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Name: Kelly Janes (KJ)

Neighborhood: Foster-Powell

Renter/homeowner: Homeowner

Education: U.C. Berkeley, B.A. Anthropology (focus: social anthropology and Native American studies)

Occupation: Business owner - Web design and development agency

How long you’ve lived in the city of Portland: 8 years

Age: 50, will turn 51 before Election Day

Pronouns: she/her

Portland is facing an historic election involving a new voting system and an unusually high number of candidates. Journalists at The Oregonian/OregonLive and Oregon Public Broadcasting share a goal of ensuring that Portland voters have the information they need to make informed choices, and we also know candidates’ time is valuable and limited.

That’s why the two news organizations teamed up this cycle to solicit Portland City Council candidates’ perspectives on the big issues in this election. Here’s what they had to say:

For each of the following questions, we asked candidates to limit their answers to 150 words.

What you need to know about voting in Oregon and Southwest Washington

Name two existing city policies or budget items you’d make it a priority to change. Why did you select those and how do you plan to line up at least 7 votes on the council to make them happen? Please avoid broad, sweeping statements and instead provide details.

Did not answer.

What previous accomplishments show that you are the best pick in your district? Please be specific.

I first joined the Foster-Powell Neighborhood Association (FPNA) as communications chair to grow our shelter meal volunteer list. Due to our online promotion, our volunteer list grew sufficiently that we have not had to cancel a meal in two years due to low volunteer sign-ups. After being elected as chair/president of FPNA, I guided the program through various iterations due to changing requirements from our neighborhood shelter partners. As chair, I have collaborated with Foster Southeast PDX, our local business association, to promote foot traffic to brick & mortar businesses along Foster Road.

I am the President of Benson TechBoosters, the 501(c)(3) fundraising organization for Benson Polytechnic High School. Go Astros!

I have owned and operated a small business for fourteen years, moving it across the country from Brooklyn, New York to Portland and certifying the business as a Woman-Owned Emerging Small Business in the state of Oregon.

Issues important to Oregon voters

Portland is on track to permit the fewest number of multifamily units in 15 years and remains thousands of units below what’s needed to meet demand. What steps would you take to dramatically and quickly increase the availability of housing?

Portland needs to attract investors for multifamily units by lowering costs and improving expected return on investment.

To lower costs, I’d streamline the permitting process. There should be an online portal where property owners, developers and contractors can see all permitting requirements for their project. I frequently hear that the current process is complicated and unclear. This portal would enable stakeholders to see the current status of each permit application, along with next steps in the process.

Improving expected return on investment is an equation with several parts, including:

• Ensuring Portland is a safe city to live, work, and play,
• compassionately sheltering our unhoused population,
• promoting Portland nationally as a premier destination on the West Coast,
• supporting restaurants, food carts, and retail businesses from the central business district to the furthest neighborhoods,
• investing in improved transportation, and
• aligning city policy with our deserved reputation as a city of nature lovers.

The next City Council is going to have to make some very difficult decisions regarding what to fund and how. What essential services must the city provide and how should the city sustainably fund them?

The city is required by charter to provide many essential services. Public safety, utilities, and infrastructure maintenance and investment are among these core obligations. The new City Council will need to work creatively and collaboratively to determine what to fund and how.

Listen to 'OPB Politics Now'

Portlanders have approved many tax measures in the past decade – supporting affordable housing, free preschool programs and green energy initiatives. Are there specific taxes or levies you want eliminated or would choose to not renew? Are there specific taxes or levies you would support creating? Why?

If I had to cancel one tax, it would be the Arts Tax. I do support funding arts and art education, but roughly 25% of eligible Portland residents refuse to pay voluntarily, and administrative costs are higher than projected. Intended recipients are not receiving the money expected. This needs to be redone.

Do you have any concerns with the changes coming to city elections and city governance? If so, what would you like to see change?

I am very excited by the possibility presented by the coming changes to city elections and governance. That said, I do have a few concerns.

I am concerned that there has not been sufficient training on ranked-choice voting (our Foster-Powell Neighborhood Association is providing training at our Sept. 9 meeting), and there are many ways a ballot can be invalidated.

The first few months of the new city governance structure will be challenging. My primary motivation for running is to help form a successful new government. It is essential that those elected work collectively and collaboratively to determine priorities and then work together to create effective policy in alignment with those priorities. I want to expand communications so that Portlanders are aware of what City Council is doing and have transparent access to provide input and feedback.

For the five remaining questions, we asked candidates to answer in 50 words or fewer:

Do you favor arresting and jailing people who camp on public property in Portland who refuse repeated offers of shelter, such as the option to sleep in a city-designated tiny home cluster?

I do not favor arresting and jailing people who camp on public property in Portland and refuse offers of shelter. I favor providing shelter options that are flexible and address the needs of various sub-populations.

Would you vote yes on a proposal to fund hundreds more police officers than the City Council has already authorized? Why or why not? How would the city pay for it?

Portland needs more police officers to handle our current call rate. Sheltering unhoused residents and providing deflection options may help reduce the need.

Do you support putting the Clean Energy Fund measure back on the ballot? What, if any changes, would you support?

PCEF has generated seven times the projected revenue. There is work to do to ensure environmental safety, like creating a risk mitigation plan for potential hazards at the Critical Energy Infrastructure hub. I support expanding financial allocation to include environmental work provided by other city bureaus.

Which would you prioritize: Creation of more protected bike lanes and priority bus lanes or improved surfacing of existing degraded driving lanes?

Road safety is important for everyone. Resurfacing existing degraded driving lanes is good for bicyclists and buses as well as drivers. I fully support more protected bike lanes and priority bus lanes in conjunction with improved surfacing of driving lanes.

Have the problems impacting downtown Portland received too much or too little attention from current city leaders? Why?

The problems impacting downtown Portland are a key aspect of making Portland a safer, more livable city, which will, in turn, lead to economic growth for the city.

News Source : https://www.opb.org/article/2024/09/30/portland-city-council-district-3-kelly-james/