Progress Portland

Episode 23: Sameer Kanal, District 2 candidate

“Growing up here, I always had something to go to late. Coming back during the beginning of Covid, the biggest shock to me was how many of the places I used to go no longer exist or are replaced by businesses that closed at 7 or 8 instead of 10 or 11… I want to support the idea that staying open late is an economic benefit thing AND it’s a safety thing. And we can temporarily incentivize those businesses to try to stay open an extra hour.” - Sameer Kanal
Sameer Kanal, a relative newcomer to the City Council District 2 scrum, gets wonky with us in this episode (note for transparency purposes that Kip and Sameer work together on PCCEP). We talk about what he learned from his years working with the Model United Nations, how to shore up Portland Street Response, and improving data accessibility across city government.

Episode 22: Jennifer Park, District 2 candidate

“One of the things I’d really like to see the new City Council do is be more of a leader in the collaboration and the coordination of things, instead of saying, “Here’s a bucket of money that we want to do this, go and do it!”, actually being a leader in how this is going to be done, (…) following through on making sure that we are(…) getting those outcomes that we were intending to get when we set these policies into place.”
- Jennifer Park
We’re back with Tim and Kip, bringing you all the candidates worth voting for in the November 2024 City Council election. Today we have Jennifer Park, running in District 2 (North Portland). Jennifer has tons of on-the-ground experience working in housing policy and is currently Programs Director for The Shadow Project, working to make schools more attentive to kids with learning or attention challenges. Our chat with Jennifer goes deep on housing policy and city politics.

Episode 21: Jeremy Beausoleil Smith, District 4 candidate

"I would like to see a rent freeze for at least the next two years. That's a very controversial statement, unfortunately. That might get me some scrutiny from some groups, but we can't catch up right now."
- Jeremy Beausoleil Smith
At 27, Jeremy Beausoleil Smith is one of the youngest candidates running for City Council, and is the youngest running in District 4. Like his fellow Gen Zers, climate change is high on his priority list. Tim talks with Jeremy about his recent visit to the Critical Energy Infrastructure hub in NW Portland, a major contributor to local pollution and a major risk in an earthquake. Jeremy talks about discovering democratic socialism after his conservative upbringing, his struggle with mental health, and rights for renters.

Episode 20: Lisa Freeman, District 4 Candidate

You can’t really understand a problem until you start to interact with it…In complex environments, your analysis will never be complete until you start doing something It’s better to be 80% right at the right time than 100% right too late.”
- Lisa Freeman
Lisa Freeman has a very particular set of skills, and she's not afraid to use them (sorry, couldn't help myself). She's an expert at managing political transitions, a skill she has practiced in countries like Afghanistan and Nigeria. We go deep into her experience and how it applies to our own transition here at home. She's a fascinating candidate, don't miss this episode!

Episode 19: Allison Gilliland, Dublin City Councilor

Allison Gilliland joins Tim for a conversation over the internets from Ireland, where she is currently a City Councilor. Allison was a speaker at a recent event hosted by North Star Civic Foundation to talk about Ireland's switchover to ranked-choice voting and their long history of district representation (they have SIXTY-THREE City Councilors!) One correction, Gilliland misstates that we have 13 districts when the new system has 4 districts and 12 city councilors. 

Episode 18: Tim and Kip on the state of the election

Hey everyone, we're back without a guest this week to talk about what we're seeing so far this election, what traits we think make good candidates, and efforts underway to save Portland Street Response. Check out our website for more information, and tell your friends about the podcast! 

Episode 17: Reverend Nat West, District 2 candidate

"I've had a lot of conversations since I started thinking about running, and part of the joy of being a part-time bus driver is that I full up all my other time with meetings, and talking to people in the community...I think it's really all about the authenticity about what I learned over the years at Reverend Nat's: do things I want to do, make ciders I want to make, talk about business, talk about Portland in the way I want to do it." - Rev. Nat 
Rev. Nat West, fresh off of closing his cider business and becoming a TriMet bus driver, talks about his campaign for City Council. West has a long history in the city, and his website has an impressively detailed and nuanced look at how he thinks the city should move forward. Kip and Tim and Nat discuss the 2020 protests and the police response, how the city neglects small business, and why he's decided to throw his hat in the ring.

Ep 16: Shannon Singleton, County District 2 candidate

"When we end somebody's homelessness, we don't end their poverty. So we really need to continue to look at ways to keep people inside once they are there, and increase their economic income whether they are on a permanent subsidy like Social Security or disability income. How do we insure that they are in a subsidized place so that they can stay for the long term?"  - Shannon Singleton
Did you know there's a Multnomah County election coming up in May? You might know that D.A. Mike Schmidt is up for re-election, but the entire slate of County Commissioner slots are also up for grabs. Shannon Singleton has an incredible background as a social worker, leader of Oregon’s Racial Justice Council, Executive Director of the SAFE Shelter, and much, much more experience that would make her a stellar representative of progressive values in the County. Listen in, we get into the weeds. 

Ep 15: Candace Avalos, District 1 Candidate

"The way [City Council] is structured, it allows them to disregard the community's voice. And so I'm hoping that now, with this new form of government, not only will you have your representative in your backyard, you'll have a much closer connection to them. But also they're going to be more policy-driven, and so that's where the community's voice is most important." - Candace Avalos
Candace Avalos has a long history of engagement in Portland politics as a community advocate and grassroots organizer. She's a self-described "Blacktina", the daughter of Black Americans from southern Virginia and Guatemalan immigrants who immigrated in the 1970s. She's currently Executive Director at Verde, a nonprofit dedicated to building environmental wealth through social enterprise. Kip and Tim talk to her about her work at Verde, her experience working for police accountability, her mission to visit every one of Portland's 200+ parks, and so much more. 

Episode 14: District Attorney Mike Schmidt

"This old idea of, 'We'll just double the penalty, triple the penalty - one time you're out." Nobody knows what the penalties are, much less the people who we're prosecuting for a lot of these crimes. They're not tracking the decisions being made in the Legislative session. So we fool ourselves into thinking, "oh, I'm going to say these tough on crime things, they'll read the papers and sit down and do a cost benefit analysis and say, "Crime no longer pays, I'm going to get out of this industry." That's nonsense."
- Mike Schmidt
We are so excited to bring you this interview with Portland's own progressive district attorney Mike Schmidt. Mike is not alone in his data-driven policies that result in real change that is about reform instead of revenge - he's one of a handful of D.A.s like George Gascon in Los Angeles and Jason Williams in New Orleans. And now he's up for reelection in May 2024, and he's facing a loud and angry opposition that doesn't understand his approach. In our interview, we discuss the awful billboards around town, the obvious but effective solution for catalytic converter theft, and Mike's rough few years as our new D.A.