Released: 07/22/2005
On Wednesday, Mayor Kitty Piercy announced appointments to the Sustainable Economic Development Task Force. Mayor Piercy is establishing the 15-member task force to obtain ideas from business leaders, the public, and sustainability experts and develop recommendations to the City Council regarding the expansion and creation of business and job opportunities in sustainable development.
"In Eugene, we want a healthy economy that conserves the environment and ensures equitable access to living wage jobs, health care, and other vital amenities to support our families," said Piercy. "The connections between economy, equity and environment form a three-legged stool that is often called the 'triple bottom line.' The Sustainable Economic Development Task Force will help expand our community's emphasis on the 'triple bottom line.' The goal is to make Eugene a nationally known 'center of excellence' in this rapidly growing field."
The task force is charged with working with the business community and engaging the public to determine how to best accomplish this goal. The responsibilities for the task force were shaped by community stakeholders who participated in a brainstorming session on April 19, 2005. The group will meet over the next several months "to identify priority business retention, expansion, recruitment and clustering opportunities" in such possible industries as energy efficiency, renewable energy, green building, organic and natural foods, transportation, health care, and bioproducts. The group will also identify mechanisms to assist any local business to adopt sustainable business practices or to otherwise benefit from sustainable development strategies. A community outreach effort will begin in September and the task force is expected to deliver final recommendations to the City Council in early summer 2006.
Rusty Rexius of the Rexius Company and current board chair of the Eugene Chamber of Commerce, and David Funk of Funk/Levis and Associates, will co-chair the task force. Graduate student interns working under the direction of Bob Doppelt, director of Resource Innovations, a sustainability research program at the University of Oregon, will provide assistance for the task force.
The first meeting of the task force is set for Tuesday, June 28 from 1:30-3:30 p.m. in the McNutt Room, Eugene City Hall, 777 Pearl Street. The second meeting of the task force is tentatively set for Thursday, July 28.
The fifteen appointees to the task force are:
Lisa Arkin, Executive Director, Oregon Toxics Alliance
Josh Bruce, AICP, LEED AP, Rainbow Valley Design & Construction
Julie Daniel, Director, BRING Recycling
Roger Ebbage, Lane Community College
Lynn Feekin, Labor Education and Research Center, University of Oregon
Dave Funk, Funk/Levis & Associates, Inc.
Kartar Khalsa, Golden Temple
Terry McDonald, St. Vincent dePaul
Mark Miksis, Arlie & Company
Deb Noble, West Wind Forest Products, Friends of Eugene
Scott Pope, Sustainable Wealth Management
Rusty Rexius, Rexius Company
Jack Roberts, Lane Metro Partnership
Claire Syrett, Eugene-Springfield Solidarity Network/Jobs with Justice
Claudia Vellegas, Downtown English, Funk/Levis & Associates
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For additional information contact: Jan Bohman, City of Eugene Community Relations Director (541) 682-5587 Jan.L.Bohman@ci.eugene.or.us City of Eugene