A suggestion
It's the first official day on the job for Portland mayor Char-Lie Hales and city commissioner Steve Novick. They could gain themselves a lot of traction with the public if they promptly undid the bad ordinance passed just before Christmas, and pushed the upcoming water fluoridation vote back to where it belongs -- 2014, not 2013. Two of their new colleagues, Legend Dan and Nurse Amanda, are clearly in favor of giving the debate more time and some current science. And all it would take is one of the two new council members to join them in forming a new majority, right?
The Sam Rand Twins are gone. Let's change the tone. Whaddya say, Mayor Hales and Commissioner Novick?
| Posted at 8:47 AM | Permalink |
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Comments (23)
And they could dramatically change the tone by changing our garbage service back to where it was. Or better yet ask the voters what they want. Many of us could be stinking wrong.
Posted by lw | January 2, 2013 9:01 AM
NO!
Posted by Mayor Hales and Commissioner Novick | January 2, 2013 9:20 AM
Well, we can hope. I legitimately hope that they might. There's no hope for bringing Portland back from the cliff if that's not an option.
Posted by Texas Triffid Ranch | January 2, 2013 9:44 AM
First day list:
1. Garbage schedule
2. NW district parking plan
3. Zoo parking plan
4. Fluoride vote
5. Covered reservoirs
Busy day!
Posted by Allan L. | January 2, 2013 10:01 AM
And I forgot the leaf tax.
Posted by Allan L. | January 2, 2013 10:02 AM
Well, at least Hales canned the skateboarding Transportataion Director Tom Miller a promised. I guess that's a start.
Posted by Robert Collins | January 2, 2013 10:03 AM
Dream on. You guys are screwed.
Posted by Sam T. | January 2, 2013 10:03 AM
How about a "no new taxes or fees pledge" for two years? One year? I'll take six months...come on fellows, six months no new fees or taxes...it's not that hard.
Posted by Erik H. | January 2, 2013 10:31 AM
I'd like to see the city's web presence become one of easily accessible information and access to codes, permitting, processes, etc. Maybe some history even. But please cut the entertainment, tips for utopian living, advertisements, cute vignettes, exclamation points...
Posted by PDXLifer | January 2, 2013 10:44 AM
CHANGE? From this "new" crew? Hahahahaha
Posted by paul | January 2, 2013 10:52 AM
Sounds like a reasonable way to kick off the new term, respecting their fellow citizens.
Posted by Tim | January 2, 2013 11:00 AM
Call me cynical but business as usual will be quickly revealed when there is no net reduction in city staff in any department.
They are all vital and the new city council will continue to share the gravy with friends and cohorts.
There is not a single genuine reformer in sight.
Posted by Ya'l come back now | January 2, 2013 11:01 AM
Require Portland, Oregon voters to actually RESIDE in Portland, Oregon?
Posted by ltjd | January 2, 2013 11:53 AM
Obviously a long way to go, but I would put getting rid of Tom Miller and reducing (at least for now) the Mayor's staff by half (14 v. 28 for Adams) in the category of a positive start.
Posted by m | January 2, 2013 12:13 PM
I've heard that the 2013 date may be better for the anti vote because people are fired up about the issue now and the momentum may be lost if it goes to 2014.
Posted by reader | January 2, 2013 1:49 PM
"There is not a single genuine reformer in sight."
Probably because all the new parking meters will block your line of sight.
Novick looks really creative the more I hear his brilliant ideas.
Posted by Steve | January 2, 2013 2:26 PM
Novick looks really creative the more I hear his brilliant ideas.
I dunno; I'm pretty sure the new meters block his sight, too - that, and his ego.
Posted by cc | January 2, 2013 3:33 PM
Require Portland, Oregon voters to actually RESIDE in Portland, Oregon?
More to the point, require that candidates for Mayor of Portland actually be registered according to city code and charter?
http://swoolley.org/files/hales_complaint_sept27.pdf
Posted by Starbuck | January 2, 2013 4:57 PM
How much more money will be thrown away on this nonsense. Better yet, how much has already been spent on this "vision?"
http://www.portlandoregon.gov/transportation/44597
Posted by PDXLifer | January 2, 2013 7:04 PM
Jack and others who remember Hales and what he did the last time he was in our city chambers have given everyone here fair warning.
During his campaign, we got recent glimpses of his character, simply shrugging off challenges for when he lived in Washington, blaming others for bungling of incidents on the campaign, reneging on the raising of financial campaign money, so I doubt his stripes have changed.
Posted by clinamen | January 2, 2013 8:50 PM
I know it threatens the party line view that dominates these comments but it is worth noting that Steve "Hobbit" Novick (dubbed so by Wonkette) opposed the bizarre and likely unconstitutional arts head tax, at least if Duin is correct.
Posted by GA Seldes | January 2, 2013 10:37 PM
Then let's repeal it retroactively, and save all the administrative expense that's going to be wasted between now and the time it's thrown out by the courts.
Posted by Jack Bog | January 3, 2013 12:18 AM
What will the cost be to implement this head tax?
How are they going to find out how many people live in each household?
Are there going to be fines for those who don't comply?
Posted by clinamen | January 3, 2013 10:23 PM