Mayor Potter and the Millions Slipping By

By In the news
In: Measure 37
Monday February 13, 2006

Mayor Potter, said in his recent opinion piece, that "diverting [city] funds to schools will have an immediate impact on programs the community deeply values — for instance, swimming pools, backlogged street paving, jails and parks maintenance. Many will be scaled back or stopped altogether."

The Mayor must have just recently discovered this dynamic. Otherwise he may have voted against the $10 million property tax exemption (abatement) for the planned Alexan, SoWa apartment tower. An exemption which failed on a 3 to 2 vote by the council but would have provided nothing in return had it passed.  A closer look at other recent decisions and the urban renewal funds would reveal millions in budget dollars being diverted for questionable purposes.

His concern for schools and other programs which the community deeply values may have been more front and center had he realized that diverting city funds may have adverse effects.

This may be good news for the city should the Mayor apply his new observation to current and planned projects which divert massive amounts of city funds.

Whether it be the Tram, the $1/2 billion for SoWa development, the $557 million for a new transit mall and light rail, or the convention center hotel, City management must come to grips with the size and impacts of diverting city funds.

A good start would be to get the Portland Development Commission to start obeying the State law which requires yearly reports on the impacts of diverting city funds. Exactly what needs to be known.  ORS 457.460  http://www.leg.state.or.us/ors/457.html

 

In addition to other means of diverting city funds, Urban Renewal now diverts some $65 million in city funds away from programs the community deeply values.

It is reassuring, however late in coming, that Portland Mayor Potter may be providing the leadership necessary to begin anew an effort to protect those values and the city funds they require.   

As an added bonus the Mayor, and the city, may pick up desperately needed support for solving the school funding debate. 

Steve Schopp   

 

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