FROM A BLOCK AWAY, I can hear the chanting. “There’s no pity in the Rose City!” echoes down the street, the words punching the summer air. At 6 pm, the game doesn’t begin for another hour, but roughly 60 soccer fans are already scattered around the parking lot across from PGE Park. Most of them–the […]
Phil Busse
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Bureau Bingo
Potter Pulls City Bureau Switcheroo
In his six-month career as mayor, Tom Potter has already driven a few stakes into the ground: He helped lead a vote to withdraw local police officers from the Joint Terrorism Task Force and gained favor with the cycling community by joining a Critical Mass. But his most dramatic leap will take place sometime before […]
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PDC: Pretty Darn Crappy!
Portland Development Commission on the Ropes
Lately it seems about the only thing the Portland Development Commission (PDC) can do effectively is shoot itself in the foot. Over the past month, the leadership at PDC has fallen into a frenzied chaos as questionable contracts, wasteful spending, and calls for reform have swirled around the city agency. The shitstorm began a month […]
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Tilting At Windmills?
Sam Adams vs. Wal-Mart
Late last week, City Commissioner Sam Adams fired off a terse letter to Lee Scott, Wal-Mart’s CEO. He was concerned that Wal-Mart has been steadily pushing forward plans to plop a Superstore in Sellwood, at the corner of McLoughlin and Tacoma. It would be the first such Superstore in Portland. “I write to express my […]
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The Walls Come Tumblin’ Down
Is the Police Bureau’s Wall of Secrecy Finally Ready to Fall?
Two years after Kendra James was shot by a police officer, community members in North Portland are still confused, baffled, and angry. The investigation into the shooting left more questions than answers–mostly because the police bureau has refused to share any information about their investigation or how they came to the conclusion that officer Scott […]
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No Lessons Learned
What Do Cops Have Against Less-Than-Lethal Force?
Six years ago, 29-year-old Damon Lowery from Washington was partying here in Portland. He and a friend had allegedly gobbled down some mushrooms when Lowery began to freak out. Another friend called 9-1-1. When the police arrived, Lowery freaked out even more, eventually leaping through a second-story plate glass window. On the ground, Lowery grabbed […]
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Two Is Not Better Than One
State Senators Split Pro-Gay Bill In Half
When the legislative session began in January, there was a light at the end of the tunnel for gay and lesbian advocates who had been battered by Measure 36 in the November election. At that time, Governor Ted Kulongoski put forward SB1000, a comprehensive bill that promised not only to bring civil unions to the […]
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Behind Closed Doors
New Police Shooting Calls Grand Jury Investigation Into Question
For most people, the news about the police shooting was first heard as a traffic report: Officers had blocked the well-traveled route along W. Burnside during Wednesday morning’s commute. At 6:38 am, 9-1-1 received a call that a middle-aged black man was wildly pacing the street and kicking trashcans. The caller told the police dispatcher […]
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Pride Before the Fall
The Fate of PDC is Up in the Air
Perhaps in the long run, Portland Development Commission’s botched–and still pending–development decision over the Burnside Bridgehead will turn out to be just what the city needed. For years, community leaders have lamented that PDC is a freewheeling agency–more accountable to their own ambitions and egos than the city’s best interests. But what could be considered […]
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Swift and Indecisive
City Council Almost Approves Finance Reforms
Nearly six months have gone by since former mayor Vera Katz abandoned her tenure as mayor and city council member Jim Francesconi left office. Now, as Mayor Tom Potter settles in, the boyishly ambitious council member Sam Adams takes charge of projects, and the other three veteran council members feel out their new freedoms (with […]
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A Shit Storm For PDC
PDC’s Final Decision on Burnside is Only the Beginning
Nearly two weeks ago, Portland Development Commission’s executives made their final decision in the selection for the pending Burnside Bridgehead development: In a move that surprised nearly everyone, they unanimously awarded the $200 million contract to a Minnesota-based company, Opus Northwest. But in the days following that decision, questions about PDC and their selection process […]
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Fearing Only Fear
City Council Votes to Withdraw From Terrorism Task Force
Usually standing ovations are reserved for the symphony and the Schnitzer. But on Thursday evening, after over two hours of public testimony and several months of waiting, city council voted 4-1 to pass a resolution that withdraws Portland’s police officers from the Joint Terrorism Task Force. The outcome was expected–for a moment after Mayor Tom […]