News When City Council voted 4-1 yesterday to approve a funding plan to pay for computer upgrades at the Bureau of Development Services, Commissioner Amanda Fritz was the lone "no" vote. No surprise there—it's a position she's found herself in before, but the plan and its back story combine for a more interesting tale.The computer upgrading plan—to borrow $6.6 million secured by the city's general fund—comes ...   More

News Commissioner Amanda Fritz on Friday briefed reporters on the new initiative she'll spearhead in the coming months: Mayor Sam Adams' recently proposed Office of Equity. Fritz, a longtime neighborhood activist before she joined the City Council in January 2009, will oversee the new office, which is expected to merge with the three-year-old Office of Human Relations. Adams announced the new office just ...   More

News Commissioner Amanda Fritz has asked the director of Portland's Office of Human Relations to step down, WW has learned. Maria Lisa Johnson, the office director pictured on the left, has led the small bureau since then-Mayor Tom Potter created it in 2008 to end "discrimination and bigotry, strengthen inter-group relationships and foster greater understanding, inclusion and justice for those who live, work, ...   More

News Mayor Sam Adams announced today he had reassigned oversight of two city bureaus, the Office of Cable and Franchise Management and the Bureau of Development Services, to Commissioner Dan Saltzman.The move continues a City Hall tradition that Saltzman knows well. Since first taking office in 1999, Saltzman has taken the helm at many troubled bureaus. The Bureau of Development Services is only the latest. ...   More

City Hall Fifteen years ago, then-Mayor Vera Katz, police, business associations and musicians signed an agreement that dictates when, where and how bucket drummers, fiddlers and human statues    More

News Portland City Council this morning unanimously approved Mayor Sam Adams' five-point plan to control illegal guns and curb youth violence. Before voting yes, Commissioner Amanda Fritz said the council should review the stricter measures against illegal guns in a year to see if the new rules are, in fact, suppressing violence. But Fritz supported the measure saying, "We need to try some new things." Commissioner ...   More

News The Muslim Educational Trust's monthly meeting this weekend at Portland State University chose a discussion topic inspired by the recent attempted Christmas tree bombing in downtown Portland. The point of the Saturday night discussion, sponsored by the Muslim Educational Trust board of directors, was to analyze Islam and discuss whether it is inherently a religion that promotes violence. The ...   More

News   If you happened by City Hall about five months ago, you might have witnessed Commissioner Amanda Fritz wheeling outside the building in a wheelchair. Fritz did that as part of an effort to experience what it’s like for disabled residents to get access to public spaces in Portland. Now there’s new evidence City Hall is taking those access issues seriously. New chairs ...   More

News   The initial returns for Measure 26-108, Portland’s test of public support to continue public campaign financing, suggest the city’s five-year experiment with giving tax dollars to candidates for mayor, city commissioner and auditor is likely to end. But both opponents and supporters of the measure say tonight that it’s too early to declare victory or defeat. Just ...   More

News This morning's Oregonian story about the relationship in 2005 between Mayor Sam Adams and then 17-year-old legislative intern Beau Breedlove advances the story in three important ways: 1. The O got Adams' cell-phone records, which show a level of communication that was earlier, more frequent and more driven by Adams (rather than Breedlove) than has previously been reported. 2. The O found, ...   More