April 07, 2004

Candidates Fair, Part I: Commissioner No. 4

Last Wednesday evening, Portlanders gathered at the Multnomah Arts Center in southwest Portland to hear nearly all of the candidates running for Mayor and City Council. Candidates made campaign literature available, and were given the opportunity to make their pitches.

As it turned out, we were on the same #44 bus out to SW Capital Highway as Jim Whittenburg, one of the candidates for the Commissioner No. 4 position. And in the end, we received a ride home from Mary Ann Schwab, one of the other candidates for the same position.

Outside the Center, we had a brief conversation with a Jim Francesconi campaign staffer, which was entirely normal except for the fact that in the back of our mind we kept expecitng him to hassle us about the fact that we had just recently endorsed Phil Busse.

Once inside, it was interesting to note how much easier introductions were since our profile in The Oregonian had just recently appeared. Recognition means not just having people offer thanks for our work, but in literally being recognized now that we've been publicly unmasked, photograph and all.

But on to the candidates fair itself.

"As a citizen we get three minutes in front of Council," said the president of Southwest Neighborhoods, Inc. Candidates at the forum were given three minutes to make a statement, and two minutes to answer two questions. "We're giving them a break."

We'll be breaking our report from this candidates fair into three parts -- one for each position. Here, we begin with the candidates for the Commissioner No. 4 spot, currently held by Commissioner Randy Leonard.

Running for this position are Frank Dixon, Leonard Gard, Aaron F. Hall, Mark Lloyd Lakeman, Paul Leistner, Randy Leonard, Bonny McKnight, Alicia Salaz, Mary Ann Schwab, Scott Stephens, and Jim Whittenburg. All except Mark Lakeman and Alicia Salaz were present.

The order in which the candidates took the podium was determined by drawing numbers (written on small white balls) out of a hat of the Uncle Sam variety. Questions from the audience were randomly drawn by each candidate as they rose for their turn.

Frank Dixon

Frank Dixon introduced himself as an "activist for over twenty-five years," and a "good administrator with strong judicial skills," and said that in today's City Hall there is a "huge struggle between commissioners who feel close to citizens and a couple who feel close to contributors."

"Leaders who run around like a bull in a china shop are the norm in other cities," Dixon said, in a slam of Commissioner Leonard. "We've always chosen civility and engagement."

The first random question for Dixon asked about corporate sponsorships for public projects such as PGE Park. "I would not support naming any additional civic landmarks after corporations," Dixon said.

His second randomly-selected question related to creating a friendly environment for small business. He said there is "much we have to do," and that it is important to "not panic and create solutions we will regret five to ten years out." He said Portlanders have a "duty to shop in Portland" and that the issue of user fees should be "looked at again." To demonstrate how difficult it was to get everything down in our notes, we should point out that we seem to have no indication written down as to which direction that second look should go, although Dixon likely communicated that particular opinion.

Jim Whittenburg

"We've got a lot of work to do in this City, and it isn't being done," said Jim Whittenberg. "I'm tired of public employees abusing the public."

Whittenburg's opening was long and rambling -- so much so we didn't even make an attempt to capture its intent. But at some point, he looked up at the timekeeper. "I've only got one minute left already?"

"We really don't have anything other than corporate control over our political system," Whittenburg said.

The first question for Whittenburg was on the subject of traffic and safety. "We're being sold a bill of goods," he said. "We need more police on the ground." His second random question regarded homelessness. "Well, you know, I don't know," he said before relating a personal about the places he's lived. Then he added, skeptically: "We were assured South Waterfront would have affordable housing."

Randy Leonard

Randy Leonard opened by explaining that in his original campaign, he said he would bring change to City Hall and would "hold public employees accountable." He then rattled off a string of actions he said bears out those promises, including letting the "voices of the average citizen be heard at Council," the neighborhood service center pilot project, the "time, place, and manner" ordinance, and limits on towing companies.

"I've done what I said would," Leonard said.

Leonard lucked out on this first randomly-drawn question: It asked if Randy Leonard was doing a good job. "I think Randy Leonard is doing an excellent job," he answered. His second question was on transportation priorities. Leonard criticized the Portland Streetcar and said the City "could fund bike lanes and sidewalks" and that "people who use and benefit from the Streetcar need to pay for it." He also pointed out that he voted against an extension of the Downtown Waterfront Urban Renewal Area because that money could be spent elsewhere.

Scott Stephens

"I myself am rather surprised that I'm here," said Scott Stephens, "but I am." He said he grew interested in becoming involved because of the move to bury the Mt. Tabor reservoirs. "The idea [that] the people being affected should be [included] in governing was losing favor."

In an attempt to show the level of community frustration, he said that people had become "so alienated that they asked me to run against Randy Leonard.

"Civic engagement ... is part of what makes our City special," he said. "We as a people are the ones who can best decide."

Stephens' first random question asked how to improve Portland's neighborhood system. He replied that "a return to a stronger time for neighborhoods is in order," and said that neighborhoods should determine what the priorities are, not the City.

His second question asked whether he would choose budget cuts or finding new revenue. "If I had the answer to that already," he said, "I'd be in Salem telling them how to do it." In the end, he added: "You probably have to do both."

Aaron F. Hall

"This is my first time running for any public office," said Aaron F. Hall. Then he asked: "How many people are happy with what City Hall is doing right now?" No hands were raised. "One recurring problem," he offered, "[is] the lack of respect for citizen input."

"I will never forget that I am working for you," he said. Then he quoted C.E.S. Wood (yes, the same quote the sits atop our main page, which was also once used early on in the Tom Potter campaign, for what it's worth): "Citizens are the riches of a city." He argued that Portland's government has forgotten this.

Hall's first question asked about the role of neighborhood associations and coalitions. "Neighborhoods," he said, "are the start of the City." The second question asked how all of the "great things" that Southwest Portland seems to get could be built in other parts of the City "relatively soon." Hall said that "the biggest problem with City Hall is it's not listening."

Leonard Gard

"My main campaign theme," said Leonard Gard, "is there is too much money, and too much time and attention on big projects." He called for "projects in local communities [which] benefit all of us in our day to day lives." For example, he said, Inner Southeast has needed a community center for years "and now it appears they are competing with a revamped Memorial Coliseum."

He also listed campaign finance reform, public involvement, and environmental protection as other policies he supports. He claimed "a very good understanding at a basic level of how our City operates."

Gard's first question was about "overlapping neighborhood boundaries" -- an issue with which we really are not familiar at all, but many in the audience clearly were familiar with an existing dispute over just this. Gard himself seemed to understand it more than we, since his answer boiled down to: "I'm not sure it's a problem."

His second random question was on a citizen police review board. Gard pointed out that five members of the existing Independent Police Review resigned in protest of limitations on the board, but said that it exists "under the auspices of the Auditor's Office, an office I trust." He said that the "basic system works" but that change is needed in the Portland Police Bureau.

Bonny McKnight

"I am a volunteer by nature," said Bonny McKnight, "and it's time for volunteers by nature to be on the City Council." She said that the "system doesn't bring us together [but] keeps us apart," and said that public involvement doesn't mean "single public hearings or three minutes before Council."

"It all begins in our neighborhoods," McKnight said, adding that she believes that neighborhood associations "were meant to be neutral forums." She called for the City to "being decision discussions to neighborhoods early, and said that "people can find common ground" if not for the distrust that gets in the way of that.

The first random question for McKnight asked for an opinion on the Multnomah County dispute of same-sex marriage. "The concept of gay marriage," she said, I absolutely support." But, she said, she doesn't agree with how the County handled the issue. "There is never an excuse," she said, "for not having a good public discussion."

Her second question asked the the justification for the OHSU aerial tram should be re-evaluated. "Yes I do, absolutely," said said, calling it an "expenditure of money we don't have."

Paul Leistner

"This is the kind of engagement that has made Portland strong," Paul Leistner said of the forum. But that kind of engagement, he said, is "being eroded dramatically," and the "partnership that makes the City work is falling apart."

Of incumbent Commissioner Leonard, he said that he "has brought a style of governance that is completely out of step," and is "most known for making decisions without input." He specifically criticized Leonard for taking credit for the "time, place, and manner" ordinance which was actually proposed by a citizens group which worked for months before Leonard came to Council. He also accused the Commissioner of politicizing bureaus and victimizing "some employees by going to the press and ruining their reputations."

Leistner's first random question asked if the "time, place, and manner" ordinance will solve problems with the Oregon Liquor Control Commission. Leistner called it "one step on the way."

His second question asked about "expensive new initiatives" before City Council, such as Major League Baseball and the burial of the reservoirs. "None of these projects should go through without public review," Leistner said, calling for community priorities to be taken into consideration, and not just "what's happening downtown."

Mary Ann Schwab

Mary Ann Schwab called herself a "neighborhood rabblerouser" since Portland's neighborhood involvement system began, and criticized Mayor Vera Katz for not putting the proposed Washington-Monroe community center on her "goodbye list" of projects to accomplish before leaving office. "I believe neighborhoods are empowerment," Schwab said.

The first question for Schwab was about why she was running. Mysteriously, we don't appear to have recorded her answer. Her second question was about City Council endorsing street improvements, but providing no funding. Schwab said this "has to be a high priority."

Coming soon: Similar reports on the Mayoral and Commissioner No. 1 portions of last Wednesday's candidates fair.

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