We are in the midst of one of the largest public‑private negotiations in Portland’s history: a $600 million package of public funding is being proposed to renovate the Moda Center, a city-owned asset and home to the Trail Blazers. This moment is a major test of Portland’s newly overhauled government: our expanded 12‑member City Council and a new charter structure specifically approved by voters to deliver more transparency, accountability, and community voice. We are wrestling with the very questions our new structure was designed to confront.
Recently, Rip City Not Rip Off’s analysis of over 5,300 pages of public records revealed a coordinated, behind-closed-doors effort across state, county, and city governments to secure hundreds of millions in public dollars for the Trail Blazers organization — now owned by billionaire Tom Dundon — with no private investment. NDAs were signed. The team was promised advance notice of public records requests. The negotiation ran under a secret code name. The mayor worked from talking points crafted by the team’s lobbyists to sway legislators. This is the opposite of what Portlanders voted for.
Early on, I was warned that pushing for accountability could jeopardize my political future. I pushed anyway. I was the lone councilor who refused to sign a February letter praising the $365 million state funding bill; the public had no chance to weigh in. Council members were asked to comply with an NDA to join an advisory committee. Councilor Mitch Green and I declined. The committee was scrapped. Working with Council President Jamie Dunphy, we pushed for a course correction that led to June’s pop‑up listening sessions and a citywide survey, which received over 18,000 responses. During Council’s first work session, my colleagues dug into the data and asked tough, thoughtful questions…