What makes a good landlord? What makes a good tenant? What happens to a hidden park once used for drug dealing?
The West University Neighbors General Meeting will be held tonight at 7 p.m. as local residents discuss these and a host of other topics affecting the West University area.
The meeting’s main event will be an open forum for property owners to discuss what they feel makes a good renter, and tenants will be able to discuss what qualities make for an ideal landlord. There are a confirmed three management firms that will attend and possibly a few others.
One realty firm, Bell Real Estate, will not be present according to West University Neighbors Chairperson Deborah Healey.
“Bell Realty owns a lot of property that isn’t in the best conditions, and they are extremely hard to find and contact,” Healey said. “If you call and say you want to rent the place, maybe they’ll call you back. If you call and say you have a problem they probably will not call you back.”
The Board will also be urging property owners to post signs with their name on them in front of rentals. This will allow potential renters to associate the manager with the property.
A park that once existed between Patterson and Hilyard Streets on East 14th Avenue will be reopened to the public by September and the Board will be asking for input on the final design. The park was closed in 1995 because of drug dealing, limited access and low visibility from the street.
“The park is not going to be one of these places where someone can make drug deals and you can run out of the back when you see the cops,” Healey said.
After years of remodeling and a new apartment building in the back half of the old park, it will now be entirely visible from Hilyard Street. The apartments will face into the park also increasing the community surveillance.
Eugene City Councilman Alan Zelenka has attend the meetings before and is expected to show up again to give an update about additional city issues around the city.
The meeting will be held at the Central Presbyterian Church, located at 555 E. 15th Ave. The meetings generally last one and a half hours. More information can be found at www.thewun.org.
– Jason Reed