Council votes to continue Portland Street Response pilot program May 13 2021
The 3-to-2 vote takes place during the May 13 hearing on Mayor Ted Wheeler s proposed budget for the next fiscal year.
The City Council voted to continue the Portland Street Response pilot program for at least another six months before expanding it citywide on Thursday, May 13.
The 3-to-2 vote happened during the hearing on Mayor Ted Wheeler s proposed budget for the fiscal year that starts on July 1. The pilot program of the non-police response to 911 calls started in Lents in February.
Wheeler had proposed around $1 million to fully fund the pilot program and additional funds to contract with Portland State University to evaluate it. His proposal was supposed by commissioners Mingus Mapps and Dan Ryan.
March 17 2021
Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty said Tuesday s fire means the City Council must approve more homeless shelters.
A person and a dog were killed in a recreational vehicle fire early Tuesday morning.
Firefighters responded to the fire behind the Shalamar Apartments on Southeast Powell Boulevard around 2 a.m. on March 16. Another person and a dog who were in the vehicle escaped injury.
Portland Fire & Rescue said the fire was started by improper use of a propane heater used to keep the vehicle s occupants warm. Six such fires have happened so far this year, PF&R said.
At one point, firefighters were getting called out to three or four tent fires each day. Last month, a man died after being severely burned in a tent fire in Portland s Piedmont neighborhood. Investigators said the blaze likely came from a propane heating device.
January 11 2021
The Portland mayor talks about new law enforcement responses that are needed to stop destruction and looting.
Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler is calling on the Oregon Legislature to create a special committee aimed at changing how police tackle protest tactics that he believes are nothing more than criminal behavior. Smaller groups are organizing quickly, targeting parts of an area, going through them and causing destruction and stealing things, and leaving, Wheeler told the Portland Tribune. It is very difficult for law enforcement to respond with the existing tools they have. It is not just a Portland problem. It is a statewide issue that has happened in Eugene, Salem and Tigard, too.