On the Issues

Take a moment to read about Mike’s vision for our rapidly changing and growing county, and feel free to share your own comments and questions.

• More Strategic, More Collaborative, Smarter Government
• Public Safety
• Health Care
• Investing in Our Kids
• Community and Economic Development
• Environment/Sustainable Agenda

Smarter Government

Most Multnomah County residents are skeptical about government spending, especially when they vote to build a $58 million dollar jail facility and its unable to open due to the lack of operating funds. At a time when the County has limited resources due to property tax limitations, there is a greater demand for health care services, aid to our public schools and a public safety system that has the district attorney, courts, the sheriff, probation and parole cutting their budgets for the past 6 years. Simply put, Multnomah County government needs to be more collaborative, more creative and more strategic on how it tries to find solutions to these challenges. The following is some examples of Mike’s past accomplishments and ideas for changing the way government tries to help our community.

During Mike’s tenure as chief of staff to Commissioner Hansen he was a key player on the Kennedy School project. After 12+ years of abandonment and vandalism, with the help of the chair’s chief of staff, the Kennedy School was transferred out of the school district to the county and Mike worked with 6 other people to develop a request for proposal that was awarded to McMenamins in 1993. There is potential for other public-private partnerships through the county’s facilities and land holdings. The county has participated in strategic investment programs but there’s a real need to address small business needs, including incentives to retain and attract small business.

Multnomah County currently spends $4.7 million on fleet maintenance.  The City of Portland shifted to Flexcar/Zipcar and saved over 30%.  This not only makes fiscal sense but reduces the carbon footprint and helps our environment.

Public Safety

As a legislative assistant to Rep. Hansen, Mike worked on finding options to opening the Wapato Jail facility. The first 150 beds at the facility are the most costly to open and looking for partnerships with Clark County or the State of Oregon Corrections should be exhausted. If the facility can’t be used as a jail, the good neighbor agreement with St. Johns needs to be re-visited for alternative use, such as a mental health facility, alcohol and drug addiction or to contract with a non-profit such as Better People who helps reduce recidivism of ex-offenders through counseling and employment with fair, decent employers. Mike has also worked in the sheriff’s office, where he developed a strong affinity for the professional training and attitude for the MCSO. Talk of transfer and consolidation of the MCSO should only be done if the cost is neutral or lower and better service can be delivered. The MCSO should be in a position to work with the City of Portland and the City of Gresham police departments to keep our urban core and neighborhoods crime-free.

Health Care

Over the years, Multnomah County has continued to “thin the soup” on resources allocated to health care. We need to make health care available to all and make sure the County is committed to sustaining adequate and viable health care. This is extremely hard in a state environment that has raised the percentage on the level of poverty to qualify people for the Oregon Health Plan and the lack of support for needs in Multnomah County, our most populated and most need region of the state. Pass through money and local option for tobacco taxes dedicated to health care programs are a priority.

While in the Commissioner’s office, Mike helped site and find support for a North Portland Health clinic. One of his goals is to look to partner for a small clinic in the southeast region of the county, potentially partnering with private non-profits and possibly Clackamas County for primary care. We should also look at establishing a Federally Qualified Health Center in this area of the county. Currently many under and uninsured residents are showing up in emergency care rooms for problems that could be treated with primary care if it was available. This costs all of us through higher premiums.

While in the Commissioner’s office, Mike helped site and find support for a North Portland Health clinic.   Several years ago the county closed the SE Health Center off of Powell, resulting in more uninsured people going to the emergency care facilities at Providence and Portland Adventist.  This costs all of us through higher premiums.  One of his goals is to look to partner for a small clinic in the southeast region of the county, potentially partnering with private non-profits and possibly Clackamas County for primary care.  We should also look at establishing a Federally Qualified Health Center in this area of the county.  Mike has also contacted the governor’s office, the Senate President and Speaker about pursuing a local option for Multnomah County for a tobacco or alcohol tax dedicated to health care.  (The Healthy Kids Initiative failed statewide but passed by a 56-44% percentage in Multnomah County last fall.) 

Investing in Our Kids

As the county has been forced to deal with budget cuts over the years, it still has maintained support for investing in our children. Studies show that for every dollar we spend on early-childhood programs (programs that foster children’s health and literacy) saves us $7 in the future. These are excellent investments.

The County needs to make sure that the money invested in these programs is fairly allocated throughout the county based on need. Currently there are over 54 SUN (Schools Uniting Neighborhood) programs in the county. These programs are a very cost-effective public-private partnership that helps our kids, families and neighborhoods all over our county. There needs to be an outside analysis of the success of these programs and find some common benchmarks and goals to measure, as there are multiple entities running these programs. There also needs to be an analysis of where the county will get the best return on investment on where to locate these programs. Schools and multiple-use facilities owned by the county need to be best-utilized by our communities.

I also would like to see financial literacy addressed in our schools. Currently Wells Fargo Bank offers a terrific program that can be utilized by teachers from elementary to secondary in 3 to 15 minute modules. Some children in our community are with parents who face financial literacy challenges themselves. This is a great program that I hope we can increase usage in our schools throughout the county.

Community and Economic Development

Because of thinning resources, the differences between the haves and have-nots is widening in our community. As Mike has gone out to listen to neighborhood and business groups from Gateway to Lents to Brentwood-Darlington, there is a consistent tone that development of their areas is still “on the list” and doesn’t appear to be headed off in the near future. People in these area feel they’re “on the outside; and not well represented by either city or county government.” Like citizens all over the county, they want funding for development of the outer city as well as the central area. This includes finished streets, paved sidewalks, and social services to help the residents living in the low income housing build there. The Portland Development Commission has attempted to jump-start some of these areas and bring projects to them. These projects are funded with tax-increment financing that is collected through the county, so there’s a role for the county. Mike will support Commissioner Jeff Cogen’s effort to have a seat at the table for these planning decisions. These projects must have support from our communities and citizens must drive the decisions. Too many times I’ve heard that Portland is a great place to live and not necessarily a good place to work. We must strive to bring job creation and business retention to all our regions in the county. Chair Wheeler has flagged economic development as a priority in his administration and Mike will work to make sure that businesses are included in the decision-making process. Mike will also work to streamline regulations and applications, with an eye on standardization of forms with other local governments and the state.

Mike has managed a small business for three years in the City of Portland and has a great empathy for the business community.

Environment/Sustainable Agenda

Mike was a bike commuter for 9 years and greatly supports a sustainable agenda that looks towards protecting our environment for the future. We live in a beautiful region in our state but with the growth we are facing, we must make smart decisions as stewards of the community. We must work with local governments, including METRO to maintain our healthy rivers, stream, wetlands and ponds. We also must strive to make sure the Willamette is clean enough to swim in and provides safe fishing and wildlife habitat. Multnomah County is ideally suited in its charter to deal with fundamental issues of sustainability – environmental issues, social issues and promoting a healthy local economy. I will work collaboratively with local government partners, the business and environmental community to address our transportation needs and the county bridges. I will continue to support programs that insure that we enjoy the cleanest air and water in the country, including:

1. Metro Bond Measure: Multnomah County has a role in crafting how open/green space is purchased and developed, and more can be done to ensure that this is done in a way that benefits MC residents. The recent Metro Bond Measure has provided millions of dollars for the purchase and restoration of natural areas throughout the metropolitan region. As a member of MPAC (METRO Policy Advisory Committee), Multnomah County should be an advocate for equitable expenditure of bond funds and environmental equity throughout the region.

2. Johnson Creek Restoration: While improvements in the lower watershed (i.e. Gresham & downstream) have had some positive results, significant progress remains unattained. This is due, in large part, to a lack of focus/effort in the upper watershed (unincorporated Multnomah and Clackamas Counties). This area is largely agricultural (primarily nurseries) and as such is a considerable source of runoff tainted with pesticides, herbicides and fertilizers. Ironically, there is no program (regulatory or incentive) in place to address the problem at the source. Similarly, there is no program in place to restore riparian corridors or wetlands that comprise the headwaters of Johnson Creek and historically moderated and cleansed runoff. The county needs to work with Johnson Creek Watershed Council to develop a plan to address this. Inadequate funds are a significant barrier to doing some of the large scale channel restoration work that is needed to achieve goals for salmon recovery and flood control. While the City of Portland and Gresham are leading with restoration projects there is a lot more we could be doing through partnering and collaboration.

3. DEQ enforcement: Few citizens would argue that a corporation or business that exceeds limits on pollutant emissions should be held accountable. Yet the state agency charged with the policing responsibility fails miserably apparently due to a lack of adequate funding. When DEQ does pursue an enforcement action, the fines are frequently insignificant. I propose that Metro work with DEQ to gain the most effective increases in water quality to leverage benefits for Multnomah County’s environmental mission – in other words, focus on how DEQ can help Multnomah County achieve its public health mission. While Multnomah County’s legislative agenda necessarily focuses on human services, some of that effort should be directed towards DEQ enforcement and fines that would serve as a deterrent to polluters. Pollution is a public health issue.