BLOGTOWN

FAKE NEWS. City of Portland

The latest attempt by the public to self-police Portland's homeless population looks... eerily official.

Last night, a city crew discovered numerous orange signs posted to trees and poles near the intersection of SW Caruthers and 5th. The notices, stamped with an official City of Portland seal, threatened arrest to anyone who camps or loiters in that area. They referenced two city codes, one that bans camping in public right-of-ways and another that prohibits structures in public parks.

But these signs didn't come from the city.

E.D. Mondaine, president of Portland’s NAACP chapter, speaks at a rally outside Portland City Hall Wednesday morning. BLAIR STENVICK

At a city council meeting Wednesday morning, commissioners debated an ordinance proposed by Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty, which would make changes to an original ordinance passed by the council last October. The original ordinance requires owners of unreinforced masonry buildings (URMs) to display a sign declaring them unsafe in the event of an earthquake—and to file an agreement with the county recorder’s office, placing a mark on their property titles that could make it difficult for them to receive financing to make structural improvements.

URM owners would be able to remove the placards only after making costly improvements to their buildings. URM owners the Mercury has spoken with have cited estimates for those improvements ranging in the hundreds of thousands for single-story buildings, and up to $1.5 million for a multi-story building.

"It is my belief that we didn't earn the trust of the people that were required to do these upgrades,” Hardesty said at Wednesday’s meeting. “It is my belief that we can do better."

Mayor Wheeler at a Tuesday press conference. Alex Zielinski

"Our elected city officials tout 'fairness', 'transparency', and 'accountability' as cornerstones of city government," writes Portland Police Association (PPA) President Darryl Turner in a statement posted on the PPA's Facebook page. "Yet, with only a small piece of the facts in hand, City Hall has already rushed to judgment and condemned Lt. Niiya."

The Portland Police Commanding Officers Association (PPCOA), the union representing Niiya, has filed two grievances with Portland's human resources department against city commissioners—including Mayor Ted Wheeler—for making public comments criticizing Niiya last week. Wheeler appeared unfazed by the grievance at a Tuesday press conference, predicting the facts would "not bear out" to support the PPCOA's case.

Progress

Posts first started circulating early last week, after a transgender woman was allegedly assaulted in the Buckman neighborhood of Southeast Portland during the early morning hours of Sunday, Feb 10. According to a press release the Portland Police Bureau (PPB) put out today, the woman reported her assault after being transported to a hospital that day.

The woman started a GoFundMe page to help pay her medical bills after the attack, and a police report obtained by the Mercury confirms details listed on the GoFundMe—including that she suffered injuries on her hands and elbows.

The woman declined an interview with the Mercury at this time.
(The Mercury isn’t naming the woman or linking to the page out of respect for her privacy.)