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Slant: Short opinion pieces and rumor-chasing notes News: News: News: COP SEX COSTS CITY ANOTHER $900,000 The city of Eugene has settled another cop sex abuse lawsuit for $900,000, according to an April 7 memo to the mayor and council. Roger Magaña was sentenced to 94 years in prison in 2004 for using his police power to rape, sexually abuse, assault and harass a dozen women over six years as a Eugene police officer. Another Eugene officer, Juan Lara, was convicted of a lesser sexual crime spree and sent to jail for two years. After the convictions, 14 women sued the city for the sex abuse they suffered at the hands of Eugene police. The city previously paid $1.1 million to settle six lawsuits. The recent settlement brings the total paid by the city to $2 million. Seven cases are still pending, seeking more than $20 million in damages. A federal judge ruled last month that the cases can go forward and noted evidence of the pervasive failure of the Eugene police chief and police officers to stop Magaña despite complaints and evidence of abuse. The judge described 13 separate incidents where 12 women and one man allegedly had reported Magaña's sex abuse to at least 16 different police officers and a municipal judge without the city stopping the cop crimes. In the most recently settled case, a woman alleged that Magaña threatened to arrest her or have her child taken to coerce sex from her on numerous occasions. Magaña allegedly threatened to kill the woman if she told. Magaña was convicted of official misconduct related to the woman. Ironically, the woman weakened her lawsuit by complaining to police and city officials about the abuse. The police and city officials did nothing to investigate, but the city successfully argued that the complaints indicated that the woman was not sufficiently fearful of retaliation to merit a waiver of the notice and timeliness deadlines for filing lawsuits. The city was also helped by Magaña's choice of victim, a woman suffering from mental illness. In the criminal trial, the prosecutor accused Magaña of intentionally selecting mentally ill and other weak targets who would not be believed if they complained. City Police Chief Robert Lehner promised two years ago to conduct an internal investigation, discipline any officers who failed to act on complaints or abuse and report to the public on how the sex crimes had gone on so long despite so many complaints. But the report never happened, and no other officers or city officials have apparently been held accountable. — Alan Pittman
HOW TO FIX PLANNING City Club of Eugene's second in a two-part series on land-use planning Friday, April 14 rehashed some of the first session's concerns and added some new perspectives, including a plea from Roxie Cuellar of the Lane County Homebuilders for activists on all sides to take a "personal inventory" to defuse cynicism and polarization in the community over planning.
"It's hard to plan when you are assuming battle lines," said Cuellar. "We need to reduce polarization with the common goal of good planning." Others on the panel had a more practical approach. Rob Handy of the Eugene Neighborhood Leaders Council outlined six recommendations for improved city planning, including formal planning for neighborhood design, city staffing of independent neighborhood advocates, reestablishing the Citizen Involvement Committee, more effective public participation, and more flexible public hours for building permits. Terry Connelly of the Eugene Area Chamber of Commerce called for a quicker turnaround on building permits, a better "spirit of cooperation and trust between the various agencies in the metro area," and a "more comprehensive approach to land use planning." Kevin Matthews of Friends of Eugene and Southeast Neighbors said city planning needs to mature. "We need to transition to being more of an urban area," he said. And that involves "changing the relationship between money and citizenship." He said Eugene is getting too big for moneyed interests to dictate how the city will grow. "We need better plans, more community buy-ins, and to hold the developers to it," he said. Responding to questions after the presentations, Cuellar said she valued planning, but "sometimes I think our land-use planning system gets bogged down. It would be tempting to throw it all out and do it like we did it 40 years ago." Several people at the meeting talked about the city's comprehensive Growth Management Study of 1998 and the environmentally friendly council-adopted goals and policies that have been largely ignored or overridden since then. Upcoming City Club luncheons will look at "What is a Progressive" April 21, and a City Council candidate debate April 28. See www.CityClubofEugene.org for details. — Ted Taylor
CPR FINALISTS ANNOUNCED Two of the five consulting companies that submitted proposals to oversee the city's Cultural Policy Review have made it onto the "short list." The project has a $250,000 budget to create a plan that will guide the development of arts and culture in Eugene for the next 10 to 20 years. A panel of seven people made up of city staff and Eugene citizens interested in the arts evaluated all four proposals using a scoring system. The two highest-scoring proposals were submitted by ArtsMarket, Inc. of Bozeman, Mont. and Wolf, Keens & Company of Cambridge, Mass., and are now the finalists in the process. Eugene-based KJ Smith Associates was not selected for the short list, and neither were Soquel, Calif.-based Jerry Allen and Associates nor LORD Cultural Resources Planning & Management of Washington, D.C. On May 3, representatives from both companies will meet with the seven-person panel to give in-depth presentations and answer questions. The members of the Mayor's Committee, a large group of more than 20 people selected by the mayor to represent a diverse cross-section of Eugene's population, will sit in on those presentations but won't have any say in which company is selected. Speaking from her office in Bozeman, ArtsMarket, Inc. President Louise Stevens said she's very excited to be on the short list. ArtsMarket was the primary consulting company that helped the state develop the Oregon Cultural Trust. "I have a total commitment to the cultural development in the state of Oregon and a deep understanding of the Oregon aesthetic and the value systems," she said. "All of us consultants, we go from city to city and put in bids. But I really want this one. Eugene is very close to my heart and I'm just jazzed that this is a hot topic and topic of passionate debate." Representatives from Wolf Keens & Company could not be reached for comment. — Melissa Bearns
PROGRESS ON COHOUSING An urban cohousing project in Eugene is taking shape after several years of planning. The 24-unit condominium complex with shared common areas will be built on a quarter block near the corner of 11th and Lincoln downtown, requiring the moving or recycling of two older homes. The project is one of several intentional community housing models developing in the area.
About 15 families and individuals have joined the association and the group is currently looking to recruit a few more homeowners with children, according to Martin Henner, a local mediation and arbitration attorney and board member. Meanwhile, the project is going out for construction bids soon and ground-breaking is expected this year. Architect is Jonathan Stafford of Eugene. The first floor of the complex will be commercial spaces and parking for residents, and the second and third floors will be flats and townhouses surrounding a large courtyard. Kitchens will face the courtyard, while living rooms will have decks and privacy. Common areas will include a workout room, workshop, library, party and dining room, library and guest rooms. The vision statement for the group says, "We have come together to create and maintain a participatory, environmentally sustainable, urban community that nurtures diversity in social relationships and serves as a catalyst for positive change in the world around us." The cost of buying into the project will vary depending on the size of the unit and the final construction bid, according to Henner. "Nobody's making a profit on this," he says, other than perhaps the builders. Henner figures the unit cost will be about half that of the luxury condos currently under construction downtown. About 75 cohousing projects exist around the country, but "the main reason we haven't seen cohousing in Eugene is because housing prices have been too cheap," he says. "Eugene has joined the world and housing prices have gone up." Units will range in size from one-bedroom flats at 650 sq. ft. to one four-bedroom townhouse at 1,600 sq. ft. (already reserved). Three-bedroom units are about 1,300 sq. ft. All are accessible for those with disabilities, and all units will be constructed to high energy efficiency and soundproofing standards. The website is located online at www.eugenecohousing.org and Henner's phone number for more information is 345-6466. The next meeting will be Sunday afternoon. — TJT
MCDONALD FORECLOSURE? In a legal notice in The Register-Guard, April 16 a Portland-based attorney announced the intended foreclosure and sale at public auction of the building that currently houses the McDonald Theatre downtown. According to the notice, the owners of the building, Geiger Investments, LLC, owe just under $60,000 in mortgage payments and overdue fees to Delaware-based BLX Capital, LLC, and almost $20,000 in property taxes. Standard and Poor's lists BLX as a company that loans money or oversees loans to small businesses through the Small Business Administration to purchase real estate. Geiger Investments has until June 1 to pay up or the building will be sold in front of the Lane County Courthouse on June 6. Geiger Investments is incorporated in Delaware but the owner, Jeff Geiger, lives here in Eugene and owns V.E. Tire Centers on Roosevelt Boulevard. "It's really unfortunate this event has taken place," he said. "I am committed to resolving the situation in a timely manner," He also said he's not planning to sell the building. Kit Kesey, who owns and operates the McDonald Theatre, said he has a long-term lease with Geiger Investments. When asked if he has ever paid his rent late, Kesey responded, "No, never." He said that while he's confident his lease will hold and that all the concerts and events currently booked at the popular venue will happen as planned, "the unsettled nature of this is making me cautious about what I book." He's also concerned people are thinking he's the one, not Geiger, who defaulted on the loan. "There is a misperception that this is me doing poor business," he said. "But when I look at all the possible scenarios, I'll be OK no matter what happens." If the building does go up for sale, Kesey or anyone else would have the opportunity to buy it. But he declined to comment on whether or not that's an option he'd pursue. — Melissa Bearns
CHARGES DROPPED The U.S. Attorney's Office has dropped disorderly conduct charges for five protesters who demonstrated in front of Sen. Gordon Smith's office at the Federal Building on the third anniversary of the Iraq War. Federal prosecutor Bud Fitzgerald dropped the charges after reviewing a videotape of the protest with defending attorney Brian Michaels. "We came to the conclusion that the protesters were peaceful and not behaving in a manner deserving of a federal charge," Michaels said. The charges stem from March 20, when the Eugene Civil Resisters converged in front of local legislators' offices to draw attention to votes for war funding by Sens. Ron Wyden and Smith and Rep. Peter DeFazio. In addition to arresting protesters in front of Smith's office, police charged eight activists who sat outside of Wyden and DeFazio's offices on Charnelton with criminal trespass. The charge against one defendant, a minor, was dropped. Six defendants pled not guilty and plan to request community service or jail time should they lose, said defendant Peter Chabarek. Aubree Ridge, a senior at Wellsprings High School, was the only protester to plead guilty of criminal trespass. Her fine was reduced from $250 to $90. "It was kinda scary for me, because I'm 18," she said. "I didn't have approval from my mom; she didn't even know I got arrested. But it was a really awesome experience." — Kera Abraham
SPRAY WHAT? In compliance with a voluntary "good neighbor" agreement with the city of Eugene, Union Pacific Railroad gave notice shortly before Feb. 28 that it would spray herbicides along Eugene's railroad tracks for two days beginning Feb. 28, weather permitting. According to Megan Kemple of the Northwest Coalition for Alternatives to Pesticides (NCAP), the company postponed its spray schedule due to rain, instead applying herbicides around March 27. But Union Pacific (UP) did not notify the city of its rescheduled spray, leaving nearby residents exposed to herbicides without their knowledge. Whiteaker Neighborhood Council Chair Majeska Seese-Green said the herbicide spraying is a frequent topic at council meetings. "It's been a long-time concern in Whiteaker, and it seems like there's nothing we can do about it," she said. In the past, NCAP has criticized the "good neighbor" agreement as inadequate because it only provides for two days' advance public notification, doesn't require warning signs near spray sites and doesn't ask the company to explore non-toxic herbicide alternatives like steam. Now NCAP has another reason to fault the agreement: It isn't binding. According to a March 10 e-mail from city planner Richie Weinman, UP representatives never actually signed the agreement due to objections from company lawyers, "but West Coast officials said they would operate under the spirit of the concept." "Cities have very little jurisdiction over what the railroads do," Weinman told EW. UP spokesman James Barnes said he couldn't track down the dates of the rescheduled spray, but that UP regional managers should have notified the city under the good neighbors agreement. That didn't happen. "When the spraying was rescheduled, they didn't even tell the neighbors," Kemple said. "With no notification, there's no way for people to avoid spray." — Kera Abraham
RECLAIMING DOWNTOWN When the deck is stacked, it's time to start using new CARDs, according to a grassroots group, The Community Action to Reclaim Downtown (CARD). The group, including Friends of Eugene, is planning a collaborative planning meeting and rally at 6:30 pm Thursday, April 27 at EWEB. "Time is crucial, citizens of Eugene need to act now, before land and buildings — and options — are lost forever," say organizers in an e-mail to progressive groups. "Business as usual is happening right now, as the city and developers plan your downtown — including using lots of the people's money. The rich get richer and the rest of us are left with a downtown poorly designed for the well being of the entire community." The event is billed as an independent brainstorming session about "positive visions for the future of our downtown." Organizers will supply maps, materials, facilitators, presentations and music. CORRECTIONS/CLARIFICATIONS • In our April 13 story "A Little Man's Story," Cindy Ingram should have been listed as a contributing writer. • In our March 30 story "Who Will Decide," the group evaluating the proposals from consultants bidding on the job of the Cultural Policy Review was incorrectly identified. The group is made up of seven people including city staff and community members. West Lane Herbicide Spray Schedule • ALERT -The Board of Commissioners/Board of Health will consider approval of the list of herbicides to be used for roadside spraying and possible changes to the Last Resort Herbicide Use Policy at 9 am Wednesday, April 26 in the Commissioners' Conference Room. Commissioners: 682-4203. (Orin Schumacher, IVM Coordinator: 682-6908). Information at www.lanecounty.org/RoadMaint/LastResort.htm and www.co.lane.or.us/RoadMaint/Vegprescriptions.htm • ODOT District 5 roadside herbicide nighttime spraying is scheduled for April 20, 21 and 23 on Hwy 126 E and Hwy 58. During the weeks of April 24 and May 1, ODOT will begin spraying on Hwy 126 W, Territorial Rd., Hwy 36 and Hwy 101. ODOT District 5 IVM Coordinator Dennis Joll: 686-7526; daily spray information: (888) 996-8080. Complaints, Becky Thoreson: (503) 986-4366. Compiled by Jan Wroncy. Forestland Dwellers: 342-8332
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