UO's sale of apartments not inevitable.Byline: GUEST VIEWPOINT By David Zupan and Daniel Stotter For The Register-Guard Recent news releases from the University of Oregon The University of Oregon is a public university located in Eugene, Oregon. The university was founded in 1876, graduating its first class two years later. The University of Oregon is one of 60 members of the Association of American Universities. reveal a carefully orchestrated or·ches·trate tr.v. or·ches·trat·ed, or·ches·trat·ing, or·ches·trates 1. To compose or arrange (music) for performance by an orchestra. 2. attempt to undermine the majority opinion of the community that the proposed sale of Westmoreland Family Housing is wrong. The UO spin control message is: ``This is a done deal. Don't bother resisting this decision because it won't make any difference.'' We want to assure the community that we can stop the sale of Westmoreland. There are still significant obstacles to the UO proposal and serious flaws in the university's position. Elected officials have raised serious objections, especially after two hours of testimony at a December forum attended by more than 100 people. Numerous campus groups are united in opposition, including the UO Faculty Senate, which twice voted against the sale despite heavy lobbying by university President Dave Frohnmayer. The reputation of this UO administration is tarnished for pushing this misguided mis·guid·ed adj. Based or acting on error; misled: well-intentioned but misguided efforts; misguided do-gooders. mis·guid proposal. Obstacles to the sale include the fact that the UO administration has no legal right to sell Westmoreland. The real property owner, the state Board of Higher Education higher education Study beyond the level of secondary education. Institutions of higher education include not only colleges and universities but also professional schools in such fields as law, theology, medicine, business, music, and art. , may decide at its July 14 meeting at Portland State University not to approve the sale because of strong opposition from community members. Even if the board approves the transfer, many legal and land use limitations may stop UO from selling Westmoreland. Westmoreland is zoned only for public land uses, which means that only a public agency or a nonprofit A corporation or an association that conducts business for the benefit of the general public without shareholders and without a profit motive. Nonprofits are also called not-for-profit corporations. Nonprofit corporations are created according to state law. can use the property. A change to private ownership requires legal rezoning and public input. It also creates another legally challengeable decision. Our organization is prepared to pursue legal remedies A legal remedy is the means by which a court of law, usually in the exercise of civil law jurisdiction, enforces a right, imposes a penalty, or makes some other court order to impose its will. In Commonwealth common law jurisdictions and related jurisdictions (e.g. to demonstrate that the UO's proposed action does not comply with Oregon law. Despite the rhetoric about caring for its students, the UO's plan to sell Westmoreland demonstrates misplaced mis·place tr.v. mis·placed, mis·plac·ing, mis·plac·es 1. a. To put into a wrong place: misplace punctuation in a sentence. b. priorities. A few UO administrators are eager to surrender 406 units of well-maintained, affordable housing in a truly diverse and safe community. Clearly, they are not in touch with the hardships of low- and middle-class students and nontraditional, minority and international student families who find it increasingly difficult to afford higher education. Affordable rents allow diverse populations to attend the UO. Westmoreland also attracts quality graduate students, who enhance the university through teaching and research. Westmoreland costs the UO nothing. By law, university housing is a "self-supporting auxiliary auxiliary In grammar, a verb that is subordinate to the main lexical verb in a clause. Auxiliaries can convey distinctions of tense, aspect, mood, person, and number. ." All costs must be paid from student rent. Westmoreland has retired its debt and now generates surplus revenue. During fiscal year 2005, Westmoreland rent provided $300,000 to pay debt at the newer Spencer View family housing complex. Without Westmoreland, rents at Spencer View would rise, forcing more students into what is already described as a dismal dis·mal adj. 1. Causing gloom or depression; dreary: dismal weather; took a dismal view of the economy. 2. private market for renters. Lower rent at Spencer View and Westmoreland enables the university to further its academic mission by increasing access and diversity and by attracting top graduate students.. Why liquidate To pay and settle the amount of a debt; to convert assets to cash; to aggregate the assets of an insolvent enterprise and calculate its liabilities in order to settle with the debtors and the creditors and apportion the remaining assets, if any, among the stockholders or owners of the student housing that is in significant demand? Even if the proposed sale of Westmoreland would facilitate the proposed basketball arena, it would undermine the academic mission of the university and forever eliminate almost all affordable housing for students and their families. We urge local residents to testify To provide evidence as a witness, subject to an oath or affirmation, in order to establish a particular fact or set of facts. Court rules require witnesses to testify about the facts they know that are relevant to the determination of the outcome of the case. tonight between 6 p.m. and 9 p.m. at the Westmoreland Community Center, 2065 W. 16th Way (off Arthur Street). Those unable to attend can send letters to Eugene Citizens for Affordable Housing, P.O. Box 5031, Eugene, OR 97405. They will be forwarded to the state Board of Education before its July 14 meeting, which we also encourage people to attend. Speak out against the theft of this wonderful public resource. It's the right thing to do. David Zupan is a member of Eugene Citizens for Affordable Housing, and Daniel Stotter is an attorney representing the same orga- nization. |
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