2006

Oregon Public Records Law Reveals Potter, Saltzman, Sten Gave $1.4 Million Of OUR Public Property To Complete UNKNOWNS 12/19/06

Tom Potter, Dan Saltzman and Erik Sten gave $1,400,000 of OUR public property to persons that did not even reach the level of strangers to them. Potter, Saltzman and Sten stampeded over due process in order to give away public land to UNKNOWN individuals who would support the discredited and abhorrent public housing policy of UNlimited concentration of public housing in any neighborhood in Multnomah county.

Mayor Potter Nominates Silence and Darkness To Serve Him On HAP Board 12/3/06

HAP commissioners serve at the pleasure of the mayor of Portland (ORS 456.110) much as the Secretary of Defense serves at the pleasure of the President of the United States of America. EVERYTHING these appointees do they do with the approval of their masters.

Oregon Public Records Law - Portland Hope Meadows Board Identities - Enforcement Request 11/11/06

On November 3, 2006 I made an Oregon Public Records Law demand for public documents from mayor Potter and commissioners Saltzman and Sten. To date there has been no response. More than sufficient time has passed to either produce the requested documents or affirm that no such documents exist. It is highly probable that mayor Potter and commissioner Sten have no documents matching my request. It is highly probable that commissioner Saltzman has fewer than half a dozen.

Rhonda Meadows - President, Portland Hope Meadows Corporation 11/7/06

The letter below signature was mailed to Rhonda Meadows in a continuing and aggressive effort - including a Public Records Law demand - to dislodge public information regarding the members of the Portland Hope Meadows Corporation as well as its funding and financial data, all of which MUST be put on the public table for further examination and future action.

Public Records Law Demand For Hope Meadows Board Information 11/3/06

Mayor Potter, Commissioners Sten and Saltzman:
I have asked you twice, on October 23, 2006, before the John Ball school vote on Wednesday October 25, 2006 and after, on October 27, 2006, for the names and contact information for those on the Portland Hope Meadows board of directors, with the same results - No Response. You leave me no choice but to invoke the Public Records Law to prod from you what should have been placed voluntarily on the public table.

You Are Now Part Of The Portland Hope Meadows Misadventure 10/30/06

Brenda Krause-Eheart, Generations of Hope and the University of Illinois are all now complicit in support of Portland Hope Meadows' bullying attempt to force its way into a neighborhood in Portland, Oregon that doesn't want it. You are now part of a political imbroglio that will, in time, attract national attention. That focus will expose your willingness to trample on a fair and open political process thousands of miles from your homes. The reputations of the University of Illinois, its president, its sociology department, and its institute with ties to Generations of Hope will be tarnished.

Potter Pummels Portland's Priceless Process Policy 10/3/06

The cost to give away two acres of public land to unidentified strangers - 1.4 million dollars. The cost to destroy a city's reputation for commitment to transparent, fair public process for decision making - Priceless.

Potter/Saltzman Subvert School Site Development Process - Demean Democratic Process 10/24/06

Congress has a 16% approval rating because political tactics supersede the democratic process which involves well documented public debate on issues before a vote is cast. This deeply flawed and repugnant congressional model has been chosen by Tom Potter and Dan Saltzman who have made a back room deal involving the disposition and development of public property on the former John Ball school site. They are now trying to jam through Saltzman's pet project before there are competing plans on the table and without a full public discussion with all the proposals and data presented to the Portland Planning Commission, the public and the press for review. Does this behavior have your approval? Is this the kind of Oregon local government you can be proud of?

Hope Meadows - The Distant Illinois Parent 10/21/06

On Wednesday October 25 Portland city commissioner Dan Saltzman will try to shut off debate on the disposition and development of public property located at the John Ball school site before any competing proposals are allowed and before any serious analysis of the merits of his proposal are considered by the neighborhoods involved, the Portland Planning Commission, the press and the general public... If all of you do not act to STOP this reprehensible behavior, Brenda Krause-Eheart, Generations For Hope and the University of Illinois will be brought into the national spotlight.

HAP Demands $10,000 For Public Statistical Data 10/16/06

The Housing Authority of Portland has officially informed Richard Ellmyer that he must deposit $10,000 in HAP's bank account before it will begin looking for public documents which contain statistical data on the age, gender, neighborhood, income and total number of its clients.

City Attorney Can't/Won't Answer City Auditor's Question About Control Over PDC 10/11/06

When an elected official(s) turns over the keys of the public treasury to UNelected citizens the voters and taxpayers of that community have a right to know who the elected official(s) is/are that have statutory oversight responsibility so that THEY can be held accountable for the financial decisions of those UNelected public officials who are spending the people's money.

Cogen, Pung, Leuenberger Ask for Answers - Becker, Bemis et al. Seek State of Denial 10/9/06

There is an extraordinary amount of well documented evidence that American president Geroge W. Bush and Portland mayor Tom Potter have both chosen self-inflicted ignorance to make decisions, respectively, about the engagement and prosecution of a war in Iraq and a location policy for public housing clients in Multnomah county. More troublesome is that these elected officials continue to use their power to deny their constituents and colleagues critical information necessary for voters and other public officials to make informed, educated decisions. American democracy cannot thrive with this kind of public "leadership."

Tom Foolery 9/18/06

At a gathering of North Portland leaders last week, Jeff Cogen, candidate for Multnomah county commissioner, asked the question that a growing number of people in Multnomah county and Washington D.C. are asking, "Why is Portland's mayor, Tom Potter, continuing to withhold HAP's public statistical data from citizens, voters, taxpayers, elected officials, candidates for public office, academics, politicos and the press? It makes no sense." Exactly right Jeff. It makes no sense - unless it's a coverup of incompetence or wrongdoing.

Columbia Villa Crime Predictable 8/3/06

HAP, PDC and HCDC will continue to contravene the city's so-called but non-existent policy of distribution not concentration of public housing clients by OVERLOADING the same certain few of the 117 neighborhoods within their jurisdictions until the Portland City Council tells them to stop.

When Potter Fails The City Council MUST Intercede At PDC and HAP 7/30/06

The only thing standing between the unelected PDC and HAP commissioners from annually spending hundreds of millions of dollars of the public treasury on the wrong policies is Portland's mayor. Tom Potter has a fiduciary obligation to the citizens who elected him and those east of Portland who can't vote for Portland's mayor to guide, monitor and supervise how his appointees are spending our money.

Will Kulongoski Acknowledge The Bottom Line - 33,000 Clients DEMANDS 33,000 Records? 6/5/06

HAP claims that it has 33,000 clients. Therefore, HAP MUST produce 33,000 client records that include age, gender, neighborhood and income.

Potter Opens HAP Data Spigot - But ONLY 10 of 32 Thousand Pour Out of the Computer 5/1/06

After 16 months in office mayor Tom Potter has finally asked/ordered HAP to release a computer file with HAP's public data on it only to find out that he and HAP had LOST, that's right - LOST - 22,000 client files that are NOT on HAP's computer. That translates into about $66,000,000 of unconnected financial transactions with taxpayer funds. This is no longer merely mismanagement by HAP's board nor lax oversight of HAP's obviousoly abysmal bookkeeping practices, this is official evidence of a potential scandal that could push the alleged theft of $1.4 million by West Linn's former finance director right off the front page. Tom Potter may toss West Linn's mayor into the footnote category and bring home the olympic gold to Portland for most negligent and irresponsible public official in Oregon.

Wheeler & Cogen On Board. Diane Linn - Overboard 4/17/06

Oh Happy Day. Two candidates for the Multnomah County Commission, Ted Wheeler - County Chair, and Jeff Cogen - Commissioner District 2, have already sent requests for public housing data by neighborhood to HAP, the Housing Authority of Portland. They are ready to put the 3-6-9 Resolution on the county's public agenda to start the discussion of location policy of public housing clients. Jeff Cogen believes that every voter in Multnomah county should have they opportunity to vote for the person that appoints HAP commissioners who have control over placement of tens of thousands of public housing clients throughout Multnomah county. That means transferring the power from the mayor of Portland to the Multnomah County Chair.

Sten Is Bad But Is Burdick Better? 4/5/06

No public official is more responsible for violating our public housing policy of distribution NOT concentration of public housing clients into a few select neighborhoods in Multnomah County and taking extraordinary and long term efforts to cover up the data that would reveal his fingerprints then Erik Sten.

A Young Student Questions Tom Potter's View Of Education 3/21/06

Dear Mayor Potter:
My parents and teachers say that a good education teaches a student how to gather data then analyze the information to come to some conclusions about the subject. They said that the pupil could then use this research as the basis for informed discussions with others and the basis for personal action such as voting. Do you believe this? My father said that when you were a candidate for mayor you said that you believed that public officials needed good data to make good decisions. Do you still believe this?

Potter Allows Kandis Nunn To Insult Legislators And Candidates For Public Office 3/8/06

Multnomah County Public Housing Czar and Portland Mayor Tom Potter has authorized the continued withholding of public housing data by neighborhood from elected public officials and candidates for public office. Shame on you Tom.

Adams, Burdick, Cogen and Robison Ask Nunn/Potter For Housing Data By Neighborhood 2/13/06

Ginny Burdick - candidate for Portland city council, Jeff Cogen - candidate for Multnomah county commission, Jim Robison - candidate for House Rep.#44 joined Sam Adams - Portland city commissioner in asking Housing Authority of Portland Chair Kandis Nunn to send them the following:
An authentic, accurate, complete and timely record for every HAP public housing client in the form of a tab delimited text file with the following four fields: neighborhood, median income range (0-30,31-50,51-80%), age and gender.

Tom's Tax 1/27/06

Like it or not, the reality is that those districts that are satisfied with their share of school funding and those public employees satisfied with their health care benefits are not going to easily or willingly change what they feel they "DESERVE." 

It's Time For Public Housing Policy To Come Out Of The Closet 1/18/06

As it turns out, the Multnomah County Public Housing Czar is actually Portland's mayor. Why is that? More importantly, Why should that continue to be?