Commissioner Steve Novick (Candidate for Portland Commissioner, Position 4) responded April 14, 2016:

(1) In what specific ways have you supported arts and culture in Portland?  

Personally, I’ve always been a big music fan (Commissioner Fish likes to point out how often I use musical quotes in Council comments) and an occasional local theatergoer. I really enjoy attending local music events when possible.  My wife Rachel’s family has introduced me to the wider performing arts community (her brother is a professional ballet dancer who got his start here in Portland), and the local theater (her other brother is a nationally recognized playwright whose plays have been performed or workshopped at small local theaters).

I also take advantage of the opportunity to support local artists by buying jewelry for Rachel at the Anne Bocci Boutique and Gallery in Multnomah Village.

(2) Artists and arts organizations add measurable value to our region’s economy, our education system and our quality of life, and yet there are a number of pressing needs in our community that often compete for attention and investment.  What is Portland’s proper role in supporting arts and culture in the region?

Ideally, the city would provide a greater level of financial support to the arts than it does now. But other services – from housing to parks and transportation maintenance – are also underfunded.

It’s become increasingly apparent just how important artists, arts organizations, and the creative community as a whole are to Portland. Beyond the many cultural benefits, the arts industry has become something of a traded sector in our region. Larger productions from Hollywood and beyond have recognized Portland as a great place for productions.  This bodes well for our “arts future”,  but we can’t forget the smaller theaters, artists, and art galleries, and we need to figure out how all we can keep them from being priced out of our city.

The City should be a promoter of our artistic community and a supporter of art programs. But we also should be an advocate for equity issues that help support art and artists, enabling them to stay in our region. We need to create more opportunities for investment in arts organizations that connect with underrepresented areas of our communities, including people experiencing homelessness and at-risk youth. Overall I believe City Council and the arts community must communicate more directly to determine projects that we can support to help increase equity and inclusion. As I have told arts advocates, in the future I want to have a ready list of high priority one-time investments in the arts (since we usually have more “one time” money than ongoing money) so that each year we can weigh them against other proposed one-time investments.

(3) The region’s affordability is a serious concern for all of us, including artists and arts-related businesses. What are your plans for making housing and creative spaces more affordable?

There is little debate that we need to address the problem of housing affordability for middle-income and low-income people, but I would say not enough attention is being paid to how it impacts our creative community and small businesses.  I’m glad the state legislature lifted the ban on inclusionary zoning (although I wish they went a bit further), but I also think we need to deal with the supply and demand aspect of the problem. We need to build more housing, and also build more types of housing.  Portland’s iconic bungalow and Craftsman neighborhoods are the reason why lots of people decide to move to Portland. However, these houses are also very expensive and will become more so as our population grows.

I think the concept of affordability should also include zoning changes so we can build diverse kinds of housing within neighborhoods. Townhouses, duplexes, triplexes, fourplexes, and live-work spaces could offer great homes for people who can’t afford a single family house in Portland but aren’t interested in living in an apartment. Lots of close-in Portland neighborhoods already have lots of this “middle housing,” but much of it was built decades ago before the current zoning code was adopted.  Allowing more mixed use buildings could both address the need for housing, while providing opportunities for creative space and small businesses, which we know help build and define a community. I’m looking at ways to allow more of these kinds of projects, which will help keep our neighborhood housing diverse and affordable. As our city grows, it does so thoughtfully and equitably.

City Council needs to make sure we are staying in contact with arts organizations and businesses to better understand the issues they face, and work together to develop real, workable solutions.

(4) Are there other unmet needs when it comes to shaping Portland’s arts and culture policy for the future? If so, what steps would you take to help ensure those needs are met, and how should they be funded?

There are many unmet needs, from housing and commercial real estate affordability to working out a better collection mechanism for the arts tax, and also working to find more support for arts and culture through regional partners and federal programs. There’s a lot to do.

We must ensure that as the price of real estate throughout Portland increases, artists that haven’t made lots of money are still able to live here, and we also need to help smaller venues that house lots of arts to continue operating even if they aren’t owned by people with lots of money to keep them going. We alleviate some of the pressure through zoning changes, connecting arts organizations with available regional grants or low interest loans, and other ways to help support this community and enable it to thrive in our city.

The City has an opportunity to connect arts organizations and small arts businesses with resources they may not realize are available. One example is the Oregon Facilities Authority, who helps charities of all sizes secure low-cost financing to remodel, expand, construct, or purchase new facilities, through the use of tax-exempt conduit revenue bonds. This could be used to help nonprofit arts organizations purchase their properties, giving them security and helping them remain even as commercial real estate prices continue to rise.

(5) The Arts Education & Access Fund, or arts tax, has delivered on its promise of providing arts specialists for all K-5 schools in Portland, but the fund hasn’t generated enough revenue to support as many grants for arts and culture organizations as envisioned. If elected, would you take any steps to modify the arts tax, improve administration of it, and/or fulfill the voters’ vision of supporting arts education and access through other means?

First and foremost we must recognize the great benefit the Arts Tax has given to our schools, helping to fund important programs that are all too often first on the chopping block.

We also must acknowledge, as you have, that unfortunately the Arts Tax has not done as much for the creative community overall as we had expected. To some extent that is based on factors the city should have been aware of – such as state law requiring that PERS and Social Security be exempt. Some of it has to do with the number of people who just aren’t paying; compliance has improved as we go along, and as we move into territory where the threshold for sending multi-year tax avoiders’ bills to collections goes from $35 to over $100, collection action will make more sense.

Any brand-new taxing mechanism is likely to have high administrative costs. Ultimately, despite the complexities of our property tax system, I think it would have made more sense to have a small property tax. I would be open to considering a switch to that, which would – albeit to a limited degree – also make the tax less regressive.

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Sarah Iannarone (Candidate for Mayor) responded on April 7, 2016:

(1) In what specific ways have you supported arts and culture in Portland?   

Personally, I attend arts and culture functions throughout Portland almost weekly, from performances at the Schnitzer and Gerding theaters to independent theater, gallery shows, and live music performances throughout the city. Artists, makers, and creatives are my colleagues, friends, and community.

At my small business, the Arleta Library Café, we have an in-house curator, muralist Chris Haberman, who ensures a rotating array of local artists have a free venue from which to display and sell their art.

At the community level, I worked with my neighbors on the Arleta Triangle Project to secure a RACC grant to build an artistic public plaza as a traffic calming and community beautification asset. I also serve on the board of the Halprin Landscape Conservancy, raising funds through an innovative public-private partnership to protect and promote the world-renown fountains in downtown Portland designed by Lawrence Halprin.

Globally, I share Portland’s arts & culture policies and best practices with visitors from around the world, including TriMet’s innovative 1.5% set aside in capital budgets for public arts and community initiatives such as the Falcon Arts Community and the City Repair Project.

(2) Artists and arts organizations add measurable value to our region’s economy, our education system and our quality of life, and yet there are a number of pressing needs in our community that often compete for attention and investment.  What is the Mayor’s proper role in supporting arts and culture in the region?

Foremost, the mayor of Portland must truly value the role of Portland’s thriving arts scene–economically and culturally, both locally and abroad. What does it mean to be a “creative city”? The arts are not a discrete entity separate from our local culture and economy; they are central to it. Our artists and creatives are the face of our city to the world. Many artists are self-employed business owners. Artists are contribute to businesses small and large, comprise non-profit organizations, and contribute to the livability and vitality of our place. As mayor, I will ensure that we support the initiatives to augment artists’ security and prosperity, through investments in entrepreneurship, network building, and connections for paid work in the private sector. I will also promote affordable housing and workspace for independent artists, makers, and creatives.

(3) The region’s affordability is a serious concern for all of us, including artists and arts-related businesses. What are your plans for making housing and creative spaces more affordable?

Foremost, we need to evaluate how much supply of housing we need at every level of the income spectrum in coming years and develop a plan for funding an adequate supply at each level of the spectrum—public housing (0-30MFI), subsidized “affordable housing” (30-80MFI), and the “missing middle” (80-120MFI). Above that, we should be looking at projected development of luxury housing (120+MFI) and establishing mechanisms for capturing value from these to pay for investments at the lower end of the spectrum. Additionally, we need mechanisms for mitigating the rampant speculation and unhealthy demolition that is destroying valuable housing supply and driving up costs, such as loosening zoning restrictions and assessing carbon impact fees, scaled impact fees, demolition fees, and transfer taxes. Finally, many artists rent both housing and commercial space, so we need to instate aggressive tenant protections ASAP.

(4) Are there other unmet needs when it comes to shaping Portland’s arts and culture policy for the future? If so, what steps would you take to help ensure those needs are met, and how should they be funded?

First, we must move away from strictly “bricks and mortar” subsidies in arts facilities if we want to nurture artistic occupations. This means helping secure financing for collaborative maker spaces and live-work spaces. It also means investing in the profitability of artists through entrepreneurship and financial training. Second, we need to actively build bridges between traditional private sector enterprises and artists, creating channels for artists to gain meaningful employment based on or in support of their art. Finally, I would shift our funding priorities away from larger performing arts facilities and organizations (encouraging them to seek philanthropic dollars) toward smaller, more diverse cultural organizations that have a harder time competing for limited grant money. I also think a dedicated revenue stream generated from tourism could be directed to support arts and culture.

 (5) The Arts Education & Access Fund, or arts tax, has delivered on its promise of providing arts specialists for all K-5 schools in Portland, but the fund hasn’t generated enough revenue to support as many grants for arts and culture organizations as envisioned. If elected, would you take any steps to modify the arts tax, improve administration of it, and/or fulfill the voters’ vision of supporting arts education and access through other means?

I think we are on target with regard to priorities—education was what voters expressed favor in supporting with their “Yes” vote. That said, we have created a self-reporting mechanism that can be, like TriMet light rail fares and other “honor systems,” more costly to enforce than not. Surely, there must be a way for us to collect the tax more efficiently and effectively? Please note, while I support the Arts tax, I am NOT a fan of its HIGHLY REGRESSIVE nature. It appalls me that someone making several hundred thousand dollars in income annually pays the same as someone making $1000 per year. It’s unjust and, for people on a fixed income, slightly traumatic. I will advocate that we seek ways to make the tax more progressive, not simply less regressive and certainly easier to collect.

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Chloe Eudaly (Candidate for Portland Commissioner, Position 4) responded April 7, 2016:

(1) In what specific ways have you supported arts and culture in Portland?  

For the past 21 years I’ve owned and operated Reading Frenzy, a mission-driven bookshop devoted to independent media with a special focus on self-published work including zines, comics, and artists’ books and offering an open door policy for local publishers. We’ve hosted around 500 free literary and art events, including monthly art shows for most of the past two decades. In our new location we have a small, dedicated exhibit space — Minikin Gallery — where the majority of our shows are by women and minority artists. I’m a co-founder, former board member, and current advisory board member of the Independent Publishing Resource Center (IPRC). I’ve also given numerous talks and workshops around Portland, including several Portland Public Schools, the Portland Zine Symposium, and the Multnomah County Library.

My past volunteer experience in Portland’s arts and culture community includes curating unrepresented artists for the Cascade Aids Project annual art auction, serving as marketing chair for the Multnomah County Cultural Coalition, reviewing performances for PICA’s TBA press corps, and writing for a variety of local publications.

More recently I served as the Vice President of the Historic Mississippi Business Association and on the Mississippi Street Fair Committee, where I proposed and oversaw vetting vendors with a majority focus on diverse local businesses, artists, and makers in order to better reflect our business district, neighborhood, and city.

I’ve also had the chance to work with some of Portland’s major arts institutions such as the Portland Art Museum, where I conducted a live interview with comic artist Joe Sacco in conjuction with the Robert Crumb exhibit, and MOCC/PNCA where I recently curated a contemporary zine collection for the Alien She exhibit.

Portland’s arts and culture is also a vital part of my personal life. I strive to support local creative businesses, arts organizations, and artists. I can frequently be found out and about enjoying Portland’s cultural offerings whether it’s music, film, theater, visual art, readings, or lectures.

(2) Artists and arts organizations add measurable value to our region’s economy, our education system and our quality of life, and yet there are a number of pressing needs in our community that often compete for attention and investment.  What is Portland’s proper role in supporting arts and culture in the region?

Arts and culture is essential to our city. I support arts education and arts funding, but I think the more important question is why when Oregon’s economy is thriving do we still have so many pressing and competing needs? The short answer is that we are not requiring big business and top income earners to pay their fair share in taxes, we have stagnant wages, and at least a quarter of our residents have become cost-burdened and impoverished by unchecked rent increases. If we deal with some of these fundamental issues — increasing tax revenues, raising wages, and providing affordable housing — we will not only free up public dollars for funding the arts, but we will have healthier and more stable communities who can develop their own cultural plans, and residents will have discretionary income to spend on enjoying and supporting our arts community.

As a city we have a responsibility to provide arts access and opportunity to our whole community, to consider and include arts and culture needs in our longterm planning, to strive to increase public funding when it’s available, encourage private sector giving, support existing creative spaces and organizations, and of course, artists.

(3) The region’s affordability is a serious concern for all of us, including artists and arts-related businesses. What are your plans for making housing and creative spaces more affordable?

Nearly ten years ago when the initial conversations about the Arts Tax began, I publicly expressed my concerns with various people involved in the effort about rising rents for artists’ studios and commercial spaces. I suggested the city consider creating commercial land trusts in order to preserve affordable spaces. As we know, the city has largely failed to create long term affordable space for artists to work and live, let alone mitigate their displacement. This continues to be the case in the Inner SE Industrial Sanctuary, where upcoming zoning changes are going to bring huge rent increases and massive displacement to existing artists, organizations, and businesses. The IPRC (currently located at SE 10th & Division) is actively looking for a new space due to a 300% rent increase when their lease expires early next year.

We are in the midst of a housing crisis that is impacting at least a quarter of our residents. We need rent control to stem the tide of displacement, impoverishment, and homelessness being caused by unchecked rent increases. We need to end no cause evictions. And we need significant and sustained investment in affordable housing for our extremely low income residents. By addressing our 24,000 affordable unit shortfall we can move people out of their currently unaffordable housing and open up space for moderate earners. I’d also like the city to lift zoning restrictions that prevent property owners from turning single family residences into multi-family units, and allow tiny houses on wheels (currently illegal). These are small but meaningful measures that would increase density and could create more affordable dwellings, while helping to preserve some of our old homes and neighborhood character.

As far as commercial spaces, we have a few options — commercial land trusts could create permanent affordable studio/exhibit/performance spaces. There’s a development on SE Belmont called Zoomtopia which clusters office, studios, and light industrial spaces in one building with shared common areas and provided a buy in option for artists and nonprofits for long term stability (it has sold recently and the buy-in option may have been eliminated). I would like to see a complete inventory of buildings and lots owned by the city and county, consider the needs of the neighborhoods they’re in, and devote some of them to developing affordable work/live/creative commercial spaces.

(4) Are there other unmet needs when it comes to shaping Portland’s arts and culture policy for the future? If so, what steps would you take to help ensure those needs are met, and how should they be funded?

The most pivotal cultural experiences I had in my youth did not take place in or thanks to major arts institutions, they happened in Portland’s record shops, bookstores, galleries, cafes, and performance venues, often in improvised spaces, where free speech, creative expression, and community came before profit. The frequently unsung heroes behind these spaces are creative and visionary small business owners who have hugely contributed to our cultural landscape. These “third places” have been heavily impacted by the march of gentrification and displacement, and deserve our support, whether that’s through offering technical assistance, professional development, and project grants, taking steps to mitigate displacement and devastating rent increases, or providing long term affordable commercial space.

(5) The Arts Education & Access Fund, or arts tax, has delivered on its promise of providing arts specialists for all K-5 schools in Portland, but the fund hasn’t generated enough revenue to support as many grants for arts and culture organizations as envisioned. If elected, would you take any steps to modify the arts tax, improve administration of it, and/or fulfill the voters’ vision of supporting arts education and access through other means?

If I could wave a magic wand over The Arts Education & Access Fund I would at least double the income exemption, make the tax graduated based on income, and expand the arts education programming to include middle and high school students. However, any major changes to the tax would require that we take it back to the voters, and because arts education is absolutely essential I wouldn’t want to risk losing this funding until or unless we have a backup plan.

The city could do a better job letting residents know when and where to pay the Arts Tax — many people do not realize it’s a separate tax they need to pay — so I’d put some effort into educating the public. I do not support collections action — the city would see very little return on such a small amount due — and frankly the suggestion makes the arts community sound out of touch or indifferent to the very real and widespread housing crisis we’re in the midst of. With a quarter of our residents living in cost-burdened households it’s a wonder that we’ve seen the level of compliance we do have.

But let’s think bigger — the arts tax was a creative stop gap measure to make up for lack of funding due in part to the “tax revolt” of the 90s and the fact that we are not making big business or high income earners pay their fair share of taxes in Oregon. Oregon was declared to have the healthiest economy in the country by a recent Bloomberg Study, yet we are 41st in education and Portland has to pass the hat, so to speak, to fund arts programming in our schools. I support A Better Oregon — an initiative to raise the minimum corporate tax (currently $150) on companies doing 25M+ in sales in Oregon. The money raised will go to early education, K-12 education, healthcare, and senior services.

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