“Portal” has become part of the City Hall lingo, along with “capital” and “programming,” for how the final shares of the $52 million ARPA federal block grant will be doled out.
When the City Council called for citizen participation during 2022, the place to submit funding proposals was named the portal. And so, two summers later, viewers on July 8 may have felt like they had been misdirected to a municipal session in Portland.
A sum in the range of $5 million remains. Fund-seekers may be described in three ways:
- Those who “went through the portal,” already received dollars and then asked for more.
- Those omitted in 2022 but still seeking funds.
- Those who came along after the portal closed.
Michael Flores, Monique Lamar Silvia and Michael Balls support $740,000 for a project to combat mass incarceration, Come Out Stay Out, under Bishop Timothy “T.J.” Holden Jail Ministries, that is new to the discussion. Balls took part in the advocacy even though he said he will not vote because he is an employee, creating a conflict of interest.
Others, led by Mayor Brenda Moore and Pro-Tem Annie Boensch — supported July 8 by Reggie Williams II and George Copeland — are more protective of the portal. This means Bill Ostash and Priscilla Garcia may stand in the middle when the council next meets on July 22.
“Programming” also is a sticking point with Moore and Boensch because they perceive that annual operations are more expensive for federal audit oversight than one-time building projects that could incur more monitoring costs than the $850,000 already paid to the Guidehouse consultants.
Bricks-and-mortar already are ARPA top priority, starting with the City Hall overhaul and the home repair grants for heaters, roofs and windows. Women of Colors and the Mexican American Council have received added monies for buildings, and First Ward Community Center is making a pitch. The latest add-on is $100,000 for the Emmaus House, a women’s jail transition shelter in the former Holy Rosary Catholic rectory.
None of the members expressed opposition to Come Out Say Out. In fact, Williams strongly aired the view that Flores sometimes showboats on issues to show up fellow members, speaking of efforts “to pull on heart strings” without being “accountable” for details.
Flores also had his proposal for Come Out Stay Out delayed by tabling the past two sessions, both with Williams absent. He continually has recited the names of 2024 homicide victims at recent meetings, and says he simply is looking for some sort of plan to counteract violence in all age groups.
Silvia said the project would lead to “collaboration” among various programs that address justice and incarceration. Boensch countered by noting that in the category 13 proposals from the portal were not funded at all, and many applicants never were contacted.
Williams closed by doubling down with a challenge: Would all of the 13 portal applicants agree to collaborate with Come Out Stay Out as fiduciary of the funds?
About $1 million remains from the original $52 million, while another $4 million is interest on unspent monies like with the Medical Diamond, along with accounts that naturally have moved more slowly, like work at City Hall, Hoyt Park, Ojibway Island and the cemeteries, or for that matter, home repair projects.
The council in January 2003 wrapped up about 90 percent of the package. Since then, the remaining unresolved 10 percent of the aid money has gained 90 percent of the council’s attention.
To view the discussion, click here.
