 |
  |
|
 |
||||||||||
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
||||||||||
Slant: Short opinion pieces and rumor-chasing notes News: Happenin' Person: Deborah Power COURTHOUSE QUIRKS Advocates for the disabled scored a major victory when they forced the federal government to install a ramp for the less able bodies at the shiny new federal courthouse in Eugene. U.S. Judge Michael Hogan and GSA regional chief Jon Kvistad showed up alter-abled at a media tour of the building Nov. 29. Kvistad limped with a cane after a severe ankle injury from stepping wrong off a landed border patrol helicopter near Canada. Hogan was maneuvering an electric scooter after hip replacement surgery. But after joking about the potential for an ironic photo op, both skipped the ramp. "I'll take the elevator," said Hogan. Here are some other quirk courthouse tidbits from the tour: • The big new building echoes with not many people. The building has 270,000 gross sq. ft. for about 240 people. That comes to 1,125 sq. ft. per person, more than many family homes. However, this is a building planned for the future with more federal judges and their staffs. • The courthouse expects relatively few jury trials with even fewer trials in the future as more cases are settled by cheaper negotiation. Some of the building's five judges spend considerable time at their other federal courthouses in Medford and in Portland, where at least one has another office and staff. • For such a large building, the courtrooms appear even smaller than in the old federal courthouse. "There are very few proceedings where there are lots of spectators," Hogan explained. But reporters pointed out that just the week before they were turned away from an overstuffed hearing on eco-arsonists. • Hanging over the courtrooms are metallic light fixtures that critics have said look like a guillotine. "I fine people a quarter apiece that use the word guillotine," Hogan jokes. The judge said he likes how the fixture orders the courtroom by dividing the opposing sides. • The U.S. Constitution guarantees the "right of trial by jury." But in the courthouse the jury is relegated to the side in an alcove while the whole room curves to focus on the judge — like a "sun god," as the Oregonian's architecture critic put it. Judge Hogan says he sees the focus as appropriate as the judge needs to "keep a hand on the tiller" in the courtroom. • The courthouse boasts a record $1.2 million in public art. But although Eugene prides itself on being the "World's Greatest City for the Arts and Outdoors" and has legions of starving artists, none of the art was made here.
• In Judge Hogan's chambers, paintings and sculptures depict at least 19 eagles. Hogan's bathroom has two photo portraits of the judge wearing a tight, pointed cap. • The courtrooms are acoustically designed, but the hallways are not. One judge has a fabric wall-hanging outside his office to dampen sounds of conversations. • The shiny architecture was originally planned to reflect being here in Eugene by having three pods on the roof to echo the Three Sisters mountains. But that design was dropped. • Originally, the design included a watery first floor roof to reflect the building and cascade off in a waterfall near the front door. A water roof was dropped as impractical and instead was replaced with gray cement pavers. • Even without the roof water, the building still sprung leaks in recent heavy rains. Kvistad claims that was good as it allowed workers to quickly identify and fix trouble spots. • The building has been described as costing $76 million, but the whole project, including the design and site improvements, cost $96 million. Kvistad argues that a dedicated funding source means that "we're not competing with education, we're not competing with health care" for federal spending. But he acknowledges that regardless of the accounting technique used, "everything is in the end" taxpayer money. • The city of Eugene requires all buildings to have adequate bike parking in front. The courthouse has only a small, cheap bike rack hidden off to the side. The feds don't have to follow city law. • The courthouse front steps and ramp may look like a good place to skateboard, but Kvistad discourages it. Grinding damages the cement and "probably is a federal property crime," he said. "We don't want to put people in jail just for skateboarding," Kvistad said, noting the building is protected by federal marshals. Across the street were two idling police SUVs, the marked one labeled "Homeland Security." — Alan Pittman
HUMAN RIGHTS AND WRONGS Seven members of Eugene Code Pink wore chadors, the traditional black, veiled dress of Iraqi women, at the new federal courthouse dedication Dec. 1 to protest the war in Iraq and to draw attention to our own country's continuing human rights abuses.
"We were there to remind people the United States is waging an illegal war against Iraq," says Aria Seligmann of Code Pink. "Despite the chest thumping of the speakers, the attendees couldn't help but see us in the background, a dark reminder of what is really going on with our government. "Judge Hogan gave us a nod as he walked by, Kitty Piercy thanked us, Bern Johnson, Vicki Walker and Judge Ann Aiken all walked by and thanked us for being there. One man clapped and said it was just in the tradition of Wayne Morse and he would have loved it." To continue their message, Eugene Code Pink will honor International Human Rights Day Sunday, Dec. 10, with an "Impeach Bush" event. Activities includes a panel of speakers discussing current human rights concerns, followed by entertainment by members of Abakadubi. The event begins at 7 pm at Cozmic Pizza, 8th and Charnelton. Admission is free, but a sliding-scale donation of $5-$20 will be requested at the door to raise money for Code Pink. Hope Marston, western region coordinator of the Bill of Rights Defense Committee, will speak, along with UO sociology professor Michael Dreiling. More conventional Human Rights Day events are also planned in Eugene. The Eugene Human Rights Commission will celebrate the 58th Anniversary of the signing of the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights at an event that runs from 1 to 6 pm Sunday at Churchill High School on Bailey Hill Road. Local social justice organizations, youth leaders and religious and community leaders are planning the program. Awards will be presented to employees of the cities of Eugene and Springfield, LCC and Lane County for promotion of inclusiveness, social justice, and diversity in their organizations. For more information, call 682-5177 or email hrc@ci.eugene.or.us
HEARING ON AMAZON A Eugene City Council hearing planned for 5 pm Wednesday, Dec. 13 may be the last opportunity for public input regarding the fate of the East Fork Amazon Headwaters Forest. Portland developer Joe Green has submitted plans to build 113 homes on the forested 40-acre site (see news story 11/16). The South Eugene Neighborhood Association is working to save from development what they say is the most pristine, undeveloped parcel within the Eugene city limits. More information is available at the website for Vision for Intact Ecosystems and Watersheds (VIEW) at www.efn.org/~kslor www.saveamazonheadwaters.org Written testimony can be submitted at or before the hearing to Alissa Hansen, Eugene Planning Division, 99 West 10th Ave., Eugene 97401.
Deborah Power
"I've had the most incredible experiences working with women," says fitness instructor Deborah Power. "I've seen their lives change. They're taking charge of their health." Powers began teaching fitness 23 years ago in Berkeley, her home town. She trained and competed in bodybuilding, apprenticed with an exercise physiologist, and worked as a physical therapist. For four years she had her own personal training company, Fitness Focus. "I drove to people's homes and offices, from San Francisco to Silicon Valley," she says. After she moved to Eugene in 1996 with her husband and infant daughter, Powers began teaching empowerment fitness classes for women. Three years ago, she opened the Body Now! Health and Fitness Center in a former warehouse on River Avenue, featuring the largest movement studio in Eugene. Body Now! offers 35 classes for women ranging in age from 7 to 90+. No contract is required. "I came to a class and said, 'I want to live here!" says Jana Nelson, who retired from LCC in 2005. "It's a comfortable environment and a nurturing experience." Learn more at bodynow.us
|
|
||||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||
|
|
|||||||||||||||
|
|
|
|||||||||||||
|
|||||||||||||||
|
|
|||||||||||||||
