It’s a slow Tuesday afternoon at the Broadway Streatery. Families are enjoying their meals outside, puppies can be heard greeting each other, and a group of skateboarders have found a good spot to congregate without breaking city laws. On a good day, this is the scene Downtown Guides Aaron Kottas and Michael Hopkins get to end their shift with.
The Downtown Guides have served the vibrant and unpredictable neighborhood of downtown Eugene for 30 years, making sure that the area is a safe place for businesses and patrons alike. According to downtown Eugene’s website, they are a part of a not-for-profit association called Downtown Eugene, Inc. that is funded by downtown businesses and property owners who benefit from their public safety efforts. DEI’s executive director, Claire Barnum, says “we do a good job of advocating on behalf of property owners in a way that the city can’t always do…whereas DEI, as a private organization, can.”
Thousands of people take their plans downtown every week and others have no choice but to call downtown their home. Regardless of who is coming into contact with the Downtown Guides, the quality of service will stay the same. Kottas has been with the Downtown Guides for five years and Hopkins just recently joined the team this past March. Both men have had previous experience with security and patrolling jobs, but they feel as if being a Downtown Guide has given them the opportunity to serve and protect their community in ways previous jobs did not allow them to.
For Hopkins, he feels as if being a Downtown Guide has allowed him to help people in a way that genuinely makes an impact. In past roles, he felt like his employers prioritized profit over people, but now, he says that is not the case. “I enjoy helping, and whether that be through dealing with trespassing, taking photos of damage, explaining to business owners what we can and can’t do…for me, it’s just about helping,” Hopkins says.
As the executive director of DEI, Barnum oversees the Downtown Guides as a part of her role. “They work in a really difficult climate,” she says, “and I think it can get draining or a little bit depressing at times. The guides that we have, particularly Aaron and Michael…they just take a tremendous amount of pride in their work, and they desire to do it well…and legitimately want to make a difference in people’s lives.”
With the Downtown Guides being so present in the same areas throughout the week, they begin to form strong relationships with business owners, patrons, and even folks that they have had multiple unfortunate run-ins with. Their strong presence and consistently positive track record has made their jobs worthwhile and once in a while, even directly pays back. “During a bar shift night, a kid swung on our coworker…we started to be circled by everybody,” Kottas says, “all the bouncers from every single bar came out to help us out…it was really nice that we always helped out the bouncers and then they came to our aid when they saw we were definitely in need.”
However, not everyone is a fan of the Downtown Guides. “Being heckled is a job requirement,” Hopkins says as they both walk past a group of teens hurling sarcastic compliments and insults at them. Businesses in downtown Eugene are allowed 8 feet of property in front of their building, so Downtown Guides are required to ask people who are loitering to leave. Since that happens so often, Hopkins says “they just think we’re trying to harass them and just be mean…we’re just trying to make peace with everybody.”
Since the 2016 presidential election, they have even had people yell profanities at them from afar, mistaking their red baseball caps for the infamous “Make America Great Again” hats. Just last summer, when Black Lives Matter protests were at their peak, there were Downtown Guides who had frightening run-ins with protesters and rioters, forcing them to ditch their uniform and start wearing plain clothes.
Too often, people find themselves in trouble with the law because it can be difficult to understand and keep up with. Kottas says “…a lot of communication doesn’t happen that should happen, so we kind of have to fill in that gap.” Other times, people do not have the capacity to follow the law. In those cases, Downtown Guides do their best to have a conversation with them and ask how they can best support the individual. Usually, Kottas and Hopkins call Crisis Assistance Helping Out on the Streets, but if an individual rejects the help, the most they can offer are food suggestions and directions to a city park, where anyone can linger freely.
According to a case study by the Vera Institute of Justice, “CAHOOTS teams deliver person-centered interventions and make referrals to behavioral health supports and services without the uniforms, sirens, and handcuffs that can exacerbate feelings of distress for people in crisis.” Like the Downtown Guides, CAHOOTS is dedicated to serving folks in the least stressful environment possible.
Again, the Downtown Guides are well known for the ways that they treat folks who are breaking the law, intentionally or unintentionally. The de-escalation methods of law enforcement have been critiqued by the public for years now, and more heavily since last summer. Eugene is fortunate enough to have the Downtown Guides to act as a liaison when the police are involved. Kottas says, “being able to handle your stress and quick decision making, I think those are the two most important things that we have, and the ability to control your emotions and not freak out…remaining calm, talking to people in a calm voice really soothes a lot of people and keeps their anxiety as bay.”
