Light bulb on, thanks to Bud

One of the perils of blogging is that each post is a solo effort by the author. While hopefully informed by diligent research and by considering as many points of view as are known to the blogger, the content is a public, static proclamation of “This is what I know about this topic at this time, and these are my opinions on it”. This may be all well and good, if readers didn’t know the facts or the opinions, and are interested in either or both. And especially, if readers then respond with further information and/or their own opinions on the matter. Intelligent, caring people constantly and continually consider new information and others’ opinions to revise their own. But blogs as vehicles for furthering public discussion are limited. When you read words on a screen, there are no faces to look at to check for frowns, smiles, or misunderstandings. Changing of opinions is dependent on whether and which people choose to read and post replies. The blogger’s tendency is to continue down the track she started on, absent new information nudging movement in a different direction.

And then, enter – ta-da! – the real world, where a bunch of people get together in a room and talk face-to-face. What a novel concept! Last night, I was invited by Northwest District Association (NWDA) President Frank Bird to speak at the NWDA monthly board meeting. Chris Smith, host of Portland Transport, was also a guest speaker, reviewing various current issues with the perspective of a “recovered NWDA Board member”. There were about 25 citizens present – impressive for 6 p.m. on a cold night. And get this: volunteering on the Neighborhood Association board, is none other than Bud Clark, Mayor of Portland from 1985 through 1992. Is this a great city for citizen participation, or what?

So, feeling a little like I’ve prepared a speech on “How to ride a bike” only to find Lance Armstrong in the audience, I launched into a quick overview of Charter Reform as the hottest issue for concerned Portlanders right now. I covered some of the problems I’ve noted on this blog, despite some in the group looking a bit frosty. Good Neighorhood Associations aren’t homogeneous in individuals’ opinions, and there are passionate supporters on both sides of most issues.

Happily, this wasn’t a campaign appearance, where only the candidate talks. A lively discussion ensued – so different in tone and richness from even the most vibrant series of blog posts/comments. And Bud Clark switched on a light bulb for me. I’d used the words “Strong Mayor” to describe the proposed new form of govenment. “I resent the term Strong Mayor”, Bud said. “It implies our current form of government doesn’t have a strong mayor, and that’s not true.”

Well, of course it’s not true.

Look at what Bud did, recorded on Wikipedia:

“Upon taking office in 1985, Clark found that the previous mayor had reduced the city’s reserves of $27 million down to a few thousand dollars. Fire and Police had just received a 10% wage increase which meant the budget had to be redone in his first months in office. Managing the city resources with the City Council, Clark left the city 8 years later with $20 million in reserves and an award from the AMBAC Corporation for Portland as the Best Managed city of its size in the USA.”

That, of course, is just one example of the accomplishments of Mayor Bud Clark, illustrating we already have strong mayors with significant power, authority, and ability to get things done. Think of all the things Mayor Vera Katz was able to push through during her 12 years in office. Remember Bud, Neil Goldschmidt, Vera, and most recently Tom Potter each exercised their prerogative to take all the bureaus under mayoral control, sometimes for months at a time. So a big problem with using the term “Strong Mayor” is its inference that Mayors for the past 80 years have lacked power. Simply not true. I regret I didn’t realize that until hearing Bud’s comments.

Bud Clark also clarified why he signed a letter urging the Council to put the issues on the ballot, soon. He says he will campaign vigorously against changing the Charter, and trusts the people of Portland to make the right decision. That reminded me of my post on Planned Parenthood in South Dakota. Bud says the current Charter is fine – it’s what’s enabled the city to become the great place it is today.

Other issues raised by NWDA participants included the question of cost: how much would switching to the new form of government cost, and isn’t that estimate supposed to be on the ballot? Would Commissioners need less staff, if they are only handling legislative and quasi-judicial issues? How much more staff would the Mayor’s office need? Would Commissioners get paid less, or nothing, if their administrative workload was less?

I believe most Portlanders agree we live in a wonderful place, and that the City Council isn’t broken and doesn’t need fixing. I trust the people to make good choices when given adequate, accurate, information, I’m just not as confident they will be given it over just three months with corporate media and big business funding campaign soundbites. I’m grateful to Bud Clark for switching on a light bulb for me. I’ll be looking into the details of the Charter proposals with fresh eyes over the next week.

Comments welcome.