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Name: Sameer Kanal
Neighborhood: Portsmouth
Renter/homeowner: Renter
Education: A.A., Clark College, concentrating on international relations and economics; B.A., University of Washington, political science and economics; M.S., New York University, global affairs (concentrating on human rights and international law)
Occupation: Inclusive policy manager, public safety service area, City of Portland
How long you’ve lived in the city of Portland: I was born in the old Bess Kaiser Hospital that’s now part of Adidas’ headquarters on Greeley in the Overlook neighborhood. My family moved around so I grew up in and around Portland. I’ve lived in Portland consistently for the past three years after returning home from time spent in Seattle, Dallas and New York.
Age: 38
Pronouns: He/him/his
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.
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.
I would prioritize the city taking responsibility for sidewalk construction and maintenance and pursuing real police accountability. Sidewalks affect the safety and cost of walking, biking, rolling, driving and taking transit. We have over 50 miles of road without sidewalks in District 2 alone, and the city using economies of scale will be the most rapid, efficient and effective way to get this done.
I would also pursue a police oversight system that is independent, effective and fair - like the one 82% of voters voted for, and the Police Accountability Commission developed with the input of 1,500+ Portlanders and approved unanimously.
I’m an open communicator with clear and firm values, and I’m also open-minded about methods to reach our goals. I will build coalitions to achieve policy goals with patience and grit, through co-creation of policy with community, and building relationships and coalitions, as I have already with many candidates.
Related: What you need to know about voting in Oregon and Southwest Washington
What previous accomplishments show that you are the best pick in your district? Please be specific.
I was the project manager for the Police Accountability Commission, a group of volunteers with diverse perspectives and experiences, with a short timeline and a high-profile task. I helped set up systems for the group, and supported over 1,500 people giving input into this process. I am extremely proud that the commission finished its work on time and on budget. I am proudest that the commission approved its recommendations unanimously.
I have led programs that trained over 12,000 young adults in leadership, research, writing and public speaking. I have supported international treaty negotiations at the United Nations. I have also survived in New York City on less than $1,000 a month, been the fifth roommate in a four-bedroom apartment and had to choose which bills could wait to be paid.
My experiences, and the values I share with Portlanders, make me uniquely qualified to represent my district and hometown.
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?
We need to build new housing - market-rate, affordable, subsidized, and social housing. We need direct assistance programs to convert offices and motels into housing, acquiring land as the city for eventual multi-use development (e.g. the Washington Center or Gordon’s Fireplace Shop), and permitting support to reduce wait times and complexity and reduce barriers to new private investment in multi-family housing. We must also commit to building the I-5 lid (without doubling the freeway’s width), which will create new multi-use buildings with many new housing units in Lower Albina.
Most of this is long-term, but pursuing it rapidly will convey our vision and give hope for the future. In the short-term, we need to incentivize long-term renting over short-term rentals and create a long-term vacant property tax, as Minneapolis just did, to ensure units remain in the rental market and are not held out for years at a time.
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’s essential services include true community safety (violence prevention, crime prevention through environmental design, activating spaces and enabling successful responses when unsafe situations do occur through funding and staffing services like 911 and Fire); infrastructure and maintenance (keeping streets, streetlights, public restrooms and water infrastructure operational); emergency preparedness in advance of earthquakes and extreme weather events; processing of permits and applications to ensure investment yields quick results for housing and economic development; fulfilling obligations to our employees and retirees; and free and fair elections, among other things.
We need to look at our long-term funding sources, not necessarily in terms of new taxes but better taxation structures, like replacing gas taxes with more sustainable road-use taxes. We also must ensure the wealthiest in our city pay their fair share, and that polluters like oil and gas companies cover the cost of their impacts on our climate, health and budget.
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?
The will of the voters is sacred. When voters adopt a ballot measure, that needs to be implemented, not undermined, by elected leaders, whether it’s Charter Reform, police accountability, Portland Clean Energy Fund, or Preschool for All, at the county level.
I generally want to keep our taxation system the same in the short-term and ensure that money collected for a purpose is not spent to bolster the general fund. In the future, I would look to ensure our general fund is sustainable, including by ensuring the wealthiest in our city pay their fair share, and that polluters like oil and gas companies cover the cost of the risk they create to our health and well-being and the emergency preparedness the city must do because of them.
Do you have any concerns with the changes coming to city elections and city governance? If so, what would you like to see change?
The will of the voters is sacred. When voters adopt a ballot measure, that needs to be implemented, not undermined, by elected leaders, whether it’s Charter Reform, police accountability, Portland Clean Energy Fund, or Preschool for All, at the county level.
The charter reforms should be implemented before we propose changes. We must protect the voters’ choice in determining our form of governance and electoral system.
I am running to put power back into the hands of the people and build a city that listens, because a city that listens is safer and more prosperous for all of us. I am excited we are moving to a more democratic and representative form of government, where Portlanders will elect people from all parts of the city that they trust to see us through the reforms to a brighter future.
Related: Issues important to Oregon voters
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?
We know most homeless people will accept real options. The most effective and efficient approach: We must ensure a range of shelter options, conduct compassionate outreach, and build a dashboard with real-time information on shelter rules and availability. I oppose the criminalization of poverty and the brutalization of homeless people.
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?
I support filling existing vacancies, focusing on more investigators to raise the clearance rate and solve crimes. We must also move behavioral health calls to reduce police workload, and transfer them to more appropriate responders such as Portland Street Response, which I support making 24/7, citywide and 911-dispatched.
Do you support putting the Clean Energy Fund measure back on the ballot? What, if any changes, would you support?
No. Climate change is an existential threat we must face with the focus and urgency that it deserves. PCEF is a vital and successful revenue stream that must be protected, which includes using PCEF only as the voters authorized, on climate-related projects.
Related: Listen to 'OPB Politics Now'
Which would you prioritize: Creation of more protected bike lanes and priority bus lanes or improved surfacing of existing degraded driving lanes?
We can and must do both. I am a sworn enemy of potholes, and I will prioritize those not only in driving lanes but across the entire width of the right of way. Neither is very expensive if done efficiently, compared to other parts of the city budget.
Have the problems impacting downtown Portland received too much or too little attention from current city leaders? Why?
Downtown’s problems predate current city leadership. We must give downtown the right attention: mixed-use development so downtown has housing, places to go out at night and arts -- affordable for all. We must also support safety through expanding Portland Street Response to 24/7 service and addressing our homelessness problem as noted above.
