Sam is brilliant. Let's see what we have so far:
- Downtown streets going thru their umpteenth re-design and overhaul while the rest of town gets potholes.
- Fewer parking spaces and more parking fees.
- Macy's scales down
- Pioneer Place is about half (go above street level and look)
- Downtown retail space goes begging
- Between streetcars and MAX its a switchyard.

THese guys just don't get that this is not their SIM city, but as long as you have co-conspirators like Earl willing to give Sam ammo, what do you expect?

Really a stupid idea. But in fairness to Sam (god it hurts to say that) Portland ceded its downtown to the “misfits’ of the street” years ago and since the voters hate cars anyway…

I miss the old parking meters: I never had to wait for credit card verification in the rain, never had to walk more than a few feet, there were no stickers gumming up my window, and there was only one button.

Better yet, they said "free on Sunday" right on the front.

"The Sunday rates would apply from 1 to 7 p.m., to avoid charging people coming downtown for church, Adams said."

First of all, I think charging on Sunday is stupid. Secondly, is applying the charge starting at 1pm for churchgoers a good idea (let alone a sound legal one)?

Parking downtown is a total nightmare. They have become way more aggressive in handing out parking tickets in the last couple of months. The only sane thing to do is pay to park in a lot. I'd rather see my parking dollars go to some lot owner than to any of Sam's projects. Lesser of two crazies.

If this truly miserable idea is going to come to fruition, it should be all day on Sunday. Tax exempt status isn't good enough? You have to get free parking too? At least the people who are parking downtown to do ungodly things like shop and work are adding to the local economy.

"Adams said he would use some of the money to create bicycle boulevards, which had been on the budget chopping block."

I'm cutting the spokes of any bike I see locked up on a parking meter if this goes down.

"The city would use the new money mostly for paving projects on busy streets such as 39th Avenue and Southeast Hawthorne Street. Adams said he would use some of the money to create bicycle boulevards, which had been on the budget chopping block."

Was Portland's request for $65 million in stimulus funds for such projects rejected? Does anyone know?

http://www.stimuluswatch.org/project/by_state/OR

"Portland Arterial Paving, Improvement, and Safety: improving arterials in the City; includes paving, safety improvements, congestion relief, and bicycle boulevards

Portland OR $65,000,00 Streets/Roads"

Oops - "$65,000,000"

Great! One less reason to support downtown businesses, in addition to the current parking problem. Get ready for a more so empty downtown.

Bike boulevards? Still? He can't be serious, and yet, he is.

When did we elect a toddler as mayor? First, he has to be told what a fib is and why its a bad thing, and now he's throwing what appears to be some sort of bizarre temper tantrum to get his way, economic and political realities be damned. And a selective one, at that, considering his whistle-and-look-away approach to rightsizing the CRC monstrosity.

Lead paint exposure? Dropped as a child? Political Tourette's, maybe? Too many mushrooms with dinner? Something has to explain why he sees a categorically different world than the rest of us do...

This is good news. I'll finally be able to find parking outside Kenney and Zukes on a Sunday. Plus those condo dwellers, that everybody here seems to hate so much, won't be able to hog spaces for the whole day.

The bicycle constituency has been very vocalin supporting the Mayor. They were organizers of the pro-Sam rally, they have facebook groups for Sam. They have vanquished any among their ranks who are for the recall (see also: BikePortland.org). You will frequently see him referred to as the first bike mayor, though that's another myth.

This is their payback. There will be more. Like any other special interest lobby. It's a pretty homogenous group over bike activist land. And they have gotten high-paying "advisor" jobs in his administration. The "happiness" research guy? Bike type. Amy Ruiz? same same.

Tammany Hall, anyone?

Adams' continued presence in the mayor's office is an absolute disgrace. He needs to resign.

Just one more reason to not go downtown. As it is, unless we are going to a concert at the Schnitz, we almost never go downtown for anything. The City's idiot transit mall and constant construction has made parking so hard to find on a friday, that I am considering doing my commercial banking at a far away branch with an onsite parking lot.
Even my employees tell me that there are few things they can find downtown that they can't find in local neighborhoods.

Could some one find Sam a 'job' at AIG?
With his mindset, he would fit in perfectly and he would get to live in the real NYC.

The recall is coming up, but who can win?
Jack Bogdanski perhaps?

Not all cyclists are Sam fans.

Hey, parking for free on Sundays IS my religion! There will be a very special place in Hell for Mayor Icky.

How come only people who go to church on Sunday would get free parking in the morning? Some religions have their sabbath on Friday and some on Saturday. Some churches have evening services. Portland is fast becoming a stupid city.

Let's see...60 million plus for tram..7 million plus for pedestrian bridge to South Waterfront..PGE park....etc...penny wise and pound foolish..

Tammany Hall, anyone?

My thoughts exactly. Perhaps we can call this Creepy/Fireman Pele regime "Sammany Hall".

We hardly go downtown anymore as it is because of the cost of parking and the difficulty in finding a spot. Not only that you have to wait forever to get a parking ticket out of those machines, you can't spend more than a few hours downtown having dinner and entertaining because you'll get a ticket for staying in the same spot for more than the allotted time (even though I've bought another ticket). I don't get it, there has to be a better way to do this. Why do church goers get a break? I don't go to church but I have to pay for a spot and they don't? Is that even legal? I give up.

There are plenty of great breakfast restaurants (and churches) in Portland neighborhoods with free parking and fewer beggars than downtown.

If your going shopping, then Bridgeport Village, Washington Square, Jantzen Beach, and outlet malls in Troutdale and Woodburn offer free parking on Sundays (and the other six days of the week).

When half the storefronts in Portland are vacant (and unemployment hits 15%), the City Council will realize the error of their ways.

Downtown Portland with Sam's policies is going to eventually end up like Downtown Eugene did when they closed off Broadway to pedestrian traffic. All the retailers left and moved to Valley River Center. They've since reopened it, but there's still just meth addicts hanging out there. And there's the infamous "Sears Pit", too.

Maybe if they weren't giving away $$ to Little Lord Paulson, spending $57 million on a tram, and giving away tax breaks to developers who built condos in S Waterfront for all the biotech jobs that never materialized & paying a pedophiliac former Governor for "consulting" this might not occur.

Screw downtown anyway. I'll take Belmont's or the horsebrass over Henry's any day. Por Que No beats Maya's tacqueria

Pay close attention to the dime on your garbage bill(at the bottom). Next comes the street maintenance fee.