Being chased down a street by a man singing “The Devil Went Down to Georgia” isn’t a typical experience for sophomore Sarah Thompson. But that’s exactly what happened to her last year when she found herself being pursued by a stranger in downtown Eugene.
“I don’t know if I actually felt threatened,” Thompson said. “I feel Eugene is generally safe during the day.”
But to help prevent future incidents like Thompson’s and combat perceptions of downtown as an unsafe area, a group of downtown organization leaders, business people and residents are working to develop strategies to increase downtown safety.
The Downtown Policing Action Plan Team presented a list of recommendations to the city of Eugene’s Budget Committee during its April 26 meeting, and team members hope the measures will improve the image and safety of downtown. The team also wants to make the downtown area a model for neighborhood-based policing in other areas of the city, Chairman Tracy Olsen said.
The team includes representatives of the Eugene Police Department, Downtown Eugene Incorporated , LTD, the Hult Center, Lane Community College, Looking Glass, the Eugene Public Library, the Eugene Saturday Market and Senior and Disabled Services, as well as business owners and residents.
“It’s a really diverse group of the major players in the downtown core area,” Olsen said.
Problems in downtown include reduced police presence, fights and loitering, vandalism, substance abuse and the “appearance of more people downtown with mental illness and the perceived safety threat it may cause,” according to a March 2 draft of the city’s Current Downtown Conditions Description report.
Eugene Saturday Market General Manager Beth Little said the team is important for downtown businesses and organizations, which often employ private security, to network their resources.
She said she hopes people don’t feel unsafe in the area.
Included in the team’s immediate recommendations is increasing the number of patrol officers working in the area. Currently, only one officer patrols the area and she cannot approach some suspicious situations without backup, according to Olsen.
“She’s very limited in what she can do,” Olsen said.
The team also recommended patrol officers drive through downtown along on their way to and from City Hall. It advocated using senior patrols for “additional uniformed presence” during events such as First Friday Art Walks and the Oregon Bach Festival.
Thompson said she has noticed a reduced police presence in downtown.
“I personally do feel more safe in Portland than here, even though (Eugene) is smaller,” Thompson said.
The team also suggested the city contribute to DEI, a nonprofit association of property and business owners that offers a Downtown Guides security patrol program to help bolster safety. Another recommendation is to have “at least one downtown foot patrol officer be specially trained in mental health crisis intervention to respond to people exhibiting acute behaviors and symptoms of mental illness.”
DEI Advocacy and Marketing Director Michelle Emmons said many mental health services are located downtown, so there is a reason for many people with mental health issues to go there. She said this was a good reason to have additional safety measures in place.
Olsen said the downtown district sometimes has a bad reputation, but downtown is not as unsafe as some people may think.
“Things are not as scary or as dangerous as the public would perceive in the downtown area,” Olsen said. “But unless you show you’re committed to making the area better, property owners are going to sit on their hands.”
Olsen said he has been affected by crime downtown because his cars have been “vandalized an average of once every six months.”
“The bottom line is, if you don’t feel safe in your neighborhood, you have a problem,” Olsen said.
Olsen stressed that the team is also committed to affirming things that are done well in the area.
“One thing we need to do is focus on positives,” he said.
Olsen said the team tried to make recommendations that didn’t require financial backing. He also said the team’s efforts, if successful, could be used as a “template” for other areas of the city.
Jeannine Parisi, coordinator for the Eugene Police Commission, said there have been past efforts to improve safety downtown, but that the team is unique because of the collaboration and partnerships between the various organizations involved.
“There’s a lot of opportunity on the horizon,” Parisi said.