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Street roots
Feb. 14, 2014
DIRECTOR'S DESK, fro m page 2
ways, has amounted to the notion that
downtown Portland’s livability is at risk
unless we act how. Right now. We’ve heard
it time and again, year aftet'year. The
British are coming. Damn the torpedoes.
Rush the gates. The Road Warriors and
homeless people are coming to town and
will have a stranglehold on our city.
One of the constant messages to leverage
a mOre robust sidewalk and other quality of ”
life laws has been the skateboard attack at
the Outdoor Store downtown this summer.
A elderly employee was injured badly by a
young man who was presumed to be
homeless. It’s a very tragic story, and at this
point, I would like to find; the kid and throw
him in jail for all the trouble he’s caused.
But let’s be real, it was one incident.
That’s not to say something bad won’t
happenagain. It trill. We live in a city with
more than half a million people. Of course,
We should constantly be Working to deter
violence downtown. What we shouldn’t be
doing is making homeless people Public
Enemy Number One.
Now, if I’ve said it once, I’ve said it a
million dines. Downtown Portland is
thriving. Tourism is at an all-time high, 1
thriving neighborhoods have risen in the
Pearl and South Waterfront, and crime is
down — way down. We are a city on a hill.
When Chief Reese unveiled his proposal
about Portland Prosper, my first thought
was,' that man is going to run for mayor. My
second thought was, did Mayor Charlie
Hales, his direct supervisor, know about
this? My third thought was, does h e actually
have enough gas in the tank to pull it off?
The plan itself has some interesting
aspects that Street Roots" has advocated for,
such as more police officers walking the
streets and coordinated approaches to
housing. It also has elements that felt like it
was drafted by the same interest groups
wanting stricter so-called “quality of life”'
.laws.
_
I decided to do an afternoon’s worth of
•research and talk to sources around the city.
Many of the people I talked with thought
that the mayor probably didn’t know about
Portland Prosper. What difference would it
make if he did or he didn’t? It might just be
the right amount of leverage to pursue a
more aggressive public safety agenda
downtown. Something Hales has highlighted
in pubic speeches.
Then there was th e Thetus Corp., a
downtown tech firm that has volunteered to
work with the police bureau to do a free
analytics for services and strategies on
downtown homelessness. Thetus Corp.,
received funding from In-Q-Tel, a venture
fund set up by the CIA. That’s interesting. I
wonder who its other clients are.
Reese recently had a meeting on his '
schedule with the Thetus Corp., along with
police officer Jeff Myers, a controversial
figure among the homeless and their
advocates. Myers is known on the homeless
front for being a renegade of sorts., His
philosophies include targeting people
experiencing homelessness through the
criminal justice system. He worked closely
with former City Commissioner Randy
Leonard on a range of projects. His
approach to public safety and housing has
been a Criticized by some and lauded by
■others.
So here we have a police chief, unveiling
a program to target downtown
homelessness, out of the blue, at a time
when many believe there’s a leadership gap
at City Hall on the homeless front. How
would the mayor and the rest of City Hall
respond? Is it smart politics?
Will someone emerge from City Hall to
champion the plan? Where will the money
come from? Will other bureaus and
nonprofits be asked to take part? Will Jeff
Myers be overseeing the plan? How will the
Thetus Corp, actually play a role? Does it
mean passing stricter ordinances affecting
the homeless?
There are more questions about Portland
Prosper at this point than there are
answers.
Stay tuned. We’ll find out soon.
Developers pitch ftinds toward R2DToo’s future
S T A F F RE P O R TS
earl District developers want Right 2
Dream Too out of their neighborhood,
so much so that they’re willing to pony
up more than $846,000 toward the homeless
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groups future home.
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This week, Portland City Council postponed
a vote on whether to accept the money, and is
expected to take up the proposal again Feb.
H
19.
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Under the terms of the proposed
agreement, Pearl Hotel Investors LLC, fronted
by developers Homer Williams and Dike
Dame, would pay the city just over $1 million
total for multiple uses. Of that amount,
$142,000 will be used to purchase Lot 7, a
parking lot under the Broadway Bridge once
proposed as new home for Right 2 Dream Too;
The Portland Development Commission
currently owns the lo t
Another cut of the payment, $50,000, goes
to offset parking needs to the nonprofit
REACH, which had an agreement with the city organization for violatingcity code.
By December 2012, the Right 2 Dream Too
for the space.
sudd the city for relief from the fines. Nearly a
The remainder is dedicated to finding a
year later, lawyers for both parties reached a
suitable alternative site for'the homeless rest
settlement agreement City Commissioner
area.
Amanda Fritz, as the freshly anointed ;
“It’s a step forward,” Fritz says. “No one’s
commissioner with the Bureau of
going to say it’s a solution.” ‘
Development Services, signed the agreement
As part of the proposal^ the city agrees to
facilitate the sale of the current Right 2 Dream that would aüow R2DTóo to move to a parking
lot, known as Lot 7, under the Northwest ?
Tod site the high profile lot under the
Lovejoy Street off-ramp.
Chinese Gate — to the PDC. Even with that
That met with considerable blowback from
sale, Right 2 Dream Too would still be allowed
the Pearl District neighborhood, which rallied
to stay on the site until a suitable alternative
against such a move and was reinforced by an
was found, according to the proposal.
offer from developer Homer Williams to find
The agreement also waives the existing
another location. All sides agreed to a 60-day
fines, and puts a halt on any future fines,
window to air out ideas.
assessed by the city for R2DToo’s occupation
What followed was an announcement on
at Fourth'Avenue and Burnside.
Dec. 4 from Mayor Charlie Hales that he had
For the developers, it takes Lot 7 off the
reached an agreement with the-owners of an
table for R2Dtoo. According to the City
empty warehouse at 320 Hoyt Street to lease
Assessor’s office, that property has a real
the property for 15 months to the-homeless
market value of nearly $1.4 million, and is
organization. The announcement came as a
assessed at $172,000.
surprise to both Right 2 Dream Too and Fritz,
The past two years have been a series of
who had brokered the earlier arrangement for
false sta rts betw een Right 2 D ream T ooand
the city.
Lot 7
I It wasn’t to bé. Right 2 Dream Too wasn’t
The organization - a fluctuating group of
about 70 homeless individuals, governed by a
keen on the site, particularly having been left
board of directors — has been on the lot at
out of the negotiations to secure it, and it was
Fourth Avenue and Burnside since Oct. 10,
later dismissed as an option because of the
2011. They have a lease with the property
high cost to make it habitable and due to
owners, but Right 2 Dream Too has to
previous city agreements with the, -
relocate: the property isfor sale, and the city
neighborhood.
has been piling monthly fines on the
“This whole processhas been two steps J.
B
forward and one step back,” Fritz says. “It’s a
complicated situation.”
R2DToo members say a suitable alternative
site would be one that is close to social
services and public transportation, with open
space for tents and connections to water and'
electric service. And they say they want the
proximity to he within 1. 5 miles of the city fe
center, a sticking point that prompted the City
Council’s delay in making a decision.
Mubarak said he is hearing increasing
reports from people on the streets of police
moving campers out of the downtown core. He
said R2DToo hashad to turn away increasing
numbers of visitors to tfifeir rest area.
Wednesday night, Mubarak said they had to
turn away about 75 people who came looking
for a place to stay.
“With the present sweeps going on in the
city, we need to keep being a place where
people chn go,” Mubarak, says. “They’re
sweeping people who don’t haveanywhere
else to go,”
: Despite its tenuous relationship with Cite
Hall and downtown businesses, R2DToo has
operated a low-cost, peaceful shelter area for
more than two years without any tax dollar
support. It has become ad e facto resource
within the homeless service Continuum. Fritz
acknowledged that the services offered by
R2DToo are vital for the community.
“I think it’s here to stay,” Fritz says.
City Hall surplus draws pitch from Housing Bureau
BY JAKE THOMAS
. 'STAFF w r iter
fter years of austere budgets, City Hall
has scraped up some extra cash for the
upcoming budget cycle. Some of it could
go to building affordable housing, aiding
homeless individuals, helping distressed
renters and other initiatives
In December, the Office of Management
and Finance announced that revenue streams
for; the city were pickinglip, generating $6
million in ongoing program funding and $3,3
million in one-time spending. With extra cash
on hand, Portland Mayor Charlie Hales told
bureaus that, unlike past years, they wouldn’t,-
have to make cuts. Hales also announced that
bureaus could even get extra money if it was
to< be directed toward the mayor’s three
priority areas: complete neighborhoods;
homelessness and hunger; and emergency
preparedness.
Seeking to get some of this extra money,
the Portland Housing Bureau has. submitted a
package of proposals asking for $1,85 million
in ongoing funding in addition to $3 million in
one-time funding for programs aimed at
Portland’s neediest.
Perhaps the most significant request in the
package is for $3 million in one-time funding
to, build affordable housing in Portland. If
approved, this funding would come just, as
another source of cash for the bureau is
tapering off. The bureau’s largest source of
direct funding, tax increment financing - a
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method of public financing used to subsidize
infrastructure and redevelopment — is
projectedlo drop by half in coming years.
PHB spokesperson Jaymee Cuti says that
federal funds often have strings attached and
money from urban renewal areas restricts
where housing can be built. However, this
fund, she says, could be used to make, capital
investments in affordable housing virtually
anywhere in the city, particularly near jobs,
schools or natural areas.
Commissioner Dan Saltzman, who oversees
the PHB, says that the money, if approved,
will be used to create or rehabilitate housing
for people making 60 percent of the region’s
median income or lower. He says that the
bureau would prioritize the rehabilitation of
existinghousing.The funds will also likely
target neighborhoods in Northeast and
Southeast Portland, he says.
“Idon’t have a specific neighborhood or two
in mind, but it’s a huge need throughout the
city,” says Saltzman. 1
' John Miller, the executive director of the
Oregon Opportunity Network, supports the
PHB’s funding package, which he says is
particularly welcome after years of budget cuts
ushered in-by the recession. His organization
will be advocating for the PHB’s funding
package during the budget process, he says.
While he supports th e request for more money
for affordable housing, he is concerned that it
might be used in expensive areas, which could
eat up the funds more quickly.^
• As part of the package, the PHB is asking
for $100,000 in one-time funds to support a
series of clinics to be held in North, Northeast
and East Portland operated by renters’ rights
The PHB is also asking for $1 million in
ongomg funding for housing-placement
services and rent assistance to help homeless
individuals move from the street and shelters
into permanent housing. In total, the bureau
hopes that the funding will help 250
individuals. Additionally the PHB is asking for
$350,000 in ongoing funding to increase
capacity at homeless shelters, particularly
those that need more capacity in the winter.
Part of this mohey would go to 211Info
system, which refers individuals to social
services and would help coordinate response
in the event of a natural disaster — to expand
its capacity.
The requested funding package from the
PHB also includes an ask for $500,000 in
ongoing funding to reinstate programs to
transition homeless youth to housing
programs. The PHB expects that 70 youths
will'be served per year with case management
and support. It expects 80 percent of served
youths to move to permanent housing.
However, these are still just requests and
could easily be modified or dropped during the
budget process.
“I would be pleasantly surprised if we got
the whole package through in tact,” says '
Saltzman.