Dear Friends and Neighbors,
Last week was my second Clean and Safe board meeting. Each meeting I become more educated about the inner workings of Clean and Safe and how they make Portland a better place. There may be the impression by some that Portland Clean and Safe is another one of those not for profits that cater to the needs of certain under-represented segment of the population however, this is not the case at all. The Portland Clean and Safe board’s agenda focuses on protecting the interests of businesses, business owners and citizens who contribute to the improvement of Portland. For example; Portland Clean and Safe board members attended a city council meeting last week where there was going to be a decision on continued support of the Portland Police Departments walking beats. These walking beats and new approach to policing contributed to a 26% drop in crime in Downtown Portland. There were similar results in the Hawthorne district as well. This was approved in part because of the case board members presented. Unfortunately, three members of the city council, Amanda Fritz, Steve Novick and Nick Fish voted down the enforcement of the sit lie ordinance which prohibits “vagrants and street people” from sitting or lying in high traffic sidewalk areas. This is somewhat discouraging but, these same city council member consistently vote this way. You can see the repercussions of these failed policies under the 405 bridge in Northwest, along both sides of the waterfront or when you have to step over somebody parked in front of your building. Despite increased Portland Park Ranger patrol this situation with the “homeless criminal element” that has infested our city has not be able to be managed and remains a menace and a danger.
Your participation is important and dare I say critical. I will do my best as your Residential Representative on Portland Clean and Safe to keep you apprised as to meetings, important decisions and tips on how you can help.
There has been an uptick in car prowl activity in the Portland area. In order to address this, Clean & Safe will be hosting a Car Prowl Summit on December 2, 2014 from 2:00-3:30 p.m. The summit will be a chance to learn about the scope of the problem, justice system/prevention resources, and an opportunity to brainstorm solutions. Please see below for further details.
Car Prowl Summit
Where: Building Conference Room, 200 Market St. Portland, OR 97201
When: December 2, 2014, 2:00-3:30 p.m
Agenda
Welcome/Introductions – Lynnae Berg
Overview of Crime Analysis/Prolific Car Prowlers – Commander Day
Prosecution/Importance of reporting /role of private security – ADA Laurie Abraham
Prevention Strategies/Past Initiatives – Jacob Brostoff
Roundtable discussion of issues and strategies – All participant
Please RSVP to Jessica McDonald at jmcdonald@portlandalliance.com if you plan to attend.
Keeping informed is a step in the right direction. Bringing friends and neighbors to meetings is another step. Making sure our collective voice is heard is a really big step. I want to hear from you. Comments… criticisms, suggestions; I welcome them all.
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