First impressions New Blazers scrambling to make their mark — SEE SPORTS, B10 PortlandTribune THURSDAY, OCTOBER 8, 2015 • TWICE CHOSEN THE NATION’S BEST NONDAILY PAPER • PORTLANDTRIBUNE.COM • PUBLISHED TUESDAY AND THURSDAY MEYER TRUST TAKES ON THE E WORD TRIBUNE PHOTO: JAIME VALDEZ Bike commuter Nathan Hinkle, 23, rides along Southwest Broadway in a bike line nearly blocked by an armored truck. He wants cyclists’ “lived experiences” to help shape policy and road design. NEW WEBSITE SHINES LIGHT ON Rabble rousing organizations such as the Albina Ministerial Alliance rarely get funding from BIKE, CAR CONFLICTS major foundations — even those espousing June 2 summit at City Hall. equity. Here, JoAnn Cyclist collects Two weeks later, city lead- Hardesty, with the ers announced their Vision Alliance, encourages a near-miss data, Zero initiative — a mission to work toward zero traffi c-re- crowd at the March on sends reports lated fatalities and injuries on Washington anniversary to agencies the road. protest in August of 2013. Yet so far this year 24 peo- COURTESY: KYLE WEISMANN-YEE ple have died in traffi c crash- By JENNIFER ANDERSON es on Portland streets: 14 in The Tribune automobiles, one on bicycle, four on motorcycle, and fi ve Nathan Hinkle has heard pedestrians. Last year, 17 peo- Meyer his share of harrowing sto- ple died in traffi c collisions. ■ Philanthropic leader says equity will be the Memorial Trust ries from cyclists on the In the course of talking to Largest Grants, September road. people about those incidents, 2014-August In fact, he’s heard about 400 “It’s like, ‘Oh, this could’ve 2015 of them. happened to me,’” Hinkle focus of giving; experts say it won’t be easy That’s how many posts his says. “And that’s what got me Community website — NearlyKilled.me — thinking about this.” Foundation for has attracted since launching So the 23-year-old cyclist, By PETER KORN Southwest four months ago. who also runs a website The Tribune Washington The idea came to him in called the Bike Light Data- $1.5 million May, when the string of bike base, set to work and Sure, Ramon Ramirez has and pedestrian fatalities and been arrested — more times McKenzie River injuries in Portland forced a See NEAR MISSES / Page 3 than he can count. Gathering Ramirez is executive director of $1.2 million PCUN — Pineros y Campesinos Unidos del Noroeste (Northwest Housing Development Treeplanters and Farmworkers Center Troutdale asks United), the largest Latino organi- $523,000 zation in the state. PCUN lobbies for farmworkers’ rights and immi- Community gration reform and operates a Action Team Portland to pay to Spanish-speaking radio station (homeless shel- out of its Woodburn home. ter) $500,000 Protesting and sometimes get- ting arrested is a fundamental Oregon Energy relocate post offi ce part of the advocacy work that is Services (utility PCUN’s mission, Ramirez says. assistance) This year, not a penny of $500,000 their city if the move takes PCUN’s budget came from large City wants property Oregon Food place, according to Port of philanthropic organizations such Bank $500,000 tax fee if U.S. Portland Executive Director as the Meyer Memorial Trust, COURTESY: KYLE WEISMANN-YEE Bill Wyatt, who is familiar which lays claim to the title of Or- OHSU agency develops with the discussions. egon’s largest private nonprofi t Kayse Jama, executive director of the Center for Intercultural Organizing, speaks at the Portland Solidarity for Ferguson rally in August 2014. The Center Foundation “The post offi ce is a federal funder. But Ramirez is wondering $500,000 prime land agency and doesn’t pay prop- if, in the future, that will change. has received grants from McKenzie River Gathering since 2003. erty taxes. Troutdale would Oregon’s philanthropic commu- Wallace By KATY SWORD collect property taxes if a pri- nity — the foundations that grant type of organization large founda- that amount of time?” Medical Pamplin Media Group vate business moved there,” money and the hundreds of large tions have traditionally felt com- Whether organizations such as Concern Wyatt told the Portland Tri- and small nonprofi ts that depend fortable funding, not even those PCUN end up getting funded by $500,000 The Portland Develop- bune. on that money for survival — has committed to the cause of equity. foundations such as the Meyer ment Commission is talk- Troutdale Mayor Doug been on alert for most of this year. In fact, Ramirez says the Meyer Trust could indicate just how seri- Umpqua ing to Troutdale and Port Daoust confirmed discus- In February, Doug Stamm, the trust application process makes it ous Stamm is about changing Or- Community of Portland offi cials about sions about the potential Meyer Trust’s CEO, announced nearly impossible for organiza- egon’s equity landscape, says Aar- College $500,000 moving the move took place on Sept. 21, the foundation would cease tak- tions such as his to apply. on Dorfman, executive director of downtown but would not disclose de- ing new grant applications while “For the most part the organi- the Washington, D.C.-based Na- OMSI Portland tails. it undertook a top to bottom re- zations that are doing the work in tional Committee for Responsive $400,000 U.S. Post Of- “Where I’ll leave it is when view of its philosophies and prac- the fi eld, on the ground, making Philanthropy (NCRP). fi ce to the we know more about this, tices. major impacts to address inequal- The NCRP is an independent Troutdale we’ll bring it to the council for Online, Stamm explained that ities, are organizations that don’t watchdog of foundations. The Reynolds In- further direction. It will be the Meyer Trust moving forward get funded,” Ramirez says. “And if Meyer trust has signed on to dustrial the council’s decision on the intended to focus on equity as its they do get funded it is for one or NCRP’s Philanthropy Promise to Park. development of our prime in- core mission. Every grantee will two years, maybe three. And you promote policies to help under- Troutdale WYATT dustrial land to a federal somehow be integrating equity in- (have to) develop a sustainability served communities. Dorfman officials are agency that does not pay to its work. plan ... How can you expect an or- says equity has become a popular interested property taxes,” Daoust said. PCUN is all about equity. But ganization of people of color, low- word in the rarefi ed air of major but want Portland to pay a re- it’s grassroots, on the street, and income people, immigrants, to placement property tax fee to See POST OFFICE / Page 3 sometimes in-your-face. Not the make those kinds of changes in See MEYER / Page 2 “Pamplin Media Group’s pledge is to Portland Tribune deliver balanced news that refl ects the COCKTAIL WEEK COMING stories of our communities. Thank you — SEE SPORTS, PAGE B1 for reading our newspapers.” Inside — DR. ROBERT B. PAMPLIN JR. OWNER & NEIGHBOR GeorgeGeorge MorlanMorlan PlumbingPlumbing SupplySupply SPECIAL 8-PAGE SALE FLYER Fall Savings Event! INSIDE! SUPER DEALS on kitchen and bath plumbing items - for LESS! Through October 31st. See our special 8 PAGE SALE FLYER INSIDE this newspaper - Or see the bargains online at: www.GeorgeMorlan.com 542369.100815 A2 NEWS The Portland Tribune Thursday, October 8, 2015 Meyer: Rural nonprofi ts fear they’ll be shut out ■ From page 1 he says. built and families housed. He’d “It’s about marginalized like longer term data on how foundations, and his organiza- populations,” Stamm says. “It’s many families eventually tran- tion has studied cities across not about race.” sition out of subsidized afford- the country to determine Marginalized populations, in able housing and into market- where foundation grant-giving Stamm’s view, could include rate apartments. HER SPECIALTY? has actually achieved signifi - residents of impoverished ru- He sees the Meyer Trust con- cant social change. ral areas of the state and sexu- tinuing to fund leadership de- What’s needed, Dorfman al orientation minorities. velopment in communities of says, is a long-term commit- “I think there’s a concern color, a program that hopes to ‘DANGEROUS’ PHILANTHROPY ment by foundations, and a out there, ‘If I’m not involved eventually place black and recognition that they need to somehow in and around race,’ brown men and women in posi- fund “scrappier, more contro- if you’re out in rural Oregon, tions of authority in nonprofi ts versial, more aggressive” ad- that you’re not going to qualify around the state. vocacy organizations. for Meyer funding,” Stamm What’s clear is that some Equity comes “Funders are less successful says. “That is absolutely not nonprofi ts in Oregon won’t be when they only fund the kind true. What we will expect is able to depend on the trust’s easy to McKenzie of advocacy groups they’re that we can have a conversa- funding in the future. Arts or- comfortable with,” Dorfman tion about equity and how you ganizations are concerned. The River Gathering says. In fact, he mentions approach issues of equity with trust has already announced it PCUN as one of those scrappi- the population you’re dealing will no longer fund nonprofi ts er, more aggressive social jus- with.” in Southwest Washington, after By PETER KORN tice organizations in Oregon. providing a $1.5 million going- The Tribune In Dorfman’s view, founda- Meyer staff leads way away grant to the Community tions that fail to move the nee- But, Stamm says, he expects Foundation of Southwest When Sharon Gary-Smith dle on equity generally fail to those nonprofi ts in rural Ore- Washington.