It's hard to believe, but the new mayor of Portland just gave a top job to an old white guy who actually knows what he's doing. Just on a temporary basis, of course, but even so, when's the last time that happened?
Comments (27)
How many times is the Oregonian going to run that same picture? It's not even of Mayor Hales - it goes back to early in the campaign. And I think this is the second time they used it this week.
Hey Bill, it's a bunch better than the electronic version of the "O" fish-wrapper sill showing the very strange McAfee dude looking at us on their side bar when following a story headline.
To get back to the appointment ... I hope some people in LO are taking notice that when regimes change, the managers and directors change with it. Those folks in LO who feel slighted should relax - they are not being abused.
It's nice to have a Mayor work rather than having his picture taken all the time.
Hiring an old shoe to run PBOT that "can start every piece of equipment in the maintenance yard and run it" instead of someone with a planning degree must have the cycling community up in arms!
"He apparently owns a nice little bar down in Metzger."
So they need to bring in a guy who has been running a bar and hasn't worked the city in more than a decade to come in and tell them to focus on paving the streets? What is he getting from PERS already? There isn't an existing employee who could do this in the interim? Double dipping should be avoid expect in all but the most extreme circumstances. This isn't one of them as far I can see.
Jack, I have to agree. I'm certainly not saying he's perfect, and keeping an eye on him is in everyone's best interests, but it looks like Charlie may actually do some of the right things for the right reasons. Getting rid of the hipster bait is a good start.
How many times is the Oregonian going to run that same picture? It's not even of Mayor Hales - it goes back to early in the campaign. And I think this is the second time they used it this week.
I'm pretty sure it's a conspiracy, Bill - glad you're "on it".
Toby Widmer started out as a laborer guarding a City dump and worked his way up to become one of the Maintenance Bureau's best Directors. He has a complete understanding of the subject matter and represents a complete change from Adam's choices. I am happy he has agreed to a six month term to try and turn Transportation's ship around. There is a lot of damage to repair from Adams and his know-nothing appointees. He will do a great job returning to basics. God knows the streets need it!
Careful, it sounds like MR Bog's setting himself up for a broken heart. That last time he sounded this excited was about Potter (which, considering, was understandable.)
He apparently owns a nice little bar down in Metzger.
Just like that Metro high level manager who lives in a McMansion on several acres in rural Clackamas County outside of West Linn (and outside the Metro boundary), those in power in Portland/Metro government know best to live outside their jurisdiction, as to not be subject to the rules.
Why isn't it a law that if you are a government employee you must live within the jurisdiction and be subject to the same rules - especially if you are the one that is either writing, or enforcing, the rules?
Toby was a great Director and does not trust a** kissers.
A lot of a** kissers in government that may not sleep well for a while. I hope he cleans house and cans them all.
Somehow I just knew "that" would be the photo!
I must be clairvoyant!
I don't think the O will be showing "that" one much.
Now with my clairvoyance I predict
"that" photo will keep appearing on this blog.
Charamba, Douro 2008
Horse Heaven Hills, Cabernet 2010
Lorelle, Horse Heaven Hills Pinot Grigio 2011
Avignonesi, Montepulciano 2004
Lorelle, Willamette Valley Pinot Noir 2011
Villa Antinori, Toscana 2007
Mercedes Eguren, Cabernet Sauvignon 2009
Lorelle, Columbia Valley Cabernet 2011
Purple Moon, Merlot 2011
Purple Moon, Chardonnnay 2011
Abacela, Vintner's Blend No. 12
Opula Red Blend 2010
Liberte, Pinot Noir 2010
Chateau Ste. Michelle, Indian Wells Red Blend 2010
Woodbridge, Chardonnay 2011
King Estate, Pinot Noir 2011
Famille Perrin, Cotes du Rhone Villages 2010
Columbia Crest, Les Chevaux Red 2010
14 Hands, Hot to Trot White Blend
Familia Bianchi, Malbec 2009
Terrapin Cellars, Pinot Gris 2011
Columbia Crest, Walter Clore Private Reserve 2009
Campo Viejo, Rioja, Termpranillo 2010
Ravenswood, Cabernet Sauvignon 2009
Quinta das Amoras, Vinho Tinto 2010
Waterbrook, Reserve Merlot 2009
Lorelle, Horse Heaven Hills, Pinot Grigio 2011
Tarantas, Rose
Chateau Lajarre, Bordeaux 2009
La Vielle Ferme, Rose 2011
Benvolio, Pinot Grigio 2011
Nobilo Icon, Pinot Noir 2009
Lello, Douro Tinto 2009
Quinson Fils, Cotes de Provence Rose 2011
Anindor, Pinot Gris 2010
Buenas Ondas, Syrah Rose 2010
Les Fiefs d'Anglars, Malbec 2009
14 Hands, Pinot Gris 2011
Conundrum 2012
Condes de Albarei, Albariño 2011
Columbia Crest, Walter Clore Private Reserve 2007
Penelope Sanchez, Garnacha Syrah 2010
Canoe Ridge, Merlot 2007
Atalaya do Mar, Godello 2010
Vega Montan, Mencia
Benvolio, Pinot Grigio
Nobilo Icon, Pinot Noir, Marlborough 2009
Portuga, Rose 2011
Revelation, Chardonnay, Pays d'Oc 2010
Beaulieu, Cabernet, Rutherford 2005
Monte Alto, Tinto Reserva 2005
Chateau Ste. Michelle, Cabernet, Indian Wells 2009
Espiral, Vinho Rose
Vin-Koru, Pinot Gris 2011
14 Hands, Hot to Trot Red 2009
Rodney Strong, Cabernet, Sonoma 2009
Abacela, Vintner's Blend #11
Portuga, White 2010
La Bourgeoisie, Red 2009
Januik, Red 2009
Three Rivers, River's Red 2008
Kirkland, Alexander Valley Merlot 2008
Muga, Rioja Rose 2010
Quinta das Amoras, Vinho Tinto 2009
Mauro Molino, Barbera d'Alba 2009
Garda Chiaretto Rose
Columbia Crest, Two Vines Vineyard 10 White
Chateau Ste. Michelle, Pinot Gris, Columbia Valley 2009
L'Hortus, Rose de Saignee 2010
Maculan, Pino & Toi 2008
McKinley Springs, Bombing Range Red 2008
Trader Joe's Pinot Gris 2009
Montes Alpha, Cabernet 2007
Gran Sasso, Sangiovese, Terre di Chieti 2009
Garda, Classico Chiaretto Rose
Beaulieu, Cabernet, Rutherford 1999
Picos del Montgo, Tempranillo 2008
Chateau de Montmirail, Vacqueyras 2008
La Granja 360, Syrah 2009
Montgras, Carmenere Reserva 2009
Lange, Pinot Gris 2009
Columbia Crest, Horse Heaven Hills Cabernet 2008
Kirkland, Pinot Grigio 2010
Trader Joe's Coastal Syrah 2009
Columbia Crest, Horse Heaven Hills Merlot 2008
Trader Joe's Coastal Chardonnay 2009
Vieux Papes Red
Domaine de l'Aujardiere, Chardonnay 2009
Santa Rita, Cabernet, Medalla Real 2007
Penfold's, Koonunga Hill Shiraz Cabernet 2008
Guild, Red, Lot #02 2008
Dievole, Dievolino Sangiovese 2008
Laforet, Burgogne Chardonnay 2009
Columbia Winery, Merlot 2007
Bonterra, Cabernet 2008
Elk Cove, Pinot Gris 2009
Maquis Lien 2006
Scott Paul, Pinot Noir, Le Paulee 2007
The Occasional Book
Hope Larson - A Wrinkle in Time, the Graphic Novel
Rudyard Kipling - Kim
Peter Ames Carlin - Bruce
Fran Cannon Slayton - When the Whistle Blows
Neil Young - Waging Heavy Peace
Mark Bego - Aretha Franklin, the Queen of Soul (2012 ed.)
Jenny Lawson - Let's Pretend This Never Happened
J.D. Salinger - Franny and Zooey
Charles Dickens - A Christmas Carol
Timothy Egan - The Big Burn
Deborah Eisenberg - Transactions in a Foreign Currency
Kurt Vonnegut Jr. - Slaughterhouse Five
Kathryn Lance - Pandora's Genes
Cheryl Strayed - Wild
Fyodor Dostoyevsky - The Brothers Karamazov
Jack London - The House of Pride, and Other Tales of Hawaii
Jack Walker - The Extraordinary Rendition of Vincent Dellamaria
Colum McCann - Let the Great World Spin
Niccolò Machiavelli - The Prince
Harper Lee - To Kill a Mockingbird
Emma McLaughlin & Nicola Kraus - The Nanny Diaries
Brian Selznick - The Invention of Hugo Cabret
Sharon Creech - Walk Two Moons
Keith Richards - Life
F. Sionil Jose - Dusk
Natalie Babbitt - Tuck Everlasting
Justin Halpern - S#*t My Dad Says
Mark Herrmann - The Curmudgeon's Guide to Practicing Law
Barry Glassner - The Gospel of Food
Phil Stanford - The Peyton-Allan Files
Jesse Katz - The Opposite Field
Evelyn Waugh - Brideshead Revisited
J.K. Rowling - Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
David Sedaris - Holidays on Ice
Donald Miller - A Million Miles in a Thousand Years
Mitch Albom - Have a Little Faith
C.S. Lewis - The Magician's Nephew
F. Scott Fitzgerald - The Great Gatsby
William Shakespeare - A Midsummer Night's Dream
Ivan Doig - Bucking the Sun
Penda Diakité - I Lost My Tooth in Africa
Grace Lin - The Year of the Rat
Oscar Hijuelos - Mr. Ives' Christmas
Madeline L'Engle - A Wrinkle in Time
Steven Hart - The Last Three Miles
David Sedaris - Me Talk Pretty One Day
Karen Armstrong - The Spiral Staircase
Charles Larson - The Portland Murders
Adrian Wojnarowski - The Miracle of St. Anthony
William H. Colby - Long Goodbye
Steven D. Stark - Meet the Beatles
Phil Stanford - Portland Confidential
Rick Moody - Garden State
Jonathan Schwartz - All in Good Time
David Sedaris - Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim
Anthony Holden - Big Deal
Robert J. Spitzer - The Spirit of Leadership
James McManus - Positively Fifth Street
Jeff Noon - Vurt
Road Work
Miles run year to date: 29
At this date last year: 66
Total run in 2012: 129
In 2011: 113
In 2010: 125
In 2009: 67
In 2008: 28
In 2007: 113
In 2006: 100
In 2005: 149
In 2004: 204
In 2003: 269
Comments (27)
How many times is the Oregonian going to run that same picture? It's not even of Mayor Hales - it goes back to early in the campaign. And I think this is the second time they used it this week.
Posted by Bill McDonald | January 18, 2013 9:57 AM
Does this look familiar?
http://www.oregonlive.com/portland/index.ssf/2011/06/portland_mayoral_candidate_cha.html
Posted by Bill McDonald | January 18, 2013 9:59 AM
How about this?
http://blog.oregonlive.com/portlandcityhall/2012/09/portland_mayoral_candidate_cha_1.html
Posted by Bill McDonald | January 18, 2013 10:04 AM
Hey Bill, it's a bunch better than the electronic version of the "O" fish-wrapper sill showing the very strange McAfee dude looking at us on their side bar when following a story headline.
Posted by phil | January 18, 2013 10:05 AM
I thought when I looked at his selection it was going to reveal Jack Bog as his new pick
Bill - He has certainly aged in this photo from the very first time they used this photo.
Posted by gibby | January 18, 2013 10:06 AM
I don't want to leave Beth out of the mix:
http://blog.oregonlive.com/portlandcityhall/2012/04/charlie_hales_releases_tax_for.html
Posted by Bill McDonald | January 18, 2013 10:09 AM
Great, another double dipper. He retired at 51. Must be nice.
Posted by m | January 18, 2013 10:10 AM
He apparently owns a nice little bar down in Metzger.
Posted by Jack Bog | January 18, 2013 10:12 AM
To get back to the appointment ... I hope some people in LO are taking notice that when regimes change, the managers and directors change with it. Those folks in LO who feel slighted should relax - they are not being abused.
Posted by Nolo | January 18, 2013 10:13 AM
It's nice to have a Mayor work rather than having his picture taken all the time.
Hiring an old shoe to run PBOT that "can start every piece of equipment in the maintenance yard and run it" instead of someone with a planning degree must have the cycling community up in arms!
Posted by PD | January 18, 2013 10:15 AM
The only photo of Char-Lie you need to see:
http://photos.oregonlive.com/oregonian/2012/05/charlie_hales_on_election_nigh.html
Posted by Jack Bog | January 18, 2013 10:16 AM
"He apparently owns a nice little bar down in Metzger."
So they need to bring in a guy who has been running a bar and hasn't worked the city in more than a decade to come in and tell them to focus on paving the streets? What is he getting from PERS already? There isn't an existing employee who could do this in the interim? Double dipping should be avoid expect in all but the most extreme circumstances. This isn't one of them as far I can see.
Posted by m | January 18, 2013 10:36 AM
Please, I'd rather have a PERS type than the legion of unqualified kids and hacks that ran the place under the Sam Rand Twins.
Posted by Jack Bog | January 18, 2013 10:39 AM
Widmer's PERS is apparently about $4,000 a month.
Posted by Jack Bog | January 18, 2013 10:42 AM
Jack, I have to agree. I'm certainly not saying he's perfect, and keeping an eye on him is in everyone's best interests, but it looks like Charlie may actually do some of the right things for the right reasons. Getting rid of the hipster bait is a good start.
Posted by Texas Triffid Ranch | January 18, 2013 10:51 AM
The "old white guy" should be the sidenote. Isn't this the bombshell?
"Widmer understands that street maintenance is his first priority."
Posted by sally | January 18, 2013 10:52 AM
How many times is the Oregonian going to run that same picture? It's not even of Mayor Hales - it goes back to early in the campaign. And I think this is the second time they used it this week.
I'm pretty sure it's a conspiracy, Bill - glad you're "on it".
Posted by cc | January 18, 2013 11:06 AM
Toby Widmer started out as a laborer guarding a City dump and worked his way up to become one of the Maintenance Bureau's best Directors. He has a complete understanding of the subject matter and represents a complete change from Adam's choices. I am happy he has agreed to a six month term to try and turn Transportation's ship around. There is a lot of damage to repair from Adams and his know-nothing appointees. He will do a great job returning to basics. God knows the streets need it!
Posted by Bill Long | January 18, 2013 11:13 AM
cc,
At first I thought those damn flashbacks were kicking in again.
Posted by Bill McDonald | January 18, 2013 11:13 AM
Careful, it sounds like MR Bog's setting himself up for a broken heart. That last time he sounded this excited was about Potter (which, considering, was understandable.)
Posted by Steve | January 18, 2013 11:25 AM
Potter was a great mayor. He was, however, surrounded by dolts.
Posted by Jack Bog | January 18, 2013 11:43 AM
"He's a PBOT director who could start every piece of equipment in the maintenance yard and run it."
Yes, and Admiral Randy can drive fire trucks and climb up on the roof of a burning building. Does that make him better suited to run a bureau?
Posted by John Rettig | January 18, 2013 12:21 PM
He apparently owns a nice little bar down in Metzger.
Just like that Metro high level manager who lives in a McMansion on several acres in rural Clackamas County outside of West Linn (and outside the Metro boundary), those in power in Portland/Metro government know best to live outside their jurisdiction, as to not be subject to the rules.
Why isn't it a law that if you are a government employee you must live within the jurisdiction and be subject to the same rules - especially if you are the one that is either writing, or enforcing, the rules?
Posted by Erik H. | January 18, 2013 12:49 PM
Roseanne Rosanadana:
What's all this talk about pot'holes? Is that like people that smoke a lot and then are really stupid and obnoxious?
Never Mind...
Posted by Tim | January 18, 2013 1:28 PM
PD, PBOT Tom Miller never had a planning degree. He was fresh out of Lewis & Clark Law School when he got into Bureau Jumping.
Posted by lw | January 18, 2013 2:49 PM
Toby was a great Director and does not trust a** kissers.
A lot of a** kissers in government that may not sleep well for a while. I hope he cleans house and cans them all.
Posted by fancypants | January 18, 2013 9:58 PM
Jack:The only photo of Char-Lie you need to see:
Somehow I just knew "that" would be the photo!
I must be clairvoyant!
I don't think the O will be showing "that" one much.
Now with my clairvoyance I predict
"that" photo will keep appearing on this blog.
Posted by clinamen | January 18, 2013 11:44 PM