May 7, 2010:NWLP
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May 18, 2010
Oregon Primary Election
Recommendations From The
NW Oregon Labor Council
U.S. R EPRESENTATIVE
DAVID WU, 1st District
G OVERNOR
JOHN KITZHABER
Building trades’ Mohlis has to recuse
himself from vote on PDC office lease
John Mohlis, a commissioner on
the Portland Development Commis-
sion, has had to recuse himself from
voting or even discussing whether or
not PDC should move from its head-
quarters in Old Town Portland.
“I’ve never had to do this before,”
said Mohlis, who is executive secre-
tary-treasurer of the Columbia Pacific
Building and Construction Trades
Council. “But I understand how it
could be looked at as a conflict of in-
terest. When PDC’s attorney came to
me and explained the situation, I re-
ally couldn’t argue the point.”
The issue revolves around PDC’s
office space. Its lease in Old Town is
set to expire Aug. 30, 2011. PDC has
been downsizing its staff of 155 (most
are members of AFSCME) and no
longer needs as much space. Several
developers and commercial property
owners have solicited the Commission
to relocate to one of their properties.
One of those pitching PDC is TMT
Development Co., owner of the unfin-
ished Park Avenue West Tower in the
heart of downtown Portland.
S UPERINTENDENT OF P UBLIC I NSTRUCTION
SUSAN CASTILLO
Portland-based Carpenters Local
247 placed under supervision
C ITY OF P ORTLAND
Commissioner Position #2
NICK FISH
Portland-headquartered Carpenters Local 247 has been taken over temporarily
by its parent organization, United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners of Amer-
ica (UBC). UBC General President Douglas McCarron has appointed Western
District Vice President Michael Draper to supervise the local, assisted by Western
District representative Jim Gleason.
Explaining the decision, McCarron cited financial irregularities and charged lo-
cal union officers with failing to fulfill their duties, detailing the charges in an
April 12 letter to members that is posted on the Local 247 web site, www.
ubc247.com.
UBC got involved after receiving complaints from one or more Local 247
members. Gleason was assigned to conduct an initial investigation, and issued a re-
port March 19. A March 29 report by a certified public accountant also found sig-
nificant deficiencies in financial procedures, McCarron said in the letter.
All of Local 247’s elected leaders have been suspended from office, pending a
hearing to be conducted by the UBC, which will be open to members and officers.
Local 247 had 1,239 members as of its latest filing with the U.S. Department
of Labor.
Commissioner Position #3
DAN SALTZMAN
M ULTNOMAH C OUNTY
Board Chair
JEFF COGEN
Commissioner Dist. 2
TOM MARKGRAF
Sheriff
DAN STATON
M ETRO C OUNCIL
Owner Tom Moyer had to stop
construction on the 33-story tower in
April 2009 after the Great Recession
dried up construction loans. The stop-
page pushed a lot of union construc-
tion workers onto the unemployment
line.
TMT now needs PDC to commit to
a long-term lease for three floors in
order to qualify for a loan that would
restart the project. [All that’s there
now is a large hole in the ground.]
With unemployment in the construc-
tion industry as high as 40 percent in
some crafts, restarting construction
would put lots of people back to work.
A conflict of interest emerges for
Mohlis because as head of the build-
ing trades council, union locals pay
per capita taxes based on member-
ship. An increase in membership
would mean an increase in per capita
to his council.
Mohlis knows what he would like
PDC to do, but he can’t talk about it.
The commission said April 28 that
it will make a final decision on wheth-
er or not to stay in Old Town at its
meeting May 12.
Elizabeth M. Bedsole, LMT
Lic. #16064
...massage for every body...
(503) 960-3631
10% discount for all union members
President
REX BURKHOLDER
Councilor, District 1
DUKE SHEPARD
Councilor, District 3
KATHRYN HARRINGTON
Clackamas County
Commissioner, Position #5
JIM BERNARD
Commissioner, Position #3
ANN LININGER
W ASHINGTON C OUNTY
County Commission Chair
DICK SCHOUTEN
Oregon Legislature
(contested races only)
Senate District 24
ROD MONROE
House District 44
TINA KOTEK
Authorized and paid for by the Northwest Oregon Labor Council
1125 SE Madison St., Portland, OR 97214
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NORTHWEST LABOR PRESS
MAY 7, 2010