I am excited by the burgeoning conversation about urban planning in Portland that the Muskie School of Public Service and the Portland Regional Chamber (among others) are starting.
There are good and provocative ideas here. But implementing any organized, systemic and effective plan for the future will require political leadership that, in terms of structures and personalities, our city just does not have.
I hope Portlanders will rally around reinvigorating local government, starting with the creation of a truly empowered mayoral position. Then I hope we can elect someone to that post who is capable of catalyzing the community and seizing this moment for the benefit of all who live and work here. Should that movement start in earnest, I, for one, would be on the first plane back home.
Will Nelligan
New York
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