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About Street roots. (Portland, OR) 1998-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 28, 2016)
Street Roots • Oct. 28-Nov. 3, 2016 Editorial Affordable housing an asset to the whole community Page 3 Write in ■you would like Sydney Linden is the development manager with JOIN, which works to get people into permanent housing. BY SYDNEY LINDEN CONTRIBUTING COLUMNIST r | Ahis November, I will be voting yes on measure 26-179 - a historic affordable housing bond A that will provide thousands of Portland families and seniors with homes they can afford and the opportunity to live better lives. In my professional life, I have witnessed the overwhelming need for access to more affordable housing options in our community through mY WOrk at a local nonprofit organization called JOIN. It’s my own family’s story, however, that is at the heart of why voting yes for this measure is deeply personal and fills me with hope. My mom, Kathleen, was born and raised in Colorado and worked outside the home from the time she graduated from high school until she retired at 62. She put herself through college while raising kids and working full time, built a career, and made meaningful contributions to society. Like a lot of women, she was also the primary caregiver for several members of her family. In fact, my mother’s life is a series of loving stories about the people she cared for and nurtured without much help or reward. My mom raised my sister and me by herself. She took care of my grandmother when she went blind and could no longer live alone. She moved across the country when my sister needed help getting her master’s Kathleen Linden degree, happily taking time off work to become a “grandma nanny” to her beloved grandson. And when my aunt became ill with a chronic and ultimately fatal disease, my mom moved in and took care of her until my aunt died at home surrounded by the mountains she loved. After my aunt’s death, my mom decided to move to Portland to be closer to me. Despite having worked all her adult life, her social security doesn’t amount to much - definitely not enough to rent an GUEST COMMENTARY apartment in Portland. Together we filled out hundreds of pages of paperwork and signed her up on every waiting list for subsidized senior housing in town. A few months later, her name came up and she had the option of two apartments: one in Northeast Portland with a great bathtub and one in Southeast Portland with a balcony. She chose the balcony and in May of 2012, moved into her little studio apartment with big windows and a great view of the west hills. We were lucky. Four years ago there was far more availability and the waiting lists for subsidized senior housing weren’t as long. Today, the mothers, fathers and grandparents like my mom who apply for this type of housing might have to wait years before there is an available apartment For families with children, wait lists can be even longer, and the hope of ever having truly stable housing can seem more like a fantasy. At JOIN, we see hundreds of people every year who are homeless for no other reason than the lack of affordable housing. People who are on a fixed income or working multiple jobs and taking care of families simply cannot afford rent and life’s other expenses in Portland. Too many of our neighbors live on the edge, paying higher and higher rents every month until they topple over that edge into homelessness. The situation is tragic and the need is staggering, which is why I’m so excited about Measure 26-179. It’s a big step in the right direction . of making sure that our community is a place that everyone can afford. My mother took care of people for 45 years. And now Portland takes care of her by guaranteeing she won’t ever pay more than 30 percent of her income toward rent. With her affordable apartment, my mom’s Social Security is enough to have a good quality of life in Portland. She can pay her rent and bills, buy decent quality groceries, hit a garage sale or two, and take her daughter out for a burger. She can focus on her health, her volunteer work, her friendships and her family. It also gives my sister and me the stability and peace we need to meet the challenges of our own lives, instead of having to worry if our mother can make the rent next month. Affordable housing transforms the health, well-being and happiness of entire families - trust me, I know. Please, vote Yes for Affordable Homes - Measure 26-179 - by November 8. Street Roots’endorsement affirmations Measure 100: Yes Prohibits purchase or sale of parts or products from certain wildlife species; Measure 26-185: Yes Amends charter review committee exceptions; civil penalties convening timelines support services for Oregon veterans Multnomah County measures City of Portland measures Meme 97: Yes Measure 26-181: Yes Amends charter; extends term limits to three consecutive ■easure 26-179: Yes Bonds to fund affordable housing terms Measure 26-180: Yes Statewide measures Measure 96: Yes Amends Constitution: Dedicates 1.5 percent of state lottery net proceeds to Increases corporate minimum tax when sales exceed $25 million; funds education, health care, senior services Measure 98: Yes Requires state funding for dropout prevention, career aid college readiness programs in Oregon high schools Measure 99: Yes Creates Outdoor School Education Fund, continuously funded through lottery, to provide outdoor school programs statewide Measure 26-182: Yes Amends charter; commissioners may run for chair midterm without resigning Measure 26-183:Yes Amends charter; changes elected sheriff position to appointed department head Measure 26-184: Ycsj Limits contributions, expenditures; requires disclosure in county candidate elections appointment process, sets appointment, ■have Bmething / VK / \ A——\ wt you’ve Bitten published cS A \ JR / in our pages» or would X a / like to get involved as a member of our reporting staff, contact Managing Editor Joanne Zuhl at 503-228-5657, joanne@streetroots.org. We ask that all submissions include the author’s name and contact information, W if available. Street Roots 211 NW Davis St Portland,OR97209 503 228 5657 Fax: 503-227-3117 " . www.streetroots.org www.news.streetroots.org Hours: 7:30 a.m.-3p.m. Mon.-Fri., 7:30 a.m.-2 p.m. Sat. and 7 30-11 am. Sun. Advertising Interested in advertising in Street Roots? Contact Israel Bayer at israel@$treetroots.org Staff Executive Director Israel Bayer israel@streetroots.org Managing Editor Joanne Zuhl joanne@streetroots.org Vendor Program Director Cole Merkel cofe@streefroots.org Operations Director Sarah Beecroft Development Director Sarah Cloud Program Assistant Meghann Van Pelt, Jesuit Volunteer Development Assistant Patricia Romero Reporters Wily Green, Suzanne Zalokar, Sarah Hansell, Leonora Ko, Jared Paben, Amanda Waidroupe, Stephen Quirke Photographers Diego Diaz, Joe Glode Editorial Assistant Monica Kwasnik Canvasser Desmond Hardison Board of Directors Chairman Brad Taylor Vice-Chairman Rachel Langford Treasurer Heather Stadick Secretary Dan Jones Directors Rich Rodgers, Michael Anderson, Leo Rhodes, Sandra Hahn, John Brown, Marcus Swift Volunteers Jan Bayer, John Barker, Stacey Heath, Anjali Rathore, Zoe Klingmann, Haven Herrin, Dan Jones, Dennis Hogan, Tom Wright, Judy Taylor, Karen Allen, Monica McKune, Susan Wolfe, Lucas Hawthorne, Thomas Buell Jr., Jeanie Lunsford, Yasmin Amirsoleymani, Jason Cohen, Tom Ray, Doug Spangle, Susannah Kamala, Jon Raymond, Hilary Smith, Diana Richardson, Cherie Manning, Paul and Madeline Gefroh, Mary Anne Joyce and Faye Powell. If you're interested in volunteering with Street Roots, please submit a volunteer application at streetroots.org/volunteer. Or you can call our volunteer coordinator for more information at 503-228-5657.
