• How many renters get evicted in Lane County each year? The numbers are not easy to come by, but local demographics mapper Joe Kosewic has tracked the landlord cases that end up in court in Oregon and broken down the numbers by county. Evictions that are uncontested far outnumber actual court cases, he figures. Lane County had 1,794 court-contested evictions in 2016. Multnomah County had 5,446, Washington County had 2,952 and Marion County had 1,951. Kosewic says the Residential Eviction Complaint form doesn’t track whether children are involved in the evictions. “Student residential mobility is a major problem,” he says, “that disrupts the students’ social network and academic development.” Kosewic’s data and graphic maps are available by emailing him at kosewic1@gmail.com.
• This week in kudos: EW’s Corinne Boyer has been awarded a Journalism and Women Symposium Emerging Journalist Fellowship. The fellowship is given annually to ten women nationwide who are in the beginning stages of their journalism careers. The fellowship sends Boyer to the JAWS Conference and Mentorship Project, where fellows meet leading women in the journalism field to share their skills and learn new ones.
• EW’s Rick Levin and Todd Cooper are finalists in the 2017 Association of Alternative Newsmedia Awards. Levin is a finalist in the Arts Criticism category for his review of the documentary “It’s Not Funny Anymore — In Tickled, journalist David Farrier exposes the wealth, power and abuse behind a bizarre Internet fetish.” Cooper is a finalist in the Photography category for his submission 2016 in Music, a series of ten photographs. The awards will be announced on July 29 at the AAN Convention in D.C.
• It’s an exciting time for Eugene and Oregon, three speakers told the City Club of Eugene June 16. Because of the University of Oregon, basic scientific research is leading to thriving businesses right here, and the coming of the billion-dollar Knight campus will accelerate this movement. Speakers were Don Tucker, CEO and chief scientist of Electrical Geodesics; Matt Beaudet, CEO of NemaMetrix; and Richard Geiger, CEO of Dune Sciences. Dr. David Conover, vice president for Research and Innovation at the UO, asked the speakers for their advice to the school. Their answers: foster connections, offer internships for UO students, encourage these outstanding students to stay in Eugene.
• On July 1, the minimum wage in Lane County goes up to $10.25, in Portland metro area to $11.25 and in “nonurban” counties to $10. By July 1, 2022, our county will be up to $13.50. Oregon’s Legislature is doing better than the federal government, but where’s that $15 an hour, the least we should have in progressive Oregon? Sooner, please.
• Portland-based dance band The Slants won at the U.S. Supreme Court June 19 when the justices ruled unanimously that The Slants can trademark their name, offensive or not. The federal Patent and Trademark Office had refused to register the name, ruling it was a racial slur. That was the point, argued Slants founder and bassist Simon Tam. “We were bringing more awareness to issues of oppression by using our art as a platform,” he told EW in March. Said the court: “Speech may not be banned on the ground that it expresses ideas that offend.” The 39-page opinion adds that Trump-appointee Neil Gorsuch “took no part in the consideration or decision of this case.”
A Note From the Publisher
Dear Readers,
The last two years have been some of the hardest in Eugene Weekly’s 43 years. There were moments when keeping the paper alive felt uncertain. And yet, here we are — still publishing, still investigating, still showing up every week.
That’s because of you!
Not just because of financial support (though that matters enormously), but because of the emails, notes, conversations, encouragement and ideas you shared along the way. You reminded us why this paper exists and who it’s for.
Listening to readers has always been at the heart of Eugene Weekly. This year, that meant launching our popular weekly Activist Alert column, after many of you told us there was no single, reliable place to find information about rallies, meetings and ways to get involved. You asked. We responded.
We’ve also continued to deepen the coverage that sets Eugene Weekly apart, including our in-depth reporting on local real estate development through Bricks & Mortar — digging into what’s being built, who’s behind it and how those decisions shape our community.
And, of course, we’ve continued to bring you the stories and features many of you depend on: investigations and local government reporting, arts and culture coverage, sudoku and crossword puzzles, Savage Love, and our extensive community events calendar. We feature award-winning stories by University of Oregon student reporters getting real world journalism experience. All free. In print and online.
None of this happens by accident. It happens because readers step up and say: this matters.
As we head into a new year, please consider supporting Eugene Weekly if you’re able. Every dollar helps keep us digging, questioning, celebrating — and yes, occasionally annoying exactly the right people. We consider that a public service.
Thank you for standing with us!
Publisher
Eugene Weekly
P.S. If you’d like to talk about supporting EW, I’d love to hear from you!
jody@eugeneweekly.com
(541) 484-0519