Stop Portland City Council from Ignoring Neighborhood Associations

Neighborhood Associations like ours (South Tabor) are the City's allies in seeking to reach diverse communities. But the proposed code changes, and the rhetoric used to justify them, cast us as adversaries. This is poor strategy, and it disregards faith efforts of neighbors to reach across cultural and socio-economic lines, often more successfully than our counterparts at City Hall.

the associations have an important part to play in the direction the city takes to make this a liveable city

As a board member of a neighborhood association here in Portland I feel strongly that these changes are destructive to our process.

DO NOT alter any part of City code Chapter 3.96 that eliminates in any way the influence our our SMILE neighborhood associations relationship with the Portland City Council

Neighborhood associations are the most effective way of getting involvement from the citizenry at large.

How are Portland citizens supposed to engage civically if the current mechanism of neighborhood associations is eliminated? I do not see a replacement being proposed.

We support our neighborhood association 100%.

I feel that Neighborhood Associations are a vital part of Portland. While one or two have NIMBY practices and are not inclusive, by and large these neighborhood associations are the only way the city (and developers and other special interests) communicate with neighborhoods and receives communication from neighborhoods. This needs more time for public discourse.

We must not allow a temporary politician nullify our celebrated 45+ year old neighborhood association system.

Friends of RiverPlace

Council: Please leave 3.96 as-is and add in provisions to formally recognize community based organizations that meet minimum standards creted by Civic Life than ensure that have open, fair, transparent and non-discriminatory practices. And please charge Civic Life with keeping but revising the Grievance process.

This proposal is ill-conceived, anti democratic, and will actually decrease participation and inclusion. This deserves deep public discussion and should not be imposed in a hidden and authoritarian manner.

Neighborhood associations are one of the primary reasons Portland's citizens are so active. Please strengthen this engagement *as well as* other worthy, accountable, transparent citizen organizations.

Neighborhood Associations represent us in our respective neighborhoods. To silence our voices is to echo the behavior of Trump’s efforts to silence those who express an opinion different than his. Government must be transparent starting at the local level. Start acting like a democracy.

I’m disappointed I cannot attend tomorrow’s meeting. I feel there needs to be more transparency regarding this issue. I am the secretary of the Humboldt NA and do not feel there was due diligence in this matter involving NA’s. Please delay the vote so we can have more discussion from interested parties. Thanks

Please do not take this important piece of democracy away from Portland

Board historian and land use chair, Piedmont Neighborhood association

What is most disappointing about this initiative, and really telling that ideological posturing rather than civil discourse is winning in the field of governance, is that the city that built a reputation around citizen involvement and inclusiveness did this in the dark of night with virtually no input from the very groups it most affects. Complete failure of leadership and imagination on the City's part.

Neighborhood Associations are the voices of the residents of Portland. If the City wants to serve its residents, it should maintain and listen to its neighborhood associations.

Neighborhood Associations are the voices of the residents of Portland. If the City wants to serve its residents, it should maintain and listen to its neighborhood associations.