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City in the Balance
Council
races pit sprawl vs. livability.
by
Alan Pittman
In the last City Council election, Republican Mayor Jim Torrey
took to the front page of The Register-Guard to warn of an impending
"train wreck" of "rancor and dissent" if progressives were elected.
The progressive reformers won about half the council seats and,
despite Torrey's warning, chugged on, pushing for a more livable, environmental,
just and accountable city.
With the council now somewhat balanced between progressives and
urban sprawl advocates, most of the "rancor" Torrey predicted has come
from the political right rather than the left. Last year sprawl advocates formed
the Gang of 9 and spent tens of thousands of dollars on personal, anonymous attack
ads targeted at council reformers.
With four seats up for grabs in this election, the leadership of
the city could tip from smart growth advocates to pro-sprawl developer interests.
A gerrymander of council wards pushed through by sprawl interests
last year makes electing a progressive council majority tougher. The redistricting
plan backed by the Chamber of Commerce effectively eliminated the seat of one moderate/progressive
councilor, Gary Rayor, who isn't running for re-election. A council majority dismissed
scenarios that would have instead targeted a pro-sprawl councilor or not unseated
any councilor.
"We keep taking bigger steps toward the right," says
progressive Councilor Bonny Bettman. "Redistricting is definitely part of it.
We ended up with the Republican scenario."
Sprawl advocates hope the "Republican scenario" will
help them maintain control in a city where there are 56 percent more registered Democrats
than Republicans.
The sprawl advocates, including the Chamber of Commerce, Register-Guard,
developers and land speculators are backing their slate of candidates -- Maco Stewart,
George Poling, Gary Pape and Jennifer Solomon. Smart growth, labor and environmental
groups have lined up behind David Kelly, Kevin Wells, Pat Hadley and Richard Cunningham.
What follows is a closer look at the council races that will decide the future of
Eugene.
Ward 3:
University, East Eugene
Incumbent David Kelly faces challenger Maco Stewart.
Kelly, a 47-year-old computer consultant and MIT graduate, has
lead progressive efforts to reign in urban sprawl, boost downtown and encourage alternative
transportation since winning election to the council in 1999. That year he beat out
a pro-developer candidate by a wide margin, despite being outspent two to one. Kelly
has the backing of four of the other progressive/moderate city councilors, local
firefighter and government employee unions and environmental groups. The Oregon League
of Conservation Voters (OLCV) recently gave him a 100 percent voting record.
Kelly is widely seen as one of the most intelligent, hard-working
city councilors the city has ever had. "No one on the council is smarter or
harder-working," says an R-G editorial.
But that hard work for progressive causes has won Kelly fierce
opposition from developers, conservatives and other sprawl advocates. The Gang of
9 negatively caricatured him in ads in the R-G. The R-G, itself a major
developer in town, endorsed Kelly in 1998, but now opposes him as a "highly
competent advocate for the wrong cause."
Stewart is a 21-year-old student who delivers sandwiches for the
Pita Pit. He filed for the council after losing an election for ASUO (UO student
government) vice president. He and a running mate finished 9th out of 10 tickets
for the ASUO Executive, the Oregon Daily Emerald reported. Stewart has reported
he will spend less than $2,000 on his campaign. He was the only one of 11 council
candidates to miss a recent appearance before the Eugene City Club.
Stewart's campaign materials emphasize support for student interests
and promoting businesses. The R-G editorialized that "Stewart lacks Kelly's
depth of understanding of city issues" but favored what they said was his support
for building the West Eugene Parkway through wetlands and opposition to the council's
efforts to keep Sacred Heart hospital downtown.
Ward 4:
Northeast Eugene
George Poling, a retired sheriff's deputy, and Kevin Wells,
a small business owner, are running for this vacant seat on the council.
Poling and Wells both support economic development and building
the West Eugene Parkway. "My number one issue is to promote economic development,"
Poling told the city club.
"My top priority will be economic development," Wells
said at the same meeting. "I agree with my colleague on almost everything."
But Poling has taken a more extreme pro-growth stand than Wells.
"We need to carefully study and expand the Urban Growth Boundary," he told
the City Club.
Pro-sprawl radicals appear to be lining up behind Poling. Leslie
Hartwig is Poling's campaign treasurer. Hartwig previously worked for the land speculation
and timber company DAG Trust in selling land in west Eugene for the Hynix (Hyundai)
chip plant and in securing wetland fill permits for the corporation.
Poling doesn't appear to see much role for government in regulating
development. "Leave the property decisions to the property owners," he
told the City Club.
Poling's campaign work is being run by Liz Cawood's PR firm. Cawood
is a member of the Gang of 9 and did PR work for the group.
Wells advocates a more balanced approach between economic development
and the environment/livability and has the endorsement of the Oregon League of Conservation
Voters and the support of the unions for city workers (AFSCME) and city firefighters.
Wells touts his experience working on the city's charter review committee and in
the Legislature as an assistant to Rep. Bill Morrisette and as a committee staffer
on transportation issues.
Ward 5:
Northwest Eugene
Ward 5 is a three-way race between incumbent Gary Pape and challengers Pat Hadley
and Jim Hale.
Incumbent Pape has a near perfect, pro-sprawl voting record on
the City Council. The OLCV gave him a scant 10 percent record on environmental issues.
Pape has the other distinction of one of the poorest meeting attendance records on
the City Council, according to a report in the R-G. Some of the missed meetings
may be the result of conflicts of interest Pape is frequently forced to recuse himself
from. Pape's family runs the local Pape group of companies including heavy equipment
sales, property interests and Sanipac garbage collection.
Pape's campaign is also being run by Gang of 9 member Cawood, according
to expenditure reports. Pape is registered as an independent.
Jim Hale, a local conservative political gadfly for years, works
as a supervisor at Albertson's and takes many of the same pro-development stands
as Pape. Hale, however, might not march as close in lock step with developers. For
example, he advocated for the council playing "hard ball" with Sacred Heart
to keep the hospital downtown.
In many ways, Republican Hale is a die-hard conservative. He has
argued for a dramatic increase in police officers and for a huge new police headquarters
and he helped lead the campaign for an oversized American flag on Skinner Butte.
If elected, Hale, who attended Brigham Young University, would
likely clash with the city's gay rights activists. Hale fought against the city extending
benefits to gay domestic partners and against an ordinance protecting gays from discrimination.
Hadley, a Pacific Green Party member, provides a dramatic contrast
to Pape and Hale. Hadley, endorsed by the OLCV, advocates for smart growth and is
critical of the spending for the West Eugene Parkway. "We've spent money like
it grows on trees," she said. "It's ridiculous. If Eugene was my child,
I think I might consider a spanking because it has no self-discipline."
Hadley supports stable funding for local schools, is a former PTA
president and works as a grandparent volunteer in local schools. Like Hale, Hadley
opposes moving a fire engine from the Valley River station to serve growth in the
Santa Clara area. The Eugene firefighters union supports Hadley.
Pape has taken a more hands-off attitude to the partial closing
of the Valley River fire station. "We need to let the [fire] chief manage the
fire department," he said.
Ward 6:
Bethel Area
Richard Cunningham, Jennifer Solomon, Kurt Thelen and Frank
Wiley are all running for Ward 6.
Solomon is a member of the Gang of 9, the pro-sprawl group that
personally attacked progressive councilors. Perhaps fearing the incivility of the
attack ads wouldn't go over well with voters, Solomon has not advertised her gang
affiliation, not mentioning the Gang of 9 in her Voters' Pamphlet statement.
At a candidates forum, City Club member Nancy English asked Solomon
to respond to concerns that the divisive gang campaign had "really torn this
community apart."
Solomon defended the ads but acknowledged, "It was offensive
to some people ... You can't please everyone." It remains to be seen whether
Solomon, a registered Rep-ublican, will please the majority of voters in a ward where
Dem-ocrats outnumber Republicans by 15 percent.
Solomon, 36, touts her experience serving on the Eugene Budget
Committee, but committee minutes indicate she rarely has much to say at meetings.
That lack of participation almost cost her reappointment to the committee last year.
The council voted 4-4 with Mayor Torrey breaking the tie for Solomon.
Cunningham, an insurance agent and high school softball coach,
has emphasized economic development in his campaign. He's endorsed by the local Democratic
Party and by labor and environmental groups. Cunningham, 43, is the father of two
disabled children and worked on a school board and private industry council in Rhode
Island before moving to Eugene.
He told the City Club he would make sure taxpayers get the "best
bang for their dollar" and would work to "bring the factions together"
on the City Council.
Thelen, 40, is the father of six girls, whom he raised for a time
as a single dad. "I'm not a politician. I'm a father and a member of this community,"
he said.
Thelen, a registered independent, criticizes the current council
for "constant bickering" and not doing what he feels the people want. Thelen
says the council should cut spending rather than raise taxes. "You need to stop
asking people for more money."
Wiley, a 67-year-old Republican, is the father of seven grown children,
a music instructor, ad salesman and professional singer. Wiley calls for more "harmony
and consensus" at council meetings.
See endorsements in the May 9 EW.
Eye
on the County
Commission
race could bring change
in political climate.
by
Ted Taylor
The May primary election finds Lane County government at a crossroads
again with a handful of progressive candidates hoping to take control of a supposedly
non-partisan institution that has for years been dominated by conservative, anti-environmental
interests.
The power of the County Commission is "incredible," says
Jim Weaver, former commissioner and 4th District U.S. congressman. "It affects
our lives directly more than any other political office. It affects how we use our
land, what we do with our homes, everything. ... I pay more attention to the County
Commission race than any other office."
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County Commissioners
become celebrities in the Eugene Celebration Parade.
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Former commissioner Jerry Rust agrees, saying there's a "huge
amount of power" in county government, and that this is a critical time with
the county divided on which direction to go, particularly on land use planning. "There's
always going to be the next big land use battle," says Rust, referring to the
big debates currently surrounding gravel pits proposed for farmland, and the West
Eugene Parkway (WEP).
In addition to land use issues, Lane County government, with it's
budget of $450 million, also deals with major social services, transportation planning,
public safety, code enforcement, recreation, even elections.
But Weaver believes it will take more than electing a progressive
majority to turn around Lane County government to make it a leader in sustainability
and environmental responsibility. Weaver says strong commissioners are needed, whether
conservative or progressive, to make county government serve people instead of serving
development interests.
"The commissioners need to scare the hell out of county employees,"
says Weaver, who has been involved in county politics to some degree for the past
30 years. He says developers and their attorneys have taken over county government
and are "still running the place."
The most recent example, he says, is the gravel pits proposal.
"The county staff was so clearly on the side of the gravel interests on River
Road," he says. "They were obviously pulling for the gravel quarry. It
was almost embarrassing."
An earlier example, he says, is from the days of Commissioner Steve
Cornacchia when violations of conditional use permits were often ignored: "Compliance
officers were told to don't go looking for things, don't trample on anything, don't
initiate anything unless there's a complaint."
The current Lane County Commission is more conservative in its
thinking than the majority of Lane County residents, says Commissioner Pete Sorenson,
but he sees change ahead.
"The people of Lane County are further ahead than the board,"
says Sorenson, "but am I giving up all hope? No. Lane County didn't have systems
development fees for 150 years, but we finally got them through."
Sorenson also sees hope in the commission's surprise sidetracking
of gravel pit plans. But the big indicator of change will come in the May primary
when county voters get to choose between progressive and conservative (and hard to
label) candidates in three out of five commission seats.
West Lane
Position 1
Incumbent Anna Morrison is running for reelection and facing three challengers, Dianne
Burch, Bill Fleenor and Bonnie Kuhn.
Morrison of Florence has been given
a zero rating for her environmental record by the Oregon League of Conservation Voters
(OLCV), has a background working for timber and construction companies and has financial
backing from developers. She waffled on the gravel pits, but favors construction
of the West Eugene Parkway (WEP) and tax breaks for Hynix.
Burch has experience in county government
working as an aide to Commissioner Cindy Weeldreyer. She is president of the Florence
City Council and has served on the Florence Planning Commission. She's been lobbying
for the progressive vote, but has not taken a clear stand on the WEP. "I would
like to see an alternative plan, even though the strong argument in favor of the
WEP as it is proposed is that withouth the WEP Hwy. 126 will deteriorate with continued
heavy traffic congestion." She is against opening forest lands to home building
and favors salmon habitat restoration and an end to county roadside spraying.
Fleenor is a Mapleton resident with
a doctorate in animal physiology. He is self-employed as a consultant and store owner.
He is against tax breaks to "lure big box multinational corporations,"
and says economic incentives should be limited to small businesses. He would favor
the WEP if it can be shown to satisfy regulations, but would prefer rapid transit
or a monorail serving west Eugene. He believes the decision against the gravel pits
was politically motivated and says, "If I were a member of the staff, I would
be fuming mad over this blatant disrespect for their hard work."
Kuhn is a Santa Clara resident and
an internal auditor for PacificSource Health Plans. She serves on the Bethel School
District Budget Committee. Kuhn has not submitted any campaign materials to EW
and is not in the Voters' Pamphlet.
Springfield
Position 2
Incumbent Bill Dwyer is running for reelection against Mark Jaehnig, Tom Atkinson,
David Cole and Garrett Hinds.
Dwyer is a former state senator and
state representative with a blue-collar background and a long history of community
service. Dwyer earned a 71 percent rating by OLCV on his environmental record, second
only to Pete Sorenson's 100 percent rating.
Jaehnig has 10 years experience as
a police officer and police chief and currently operates a family business providing
transportation services to people in mental health crisis. His priorities are public
safety, fiscal responsibility and jobs. He says it's the "obligation of the
county to foster reasonable and balanced development." He also supports the
WEP as a "necessary evil to solve some of the problems that have been created
by development."
Atkinson is an account executive for
Advanced TeleCom Group and a member of the Springfield School Board. He has also
served on the Willamalane Park District Board and the Springfield Planning Commission.
Atkinson says he has "mixed feelings on the latest tax breaks for Hynix"
and supports the building of the WEP. He says the decision to block the gravel pits
is a "good example of dysfunctional county government" and calls it a "political
circus."
Cole is a mechanical designer for
Heli Tech International and a Navy veteran. He appears to be running a low-key campaign
and is not included in the Voters' Pamphlet.
Hinds is a business major at UO and
a graphic artist. He serves on the Oregon Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee
and says he is "passionate about building a bright future." He is against
the gravel pit proposal and would only support the WEP "after a 'priority' transit
system was installed, such as bus rapid transit, with a dedicated priority right
of way."
East Lane
Position 5
This seat is currently occupied by Cindy Weeldreyer who has chosen not to seek reelection.
The candidates are Tom Lininger, Ed Kemp, Robert Spencer and Donald Staley.
Lininger of Vida has a law degree
from Harvard and worked as a federal prosecutor for more than six years. He's a member
of the McKenzie School Board, Lane Council of Government's Executive Board, Lane
School Board Association and the Oregon Criminal Justice Commission. He has lined
up broad support from community and statewide leaders. He is against tax breaks for
Hynix and favors strong land use planning and environmental protection.
Kemp of Culp Creek is a Harvard MBA
graduate and is currently founder and co-owner of International Business Reports.
He was a legislative assistant to former U.S. Senator Bob Packwood and has held several
federal positions. He is against tax breaks for Hynix and favors the gravel pit proposal.
He says codes for residential and commercial development in rural areas are "overly
restrictive."
Spencer of Walterville has
worked as an administrator in juvenile court and a respiratory therapist, according
to The Register-Guard. He has is against tax cuts for Hynix and the gravel
pits on River Road.
Staley is a former union representative
with 40 years experience "in the trenches" as a BLM road maintenance supervisor.
He is against tax breaks for Hynix and against building the WEP in favor of "widening
Highway 126 to three lanes using the center lane as a turn lane from Terry Street
to Veneta." He favors preserving prime forest and farm land and opposes the
gravel pits proposal. He favors more education, less incarceration and campaign finance
reform.
See endorsements in the May 9 EW. Community Television (Public
Access, Channel 22) will cablecast live a Lane County Commisssioners Candidate Forum
at 8 pm Monday, May 6.
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