2007 Year-in-Review

Sam, who came into office in 2005, adopted many projects from predecessors, but most of them were straightforward, and only a few were contentious.  The Burnside-Couch Couplet Plan was not straightforward, but it certainly was contentious. 

Happy holidays, and welcome to our 2007 Year-In-Review.

This year may go down as the year of transportation funding. By now, I hope you know the story. The amount of resources we have available today for basic street maintenance and safety hasn’t changed in 24 years, despite inflation and significant cost increases.

CASH (Creating Assets, Savings and Hope) Oregon, in partnership with the City of Portland,  has  a year of growth and development.  CASH Oregon  helps CASH helpspeople receive the money that the IRS owes them.  Many qualify for refunds, even if they owe no taxes.  But people must file their tax returns to receive their refunds, either their Earned Income Tax Credits,  federal tax refunds or other credits due them.  In 2007, CASH Oregon and AARP Tax-Aide formalized their growing partnership to develop more capacity to serve our residents. 

When it comes to our transportation system, safety is Sam's top priority. Because of one-time general funds that Sam led the charge on and secured at City Council, many important safety improvements and projects were implemented in 2007 to make driving, walking and bicycling safer throughout Portland.

This year's season of parade merriment was full of familiar faces and neighborhood fun!  Starting in early spring we hit the streets handing out bike maps and enjoying the wonders of each unique neighborhood. 

Sam loves to venture out to the neighborhoods cultural and art events as well as hosting events right here at City Hall!

Here are just a few community and special events we have enjoyed this year:

PDX Pop Now!

Summer Shows on the City Hall Lawn

Our second annual Summer Show Series was a rousing success! More than 800 people pulled up a piece of lawn and enjoyed locally grown music--right on the steps of City Hall!

With the Mall expansion project on its way, three organizations came together to create the "Downtown Retail Advocate" position.  Sam, the Portland Development Commission (PDC) and the Portland Business Alliance (the Alliance) understood the strong correlation between retail and overall downtown health when creating this single go-to source for retailers.

Our third year of hosting the 1st Thursdays Art Shows was full of local creative talent and brought over 4000 people into City Hall! These informal, fun events provide a great opportunity to see local art work while encouraging community members to learn more about their city government.

As Sam's Public Advocate for transportation, the year 2007 continued to provide me with abundant opportunities to assist citizens with their questions and concerns regarding City services and projects. Specifically, the insightful and passionate inquiries we received challenged me, along with other bureaus throughout the City, to "think outside the box" and in turn to provide action-oriented responses to citizens seeking results.

At Commissioner Adams' urging, city council supported a request on December 5 for $50,000 to reevaluate the Steel Bridge site for the city's "anchor" skateboard park facility. After more than 18 months of evaluation in 2003 and 2004, Portland Parks & Recreation selected the site for Portland's premier skatepark, which will "anchor" its 19-skatepark system.

In June 2005 Portland City Council agreed to endorse the Framework for Labor Management Committees in City Bureaus prepared by Bureau Innovation Project Team #6 to guide the establishment of Labor Management Committees within each City bureau Resolution # 36434

The project called upon city to form a joint work group of labor and management representatives to formulate a citywide scope of work for Labor Management Committees within each City bureau. The intent of the Labor Management Committees is to improve the delivery of services and responses to our citizens. Employees of all levels can contribute to the solutions with out retaliation. Workers feel valued for their skills and ideas. Management can learn to be a partner with the unions. The rate payer is ultimately served efficiently.

Oregon Bicycle Constructors AssociationThe Portland Development Commission identifies the bicycle industries as one of the nascent cottage industries that it would like to see grow and flourish. Oregon, and Portland in particular, have unique advantages over other regions in terms of making bikes, and this Bike Show allowed craftsman to show them off.

With so much private and public construction in downtown Portland, navigating it -- whether by foot, bike, transit, or automobile -- has become more frustrating than it used to be. That is why Sam supported and expanded funding for Keep Portland Moving, a PDOT campaign to promote a vibrant, accessible downtown Portland.

Coming to a neighborhood near you?As Sam has discussed in his speech to the City Club of Portland, we are facing unprecedented transportation and land use challenges in the not-so-distant future. Whether it is extreme inflation of construction costs in conjunction with declining tax revenues, Peak Oil, global climate change, or simple population growth, we are going to have to change our transportation status quo.