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Thursday, August 14, 2008

News Safe Committee Contemplates Sit-Lie Alternatives

Posted by Matt Davis on Thu, Aug 14, 2008 at 10:38 AM

The mayor's SAFE committee is decidedly sullen this morning. Central Precinct Commander Mike Reese hasn't raised his voice above a low murmur during the first hour, and has been slumped forward in his chair with a dejected expression on his face. Mike Kuykendall of the Portland Business Alliance, who has been the driving force behind the ordinance from day one, is adopting the most conciliatory and cooperative tone he has adopted in months, asking committee members what they would suggest as an alternative to the ordinance, and challenging Reese's police officers over one outcome of Monday's listening session, that anecdotally, homeless people are being targeted disproportionately by the sit-lie law.

This week I wrote about Kuykendall's organization, the PBA, funding City Commissioner Nick Fish's election campaign, asking whether the PBA may have bought Fish's vote on council for continuing the law. But judging from the tone this morning, it's starting to feel as if the PBA's $6000 may not have ensured Kuykendall's political victory, after all.

Reese says he would hate to see the law go away. His argument seems to be that it would require police to work much harder to pursue people for menacing and harassment, for example, than it would to just target them with the sit/lie. His officers agree: They say it's a good way for them to talk with people and direct them towards services.

The group has also heard from a Rent-A-Cop working for Portland Patrol, Inc, introduced as Jimmy Baher (sic?), who described a homeless man as a "biohazard," for urinating and defecating on Old Town benches. "People want to sit there," he said.

"Most people really enjoy us coming by and waking them up," Baher said. "But as far as the sidewalk obstruction, I don't really get involved in that. I just converse with most of them. They're pretty agreeable with the suggestions for help, and so forth."

"Yeah, we look like some of [the police], but we aren't the police, and we're very up-front about what we do," says John Hren, the boss of PPI. "The problem in the 1980s was that there weren't enough bathrooms downtown, and the problem now is that there aren't enough bathrooms downtown."

 

Commenting was not available when this article was originally published.

Comments (7) RSS

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1
I wonder if Baher would "really enjoy" it if homeless folks rousted him out of bed each morning?
Posted by Amy J. Ruiz on August 14, 2008 at 10:54 AM · Report
2
Good work, Mr. Davis.
You are starting to look in the right corners. If you keep pulling the thread, the whole sweater will start to unravel...FOLLOW THE MONEY.

Posted by the people on August 14, 2008 at 11:22 AM · Report
3
Speaking of money, for all the money we taxpayers each pay in taxes, BASIC HUMAN SERVICES should be a MANDATORY FOUNDATION to our city.
ALL HUMANS DESERVE THIS (even human scum, like Rove & Cheney).

Not only access to restrooms and showers, but how about SAFE, CLEAN DRINKING WATER??
If someone is homeless and NOT downtown near the few drinking fountains that work in this city, where are they supposed to get water from?
Especially with the coming HEAT WAVE this weekend!
By our own rules, this is considered CRUEL and UNUSUAL PUNISHMENT.
Yet another example of the 'criminalization of poverty'.

WE MUST INVESTIGATE THE PPB's CITY SYCOPHANTS, and KICK THE TREASONOUS BASTARDS OUT!!!

As with the other treasonous leaders of this country, we CANNOT afford to let them continue to deceive us with THEIR LIES and feigned sympathy.
THIS IS ABOUT MONEY,
bottom line. We will NOT allow them to cash in on VIOLATING HUMAN RIGHTS.
PORTLAND, its time to TAKE IT BACK! This country is OF, BY and FOR THE PEOPLE.
Please keep helping us, Matt. Unfortunately, you are of a rare journalistic breed, the kind which JUSTICE precariously hinges on.
Posted by the people on August 14, 2008 at 11:25 AM · Report
4
'If someone is homeless and NOT downtown near the few drinking fountains that work in this city, where are they supposed to get water from?'

While panting through the desert with pants on head they should look for the river.
A basic tenet of survival for which the government is not obliged to give you out of their benevolent control.
Posted by D on August 14, 2008 at 11:41 AM · Report
5
Perhaps the PPA rent-a-cops and their rented real cops can start enforcing the laws against signs and sidewalk cafes - it's a good way to talk with business owners and direct them to city licensing offices.
Posted by LawyerPepper on August 14, 2008 at 4:05 PM · Report
6
I didn't realize humans could be bio-hazards for doing human things like peeing and shitting. God, we're all bio hazards!

Call the CDC!

Matt, great work. Thank you for being a dog on a bone with this one.
Posted by chumpy on August 14, 2008 at 4:58 PM · Report
7
Speaking of biohazards and the river...

But anyways, yes, agreed, there aren't enough bathrooms. Now, people urinating on benches aren't cool, people should at least try to find a bush or tree or something, but we need more bathrooms.
Posted by Matthew D on August 15, 2008 at 11:30 PM · Report

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