In the wake of a police report suggesting that African Americans were being excluded at a higher rate than Caucasians in Portland’s Drug-Free Zones [“Black Exclusion Zones,” News, March 8], the police bureau has released new, significantly more balanced numbers, claiming the first stats were a mistake. According to the bureau, an error in the […]
Randy Leonard
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Hall Monitor
Doling Out the Green
Enviro-entrepreneurs rejoice! This is your lucky day. Remember all those times city council said they wanted to help wean the city from fossil fuels, and kick start a biofuel economy here? Turns out, they weren’t kidding. On Tuesday, March 20, the Office of Sustainable Development handed out $450,000 in grants to five biodiesel-related businesses, from […]
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Hall Monitor
Dead Zones
Exactly one year ago this week, on March 15, 2006, city council voted to renew Portland’s controversial Drug- and Prostitution-Free Zones for another year, inserting new protections aimed at balancing neighborhood safety with civil liberties. In case you don’t have a calendar in front of you, that means it’s time for council to revisit the […]
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Show Me the Money!
Does Potter Lack the Cash to Pass Charter Reform?
Since last week, money has been pouring in to fund the charter reform debate, but so far, it appears to be largely one-sided—and Mayor Tom Potter’s pro-strong mayor campaign is coming up short. So far, Portlanders for Accountability—one of the groups opposing the government charter change—has reported bringing in $34,000, all from unions like Laborers’ […]
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Hall Monitor
Busting the budget
For the past two weeks, city council has been embroiled in budget hearings like a five-headed municipal Santa Claus, poring over the list of who’s been naughty and who’s been nice. Unlike all the meager years past, though, when most bureaus were handed sacks of coal, the city actually has some money this year, making […]
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Hall Monitor
Team Potter
For weeks, the backers of Mayor Tom Potter’s charter reform package have stayed silent, except for a peep here and there from the ever-popular thinkers at the Portland Business Alliance (PBA) and the Oregonian. PBA board member Sho Dozono helped scrape up money for a poll, but so far it hasn’t been released. Last week, […]
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Hall Monitor
Sweat Stains
Braving cold gusts and the threat of rain, around 100 activists rallied in front of city hall Monday morning to send a message to the city commissioners: Stop buying products from sweatshops! (There was also some Spanish in there, but I’m as monolingual as I am glib.) Unfortunately, Monday happened to be Presidents’ Day, and […]
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Double Trouble
Graffiti Explodes: Will Spray Paint Be Outlawed?
On a Saturday night in January, vandals attacked the Creston-Kenilworth neighborhood in Southeast Portland with spray paint, tagging light poles, utility boxes, and blank walls. The spray painters—who were tossing up “LMV X3,” graffiti that stands for the Loco Mafia Varrio 13 gang—also took their spree a step further, tagging houses, garages, and even cars, […]
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Hall Monitor
The Bitch is Back
The one inescapable insight gleaned from last Wednesday’s city council hearing/public squabble over sending charter reform to the ballot: Democracy is a tedious bitch. It is, at least, when lawmakers fail to hammer out their details and differences before bringing them to the public. In this case, Commissioners Erik Sten and Randy Leonard weren’t about […]
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Welcome to Potterloo
Mayor Makes a Stand for More Power—But Has He Already Lost the Battle?
Should the City of Portland be run by one person, with power over all bureaus and city functions? Or should it stay like it is, with the city divided up among elected commissioners? Portlanders will have a chance to decide this coming May, but if history is any indication, voters have already given a very […]
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Potter’s Pearl Necklace
Lobbying Reports Reveal Gifts for City Officials
City officials’ fourth-quarter lobbying reports—indicating any gifts received from October through December—were due on January 16. Maybe Tom Potter didn’t get the memo? His assistant was still negotiating with the city auditor’s staff on January 25 (the deadline for any report amendments) about Potter’s as-yet-unfiled report. It seems Potter’s info had to be submitted from […]
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Strong Mayor to the Ballot!
Sam Adams Votes For Charter Referral
On Tuesday, January 23, City Commissioner Sam Adams announced he will be voting to refer the Charter Review Commission’s recommendations to the ballot this May, setting the stage for a springtime battle over Portland’s longstanding—and unique—form of government. Portland is the last city of its size to still have a “commissioner” form of government, in […]