Tom Peck, FAN members urge other neighborhoods to support fire fee

Presenter: Two powerful personal testimonies from Tom Peck, as Friendly Area board members urge other neighborhood boards to endorse the so-called fire fee. Here’s Tom speaking Nov. 22, 2024, in support of Fire and EMS services:

Tom Peck (Nov. 22, 2024): I had the big one on Sept. 11. And it was the big, big one, heart attack, out of the blue, you know, no warning, just boom. We called 911 and it was 45 minutes between the call and me in the cath lab getting the stent. And they told me, several people looked me in the face and said, ‘Dude, you are one lucky, lucky guy.’ The stars lined up.

[00:00:46] Presenter: Tom said he owes his life to innovation at the city led by Chief (Mike) Caven and Chief (Chris) Heppel.

[00:00:51] Tom Peck (Nov. 22, 2024): So, they’re doing an awesome job.

[00:00:54] Presenter: At the Eugene City Council Jan. 27, Tom Peck:

[00:00:55] Tom Peck (Jan. 27, 2025, public comment): My name is Tom Peck. I’m the co-chair of the Friendly Area Neighborhood. I’m speaking for myself. I just want to say I’m in support of the fire service fee, very in support of it. In 1991, I lived in Berkeley and watched the Berkeley-Oakland Fire burn 2,800 homes. I moved to Grass Valley. I was in 2017 watching the Paradise Fire and saw the aftermath of that.

[00:01:29] In 2020, I was living in Eugene and we watched the Holiday Farm Fire almost burn to Springfield. Had it (the wind) blown another few hours it would have been in Eugene. Wildfire is a major risk to our community. There is no way we can’t pass this fee to support our fire department and as well as the other services.

So I don’t think it’s a matter of whether we can pass it or not. We need to reach out to the neighborhood associations and garner support behind this. And I, for one, and several other people in neighborhood associations are very concerned about the passage of this. So please have the strength to pass it and we will support you. Thank you.

[00:02:29] Presenter: At the Neighborhood Leaders Council Jan. 28, Tom Peck:

[00:02:33] Tom Peck (Jan. 28, NLC): I was at the City Council meeting last night… Many of you were at the meeting last night. I can say that the overwhelming majority of people were in favor of the fire service fee. It’s a small price to pay to have your house extinguished.

[00:02:51] And one person brought up that our fire department hasn’t been upgraded since 1981. They have the same staffing as ‘81. It’s crazy. The number of medical calls has gone up 1,000% since ‘81. They still have the same number of ambulances—I think we got one more recently because of (Rep.) Nancy Nathanson, but, so people were really supportive of that. We don’t want to lose our library and other services.

[00:03:20] And I can say the other part is, I think the overwhelming feeling was: We really support this mayor and our City Council. I think people really felt good that we are working together. It’s not a divisive, you know, ‘We don’t trust the City Council.’ I think people really are looking forward to the next few years working together.

[00:03:42] Presenter: If the mayor and council approve the new fee Feb. 10, one councilor said there could be a referendum. Councilor Mike Clark:

[00:03:50] Councilor Mike Clark (Jan. 22, 2025): I’m aware of people who are getting ready to be able to put this petition out if we choose to pass this. And so it’s a very real reality that we will face. And so I just want my colleagues to be aware of that… And how many signatures is that? Just as a side note.

[00:04:08] Presenter: City Recorder Katie LaSala:

[00:04:10] Katie LaSala (Eugene city recorder): Right now, the referendum process is 5,817 valid signatures.

[00:04:17] Presenter: A witness to some of the West’s most destructive wildfires, with a powerful personal story about his Sept. 11 heart attack, Tom Peck and other Friendly Area Neighbors urge support for a proposed $10 million fee. The final decision could go before Eugene voters in May or June.

[00:04:35] For more details on the proposed fee, see the city website.