City Commissioners Mapps, Ryan and Gonzalez Abandon Plan to Leave Joint Office

The three Portland city commissioners who for weeks have pledged to withdraw the city from the $350 million Joint Office of Homeless Services on Wednesday morning abruptly pulled the plug on their plan, less than 24 hours before the vote was scheduled to take place.

The commissioners’ three offices wrote in a brief joint statement Wednesday morning: “Commissioners Ryan, Mapps, and Gonzalez have decided to pull the Termination & Renegotiation Ordinance from tomorrow’s Council Agenda. This will allow space for the new City Council, Mayor, and County Commissioners to renegotiate the [contract] if they choose.”

The abrupt reversal comes after the three men, all three of whom ran for office this election cycle, spoke for nearly a month of little else but what they perceived as the failures of the Joint Office, for which the county and county just signed a three-year contract in June.

While the election results aren’t yet baked, Gonzalez and Mapps, both running for mayor, performed poorly in preliminary results. The leading candidate in the race is political outsider Keith Wilson, who centered his campaign almost entirely on an ambitious plan to end unsheltered homelessness. While Gonzalez hasn’t conceded the race yet, and more than 50% of expected votes have yet to be tallied, he admitted last night at his election party that his chances weren’t looking good.

By contrast, Ryan, who is running for reelection on the expanded 12-member City Council, performed well in preliminary results and is likely to land one of the three seats available in his district.

Multnomah County Chair Jessica Vega Pederson, when the three commissioners declared their intent to sever the Joint Office contract from the dais on Oct. 16, criticized the move as an election “stunt,” pointing out that all three were running for city office.

In a Wednesday statement to WW, Vega Pederson wrote she was “glad” the three commissioners dropped their plan.

“Jeopardizing our joint progress on the No. 1 issue facing our community was irresponsible and would have harmed our whole region,” Vega Pederson said. “I am looking forward to working with the new mayor and incoming City Council to continue delivering results to shelter, house and provide services for our houseless neighbors and create a stronger community for all.”

None of the three commissioners nor their offices immediately responded to requests for further comment.

“The Commissioners remain steadfast in their conviction that the City of Portland, Multnomah County, and Metro can build a better system to address homeless services and pave a better path forward,” the commissioners’ joint statement read.