On February 28, 2007 PDC commissioner Sal Kadri tasked PDC staff to gather information by neighborhood on the location of all public housing clients that are subsidized and administered by any government agency within PDC's area of influence. This assignment should involve about half a dozen phone calls on PDC’s part and a matter of minutes to export the data from computer files by the agencies involved. The collection of this public data should take a few hours, perhaps a few days at most.
On March 15, two weeks after Kadri's request, which was clearly more than enough time to have gathered the data, I asked PDC to send me whatever files they had collected. I wrote (see below), "For many of us it is imperative that authentic, accurate, complete and timely public housing statistical data be made available to PDC commissioner Kadri as well as all the citizens of Portland long BEFORE the Portland city council begins to address the PDC resolution which designates approximately $111,000,000 for public housing in several Urban Renewal Areas." I renewed this request on March 28 (see below), and twice on April 4 (see below) in order to put this crucial information on the public table BEFORE the second reading of the PDC housing set aside resolution on April 5 and the Portland city council vote on April 12.
PDC could not or would not produce a single record in their possession BEFORE the April 5 hearing. "This is a clear indication of PDC staff’s willful negligence, gross incompetence or more likely a coverup ordered by senior PDC management" (see testimony by Richard Ellmyer below). Lent's neighborhood chair, Dewey Akers, wrote to the Portland city council on April 4 (see Lent's neighborhood letter below) "Staff members at PDC have confirmed that there has been an inordinate amount of pressure from the City Housing Department to not release the information publicly." A request by the East Portland Neighborhoods to postpone consideration of this resolution until "adaquate data" was available to make responsible and justifiable decisions (see below) was completly ignored by the Portland city council. A demand for whatever public housing statistical data PDC has acquired was made by Richard Ellmyer at 9:44 AM April 4, 2007 (see below) under the Oregon Public Records law which eventually will help lead to the truth of the matter.
From the very beginning the Portland Development Commission deceived the city council, voters and taxpayers by using the inaccurate and misleading term “affordable” housing 19 times in this resolution and not once used the correct term, “Public” housing to accurately describe the roughly 111 million or 68% of the Tax Increment Financing to be allocated to Urban Renewal Districts for the specific purpose of public housing. This linguistic deception has now been uncovered and exposed for the purposeful misrepresentation that it is.
Every member of the Portland city council is now aware of PDC's maniputlation of language in order to make this resolution appear more publicly palatable. Using the term, "mixed sweet fruit" basket allows the seller to persuade those who can't see it but are still paying for it to imagine lots of their favorites like ripe bananas, papaya and cantaloupe filling a wicker container. But when the ""mixed sweet fruit" basket is predominately filled with varieties the buyers find less appealing because of their tartness, like grapefruit and kiwi, many customers, whose kitchens are already overloaded with acidic foods, may be less enthusiastic about buying more of what they already have in abundance. Adams, Sten, Potter, Saltzman and Leonard know the difference between "tart public" housing and "sweet affordable" housing. They also know that none of them have enough data to morally or politically justify their votes to spend the people's money on this "mixed sweet fruit basket" resolution.
We Americans have come to expect that our federal government will lie, mislead, obfuscate and withhold any information which may be embarassing or discrediting to the administration. We Portlanders now find that the Portland Development Commission and our Portland city government are no differnent. Politics is politics.
Despite the existence of indisputable evidence that there were no WMDs in Iraq and that the Iraqi government had no ties to Al Qaeda, VP Dick Cheney persists to this day in denying the evidence and the truth. Despite the fact that there is NO public support, none whatsoever, for a policy of unlimited neighborhood concentration of public housing but there is overwhelming public support for equitable distribution of public housing, Portland's mayor, Tom Potter, persists to this day in denying the evidence and the truth. Potter continues to use his power to manipulate the government forces he commands to use taxpayer dollars in support of public housing expenditures without sufficient, credible public housing client location data on which to justify a morally and politically defensible decision. This official behavior establishes and identifies mayor Tom Potter and those that vote with him to be in de facto support of the discredited and abhorrent public policy of unlimited neighborhood concentration of public housing.
Hillary Clinton and John Kerry found out the hard way that you can try to "explain" all you want but in the end a vote is a vote is a vote. It is the ONLY thing that officially matters. It is the ONLY thing that remains on the official public record. It is the ONLY thing for which you can be held officially accountable.
Richard Ellmyer
Community leader coordinating a local effort to bring the Oregon National Guard to the Sharff Army Reserve Center
Community activist leading the campaign to Stop The Portland Hope Meadows Corporation From Adding To The Overload Of Public Housing Clients In The Portsmouth Neighborhood And North Portland
3-6-9 Resolution author and project champion
Writer/Publisher - HAP Watcher commentary - Published on the Internet and distributed to 13,000 readers interested in public housing policy in Multnomah County.
President, MacSolutions Inc. - A Macintosh computer consulting business providing web hosting for artists and very small businesses. Located in Portsmouth, the neighborhood with the second highest concentration of public housing clients, 20% and rising, within HAP's Multnomah county jurisdiction of 117 neighborhoods.
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From: dakers@pacseafood.com
Subject: Request regarding City Council Item 346
Date: April 4, 2007 6:01:53 PM PDT
To: samadams@ci.portland.or.us, rleonard@ci.portland.or.us, dsaltzman@ci.portland.or.us, mayorpotter@ci.portland.or.us, erik@ci.portland.or.us
City Commissioners/Mayor Potter,
The Lents Neighborhood Association would like to make it clear that it opposes any Public Housing Set Aside that creates a situation which further concentrates Public Housing in any neighborhood in Portland.
It has become clear from the language, and lack of data available from HAP and other Public and Private agencies providing Public Housing, that the intention of this “Set Aside” was to expect certain neighborhoods, particularly those in the 4 Residential URD’s, to shoulder more of the Public Housing problem in Portland.
It has further become evident the manner in which the Housing Department has withheld statistical data which would confirm or dispel this issue is intentional. Staff members at PDC have confirmed that there has been an inordinate amount of pressure from the City Housing Department to not release the information publicly. Further the intention from the beginning was to spend in excess of 68% of the total set aside on Public Housing (Public Housing meaning Housing that has all of the components of RENTAL CONTRACT + GOV. SUBSIDY + MEANS TESTING), when the URAC members were told far lower percentages to subdue the public response.
The Lents Neighborhood Association members have voted to send a clear message to the City Council that the Stakeholders in Lents Town Center Urban Renewal District oppose this Set Aside until this Council provides the Data that can show this Set Aside will not act to further concentrate Public Housing in ANY Neighborhood in Portland.
It should also be noted that two of your appointed Colleagues at the PDC Commission Board meeting in Feb 2007 voted against this set aside. Commissioner Kadri specifically requested the same data we have been asking for in his vote against the Resolution. As yet that data has not been provided and we are 5 weeks from that meeting.
I ask that our point of objection and this email be read into the record for the city council meeting 4/5/2007 so that it becomes a matter of public record that Lents Town Center Urban Renewal District Stakeholders, as represented by the Lents Neighborhood Association, request a no vote on this Housing Set Aside.
Dewey Akers
Lents Neighborhood Association President
503 869-6398
***************************************************************
From: Bixby, Richard [mailto:rbixby@ci.portland.or.us]
Sent: Thursday, April 05, 2007 10:29 AM
To: Sam Adams; Dan Saltzman; Erik Sten; Randy Leonard; Tom Potter;
Blackmer, Gary
Cc: Valerie Curry; Stephen Jenkevice; Deward Akers; Marcy
Emerson-Peters; Linda Bauer; Bonny McKnight; Ross Monn; Alesia Reese;
Sal Kadri; Bertha Ferran; Charles Wilhoite; John Mohlis; Mark Rosenbaum
Subject: Council agenda item 346 - 4-5-7
EAST PORTLAND NEIGHBORHOODS
1017 NE 117th Avenue, Portland, OR 97220
Phone 823-4550; FAX 823-4525; info@epno.org
Date: April 5, 2007 via email
To:
Mayor Tom Potter
Commissioner Randy Leonard
Commissioner Sam Adams
Commissioner Dan Saltzman
Commissioner Erik Sten
From:
Valerie Curry, Argay Neighborhood Association
Stephen Jenkevice, Glenfair Neighborhood Association
Dewey Akers, Lents Neighborhood Association
Marcy Emerson-Peters, Parkrose Neighborhood Association
Linda Bauer, Pleasant Valley Neighborhood Association
Bonny McKnight, Russell Neighborhood Association
Ross Monn, Wilkes Community Group
Alesia Reese, Woodland Park Neighborhood Association
Re: Portland City Council Agenda Item #346, April 5, 2007
The East Portland Neighborhood Chairs Advisory Committee met Wednesday night, April 4th, and during that meeting the following resolution was agreed to by those present.
We request that the decision on the Housing Set Aside Policy be removed from this agenda item until adequate data is received to measure the impact of that policy on existing low-income areas of the City.
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Testimony by Richard Ellmyer before Portland City Council 4 PM April 5, 2007
My name is Richard Ellmyer and I’m here today to oppose this resolution, which if passed, could significantly increase the percentage of public housing clients in my neighborhood, Portsmouth, beyond 35% which will be the level reached after the remaining public housing units are completed this fall at the remodeled Columbia Villa. Should the very real possibility of the former John Ball school property, the decommissioned Sharff Army Reserve Center and the soon to be closed Clarendon school become public housing the percentage of public housing clients in the Portsmouth neighborhood could reach 60% and beyond.
Public Housing = Means Test + Government Subsidy + Rental Agreement
PDC deceived the city council, voters and taxpayers by using the inaccurate and misleading term “affordable” housing 19 times in this resolution and not once used the correct term, “Public” housing to accurately describe the roughly 111 million or 68% of the TIF allocation, a government subsidy, then requiring citizens to pass a Means test leading to a rental agreement. In other words, Public housing.
On February 28th PDC commissioners Sal Kadri and Bertha Ferran voted against this resolution. Commissioner Kadri then tasked PDC staff to gather information by neighborhood on the location of all public housing clients that are subsidized and administered by any government agency within PDC's area of influence. This assignment should involve about half a dozen phone calls on PDC’s part and a matter of minutes to export the data from computer files by the agencies involved.
It has been five weeks since commissioner Kadri requested this data for public distribution. To date PDC cannot or will not produce a single record in their possession. This is a clear indication of PDC staff’s willful negligence, gross incompetence or more likely a coverup ordered by senior PDC management. A demand for this data has been made under the Oregon public records law which eventually will lead to the truth of the matter. Unless commissioner Kadri has been told to back off, keep his mouth shut and he is prepared to risk his credibility and become the subject of public ridicule commissioner Sal Kadri most certainly would be expected to publicly ask very soon why he and the public haven’t been given the authentic, accurate, complete and timely data he requested.
There is NO public support, none whatsoever, for a policy of unlimited neighborhood concentration of public housing. There is overwhelming public support for equitable distribution of public housing. Elected officials, appointed officials and others that vote for or endorse the use of taxpayer dollars in support of public housing expenditures without sufficient, credible public housing client location data on which to justify a morally and politically defensible decision are in de facto support of the discredited and abhorrent public policy of unlimited neighborhood concentration of public housing.
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From: Richard Ellmyer
Subject: IMMEDIATE Need For PDC Public Housing Statistical Data
Date: April 4, 2007 10:44:18 AM PDT
To: bferran@windermere.com, sal@valuecad.com, john_mohlis@comcast.net, mark@rosenbaumfinancial.com, cawilhoite@willamette.com, GreenwoodL@pdc.us, wilcha@pdc.us, warnerb@pdc.us
Hi Folks:
It has just come to my attention that the Portland city council will consider the PDC resolution which allocates an additional approximately $111,000,000 in Tax Increment Financing funds to PUBLIC HOUSING at 3:00 PM Thursday April 5, 2007. It is therefore imperative that the public housing statistical data I requested under the Oregon Public Records law MUST be sent to me and the Portland city council IMMEDIATELY. In addition, PDC should publish on its website copies of these files so that they are available for download to any citizen that wants to testify on this matter.
PDC's failure to IMMEDIATELY place on the public table the public housing statistical data which PDC staff has been instructed to collect for the past five weeks can, should and will be seen as an inexcusable and reprehensible coverup in furtherance of the discredited and abhorrent public policy of unlimited neighborhood concentration of public housing.
Thank you.
Richard Ellmyer
Community leader coordinating a local effort to bring the Oregon National Guard to the Sharff Army Reserve Center
Community activist leading the campaign to Stop The Portland Hope Meadows Corporation From Adding To The Overload Of Public Housing Clients In The Portsmouth Neighborhood And North Portland
3-6-9 Resolution author and project champion
Writer/Publisher - HAP Watcher commentary - Published on the Internet and distributed to 13,000 readers interested in public housing policy in Multnomah County.
President, MacSolutions Inc. - A Macintosh computer consulting business providing web hosting for artists and very small businesses. Located in Portsmouth, the neighborhood with the second highest concentration of public housing clients, 20% and rising, within HAP's Multnomah county jurisdiction of 117 neighborhoods.
******************************************************************
From: Richard Ellmyer
Subject: Oregon Public Records Law - Demand For Documents
Date: April 4, 2007 9:44:33 AM PDT
To: bferran@windermere.com, sal@valuecad.com, john_mohlis@comcast.net, mark@rosenbaumfinancial.com, cawilhoite@willamette.com, GreenwoodL@pdc.us, wilcha@pdc.us, warnerb@pdc.us
Hi Folks:
It is disappointing and somewhat perplexing that PDC has twice refused (see requests below signature) to provide public documents which are clearly destined for public exposure. Nevertheless, I demand under the Oregon Public Records Law any database files you have collected or any database files that you have generated in response to commissioner Kadri's February 28th request to gather information by neighborhood on the location of all public housing clients that are subsidized and administered by any government agency within PDC's area of influence, sent to me via email in the form of tab delimited text files.
It has been five weeks since commissioner Kadri's request for this data. This is more than enough time to gather the public housing statistical data which should all be on computers and exportable in the universally readable format of a tab delimited text file in a matter of minutes. Failure to have compiled all the data requested by commissioner Kadri after five weeks would be a clear indication of PDC staff negligence, incompetence or both. Any organization that has been asked by PDC for statistical data and has not or would not provide that data to PDC within the last five weeks is highly suspect and requires investigation.
Time is of the essence. As you are surely aware, the PDC resolution which allocates approximately $111,000,000 in additional TIF funding for public housing in several Urban Renewal Districts has been passed on to the Portland city council for consideration. That resolution could appear on the Portland city council agenda at any time. Public testimony and council deliberations regarding this extraordinary expenditure of public funds MUST have authentic, accurate, complete and timely public housing statistical data i.e., the data requested by PDC commissioner Sal Kadri, in order to have a credible public discussion and then make a wise, justifiable and politically defensible decision.
There is NO public support, none whatsoever, for a policy of unlimited neighborhood concentration of public housing. There is overwhelming public support for equitable distribution of public housing. Elected officials, appointed officials and others that vote for or endorse the use of taxpayer dollars in support of public housing expenditures without sufficient, credible public housing client location data on which to justify a morally and politically defensible decision are in de facto support of the discredited and abhorrent public policy of unlimited neighborhood concentration of public housing.
Richard Ellmyer
Community leader coordinating a local effort to bring the Oregon National Guard to the Sharff Army Reserve Center
Community activist leading the campaign to Stop The Portland Hope Meadows Corporation From Adding To The Overload Of Public Housing Clients In The Portsmouth Neighborhood And North Portland
3-6-9 Resolution author and project champion
Writer/Publisher - HAP Watcher commentary - Published on the Internet and distributed to 13,000 readers interested in public housing policy in Multnomah County.
President, MacSolutions Inc. - A Macintosh computer consulting business providing web hosting for artists and very small businesses. Located in Portsmouth, the neighborhood with the second highest concentration of public housing clients, 20% and rising, within HAP's Multnomah county jurisdiction of 117 neighborhoods.
*************************************************************************
From: Richard Ellmyer
Subject: Four Weeks And Counting
Date: March 28, 2007 2:38:53 PM PDT
To: GreenwoodL@pdc.us, wilcha@pdc.us
Cc: bferran@windermere.com, sal@valuecad.com, john_mohlis@comcast.net, mark@rosenbaumfinancial.com, cawilhoite@willamette.com, dougbates@news.oregonian.com, argayinfo@yahoo.com, editor@stjohnssentinel.com, dakers@pacseafood.com, samadams@ci.portland.or.us, jeff.cogen@co.multnomah.or.us, jimredden@portlandtribune.com, ted.wheeler@co.multnomah.or.us, ryanfrank@news.oregonian.com, nickbudnick@portlandtribune.com, dp@News4Neighbors.net, tenwa@jps.net, tgriffinvalade@ci.portland.or.us
Hi Folks:
It has been four weeks since Sal Kadri tasked PDC staff to gather information by neighborhood on the location of all public housing clients that are subsidized and administered by any government agency within PDC's area of influence. Two weeks ago (see email below signature) I asked you to send me what data you had already gathered. To date I have had no response. I renew that request for public housing statistical data you have gathered and ask again what time frame you anticipate successful completion of your assignment.
You are certainly aware that whatever public housing statistical data you collect is public information available to all citizens of Multnomah county and subject to a demand under the Oregon Public Records law from PDC and its sources. This is not yet such a demand.
Please send me any database files you have collected or any database files that you have generated in response to commissioner Kadri's request in the form of tab delimited text files.
Time is of the essence.
Thank you.
Richard Ellmyer
Community leader coordinating a local effort to bring the Oregon National Guard to the Sharff Army Reserve Center
Community activist leading the campaign to Stop The Portland Hope Meadows Corporation From Adding To The Overload Of Public Housing Clients In The Portsmouth Neighborhood And North Portland
3-6-9 Resolution author and project champion
Writer/Publisher - HAP Watcher commentary - Published on the Internet and distributed to 13,000 readers interested in public housing policy in Multnomah County.
President, MacSolutions Inc. - A Macintosh computer consulting business providing web hosting for artists and very small businesses. Located in Portsmouth, the neighborhood with the second highest concentration of public housing clients, 18% and rising, within HAP's Multnomah county jurisdiction of 117 neighborhoods.
***********************************************************************
From: Richard Ellmyer
Subject: Statistical Search Update
Date: March 15, 2007 7:37:09 PM PDT
Cc: bferran@windermere.com, sal@valuecad.com, john_mohlis@comcast.net, mark@rosenbaumfinancial.com, cawilhoite@willamette.com, dougbates@news.oregonian.com, argayinfo@yahoo.com, editor@stjohnssentinel.com, dakers@pacseafood.com, samadams@ci.portland.or.us, jeff.cogen@co.multnomah.or.us, ted.wheeler@co.multnomah.or.us, ryanfrank@news.oregonian.com, nickbudnick@portlandtribune.com, dp@News4Neighbors.net, tenwa@jps.net, tgriffinvalade@ci.portland.or.us
Hi Leah:
This request for information is addressed to you and the person who shared the table with you during the PDC hearing on Feb. 28th. I don't remember his name and I couldn't find any references to help me find it on the PDC website.
It has been just over two weeks since Sal Kadri tasked PDC staff to gather information by neighborhood on the location of all public housing clients that are subsidized and administered by any government agency within PDC's area of influence. I am presuming that you are either doing this work yourself or leading a team. As you and 13,000 readers of HAP Watchers know, I and others have been seeking this data for more than six years. I will be reporting and commenting upon your progress. For many of us it is imperative that authentic, accurate, complete and timely public housing statistical data be made available to PDC commissioner Kadri as well as all the citizens of Portland long before the Portland city council begins to address the PDC resolution which designates approximately $111,000,000 for public housing in several Urban Renewal Areas.
Please tell me what information you have in hand at this moment, what avenues you are pursuing to gather the requested public housing statistical data and what time frame you anticipate successful completion of your assignment.
Thank you.
Richard Ellmyer
Community leader coordinating a local effort to bring the Oregon National Guard to the Sharff Army Reserve Center
Community activist leading the campaign to Stop The Portland Hope Meadows Corporation From Adding To The Overload Of Public Housing Clients In The Portsmouth Neighborhood And North Portland
3-6-9 Resolution author and project champion
Writer/Publisher - HAP Watcher commentary - Published on the Internet and distributed to 13,000 readers interested in public housing policy in Multnomah County.
President, MacSolutions Inc. - A Macintosh computer consulting business providing web hosting for artists and very small businesses. Located in Portsmouth, the neighborhood with the second highest concentration of public housing clients, 18% and rising, within HAP's Multnomah county jurisdiction of 117 neighborhoods.