As I mentioned in an aside a couple of days ago, I got the opportunity to chat with MLS to PDX spokesman Jeremy Wright last Thursday, in the shadow of PGE Park--where the newly granted Timbers Major League Soccer franchise will begin play in 2011.
Jeremy was an entertaining interview, and gave ample, spot-on responses to my questions. For a little look behind the scenes at the effort to get Major League Soccer to Soccer City USA. The interview lasts about 28 minutes, complete with bypassing skateboarders, Trimet buses, and panhandlers.
The audio file is attached here; you can listen to the entire interview in full that way. Careful; it's a .wma file that's around 14MB large. If you prefer a more readable text version, with quotations smoothed out a little to lose the "ums," "uhhhs" and false starts of sentences, simply keep reading!
-------------- How did you get involved as the tip of the spear for the grassroots effort to bring MLS to PDX, and what specifically have you done in that time to bring MLS here?
In short, I had the time. My background is actually with the Portland Timbers Army. I've been a fan since 2001 when the Timbers came back to town and were playing here at PGE Park. We've slowly built that group over the years, and as anyone who's been to a Timbers game you now know, the Timbers Army has been kind of an icon to both the team and the City.
About two years ago when Merritt Paulson bought the team, there began to be some noise about the possibility of bringing a Major League Soccer team--it was always his vision. About eight months ago, nine months ago he officially launched the idea of making a formal bid in October--this was last summer. And a group of us decided that there needed to be a grassroots arm to this. There needed to be something that really spoke to the fans' voices, that we want Major League Soccer as well. When you looked around at the other bids out there, there wasn't the groundswell of support that we knew that we could generate here.
A guy named Mason Adair and I, and a few other folks got together and launched the MLStoPDX.com website. Our goal all along was to really make this about bringing in the fans, and the Timbers Army--but not just the Army, but youth soccer, local businesses...we were able to bring in as many folks as possible and that's where it got started and that's where I got involved.
My role--I'm an old political hack and was working previously for the state of Washington, was unfortunately laid off last summer, and opened up my own consulting shop. A really bad time to decide to go into business for yourself. So I was chronically underemployed this last fall and winter, and decided I had the time to do this, and something comes along once every...if ever. This is a once in a decade kind of opportunity--you have the owner, with the right bid, with the City Council interested--so I decided to make it a full time job for a couple of months.
I finally managed to catch up with Portland Commissioner Randy Leonard, the tip of the spear when it comes to the MLS deal that has apparently precipiated the awarding of an expansion franchise to Portland beginning in 2011. However, we pretended that the news of yesterday wasn't official, formal or obvious--and in any case, we talked mostly about other issues surrounding the process, including his ongoing debate with Ted Wheeler about City and County finance, why he thinks the Blazers did an about face, and what should go into the proposed entertainment district for the Rose Quarter.
The whole audio file of our 39-minute interview is available here, so that you can hear precisely the questions asked, and Leonard's full responses. Be warned that it's a 20MB .mp3 file, and as such may put a strain on your PC if you are using older equipment. But it's worth the full listen.
However, so that you don't HAVE to listen to it, I've transcribed readable versions of some of the questions and answers that yielded the most interesting parts of the conversation. I would call the transcript "close to verbatim;" while I've edited some things out for readability and length, the edits do not change the meaning of the responses, and once he gets into the meat of his answer his words are almost 100% as he said them. And of course if you're skeptical about that, listen to the audio for yourself.
So with that, let's hear what Randy had to say on the eve of what shapes up to be an historic announcement in Portland tomorrow!
-----
What do you think Chair Wheeler is expecting from the "new covenant" suggested to bring the County and Portland Public Schools more closely to the table in the Urban Renewal District (URD) discussions for the PGE Park area?
He was referencing a broader conversation he and I have had with reference to Measure A, a resolution adopted by the county in 1984, that was a document that reflected the division of responsibilities between the City of Portland and County of Multnomah. Basically what Resolution A said was the county will do jails, the county will do human services, and the city will do police, fire, parks, infrastructure services because up until 1984, there really was no core delineation who did what, who was responsible for what.
Since 1990 and the passage of Ballot Measure 5 the County has had diminishing resources, then they've had administrations in the White House who've cut various funding for human resource programs, aging programs--that money has diminished at the state, and the state has diminished it to the counties. The County has found itself in the position of having all these responsibilities stay and even increase as we've had a growing aging population and in some case a growing poverty population where the resources have diminished.
What Ted was talking about yes, I think let's talk about URAs and the impact on us, but also this broader discussion--should Multnomah County really be saddled with repairing all the bridges anymore? Shouldn't they be the City's responsibility? Should we be funding Hooper Detox anymore, when really primarily the people that are being served by that are Portland people? I know that's what he was saying, because he and I have had that discussion before.
"An important announcement about the future of professional soccer in the city of Portland” is scheduled for Friday morning.
The news is included in invitations that went out to members of the Portland business community Wednesday morning. It said the announcement would be made at the downtown Portland Hilton Hotel.
The invitations were made in the names of Merritt Paulson and Major League Soccer, Paulson is the Portland businessman seeking an MLS expansion team franchise. Neither party would publicly confirm the event to reporters who called seeking comment.
But Commission Randy Leonard's office confirms the press conference is scheduled with Paulson and MLS officials Friday morning. Leonard has been the most outspoken member of the City Council in support of bringing professional soccer to Portland. A number of City Hall sources say MLS Commissioner Don Garber will be at the event. [emph me]
So breaking (and apparently rushed), you need more than one hand to count the typos!
In an article posted at KGW.com about 1030AM and now updated with a rather mischevously revealing quote from Commissioner Randy Leonard, it would appear pretty damned likely that on the heels of the award of a franchise to Vancouver, BC today, Portland will indeed secure the second expansion team for 2011 play.
A news conference was reportedly scheduled by MLS and the Portland Timbers for Friday morning to make an announcement, according to several soccer message boards, including SoccerCityUSA.com and another website devoted to bringing a pro franchise to town.
According to reports, the press conference was scheduled for 9:30 a.m. Friday at the Portland Hilton between Timbers and MLS representatives.
Supporters hoped that if professional representatives were coming all the way to Portland, it must be to bring good news. "It looks like this is going to be the celebration we have all been waiting for," Portland resident Jeremy Wright wrote on one message board.
City Commissioner Randy Leonard, a supporter of the proposal, would not confirm nor deny the reports. He did speculate that league officials would "probably not travel to Portland to announce a franchise in Philadelphia."
You can almost hear the grin in Leonard's voice from that quotation. The article notes a bit wryly that Philly doesn't even have a bid on the table, which points either to Randy's need for city alliteration--or he's trying to tell you something in his non-confirm, non-denial.
I'm crossing lines with Commissioner Randy Leonard the last couple of days, getting his messages to late to respond to them, missing him by phone. I promise you I'll nail him down some time this week to answer questions on the MLS deal, particularly looking forward as the PGE Park Urban Renewal Area question looms, or in its place the search for alternate financing and how this affects Merritt Paulson's bid before MLS, or even Paulson's own desire to push forward with the gap unaddressed.
All of which is I suppose an ironic prelude to the point of this piece, which was to highlight how well Leonard is culling the reportage and opinion on the Council's approval of the agreement in principle last week, at his new website, http://www.commissionerleonard.typepad.com/..
Hey, that's off the venerated PortlandOnline gulag...er, centralized portal! Commissioner Randy doesn't mean to be impolite about his "employer supplied" website, but no sooner is "Welcome!" out of his virtual lips than you're urged not to hang out too long--look, Randy's got a new website, off the grid as it were! And while it's no marvel of flash animation and Randy-themed games or downloadable Randy Ringtone quotes (use that, Commissioner, and this is my record of the claim for 50%), it's pretty informative and transparent, even of reportage that's not necessarily flattering.
The most important document at the moment is undoubtedly the description of the terms of the agreement reached with Paulson, which you can read in detail here. For more of the info on the way the numbers were compiled, in that piece there's the link to the Task Force analysis as well.
But be sure to read through the links he provides; he captures a lot of the discussion from the big three papers plus the Business Journal, some of the TV coverage, etc. But you can get the gamut just from one source...The O. There's the laudatory (back page lead editorial), the critical (news analysis), the neutral but visceral (City Hall blog), and the sidebars, like Canzano's WTF about the sudden Blazers flip on the idea of a baseball park in the Quarter.
One thing that's original is a set of responses to some additional questioning from commenters at the site, written by Chief of Staff Ty Kovatch. And when I can stop Leonard's motor for 20-30 minutes and get him to answer even more questions (take a mile!), I'll report back. The FAQ-plus for the MLS deal is below the fold.
Regular LO readers know I'm pretty disgusted with Sam Adams--but unless and until I see a) clear evidence of criminal activity or b) clear evidence of his inability to participate effectively on Portland's City Council, I see no reason for him to resign. And while I agree that a potential recall should be the mechanism by which Adams is removed before his term ends, I wouldn't support any such recall at this time.
Obviously a bombshell--such as a text message trail--would change things quickly on the legal front, but Willamette Week's Nigel Jaquiss, WW's Pulitzer-winning reporter and the official breaker of the Adams/Breedlove story is ready to go ahead and declare Sam's effectiveness compromised in a number of key areas. The only problem is, Nigel cites little if any evidence to back up his analysis, and ignores some key counterfactuals. I like Nigel; I think he's a very fine reporter and has every right to follow this story...but when I've found his conclusions suspect I've said so (and so did Carla when she was with us at LoadedO). And here we are.
Here's how Nigel ledes:
Three weeks after Mayor Sam Adams admitted lying about his sexual relationship in 2005 with then-teenage Beau Breedlove, Adams is gamely trying to return to city business as usual.
In a Jan. 25 video announcing his return to work, Adams asked to be judged on “my ability to deliver results.”
But it’s unclear exactly what “business as usual” means for the new mayor, and even less clear that he can deliver results.
Certainly a fair premise, as I've noted. But you've got to back it up. Below the fold I'll explore the rest of the article for such evidence...
As one of public financing's strongest supporters, it's really distressing to read an article like that which appears in today's Oregonian. It's not the discussion of the program's difficulties, known variously as kinks or gaps in the rules that worries me. It's the attitude and dour opinions by the strongest supporters and indeed its very creators. What's even sadder is that it all boils down to one thing that points right back at Blackmer and the public financing citizen's committee:
Late last year, lobbyist Len Bergstein gave the results of a $27,295 poll to Sho Dozono, a businessman and civic leader who was considering a campaign for mayor. Dozono eventually decided he would run and quickly amassed the signatures and $5 donations needed to qualify for public money.
The city's public financing law says candidates seeking taxpayer help cannot receive more than $12,000 in in-kind contributions -- essentially donations of goods or services. But Blackmer ruled that the poll didn't count as a contribution because Dozono hadn't decided whether to run when he received the results.
Now, four mayoral candidates -- including Adams, who filed a challenge at the deadline Wednesday -- have appealed that decision, prompting a hearing Monday before an administrative law judge. One fundamental problem is that the city's law doesn't mirror the state's definition of what it means to be a candidate.
That's not the only controversy of the moment. Earlier this year, Sten announced his retirement as of April 4, necessitating a special election to fill his seat.
The problem: Although Blackmer and the all-volunteer committee that helps him regulate public financing had begun talking about just such a situation, they hadn't written any rules. [emph me]
As the blogosphere--certainly in the Portland area--is by now aware, City Commissioner Erik Sten has announced his resignation effective in April. Willamette Week got the early-year scoop on everybody with an announcement that isn't surprising in its effect but rather the timing, and the fact (at least to me) that it didn't leak out before the issue ran. Or am I wrong and someone had it Tuesday night?
The story, and 3+ hour interview with Nigel Jaquiss that fills around it, are well worth the read if only for the vivid example of Sten as Sten in his comments. Even after you see it a number of times, it's still a bit of an eye-opener when he is so direct, particularly about professional relationships and evaluations of other people. He dishes on everyone, freely admitting tensions and difficulties. But it's part of both his charm and what makes him effective as a politician and policymaker.
I've had the pleasure of sitting down or talking to Sten at length on a couple of occasions; his was the first big interview of a sitting officeholder that I'd done for the blog, in spring of 2006. It was a long interview that I mostly reprinted verbatim, because the way Sten talks he fills in his own details and backstory, which is both entertaining to read and makes narrative mostly unnecessary. You can read Part One, then Part Two and finally Part Three.
I had another chance to talk with Erik when he called ME up, to talk about the sit/lie ordinance and his worries that it was going to take effect before the homeless-aid parts of the deal had been made good on. That one's shorter, but no less Erik.
It's a real balancing act to be both savvy and starry-eyed. Sten made high hopes and aspirations for Portland a signature approach during his Council career. Yet even at the start he had been inside City politics too long to ever be naive about how things worked, who had to be stroked and who could be bullied, and how much money played a part in things. Still, he maintains an infectiously deep passion for certain things that no self-respecting cynic would ever allow himself to express, and gets people to accomplish things most cities wouldn't even try.
Best of luck to you Erik; keep in touch with us as a civilian, will you?
Some endorsements are better than others. With the possible (and bizarre) exception of Sen. Avel Gordly, the "Democrats for Smith" list of endorsements was in some cases not even of Democrats, or a Democrat actually for Smith. Other endorsements are better; the two governors that Merkley got, and got early, were strong sentinels to party Democrats around the state that this was the guy to back. Some are in between--it's impressive that so many colleagues of Merkley's back him for Senate...except that they're all colleagues (and in 30 cases really subordinates to) Jeff Merkley.
But the Novick campaign has prepared folks for what they term a "significant" endorsement, and if my belief in who it is turns out correctly, it could indeed be significant. I think they've bagged some kind of maverick with a good history in state politics, someone who will signal to all the people looking for a sign to be bold with their vote and choose the change candidate--a guy (or woman!) who says "no, THIS is the guy to back, and it starts with me."
I'm not going to voice my guess because I could be wrong, and if I turned out to be right I'd screw up Steve's day if I spoiled the surprise early. Novick will be at PSU 11AM Monday to announce who it is--but he'll also be joined by a local maverick's gallery (which is why I think the big fish is sort of a topper in the same mold) headed by
Portland City Council members Randy Leonard and Erik Sten, Multnomah County Commissioners Jeff Cogan and Maria Rojo De Steffey and Washington County Commissioner Desari Strader.
The Novick campaign will also release a list of nearly 100 public officials, civic leaders and political activists from across Oregon who are supporting his campaign.
Good list, eclectic list. Any list with Randy Leonard on it carries a plus mark with a lot of people around Portland, IMO. Glad he's aboard, that he took the plunge.
But why should he have to be seen as plunging at all? The whole notion that complaints about DSCC are reflective of the money advantage is really somewhat of a ruse--Novick will make it to May without the logoed RV and the stage bunting, I think. What's bothersome is the influence, particularly the negative influence exerted--intentionally and not--on the non-favored candidates. It's one thing to compete straight-up for donors on a level playing field, but people in politics know where their bread is buttered, and where their future and career lie--and who they lie with--if they are liberals or progressives: the Democratic Party.
When the machine says to pull lever A and you start handing money to lever B (so to speak), the machine notices, and remembers. How many Democratic House members want to go into 08 session having backed Novick in the primary? Awwwk-ward! The national and state elites have signalled their choice, and that means that going against the choice is a consciously subordinate act to the party leadership. When you are hampered in your free choice by an imbalance of personal-social returns from the institution as a result of who you support, democracy suffers. More simply put, people have to go out on a limb a little bit in many cases, just to support Steve. That shouldn't have to happen.
But it does make those who are courageous enough to follow their convictions good character witnesses for the person they end up backing. So it will be interesting to see who that profile in courage turns out to be.
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