EW Letter of the Week

More from the haters. This week we have someone of indeterminate political affiliation railing against the city of Eugene for not making the city's trees look better, therefore not incentivising the neighbors to keep their property clean. Blaming the city government for all ills is a non-partisan sport in Eugene.

BLAME CITY, TOO

I would like to thank B.D. May of Eugene for his letter (1/10) concerning urban blight. This problem is not only prevalent in the areas of Adams Street, 24th and 25th avenues, but it has taken hold of a broad area of the Friendly Street neighborhood, and no one seems to care. There is so little pride among some homeowners when it comes to keeping their yards clean and trimmed.

Much of the problem lies with the city of Eugene. The city plants trees in the parking strips, but does not care for them. Young trees are allowed to grow not as trees but as shrubs. Consequently, these bushes, as well as an assortment of other shrubs planted by the homeowners in the parking strips, block the view of drivers at intersections. A city ordinance meant to control these plantings is not enforced.

I have lived on Friendly Street for 21 years. I have watched this neighborhood deteriorate, especially since the city made this street a connector between 18th and 28th. Adding speed bumps was a sick joke and a waste of money. Friendly Street was never intended to become a "freeway." Speed and heavy trucks are tearing up the surface of the street which will not be repaired in the foreseeable future.

Eugene not only needs to update its codes, as May mentioned. It needs to enforce ordinances or remove them. Catering to the affluent communities and utter failure to declare a war on urban blight in the older sections of the city seems to be the future plan by the powers that be.

Betty Williams Johnson, Eugene