The appointment of David Widmark to the HAP board on January 14, 2008 represents the jointly held positions of Portland mayor Sam Adams and Gresham mayor Shane Bemis that UNLIMITED neighborhood concentration of public housing will continue to be their policies.

Sam Adams has rightly acknowledged that you can't make good public policy without good public data. He has also recognized that a public policy of Equitable Distribution of Public Housing is NOT possible without authentic, accurate, complete and timely public housing statistical data. Without authentic, accurate, complete and timely public housing statistical data many areas of Multnomah county are condemned to the unjust social, educational, economic and business consequences of a policy of UNLIMITED neighborhood concentration of public housing.

1. Commissioner Sam Adams asked HAP for public housing statistical data twice and twice HAP said NO. Sam Adams did nothing. What does that make Sam Adams - a wonk a wimp a liar or a coward?

2. Commissioner Sam Adams asked Gresham HAP nominee Nathan Teske to agree to provide public housing statistical data when confirmed. Teske said NO. Sam Adams voted against him but then did not challenge his colleagues who all voted for Teske. What does that make Sam Adams - a wonk a wimp a liar or a coward?

3. Commissioner Sam Adams votes for several more HAP appointees after Nathan Teske and does NOT ask any of them to agree to provide public housing statistical data when confirmed nor does he inquire about their views on the contrary public housing policies of Equitable Distribution of Public Housing versus UNLIMITED neighborhood concentration of public housing. What does that make Sam Adams - a wonk a wimp a liar or a coward?

4. Mayor-elect Sam Adams asked commissioner Nick Fish in July of 2008 to bring him authentic, accurate, complete and timely public housing statistical data from HAP by November 1. To this day Fish has failed or refused. Sam Adams did and continues to do nothing. What does that make Sam Adams -  a wonk a wimp a liar or a coward?

5. Mayor Sam Adams, the singular individual with the power to nominate and dismiss HAP board members, nominates David Widmark and does NOT ask him to agree to provide public housing statistical data when confirmed nor whether he supports a public policy of Equitable Distribution of Public Housing. What does that make Sam Adams - a wonk a wimp a liar or a coward?

6. Mayor Shane Bemis nominated Gresham city commissioner Mike Bennett for the HAP board in March 2008. Bennett had no history of interest in public housing when he was appointed. He resigned in less than a year from the HAP board. Bennett refused to discuss his views on public housing policy before, during and after his appointment. Bennett never asked for public housing statistical data from HAP to share with his colleagues on the Gresham city council or his constituents. What a waste of time, energy and political capital.

7. Mayor Shane Bemis nominated Gresham city commissioner David Widmark for the HAP board to replace Gresham city commissioner Mike Bennett. Widmark, like Bennett, has no history of interest in public housing. Widmark, like Bennett, has not discussed his views on public housing policy before, during and after his appointment. David Widmark, like Bennett, has indicated no willingness to ask for public housing statistical data from HAP to share with his colleagues on the Gresham city council or his constituents. What's the point of Bennett or Widmark serving on the HAP board? To make sure that no citizen of Gresham ever finds out how HAP's annual expenditure of more the $80,000,000 of taxpayer dollars affects Gresham neighborhoods? Apparently so.

Despite the fact that the job of an appointed commissioner to the Housing Authority of Portland is to discuss, debate and develop public housing policy, in the last eight years that I have been closely following the Housing Authority of Portland not a single nominee for the HAP board has ever been asked publicly to state his or her opinions on public housing policy, before, during or after the nominating process. No nominee has ever been told by the appointing jurisdictional powers that they will be held accountable for their official behavior and their votes in the spending of millions of dollars of the people's money. [Perhaps this is because only the mayor of Portland has the statutory authority to hold every HAP commissioner accountable by removing them from office when their performance does not meet with his approval. Unfortunately, only voters in Portland can directly challenge the Portland mayor if he is irresponsible in his oversight duties of the HAP board.] This is a seriously flawed process and must be changed. It is now obvious that this change will NOT be coming while Sam Adams, the Multnomah county public housing boss, remains mayor of Portland. What does that make Sam Adams - a wonk a wimp a liar or a coward?

This indefensible, counterproductive, secretive behavior compels one to ask, exactly what level of incompetence, waste, fraud and abuse is being covered up at the Housing Authority of Portland by Sam Adams and Shane Bemis and how do Adams and Bemis benefit? Without a Quid Pro Quo there is no reason for Sam Adams and Shane Bemis to impose self-inflicted public housing data ignorance on themselves, their elected colleagues and most importantly the taxpayers, voters and citizens of Multnomah county.


Richard Ellmyer