Primary Election 2022: Former councilor Solomon up against Eugene Ward 4 incumbent Yeh

Eugene City Councilor Jennifer Yeh will be going up against former Councilor Jennifer Solomon in the primary race to represent Ward 4. The ward is located in northeast Eugene, north of the Willamette River and east of Gilham and Oakway roads. Here is a bit about both:

Jennifer Solomon

Jennifer Solomon, a former Eugene city councilor, said she wants to return to be a voice for community members who don't feel like their opinions are currently represented in the council.

"This council listens to the people who show up, but most of the time those people don’t represent the majority," Solomon wrote in an email to The Register-Guard. "To that end, I will actively solicit opinions and advice and questions from citizens, especially those in Ward 4."

Issues and projects Solomon said she's most interested in are addressing homelessness and housing affordability, securing voter approval for the city's Community Safety Initiative payroll tax, and helping grow job opportunities and business in the community.

Homelessness is a topic Solomon said she thinks has not been on the council's agenda enough recently, and said she wants to amplify the work of the Eugene Area Chamber of Commerce by promoting business owners' ideas in council meetings.

"I am personally really concerned about our homeless issue and want to be part of solutions — that's plural because there isn't one solution," Solomon said. "I don't feel like this issue is on council's agenda very much anymore. It should be. The Chamber of Commerce is doing some great work in this area. They've assembled a group of business owners who want to be part of the solutions, too. I hope to advance their proposals at council."

Solomon lives in Eugene with her husband and has two sons who attend OSU. She works as the director of philanthropy at Relief Nursery, an organization she said works to strengthen families and keep children safe. Solomon previously represented the Bethel Danebo area from 2002 to 2010 on the City Council.

Jennifer Yeh

The incumbent, Jennifer Yeh, has represented Ward 4 since 2017, and said she wants to continue to advocate for the issues and people who first elected her to the position. After moving back to Eugene in 2007, Yeh said joining her local neighborhood association and serving on the board, including years as its chair, were important to teach her "how much potential our city has and how valuable our neighbors are."

Those issues she wanted to take to city government include making community engagement equitable and inclusive, supporting affordable housing, investing in public safety and forwarding the city's climate goals.

Completed projects Yeh is most proud of include serving on the city's Community Safety Revenue Team, which recommended the Community Safety Payroll Tax, and work on development and obtaining funding for developing Striker Field, which is in Ward 4. That tax boosted funding for the city's fire and EMS department, services for youth, courts, police and more.

Now and in the next term, Yeh's top priority is increasing the city's supply of housing and especially lower-cost housing, she said.

"We have made good use of current funding sources and added to that with the creation of our own Housing Trust Fund, and this focus needs to continue," Yeh said. "I will continue to collaborate with our community on ways we can encourage and incentivize housing people can afford both to rent and to purchase."

Yeh is the incoming, co-executive director of the Lane County Historical Society, starting in July. Yeh moved to Eugene nearly 30 years ago as a student at the University of Oregon, where she met her husband, before moving away for a few years. Having two half-Asian children, Yeh said it was important to her to live in a community that values diversity and inclusion, "something we believe Eugene strives for."

Louis Krauss covers breaking news for The Register-Guard. Contact him at lkrauss@registerguard.com, and follow him on Twitter @LouisKraussNews.