Downloaded from the Laurelhurst One Will Be Turned Away for Lack of Funds

Saturday Our September 14 30th 10 am - 6 pm Year Page 10,11 SEPT SOUTHEAST EXAMINER 2019 southeastexaminer.com “Your Neighborhood News Source” Vol 30 No 9 Portland, OR History of Neighborhood Associations BY DON MACGILLIVRAY that targeted low-income communities in inner NE Portland. Residents in depressed Controversy, criticism, and change neighborhoods were involved in decisions challenge neighborhood associations to- on how to implement federal programs. day. It is not just city problems troubling This was the beginning of some inner NE the neighborhood system, but the possibil- neighborhoods. ity that the fifty-year system of public ad- Inner SE also organized under Model vocacy and volunteerism may face a com- Cities Program in Richmond, Buckman, plete overhaul. Sunnyside, and Brooklyn. In 1968, SE Up- Many neighborhoods grew up as in- lift (SEUL) was formed by Portland Devel- dependent towns often with their own post opment Commission. offices. These included East Portland, Al- PACT, (Portland Action Commu- bina, St. Johns, Sellwood, and Linnton. In nities Together) became IMPACT NW, the early 20th century, various neighbor- the social service organization. SE Uplift hoods were the home to newly-arrived im- worked with the neighborhoods to use fed- NAs Vow to Keep Portland migrants to Portland. eral money in the area and PACT became The Lewis and Clark Fair in 1905 the advocacy organization. brought visitors from all over the world. Neil Goldschmidt was elected mayor Neighborly Many liked it and moved here, doubling in 1972. He was a believer in citizen ad- the population in just a few years. With the vocacy and many of his progressive ideas streetcar, people were able to travel long changed city government. He saw neigh- BY MIDGE PIERCE public participation table, albeit without specified standards for open meetings, distances, and soon the automobile al- borhood associations as an important tool If you value public input on landuse, transparency and accountability. lowed residential infill throughout. of access and communication between city transportation, infrastructure and livability, Their approach has been punishing. The depression of the 1930s impact- bureaus and residents. thank Neighborhood Association pushback In public presentations, Eudaly and OCCL ed older neighborhoods causing social ser- Mary Pedersen, the director of the for postponement (and perhaps reconsid- have labeled Portland’s ninety-five Neigh- vice agencies to form neighborhood com- successful Northwest District Associa- eration) of a City Council vote on a con- borhood Associations as racist, elitist, dis- mittees with their residents to help people tion, was tasked with creating a city office troversial code change that would erode criminatory organizations that do not rep- in distress. to work with neighborhoods and to help Portland resident’s City Hall influence. No resent all Portlanders. With the post war success of the na- them communicate with the city. The Of- reschedule date has been confirmed. Eudaly has slammed NAs for put- tion in the 1950s, social service efforts fice of Neighborhood Associations (ONA) The code revision instigated by City ting up barriers to inclusion of marginal- slowly declined. There was still a serious opened in 1974 to work with NAs and to Commissioner Chloe Eudaly and her Of- ized groups and Rhee says the new code, need to rehabilitate neighborhoods and organize them in the other areas of the city. fice of Community and Civic Life (OCCL) developed by her handpicked committee, provide social assistance in the inner city. The existing neighborhood groups would disengage the system that officially is needed because of Portland’s history of The Johnson administration of the 1960s believed ONA was a front for downtown connects neighborhoods with City govern- white privilege and oppression. created the nation’s Great Society initia- control and ONA had to demonstrate there ment and provides a pipeline for policy no- What OCCL fails to acknowledge is tives, one of which was Model Cities Pro- was sufficient value in the neighborhood tifications. that NAs represent residents of every stripe gram. Eudaly and her OCCL Director Suk including renters, homeowners, and busi- This was an anti-poverty program turn to page 19 Rhee claim the new code would bring af- finity groups with more diversity to the turn to page 8 Summertime and the Livin’ is Easy Officer Calls for Patience BY MIDGE PIERCE Next Door burglary reports, public drug use, “sharps” (preferred word for needles) In the face of protests, car thefts, on streets and playgrounds and a general rise in police calls, it seems counter-intui- tive that crime is down. East Precinct Commander Tashia Hager told the South Tabor Neighborhood Association that only reported crime is down, not actual crime. Another consequence of Portland’s extreme shortage of resources and officers is lack of data on how much lawlessness is actually happening around town. Hager says anticipated retirements will leave twenty-five percent of Portland BY MIDGE PIERCE ning its 9th Annual Harvest Fest, and even Police Bureau’s (PPB) 1004 positions un- boasts a tireless volunteer who brings jel- filled by next August. lies and jams to welcome new neighbors. Currently, the force is down thirteen A silver lining of the attack on Neigh- The adjacent Mt. Tabor neighbor- percent with some 130 officer needs un- borhood Associations is the growing out- hood resurrected its annual picnic by ex- met. reach to under-represented groups. tending outreach to more than a thousand Recruitment challenges are com- It’s not always easy, as groups that apartments, homes and businesses. pounded by competition for officers from do not share language and culture may feel A six-block neighborhood within other towns and criticism of the bureau isolated and unwelcome, but NAs say it’s the neighborhood near SE Madison and from both left and right. not for lack of trying. 57th St. has been hosting a Dessert Night These are confusing times for PPB. In addition to events that encourage for neighbors new and old for twenty-two As the bureau’s role shifts with political community mingling at summertime’s years. What started as a way to teach bored winds, the force comes under attack for be- many commercial street fairs and farmer’s summertime kids how to cook pies has be- ing either too hardline or too soft. markets, August was filled with National come a highly anticipated event. Plus, the severity of the policing Night Out neighborhood events, block par- “Dessert is a great way to bring shortage means the likelihood of an officer ties and picnics. neighbors together,” says Tod Burton. Pies turn to page 12 South Tabor Neighborhood, is plan- remain the treat of choice. 2 THE SOUTHEAST EXAMINER SEPTEMBER 19 A Solution to Climate Change BY MEERA RAMACHANDRAN less of it. one is rewarded for living with a The word “tax” is fairly low carbon footprint. A scary book can help some cringe-worthy. Nobody wants Putting a tax on a product folk nestle into the mood of the to be spending more money on has been studied in comparison Halloween season. With the fall something that has been a com- to just raising the price of it. For around the corner, it’s good to fortable price for a steady period unknown reasons, consumers will know about a book that should ig- of time. Many feel they are al- change their utilization of a prod- nite terror in the hearts of people ready paying a lot without getting uct if the price increase is labeled with its post-apocalyptic nature. much in return. as a tax. What makes it frightening How about those that live Additionally, this bill is bi- is that it could very easily be the on the margins? Sadly, that is the partisan in nature, making it more narrative of our future, with our majority of our country. Quite a likely to pass without the threat of older selves and children as the few people say that even thirteen repeal when there is a change of main characters. dollars a month more in efforts power in Washington DC. The book is called The to save the planet was something It appeals to conservatives Uninhabitable Earth: Life af- they wanted to do, but could not because it is a market-based so- ter Warming by David Wallace- afford. lution that doesn’t create govern- Wells. A way to help get around ment. In addition, the program Wallace-Wells is a self- these issues is a proposal called disappears once our goal of zero described non-environmentalist, Carbon Fee and Dividend. emissions is reached. (Alterna- and a city loving reporter for New It is an idea that has been tively though, the fee will ramp York magazine. He unapologeti- around for years and was recently up if our target goals are not cally describes what will come to written into a bill that resides in reached). pass if we do not change our way the U.S. House of Representa- The majority of conserva- of life; one so intricately linked to tives called H.R. 763, The Energy tive voters believe in climate fossil fuels. Innovation and Carbon Dividend change and are interested in solu- You’ve got to get up every morning with determination if Sure, we could change a Act. tions. you’re going to bed with satisfaction. few things about the way we live The bill would place a fee This bill does not address of $15/ton on carbon-based prod- all the sources of emission or George Lorimer – eat lower on the food chain, bike to work, buy locally-sourced ucts (oil, natural gas, coal) when other environmental problems. foods, drive electric cars, lead by they are pulled out of the ground For instance, it does not target example.

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