News The Multnomah County Board of Commissioners today approved an additional $196,034 to continue the seven-week-old investigation into the disappearance of Kyron Horman. District Attorney Mike Schrunk said the money is needed to cover an additional prosecutor and other costs, but he's not sure how much longer the investigation into the missing 7-year-old will continue at the current pace. "There ...   More

News The Portland Trail Blazers, City Commissioner Nick Fish and Mississippi Studios are among the big names pouring money into the race for a Multnomah County Board of Commissioners seat representing North and Northeast Portland. The latest round of campaign finance disclosures shows candidate Loretta Smith collecting $500 from Fish and $1,000 from the Trail Blazers. As previously reported in ...   More

News Add one more money measure to the Nov. 2 ballot. The Multnomah County Board of Commissioners today unanimously approved asking county voters to OK a five-year, $10 million levy to fund the financially threatened Oregon Historical Society, which runs the society's museum and library in downtown Portland. If county voters OK the levy, it would add a nickel per $1,000 of assessed property value, ...   More

News City Commissioner Nick Fish and Beam Construction and Management are the latest large donors to the Yes campaign on the city of Portland's $72.4 million bond measure for the Fire Bureau. Fish and Beam Development each ponied up $2,500 to the fire bond campaign. (Fish, who won his re-election to City Council in May, also tapped his campaign fund for a much smaller donation of $250 to Democratic ...   More

News We have spent a good portion of the past few weeks interviewing candidates, vetting their claims, and putting together our Oct. 13 endorsement issue so that you, our readers, will be savvy Oregon voters come the Nov. 2 election. But to be savvy voters, you first need to be registered voters. Voter registration deadline is Tuesday, Oct. 12. You can register at the Secretary of State's website ...   More

News A proposal for a new 345-acre urban renewal district running through downtown, Northwest and Southwest Portland has opened another chapter in the ongoing Portland-Multnomah County budget drama. In an email last week to city and county officials, Peter Englander, a Portland Development Commission manager, delivered a message that startled Multnomah County Chairman Jeff Cogen. That message had ...   More

News The lobster antenna that extends from the newly proposed downtown Portland urban-renewal district to the Willamette River offers one example of what city officials and Mayor Sam Adams hope to accomplish with a new district, if City Council approves the idea. Urban-renewal districts take tax increases from defined areas to pay for redevelopment projects for a period of decades. Under state law, ...   More

News Multnomah County says it's set to become the first local government in the Northwest to ditch Microsoft for Google. This Monday, Oct. 25, about 4,500 county employees will switch from Microsoft's Outlook program for their email and calendars, to a Google package that includes Gmail and Google Docs. The change affects all county employees except the Sheriff's Office and District Attorney's ...   More