Street Roots asked the 2016 Multnomah County commissioner candidates 13 questions — a mix of short answer, yes or no, and multiple choice.
The following District 1 candidates participated in Street Roots’ pop quiz:
Marisha Childs
Sharon Meieran
Mel Rader
Brian Wilson
Eric Zimmerman
* District 1 candidates Wes Soderback and Ken Stokes did not respond.
* District 3 candidate Jessica Vega Pederson is running unopposed.
* District 4 candidates Lori Stegmann and Amanda Schroeder declined to participate in Street Roots’ pop quiz. Stanley Dirks did not respond.
RELATED: See how Portland's mayoral candidates and City Council candidates fared in Street Roots' pop quiz
QUESTION 1
What area of the county government are you most interested in working with and why? (100 words or less)
Marisha Childs
Addressing and eliminating the significant racial disparities that exist in the justice system. There is a culture of tolerance that exists, not only in Multnomah County, but in society generally. Further, there is a culture of placating the one experiencing inequities (“No, I’m sure that’s not what s/he meant”).
I am also very interested in the County Food Action Plan, although I am concerned about recent events rendering many ineligible for SNAP. The county must ensure seasonal fruits and vegetables are grown around our community (at county buildings) for those who have recently lost SNAP benefits as well as others.
Sharon Meieran
Mental health care. As an ER doctor, I see how our system fails those most in need, and the way we provide “crisis care” often is more traumatizing than healing. I recently saw a youth brought to the ER because he was in serious mental health crisis. He was placed in a typical ER room, with no windows, no school, minimal exercise – and remained there for almost four weeks because there was no place for him to get appropriate treatment. This is unacceptable. Improving our mental health care system is one of the main reasons I am running for County Commission.
Mel Rader
I am interested in working with the health system. I have run a public health nonprofit for 10 years, and I serve on the board of Health Share, which serves 230,000 Medicaid members in the region. My background is uniquely suited to promote a health system that is more equitable, focused on prevention and able to achieve better results for lower costs. I will prioritize filling the funding gap for mental health and addictions. I will also champion a more community-focused approach to provide services to people on the street and through community organizations in a culturally responsive manner.
Brian Wilson
I have identified three areas where my skill set will be of most value and meet the most pressing needs of the county: working to get an immediate handle on the homeless crisis by opening more temporary shelters, especially those safe for families; working with other local land use and permitting agencies to expedite additions to housing stock at all levels of affordability; and expanding programs with Department of Community Justice and Sheriff’s Office that address some of the highest negative impacts on our streets: methamphetamines and human trafficking.
Eric Zimmerman
The county has a key role to play in many issues, and I believe the three most important we face are the following: 1. Developing policies that create economic opportunity and support families struggling today. 2. Addressing the current housing crisis, by supporting permanent housing for homeless individuals and expanding affordable housing development across the community. 3. Increasing our shelter inventory and capacity to provide necessary and vital off-the-street shelter for safety and health while working on an ongoing basis to increase access to services for housing, treatment and employment.
QUESTION 2
What is one solid step you will take to expand affordable housing countywide? (150 words)
Marisha Childs
I would try to negotiate with property owners of vacant buildings (or partially vacant buildings), to at least temporarily allow homeless people to stay there while permanent housing is being built. I understand that one property developer (Menashe) has been open to this kind of idea. This is not a permanent solution, but at least a temporary fix until the county can develop something more robust.
Sharon Meieran
As we all know, the homeless and housing crisis is complex, and will not be resolved with a simple fix. Therefore, the process itself is crucially important. One of my greatest strengths is my ability to collaborate with groups and individuals from many diverse backgrounds and experiences to work effectively toward common goals. I applaud the county’s efforts with the A Home for Everyone program. I also support the city and county’s commitment to break down silos that make it difficult to navigate services and create artificial barriers. I strongly support up-front investments in affordable-housing units, and ensuring people have the support they need to stay in their housing once they get it.
Mel Rader
The root of our housing crisis is income inequality. While large developers make windfall profits off real estate, our home shortage deepens. Solving the problem means moving forward policies that promote rent and income equality. The first thing that needs to be done is to greatly expand the public investment in affordable housing. I support a significant investment in housing aimed at low-income families, paid for through general obligation bonds by the county. As part of the Welcome Home Coalition, I’ve been proud to advocate for more investment in this area.
We should also look at additional strategies to promote rent equality including: (a) inclusionary zoning to ensure big developers are doing their part to promote affordable options, (b) greater fairness in property taxes, including shifting more of the burden onto commercial property away from residential, and (c) fixing the
problem with the ADU tax issue at the county.
Brian Wilson
The county made its first direct investment in affordable housing this past budget cycle and is expected to do so again in the current cycle. I plan to continue and expand direct investment, partnering more closely with Portland Housing Bureau (still the primary agency in Portland responsible for development of housing) and the cities in East County to get more units into the pipeline. Further, I want to work hard on finding a new, sustainable and direct source of local funding for additional affordable units, especially units that meet the needs of families. Whether through a fund created as a byproduct of some new inclusionary zoning ordinance or a transfer tax on real estate sales, new sources will need to be identified if we want to make an effort to meet existing needs and the needs of the future.
Eric Zimmerman
This year, for the first time, the county has invested in developing affordable units. I want to invest funds in this manner to continue to build the inventory of the most-affordable units. This is part of the county’s responsibility in A Home For Everyone to address homelessness and help get people into transitional and affordable housing. But we also need to be doing more to address workforce housing issues so that struggling families do not end up on the street because of evictions, rising rents or a personal financial setback.
QUESTION 3
Yes or No: Would you support establishing a safe injection site?
Marisha Childs
Yes. A safe injection site is more hygienic, and using at a safe injection site/supervised injection reduces the likelihood for sharing needles. Further, in the event of some sort of medical emergency, personnel is there to respond accordingly.
Sharon Meieran
Yes.
Mel Rader
Yes.
Brian Wilson
Yes.
Eric Zimmerman
No.
QUESTION 4
Beyond Portland, Multnomah County encompasses smaller municipalities all dealing with housing and homeless issues, with the county often picking up the slack. How will you get other municipalities to better address these issues? (150 words or less)
Marisha Childs
It’s important that all regions/municipalities recognize this problem. The issue needs to be humanized with some of these other smaller municipalities, so that folks suffering with housing security and homelessness issues are treated as individual people, and not just a “problem.” Multnomah County, as the leader in the area, needs to work with the smaller municipalities to figure out why it’s an “us versus them” scenario. I think if representatives of these smaller municipalities saw the individual faces and heard the individual stories of homelessness, we might make more progress.
Sharon Meieran
Working together and looking at the answers regionally is the only way we can address this complex issue. As our housing crisis grows, more homeless people are moving out of the urban center, and this creates more challenges when people become even further removed and disconnected from services. We need to find regional solutions that give people access to housing and services they need to be safe, healthy and live with dignity. Just like Chair Kafoury and Commissioner Saltzman are working on a city and county joint office of homeless services, we need to engage the mayors of Gresham, Troutdale, Fairview other municipalities in a comprehensive approach that makes better use of
resources.
Mel Rader
Implement a housing-first policy that provides very basic housing options for everyone. It costs far more to provide services for the homeless than it does to provide a home for them to live in.
Using bonding authority, the county should provide all homeless people with a basic home, then connect them with medical resources to stabilize health conditions and economic services to promote job opportunities. This approach provides a compassionate approach to solving our homelessness problem, and it saves money overall.
We can also promote more housing near transit lines to increase housing options that are better connected to jobs and services, including mixed commercial and residential neighborhoods.
Finally, we need more cross-agency collaboration. The causes of homelessness are varied and dynamic, and the Health Department must collaborate with housing authorities so that people facing a web of barriers can be supported with a web of services.
Brian Wilson
I believe the answer is in leveraging the Home for Everyone coordinating committee. Gresham already participates, but the other, smaller municipalities only tangentially. As the Sheriff’s Office expands its patrol responsibilities in these communities, so too should county Human Services, thereby more directly working with these communities. This is a regional issue; doesn’t stop at any border. We have to treat it as such.
Eric Zimmerman
I think it is critical that we find the resources at the city, county and state levels to support investment in affordable housing creation including creative approaches like land trusts, public bonding or partnerships with private funds like union pension funds. We also need to look at the alignment of services across jurisdictions to help stretch dollars further and ensure services are effectively delivered. Last, we need to better understand how policies in individual jurisdictions are affecting housing and homelessness in the region as a whole. If some localities are conducting camp sweeps, those homeless individuals can be displaced to another community. Similarly, failing to develop affordable housing near employment opportunities will have an impact on struggling families – driving up transportation costs and hurting quality of life.
QUESTION 5
Story question: If Multnomah County’s budget projections showed a severe deficit by 2017, what would be your approach now to prevent or mitigate that situation? (150 words or less)
Marisha Childs
It would really depend on where the deficit was coming from. What agencies or departments have the largest budgets, and how are they spending those portions of the county’s budget? I would work closely with the auditor’s office to see where changes and reductions could be made. I would be transparent about that projection, and work with partners to chip away at that projected deficit.
Sharon Meieran
We must be prepared for an eventual downturn in the economy. No matter the timing, we must invest our resources wisely, truly understand where our money is going and focus on our core mission. I will work to avoid duplication of services and ensure that our limited dollars are being used to help the most people. I will also ensure that we leverage our information technology to create efficiencies without making our systems more complex than they need to be. Finally, we must invest in housing at the front end, because the return on this investment in the long term will enable people to live and function even in difficult times. If we are able to address these fundamental issues now, when we have the resources, we will be very well-placed to weather the storm when the inevitable downturn occurs.
Mel Rader
I would seek to find funding to support critical programs. Opportunities for funding include:
(a) Refer a proposal for general obligation bonds to pay for low-income housing, (b) advocate at the state level for a reform of the property tax system, including increased taxes on commercial properties, (c) use of targeted excise taxes such as a tax on e-cigarettes at the same level as regular cigarettes to pay for addictions treatment programs, and (d) implementation of a construction tax as now allowed within the inclusionary zoning legislation.
I would also seek to find savings in current programs with the highest opportunity being to (a) reduce enforcement of nonviolent crimes to save money in the corrections systems and (b) negotiate with health systems to take on some of the health services currently paid for through general fund dollars.
Brian Wilson
A range of things. I’d look for non-essential programs to temporarily suspend, and divert any savings to mission-critical programs, especially front line health and human services and law enforcement. I’d work with county employee unions to try and temporarily cap labor costs, just as we did in 2006. We’ll have to dip into the savings account, too, and probably try to raise cash through sale of non-essential county assets.
Eric Zimmerman
I will fight to maintain current service levels by ensuring we are not expanding programs today that have to be cut tomorrow. We need to focus on essential services, paying attention to those most in need. A bad budget is usually accompanied by a bad economy, translating in more need for county programs. We will need to work with county employees to minimize the impacts of cuts and prioritize programs. We will also need to look for ways to save money through innovative approaches and better use of data to understand what is working and what is not.
QUESTION 6
Complete this sentence with the following options: I smoke marijuana ________________
a. For medicinal purposes only.
b. To decompress after a stressful day.
c. Recreationally. Hey, it’s legal.
d. Rarely.
e. Never.
Marisha Childs
e. Never.
Sharon Meieran
e. Never.
Mel Rader
d. Rarely.
Brian Wilson
e. Never.
Eric Zimmerman
e. Never.
QUESTION 7
Make one promise to the city’s people of color that you will deliver on as commissioner. Street Roots will check on its status every year.
Marisha Childs
I will work to ensure actions are taken now, that data supports, what many in communities of color know: generally speaking, people of color in Multnomah County have a lower quality of life. I want to see an Office of Civil Rights created in Multnomah County. I want better training at the Sheriff’s Office and in jails for cultural competency and trauma-informed care. I also want to see this training in the District Attorney’s Office. This kind of training needs to be monitored regularly, to see that changes are truly happening, and not just relying on the word of the department heads. For example, in jails, the inmates (not just staff) need to be heard from, to hear about their experiences in jail. The social services agencies also need to treat the county’s people of color with respect and understanding.
Sharon Meieran
First, we need to openly and directly acknowledge the serious racial inequities that exist in our county. On a broad level, and most importantly, I promise to engage and listen and be an ally in working to address these inequities. On
a more specific level, I will ensure that my own staff reflect the diversity that is our county. I will also ensure the voices of people of color are an integral part of all policy discussions and implementation.
Mel Rader
Find significant funding to implement Multnomah County’s new Community Health Improvement Plan that will be finished in September 2016.
Brian Wilson
Bird dog the implementation of recommendations that come out of the MacArthur Foundation findings, whether the county advances to the next round of study or not.
Eric Zimmerman
We need to create more pathways for children of color to gain skills and leadership opportunities that they can use to succeed in life. The Summer Youth Connect program is a critical resource to offer such skills to youth in the community. It has only survived thanks to the dedication of Loretta Smith to protect it. I commend Commissioner Smith for that work, and I’m proud to have her endorsement in this race. I know that Commissioner Smith will be forced to leave her seat in 2018 due to term limits, and it is my promise to pick up the
mantle from her and protect this critical program.
QUESTION 8
How will you ensure young people of color will succeed in Multnomah County? (150 words or less)
Marisha Childs
The county needs to provide opportunities for young people of color, including after-school activities and vocational training. This would also include opportunities for young people of color leaving jail, to make sure that they have opportunities and do not just end up back in the criminal justice system. This would require a re-allocation of funding, away from punishment for committing crimes, to preventing crimes in the first place.
Young people of color also need to see positive examples of leaders of color. I hope through myself, other people of color with interest in county and city leadership, and other leaders of color in the community, that young people will benefit from such examples.
Sharon Meieran
We need to engage youth and their families early on. We definitely need to promote school-based programs that provide mentorship, education, parenting support, leadership training. But we actually need to start even earlier than school to meet people where they’re at, and provide effective programs that directly respond to the needs of traditionally underserved families and communities. I will work with community leaders and young people of color to understand the challenges they face and implement programs that will have the most impact. Ultimately, I believe we ensure the success of our youth when we can assure the financial security and economic viability for communities of color and offer meaningful pathways to higher education, training, apprenticeships and mentoring, jobs and housing/homeownership. We must find ways to ensure our county values, models and invests in these opportunities.
Mel Rader
The wage gap between whites and people of color is greater than it’s been in many years with African-Americans earning 76 percent and Hispanics earning 74 percent as much as whites.
The exact causes of these disparities are complex, but it’s critical that we address the solutions we can at the county by:
• Continuing to increase the minimum wage by looking into repealing Oregon’s law that prohibits us from determining what our livable wage should be
• Advocating for labor unions’ priorities including expanding hours for existing part-time employees rather than hiring more part-time staff to avoid paying benefits
• Serving undocumented residents with dignity and care
Another way to increase economic opportunity is to expand affordable childcare. This would allow all working parents to better provide for their families and reach their professional goals, and it would also reduce the likelihood of children’s future interactions with public safety and corrections departments.
Brian Wilson
Using our amazing library system to help catch all kids with early reading programs to ensure they have the best chance for success staying in school and graduating.
Eric Zimmerman
I strongly support creating more opportunity for the youth of color, such as the Summer Youth Connect Program referenced above. We also must expand internships and other entry opportunities for youth of color to join the county workforce. There is also a critical conversation about children of color in our community and closing the achievement gap so that young people of color graduate from high school ready to succeed. That includes better parental support and early childhood education in a culturally conscious way. It also includes poverty reduction and helping working families avoid displacement, which can harm a child’s education and uproot them from support in the community. And finally, we must work with law enforcement to provide better community policing that helps kids avoid criminal behavior and that reduces the number of our youth that enter into the juvenile justice system.
QUESTION 9
Pair the issue with the sentiment. Use each sentiment only once:
1. Sell Wapato Jail
2. Appointed (not elected) sheriff
3. Rent control
4. Regional Air Quality Bureau
a. Great idea
b. Good idea
c. Needs work
d. Nope
Marisha Childs
1. Sell Wapato Jail – d. Nope
2. Appointed sheriff – c. Needs work
3. Rent control – b. Good idea
4. Air quality bureau – a. Great idea
Sharon Meieran
1. Sell Wapato Jail – a. Great idea
2. Appointed sheriff – b. Good idea
3. Rent control – c. Needs work
4. Air quality bureau – d. Nope
Mel Rader
1. Sell Wapato Jail – c. Needs work
2. Appointed sheriff – d. Nope
3. Rent control – b. Good idea
4. Air quality bureau – a. Great idea
Brian Wilson
1. Sell Wapato Jail – a. Great idea
2. Appointed sheriff – b. Good idea
3. Rent control – c. Needs work
4. Air quality bureau – d. Nope
Eric Zimmerman
1. Sell Wapato Jail – a. Great idea
2. Appointed sheriff – d. Nope
3. Rent control – c. Needs work
4. Air quality bureau – b. Good idea
*CORRECTION: Zimmerman's responses about an appointed sheriff and a Regional Air Quality Bureau were transposed in a previous version of this quiz. Zimmerman supports an elected sheriff and a Regional Air Quality Bureau.
QUESTION 10
The county’s Racial and Ethnic Disparities Report reveals that black people are 320 percent more likely than whites to be prosecuted for a crime, 500 percent more likely to spend time in jail, and 600 percent more likely to be sentenced to prison. What will you do to help correct that? (150 words or less)
Marisha Childs
My answer would be very similar to the answer I provided in response to Questions 7 and 8. Better training of law enforcement officers, the District Attorney’s office, mental health providers and jail personnel would be a great start.
Sharon Meieran
As a member of the Community Oversight Advisory Board that oversees the Department of Justice Settlement Agreement regarding Portland Police Bureau’s use of force against people in mental health crisis, our discussion has necessarily broadened to include addressing issues of racial disparity. Our first step must be to openly acknowledge the degree to which this disparity exists in our county. Next, we need to engage with people and groups directly affected to identify the underlying issues and create a plan and path forward.
Mel Rader
The recent Racial and Ethnic Diversity Report showed that disparities deepen at each step of the criminal justice system. It’s clear that we need a suite of strategies to reduce this web of disparities, and we need to affect both programs and policies.
Key approaches must include:
• Training police, prosecutors, parole officers, judges and other criminal justice system personnel to reduce racial biases.
• Encouraging prosecutors to prioritize violent crimes.
• Seeking options to divert nonviolent offenders and people with mental health histories into programs that address their needs.
• Limiting pretrial detention to those who are a threat to public safety.
We must also collaborate with a broad range of community groups to ensure transparency and accountability. Local organizations are aware of how systemic barriers affect communities, and it’s critical that those advocates keep the county on track for measurable changes.
Brian Wilson
I’ve always been a believer in schools, not jails. By taking a broad approach, enlisting the help of partners in the black community, recruiting/retaining more district attorneys, law enforcement officers, teachers, etc., we can address the situation with the sensitivity that comes from shared experiences. Better education. Better opportunities.
Eric Zimmerman
We need to build better relations between law enforcement and our African-American communities. Everyone should have a shared interest in ensuring fair and just treatment of all our residents, regardless of race, as well as effective community policing that can reduce crime and strengthen neighborhoods. I have strong relationships in both the African-American community and law enforcement. And I think it will take a leader that can credibly work with all stakeholders if we are going to reduce racial disparities in arrests and incarceration.
QUESTION 11
What is one thing you will do to better serve people experiencing mental health crises? (150 words or less)
Marisha Childs
We need to provide more supportive living environments. The stigma attached to mental illness needs to be removed, and it needs to be considered on par with physical illness such as cancer and heart disease. Mental health issues need to be addressed earlier; children need to have services such as more social workers in the school. I am looking for a paradigm shift in the way mental health services are delivered. It’s not always possible for people with mental health crises to come to a clinic; social workers and other care providers need to be able to meet the people suffering mental health crises where they are (tents, the library, the trail, etc.). I also want to continue to work on law enforcement training, so that those first responders have at least some basic skills on appropriately and effectively interacting with people in the midst of a mental health crisis. “Mental health” should be an option when a person in distress calls 911 for help.
Sharon Meieran
As an ER doctor, I see on a daily basis how we fail people facing mental health crises. We need better coordination of care and services to keep people out of crisis in the first place. However, despite our best efforts, crises will occur. Taking people to jail or boarding them in an ER is unacceptable. I will ensure that peers and people with lived experience inform every aspect of how we approach issues of mental health care. We are trying a new model with the Unity Behavioral Health Center. As an advisory board member, I am listening and aware of concerns expressed. But I see the potential for a paradigm shift in how we treat people with mental health crisis if we do things right. I will continue to engage people with lived experience as this new project unfolds so that we are truly meeting the needs of the community.
Mel Rader
I will advocate to fund a system of peer-support counselors. We need community health workers and peer support counselors working with diverse communities to promote the social support systems that are necessary to promote mental well-being.
This will provide a first point of contact that can monitor and support people at risk or experiencing mental illness, and they can help people navigate the health care system when more acute care is needed. But perhaps more critically, community health workers can support a management plan that prevents individuals from having a crisis in the first place.
The Community Capacitation Center can help with training and building relationships with community organizations to host and support this workforce. We should also partner closely with health systems to provide coordinated approach to community health, and we should support a continuum of care from community and social supports all the way to acute care in a crisis.
Brian Wilson
Hooray for Unity Center – but with no net adds to the number of beds, we’re going to have to provide an incentive for the CCOs to invest more. We also need to build housing that will be supportive of those exiting Unity or shelters, so we’re not pushing them back into the environment that likely triggers their illness to begin with. We’ve also got to start following best practices from other communities who make effective use of robust information systems to track and immediately notify all service providers of a consumer’s status.
Eric Zimmerman
Increasing the capacity of the Unity Behavioral Health Center is critical. Investing in peer care and mentoring is an important ongoing step we must give to clients experiencing crisis to reduce visits to the ER. These are both programs I want to champion at the county.
QUESTION 12
As the community faces a housing crisis and growing economic and racial disparities, services aren’t going to cut it. Give an example of one thing you will do to prevent this opportunity gap from widening.
Marisha Childs
I am not really sure that I understand this question. “Services” is such a broad topic; I don’t know if the question refers to working with landowners to allow homeless to use vacant spaces at least temporarily. Part of this is working with community partners (NAYA, Urban League, Jade/APANO, PCRI, etc.) to come up with creative solutions and communities of support, even if this may not technically be “services.”
Sharon Meieran
First and foremost, I will listen. I will engage community leaders, private business leaders, nonprofit and advocacy groups, local elected officials and people most affected by these issues. I take a holistic approach to all the work that I do, and this will be especially the case at the county, where all the services provided are so integrally related. I recognize that people can’t take care of their mental or physical illness or find or keep a job if they don’t have a roof over their head. Working in the ER, I see interconnections, and where our failure to intervene at multiple points, in different areas, leads to people being seen in the most expensive and least effective place to deal with their underlying problems. People need housing, and they need services, but neither is sufficient without the other. I will ensure that we focus not only on single issues, but on the whole picture, so that all people can live safely and with dignity.
Mel Rader
Quality preschool is one of the best investments we can make in our children’s future.
Multnomah County should commit to the future of our children by establishing affordable preschool and by expanding employment-related day-care programs to more families.
In addition to supporting parents in the workforce, universal preschool has a significant return on investment for our economy. The earlier we invest in children, the lower our future costs will be for jails and prisons, health care and behavioral health services. Rates of return range per study up to $711 for every $1 invested, and the evidence is so strong that we can’t afford to delay.
Expanding affordable child care is integral for young working parents to become more competitive in the workforce, and this is especially true for women of color; African-American women earn 64 cents, and Latina women earn 56 cents for every dollar earned by a white non-Hispanic man. Expanded affordable child care would better allow all parents to provide for their families and therefore minimize the opportunity gap that affects families who couldn’t otherwise afford quality child care.
Brian Wilson
There’s really only one answer to this: more housing of all different levels of affordability, near good schools and in environmentally safe neighborhoods. We need to make an investment in this, building partnerships with organzations like APANO and NAYA to meet the specific cultural needs of those communities most impacted, and more.
Eric Zimmerman
We need a shared commitment by government, advocates and business to creating middle-wage jobs. There are tons of opportunities in this community for professionals and others with a particular skill set. But the growing disparity between haves and have-nots is driven by the loss of decent jobs that can support a family that do not require an advanced degree. Adding those jobs will take an intentional commitment and hard work, and we must commit to ensure good wages and benefits in those jobs. But they are the only way we are going to stop those disparities from overwhelming us.
QUESTION 13
Select a local artist – professional or amateur – to draw your favorite thing about Multnomah County.