The controversial Bureau of Land Management’s Thurston Hills project has hit another legal roadblock. Federal Magistrate Judge Mustafa Kasubhai ruled June 4 that although the BLM did its due diligence for sharing the environmental impact of the logging project, it had failed to follow a previous court order to clearly mark where recreational space for trails would be. Environmental nonprofits Oregon Wild and Cascadia Wildlands, who filed the suit, are celebrating this as a win. Read more at EugeneWeekly.com.
• Over the past weekend, Lane County finally passed the 65 percent threshold and is now considered “lower risk,” Lane County Chair Joe Berney said at a June 8 press conference. Berney celebrated the accomplishment, but urged unvaccinated folks it’s their “patriotic duty” to get jabbed so the state can get 70 percent and Oregon can really start re-opening.
• What we are reading: A friend reminded us of a book we reviewed back in 2019, Debra Gwartney’s I Am A Stranger Here Myself, which melds her own memoir and the history of Narcissa Whitman and the Christian mission she was part of. The book brings out the ambiguous feeling of loving the West but being interlopers here as well.
• Nancy Webber, a central player in raising the money for and developing Civic Park, was honored June 4 when the Lane United Reds opened their season against a Portland team on the new field. No bleachers yet, but a good crowd sat on the grass, and red smoke went up after every Reds goal — four in all but not enough to win the match. Little kids ran tirelessly around the field, and eats and beer were sold. Weber and her team still must raise $1.6 million for this fine community facility. We expect they will do it.
• Emily Proudfoot, principal landscape architect for the city of Eugene, will be the speaker for the June 11 City Club virtual meeting. Her topic is “Why Playgrounds Are Worth the Price.” This program airs on the City Club Facebook and YouTube pages, starting at noon Friday.
• We note with sadness the passing on June 1 of Celeste Rose, founder of Rose Children’s Theatre in Eugene, which gave many local actors their start on stage. Over a long career she created or adapted more than 60 plays, both for children and for marionettes, one of her favorite art forms. Rose also wrote short stories and novels and sang alto in the chancel choir at Central Presbyterian Church. In 2002 she was honored for her work with the Bishop Arts and Letters Award, given to people who have enriched Eugene’s cultural life through involvement in the arts and letters. She’ll be missed.
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