Murmurs: Senior Building Won’t Reopen After Legionnaires’ Outbreak

SENIOR BUILDING WON’T REOPEN AFTER LEGIONNAIRES’ OUTBREAK: The nonprofit that owns Rosemont Court, a Piedmont neighborhood apartment building that had to relocate 90 low-income seniors in 2021 after a Legionnaires’ disease outbreak, says it won’t reopen because the city of Portland and the state have offered no funding. “[We have] been working with public and private funding partners for nearly nine months to identify possible solutions to preserve the building and bring it back into service,” Trell Anderson, executive director of Northwest Housing Alternatives, tells WW. “To date, after seeking funding from the Portland Housing Bureau and Oregon Housing and Community Services, no funding has been offered.” The outbreak of Legionnaires’ disease, a lung infection spread through water droplets, killed one Rosemont Court resident and sickened another 14. Anderson says the nonprofit will continue to seek public funding. Meantime, it will also explore a sale of the building. An OHCS spokesperson says it is “not able to fund all properties that requested resources.” The city did not respond by press deadline.

HOSPITAL RUNS FOOD PANTRY FOR ITS WORKERS: How bad are wages for some jobs in health care? A notice posted at Hillsboro Medical Center offers a clue. The hospital recently opened an “employee pantry” in its basement for “all staff who find themselves in need.” The notice invites employees to donate food or money to keep the pantry stocked. “The ongoing success of our employee pantry will be a collaborative effort and will need the ongoing support from any employee who is able.” Oregon Health & Science University has managed clinical operations at Hillsboro Medical Center since 2016 through a management company called OHSU Partners. On its website, OHSU says Hillsboro Medical Center is “part of the OHSU Health system, significantly expanding the Portland-area locations where Oregonians can connect with Oregon’s only academic health center.” Low pay is sore spot for OHSU. Nurses there bargained for months—and voted to authorize a strike—before signing a new three-year contract in October. Before that, university president Danny Jacobs came under fire from unionized workers for awarding $12.5 million in bonuses to 2,000 nonunion workers, including top executives. In the end, the bigwigs didn’t get the bonuses, but everyone else did. The agreement with Hillsboro Medical Center means OHSU clinicians provide services there, but the center runs its own operations in terms of leadership and employment, an OHSU spokeswoman said. Hillsboro Medical Center didn’t return an email seeking comment.

THE WHIRL TO SUCCEED EARL BEGINS: As WW first reported Oct. 30, U.S. Rep. Earl Blumenauer (D-Ore.) says he will not seek a 15th term in Congress. Those actively moving to succeed him include Multnomah County Commissioner Susheela Jayapal, Gresham City Councilor Eddy Morales, and state Rep. Travis Nelson (D-Portland). In the camp of candidates being encouraged to run who’ve made no announcement: former Multnomah County Chair Deborah Kafoury, who has name recognition and institutional support but also the baggage of county struggles. Definitely not running, according to confidants: former Gov. Kate Brown, who is reportedly enjoying life after politics, and State Treasurer Tobias Reed, who has committed to the secretary of state’s race. Also not running: former Portland City Commissioner Steve Novick, who previously ran for U.S. Senate. “Given my affection for pop culture/politics crossover themes, don’t you realize I’d be the last person to stand in the way of a Sister Act?” Novick said in a text message, referring to the fact that Jayapal’s sister, U.S. Rep. Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.), already holds a seat in Congress.

MAYOR ANNOUNCES IMMINENT ENFORCEMENT OF CAMPING BAN: Mayor Ted Wheeler announced Oct. 30 that Portland police would begin enforcing the daytime camping passed by the City Council last summer. At the time, the city said it would give notice before actually enforcing the ban, which prohibits all daytime camping on public property. “This is that two-week notice,” Wheeler said. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in 2018 that cities that ban camping must provide sufficient alternative shelter. To get around that, Portland officials are building new, 200-bed shelters and have designed a convoluted system of rules to funnel people on the streets into them—no camping from 8 am to 8 pm and no camping at night for someone who refuses an available shelter bed. After two warnings, violators could face jail time. It remains unclear, however, how aggressively the regulations will be enforced. At the press announcement on Monday, newly sworn-in Police Chief Bob Day announced new walking patrols downtown, although the cops’ mission will be more public relations than law enforcement. “Enforcement will take time,” Wheeler said, admonishing the public not to dial 911 to report illegal camping. “We ask for your patience.”

COUNCIL WANTS CITY ADMINISTRATOR ASAP: In the latest round of negotiations over the transition to a new form of city government, a majority of the Portland City Council has suggested tweaks before the new 12-member City Council assumes office and a professional city administrator begins managing all bureaus in 2025. City commissioners—with the notable exception of Mayor Ted Wheeler—want to appoint the city administrator and allow each city commissioner to appoint a deputy city administrator next July, six months before the new form of government kicks in. Wheeler’s colleagues also want to delay the renovation of City Hall until July 2024, which would allow them to remain in their offices until then. City staff—backed by Wheeler—had recommended that city commissioners and their staff move to a nearby city building this month to make room for construction. The City Council will vote on the construction timeline and the structure of city management on Wednesday.