Country State County Founded Incorporated Government • Type • Mayor • City manager Area • City • Land • Water Elevation
United States Oregon Lane 1846 October 17, 1862 Council-manager Kitty Piercy Jon Ruiz 43.74 sq mi (113.29 km2) 43.72 sq mi (113.23 km2) 0.02 sq mi (0.05 km2) 430 ft (131.1 m)
• City • Estimate (2012) • Density • Metro Demonym Time zone • Summer (DST) ZIP codes Area code(s)
Population (2010) 156,185 157,986 3,572.4/sq mi (1,379.3/km2) 351,715 Eugenian PST (UTC-8) PDT (UTC-7) 97401–97405, 97408, 97440 458 and 541 Twin cities
• Kathmandu
Nepal
• Irkutsk
Russia
• Kakegawa
Japan
• Jinju Website
South Korea www.eugene-or.gov
Eugene /juːˈdʒiːn/ is a major city of the Pacific Northwest located in the state of Oregon. It is the second-largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon and the county seat of Lane County. It is located at the south end of the Willamette Valley, near the confluence of the McKenzie and Willamette rivers, about 50 miles (80 km) east of the Oregon Coast. As of the 2010 U.S. Census, Eugene has a population of 156,185, and Lane County (co-located with the Eugene-Springfield Metropolitan Statistical Area) (MSA) has a population of 351,715. While Eugene has long been the second-largest city in Oregon, it was briefly surpassed by Salem between 2005 and 2007. The Eugene-Springfield, Oregon MSA is the 144th largest metropolitan statistical area of the U.S., and the third-largest in the state, behind the Portland Metropolitan Area and the Salem Metropolitan Area. The city's population was estimated by the Portland Research Center to be 158,335 in 2012. Eugene is home to the University of Oregon. The city is also noted for its natural beauty, recreational opportunities (especially bicycling, running/jogging, rafting, kayaking), focus on the arts, activist political leanings, and residents with "alternative" lifestyles. Eugene's slogan is "A Great City for the Arts and Outdoors" It is also referred to as the "Emerald City", and as "Track Town, USA". The Nike corporation had its beginnings in Eugene.
Eugene is named after its founder, Eugene Franklin Skinner. Until 1889, it was named Eugene City. In 1846, Skinner erected the first cabin in the area. It was used as a trading post and was registered as an official post office on January 8, 1850. At this time the settlement was known as Skinner's Mudhole. It was relocated in 1853 and named Eugene City, but was not formally incorporated as a city until 1862. Skinner later ran a ferry service across the Willamette River where the Ferry Street Bridge now stands. The first major educational institution in the area was Columbia College, founded a few years earlier than the University of Oregon. It fell victim to two major fires in four years, and after the second fire, the college decided not to rebuild again. The part of south Eugene known as College Hill was the former location of Columbia College. There is no college there today. The town raised the initial funding to start a public university, which later became the University of Oregon, with the hope of turning the small town into a center of learning. In 1872, the Legislative Assembly passed a bill creating the University of Oregon as a state institution. Eugene bested the nearby town of Albany in the competition for the state university. In 1873, community member J.H.D. Henderson donated the hilltop land for the campus, overlooking the city. The university first opened in 1876 with the regents electing the first faculty and naming John Wesley Johnson as president. The first students registered on October 16, 1876. The first building was completed in 1877; it was named Deady Hall in honor of the first Board of Regents President and community leader Judge Matthew P. Deady. The city's name was shortened from Eugene City to Eugene in 1889. Eugene grew rapidly throughout most of the twentieth century, with the exception being the early 1980s when a downturn in the timber industry caused high unemployment. By 1985, the industry had recovered and Eugene began to attract more high-tech industries.
Top employers According to Eugene's 2010 Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, the city's top employers are: # Employer Number of employees 1 PeaceHealth Medical Group 4,893 2 University of Oregon 4,038 3 Eugene School District 2,794 4 State of Oregon 2,205 5 Lane County 2,000 6 U.S. Government 1,777 7 Springfield School District 1,500 8 City of Eugene 1,404 9 Lane Community College 1,118 10 Walmart 1,100
Parks and recreation Hendricks Park, situated on a knoll to the east of downtown, is known for its rhododendron garden and nearby memorial to Steve Prefontaine, known as Pre's Rock, where the legendary University of Oregon runner was killed in an auto accident. Alton Baker Park, next to the Willamette River, contains Pre's Trail. Also located next to the Willamette is the Owen Rose Garden, which is home to more than 4,500 roses of over 400 varieties, and the 150-year-old Black Tartarian Cherry tree, an Oregon Heritage Tree. The city of Eugene maintains an urban forest. The University of Oregon campus is an arboretum, with over 500 species of trees. The city operates and maintains scenic hiking trails that pass through and across the ridges of a cluster of hills in the southern portion of the city, on the fringe of residential neighborhoods. Some trails allow biking and others are for hikers and runners only. The nearest ski resort, Willamette Pass, is one hour from Eugene by car. On the way, along Oregon Route 58, are several reservoirs and lakes, the Oakridge mountain bike trails, hot springs, and waterfalls within Willamette National Forest. Eugene residents also frequent Hoodoo and Mount Bachelor ski resorts. The Three Sisters Wilderness, the Oregon Dunes National Recreation Area and Smith Rock are just a short drive away.
Government In 1944, Eugene adopted a council-manager form of government, replacing the day-to-day management of city affairs by the part-time mayor and volunteer city council with a full-time professional city manager. The subsequent history of Eugene city government has largely been one of the dynamics—often contentious—between the city manager, the mayor and city council. The current mayor of Eugene is Kitty Piercy, who has been in office since 2005. Recent mayors include Edwin Cone (1958–69), Les Anderson (1969–77) Gus Keller (1977–84), Brian Obie (1985–88), Jeff Miller (1989–92), Ruth Bascom (1993–96), and Jim Torrey (1997–2004). Jon Ruiz has been the city manager since April 2008. Ten other people have held the city manager position. They were: Deane Seeger (1945–49), Oren King (1949–53), Robert Finlayson (1953–59), Hugh McKinley (1959–75), Charles Henry (1975–80), Mike Gleason (1981–96), Vicki Elmer (1996–98), Jim Johnson (1998–2002), Dennis Taylor (2002–2007), Angel Jones (2007–2008).
Eugene City Council Mayor: Kitty Piercy Ward 1 – George Brown • Ward 2 – Betty Taylor • Ward 3 – Alan Zelenka • Ward 4 – George Poling
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• Ward 5 – Mike Clark • Ward 6 – Greg Evans • Ward 7 – Claire Syrett • Ward 8 – Chris Pryor
Public safety The Eugene Police Department (EPD) is the city's law enforcement and public safety agency. The Lane County Sheriff's Office also has its headquarters in Eugene. The University of Oregon is served by the University of Oregon Police Department (UOPD), and EPD has a police station in the West University District near campus. Lane Community College is served by the Lane Community College Public Safety Department. The Oregon State Police have a presence in the rural areas and highways around the Eugene metro area. Eugene City Hall was abandoned in 2012 for reasons of structural integrity, energy efficiency, and obsolete size. Various offices of city government became tenants in eight other buildings.
Media The largest newspaper serving the area is The Register-Guard, a daily newspaper with a circulation of about 70,000, published independently by the Baker family of Eugene. Other newspapers serving the area include the Eugene Weekly, the Emerald, the student-run independent newspaper at the University of Oregon, now published on Mondays and Thursdays;The Torch, the student-run newspaper at Lane Community College, the Ignite, the newspaper at New Hope Christian College and The Mishpat, the student-run newspaper at Northwest Christian University. Eugene Magazine, Lane County's Lifestyle Quarterly and Eugene Living, Sustainable Home and Garden magazine also serves the area. Adelante Latino is a Spanish Newspaper in Eugene, it serves all of Lane County.
Television Local television stations include KMTR (NBC), KVAL (CBS), KLSR-TV (Fox), KEVU-CD, KEZI (ABC), KEPB (PBS), and KTVC (independent). • KMTR (Channel 16) (NBC) • KVAL (Channel 13) (CBS) • KLSR (Channel 34) (Fox) • KEVU-CD (Channel 23) • KEZI (Channel 9) (ABC) • KEPB (Channel 28) (PBS) •
KTVC (Channel 36) (Independent)