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CAN WE GROW AND IMPROVE? I want to express my appreciation for the article "Clear as Mud" (7/28) because it highlights several of the difficulties the city faces when trying to create pedestrian and transit friendly Mixed-Use Centers (MUCs). The city's goal with MUCs is to accommodate growth in a way that actually makes the city better. This requires a fundamental change in the built environment that is economically feasible, socially beneficial, sensitive to neighborhood character and property values, affordable, and consistent with state law. Obviously this is no easy task! The article, coupled with experiences in implementing MUCs and discussions with neighborhood groups over the last several months, highlights a few ironies and conflicts inherent in this undertaking: • The city of Eugene's growth management policies encourage in-fill, mixed-use, redevelopment and higher density development, while maintaining the character and livability of individual neighborhoods. Adopted policies also discourage expansion of the Urban Growth Boundary to provide new developable land away from established neighborhoods. • Some people discourage development of MUCs near the edge of the city, but many also see the neighborhoods nearest the city core, which are typically already zoned to allow higher densities, as most deserving of preservation. • Commercial areas are thought to hold great potential to accommodate high concentrations of new residences, but high density living is already allowed in most commercial zones. If it were easy and marketable to do, why isn't the market providing more homes in commercial areas now? Should the city offer incentives to promote this? • A common complaint is that higher density living results in taller buildings near low density homes. Even if new dwellings were steered toward the upper floors of commercially zoned properties, they would often still abut lower-rise residences. • The process of customizing solutions for each potential MUC is already too slow and expensive, but there is a desire for more public involvement in the process. That would add more time, expenses, or both. (Don't worry: there will always be substantial opportunities for public involvement in Eugene's Mixed Use program.) • Some do not want MUCs on streets with heavy traffic, but the traffic is needed to support the retail businesses the neighborhoods want. • Neighborhoods understandably want high quality, aesthetically pleasing development, and possibly the opportunity to dictate what type of commercial activity locates in a MUC, but we do not want so many regulations that the city appears to be anti-business. Add these few examples with the city's limited general fund and uncertainties brought by Measure 37, and it is clear that creating MUCs will be a slow process of experimentation and collaboration with the community as a whole. If successful, Eugene may grow and improve over time — a worthy goal. The Eugene Planning Division looks forward to working with local residents and businesses towards this end. Kurt Yeiter, Principal Planner, Eugene Planning and Development Department
GOOD AMERICANS Something strange is going on, or rather, not going on. Before the onset of the war on Iraq, upwards of 4,000 people turned out at the Federal Courthouse to demonstrate our opposition to Bush's war policies. Now we're two and a half years down the line. Casualties, deaths and disabling injuries are on the rise. The war efforts are gobbling up billions of dollars each month. Where are all the people? I know it's August, but back in the bad old Vietnam-era days we never let that stop us. Some powerful social phenomenon seems to be occurring, making this generation into "good Americans," akin to the "good Germans" of the 1930s. This war is patently illegal, being waged immorally, and it is devastating our social safety net. Our Iraqi allies are spectacularly unsuccessful in developing an effective security force, busy as they are warring among themselves. But what are we busy with? I'm sure a major demonstration is planned for sometime in September, when vacationers and students are back. If ever there was a time to get involved, this is it. We need to build momentum in opposition to this bestial war. I know how I'll answer my grandchildren's questions. How will you answer yours? Paul Prensky, Eugene
TERRIBLE REPORTER As a minutes recorder to the city, I attend every city meeting that Alan Pittman attends. In my four-plus years of doing so, I have been ceaselessly amazed at how different our reports on the activities of our elected officials are. But then again, I am paid to be accurate. The article on the city manager (8/4) by Mr. Pittman, however, was the last straw. Without a shred of journalistic ethics, he lambastes the city manager as someone who controls all information and therefore has all of the power. Nothing could be further from the truth. He claims that Mr. Taylor has been publicly uncivil. This is patently false. I have never witnessed so much grace under fire in my life. Mr. Taylor is a boon to this city. He's a wonderful, kind-hearted man who treats everyone with equal respect and has truly taken the city's best interests to heart. Just who does Mr. Pittman think is running this city? Just how could a progressive town like Eugene be taken over by business interests? City staff, the same city staff that are continually vilified for one thing or another, are largely made up of progressive people who traveled alternative paths through the 1960s and '70s and wear Birkenstocks on the weekend. This town has an incredible commitment to fairness, to the environment, to recycling, and to progressive business policies. Eugene is a model community in many ways. Yet Pittman plants unhappiness in every article he writes. And this new progressive council? We have a council made up of seven Democrats and one Republican. Before the election we had a council that often ended in a vote of 5-3. The only real difference is that our mayor is more progressive. There has not been a profound change in city governance with this new so-called "progressive" council. I watch Mr. Pittman take his notes during meetings. He stares at the ceiling if it doesn't interest him, writes down anything he can meld into controversy, and disregards the rest. He's a terrible reporter and I have reached the point where I can't stand EW because of him. I am a die-hard liberal. This letter has nothing to do with politics. I just can't stomach another piece of pseudo-journalism written by your favorite hack, journalism that pretends to be truth, sows controversy like pernicious weed, and merely seeks to rile the left and sell advertising. Mr. Pittman should go write for the National Enquirer, where he belongs. Ruth M. Atchenson, Eugene
WHY INCENTIVES? Gary Rayor thinks that driving a hybrid car makes its owner special ("VIP Parking for Hybrids," 8/11). He wants the city to offer parking incentives to these special persons. I would like to know how hybrid vehicles contribute to reducing traffic congestion and urban sprawl, and lessening the need for more parking lots. I have a better idea. As our mayor wants "incentives and other encouragements for sustainable practices," let's offer them to people who are full-time public transit users and bicyclists. I am a member (and special person) of this latter group. I'd like to see friendlier bicycle parking options; wider, cleaner and safer bike lanes; traffic lights favoring bicycle riders; and a yearly tax-deductible incentive of $250 for the upkeep and maintenance of my bicycle. Encouraging an actual reduction in the number of motor vehicles on our roads seems to me an ideal "sustainable practice." Robert Simms, Eugene
BUSH'S SECRETS I appreciated Brian Bogart's excellent "America Programmed for War" (Viewpoints series beginning 7/28). The basic Bush administration position on the U.N. and international law is to coerce U.N. nations into making international laws the way the U.S. administration wants them or else the Bushies will take the international law and shove it. Some of the details of the Bushies' war program have been revealed by numerous whistleblowers, but many are still hidden behind the Bushies' Great Wall of Secrecy. If all of their secrets were revealed to the public, impeachment would be swift and certain, for the crimes, in total, are grossly offensive and break numerous laws and commandments. It is time to replace a dominion-based civilization that relies on guns, bombs, germs, steel, oil, pollution, war, waste, propaganda, poverty, gluttony, heavy SUVs and degradation with a decency-based civilization that relies on compassion, reuse, recycling, universal health care, solar power, wind power, wave power, other non-radioactive and non-polluting power, peace power, education power and truth power. If we do not replace gluttony, pollution and war with reason, a healthy environment and peace, then we will take the future and shove it. Bob Saxton , Eugene
GOOD DEEDS In these times when we are bombarded on the news with images of people doing awful things to each other, I just had to mention a couple of happenings today that reaffirmed my belief in the goodness of our fellow human beings. This morning while in line for a large mocha at Dutch Brothers coffee kiosk, I was greeted by the coffee barista with the message that the woman in the car just pulling away had already paid for my coffee. A coffee goddess! Did I know her? No. She just did it to be kind. Believe me, she made my day. I did the same thing for the woman in the car behind me. I like to think it just kept going that way all day long. The other thing I witnessed was an obviously alter-abled couple trying to cross an intersection at a signal. She was in a wheelchair and he was using a walker. When they reached the curb the man stumbled and fell onto the sidewalk. It was clear he couldn't get up by himself and she was unable to help him. Before I could pull across with the intention of getting out to help him, another vehicle, a big SUV, had stopped, and the woman driver got out to help. A pedestrian also was hurrying to help this man recover his feet. Simple acts of kindness, but they brought a bright spot in my day. Each of us can do this, brighten the day for someone else. Let's try it. Geneva Miller, Eugene
JUVENILE FANTASIES Jeffrey Luer's sentence is harsh, but not unjust. I've read much about the care Luers tried to take when he set fires. But the law treats arson like drunk driving: as an inherently reckless crime. Wide-ranging negative consequences are probable regardless of one's diligence. That's why the drunk driver who reassures us that he tried to be super-extra-careful just misses the point. Similarly so for Luers. Nor is this a debate about whether arson should be treated more severely than other crimes. Oregon voters decided that in 1994. Rather, given his conviction for arson, did Luers receive an unjustly harsh sentence? Well, he received the minimum sentence allowed under Measure 11. That's hardly evidence for unjust treatment. I assume that many support Luers because they endorse his aims. However, we have good reason to discourage any violent expression of any political belief. Violence breeds more violence, and it's best to nip it in the bud. It doesn't matter if someone burns cars in the parking lot of an SUV dealership, an African-American church, or an abortion clinic — a sentence like Luers' is justified for any unrepentant, politically motivated arsonist. The left has been losing elections. The environment has suffered for it. It won't help to revel in juvenile fantasies of violent revolt. Association with the likes of Luers will only alienate the anti-arson segment of the electorate — a fairly large majority. What may have a chance of saving us is straightforward: the long and difficult work of winning elections again. His supporters should spend their time on that cause instead. Colin Klein, Eugene
SUDS SERVICE Well I guess those feminists at the Bikini Carwash aren't eco-feminists or they would be thinking about where all the soap suds go when you wash a car in a driveway. Where they go is down the gutter, down a pipe, and directly into Amazon Creek with no treatment whatsoever. Soapsuds in a creek wreak havoc with the ducks, fish, tadpoles, water bugs and other wildlife which lives there. For those who care about aquatic wildlife, the alternative is to go to a commercial carwash, where the soapsuds go into the sewage treatment plant. Or at least wash your car on the lawn where some of the soapsuds will break down in the soil. Better yet, leave your car dirty. The blinding glare of a shiny clean car is one of the worst road hazards! Sharon Blick, Eugene
CAR BALK I'd like to respond to the comments made by bicyclists regarding safety in the streets. My bicycle has been my main source of transportation for 15 years — the last seven years of which I have committed to being car-free by selling my car and choosing only pedal power to get around. I save thousands dollars a year, have reduced my medical costs significantly, and have more peace of mind than most car owners. I pedal defensively and always wear a helmet. Bicyclists sharing the road with motor vehicles is dangerous. It is all part of the challenge, but the challenge here is much less than in other areas. Riding a bike in downtown Eugene is tame compared to bicycling down Market Street in San Francisco during rush hour, dodging buses, electric trains, and road hazards such as rail tracks and grates. The adrenaline high from that ride will leave you screaming in terror. I think the writers of these letters are unnecessarily critical of Eugene. I have lived in areas where car drivers deliberately try to run me off the road, throw things at me (my cycling friend was hit in the face with a dirty diaper), and policemen who have told me to "get a car." I am grateful that the drivers in Eugene are far more considerate than what I've encountered in other areas. They just aren't as observant as I'd like. I am very much in favor of Critical Mass and hope its presence in Eugene continues to grow. However, I am not in favor of bicyclists who are critical and unappreciative of this very bike-friendly area. We have a system of bike paths here in Eugene that is enviable. There are many things bicyclists can do to raise awareness of bicyclists in the streets, call attention to road hazards that significantly affect bicyclists, and promote the healthy, thrifty, and adventurous lifestyle of bicycling. But whining and complaining is not among them. Suzanne Pennel, Eugene
TO THE LITTLE PEOPLE I must take umbrage to Lynn Chiang's letter (8/4) categorizing me as a self-absorbed, narcissistic pseudo-crat, and upper-income nitwit. Me? "Well-adjusted?" I should say so. I eschew that over-used doggerel "pillar of the community." But in regards to myself, I accept that mantle with humility and pride. There is no need to designate my home address, known to any resident of the Amazon Heights neighborhood. As the first house on Lorane Highway, our estate looks out over a spectacular view of the Willamette Valley, with four pillars in front, and two Bentleys in the circular drive. Four Bentleys if Tad and Melissa are home from school. And I don't mean the Bentley sedans. I'm talking the giant Bentley SUVs you can haul a Winnebago with. The swimming pool is the only one large enough to be seen with the unaided eye from Skinner Butte. As an all-star Ivy League full-back, I overcame the barriers wealth, privilege and a trust fund can cause. I've lived with them. And I survived them. Our son, Tad, is a standout of the Yale Young Achiever Center, holding a chair formerly occupied by two President Bushes. Daughter Melissa guest stars on the ABC series "Orange County Princess." My wife, Tabitha, and I can trace our lineage back to the British Royal Family, the Mayflower Club, and the pre-apartheid Boers of the Transvaal. And, from the lofty pantheon of Those-Who-Have-It-Better-Than-Everyone-Else, and for the veracity of this letter, I can give but one word of advice: insouciance. Matt Esquire Hannigan, Eugene
FACING STIGMA Mental illness is a disease. Treatable and costly, like other diseases people suffer from, and one that may be life long. Yet most people do not have to endure the "behind-the-back" laughs in school or work, the stigma of being "unstable" or "incompetent," the loss of jobs or employment perspectives, that grinding awareness that you are different and many people will not let you forget this fact. If you are unaware of mental health issues, please find out the facts. If you decide to punish others for your own ignorance, please prepare to fall to the wayside. I have made a pact with myself, my loved ones, and my higher power. I will do everything I can to advocate, educate, and if need be, litigate to change this community's perception of people living with mental illness. Please don't be afraid to join me. Jon A. Young, BSW, Eugene
NOT SO FREAKY The recyclers in this community need to get on their soap boxes and preach the words: Reduce! Reuse! Recycle! I'm one who rides the bus or my bike to conserve energy. When I walk I take two plastic bags with me, one for litter and one for recyclables. I've lived here since 1968. I know where all the public trash cans are. I do litter patrol and recycling regularly. I may sound like a "save the Ecosystem freak," but it also has everything to do with beauty, serenity, simplicity and balance. I went to deposit a juice bottle in one of BRING's recycle bins on Willamette near 11th Avenue across from the LCC downtown center and behold! It was gone! The one in the alley between 8th and Broadway has been removed as well. I thought it was wonderful when BRING put those bins up. So I called and asked, Why take them down? The answer: There was too much trash being mixed in. I personally find that hard to believe, since I watched fairly closely as they filled and saw for myself there was very little garbage going in. I believe it would be worth the cost to hire some extra help. Or better yet, as a master recycler, I see what my next volunteer project can be. Let's keep our community in the lead as a recycling champion. Put litter in its place. Reduce! Reuse! Recycle! Kriket Hollingsworth, Eugene
RECLAIM FOR NATURE Wild animals don't go where they're not invited. Barred owls are moving into the forests west of the Cascade crest because humans have created for them an inviting environment that looks just like their home in the Rockies: dry, hot, open canopy forests with light undergrowth. Logging and road building have destroyed most of the lush, moist, cool, closed canopy forests with 500-foot trees hanging with lichen that were the home of the spotted owl. The amphibians are gone, the small forest floor mammals are gone, the mushrooms are gone, the familiar songbirds are disappearing and also the spotted owls are dying off. Why does this surprise anyone? What part of responsible don't they understand? If those clever scientists want to eradicate the species that is responsible for the decline of the spotted owls, the songbirds, the amphibians, the small mammals, the lichen and the mushrooms, they have only to look in the mirror. If they aren't willing to use the same strategy on the humans that they are using on the barred owls, at least they could choose the next best thing: mass sterilization of human beings. Oh yeah, and confiscate surplus property: Reclaim for nature everything owned by rich people. It's the only way to save our planet. Ann Tattersall, Eugene
INFECTED BRAINS On Monday (8/15) the U.S. Department of Agriculture acknowledged more than a thousand violations of mad cow disease regulations by U.S. meat plants since January 2004. Mad cow disease, also known as bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE), is a degeneration of brain tissue leading to erratic behavior and death. It is transmitted through feeding of infected brain and spinal tissues to other cows. Human consumption of infected beef leads to Creutzfeldt-Jakob disease (CJD), a deadly dementia frequently confused with Alzheimer's disease that affects millions. Federal safety measures, including the 1997 ban on feeding potentially infected cow body parts to other cows, have lacked adequate enforcement. Through its reluctance to institute an adequate testing program for diseased cattle, the USDA has failed to assess the true magnitude of the threat. The latest disclosure further undermines consumer confidence in the safety of our nation's meat supply. It provides one more reason to replace beef in our diet with a veggie burger or one of the other meat alternatives in the frozen food section of our neighborhood supermarket. Edward Newland, Eugene
BEHIND THE SCENES I want to compliment the author (Melissa Bearns) on the article on Brian Michaels. It was a delight to meet her and have the opportunity to include my experience and admiration. So often within the stories of our everyday heroes there is an intrigue of support behind the scenes. Then there are some stories that have just a few or just one person who accomplishes so much with such ease. Too often those who are the buffers when the "rubber meets the road" are overlooked as they create the magic that weaves the foundation for success. One of those extraordinary individuals is Brian Michael's assistant Sephra, who has been behind the scenes as well as on the front line. It is because of her passion and years of devotion that Brian and she combine their energy together to complement and complete this successful duo. I am not the only one that appreciates what Sephra accomplishes each day as she and Brian provide their clients with a voice. Brian has often said, "She (Sephra) is my right arm, and without her this (his practice) wouldn't be possible." To Sephra and all the folks that help keep the wind in the capes of our heroes, a heart full of gratitude to you. Dayna Miller, Eugene
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