Tuesday, March 1
1:30 p.m. — Mandatory supplier meeting for Portland Police Bureau’s RFP for body-worn cameras
The City of Portland is holding a mandatory meeting for vendors planning to submit bids to provide the Portland Police Bureau with body-worn cameras. Those who wish to attend must contact James Moering in the City’s Procurement Services office by email (james.moering@portlandoregon.gov) or phone (503.823.7886). The full request for proposals is available to download from the City’s procurement site. While the City of Portland has considered requiring police officers wear cameras since 2014 as part of meeting requirements the U.S. Department of Justice’s consent decree, the city council voted to move forward with the proposal process without implementing policies for their use (despite numerous requests by Portland residents).
6:00 p.m. — Portland Public Schools board meeting
Portland Public Schools’ school board will hold a regularly scheduled meeting. An agenda for the meeting is online and includes the second reading of PPS’ new climate response policy. Danny Cage, a student representative of PPS’ Education Policy Committee, wrote up the importance of the new policy for Bike Portland. The meeting will be in person but it will also be streamed on YouTube. Those who wish to testify at the meeting will need to sign up in advance.
Wednesday, March 2
9:30 a.m. — City of Portland council meeting
Portland’s city council meetings are broadcast live on YouTube. The agenda for this meeting is online and includes a discussion on a settlement between the City of Portland and a protester who was injured by a police concussion grenade in June 2020. Attendees who wish to testify must register before 4:00 p.m. today (Tuesday) and use Zoom for the meeting.
Thursday, March 3
6:00 p.m. — So Much Together: We Can Create a Paradise
Oregon Humanities is hosting a workshop where attendees will learn about Indigenous-led climate resilience projects, as well as explore personal connections to the land, other species, and parts of our local ecology. Stefanie Krantz, the climate change coordinator for the Nez Perce tribe, and Andrea (AJ) Whiteplume, a climate change specialist with the Nez Perce Tribes Climate Change Team, will lead the workshop. While the Nez Perce Reservation is located in Idaho, the Nimiipuu people (who are also known as the Nez Perce), have ancestral ties to lands now considered part of Oregon, Washington, Idaho, and Montana. The event will be held on Zoom and attendees must register in advance to attend.
6:30 p.m. — City of Portland Police Accountability Commission Meeting
The Police Accountability Commission, which is responsible for developing a new oversight system for the Portland Police Bureau, will discuss the scope of the commission’s work as well as a draft document covering values and principles. An agenda for the meeting is online. The meeting will be held on Zoom. The committee will also have a work session on bylaws for the commission on Saturday, March 5, at 1:00 p.m.
Friday, March 4
Closing — Portland Public Schools survey on climate and culture
PPS’s annual Successful Schools Survey is accepting responses through Friday. Families with students attending PPS schools are asked to answer questions about barriers to engagement, and school safety. The survey is available in English, Spanish, Russian, Somali, Vietnamese, and Chinese. While the survey can be completed online, paper copies are available at each school upon request. Most respondents need between 15 and 30 minutes to complete the survey.
Saturday, March 5
Closing — APEX: Sharita Towne & A Black Art Ecology of Portland
The Portland Art Museum’s exhibit of Sharita Towne‘s installations covering historical and contemporary Black art and community in Portland will close for two weeks starting March 6. During that time, Towne will install new artworks, so Saturday is the last chance to see the current installations. The exhibition runs until July.
1:00 p.m. — March for housing
A coalition of Portland community groups, including the People’s Housing Project, are holding a march in downtown Portland to advocate for housing for all. Mutual aid supplies, as well as meals, will be available at Terry Shrunck Plaza as part of the event.
Sunday, March 6
Closing — Applications for FEMA’s Youth Preparedness Council
The Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Youth Preparedness Council advises the agency on youth issues and lead preparedness initiatives in their own communities. Students attending grades 8 through 11 are eligible to apply. A parent or guardian must complete a consent form as part of the application.
Tuesday, March 8
5:00 p.m. — Deadline to file as a candidate for the May primary
Candidates interested in running for local, state, or federal office in the upcoming primary must file by the deadline with either the Oregon Secretary of State or their local county board of elections.
6:00 p.m. — Community discussion on Oregon high school graduation requirements
The Oregon Department of Education has partnered with Oregon’s Kitchen Table to conduct community conversations on Oregon’s high school graduation requirements. The regional conversation for Multnomah County is on Tuesday. It will be conducted on Zoom and attendees must register in advance. A similar conversation will be held for Washington, Columbia, Clatsop, and Tillamook Counties on Wednesday. It will also be conducted on Zoom and attendees must register in advance. Discussions for other counties are also scheduled. In addition, Oregon’s Kitchen Table is conducting a statewide survey online, which is available in seven languages, including Spanish and Vietnamese.
Looking ahead
March 10 — City Charter Review Commission meeting with unlimited public comment
Portland’s City Charter Review Commission will hold a meeting devoted to public testimony. The meeting will be held on Zoom. Because sign-ups to testify to the City Charter Review Commission typically fill up quickly, make sure to register to speak as soon as possible. Members of the public will be able to speak for three minutes.
