Review Of 5-13-25 Portland Homelessness And Housing Committee Meeting

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A. Item 1. February 11-April 22, 2025 Homelessness and Housing Committee* minutes

Approved.

B. Item 2. Reappoint Jill Cropp and Peggy Moretti to the Development Review Advisory Committee for terms to expire March 29, 2028 (Report)

Appointments confirmed.

C. Item 3. Discussion on Mayor’s Proposed Budget related to homelessness and housing (Presentations)

Donnie Oliveira, Deputy City Administrator for Community & Economic Development and Portland Permitting & Development (PPD) & Interim Dir. David Kuhnhausen talk of current economic conditions, PPD woes and weeds of proposed budget cuts.

Housing Bureau, Dir. talks of woes and weeds of proposed budget cuts.

Councilor Zimmerman says Housing Bureau didn’t really make a budget proposal presentation.

Portland Solutions Director, Skyler Brocker-Knapp, talks of woes and weeds of proposed budget cuts. Many one time funding items appear on her charts. Mentions Impact Reduction Program - camp removal crews going down from 21 to 17.

Councilor Dunphy deserves credit for touching upon a most basic question, whose responsibility is this? Dunphy says, “Bricks and sticks is our role. Portland not traditionally obliged to do this book of business. NOT Portland’s Job.” He is historically correct. Who’s in charge here IS the right question. However, Dunphy inexplicably missed the correct answer, METRO.

Councilor Zimmerman accuses other public jurisdictions of dropping off RVs and homeless persons at Portlands border making them Portland’s problem. He also breathes fire at Multnomah County for refusing to do their job of removing illegal campers from public property. He is very unhappy with Multnomah county Intergovernmental Agreements related to housing. He is not alone.

Skyler Brocker-Knapp teases a thought that, “Metro may be having some conversations about REGIONAL housing.” Really? Tell us more, much more Skyler. The failure of every member of this committee to seize an opening to put this subject on the table, which sooner or later it must be, is very distressing. Does Chair Avalos think that the Portland city council should take the lead in establishing and executing Publicly Vetted REGIONAL Homeless and Housing Policies And Plans? If so, speak up Candace.

D. The term, “Public Housing”** was never mentioned in more than two hours on the subject. Quite remarkable.

E. Some Councilors talked about budget amendments not where they would place homeless and housing matters in priority budgeting. Not a good, courageous or progressive sign.

F. Once again we sit through information overload, uninteresting and unintelligible to most voters.

G. The members of this committee continue to see themselves as Tree Surgeons not Forest Management. And that is a BIG problem.

H. This committee failed to discuss the necessity to develop policies and plans that acknowledge the inevitability of an increased homeless population in the near future.

I. This committee failed to discuss how California governor Gavin Newsom’s just announced homeless plans are relevant to Portland’s. ***

J. This committee continually fails to acknowledge the urgent need for action.

K. There is an unfulfilled, immediate need for everyone on this committee to speak up and express to colleagues and constituents their views on homelessness and housing goals, policies and plans. So far this is the biggest failure. It may also turn out to be the same for the entire City Council.

Richard Ellmyer

Portland resident since 1975.

Oregon Voter since 1971. NAV, Non Affiliated Voter. Citizen Activist.

Campaign manager and legislative assistant to state senator Bill McCoy 1980-1981.

Campaign manager and senior staff to Multnomah county commissioner Gladys McCoy 1981-1984.

Celebrate North Portland award 2016 for Volunteer Work and Service with Political and Social Issues Impacting North Portland.

Certified Oregon Change Agent by Governor John Kitzhaber 2011.

PSU Senior Adult Learner, Spring 2021 - Public Participation GiS, 500 level class

PSU Senior Adult Learner, Spring 2024 - Planning and Housing Markets, 500 level class

Author of more stories on the politics, players and policies of Public Housing in Oregon over the last twenty-three years than all other journalists and elected officials combined.

Project Champion and Data Wrangler - Metro/Oregon Public Housing Location Maps https://www.goodgrowthnw.org/m...

GIS for Activism conference, May 23, 2022, Portland State University, Portland, Oregon

Richard Ellmyer - How I, A Citizen Activist, Used GIS To Effectively Tell A Necessary Yet Unavailable Truth About Public Housing

30 minute Video https://media.pdx.edu/media/t/...

Lifelong Learning at PSU by Jennifer Jordan-Wong.

LET KNOWLEDGE SERVE THE CITY [Section] “Richard used a course he audited at PSU to create a citizen activist mapping tool to benefit Oregon residents, stakeholders, and policy makers…His interest in mapping as a tool for change began when he noticed that public housing was not being distributed equitably”

https://psucollegeofed.wordpress.com/2022/09/23/lifelong-learning-at-psu/?fbclid=IwAR3S9Pff0mBGeT6Ha8dQeAqL0nAqU7QzZ-0pJC_oTQJxBWlAb2fdXzdE0w4

Author of The Ellmyer Report, a newsletter that informs, educates and influences on public policy. Its target audiences are elected officials, journalists and civically engaged citizens. Facebook, Portland Politics Plus. Contributor: Patch news.

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Public Housing, Means Test (<=80% MFI) + Government Subsidy (any government, kind, amount) + Rental Agreement.

Affordable Housing, A mathematical calculation, i.e. Mortgage/Rent + Taxes + Insurance + Utilities <= 30% of household income.

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Gov. Gavin Newsom escalated California’s push to eradicate homeless encampments

Gov. Gavin Newsom escalated California's push to eradicate homeless encampments on Monday (May 12, 2025), calling on hundreds of cities, towns and counties to effectively ban tent camps on sidewalks, bike paths, parklands and other types of public property.

https://www.nytimes.com/2025/05/12/us/newsom-california-homeless-encampments.html