Recently, I was asked what Tom Potter’s mayoral legacy would
be.
My answer should have been something like, “Why the hell are
you asking me? I don’t have any insight—I just write stupid jokes
about him being old!” Frankly, I hadn’t spent much time considering
Potter’s legacy but, as luck would have it, I unwittingly fell
ass-first into a pretty solid answer: Tom Potter’s legacy will be one
of trying to include minority groups and children more regularly in
city decisions. He’s a one-man Up with People.
Of course, this should all be pretty obvious. During his campaign,
he pledged to reach out to the community… and do little else. Nothing
in his nearly three years in office illustrates that more than the
visionPDX project, which was scheduled to go before city council
this Wednesday, September 19. Staffers have been laboring over the
survey materials for months, and now they’ll finally be presenting a
summary of what Portlanders think about Portland—trouble is, no
amount of sweat and sleepless nights will combat the growing suspicion
among city leaders that the project isn’t exactly overflowing with
information they can use. Portlanders want safer bike paths, increased
diversity, more community policing, fewer cop shootings, eco-friendly
development and industry, more jobs, etc.
These nice—if obvious—sentiments won’t result in a list
of projects for commissioners and bureau directors to take on, but they
will undoubtedly be used to justify future projects.
But to hear staffers talk about visionPDX now, one gets the sense
that “actionable” information was never really the primary
goal—the real objective was to reach out to people who normally
don’t talk to the city, like immigrant and refugee groups. In other
words, a perfect Potter project. Even that goal, though, came up short.
The project was initially supposed to hit 100,000 people—the
final tally was more like 13,000.
Whether he succeeded or not, this community outreach is clearly
Potter’s intended legacy; this line from his retirement speech pretty
well sums up his own view of his time in office: “While I have had the
job, the doors to city hall have been opened wider to all people,
particularly those who have been marginalized in the past because of
class or color.” But tangible accomplishments? Not so much.
Curious as to what 13,000 of your neighbors think about
Portland and its future? Here are some highlights from the visionPDX
input summary: “Portlanders imagine a pollution-free future.”
“Portlanders envision all neighborhoods feeling safe.” “Feelings run
strong on the topic of diversity in Portland.” “Religion is a deep and
powerful influence in some people’s lives.”