Program date: July 12, 2024
From the City Club of Eugene:
A vibrant downtown is essential to a thriving city. In order to be thriving, downtown must be a place people want to be.
Are you willing to walk downtown Eugene to shop, go to the library or a restaurant? Is your answer the same if it is nighttime? Do you feel safe downtown? Does the evidence support your perception? Is downtown crime increasing or decreasing?
This program will explore both the perceptions and realities from the perspectives of the Eugene Police Department, the business community, and a downtown resident, all of whom are downtown every day. Come to the program with your perceptions and your questions.
Speakers:
Raymond G. Brown has served as the Downtown Incident Commander for the Eugene Police Department since July 2023. From 1997 to 2006, he was a Patrol Officer with the Eugene Police Department. In 2006 he moved to the Eugene Fire Department, where he served in various capacities, ultimately as the Deputy Chief of Operations for Eugene Springfield Fire in 2022. He earned an MS in the University of Oregon’s School of Planning, Public Policy and Management.
John Fisher has been a resident of Eugene since 1967, with time away spent in Cordova AK, Yachats OR, and Mendocino CA. He graduated from Jefferson Junior High School, Churchill High School, and the University of Oregon and earned a degree in Fine Furniture Design at the Krenov School in Fort Bragg CA. He was the principal pipe organ cabinet maker at John Brombaugh and Associates from 1990 – 1992 and then opened his own furniture and cabinet making business. In 2002 he and two friends opened Skyline Fine Cabinets and Furniture, from which he retired in 2018. He moved into the Tate Condominiums in 2014 and has served on the Tate Condominiums Board of Directors as a Director and as Chairperson. He has volunteered weekly at Lane County Victim Services Divisions in the Protective Order Clinic since 2020.
Katie Wilgus is the Executive Director of Downtown Eugene, Inc. She is a native Oregonian and has lived in Eugene since 2020. Her career began in the non-profit sector in 1994, addressing the livability and vibrancy of downtown Portland at The Association for Portland Progress, and bringing stakeholders together to reimagine solutions to recurring civic issues with Innovation Partnership. Her community interests also led her to serve as the vice president of the board for the Beaumont Village business district, where she received the E. John & Cleo Rumpakis award for outstanding service to the business community. In 2009, she founded an event planning firm, and retains a partnership in GATHER Events, nationally recognized as a leader in the industry. She currently sits on the Local Government Affairs Council and the Business Leaders Task Force at the Chamber of Commerce, and chairs three committees for other organizations.
About the City Club of Eugene:
The mission of the City Club of Eugene is to build community vision through open inquiry. The Club explores a wide range of significant local, state, and national issues and helps to formulate new approaches and solutions to problems. Membership is open to all, and Club members have a direct influence on public policy by discussing issues of concern with elected officials and other policy makers. The City Club’s mailing address is PO Box 12084, Eugene, OR 97440, and its website is cityclubofeugene.org.
Video and Broadcast
This program will be live streamed, and the videotape will be made available on the City Club of Eugene’s Facebook page and You Tube Channel, in addition to our website.
Contact: For more information, visit CityClubOfEugene.org.