Why I Love Eugene Oregon

---

I’ve lived a lot of lives, but this chapter belongs to Eugene, Oregon. For a small city, Eugene punches wildly above its weight. On fall Saturdays the whole state seems to tilt toward Autzen Stadium, home of the Oregon Ducks, one of the most recognizable college football programs in the country. The Ducks are a true national brand, sending quarterbacks and skill players into the NFL and playing on the biggest stages in college football. When the lights come up at Autzen and the crowd roars, it feels less like a local game and more like everyone in Oregon is there.

For a so-called college town, the music scene is astonishing. The Oregon Bach Festival has grown from a small summer experiment into an internationally known celebration of Bach and his musical descendants. Chamber Music at Beall brings world-class string quartets and soloists into an intimate hall on the University of Oregon campus, a space with warm acoustics that feels designed for exactly the kind of small-scale, human-sized music I love. When I want to “go for baroque,” I don’t have to leave town.

Downtown, the Hult Center for the Performing Arts anchors the cultural life of the city. Built in the early 1980s as part of a civic push to revitalize Eugene, the Hult’s glass lobby opens into the 2,400-plus seat Silva Concert Hall with its basket-weave ceiling, and the smaller Soreng Theater, an intimate 500-seat space that brings audience and performers almost into the same room. Between the Hult, Beall Hall, and the university’s music programs, it’s possible to hear everything from Bach and Handel to new works and touring Broadway shows without ever getting on a plane.

Just a short walk away, Fifth Street Public Market and the surrounding streets offer an urban village of restaurants, coffee shops, small shops, and gathering spaces. On a good evening the patios and courtyards are full, lights are strung overhead, and it feels like a little city within the city. You can meet a friend for dinner, wander through the market, and still be only minutes from the river, campus, or home.

Eugene is also Track Town USA. Hayward Field has hosted multiple U.S. Olympic Trials and some of the world’s best athletes; Steve Prefontaine’s legacy still hangs over the place, from the Prefontaine Classic to the informal pilgrimages runners make to Pre’s Rock. Nike’s story began on Oregon tracks, and you can feel that history every time there’s a meet in town. For someone who once ran track in high school, it is comforting to live in a city where running is part of the local identity.

Eugene is also a good place to think and act politically. Two hours up Interstate 5, Portland has become a national symbol of massive street protests against the Trump-era imperial presidency and broader assaults on democracy. Ideas, organizing energy, and visiting speakers constantly move back and forth between Portland and Eugene. You can stand in a crowd of thousands in downtown Portland when it matters, then be back in a quieter Eugene neighborhood the next day, turning those experiences into writing, organizing, or legal and policy work. That same proximity also puts world-class medical care within reach through Oregon Health & Science University in Portland, which serves patients from across the nation.

Day to day, what I love most is how livable Eugene is. The Willamette River literally runs through it, with parks and bike paths lining the banks. There are pockets of genuinely good food and coffee, especially around the university district. The University of Oregon’s law school sits in one of the most striking modern buildings on any campus, a reminder that serious ideas live here alongside sports and art. The city feels safe, friendly, and human-scaled: big enough to have a symphony, an opera company, and serious music festivals, small enough that you still run into people you know at the grocery store. When I need to widen the lens, the Pacific coast is a short drive to the west, and the mountains and Shakespeare Festival in Ashland are a longer but still manageable trip south.

For Democracy4All and for my own writing and advocacy, Eugene is the right home base. It is close enough to Portland to feel the shock waves of national politics and protest, but far enough away to think clearly, build something durable, and stay grounded in community life. It’s a place that believes in public institutions, in education, in the power of arts and sports, and in the idea that ordinary people can still shape their community. What better place to fight for democracy and a livable planet than a small city with a big heart, a river running through it, and Bach, Pre, the Ducks, Autzen Stadium, the Hult Center, Fifth Street Market, and the long reach of Portland’s activism all sharing the same civic stage?

New here? Learn About James Olmsted and James Olmsted's Vision. Then Contact Your Elected Officials!

Last Updated: November 24, 2025