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About Street roots. (Portland, OR) 1998-current | View Entire Issue (April 22, 2016)
2 0 1 6 COUNTY COMMISSIONERS RACE Street Roots » April 22-28, 2016 The class Multnomah County commissioner, District 1 MARISHA CHILDS BRIAN WILSON ( folds grew up in Troutdale in the early 1980$ and has lived in District 1 for tht past 11 years. She attended Oregon institute of Technology and graduated from the I nuvrstty of Oregon School of Late. She is a mom, a lawyer, a runner and a small-business owner. Childs is a four-year member of the Reed Neighborhood Association, serving as chair for the past luo wars Shi is the Wilson is an active community leader and volunteer. n„J is a JL * i partner in a — 1 s w // multifamtly housing and medical chmt development company. He is knoivn fin helping get the Sell wood Bridge project on track and leading a multiyear effort to secure stable and dedicated funding for the Multnomah County Library. He is active on several community boards, including tepislahiv ndivtatc fot Ihr Our House of Portland and Cultural Enrichment Committee, Portland Center Stage. As the for tin Winterhavc n Parcnt- farmer Portland Housing Teacher-Student Association and Bureau < ommissitmrr, he says is a board member of the Oregon housing and homelessness an National Organization for key policy areas he has worked Women on for decades. As an attorney Childs has He lives in Southwest Portland worked with youths in with his cat, Ava. and when not dependency and truancy working or volunteering, he proceedings and seniors seeking enjoys time remodeling his home care and housing solutions. and gardening. SHARON MEIERAN jtfriera« is an emergency physician, a former lawyer, a community and public health advocate and a mother. She is also Ihi medical director for the Oregon Foundation for Reproductive Health. She sits on S ' < bw»iw«iO’ Oversight Advisory Board and is a board no m/wr of the I "mty Behavioral Health Center. MEL RADER Rader is a strong progressive dedicated to social justice and defending tht environment. He has a decade of experience, as a political advth ah i hampiomng public health and economic opportunity, and he runs Upstream Public Health, a nonprofit that rest art hes and advocates best practices to address climate change heallh equity and food access. ERIC ZIMMERMAN A/ter graduating from the University of Portland, Zimmerman, entered the Army and Oregon Army National Guard as a second lieutenant. In 2009. he was deployed to Iraq, serving as a platoon leader with distinction, earning the Bronze Sta> Medal and the Combat Action Badge. After serving overseas. Erie returned io Multnomah County -fir s t working to expand job opportunities for returning veterans, then working for County Commissioner Diane McKecl, rtsing to chief of staff. Their office has led the county's efforts on ceottomu development, anti human-trafficking, veterans housing and improving services for those experiencing mental health crises Continuing to serve in the National Guard, holding the rank of captain, he led tin effort to make his unit a national leader in preparing for the lifting of ’‘Don't Ask, Don't Tell” and the restriction on women serving in combat units. * District 1 candidates IVes Soderback and Ken Stcikes did not respond to Street Roots' pop quiz * District 3 candidate Jessica Vega Pederson is running unopposed. * District 4 candidates Lori Stegmann and Amanda Schroeder declined Io participate in Street Roots' pop quiz. Stanley Dirks did Page 7 Pop Quiz! Ï t’s the Multnomah County Commission candidates’ turn to go back to school with Street Roots. Five candidates from District 1 took our pop quiz. Previously, Street Roots featured the Portland mayoral and City Council candidates’ responses to our pop quiz. Read them at news.streetroots.org. -J n What area of the county government are you 1 most interested in working with and why? (100 words or less) What is one solid step you will take to expand affordable housing countywide? (.150 words) MARISHA CHILDS Addressing and eliminating the significant racial disparities that exist in the justice system. There is a culture of tolerance that exists, not only in Multnomah County, but in society generally. Further, there is a culture of placating the one experiencing inequities (“No, I’m sure that’s not what s/he meant”). I am also very interested in the County Food Action Plan, although I am concerned about recent events rendering many ineligible for SNAP. The county m ust ensure seasonal fruits and vegetables are grown around our community (at county buildings) for those who have recently lost SNAP benefits as well as others. SHARON MEIERAN Mental health care. As ah ER doctor, I see how our system fails those m ost in need, and the way we provide “crisis care” often is more traumatizing than healing. I recently saw a youth brought to the ER because he was in serious mental health crisis. He was placed in a typical ER room, with no windows, no school, minimal exercise - and remained there for almost four weeks because there was no place for him to get appropriate treatm ent This is unacceptable. Improving our mental health care system is one of the main reasons I am running for County Commission. MEL RADER I am interested in working with the health system. I have run a public health nonprofit for 10 years, and I serve on the hoard of Health Share, which serves 230,000 Medicaid members in the region. My background is uniquely suited to promote a health system that is more equitable, focused on prevention and able to achieve better results for lower costs. I will prioritize filling the funding gap for mental health and addictions. I will also champion a more community-focused approach to provide services to people on the street and through community organizations in a culturally responsive manner. BRIAN WILSON I have identified three areas where my skill set will be of most value and m eet the most pressing needs of the county: working to get an immediate handle on the homeless crisis by opening more temporary shelters, especially those safe for families; working with other local land use and permitting agencies to expedite additions to housing stock at all levels of affordability; and expanding programs with Department of Community Justice and Sheriff’s Office that address some of the highest negative impacts on our streets: methamphetamines and human trafficking. ERIC ZIMMERMAN The county has a key role to play in many issues, and I believe the three m ost important we face are the following: 1. Developing policies that create economic opportunity and support families struggling today. 2. Addressing the current housing crisis, by supporting permanent housing for homeless individuals and expanding affordable housing development across the community. 3. Increasing our shelter inventory and capacity to provide necessary and vital off-the-street shelter for safety and health while working on an ongoing basis to increase access to services for housing, treatm ent and employment MARISHA CHILDS I ) j Iwould try to negotiate with property owners of vacant buildings (or partially vacant buildings), to at least temporarily allow homeless people to stay there while permanent housing is being built. I understand that one property developer (Menashe) has been open to this kind of idea: This is not a perm anent solution, but at least a temporary fix until the county can develop something more robust. SHARON MEIERAN As we all know, the homeless and housing crisis is complex, and will not be resolved with a simple fix. Therefore, the process'itself is crucially important. One of my greatest strengths is my ability to collaborate with groups and individuals from many diverse backgrounds and experiences to work effectively toward common goals. I applaud the county’s efforts with the A Home for Everyone program. I also support the city and county’s commitment to break down silos that make it difficult to navigate services and create artificial barriers. I strongly support up-front investments in affordable-housing units, and ensuring people have the support they need to stay in their housing once they get i t M EL RADER The root of our housing crisis is income inequality. While large developers make windfall profits off real estate, our home shortage deepens. Solving the problem means moving forward policies that promote rent arid income equality- The first thing that needs to be done is to greatly expand the public investment in affordable housing. I support a significant investment in housing aimed at low-income families, paid for through general obligation bonds by the county. As part of the Welcome Home Coalition, I’ve been proud to See QUIZ, page 8
