It was a sunny Sunday afternoon in May when a dozen or so pensive neighborhood association activists from around the city made their way to an art gallery in Northwest Portland to speculate on the fate of the city’s 95 neighborhood associations and coalition organizations and to discuss strategies that might dissuade the city council from scrapping the system. The meeting—publicized as “The Future of Neighborhood Associations”—was organized by Sunny Bleckinger of Elisabeth Jones Art Center (516 NW 14th Avenue, just north of Glisan), the venue for an upcoming photo exhibit, “Neighborhood Associations Rock!” The exhibit will run from July 13 to August 25. An opening night reception begins at 5:00 p.m. and will include refreshments, with speakers and discussion beginning at 6:00 p.m.
Front and center on the May meeting agenda was an imminent recommendation from City Commissioner Chloe Eudaly’s Office of Community and Civic Life to revise city code in a way that could cripple, if not destroy, Portland’s network of neighborhood associations. Discussion at the art gallery gathering centered on Civic Life’s “Code Change Committee”—a handpicked advisory body assembled by Commissioner Eudaly for the purpose of exploring alternatives to the current neighborhood association system, ostensibly in response to critics who brand neighborhood associations as “elitist” (i.e., domination of leadership positions by particular interest groups) and “exclusive” (i.e., shunning of lesser-served ethnic populations).
Attendees at the meeting railed at such charges, insisting that their organizations are operated democratically and transparently, with community outreach commonplace and essential. Regarding the Code Change Committee, it was reported that of the 20-plus members, few were directly connected with neighborhood associations. Moreover, the committee’s agenda was managed by City Life staffers, who facilitated discussion and input via questions posed to committee members, with the final recommendation reserved for Eudaly and staff to craft, thus raising neighborhood association supporter suspicions of a foregone conclusion in place.
And indeed, at BWNA’s June general meeting, it was reported by BWNA Central Northeast Neighbors (CNN) coalition representative Barbara Strunk that Director Alison Stoll had informed the CNN board of a preliminary recommendation draft from the Office of Community and Civic Life purported to remove any reference to “neighborhood association” in the city code and to eliminate coalition organizations all together (along with “communication” funding provided for neighborhood association newsletter publication), and to discontinue neighborhood association liability insurance coverage (which is a prerequisite for holding events).
With the city council expected to vote on the code change recommendation prior to summer’s end, the “Neighborhood Associations Rock!” exhibit, focusing on an array of community benefits from neighborhood association activities, takes on added relevance and urgency. We hope you’ll attend and participate in the discussion opening night, Saturday, July 13.
Neighborhood Associations Rock! Exhibition July 13 to August 25, 2019 Opening night reception 5:00 to 8:00 p.m. Speakers and group discussion will begin at 6:00 p.m.
Elisabeth Jones Art Center 516 NW 14th Avenue Portland, Oregon