The Mary Spilde Downtown Center has been the temporary location for Eugene city council meetings since 2020.
This article has been updated as of 6/1 to include comments from the city.
Recent revelations that the city of Eugene is considering turning their temporary lease into a permanent solution has been called “surprising and jarring” by Lane Community College staff that work at the downtown campus. In 2020, LCC administration and the City of Eugene negotiated a temporary lease of the Mary Spilde Center. They are using classrooms and instructor offices for council meetings and office space. The lease ends in January, 2023. At the council work session on May 25, several city councilors expressed interest in making the temporary space permanent.
The Mary Spilde Center second floor serves as a learning space for English as a Second Language and Adult Basic and Secondary Education students. These students are often at a disadvantage due to income, language skills, and access to transportation. The downtown campus was designed with their needs in mind.
Aliscia Niles is a faculty member with ABSE at the Mary Spilde Center downtown. She stated that faculty members had two days to respond to the negotiations. “We only became aware of this at the very last minute. We had very little time to kind of absorb what this would mean for us. We actually had to force our way into getting a voice in the board meeting. We had to knock down the doors to even say, ‘Hey wait a minute there are various stakeholders that are being impacted!’”
City Manager Sarah Medary stated at the May 25 city council work session that LCC has asked for help regarding the downtown building. “LCC has continuously said they need help with this building. The downtown space is not working for them, it’s not working as envisioned. They would be very open to a long term lease option or potentially a purchase.” A complete contradiction to a letter signed by over 120 faculty and students who utilize the building. In an excerpt, faculty describes the building as essential:
“These spaces were designed specifically for ABSE and ESL students and paid for in large part by voters who shared Lane’s vision to expand learning opportunities for our student populations in the heart of the city. We felt this decision to lease out our learning spaces did not meet the fidelity of the bond and disproportionately and negatively impacted Lane’s most diverse student populations. We appealed to you during this meeting and asked for an opportunity to discuss student impact. “
Niles described the amount of students the downtown campus serves, “Prior to the pandemic, over 300 students a day came to the second floor of DCA, our former learning space, to attend our morning, afternoon, and evening classes with aspirations for a better life through education: GED, career, college preparation, and English language development.”
Niles said that two weeks after the board promised them a seat at the negotiating table, they were essentially given an eviction notice. They were given two weeks, at the height of the pandemic, to vacate their learning spaces. “On top of that, they had mentioned that they were going to help us move. They were going to hire private movers. They did bring boxes, but there wasn’t anybody to help us,” Indira Bakshi, English as a Second Language instructor stated.
Bakshi elaborated on the difficulties of the space, “I have to double shelve two books, because there’s not enough space for our books. We’re teaching reading skills and our students can’t afford to buy books, and so we buy the books. We don’t have space for them now and everything is crammed into the room, including computers. You can’t even walk across the book room without bumping into computer stations to get to the books.”
Niles said that she is “still waiting for an apology but that clearly isn’t coming.” Both faculty members said that there was no support and no consideration for their needs. The new spaces are unusable, some areas aren’t even finished. They have lost space for critical needs such as tutoring, testing practice, and computer literacy classes. According to Niles this is going to limit their abilities to grow and meet student needs coming out of the pandemic. The temporary lease has created a massive roadblock in long term plans to serve an increasingly diverse student population.
Acting Communications Director of the City of Eugene, Cambra Ward Jacobson, responded to questions regarding the letter from faculty. She states that the partnership has been “exceptional with both agencies centering each other’s needs and interests in all exchanges.”
