It is my understanding that the Eugene City Council is considering adding an alternative auditor measure for the May ballot, to join the original measure which garnered 10,000 signatures (and to be transparent, including mine) and met all city requirements for the process. This was not an easy or quick process.
Now another group of citizens has bypassed the whole initiative process and convinced the City Council to put their own measure (dubbed auditor-lite) on the same ballot. Would it not be more open and democratic to allow the people to vote on the original, up or down, without adding competition?
The adding of this competing measure will not reassure or instill trust. If the people don’t like the current measure and vote for it, it won’t pass. That would then allow the council to present an alternative for a later vote, without allegations of favoritism or cronyism. Please re-consider this.
Susan Brenner, Eugene
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