Our City Issues
Affordable
People in our city are struggling to make ends meet. We’ve experienced rapid inflation, increased utility costs, taxes, and rents. Nobody benefits from paying more than we have to for the necessities of life.
Some cities have achieved significant reduction in rents and they all did it using a known formula. Increase housing supply. Mirroring cities like Austin would put hundreds of dollars a month back in the pockets of Portlanders for retirement, to start a business, to spend on entertainment, or education. Lower costs create greater freedom.
We have a unique opportunity in the Portland Clean Energy Fund to pursue fareless transit. With the funds that exceed original projections we could reduce transportation costs, create a benefit for tourism, and lower our greenhouse gas emissions in a single stroke.
Safe
Our sense of security in our community is the foundation we build our lives upon.
We have to fix our police staffing shortage. When someone calls for emergency help they deserve to know that someone is on the way. Appropriate staffing means shorter response times. It means a fully staffed Behavioral Health Response Unit, with police and clinicians working long term with people who have severe mental illness to get them the help they need. It means traffic enforcement and safety on our roads and in our crosswalks.
A safe Portland is one where the threat of the Critical Energy Infrastructure Hub has been addressed. Residents of the surrounding neighborhoods shouldn’t live in constant fear of hundreds of millions of pounds of volatile substances stored in their neighborhood on unstable soil which will liquify in an earthquake. We can mitigate the risks to residents and work to make sure the Columbia River isn’t polluted for generations in the event of a catastrophe.
Thriving
A thriving city is alive with good jobs, foot traffic, tourism, amenities, and a healthy budget.
We have great restaurants, parks, an educated workforce, and an excellent location. We have work to do on affordability, safety, and creating a competitive business environment. A thriving city attracts people. It draws new opportunities and investments.
We’ll thrive when we focus on tangible steps to make this city competitive. Portland needs to be the obvious choice to live, work, and raise a family. From tax and permitting reform, to ensuring our public money is used effectively, we can do the work to live up to our amazing potential.
Our Mission
At the core of Eli’s approach is a belief that you must know a problem to solve it. He believes that his hands-on experience with homelessness, crime, policing, and livability issues is a needed perspective. He wants to help repair the damage and be an agent of change to restore the Portland we all know and love.
