Supporters of a proposed levy to raise funds for Lane County parks launched their pitch at Mt. Pisgah Arboretum today.
Last month, the Lane County Board of Commissioners voted to refer the 5-year levy to the November 8 ballot. If approved, it would increase property taxes by $0.16-cents per $1,000 of assessed property value beginning in Fiscal Year 2023.
Among those voicing support for the levy was Alicia Hayes, a Eugene resident and member of the 4J School Board.
“A big chunk of it will be spent on improving access for people with disabilities: paths, accessible bathrooms, accessible boat ramps, all places where we need to have access, so we can appreciate the beauty and the water and the play that other people — who don’t have disabilities — get to experience.”
Standing inside the Mt. Pisgah Arboretum as rain steadily drizzled outside, members of local civic groups and governments made their case. Among them was Mike Clark, who’s Eugene City Councilor for Ward 5. He says he’s not a quick sell for new bonds and levies, but this is different.
“The county has — over decades and decades — built these beautiful places when they had the money, in order to maintain them,” he told KLCC. “And in the last decade or two, we haven’t had, at the county, that kind of money to maintain them in the style in which they should be. So this, in my opinion, was the wisest way forward, to make sure that we were taking care of these county treasures the way we should.”
If voters approve the Lane County parks levy, it would go into effect in the Fiscal Year 2023. The estimated cost would be under $40 a year for the median taxpayer.
Among others voicing support were members of the Lane County Board of Commissioners, the Eugene City Council, and the Eugene-Springfield NAACP.
©2022, KLCC.