburn and other streets. There are also traffic congestion worries.

Crime note

We learned recently that The Prospect Park Apartments on Chambers St. suffered two major break-ins on group mailboxes over the holidays.

From the city

1) Martin Luther King Jr. Day
Free Events – Monday, January 19

Each year on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, the City of Eugene Human Rights Commission recognizes an individual in our community for their contribution in the area of human rights and race relations.

Celebrate Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day by joining the march that begins with a rally at 9 AM located in the PK Park parking area (parking for event in Serbu Youth Center), The march begins at 10 AM at PK Park and down MLK Blvd over the Ferry Street Bridge and ends at the Shedd Institute. Following the march is the community event where the MLK Jr. Community Leadership Award winner will be announced by members of the Human Rights Commission.

2) One-on-One Job Hunting Help

Assistance available at the Downtown Library

New at the Downtown Eugene Public Library: One-on-One Job-Hunting Help. At these sessions, job-hunters will get individual, expert advice and assistance to address specific questions and concerns.

Employment counselors can help participants find employment opportunities, complete applications, write online and traditional resumes, learn and practice interview techniques, or explore new job or career directions.

Sign up in advance for individual 30-minute appointments by calling 541-682-5450. Appointments will be available between 5 p.m. and 7 p.m. on Thursday, Jan. 22; Thursday, Feb. 12; and Thursday, Feb. 26.

“One-on-One Job-Hunting Help” is provided through a partnership of the Eugene Public Library, Prosperity Program of Goodwill Industries of Lane and South Coast Counties, and United Way of Lane County. For more information, contact the Eugene Public Library at 541-682-5450 or http://www.eugene-or.gov/library.

3) Urban Growth Boundary Expansion Moving Forward

After almost five years of community visioning, technical analysis, and public input, the Envision Eugene Planning has presented the preliminary UGB recommendation for adding land to Eugene for jobs, parks, schools, and single family homes.

Through the end of January you can view the details of the recommendation and submit your comments through the On-line Open House at http://www.envisioneugene.org.

1 January 13th, 4-6 pm will be an in-person open house in the Atrium lobby at 99 West 10th Avenue.

2 January 20th, 7:30 pm will be a City Council public forum at Harris Hall, 125 East 8th Avenue.

Air quality reminder

With the onset of colder weather, fireplace and woodstove usage increases dramatically in Lane county. Lane County has a home wood heating advisory program that lets people know when air quality is becoming unhealthy and informs them if burning is allowed.

• GREEN air quality is good and burning is allowed

• YELLOW air quality is deteriorating and burning is cautioned against

• RED air quality is poor and burning is prohibited

Check before you burn.

The daily Air Quality Advisory is posted:
• on the web at lrapa.org
• on the LRAPA hotline (541) 746-(HEAT)
• In the Register Guard on the weather page

Please be aware of how thick your smoke is. It can’t exceed 40% opacity. The thicker the smoke, the higher the opacity. Keep the thickness and density of your smoke low. Air quality in South Eugene during winter months is usually the worst inside Eugene city limits and could cause health problems we can help prevent.

To register a complaint, please call 541-726-1930. Visit http://www.lrapa.org for more information.