Next Up at City Council, June 11-12, 2008

The Portland City Council Agenda for this week starts with interesting Citizen Communications:

761 Request of Thomas Bruner to address Council regarding Red Cross and Homeless winter shelter (Communication)

762 Request of Patrick Nolen to address Council regarding anti-camping and sit lie (Communication)

763 Request of John Rasmussen to address Council regarding Sellwood Combined Sewer Overflow – Big Pipe project (Communication)

764 Request of Mike Shangle to address Council regarding siting of the Combined Sewer Overflow facility in Sellwood (Communication)

765 Request of Laura Orr to address Council regarding American Association of Law Librarians annual meeting in Portland (Communication)

The first two likely contribute to the ongoing discussion and activism regarding where people without homes can sit and sleep in Portland, the last sounds like a PR presentation. The Sellwood sewer issue is of concern to me. I attended a neighborhood meeting in Sellwood last month, at which staff from the Bureau of Environmental Services presented their chosen location for a new sewage pump station. Neighbors had several legitimate questions about how the site was selected and their lack of involvement in the decision, and it wasn’t clear to me (someone with 17 years of experience in land use issues) how the City plans to process the permitting process moving forward. I’ll be watching how this controversy is resolved.

Here’s a sensible proposal:

768 TIME CERTAIN: 10:15 AM – Support Multnomah Youth Commission proposal to establish fareless public transportation for all 6th-12th grade public school students in Portland and Multnomah County (Resolution introduced by Mayor Potter and Commissioner Adams)

Kids shouldn’t have to pay to get from home to school. Portland attained an exemption from state requirements to provide school buses for all students, on the basis of TriMet availability. Leaving aside the problem of TriMet not serving all neighborhoods adequately, it’s not fair to make Portland students pay bus fare when students in other areas of the state are transported by school buses. And why does this matter to you, if you don’t have kids in school? From the Resolution:

“the U.S. Department of Transportation estimates that 20 – 25% of morning
traffic is due to parents driving their children to school, contributing significantly to traffic congestion and carbon emissions”

I’ve noticed significantly less traffic on my route to Wilson High School, on weekday mornings during the academic year when I’m going to meetings but the students have the day off.

Good to see on Consent, as sorely needed:

*789 Authorize an Intergovernmental Agreement with Oregon Department of Transportation for design and construction of the NE Cully Blvd Improvements from NE Prescott St to NE Killingsworth St (Ordinance)

Another Emergency designation on an Ordinance:

*802 Extend term of a franchise extension granted to Qwest Communications Corporation to build and operate telecommunications facilities within City streets (Ordinance; amend Ordinance No. 171914)

The Ordinance documents the history of legal wrangling between Qwest and the City. The current franchise agreement expired in March 2008. This ordinance continues it retroactive to that date, and through December 2009 – apparently in anticipation the court case may take that long to resolve. I hope the financial compensation for the City is adequate and appropriate.

Of interest to folks in SE (and parks advocates citywide, since the facilities serve all areas):

804 Authorize contract with Opsis Architecture, LLP for planning and design services for the redevelopment of Mt. Tabor Central Yard and Nursery at $200,000 (Ordinance)

No hearings Wednesday afternoon. On Thursday:

805 TIME CERTAIN: 2:00 PM – Accept the report and recommend a specific re-use of the Sergeant Jerome Sears United States Army Reserve Center at 2730 SW Multnomah Blvd (Report introduced by Mayor Potter)

I haven’t heard the latest on community desires for new uses of this property in the Multnomah neighborhood. Or, whether deals have already been done tying up three votes for a particular proposal. It would be nice if the hearing really matters. And if it does, it would have been better to have held it in the evening, in SW.