Students assessed current infrastructure gaps, community beliefs and needs, and the politics of redesigning streets to accommodate multimodal transportation in the region. By impacting the physical, cultural, and systemic environments, students believe LTD could further connect their service to bike infrastructure. For example, mapping studies identified gaps in bikeshare service while community engagement recorded community members’ feelings and needs surrounding bikeshare and infrastructure. Students also used policy studies alongside street redesigns to identify areas with the greatest street improvement needs, generating proposals to encourage future infrastructure improvements. In addition, one group looked at the existing transit system through an equity and access lens and advocated for prioritizing marginalized neighborhoods in transportation planning and addressing network barriers for people with disabilities.

To support this transition, a Capstone team of graduate students from the University of Oregon was tasked with a six-month applied research project to inform the WAC’s long-term reopening and financial sustainability. The team’s deliverables included:
– A User Needs Assessment based on stakeholder interviews
– An Operational Expense Model and Budget informed by case studies and site visits
– A Fundraising Strategy designed to support phased redevelopment and ensure future viability

The WAC, originally constructed as an elementary school, spans approximately 26,610 sq. ft. and consists of a gymnasium, multiple classrooms, offices, a courtroom/conference room, and shared common spaces. These spaces historically hosted social service providers such as the Oakridge Food Box, Women’s Space, and Senior and Disabled Services; government agencies such as the Lane County Circuit Court, Department of Motor Vehicles, and City of Oakridge Council meeting; and youth services such as Head Start and Latch Key. Notably, the WAC Fundraising Group and the City of Oakridge have been awarded $6.4million in federal, state, and philanthropic funding to support current and future renovation phases, with goals to reopen the facility in 2028.

CAMPAIGN OBJECTIVES
1. Raise Awareness about the real dangers on Salem’s roads.
2. Promote Responsible Driving through relatable, emotionally resonant messaging.
3. Prevent Future Tragedies by encouraging community-wide adoption of safer habits.

RECOMMENDATIONS
Building on the deliverables provided in the report, students recommendations for the Salem Police Department include:
• Activate the social media strategies, including the “One Text, One Story” video series and the Distracted Driving AR Quiz Challenge.
• Coordinate and implement the “Walk for Every Life Lost,” fostering community participation and emotional resonance.
• Launch the sidewalk sign contest and strategically place signs in identified high-risk areas.
• Integrate the established brand guidelines across all SPD communication channels to ensure consistency.
• Establish ongoing partnerships with Salem-Keizer Schools and local organizations for continuous engagement.
• Regularly evaluate and adapt communication strategies based on community feedback and engagement metrics.
• Continuously utilize emotional storytelling to reinforce safe driving behaviors.
• Seek further funding opportunities through ODOT and national safety grants.
• Consider hiring or designating a communications specialist to ensure sustained engagement and effective message dissemination.

What sets this campaign apart is its community-first approach. Rather than merely enforcing traffic laws, the campaign recommends actively involving residents, from new teen drivers to parents, in creating a safer driving culture. The campaign aims to make traffic safety a shared community value by sharing real stories and building local partnerships.

Ultimately, this campaign is not just about communication; it’s about connection. When people feel personally invested, they’re more likely to act. We can save
lives by making Salem’s roads safer for everyone.

While LTD is a government entity funded by tax payers and state and federal resources, many community members are underutilizing or unaware of LTD transportation services. Our organization is searching for ways to engage demographics underutilizing LTD’s services and involve the Lane County community in the development process for Connect 2045.

Groups conducted extensive background research and gained a deeper understanding of LTD’s long term goals by meeting with LTD staff several times throughout the term. Through this process, students identified two major barriers for community members in accessing services: lack of awareness surrounding LTD services and negative stigma regarding safety and sanitation in public transportation.

Students proposed solutions that prioritized a community centered approach, leveraging community partnerships to dismantle negative stigmas that threaten the longevity of LTD. The two primary solutions were to gamify LTD services and implement educational outreach programming focused on reaching older adults, sorority members, University of Oregon (UO) first-year students, Lane Community College (LCC) and Bushnell University students, and high school students in Lane County. Each group created specific tactics and implementation strategies to implement prior to the launch and throughout development of LTD Connect 2045. By maintaining regular pathways for community engagement early on in this process, students sought to provide LTD with adaptable solutions that could be adjusted as operational changes are implemented. As these tactics develop, students aimed to create long-term relationships with community  members and sustained support for public transportation.

Students conducted a large-scale survey that yielded over 500 responses and used segmentation tools to create six distinct consumer profiles that informed a set of targeted action plans designed to appeal directly to each audience through low-cost, practical marketing tactics. Beyond segment-specific strategies, three broader recommendations were proposed to enhance Oakridge’s overall marketing capabilities. These included a refreshed branding identity complete with logos, taglines, and design guidelines; an influencer marketing strategy to amplify Oakridge’s digital presence; and a community coupon book initiative intended to drive local business traffic. Together, these strategies offer a marketing roadmap that the City of Oakridge and community partner organizations can utilize to improve quality of life for Oakridge residents now and in the future.

Based on the student evaluations completed in this report, the greatest impacts to the Oakridge community anticipated from the presence of the proposed quarry include:
• Changes to views of the landscape, which could be seen from all areas of the city;
• Potential noise disturbances, as loud as a vacuum, which could be heard in the Mill River Park area;
• Disturbance of an existing elk grazing site, though not to prime migratory corridors; and
• Potential localized landslides, which impact the historic landfill and could potentially result in new or increased impacted drainage from the historic landfill area (the latter statement is not supported with modeling or sample results).

Further assessment by qualified professionals is recommended to consider the severity of the potential impacts listed above. Additionally, the authors wish to note that sampling of the historic landfill area and establishment of a surface and groundwater monitoring program would aid in building trust between Stonebroke LLC and the community of Oakridge.

Based on the survey results, the Engaged Journalism class compiled the following observations about residents’ passion for their community yet frustration with their fragmented local news environment:
• Residents rely heavily on Facebook and word of mouth to stay informed, while expressing deep displeasure with the bias, misinformation, and drama that often characterize those spaces.
• The Highway 58 Herald—one of the few dedicated local outlets—is seen by many as inconsistent in its coverage, too narrow in its perspectives, or lacking in trust.
• There is no single, go-to platform or publication that residents consistently trust for reliable, up-to-date civic information.
• Survey participants cited urgent needs for more frequent reporting, better coverage of community events, and a desire for professional, unbiased local journalism rooted in the lived realities of Oakridge residents.
• Physical third spaces like cafés, grocery stores, the library, and bulletin boards remain important sources for shared information—but access is uneven, and not all residents benefit equally.
• Civic hub collaboration to foster local partnerships

Oakridge residents desire a more inclusive and accessible civic infrastructure. When reliable information is limited
to those who are digitally connected, socially networked, or already engaged, it deepens community divides. Not only does Oakridge need stronger coverage, but it would greatly benefit from a shared system of communication that is representative, trustworthy, and available to all.