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About The skanner. (Portland, Or.) 1975-2014 | View Entire Issue (May 8, 2013)
WWW . THESKANNER . COM M AY 8, 2013 P ORTLAND , O REGON V OLUME XXXV, N O . 31 25 CENTS For The Skanner news alerts Text "NEWS" to 503-715-0890 or scan this QR code C HALLENGING P EOPLE TO S HAPE A B ETTER F UTURE N OW Gun Bills DOA in Salem DRESS FOR SUCCESS Weapon turn-in offers $150 grocery card, no questions asked PHOTO BY SUSAN FRIED F our gun bills have been sent back to committee for more work because they don’t have enough votes to pass the Oregon Legislature. Meanwhile, county and city leaders are taking action aimed at reducing gun deaths. Multnomah County Commissioner Deb Kafoury spoke at a press conference Mon- day, to announce the first Ceasefire Oregon gun turn-in of the year. Anyone who has a gun they don’t want can exchange it for a gift certificate of up to $150, with no ques- tions asked. “Multiple statistics show that people are not safer with a gun in their home, and there have been too many tragedies when a child accidentally fires a gun or is shot by one,” Kafoury said. “I ask anyone who has a gun to please, please turn it in.” The gun turn-in is just one of several local efforts aimed at reducing shooting deaths and injuries. Last month, Multnomah Coun- ty Commissioners unanimously approved an ordinance that: prohibits firing a gun within the county; bans possession of a loaded firearm in public; makes it a crime not to report the theft of a gun; makes it a crime to allow a child to hold a gun without the owner’s permission; and sets a 7 p.m. curfew for youth convicted of a gun offense. At the Ceasefire rollout, Kafoury said she believes Oregonians have reached a turning point in the conversation on gun violence. But if political leaders in Multnomah County are willing to act, the Oregon Legis- lature is dragging its feet. Four proposed gun bills have been sent back to committee for more work because they lack the votes to pass. Senate Bill 700, Universal background checks—would close loophole to require background checks for gun shows and pri- vate gun sales. Senate Bill 347: Gun-Free Schools – Allows school districts to prohibit guns on campus. Senate Bill 699: Guns in Public Buildings Deona Waters, a staff member at dress for Success Oregon does everything from sorting clothes to helping women find outfits for job interviews. A $200,000 grant from Bank of America will help the nonprofit pay for two additional staff, and leadership training. A Business Suit is the Beginning More than 200 volunteers have built a network to help women By Helen Silvis Of The Skanner News I f you want to get a job, you have to look the part. But many jobseekers don’t have a closet full of interview outfits. That’s where Dress for Success can help. Last year the volunteer-powered non- profit helped 1,500 women build a wardrobe of clothes to wear to interviews, and on the job. “It starts building their self- esteem so they truly feel and look the part,” says Barb Attridge, who co-founded the Oregon branch of Dress for Success in 1999. “Then they can go out and get that job.” Now a $200,000 grant from Bank of America will help the nonprofit fulfill its mission of helping women move out of poverty and into paid employ- ment. The grant will pay for two additional staff and it comes with leadership train- ing. “We’re going to have a big- ger impact and we’re going to help more women,” Attridge says. “We’re really excited about this partnership.” The timing is perfect, Attridge says, because the nonprofit has been expanding its services and plans to open a new career center, named after activist and former state Rep. Patricia Whiting. “Our mission is to move our clients out of poverty and into independence,” she said. “It’s not just about finding a job, but finding a career, a way they can truly support them- selves and their families.” Soon after Dress for Success opened its doors, Attridge said, staff and volunteers real- ized that many of the women they served could easily get stuck in work that provided a bare subsistence. Some had never finished high school and needed a GED. Most needed support to get to the next level. About 80 percent are single parents. “We realized we needed to go deeper with the programs See SUCCESS on page 3 See GUNS on page 3 INDEX News .................2,3,10 Opinion ..................4,5 Finance .....................6 A & E ......................7,8 Bids/Classifieds ...10,11 Housing Authority Notification Snafu Rent rise at New Columbia creates big scare for Section 8 renters Lisa Loving Of The Skanner News A couple dozen New Columbia resi- dents with Section 8 housing subsidies had a bad shock last week: They received letters informing them their rent is going up by as much as 50 percent. Luckily, the letters were wrong. “Here is what’s happening: We are raising apartment rents at New Columbia for some of the apartments — that is not the same thing if someone’s on Section 8 as the ten- ant portion of that rent payment going up,” said spokesperson Shelly Marchesi. For project-based Section 8 renters, the rent goes up but the amount the renter pays – based on their income – stays the same unless their income has changed. “This was not explained in the letter, which really frankly we should have done a much better job explaining this in the letter,” Marchesi says. The issue came up last Monday when a woman called The Skanner News to report she had received a letter from Home For- ward’s Guardian Management informing her that the rent was jumping from $800 to See RENT on page 3
