City officials call Scobert Gardens Park, a “green jewel in the heart of Whiteaker.” So why do they plan to spend $1.2 million to pave it, lock it up, and give a small group of homeowners exclusive access to a part of it?

Residents of the Whiteaker neighborhood and our allies are asking the City of Eugene to honor its own equity and inclusion mission and climate goals. The City can do this by:

1. Refraining from installing additional concrete in Scobert Gardens Park with the exception of Americans with Disabilities Act-compliant walkways using the minimum amount of permeable, reflective pavement.

2. Refraining from adding additional fencing and gates to Scobert Gardens Park – particularly at the front. 

3. Preserving, enhancing, and restoring the historic trees, shrubs, and greenspace in Scobert Gardens Park.

4. Honoring neighborhood-driven designs and decisions such as the one developed by a Whiteaker neighbor in consultation with other Whiteaker neighbors, shown below.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Background 

Scobert Gardens Park is a 1.2-acre pocket park located at 1180 W. 4th Ave in Eugene, Oregon.  The City hired the firm of Cameron McCarthy whose design proposes to pave nearly 20% of the park and add no new trees, exacerbating urban heat.  The City of Eugene undemocratically, and without prior and informed public consultation and consent, gave exclusive use of a portion of the park to a small group of homeowners. The City of Eugene is proposing fencing and gating the entire front of the park.  We are asking for no new concrete, not fencing and gating the entrance of the park or other additional fencing, and for the restoration and replacement of trees and shrubs.  

Lack of Tree Cover and Urban Heat in Whiteaker: A Matter of Inequity

Greenspace accessibility and tree coverage is a major equity issue. Whiteaker is a low-income, renter-dominated neighborhood in Eugene that is severely deficient in tree cover and greenspace.

 

 

 

 

 

The City of Eugene’s Urban Forestry program gave Whiteaker a dismal 48 out of 100 for tree equity which is a combined measure of building density, surface temperature, neighborhood income and employment, race, age and health factors. The City’s map shows the neighborhood has lost trees  and that at least 8 historic apple, cherry, big leaf maple, and other trees in the park, have died without being replaced.

The City of Eugene’s Climate Action Plan aims to increase Eugene’s tree canopy to 30% by 2030, planting in “the highest priority and hottest areas, based on a variety of health index and socio-economic factors.” Yet, in its design plans, the City does not add a single tree.

Additionally, research conducted in 2017 by Portland State University’s Sustaining Urban Places Lab shows that Whiteaker experiences higher and longer summer temperatures than other wealthier neighborhoods in the city that have more tree canopy, greenspace, and parks. 

 

 

 

 

Whiteaker's lack of tree cover contributes to disproportionately high and life-threatening heat. For instance, in the 2021 heat dome, Eugene's temperature was 111 while Whiteaker experienced temperatures of 112-113.  The US Environmental Protection Agency reports that high temperatures can have devastating health consequences for children, single and older adults , people of color and people in low-income households, and people living and working outside.

 

 

 

 

 

Initially, the City offered two concrete-heavy designs to choose from and then ignored public feedback in its own surveys where residents prioritized "more trees and vegetation." Neighbors rated a concrete plaza dead last, but the City's final rendering covers 20% of the park with concrete and places its large plaza and children's playground in the hottest area of the park.  Moreover, the City's undemocratic process favors homeowners.

 

 

 

 

Backroom Deal to Homeowners: A Matter of Undemocratic Exclusion

 

 

 

 

In the late 1990’s the City installed a fence across a portion of Scobert Park preventing public access to an approximately 6500 square foot corner called the “dogleg.”  In 2021 the City made a secret deal with 4 owner-occupied households giving them exclusive access to the dogleg through their back gates. All of the landowners have private backyards and three of the households are Airbnb properties that allow their customers to use their yards while the owners themselves use the park dogleg as their own private vegetable garden.  In a neighborhood with a poverty rate of 30% where food and housing insecurity are major concerns, this secret privatization is not carrying out the City’s public participation mission of democratic decision-making and transparency.  

You Can Help Protect Scobert!

The City has said it is completing the final phase with a design dramatically different from what people in Whiteaker want or need. Please sign our petition addressed to the Mayor of Eugene and Eugene City Council Members. Help us keep Scobert Park open and public, preserve and restore our heritage tree canopy and greenspace, and make it a welcoming, safe place for everyone in Whiteaker!