2014 National Convening Skills Presenations Portland Plan | Page 10

THE PORTLAND PLAN

What did we discover?

Advancing equity must be at the core of our
plans for the future. Portland is becoming a
more racially, ethnically and age diverse city with
more newcomers. At the same time, Portland’s
diverse communities have not had, and many still
do not all have, equitable access to opportunities
to advance their well-being and achieve their full
potential. Greater equity in the city as a whole is
essential to our long-term success. Equity is both
a means to a healthy, resilient community and an
end from which we all benefit.
One size does not fit all. Portland’s districts have
distinct issues based on 1) unique topographies, 2)
natural features and 3) when and how each area
developed and became a part of the city. Some
areas have been part of the city for 160 years and
others for just 30 years. The Portland Plan presents
actions, policies and implementation measures
that respect the unique cultures, histories and
natural environment Portlanders share.
High-quality basic services are fundamental
to success. We cannot make Portland prosperous,
educated, healthy and equitable without providing
reliable and quality basic services like public
safety, clean water and sewer services. This means
actively managing our assets, having clear service
standards and being prepared to make strategic
investments.
Resilience is important in a changing
world. We face major uncertainties, including an
unpredictable economy, competition for scarce
resources and the impacts of climate change. And,
like other Pacific Rim cities, Portland is at risk of a
major earthquake. While these issues will affect all
Portlanders, some people and communities are
even more vulnerable. Environmental health and
natural resource quality may also degrade during
economic downturns and natural emergencies.
In order to recover from these potential major
setbacks, Portland must become more resilient in
a variety of ways and at a variety of levels. We need
well-designed, flexible and strong infrastructure
(physical, social, ecological and economic) to adapt
to an uncertain future.

4

Above all, better partnerships will drive
change. The Portland Plan breaks down
traditional bureaucratic silos. Collectively, the
public agencies that operate within Portland
spend nearly $8 billion annually on activities
related to prosperity, education, health and equity.
To get more from existing budgets, the Portland
Plan emphasizes actions th at align efforts and
investments, have multiple benefits and improve
efficiency.
But partnerships need to go beyond just aligning
budget priorities. Portland residents and businesses
must build the civic infrastructure that taps into
the creative power of our innovative private and
nonprofit sectors, communities and government
agencies.
This isn’t a new idea. Throughout the development
of the Portland Plan, partners have been building a
strong civic infrastructure and working together to
make Portland more prosperous, educated, healthy
and equitable. There are many great examples of
groups that are already implementing parts of the
Portland Plan.

Note: Forty-four percent of the estimated $7.9 billion
annual public agency spending related to Portland
Plan goals is in ongoing federal or state programs
and not able to be realigned. This includes Social
Security, Medicare, Medicaid, unemployment insurance
payments, TANF, food stamps, Small Business
Administration activities, workforce investment funding
and Head Start. Also, the estimate does not include
capital expenses. The estimate uses most recently
available data on federal and state spending from the
U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. This data is primarily
based on FY2011 budget information. However, a
few agencies could not provide this information, and
provided FY2010 or FY2012 data.

April 2012 | www.pdxplan.com