The City of Springfield, like other larger Oregon cities, has been working to develop solutions to comply with a mandate from the Department of Land Conservation and Development to designate “climate friendly areas” (CDAs) within the city. While Springfield and some other jurisdictions have challenged the requirements in court and are now awaiting a decision by the Oregon Supreme Court on whether or not to review the case, staff have continued efforts to devel0op strategies that comply. City staff provided a briefing to City Club on July 18, following presentations to the Springfield Planning Commission and City Council.

What became clear in the presentation is that while staff has identified ways in which the City could change its land use requirements to meet the DLCD standards, there is no assurance that the private sector will find the new requirements acceptable in terms of bringing construction to market. If this becomes the case, the new rules could actually impede future development rather than encourage it.

Boiled down to the essence, the new requirements direct the city to designate one of more CFAs, whose purpose is to foster denser development, expand mixed use development and create walkable communities that do not require cars. There would be two classes of CFAs. In the first class, minimum residential density would be 25 units per acre, and construction of buildings up to 85 feet in height (seven stories). In the second class, minimum residential density would 15 units per acre and maximum building height would be increase to 50 feet (four stories). To comply with the rules, the City must designate at least one first class CFA mad as many second class areas as desired. The net effect of designation these areas would need to be that 30 percent of the current residential housing demand measured by long term comprehensive plans could be met by construction within the CFAs. While doing this, the City must also avoid risks of displacing current residents who are low income. City staff reported that nearly one half of current Springfield residents are low income.

Springfield has been studying four potential CFAs: (Glenwood riverfront (with a subset for the current Glenwood Master Plan area), downtown, (which runs east as far as about 21^st street). Mohawk, and the area near the Peace Health Hospital at Riverbend. Each of these areas, while potentially meeting the requirements, have substantial infrastructure needs which would have to be addressed before there is any possibility that the level of dense development contemplated could be built.

Recently doff presented four different scenarios to the Planning commission and Council that might be suitable: scenario A would make the Glenwood Master Plan area primary and all other areas secondary; scenario B would make the entire Glenwood riverfront area primary and all other areas secondary; scenario C would make the downtown area primary and designate no other areas; scenario D would designate the Glenwood riverfront area as primary and a part of the downtown area as secondary.

Staff work continues on developing more information to permit the Council to make a decision sometime next year. Thie next task for staff will be to identify strategies that might produce the desired level of housing and evaluate other tradeoffs that will necessarily follow.

To watch the entire presentation, click here: CFA Presentation

 

Two individuals are running in the Democratic Primary for election to House District 7, which includes much of Springfield. John Lively is the incumbent representative and Ryan Rhoads has filed to run. Mr. Lively has accepted the City Club invitation to appear at the forum on May 2, Mr. Rhoads has not yet responded to our invitation.

Mr. Lively has submitted a statement describing his candidacy:

Springfield City Club Statement – House District 7

I am honored to have served the citizens of Springfield and HD 7 now for 12 years. During that time much has changed, but how to best represent the district in the legislature has not changed.

Key issues I have worked in cooperation with the leaders and constituents in Springfield include transportation funding, land use changes and funding to support development of housing, infrastructure funding to offset costs to the local community, 0-12 education funding and policies to address the ever-changing challenges of our families and students. In addition, recently with my role as Chair of the Higher Education committee the focus has been on addressing strategies to fund additional support for students to offset the need for so much student borrowing.

Besides serving as Chair of the Higher Education Committee, I also this past two sessions served as chair of the Gambling Regulation Committee, served on the Economic Development and Small Business Committee. Also served on the Infrastructure Finance Authority with Business Oregon, the Road User Fee Task Force, the Oregon Growth Board, and others in addition to regular legislative duties.

Priorities moving forward is transportation system funding, continued work on to address the crisis in addiction and treatment, homelessness, and housing, managing the state budget to support the ongoing priorities, and finding new strategies to address the ever-increasing consequences of climate change.

John Lively

Two individuals have filed for the Republican primary to select candidates for House District 12. Charlie Conrad is the incumber and Darin Harbick has also filed for election. We have invited both candidates to participate in a forum on May 16 at noon. Mr. Conrad has accepted the invitation. Mr. Harbick’s campaign staff has indicated he has declined to participate. In response to our invitation, Mr. Conrad submitted the following statement concerning his candidacy: Conrad Statement

 

Join Springfield City Club on Thursday, June 6 to hear about the impact of the Springfield Municipal Adult Rehabilitation and Treatment Court (SMART) from court coordinator Erin Selvey and Judge James Tierney. They will discuss SMART’s dual-pronged approach to addressing substance use and co-occurring disorders and how it offers essential support and structure to effect positive life changes. 

About SMART Court

The Springfield Municipal Adult Rehabilitation and Treatment Court was established in November 2023, with operations beginning in January 2024. This program aims to capitalize on decades of specialty court research to provide comprehensive treatment for individuals in our criminal justice system.

Treatment Court will provide a dual-pronged approach for individuals to tackle their substance use or co-occurring disorder. It will also provide support and structure to change their life circumstances. The Treatment Court team will partner with Lane County Parole and Probation, Quality Research Associates, Emergence, Springfield City Prosecutor, the public defender, and the Springfield Police Department to staff this program.

The Springfield Municipal Adult Rehabilitation and Treatment Court (SMART) is a minimum 12-month program with four highly structured, evidence-based phases. Read more about this program here. 

Involved participants must attend individual and group treatment sessions, submit to random drug testing, have frequent court appearances, and counsel as appropriate. Individuals must meet milestones to progress in phases and to graduate. At a minimum, individuals must be gainfully employed or in advanced schooling, have their GED or high school diploma, and have provided a give back to their community. The City recently received a federal grant of $900,000 to support the court operations. The Municipal Judge and court staff will discuss the operations and outcomes of the court’s activities in this program.

Speakers

Erin Selvey, court administrator

Erin Selvey is the Court Coordinator for the SMART Court program. She was born in raised in Springfield, attending Springfield High School before receiving a BS in Anthropology/Archaeology from Oregon State University. Both of her parents were long-time employees of the City of Springfield in the Police Department and Development/Public Works. After college, she returned to the Eugene/Springfield area and began working for the Springfield Municipal Court in 2009.

For the last 15 years she has served in many roles through the Municipal Court, from Court Clerk to Senior Clerk, and now Court Programs Coordinator. She manages the caseload of court clients sent to the Oregon State Hospital as well as the new Treatment Court program. She likes to spend her free time with her husband and 4-year-old daughter, travelling, and attending U of O football and volleyball events.

 

 

Hon. James Tierney, Presiding Judge of the Municipal Court

Judge James Tierney is the Presiding Judge for the Springfield Municipal Court and has held his position since August 2021.  He originally hails from Nevada but has been a resident of Lane County since 2015. Judge Tierney is a vocal proponent of restorative justice, in addition to having previously served as the Deputy District Attorney assigned to the Lane County Adult Treatment Court.

Restorative justice is a system that focuses on rehabilitating offenders because Springfield defendants cannot go to prison. They are charged with misdemeanors and will remain in the municipal court system. Judge Tierney hopes to show the SMART court program is beneficial for our community and expects to expand the program once further funding becomes available.

In a time when many employers struggle to find candidates, Opportunity Oregon has a solution.

Join this thought-provoking program featuring co-founder and Opportunity Oregon Executive Director, Nancy Pance. She’ll discuss the organization’s mission to help individuals find employment after incarceration, in a time when many employers struggle to find candidates. Nancy has personal experience with incarceration and is now a dedicated advocate for reentry initiatives.

Opportunity Oregon is dedicated to finding employment opportunities for individuals involved with the justice system and recognizes the untapped potential within these often overlooked community members. Opportunity Oregon ensures that both employers and individuals in need of a second chance benefit from this initiative through prison outreach, employer education, and business development services.

Speaker

Nancy Pance, Co-founder and Executive Director

Co-Founder and Executive Director Nancy Pance is a justice-involved individual who spent time incarcerated at the Coffee Creek Correctional Facility. Nancy is a dedicated advocate for reentry initiatives, has invaluable lived experience as a formerly incarcerated individual, enabling her to establish genuine connections with the prison population.

Through seminars and workshops held within prisons, Nancy leverages her personal journey to inspire and guide inmates. Her strategic partnerships with the Oregon Department of Corrections, Oregon Corrections Enterprise, WorkSource Oregon, and numerous other collaborators underscore her commitment to providing comprehensive advocacy for individuals within the justice system. With nine years of business ownership experience as a gym owner, Nancy brings a wealth of expertise in marketing, networking, and people skills. Her engagement with businesses across Oregon has significantly expanded fair chance hiring opportunities for justice-involved individuals. Acting as a bridge between employers and employees, Nancy excels at matchmaking based on trades, skills, education, and experience. Her continuous engagement with prison work centers ensures a dynamic exchange of information between the incarcerated and the community. She holds an Associates of Applied Science degree in Business Administration with a specialization in accounting from Central Oregon Community College.

About Opportunity Oregon

Employers have an ongoing struggle in hiring and keeping good employees. Meanwhile, 70 million Americans have a criminal record, with many struggling to find employment because of it. Those with felony records struggle the most and are 3 to 5 times more likely to be unemployed. Opportunity Oregon brings together these two groups, removing barriers that can prevent them from helping each other. Opportunity Oregon works with companies to show the benefits of hiring from this neglected segment of society, and then we select the best candidates, prepare them for reintegration, and match them to jobs. ​Success in bringing them together is success for all: the employer, the employee, and society as a whole.

Vision:

Employers and justice-involved individuals are united in breaking the cycle of recidivism. All formerly incarcerated find quality and sustainable careers.

Values:

1. Partnership: Collaborating with community partners to achieve our shared mission.
2. Perseverance: Pursuing new opportunities even in the face of adversity.
3. Integrity: Always doing what is ethically right.
4. Inclusion: Including those who have historically been excluded and ensuring that all identity groups have the same rights, opportunities, and access regardless of their background or circumstance.
5. Transparency: Sharing information openly and honestly, both internally and externally.

Prospects for the 2024 “short session” of the Oregon Legislative Assembly were not auspicious. By law, the session is limited to 35 days. Just before the session opened, the Oregon Supreme Court ruled that 10 members of the House of Representatives could not stand for reelection at the end of their term because they had unexcused absences which barred them under Measure 113. And critical policy issues, like the impact of Measure 110 and the fentanyl crisis seemed to defy easy solution.

Yet “sometimes the issues are so big, that you don’t have the ability to step away,” said Kevin Campbell, from the Victory Group, a lobbying organization. Preston Mann, of Oregon Business industries, agreed. Both lobbyists discussed the major aspects of the session at the Springfield City Club March 21 program. They said that the fact that ballot initiatives were moving ahead and likely to qualify for the 2024 ballot on addiction issues and campaign finance reform left the legislature with no choice but to deal with the topics of face almost certain passage of initiatives each of which would probably require significant legislative action to make their impact workable. Mr. Campbell spoke in detail about the three bills that the Legislature passed to address issues surrounding Measure 110 – House Bill 4002, which provided the policy framework; SB 1553, which addressed use of controlled substances on public transit; and HB 5204, which appropriated $211 million to invest in services.

House Bill 4002 drew the most public interest. The most controversial feature of the bill is that it recriminalizes possession and use of controlled substances. In doing this the bill creates a new unclassified misdemeanor, outside of the tiered hierarchy of misdemeanors and felonies in Oregon criminal law. As Mr. Campbell described it, this crime would make the potential of treatment for substance abuse an offering in every case. Law enforcement, he said, does not believe that incarceration is not effective as a treatment for those whose only offense is use of drugs. During the question-and-answer period, Mr. Campbell was asked why he said the vast majority of Oregonians were in support of recriminalization, yet the testimony at legislative hearings on HB4002 was almost universally opposed. He responded by suggesting that some organizations specialize in soliciting testimony for a particular position, regardless of what polling suggests. The bill also creates what are called deflection programs which permit an officer to refer a suspect for treatment before booking. Mr. Campbell said 23 of Oregon’s 36 counties have agreed to participate in these programs. He did not say how treatment referral would be handled in the countries that did not agree to participate in the deflection programs. The bill also dealt with a recent court decision which made it difficult to prosecute distributors of drugs in the absence of a direct connection to a user and created enhanced penalties for dealing drugs near schools and treatment centers. A separate bill, Senate Bill 1553 specially created criminal penalties for use of controlled substances on public transit facilities.

Mr. Mann pointed to another significant action by the Legislature – the adoption of campaign finance reform which created some limits on political contributions. This, he said, was an issue where there were at least three initiative proposals that were being prepared for submission to the 2024 general election. His assessment was that the legislators concluded that some or all those initiatives might pass and that the result would be a confusion of new laws that the legislature would have to try and fix during the 2025 session. This, he said, motivated members to work for a bi-partisan solution which would provide some reform and hopefully eliminate the risk of the various initiatives all being enacted.

Mr. Mann was clear that he did not support the approach of limiting campaign contributions, saying that it had the result of limiting candidates ability to get out their message while doing nothing about the influence of so-called “dark money” which could be spent without the support, and sometimes even the knowledge, of candidates. He said that the effect of the Supreme Court decision in Citizens United, which made spending for support of political issues to influence an election a First Amendment issue, meant that limits on candidates’ support would mean candidates would no longer be in charge of their own message. The reforms enacted largely mirror federal contribution limits.

A novel feature of the new reforms is the ability to create “small donor committees” which are groups of humans (individuals not corporations) that can make slightly larger contributions to a candidate based on the number of people that participate in the committee. He added that the legislation addressed the “dark money” issue in part by requiring transparency and the public listing of donor’s names by super PACS. When asked about concerns that have been raised about subjecting donors who are identified to threats and harassment. He said the bill provided a process for shielding donors names when there is a real threat to them if identified.

Mr. Mann pointed out that the new limits do not go into effect until 2027, allowing the legislature to take a another look at the process, and consider potential refinements and improvements during the 2025 session.

2024. Mann also discussed three measures that the legislature has referred to the voters for consideration in 2024. Thes include, he said, a process for impeaching state officials, creation of a public service compensation commission, which will look at the salaries of elected officials and possibly recommend changes, and consideration of a proposal to create a system of ranked choice voting for statewide races. He said he expected the legislature had not considered creating such a system for legislative races since it is very rare to have more than two candidates for a legislative race. He said each of the legislative referrals had been approved in the 2023 session for inclusion on this year’s ballot.

To view the entire program on You Tube click here” Legislative Update.

The history of the Indigenous nations in what is now the United States is fraught with mistreatment – disease, dispossession, and attempted assimilation. Of all the nations affected, the Coquille (pronounced Ko-Kwel) tribe is a particularly troubling story. While many tribes were segregated into reservations where, while still abused they had some sense of connection to the land, the Coquille, like some other tribes, suffered the indignity of Congress declaring them extinct in 1954. They were, according to David Hill, Director of Economic Development for Lane County Operations for Tribal One, always more nomadic and mobile, but after termination they lost all rights to connect with the land and tribal members were left with no land they could call a homeland.

That story now has a happier ending, however. In 1989, after many years of effort by tribal members. Congress once again recognized the sovereignty of the tribe. The Coquille were the last of several tribes resident in Oregon to be restored. Restoration did not, however, include any rights to land, and the tribe is only now beginning to purchase land for its members and business activities.

At the March 7 City Club program Mr. Hill, and Judy Farm, Chief Executive Officer, provided an overview of Tribal One’s business portfolio (including Construction, Economic Development, Communications Technology, and Professional Services), and how the work they do translates into benefits for both the Coquille Indian Tribe and the communities in which we do business. Tribal One is the business arm of the tribe and works principally in the five-county area (Coos, Douglas, Curry, Jackson, and Lane counties) which Congress has designated as the service area of the tribe, although it conducts operations nationally. Tribal One is the economic development arm of the tribe and, Mr. Hill pointed out, completely separate from the gaming activities of the tribe which owns and operates the Mill Casino.

The business of Tribal One had its origins in broadband expansion as part of the attempts to place telecommunications fiber in the southwestern part of Oregon. That expanded to more general construction activity and even has recently included rehabilitation of an aged goof course near Medford and construction of the Margaritaville Hotel and resort next door.

Tribal One also bought an unused wharf in North bend. When the tribe bought some adjacent land for a parking lot, they ended up with an additional 50 acres of land which had been abandoned by Weyerhaeuser. While that dock has no direct connection with the massive North Bend container port concept, it will stand to benefit if that project becomes reality.

Finally, Tribal One now operates a wellness clinic which provides free services to members and has recently opened a satellite clinic in the River Road area of Eugene. To view the full program, click here: Tribal One.

 

Fire Chief Mike Caven updated Springfield City Club on the current state of the Department at the February 15 program. He focused on two areas: 1) the current issues facing the Department and 2) what next steps to take in their efforts to provide unified fire service to the two communities. This latter represents the next step in a lengthy process which began in 2007 when the two separate fire departments began to remove boundaries to allow for more efficient and effective fire service.

A consultant retained by the department will meet with the Springfield City Council on March 4 to provide a preliminary report on what next steps might be appropriate.

The legislative session is something that Chief Caven focused on in his comments. He noted that the current session is attempting to address the impacts of Measure 110 passed by the voters in 2020. He said that Eugene/Springfield fire had observed a significant increase in overdose calls to which the department must respond. He said that now the department is averaging over 150 overdose calls a month. He credited some portion of the increase to the fact that Oregon does not have a robust health infrastructure to treat drug users. While he said that calls had almost doubled, he cautioned that the increase came at the same time as the arrival of significant amounts of fentanyl on the scene. “Conditions have changed,” he said, “and current statistics are not comparable to past figures.”

Separately from efforts to address the impacts of Measure 110 he said that Rep. Nathanson has introduced legislation which would help with the restructuring of the local EMS system which the Department started last year. If passed, he said, the legislation would allow for a more varied response to 911 calls. While the ability to triage 911 medical calls would continue, it would also make it possible to evaluate more varied responses depending upon the nature of the caller’s needs.

Chief Caven said that there still are circumstances where a person will call 911 in the belief that arriving at a hospital emergency room by ambulance will get them quicker service. That isn’t the case, the chief said. ER staff will continue to triage all patients because of the severity of their need, meaning that in some cases people arriving by ambulance will wait in the ambulance while other, more urgent, cases are treated. This is a major problem for the EMD system because it can mean that an ambulance sits waiting at the ER until its passenger is reached for treatment. This so-called “wall time” is a major impediment, putting ambulances out of service and unable to respond to other calls.

A reworking of the EMS system would make it possible for a nurse practitioner in the 911 system, to evaluate a caller and determine if transport is the most effective remedy or if some other form of assistance – CAHOOTS, some other community response, or even dispatch of a nurse practitioner to the field as part of a community response team might be a better mode of treatment.

Another part of the current effort at EMS redesign is to consider whether it really is necessary to pay someone as both a firefighter and an EMS technician with advanced life support skills. He said that studies by the EMS training facilities indicate that almost half of the students training to be paramedics do not want to be firefighters. “It may be the case that the era of crossing firefighters and EMS paramedics is over,” he said. Already, the Department has transitioned two of four ambulances to carry paramedics who are not firefighters. Another one will be transitioned in March.

With respect to the functional merger, Chief Caven said that the process of functional combination reached a point in 2014 where personnel began working across jurisdictional lines, but that the department still reported to both City Councils and maintained two separate budgets. In 2022 the two cities agreed that the governance process should be reviewed and designated two members of each council to explore options.

He said that a consultant was retained to identify alternatives and as a result four alternatives have been identified. These alternatives include 1) not changing anything; 2) moving to a single department under the jurisdiction of one city with the other city contracting for service; 3) creating a separate governmental entity (somewhat similar to the Metropolitan Wastewater Management Commission, with the difference that that entity would employ all staff; and 4) forming an independent fire district to provide fire and life safety service to both communities. He added that there is a fifth alternative – to undo the merger and go back to two separate departments — but that alternative is one “that no one thinks is a good idea.”

Chief Caven said that the functional merger of the two departments had provided significant operational efficiencies as well as improving the departments’ abilities to recruit and hire. He said the biggest strength of the combined department is “the capacity improvements that result from being together.” He noted that before the merger, one Springfield house fire would deplete all of that department ‘s resources. Now Springfield stations provide first response to some areas in east Eugene and some Eugene stations provide response to western Springfield. “If each city needed to protect its own area,” he said, “each city would need to build more fire stations.”

The briefings currently scheduled for the two city councils will not be decision points on any of these alternatives but will be an effort to share where the process is and get direction on how to move forward with one or more of the alternatives.

Chief Caven said that the fourth alternative – creation of an independent fire district is “probably the most challenging option” because it would involve creating a new taxing entity and raise complex questions about the level of taxation presently imposed by each city. The issue grows very complex when it is recognized that a significant portion of City property taxes now support fire and life safety services. Moving to a separate district would raise the question of what to do about the level of taxation if fire and life safety were funded by a separate taxing entity.

To see the entire program on You Tube, click this link: Fire Service Update