The City Club of Eugene hosted its 2026 election forum for Lane County commissioners on April 10, with three candidates taking the stage for a comprehensive discussion of the county’s issues.
Heather Buch, the incumbent, is running against Bob Zybach and Jake Pelroy for East Lane County. Thomas Hiura, a candidate for West Lane County, is running against incumbent Ryan Ceniga. Although all candidates were invited to participate in the debate, only Buch, Hiura and Zybach attended the debate.
Lane County commissioners are responsible for setting local tax rates, managing large budgets and overseeing county operations such as road maintenance, contracted land use and public health programs, among other duties. They are an instrumental part in keeping housing affordable for constituents in Lane County.
Affordable housing and Lane County’s homelessness crisis were addressed by every candidate, with each proposing solutions to combat it. Lane County currently has one of the highest per-capita rates of homelessness in the nation.
“I experienced housing instability as a child, and so I have a strong inclination to work on housing policy,” Buch said. “Counties have a large role to play, and we have been able to add a housing production manager to the team; and we have really focused on increasing land readiness with economic development.”
Buch and Hiura emphasized the need to increase housing production in rural Lane County and for the county to play a more active role in facilitating building permits and land use.
“That includes affordable housing and the means to build it –– open it to rural areas,” Hiura said. Although he mentioned opening housing in urban areas, he also failed to talk about the rising cost of living for students.
Hope Call and Ocean Demmin-Ferneau, both sophomores at the University of Oregon, attended the debate as Lane County voters to learn more about the county commissioners who are on the ballot.
Call and Demmin-Ferneau touched on the importance of housing affordability as voters and as residents in Eugene. They mentioned that urban housing rent has continued to rise, and that affordability for college students trying to live off campus has been an ongoing issue.
“I would love to see affordable housing for the vast amount of young people and college students, who don’t have the means to pay for such expensive housing downtown,” Demmin-Ferneau said.
“The apartment complexes downtown are half empty. I think our apartment complex is only at 50% capacity,” Call said. “I think we need to hold corporate apartment complexes accountable and have partnerships with local housing agencies to increase public safety and increase the safety of individuals on the street.”
Although youth voters have been a small fraction of the electorate, they are an important voice within our communities. A significant portion of Eugene is made up of university students, and their voices matter in the broader conversation about affordable housing.
Youth voting often seems paradoxical. Young people remain distant from political conversations if they don’t see themselves represented in policies or candidates, and candidates don’t make an active effort to address student concerns without political participation.
Lane County Commissioners need to make explicit policies on affordable housing that directly address student concerns.
