Good afternoon,
Welcome to the first full week of Phase 2 of reopening in Lane County. The State approved Lane County to begin Phase 2 last Friday, and as we all figure out what that looks like across our community, we wanted to reiterate we are here to help.
Our website is full of resources for you, and we are continuously assessing City services and how to reopen programs and services that were closed during the early months of the pandemic. Phase 2 permits several new things, including larger gatherings, the reopening of pools, theaters, bowling alleys, arcades and other venues, the resumption of recreational, non-contact sports and extended hours for bars and restaurants.
Here is a rundown of how the City is adjusting some of its programs and initiatives.
Parks
Eugene Parks and Open Space is reopening amenities as allowed by Oregon Health Authority. Under the Stay Home, Save Lives order, visitors are still required to maintain 6 feet of physical distance between others.
Updates are coming in regularly from the State, so please stay tuned as new guidance is released. You can find a full list of what’s open in our system here.
Library
Beginning June 15, Eugene Public Library will restart two services that have been paused. The Downtown Library’s outside book returns will open for limited hours: 7 a.m.-5 p.m. Monday through Saturday. No need to rush to return items, as all loans have been extended through summer and no fines will be charged.
The second service is cardholders with “held” items will be contacted to make appointments for curbside pick up. To get ready, library staff have located and prepared more than 5,000 items requested by Eugeneans.
While library buildings remain closed, e-books, streaming movies and other resources continue to be available and online-use cards are free for all in Eugene. We plan to restart services step by step in consultation with health officials and with safety as our highest priority. Check the Library’s website for ongoing updates or follow @euglibrary on Facebook, Instagram or Twitter.
Questions? Assistance? Please give us a call at 541-682-5450, 10 a.m.-6 p.m., Mon.- Sat.
Recreation
Pools: We have heard from many of you wondering when our pools will reopen, and we are hard at work planning how and when to safely do so. Things will look a little different as we make modifications to align with Phase 2 guidelines for physical distancing and safety protocols, but we are excited to welcome you back soon. Thank you for your patience as we work out the details.
Childcare and Summer Camps: Childcare is now available at Sheldon, Petersen Barn and Amazon community centers until June 22. Children are in small groups, with physical distancing, sanitizing protocols and health checks all part of daily safety protocols. More childcare info.
We are also happy to announce summer camps will be offered this summer, which provide another critical community resource for parents. Registration for camps that start June 22 opened yesterday, and you can check to see if there are still available spots on Rec’s online registration website.
Please note that new patron cards will be required. To streamline your registration, please sign up before you plan on signing up for any programs to prevent the chance of you missing out on getting a spot in a class.
Eugene Rec is hard at work planning for camp modifications to keep your kids safe and healthy including physical distancing, mask wearing and diligent sanitizing. Because these safety measures will include having smaller groups of campers, they expect enrollment capacity to be limited.
Stay tuned for another round of registration as the rest of Recreation begins offering classes for adults.
Homelessness
As more community services become available under Phase 2, the City is beginning a phased removal of some of the portable toilets and handwashing stations in parks and public rights-of-way.
Under Phase 2, the City will return to pre-COVID-19 camping rules for parks and right-of-way areas and begin the prioritized removal of the sanitary facilities when:
- Nearby encampments are cleaned up.
- Nearby public restrooms in parks are reopened.
- They no longer serve a nearby encampment.
- Portable toilets and handwashing stations in the downtown core will remain in place until the City’s Emergency Operations Center demobilizes or other City officials decide they are no longer needed.
Our response to helping people experiencing homelessness is evolving, and you can read about what we are changing on our website.
Recovery Strategies
The public health measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19 have taken a serious toll on the Eugene economy, namely businesses and their employees. Businesses have had to change how they operate to keep their workers and their customers safe. The City is there to help. We’ve set up an email address that goes directly to the Business Help team: bizhelp@eugene-or.gov.
Read more on our website about how we are here to help.
Protecting yourself and others
As the state reopens, it’s important to remember the risks and to continue to do our best to protect ourselves and one another. If we all follow the established protocols, we will help save the lives of our colleagues, neighbors, friends and family members.
Find a list of actions to protect yourself and others on our website if you want to find out more about the ways you can help do your part.
More resources
See a list of Community Resources for physical and mental health, food, housing, businesses, employees, schools and children, as well as information in Spanish. Also learn how you can help.
Our partners also have a significant amount of information available online. Please visit these resources for the most up to date information:
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