Your “10 Strategies” debunked

In the next 3 months

1) Protect basic services – That should mandate spending transport dollars on maintaining roads and bridges instead of the reckless spending on fantasy toys like a web of streetcars that require increasing ongoing operational taxpayer funded subsidies.

2) Form a council of economic advisors – Will this be yet another stacked deck committee with the usual list of suspects (including a well known book merchant) that sit on just about every other committee you have formed?

3) Boost support to vulnerable families, expand rent assistance and increase capacity of foreclosure counseling services – A good sound bite, but where is the money to pay for it going to come from? Middle class families are already tapped out and all you want to do is add more taxes including on grocery bags, for street maintenance, etc.. City government needs to live within its means too and not use the tax code for social engineering purposes.

4) Support small businesses by placing a moratorium on new fees and taxes, extending city building permit validation, easing permitting process, boosting technical assistance and access, expanding loan programs and promoting local retail activity. – Less bureaucracy in the Socialistic Republic Portland of Portland; I doubt it!

In the following 6 months

1) Expand job placement and workforce training programs – If the jobs go away like Freightliner, there will be few options to make placements.

2) Reduce City taxes on small businesses. – sounds good but the City too must end the frivolous spending by getting back to funding basic services while cutting back on frills like streetcars and art on every corner.

3) Increase exports of local products and services – again sounds good, but Portland is fast loosing ground in the manufacturing and product sector, and there is little to no market for services dictator like sermons and lip service.

4) Maintain tourism support – In today’s economy staycations at home are becoming the norm.

5) Support transition to a sustainable economy and green jobs strategy – With so much babble emphasis on making Portland a platinum bicycling city, curb extensions popping out everywhere creating congestion and restricting truck movements, and streetcars planned for MLK and Grand further congesting a major truck route; obviously a truck manufacturer leaving town fits this strategy. The green jobs strategy is far too narrow a path. The sustainable economy must include bicyclists paying for bicycle infrastructure with a bicycle tax, and transit users paying a greater share of the costs of providing the service. Sustainability starts with financial self-sustainability, not a propped up taxpayer subsidized economy like downtown Portland.

6) Integrate job, housing, education and development programs – And finally, just more of the same old, same old, social engineering policies that aim to dictate the lifestyle, housing and transport choices of the people.

It is no wonder why Freightliner left town. Maybe we need a windfall profits tax on the bicycle industry to make up for them leaving.

Furthermore, I totally agree with Jim, Karlock’s, Dan Fitzgerald’s and Steve’s comments. If only you will step outside you tight circle of cronies, streetcar advocates and bicycle babble buddies; then maybe you will see the real world for what it is; and just maybe real progress can be made towards a vibrant economy with the marketplace replacing social engineered mandates and tax codes. .