Thank you, TwiloafLents!
Response from "Navigating Through Lents" http://www.oregonlive.com/opinion/index.ssf/2009/06/navigating_through_lents.html
Posted by TwilaofLents on 06/21/09 at 9:18AM
If we hadn't been spoken to like poor "folks," and if we'd been listened to all the times when we were being polite little citizens voicing our concerns, then I'm sure we wouldn't have had to shout to be heard. So many people called, and emailed Randy Leonard, and Sam Adams to try and get good information and were completely ignored. Instead we kept hearing via the media that we were spreading misinformation. Only occasionally could one of us get an answer. My husband called in when Sam Adams was and KBOO one morning and asked if it was true that the stadium plan meant we would lose 177 trees? Sam didn't hesitate to assure him that "There's no way I would support the stadium if it meant cutting down 100 trees." However, at the meeting Randy said the only reason we were unhappy was because people at City Hall had set up a whisper campaign to scare us poor folks into not wanting the deal. The example of one of the lies that "they" were spreading was that we would lose 177 trees, and that just wasn't true. Then, right after Randy said that, the developer for the proposed stadium said we would, in fact, lose 192 trees.
And bless his misguided heart, at the meeting, Randy also told us that if we just quit listening to the bad information and listened to him and to Merritt Paulson and vote to let them have our park for the stadium, that we in Lents would finally have something to point to that we could be proud of. He made the same mistake many people make when trying to "help those who are less fortunate" and that's to assume that we lacked pride. That was a huge mistake. Randy says we were rude to Merritt Paulson, but actually, we applauded Paulson loudly when he assured us that he would abide by our wishes. That was the first reassurance we'd had.
If you (anonymous editorial writer) weren't so obviously into name calling and furthering the stereotypes that Randy Leonard says he is against, and if you wanted to tell the truth about the meeting, you would have included in your article that the meeting settled down, that Lents neighbors shushed the few rude people in the back of the room. You would have mentioned that everyone who presented - all 41 - were well prepared and didn't go over their time limit, that they had come with facts and with pertinent personal stories, suggestions for other places in Lents for the stadium that wouldn't destroy so much of the park, and you would have mentioned how complimentary the committee who had had to "endure" our heckling was. Everyone left with positive attitudes and admiration for the URAC and for PDC who brought us poor slumdogs the information and inquiry, and provided us the chance to ask our questions and voice our concerns that we'd so long been craving.