BPS Plan News

For immediate release

Friday, Nov. 13, 2009

Contact:
Roy Kaufmann | 503-823-4799 | Roy.Kaufmann@ ci.portland.or.us
Julia Thompson | 503-823-0229 | Julia.Thompson@ci.portland.or.us

MEDIA ADVISORY

Portland Area Leaders to Host Kick-Off Event for Portland Plan Community Workshops

WHAT: Media event to kick off the first series of workshops for the Portland Plan, a strategic plan for the next 25 years to ensure that Portland is a thriving and sustainable city and our residents are prosperous, healthy and educated. The Portland Plan, a 25-year strategic plan, is part of a state-mandated comprehensive plan update. The direction it sets will touch every neighborhood, district and resident in the city as it grows. The plan will help to define priorities, guide how to invest public dollars and set the course for Portland for the next quarter of a century. 1980 was the last time the City developed a comprehensive plan; since then, 50 percent of Portlanders are new to the city.

WHEN: Monday, November 16, 2009
10:45 a.m.—media are invited to arrive
11 a.m.—event begins

WHERE: East Portland Community Center
740 SE 106th Ave, Portland
Near cross-street of SE 103rd Drive and Stark Street

WHO: Representatives from many organizations, including Mayor Sam Adams, Multnomah County Chair Ted Wheeler and School Superintendents Karen Gray and Barbara Rommel, will speak at Monday’s kick-off event at the EPCC. This partnership between the City of Portland and other public agencies will help ensure that Portland’s strategic plan is comprehensive, inclusive and successful.

WHY: Monday’s event marks the kick-off of the first round of community workshops that begin on November 17 and run through December 15, in seven locations throughout Portland’s neighborhoods. The Portland Plan partners are asking all Portlanders to weigh in on a number of issues ranging from education, community health, arts and transportation to local food, job growth and the environment. This effort builds on the visionPDX process, which captured input from over 17,000 Portlanders and led us to a set of values that helped establish goals for the City. Now the Portland Plan is creating the dialogue around how to reach those goals.

Because the City cannot address these issues alone, public partners working with the City of Portland include Metro, Multnomah County, Portland State University, Portland Public Schools, Parkrose School District, Centennial School District, David Douglas School District, Reynolds School District, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland Community College, TriMet, Portland Development Commission, Housing Authority of Portland, East Multnomah Soil & Water Conservation District and West Multnomah Soil & Water Conservation District, Multnomah County Drainage District and Worksystems Inc.

Find more information about the Portland Plan at www.pdxplan.com, follow us on Twitter, @PDXPlan or become a fan on Facebook, www.facebook.com/pdxplan.

###