Meet Michael Sands, candidate for Portland City Council District 1

Editor’s note: Election Day is Tuesday, Nov. 5. Stay informed with OPB on the presidential race, key congressional battles and other local contests and ballot measures in Oregon and Southwest Washington at opb.org/elections.

Name: Michael (Mike) Sands

Neighborhood: Hazelwood

Renter/homeowner: Renter

Education: University of Arizona, B.S.B.A. with honors, major in accounting; Stanford Law School, LL.B.

Occupation: Retired trial attorney, law professor and Superior Court Judge pro tem

How long you’ve lived in the city of Portland: Since 2012

Age: 87

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.

My two priorities are elevating the economic status of our poorest Portlanders, and changing our council election system to a single-winner, ranked-choice voting system. District 1 has the highest poverty rate in Portland. I believe poverty is one of the root causes of homelessness, food insecurity, drug abuse and gun violence. We need to give greater support to the poor and stop passing measures increasing the wealth of the richest Portlanders. I cannot specify what policies need changing until I can obtain more information as a council member. I also believe that our present multi-winner, ranked-choice voting system is undemocratic and very confusing. I will work to require that every elected city officer have the support of a majority of the voters.

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.

My previous service for eight years on the Sacramento City Council demonstrates why I will be an effective member of the Portland City Council. Individually, I designed a unique ballot measure that allowed the city to switch from citywide elections to districts, a system still in effect 50 years later. I also changed the system of making appointments to boards and commissions to open the process to women and people of color. As vice mayor, I eliminated unnecessary committees and streamlined our procedures. This proved so successful that I was reelected vice mayor for four consecutive terms, and then served as acting mayor for several months. We worked under a city manager form of government, and I believe that I can help Portland’s transition to a city manager government.

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?

There are a number of measures that can be considered to quickly increase the availability of housing units, but they would need to be vetted by the planning department for effectiveness and the attorney’s office for legality. I might first look at changing zoning requirements to see if they would encourage more housing starts. Another possibility is using tax credits or other financing procedures to encourage building.

Related: Issues important to Oregon voters

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?

I believe the first priority regarding funding is to increase the number of police and provide greater training. Portlanders need to feel secure in their homes, neighborhoods and in going downtown. Right now, we are woefully understaffed, and this is reflected in the public’s insecurity. For the record, I would not have voted to “defund the police” during the demonstrations and protests. The pandemic severely impacted almost all of our arts organizations, and many of them have not recovered well. “Art” is often not considered essential, but I believe it is part of the foundation that makes a city livable and contributes to our economic growth, so I would hope to find additional ways to support the arts.

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?

Regarding what tax measures to eliminate or create, I would need to establish a review of each tax to determine its purpose and how effective it has been in accomplishing that purpose, and if it has been effective, is it still needed. I see this as an area where we will need significant information and recommendations from the city manager and department heads. At this time, I do not have any positions on specific taxes.

Do you have any concerns with the changes coming to city elections and city governance? If so, what would you like to see change?

I do not have concerns about the change to a city manager form of government. Sacramento, which is roughly the same size as Portland, has operated with a city manager quite effectively, much more so than Portland has since I have been living here. I believe that districts work to effectively provide constituent services, which is one of the primary responsibilities of a council member, but only if there is a single member in each district. As it is now, responsibility for constituent services is diluted. I am concerned that constituent services may not be as effective as it would be in a single member district. And see my prior answer regarding the election process.

Related: Listen to 'OPB Politics Now'

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?

Camping on public land cannot interfere with rights of way or violate ADA, and must be moved to other public land. I’m in favor of jailing campers, because it solves nothing; they will be released from jail and need to find somewhere to sleep. Being poor isn’t a crime.

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 am in favor of funding more police officers, as I explained above. I suspect a specific levy for law enforcement would be acceptable to the public, but this needs to be investigated further.

Do you support putting the Clean Energy Fund measure back on the ballot? What, if any changes, would you support?

I am not sufficiently knowledgeable about the Clean Energy Fund to answer this question.

Which would you prioritize: Creation of more protected bike lanes and priority bus lanes or improved surfacing of existing degraded driving lanes?

I would prioritize fixing degraded driving lanes; poor lanes cause accidents, resulting in death and/or injuries to drivers and passengers, pedestrians and bicyclists.

Have the problems impacting downtown Portland received too much or too little attention from current city leaders? Why?

I believe that revitalizing downtown is essential to restoring the livability of the city, and, therefore, should receive a very high priority.