this is an example of squeaky wheel=grease.
A Sharpton-esque persona is all it takes in the current version of the pandering political arena in Portland.
What I don't understand is Potters obsessive preoccupation w/illegals. Is it legacy enhancement? eikes! When he was shoving Cesar Chavez Boulevard down our throats I believed it was because he had a vested interest in future Apt/condo development along Interstate. Now, I don't know. Maybe I should shelve my cynicism and view this move as an altruistic appt. for the betterment of Portland. It's hard to view Portland politics through rose colored lenses, though, especially since Potter, et al, still insist that a taxpayer funded labor center is in the best interest of Portland, despite recent studies from stakeholders in other cities - Seattle, for one - that say otherwise.
I dunno -mayhap Potter knows something the rest of us don't.
The future proletariats will come from the south, maybe? Socialism needs taxpayers.

Good grief!

Portland is long overdue for a new slogan.

How about:

"The City that Preaches"

You may already be familiar with this:

http://www.portlandonline.com/oni/index.cfm?a=183140&c=29385

and this:

http://www.portlandonline.com/mayor/index.cfm?c=43119

But if you aren't, then take a look. The way this is manifesting itself in our neighborhood (which, by the way, we define as the immediate streets and neighbors within a reasonable distance with whom we interact, help out, converse, and look out for), is that the agendas of certain individuals and special interest groups and a "neighborhood association" dictate policy without having any real authority and impose their decisions and actions on unwitting and unwilling residents. The meetings are poorly attended, they claim, so it it's our fault for not representing ourselves when decisions are made. The reality is, most of us have two working parents, children who need to complete homework, be fed and read to, houses that need attendance, and in all likelihood, additional work that needs to be from the home. A very select group is being represented, and the same individuals hold the same lead titles for conflicting groups within the community. Bottom line: A few individuals impose their self-serving agendas on the whole community and receive their support from themselves.

I will try to find the source, but I recently came across the statement that Portland desires to move itself away from "... a system of governance by professionals to a system of governance by community groups." This is so ludicrous that it defies effective argumentation. When I see the slogan, "The City That Works," I now know the last part of the slogan was apparently deleted: "... So We Don't Have To."

Celebrate that.

You'd think guys like Randy and Sam would realize the minute they don't give single-interest groups exactly what they want - then they become the enemy. These groups are always what have you done for me lately.

Bold.

The director of ONI, Amalia Alarcon de Morris, authorized the Diversity and Civic Leadership Academy contract between the ONI and the Latino Network, for which Amalia Alarcon de Morris and Maria Lisa Johnson were officers (of The Network, that is). The principal beneficiary/employee to do the Diversity and Civic Leadership Academy thing was Maria Lisa Johnson.

There is enough there for a DA to put both in jail, and void the contract and demand return of the money.

On top of that did someone promise this job to Lisa if she did not run for one of the Commissioner positions? (That too would be a crime.)

Or not to do it AND not seek public funds to campaign? (What did Sten know, and when?)

This is as bold as going out with a bang.

This is a case study in public private partnership, in a microcosm.

End the gift of graft -- the gift that keeps on giving -- to non-profits, and to any person or entity that is not itself a "public body." Some folks treat private non-profits just as if they were a public body, but where they substitute a contract for instances that an "Intergovernmental Agreement" would be appropriate. They are functionally treated as one in the same.

Still, this is just preservation of the status quo where public employees do not view themselves as laborers performing the good will of the public but rather as unique repositories of all that is good, vis-a-vis the evil private-public. How else would you "rationalize," after-the-fact, being on the receiving end of unearned (and routinely criminal) gifts and still be able to sleep comfortably at night?

The ONI response to my public records request regarding the contract between ONI and the Latino Network was not complete. It failed to address the contract provision that required the private party to be treated in like manner to any public body . . . which must include a complete reply.

Amalia and Lisa got paid 70 grand, from public funds, to call white men racists -- via the principal exercise of the Diversity and Civic Leadership Academy public-private project to rename Interstate Avenue Cesar Chavez Boulevard.

Their response to the Request For Proposal, to call white men racists, looks like this. Will diversity mean the very same thing now as then?

(PDX Native, Ah yes, expand it like a fungus and spread some spores too.)

I tend to agree w/PDX Native. As a homeowner in the Interstate neighborhood, I stopped going to Neighborhood Assoc. meetings when the business sector shouted down the homeowners as non-progressive and the special interests shouted down homeowners as racist. I didn't feel heard or represented-so I quit banging myself w/hammer. Now I can't drive down mississippi - semi trucks w/deliveries can be regularly seen on michigan - double parked - delivering Budweiser a block away. The residential streets are blocked by commercial interests that only benefit shopkeepers.
When I asked the EDH rep, I forget his name, developer of condos on mississippi about inadequate parking for the units, his reply was that the people buying these 300k units would be" transit conscious", implying they wouldn't be car owners.
Yeah - really. Transplant Cali's w/beemers are going to give em up and be magically transformed into "greeners". And the gallery of shopkeepers were all bobble-heading in agreement. My question was shelved in favor of sidewalk width or plants or paint scheme,or something. That was the last BNA meeting I attended.
Ultra-Density only benefits the developers/builders. Usurpers-these men are- stealing livability by proping up politicians and their shills in order to smokescreen their doings w/stupid "issues" like re-naming Interstate. All the while creating the future ghettos and lining their pockets.
They have figured out how to effectivly silence the majority by tagging them.

Why are we racists if we don't want a street name to change that has been the same for 60 years? Oh yeah, it MUST be the UGLY HEAD of HATE. What great problem solving ability and social sensitivity you have, Maria! What research did you do to quantify opposition that wasn't racist vs that which was? Please cite that, since you must have a valid reason for accusing people of HATE and RACISM. You do have some empirical evidence to base your accusations on, don't you?

Or are you just jumping to conclusions about other peoples motivations or using race as a politically expedient tool to advance your own agenda? Maybe Maria Lisa Johnson is the one acting like a racist.

Office of Human Relations...Racial Profiling Committee...etc. Is this a waste of tax dollars? How many socialists are sucking up salaries under government special interest task forces like this? Just once I would like to see mainstream media like Oregonian give a list of every single committee/bureau/what have you like this.
Diversity. Isn't the root of the word "divisive"? Seems to me the more activists keep herding people of one race together, feeding them line they are disenfranchised, unloved, treated unfairly, need special handouts, privileges and keep them angry, well that just hinders them from getting over themselves and joing the ballgame. It's not encouraging assimilation. When they fail to overcome cultural (NOT racial!) shortcomings then they scream at Whitey that he is the bad one. Diversity spells self-segregation to me.
But then where would all these bleeding heart uber-lefties be?

Semi-senior moment alert:

"On top of that did someone promise this job to Lisa if she did not run for one of the Commissioner positions?"

Should be:

"On top of that did someone promise this job to Lisa if [Maria Rojo de Steffey] did not run for one of the Commissioner positions?"

While they are different personalities, their politics and policies appear to me to be in complete alignment. And the chargeability of an election offense would still be valid, but involve one more participant in the alleged scheme.

I know you won't believe me, but there were no deals made in this hiring.

I did not serve on the committee, so I cannot speak for the committee members. But, this much I know to be true...

Because of the potentially contentious nature of hiring for this position, great care was taken throughout the process with an eye toward fairness and openness. Maria Lisa was among a large group of amazing and diverse candidates. The decision was difficult and carefully made. Ultimately, she was selected because of her experience, integrity, and ability to articulate, understand, and learn the issues of our various communities within the greater Portland community.

I have great hopes for all of Portland with Maria Lisa Johnson in this very important role for our changing city. She is a leader who is intelligent, compassionate, fierce and forgiving.

I hope you will all be willing to give her the fair chance that she deserves.