Sho Dozono, Sam Adams, and Jeff Taylor are on the altar at the First Unitarian Church downtown, fielding questions about housing at a forum sponsored by a who’s who of housing and homelessness organizations—JOIN, the Community Development Network, Street Roots, the Community Alliance of Tenants, Sisters of the Road, the Coalition for Homeless Families, and 211 Info.

The candidates have tackled the issue of racial disparities in homeownership, and are discussing the 30 percent set-aside for affordable housing at PDC. Dozonos says he supports it—it can help people who have “been displaced from Northeast” and are now renters in apartments “not designed for families.” Adams says we should look closely before putting strings on money, to make sure it doesn’t hamper the ultimate goal.

On the 10-Year Plan to End Homelessness, Adams says “regime change at the presidential level” is key, to unlock funding for our programs. He’d also like to lobby the state legislature to allow for “inclusionary zoning,” and he’d like to see about using the 30 percent set aside funds outside of urban renewal areas. Dozono says ending homelessness “is a great goal,” but the challenge is how to move forward. “I do think it’s about creating opportunities and looking at city, county and state resources to look at mental health issues… you really have to work to allow people to get back on their feet to be productive.”

I’m looking forward to the questions from the audience (as is, apparently, the woman sitting behind me—she’s been furiously scribbling on her index card for the past few minutes).

More after the cut—including the homeless protest at city hall.

"As mayor, what if anything would you do to resolve the legal situation faced by homeless people?" the moderator asks, referring to the homeless protest at city hall.

Dozono says the city needs "to really begin to provide" a way for "homeless people to only temporarily be homeless." I think he's talking about expanding temporary shelters. "There's not resources today to house that many homeless people.... [but] we can really begin to eliminate this need for people to sleep out in public places."

Jeff Taylor agrees with Dozono, adding that "we need to reach out to all faiths... to help in this homeless problem." He talked about a major shakeup at city hall—and less spending on "pet projects"—that he'd be the guy to lead.

"Portlanders should have the kind of employment opportunities and housing opportunities" that let them pay the bills, and have some left over to enjoy life. "It's also making sure that the funding that we have is invested in some of the poorest of the poor," says Adams. He's also committed to one-time resources via the city budget "to make sure we keep faith" in working towards the city's larger goals. And "the state needs to step up to the table" to perhaps enact a recording fee, to generate new revenue that can go toward housing. Lobbying for that in Salem "will be one of my top priorities."

Time for the candidates to question each other.

Adams asks Dozono: "You've been critical of me for supporting charter changes that provides us, the city council, with more oversight of PDC. We enacted the 30 percent set-aside over the objections with PDC." How would Dozono's relationship with the PDC be different, and how would he achieve his goals if the PDC objects?

"Oversight is the of the commissioners appointed by the mayor," says Dozono, but he's "advocated for the city council not to interfere with the PDC... they are professional people who are engaged." And "if you have criticism, then you need to replace the [PDC] commissioners," instead of "micromanaging" the agency.

Taylor is asking both Dozono and Adams about the "$400 million plus tax for roads." With all of the taxes that we pay, and the burden on those who are low-income, "how can you justify that."

Dozono is "glad that Commissioner Adams is committed to putting this on the ballot in November," but he hasn't seen the final proposal so he doesn't have comment on it.

Adams says he "would exempt low-income" projects and development from having to pay the fee. "But at the same time, when you look at the profile, that a significant number of people who depend on transit, are also a high percentage of people who are killed and injured on our roads... for the first time that I'm aware of, we are working on a safety strategy in those areas."

Dozono asks Adams about spending throughout the city—are East Portlanders being left out?

"The bulk of the projects [funded in the last few years] have gone to East Portland," says Adams. "It's easy to draw a circle [around a specific project] and play it against other areas of the city." The projects are prioritized based on safety, Adams says, but "if someone else has a different idea for prioritizing that money, I'm open to suggestions.

Would the candidates be in favor of suspending enforcement of the camping ordinance until there's enough housing for everyone? Taylor gave an answer about balancing differing interests. Adams supports the camping ordinance, but also supports putting resources toward housing and shelters. Together, that should mean that "as we're doing a sweep, that we also have services in place. Our goal should be to find every single one of those folks a place in the housing system. Not just to warehouse them, but to hook them up with any services they might need."

Dozono says you "really have to be treating people humanely." He'd call an emergency session to see "how do we get 1,400 people into at least a temporary shelter if not a permanent home."

Would the candidates keep the PDC set-aside going toward housing for those making 30 percent of the median family income or lower? Taylor says yes. Adams says it helps us meet our goal of ending homelessness, and he's "going to withstand the political pressure to try to move around that money were more of it goes to the higher median family income." Dozono would advocate for increasing the set-aside funding by five percent, putting that new money—"that new pool"—toward the next level of income, which he pegs as the working class, up to 60 percent of median family income. "Increasing the pie is really the solution," he says.

What do they think about the recent PDC shuffle, where the person overseeing housing was let go, and several departments were consolidated. "I'm not aware if there were personality issues," says Dozono, declining to comment on a personnel issue. Taylor is pointing to the voters' call for city hall to oversee PDC.

In closure, Dozono "brings a lifetime of experience... but I have much more to give back to this community. This city has great potential, but in the past this city council has not allowed the city to grow."

Taylor is saying something about "half-dressed transvestites" at the Candidates Gone Wild event at Roseland on Monday night, pointing out that it was on Burnside, "a public road" and that he has young children. "That's not the kind of city that I want." Then several people in the audience boo'd him.

"That's an awkward political situation," Adams says about the transvestites, and moves on. He says "keeping people stable with a roof over their head lets them pursue so many other opportunities in life."