City Council Candidate: Ethan Clevenger

Source: https://kval.com/news/local/city-council-candidate-ethan-clevenger#

Housing is the first thing we can do to introduce stability into those folks’ lives and allow them to work on the challenges that they, individually, face.

Ethan Clevenger, City Council Candidate, Ward 1

EUGENE, Ore — On May 21st, voters will have three candidates for Eugene’s Ward 1 City Council seat: Ethan Clevenger, Ted Coopman, and Eliza Kashinsky.

Ethan Clevenger, a small business owner, has been a resident of Eugene for nearly a decade.

Since opening Porterhouse Clothing in downtown Eugene, Clevenger noticed the need for a decisive and proactive voice on the City Council. He’s also the current president of Downtown Eugene merchants.

Clevenger highlighted the need for city leadership to develop more community engagement to address Eugene’s core issues, housing and homelessness, and public safety.

“When folks aren’t housed, then they are sleeping in your parks. They don’t have the support to overcome instability that allows them to deal with potential mental health issues with any drug addiction problems they may have. And those folks, whether or not they actually present a danger to you… present as unpredictable when you’re sharing a park space with them.”

Clevenger adds, “For people with small children and families, that makes parks and downtown feel really inaccessible. It’s not what folks sign up for when they use our public spaces.”

He presented a strategy to invigorate housing development in Eugene, a plan that he believes will significantly improve the city’s housing situation.

“When people look at Eugene as a place to build a life and a career, they’re looking for a variety of housing options, and that’s one piece of the puzzle that I don’t think we’re not putting up right now.”

Clevenger adds, “We’ve put in programs like MUPTI, STC waivers, and construction excise taxes to try and spur some of that development. But, I think there’s work to be done as city councilors to go out and meet with folks who have perhaps blighted lots or lots that are extremely underutilized in those areas and figure out what your blockers are.”