Residents of the West University neighborhood want to improve living conditions and safety in the area, and the West University Task Force had a public meeting on Thursday to discuss how the neighborhood can be improved.
Ward 3 City Councilor David Kelly, who recently moved to the West University area, said introducing housing standards in the vicinity may be one step. Currently, Eugene does not have a housing code.
“Housing standards are something that have been on and off again in Eugene,” Kelly said.
Kelly said the task force believes changes to residences in the neighborhood are necessary to improve livability and conditions in the area.
The task force’s progress report also suggests improving the alleys in the neighborhood. Unpaved and poorly maintained alleys were consistently brought up as a problem at public hearings regarding the area. Kelly said there also seemed to be a correlation between crime and the condition of an alley.
City engineer Mark Schoening said many of the neighborhood’s 4.5 miles of alleys had potholes or were only paved with gravel. He said the cost to improve an alley would be determined by adjacent property and the one-time charge would be placed on those property owners.
Kelly said the price of improving an alley would be payable over 10 years. One elderly resident, who wished to remain unnamed, said she did not want to pay for improvements because it would cost too much and encourage speeding in alleyways.
“I don’t want it paved because people will speed, and my cats will get killed,” she said. “Even students I’ve talked to have said that paving the alleys won’t stop riots.”
A public hearing concerning the alley upgrades will be held on Nov. 24.
Residents at the meeting were also troubled about the behavior of younger residents, including students, who lived in the neighborhood. Some complained about drug activity and noise from parties.
Police Commission Coordinator Jeannine Parisi said the task force was looking at the student conduct codes of other Pacific-10 Conference schools. She said the group was trying to determine whether changes could be made to the University’s Student Conduct Code in order to discourage students from rioting or committing other crimes.
The task force progress report also suggested adding more lighting in the neighborhood, offering a tax exemption to those who build new housing and increasing police presence.
In August, the Eugene Police Department introduced a bike patrol officer to the West University neighborhood in order to enhance policing of the area. Officer Rob Clowers patrols the neighborhood from 11th Avenue to 19th Avenue and from Kincaid Street to High Street.
Clowers said he also checks up on residences that have purchased kegs of beer with information provided by the Oregon Liquor Control Commission. The officer said he checked on 30 kegs the first weekend of fall term.
“Things had been really quiet up until last week,” Clowers said, adding that he issued several minor in possession violations, responded to several large parties and also caught a suspected burglar. Clowers said the majority of problems didn’t generally arise from older University students, but mostly incoming freshman, non-students and visitors from Corvallis and Portland.
“Some freshmen even asked me for directions to a party,” Clowers said.
The task force meets again on Nov. 6 where people will be elected to serve on the board of the West University Neighborhood Association. For more information concerning the West University Neighborhood Association, contact Steve Norris at 682-5009.