SUNA General Meeting Report
Almost 50 neighbors joined SUNA’s January 19th General Meeting on Zoom to listen to plans for the track and field World Athletics Championships Oregon22 (OR22) at Hayward Field this July 15-24.
Guests included Jeff Petry, Eugene Parking Director; Jessica Gabriel, OR 22 Communications Director; AJ Gaulton, Fan Experience Director; and Cami Thompson, UO Director of Neighborhood Relations.
This is the first World Athletics Championships to be held in the United States, and Eugene is getting ready to welcome over 2,000 top athletes from over 200 countries.
Over 100,000 tickets have already been sold for the morning and evening sessions (schedule: https://www.worldathletics.org/competitions/world-athletics-championships/oregon22/timetable), and 20,000-25,000 are expected to attend each session.
As neighbors are likely aware, Hayward Field does not have a parking garage, so an important practical and sustainability goal of the OR22 committee is to reduce driving to and from the event. Shuttles will be operating throughout the city to bring people to Hayward Field. SUNA has agreed to support and work with OR22 on goals to welcome visitors, support sustainability, and reduce negative impacts.
Last summer during the Olympic Trials, SUNA supported the City’s implementation of a pilot visitor parking permit program. The pilot program was designed to address negative issues experienced by both visitors and residents of SUN and Fairmont at previous large events. The program had several goals:
- ensure parking spaces for those with permits by aligning the number of permits issued with the number of street parking spaces available
- reduce the number of parking tickets issued to visitors
- encourage event-goers to use shuttles to reduce the carbon footprint of the event
- reduce illegal parking (e.g., blocked driveways and yellow zones) and congestion from drivers circling in the neighborhood
- support parking access for residents reliant on street parking
The pilot event parking program was implemented in the parts of SUN having Zone A permit parking. Current Zone A permit holders did not need an event permit during the event, and guest permits were available to Zone A permit holders at no cost.
As shown in the chart below, follow-up polling of SUN residents indicated most residents either had positive experiences with the program or were neutral. Suggestions included: improve clarity, attractiveness, and sustainability of event parking signage; provide earlier and better permit information and sales; and increase Parking Services’ responsiveness to residents’ calls.
At the SUNA General Meeting, alternatives were suggested, including making no change (i.e., usual 2-hour limits in effect in Zone A) or temporarily removing all parking restrictions and permit programs (i.e., unlimited street parking and no Zone A parking program). At the meeting or subsequently, the City and some neighbors expressed concerns about these alternatives. For example, the “no change” alternative could result in tickets for visitors to morning sessions and the “no restrictions” alternative would not support the City’s climate goals or access for neighbors reliant on street parking. After considering these factors, as well as the largely positive experience with the pilot and the substantially higher attendance expected this summer, the SUNA board, Oregon22, the City, and the UO believe that implementing the event parking permit program for the Worlds is the best way to support sustainability and welcome visitors.
As before, the event parking program will go through a public administrative process. The SUNA board is working with the City on next steps in this process and ways to integrate lessons learned from the pilot into this summer’s implementation, including locally produced “upcycled” reusable covers for current parking signs and improved communication with residents and visitors.