To: Public officials of Multnomah county
It is a given that citizens who chose to be elected or appointed to public office want to make public policy. That is the job. Public housing policy involves the lives and businesses of 700,000 citizens in 117 neighborhoods in Multnomah county. More importantly, it involves the expenditure of $217,500,000 of public funds, i.e. taxpayer dollars. You are a player in this game and your constituents, your colleagues and the press expect you to have and to express an opinion on this subject.

There is no better forum to express your opinion on public housing policy in Multnomah county than the HAP Watchers commentary. 2,700 voters, politicos, citizen activists and the press currently follow this story. No audience has greater interest, statutory authority, or influence on public housing policy in Multnomah county than HAP Watchers.

I strongly urge you to meet the 5 PM Friday April 23 deadline and answer the question below. Whatever your answer, it will be better to have one than remain silent. This is not a trick question. It goes to the heart of public housing policy in Multnomah county. If you are comfortable with the status quo and no accountability then you needn't respond to express that opinion. But I most respectfully suggest that that position is untenable.

I hope that you will join Portland city commissioner Jim Francesconi and get on the Public Housing Expenditure Accountability Bus. Thank you.

Richard Ellmyer

ON the Public Housing Expenditure Accountability Bus
Jim Francesconi - Portland City Council [Although Francesconi hasn't yet taken any action, citizens interested in supporting a candidate for Mayor of Portland who says he supports neighborhood public housing accountability should seriously consider Jim Francesconi.]
Matt Hennessee - Portland Development Commission, Chair [The first public official in Multnomah county to recognize the need for limiting the number of low-income public housing clients in any given neighborhood and not afraid to say so. Good judgement and courage. Excellent qualities for a public official.]

OFF the Public Housing Expenditure Accountability Bus [All members of the Officials' Ostrich Club, they seem to think that neither their constituents, nor their colleagues, nor the press will notice that they have no interest in the subject of public housing policy. They assume the issue will somehow magically disappear if they refuse to talk about it. Their leader, Peter Pan, was unavailable for comment.]
Jeff Bachrach - Housing Authority of Portland Board
Charles Becker - Gresham Mayor
Shane Bemis - Gresham City Council
Harriet Cormack - Housing Authority of Portland Board
Serena Cruz - Multnomah County Commission
Richard Fernandez - Housing Authority of Portland Board
Shar Giard - Housing Authority of Portland Board
Jack Hanna - Gresham City Council
Larry Haverkamp - Gresham City Council
Jack Horner - Gresham City Council
Vera Katz - Portland Mayor
Chris Lassen - Housing Authority of Portland Board
Randy Leonard - Portland City Council
Diane Linn - Multnomah County Chair
Jacquenette McIntire - Gresham City Council
Lee Moore - Housing Authority of Portland Board
Lisa Naito - Multnomah County Commission
Kandis Brewer Nunn - Housing Authority of Portland Board Chair
Lonnie Roberts - Multnomah County Commission
Maria Rojo de Steffey - Multnomah County Commission
Dan Saltzman - Portland City Council
Howard Shapiro - Housing Authority of Portland Board
Dave Shields - Gresham City Council
Erik Sten - Portland City Council
Antoinette Teixeira - Housing Authority of Portland Board

I recently asked candidates for Portland mayor and city council to answer the question below relating to public housing goals and accountability. Their answers can be found here: http://www.goodgrowthnw.org/HAPQuiz3.html . Now it's your turn. You and your constituents are stake holders in this issue. As you are already well aware, $217,500,000 will be spent on public housing this fiscal year in Multnomah county's 117 neighborhoods.

The city of Portland already has a public housing policy which supports distribution not concentration of its low-income housing clients. The federal government supports distribution not concentration of low-income housing clients. Academic research supports distribution not concentration of low-income housing clients. Matt Hennessee, Chairperson of the Portland Development Commission, has suggested a cap on the number of low-income clients per neighborhood. Given the overwhelming evidence and support in favor of distribution not concentration of its low-income housing clients a new, more specific public housing policy needs to be established for both the city of Portland and the Housing Authority of Portland. A policy with goals that can easily be measured and observed by the general public to assure that public fund expenditures are spent in support of the public policy goals not against them. This can readily be accomplished by neighborhood map based accounting.

Do you support a public housing policy goal for all of Multnomah county's 117 neighborhoods that establishes SIX PERCENT of the total population of any and every neighborhood to include public housing clients with no neighborhood having fewer than THREE PERCENT and no neighborhood having more than NINE PERCENT of public housing clients?

Vera Katz - Portland Mayor
Maintain the status quo. No accountability. [Everyone takes their cues from the queen. When she hides her courtesans, courtiers and sheep will follow. The next king promises to make public appearances. Long live the king.]

Diane Linn - Multnomah County Chair
Maintain the status quo. No accountability. [Another blatant refusal to be accountable to voters reinforces the Oregonian's argument for removal from office. Diane is the only public official elected by and accountable to all citizens in Multnomah county. So how can she ignore a $217,500,000 expenditure that affects all of her constituency? It's a mystery.]

Charles Becker - Gresham Mayor
Maintain the status quo. No accountability. [I am not a rube. If the mayor of Portland doesn't have to say neither do I. So there.]

Kandis Brewer Nunn - Housing Authority of Portland Board Chair
Maintain the status quo. No accountability. [Howard Shapiro made me do it. Although I chose not to follow the excellent example of the Portland School Board which provides direct email access to its members, I'm pretty sure that my staff isn't censoring email anymore from citizens and is passing them along as soon as they get around to it.]

Jeff Bachrach - Housing Authority of Portland Board
Maintain the status quo. No accountability. [I'm a lawyer. I know my Fifth Amendment rights.]

Shane Bemis - Gresham City Council
Maintain the status quo. No accountability. [Yes, I know we have neighborhoods and HAP clients in Gresham. I'm no dummy.]

Harriet Cormack - Housing Authority of Portland Board
Maintain the status quo. No accountability. [Didn't take Harriet long to fall into line with her we-ain't-talkin-till-our-lawyer-shows-up board buddies ]

Serena Cruz - Multnomah County Commission
Maintain the status quo. No accountability. [Another blatant refusal to be accountable to voters reinforces the Oregonian's argument for removal from office. Add lying to the public about siting a library in North Portland and the list of reasons why Serena Cruz should be looking for employment in the private sector continues to grow.]

Richard Fernandez - Housing Authority of Portland Board
Maintain the status quo. No accountability. [So much for Fernandez's public claim to OPB reporter Rob Manning that he would be happy to respond to questions about HAP's public housing policy. Fernandez has now beaten his former colleague, Nick Fish, as HAP's biggest liar, liar paints on fire. Ouch! His colleagues at Guardian Management may want to throw Richard a party or at least help put out the flames on his trousers.]

Jim Francesconi - Portland City Council
Yes. All neighborhoods should accept some public housing, but the maximum may need to be higher. [Congratulations Jim. This is the right position for someone who would be mayor or king.]

Shar Giard - Housing Authority of Portland Board
Maintain the status quo. No accountability. [Howard and Kandis told me I didn't have to talk about this. I swear I would never withhold meaningful information from my clients who want to buy a house from me.]

Jack Hanna - Gresham City Council
Maintain the status quo. No accountability. [Yes, I know we have neighborhoods and HAP clients in Gresham. I'm no dummy.]

Larry Haverkamp - Gresham City Council
Maintain the status quo. No accountability. [Yes, I know we have neighborhoods and HAP clients in Gresham. I'm no dummy.]

Jack Horner - Gresham City Council
Maintain the status quo. No accountability. [Yes, I know we have neighborhoods and HAP clients in Gresham. I'm no dummy.]

Chris Lassen - Housing Authority of Portland Board
Maintain the status quo. No accountability. [Howard and Kandis told me I didn't have to talk about this.]

Randy Leonard - Portland City Council
I haven't spent much time thinking about public housing. It's not my bureau. But if someone else brings it up I'll take a look at it. [For the commissioner who claims to be the, "voice for the working class" on the Portland City Council, Leonard seems to have missed the fact that it is the working class neighborhoods that have the highest concentration of public housing. Is this what Leonard thinks "looking out" for the working class means? With friends like this who needs . . .]

Jacquenette McIntire - Gresham City Council
Maintain the status quo. No accountability. [Yes, I know we have neighborhoods and HAP clients in Gresham. I'm no dummy.]

Lee Moore - Housing Authority of Portland Board
Maintain the status quo. No accountability. [Howard and Kandis told me I didn't have to talk about this.]

Lisa Naito - Multnomah County Commission
Maintain the status quo. No accountability. [Another blatant refusal to be accountable to voters reinforces the Oregonian's argument for removal from office.]

Lonnie Roberts - Multnomah County Commission
Maintain the status quo. No accountability. [Lonnie may not have been part of the "gang of four" but his refusal to be accountable to voters for public housing policy qualifies him for the boot too.]

Maria Rojo de Steffey - Multnomah County Commission
Maintain the status quo. No accountability. [Another blatant refusal to be accountable to voters reinforces the Oregonian's argument for removal from office.]

Dan Saltzman - Portland City Council
Maintain the status quo. No accountability. [Dan "forgot" that he committed $2,000,000 for methane conversion at Columbia Villa and now he's "forgotten" to be accountable for public housing policy. Perhaps it's time for Dan to use his publicly funded health insurance and see a memory specialist.]

Howard Shapiro - Housing Authority of Portland Board
Maintain the status quo. No accountability. [No surprise here. His eminence, the master HAP puppeteer, continues to pull the strings.]

Dave Shields - Gresham City Council
Maintain the status quo. No accountability. [Yes, I know we have neighborhoods and HAP clients in Gresham. I'm no dummy.]

Erik Sten - Portland City Council
Maintain the status quo. No accountability. [Okay. Erik didn't know enough to prevent a $30,000,000 revenue loss in the Water Bureau and now he doesn't want to talk about a $217,500,000 public expenditure on public housing, another area in which he has public responsibility. Being unaccountable for millions of taxpayer dollars seems to be a pattern here. Tell me again why Erik is a wunderkind.]

Antoinette Teixeira - Housing Authority of Portland Board
Maintain the status quo. No accountability. [Howard and Kandis told me I didn't have to talk about this.]

All officials were given seven days to respond. They were told that if they did not answer it would logically be assumed that they wanted to maintain the status quo. If you believe that the positions stated above do not reflect the opinions of the elected and appointed public officials then you are encouraged to ask them this question. In fact, HAP Watchers may want to ask those public officials who don't want accountability for spending $217,500,000 why the public should continue to trust or keep them in public office.


Richard Ellmyer
Portsmouth neighborhood, North Portland