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Slant: Short opinion pieces and rumor-chasing notes News: News: News: Happening People: The
Steffensen Family PATTERSON CASE DISMISSED The City of Eugene prosecutor has withdrawn the appeal of the city’s case against Perry Patterson, a 56-year-old mother of two who was charged with criminal trespass after shouting “No” at a 2004 Republican campaign rally featuring U.S. Vice President Dick Cheney. EW’s Feb. 9 cover story revealed that the black-clad men who removed Patterson from the rally were not Secret Service agents, as the city prosecutor assumed. www.eugeneweekly.com/2006/02/09/coverstory.html A follow-up story reported that the "men in black" may have been private operatives working directly for the Bush/Cheney campaign www.eugeneweekly.com/2006/02/16/news1.html. In September 2005, Municipal Court Judge Alan Leiman dismissed the
trespass charge against Patterson, ruling that Eugene Police did not
have the authority to remove Patterson from the public property outside
the hangar. The story might have ended there, but City Prosecutor Mark
Haight appealed the case to the circuit court, pressing to convict Patterson
of the offense. “We regret that the City of Eugene wasted taxpayer resources in prosecuting Ms. Patterson in this case, but are appreciative of the fair ruling issued by Judge Leiman,” said Patterson’s attorney, Lauren Regan of the Civil Liberties Defense Center. “How can we, as a community, use this case to better ourselves and be sure that in a time of suppression, our community remains vibrant and our First Amendment rights protected?” — Kera Abraham
WETLAND ROAD COLLABORATION Consultants hired to assess the conflict around the long-mired West Eugene Parkway (WEP) reported back last week recommending a collaborative process for a compromise solution. "If the agencies and the community can rise to the challenge," the Osprey Group reported, a collaboration would "best address the current challenge of 'getting to a transportation solution for West Eugene that has widespread understanding and acceptability.'" The consultants warned that staying on the present course to build the freeway through the wetlands would be "strongly opposed by many" and would have "the greatest potential of facing difficult and time-consuming agency reviews and litigation." The Osprey Group confidentially interviewed 50 people in the area to research the report. It's unclear how the 50 were selected. About two-thirds of those on the list of interviewees are on record supporting the WEP and one-third are opposed to the project. About one-fourth of the 50 were citizens and environmentalists, about a fifth elected officials, a fifth business leaders and about a third government staffers and consultants. The Osprey Group also heard from 40 people at a drop-in session and received about 100 emails. The report outlines the evolution of the decades-long conflict over the WEP. It discusses widespread opposition among local environmentalists and citizen groups and concerns expressed by the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service and Army Corps of Engineers. In the past state and federal transportation planners have dismissed options that didn't include a freeway through the wetlands as not meeting their narrow (i.e., build a freeway) "purpose and need" statement for the project. But the Osprey report notes that federal highway planners recently proposed a broader purpose and need statement to "improve mobility" that could now allow real exploration of alternatives. But the biggest obstacle to getting moving on compromise solutions may be state highway planners. The Osprey group quoted one interviewee, "ODOT is hard to start, hard to steer, and hard to get them to stop once they are moving." The Osprey Group will hold a public meeting from 6 to 8 pm Thursday, May 11 at the Lane Events Center Performance Hall at the Fairgrounds on 13th Avenue. — Alan Pittman
WEST COUNTY CASH RACE The hot West Lane County Commissioner race pits big timber and development money against union and environmental donations. Incumbent Anna Morrision reported a total of $53,700 in contributions by May 4. Most of her money came from big donations from timber, gravel and urban sprawl interests. Timber money for Morrison included $2,500 contributions from both Seneca Jones Timber and the Swanson Group, $1,500 contributions from both Timber Products Co. and Zip-o-Log Mills, $1,000 contributions from both Murphy Plywood and Starfire Lumber and $500 each from King Logging, Cadore Timber, Lost Creek Lumber and timber baron Ehrman Giustina. Land speculators and development interests also kicked in big donations for Morrison including $4,000 from Greg Demers, a major Veneta land holder, $2,500 from the Eugene Chamber of Commerce, $3,000 from the home builders lobby, $2,500 from the Papé Group, $600 from Hamilton Construction, $500 from Hult and Associates and $500 from Ray Wells, Inc. construction. Contributions from sand and gravel companies included $3,500 from Delta, $2,000 from Wildish and $1,000 from Egge for Morrison. Big Republican donors included $2,000 from Monaco Coach CEO Kay Toolson and $2,398 in donated services from the Lane County Republican Central Committee. Fleenor reported raising $76,369 for his challenge, although $31,000 was from loans from himself and his immediate family. Large contributions came from the Lane County Public Works Union ($8,000) and $3,000 in cash and $9,420 in services the Oregon League of Conservation Voters (OLCV). Eugene Sand and Gravel also gave Fleenor $1,000. — AP
COUNCIL CASH The race between Bruce Mulligan and Alan Zelenka for the Eugene City Council Ward 3 seat surrounding the UO has reached almost $30,000 in combined contributions. Mulligan reported $13,050 in contributions by May 4. The Eugene police union gave $3,000, James A. Wildish of the sand and gravel and land companies gave $500. Monaco Coach CEO Kay Toolson, a major Republican donor, gave Mulligan $250. Zelenka reported $16,025 in donations. Major donors included $4,500 from the Eugene firefighters union and $500 from Art Johnson, an attorney and part owner of Eugene Weekly. The Oregon League of Conservation Voters gave Zelenka $1,045 in services. — AP
JUDGES CASH How much does it cost to get elected judge in Lane County? Alan Leiman reported $80,104 in contributions by May 4 in his campaign for the District Court job. His leading opponent Debra Vogt reported $50,952 in contributions. Most of Leiman's money came from himself and family and friends in New York City. Leiman, now a Eugene Municipal Court judge, donated $31,000 to his own campaign. Immediate family members gave a total of $22,000. New Yorkers Margaret and Wilbur Cowett gave $15,000 and Joan Jacobson gave $7,500. Half of Vogt's money came from herself in the form of a $25,000 loan. Vogt now works as a county prosecutor. If she's elected, the judge job pays $98,500 a year. The rest of Vogt's money is more local, but could present potential conflicts of interest to a judge. The Eugene and Springfield police unions gave Vogt $3,000 and $2,600 respectively. District Judge Maurice Merten gave $3,000 and the Giustina timber and land baron family $750. Eugene attorney Rohn Roberts, Robert Miller of Eugene and Lynden Zuhlke of Tangent each gave $500. Other candidates trail far behind in fundraising. Bev Anderson raised $7,795, mostly in donated website design. James Chaney reported $2,891 in contributions. If Leiman and Vogt go to a runoff in November, the cost of a judge seat easily could top $100,000. — AP
BIG COP INCREASE The city of Eugene is planning a massive increase in police, adding a third more officers in the next four years, according to a city document. Police patrol and investigations would increase 35 percent by 2010, adding 59 new officers. The police chief's office staff would increase by two thirds in the next four years, adding six more staff. The City Council has never considered or discussed such a large police staff increase. The numbers came to the council from the city manager and his consultants, on the last page of a lengthy information packet. The packet concerned office space needed in a new City Hall that the city bureaucracy is pushing to get built. Paying for so many more police would be very expensive and require either dramatic budget cuts in other city services, or dramatic tax increases. Police officers generally cost the city about $127,000 a year each for salaries, benefits, training and equipment. Sixty-five more officers would represent a $8.3 million yearly cost. By comparison the general fund budget of the Eugene library system is about $5 million a year. The library serial property levy generates another $5 million. It's unclear whether Eugene actually needs that many more police. Local crime rates are largely flat or declining and the city currently has more officers per capita than Salem or Springfield. — AP
MORE ACCESS TO BIODIESEL Although biodiesel prices have stayed steady since last October, petrodiesel prices have marched steadily upwards since mid-February. For the last week or so, both have hovered just above $3 a gallon.
Could a resulting increase in demand for the renewable, domestically produced biofuel threaten local supply? Tyree Oil's sales manager Tim Reed has received calls from about 20 interested individuals, and at least one fleet has switched to a blend that contains a higher biodiesel-to-petrodiesel ratio. Reed has not attempted to recruit fleets to biodiesel due to limits on his stock. Most of Tyree Oil's fuel comes from the Midwest via railcar and takes 10 to 12 days to arrive. If a surge of demand drains his biodiesel tanks, it could temporarily threaten supply for longer-term customers such as Rexius. But for now, neither SeQuential Biofuels nor Tyree Oil, two of five biodiesel retailers in town, expect the competitive pricing to last long enough to significantly impact demand, and therefore supply. Ian Hill, managing partner of SeQuential Biofuels, explained that it will take more than just two weeks of competitive pricing to attract the price-sensitive customers who will expand their user base. In terms of individual users, Tyree manager Reed is not concerned about depleting his supply. Local individuals only have access to biodiesel via home delivery or through SeQuential Biofuels' twice-weekly retail offerings. In order to meet that demand, SeQuential has broken ground on a new biofuel retail station at 30th Avenue and McVeigh Highway, with plans to open in August. And businesses will have easier access to pure biodiesel by early June, when the Tyree Oil cardlock will offer B99 in addition to its current B20. Nationwide, biodiesel sales tripled last year and are expected to triple again to reach a total of about 200 million gallons a year in 2006. In 2004, Americans used 20.4 million gallons of petroleum each day. — Sarah Mazze LEGAL FEES TAKE A HIKE The city of Eugene has so far paid out $2 million in legal settlements for lawsuits by women sexually abused by police officers Roger Magaña and Juan Lara. But how much has the city paid its private law firm to handle the cases? In the past the city manager and his staff have refused to say. But the newly released city budget tome offers a clue buried on page F-46. From 2004 to 2005 the city's civil legal costs jumped by nearly half a million dollars to $2.1 million. A $200,000 increase in "general" expenses plus a $250,000 jump in "risk" services (risk services handles lawsuits) account for most of the change. For this year and next the document projects the "risk" budget will remain at this higher level at a cost of about $300,000 a year. With seven cases still pending seeking more than $20 million in damages, big lawyer costs and settlements will likely show up in later budgets as well. — AP
R-G NOTICES STIR PROTEST The Register-Guard's policies on birth announcements currently excludes same-sex parents, and a group of mothers and others are planning to hold a press conference and protest in front of the R-G building at 10:45 am Thursday, May 11. Following the demonstration, organizers plan to go into the building to deliver signatures to the newspaper's management. Most newspapers in the region "list the names of both same-sex parents in birth announcements, thereby recognizing the reality that gay parents exist and want to celebrate the births of their children, just like other folks," according to a statement from the group. "The Register-Guard does not. Its publisher, Alton Baker, refuses to explain the rationale behind the exclusionary policy. It is time for us to let The Register-Guard know that its policy is out-of-step with the communities that the newspaper serves, and to request a change. The event is supported by EQuality Network, Eugene/Springfield PFLAG, the Religious Response Network, Mother Kali's Bookstore, Community Alliance of Lane County, Back2Back: Allies for Human Dignity, ACLU and numerous couples whose birth announcements were rejected or printed inaccurately by the R-G. On Feb. 22, the R-G formalized its unwritten birth announcement policy when the newspaper's Managing Editor David Baker stated that the R-G doesn't "print names of unmarried parents unless they're biological parents." — TJT
THINKING AND PINKING Barbara Brenner, executive director of the San Francisco-based Breast Cancer Action, will speak in Eugene on May 15 about pink-ribbon marketing and the potentially cancer-causing toxins used by companies engaged in this strategy.
The pink ribbon image has been adopted by a wide variety of for-profit businesses hoping to appear more "woman-friendly" with the promise of financial support for breast cancer research. Brenner, a former attorney and herself a breast cancer survivor, points out that many cause-related campaigns create the impression of massive-scale fundraising when in fact there is little transparency regarding the actual number of dollars donated or how the distribution is coordinated. "We have to question our willingness as cancer organizations to get into bed with people whose ultimate goal is profit, not health," Brenner said. By marketing products ranging from yogurt to automobiles in a manner that makes consumers feel like activists, corporations can profit from women's anxiety about breast cancer without demonstrating a significant financial commitment to under-funded prevention and treatment research. Environmental toxins have long been fingered as potential contributors to the increasing number of breast cancer diagnoses each year. Chemicals such as parabens and phthalates that mimic estrogen and interfere with hormone function are especially alarming as they are often found in cosmetic products, many of which are manufactured by pink-ribbon companies. Brenner refers to this practice as "pinkwashing" and calls upon the public to hold these companies accountable for their use of ingredients suspected to cause cancer while simultaneously claiming to be part of the solution. "We encourage consumers to ask a series of questions before they purchase any pink-ribbon product, like 'Where does the money go?' and 'Does this product contribute to the incidence of this disease in any way?'" stated Rebecca Farmer, communications officer for BCA. For more information, visit www.bcaction.org. Brenner will appear at noon at the Bascom-Tykeson Room in the Eugene Public Library and at 7 pm at Prince Lucien Hall on the UO campus on May 15. Her appearance is sponsored by Oregon Toxics Alliance, Associated Students of the University of Oregon, the UO Women's Center, the UO Survival Center and Mayor Kitty Piercy. — Adrienne van der Valk
LANDWATCH EVENT MAY 11 One of the Willamette Valley's leading rural land use advocacy groups, LandWatch Lane County, is planning its annual meeting from 6:45 to 9 pm Thursday, May 11 at the Bascom/Tykeson Room at the Eugene Public Library. The public is invited to the free event. LandWatch's recent work has been on zone change requests and proposed developments in Lane County. Jim Just, executive director of Goal One Coalition, and Lauri Segel, planning advocate for 1000 Friends or Oregon, will offer their insights on Oregon in the wake of Measure 37. Just says some Measure 37 claims "are stunning in their audacity and greed … yet the most damage will likely be done by the thousands of smaller, less dramatic claims that are now being approved all over the state." Naturalist and tree expert Whitey Lueck will give a slideshow overview of the natural attributes of Lane County — from the Pacific Ocean to the crest of the Cascades. Lueck will "note changes that have occurred over the past century and a half, and offer suggestions on how we might better protect the varied landscapes that benefit all of us in so many ways," says Alice Doyle of LandWatch. For more information, email monancraig@pacinfo.com or call 935-2795.
OCF TICKETS GO ON SALE
Tickets are now on sale for the Oregon Country Fair set in rural Veneta for July 7-9. This year's OCF will be the 37th gathering since a group of folks came together in 1969 to have a party "celebrating all things lovely, peaceful, artful and musical," say organizers. "In 1970 the party was so big it had to be moved out to the country. And then the party got so big it needed its own permanent country home. And here we are in 2006 inviting the whole world to come and play in our village, dance in our meadows, eat, sing and frolic to your heart's desire." The fair will be open from 11 am to 7 pm daily and all tickets must be purchased in advance. No tickets will be sold at the fair. Tickets are available through TicketsWest on line and at all TicketWest outlets in Oregon, Washington and California. Single-day tickets in advance are $14 for Friday, $16 for Saturday and $14 for Sunday, or $40 for the three days. Children under 10 are free. See www.oregoncountryfair.org for more information.
CORRECTIONS/CLARIFICATIONS • The West Eugene Wetlands story and map last week had an error in the "Getting there" information box. The LTD Bertelsen bus route 43 listed is actually the Barger bus, according to a city employee Gary McNeel. Also, a reader pointed out that the bird identified in photo #7 as a marsh wren is actually a meadowlark. • In last week's news story, "Pulmonary Paradox," we quoted Grier Starr referring to the many "ideologies" of pulmonary fibrosis. That should have been "etiologies." • The Viewpoint by County Commission candidate Gary Kutcher last week had an error in the website listed at the bottom. It should read www.efn.org/~kutcher
LANE COUNTY HERBICIDE SPRAY SCHEDULE ODOT roadside nighttime spraying (8 pm-8 am) scheduled May 8 on Hwy. 126 W from milepost 29.1 near Wildcat Creek Bridge to Florence. May 9 –11, spraying schedules for Hwy. 126 W. to Florence and Hwy. 101. (ODOT State IVM Coordinator: Will Lakey: (503) 986-3010; ODOT Local Coordinator Dennis Joll: 686-7526; daily spray information: (888) 996-8080. Complaints: Becky Thoreson: (503) 986-4366. Siuslaw Soil and Water Conservation sprayed herbicides from May 8-9 north of Florence above Hwy. 101, 2 miles east of Cushman and Siuslaw Marine. (Jeffrey Jones: 997-1272.) Compiled by Jan Wroncy,Forestland Dwellers (541)342-8332
Endorsements At a Glance See our April 27 issue for full endorsement text. Ballots must be received by the Lane County Elections Department by 8 pm May 16. In non-partisan local races, any candidate who gets more than 50 percent of the votes cast goes on to be uncontested in the November general election. Governor, Democrats. Pete Sorenson Governor, Republicans. No preference Superintendent of Public Instruction. Susan Castillo Supreme Court Judge, Position 6. Gene Hallman Lane County Circuit Court Judge. Alan Leiman or Debra Vogt Lane County Commissioner, East. Ron Davis Lane County Commissioner, West. William Fleenor Lane County Assessor. Anette Spickard Eugene Councilor, Ward 3. Alan Zelenka Eugene City Councilor, Ward 6. Rich Cunningham EWEB, Wards 4 & 5. Ron Farmer Bethel Local Option Levy, 20-109. Yes
THE STEFFENSEN FAMILY
Betsy Steffensen was recently named chairperson of the Lane County Democrats' Peace Caucus. Her record of political activism dates back to Girl Scout years in Saint Louis, when she was part of an integrated troop during the era of school segregation. She organized the Lane County Million Mom March in 2000 to coincide with the national event opposing gun violence. "Five thousand people showed up for our march," she notes. Later that year, voter passage of Measure 5 halted unrestricted gun show sales in Oregon. Betsy's daughter Kara Steffensen co-founded Friendly Neighbors for Peace in December of 2002, as pressure for the Iraq War was building. Neighbors got together to paint signs for an MLK Day march in January of 2003. A design by Kara's son Esteban Camacho Steffensen, chosen for mass production, has become a familiar sight on local lawns. Esteban displays the sign in front of a mural that he is painting as a baccalaureate-degree project in a South Eugene High School hallway. Join the Steffensens in this year's Million Mom March on Mothers' Day, assembling at 2:30 pm Sunday on the EWEB plaza. Know anyone whose good work deserves attention in this space? Call the editor at 484-0519 or editor@eugeneweekly.com
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