June 2011
NEWS
Portland voters defeat $548 million bond
measure to repair school buildings
By Lee Perlman
The Southwest Portland Post
Last month Portland voters de-
feated a proposed $548 million bond
measure intended to repair and
replace Portland Public Schools’ ag-
ing buildings. The voters passed a
companion $250 million tax levy that
will partially, but not entirely, offset
budget cutbacks.
What will be the effect of all this
on Southwest schools? According to
Will Fuller, chair of Southwest Neigh-
borhoods, Inc.’s Schools Committee,
the effect of the bond defeat will be
“long-term and indirect.” In con-
trast the budget shortfall, cushioned
though it is by the Levy success, will
be “immediate and direct.”
The bond defeat “means that we
won’t be able to replace Markham
School, and that is disappointing,”
Fuller said. The District had deter-
mined that this building had passed
its useful life, and should be replaced.
For other southwest buildings, the
proposed improvements “tend to be
not so major,” Fuller said.
There are some safety-related
things, some classrooms, repairs to
NEIGHBORHOOD NEWS
South Waterfront Jail
roofs.” The buildings will continue
to deteriorate and the cost of repairs
will grow, but they will not affect this
year’s operations, he said.
The budget shortfalls are another
matter. Here, Fuller said, the District
will have to cut “core staff,” such as
librarians and counselors.
There will be a chance to offset
some of these things through the use
of contributions to local school foun-
dations, Fuller said, but this method
is “uncertain and inequitable.” Ste-
phenson School, for instance, can
count on generating more funds
than Markham, given their relative
demographics.
The District receives a certain por-
tion of such funds, and redistributes
them according to need – which, Full-
er says, typically means “the money
flows from southwest to northeast.”
At best, Fuller said, such funding is
a stopgap. What each parent would
contribute to a Foundation project
“is a fraction of what it would cost to
send your kids to a private school,”
he said. “But there is a tipping point
where you go from adding extras to
an already good school, and where
the problems are so major the contri-
butions are money down a rat hole.”
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The Southwest Portland Post • 7
(Continued from Page 3)
(ICE) program at 4310 S.W. Macadam
Ave., according to City planner Douglas
Hardy. The hearing will begin at 9 a.m.
July 6 at 1900 S.W. Fourth Ave.
An application for the permit by
property owners Lindquist Develop-
ment LLC was deemed complete on
May 9, Hardy told The Post. He will
make a recommendation on the request
to a City Hearings Officer who will
decide the case.
Hardy will accept public input on
the issue through June 13. He can be
reached at 503-823-7816, by mail at Suite
5000, 1900 S.W. Fourth Ave., Portland
Ore. 97201, or by e-mail at douglas.
hardy@portlandoregon.gov.
The public can also testify at the hear-
ing but, Hardy said, the Hearings Offi-
cer has already imposed a three-minute
time limit on such testimony.
Earlier this year the Portland City
Council, on an appeal by the South
Portland Neighborhood Association,
affirmed design approval for a building
expansion at the site. However, Council
also found that 4,000 square feet of the
expanded 65,000 square foot building
constituted a detention facility, and as
such required a Conditional Use permit
with a new review process.
Under the Type III procedure in this
case, either party could appeal the
Hearings Officer ’s decision to City
Council. A recognized neighborhood
association such as South Portland can
bring such an appeal without paying
a fee.
Naturopathic college to dedicate
herb garden
The National College of Naturopathic
Medicine will officially dedicate its new
Zidel Healing Garden at 10 a.m. June
24, according to College spokesperson
Marilyn Considine.
The garden, an 11,000 square foot plot
at Southwest Water Avenue and Woods
Street, is named for the Zidel family,
who contributed $150,000 towards its
development.
It contains herbs that contribute to
natural healing practices, a labyrinth
in the shape of a feng shui mystic knot,
and a teahouse contributed by the So-
kenbicha Tea Company.
The teahouse is “important to our
Chinese students, and to the staff of our
Chinese medicine division,” Considine
said. It is used for tea ceremonies, which
are “a formal way of celebrating with
friends and neighbors. It’s a resource
not just for us but for the entire city.”
Patrick Quinton, Executive Director
of the Portland Development Commis-
sion, will be the keynote speaker at the
dedication, Considine said.
Citizenship Ceremony
(Continued from Page 1)
ecutive officer of Otak, a Lake Oswego
architectural and engineering firm.
Othman and his family immigrated to
the United States from Baghdad, Iraq.
He described himself as an example of
the opportunity America offers new
immigrants. “I came here 54 years ago
when I was one year old,” he said.
“I’m honored to be here. I’m passionate
about America. I’m a student of Ameri-
can history, inclusion, and diversity.”
After the ceremony, the Portland
Guadalajara Sister City Association
sponsored a reception of lemonade and
large cakes decked out with red, white
and blue stars and stripes. The Faces of
America video played in the background
as the new citizens and their friends
waved American flags.
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