April 19, 2022

Dear Portlanders,

I hope this email finds you well as we round our way into warmer weather. There's a lot going on in the City of Portland - and these monthly emails are in no way intended to be comprehensive. So, I welcome you to engage as you're able and willing: Council Meetings (info and links below), Council Committee Meetings (info and links below), Neighborhood Organizations , my Monthly Zoom Meetings (info and links below),  Boards & Committees, newspapers, radio, sign up for City of Portland Text and Email Updates: sending info direct to you regarding everything from the weekly news round up, to parking bans, to emergency notices, to yard waste pick up dates, to community events (info and links below).

My next Monthly Zoom will be Wednesday, May 27th at 4:00pm.
To Join: https://portlandmaine-gov.zoom.us/j/85625758412?pwd=QnEwekpETitZUmtPUU1IRUxnczQ2dz09
As always, this is a no-agenda, all-welcome, hop-on-zoom meeting; it's an unstructured time to connect with me, with other community members, ask questions, share ideas and thoughts. 

Upcoming Council Meetings:
Monday, April 25th* at 5pm
Monday, May 2nd at 5pm
Monday, May 16th at 5pm

As you likely know, City Council meetings are now Hybrid, which means you can attend in person, or by Zoom. 
Our technology, making hybrid meetings possible, is not perfect - not yet! - things on order! - supply chain issues! But, it's going really well in terms of being able to manage the many moving parts inherent in running a meeting in person, while including people attending remotely. Thanks for continued engagement, patience, input, and sense of humor as we make our way through issues and glitches. 
*I have to miss our April 25th meeting. I made a commitment for that date prior to the change in our April meeting schedule. Normally, Mayor Pro Tem, Councilor Ali, would preside over the meeting in my absence. However, since travel will take Councilor Ali out of town (requiring remote participation, and thus an inability to preside over a hybrid meeting), our next most senior Councilor Tae Chong will preside.  

Major issues to track:

• On April 11th, the City's Director of Health & Human Services provided This memo entitled: HHS Homelessness and Emergency Shelter Update to the Council and community. The City of Portland, compliant with the State of Maine's General Assistance law, is providing emergency shelter and services to over 1,500 people - both Asylum Seeking Families (over 1,000 people), as well as Individuals experiencing circumstantial homelessness (over 500 people). As our Director of HHS states: "This is more than one municipality can handle". "Portland is now using 12 hotels in six communities to house asylum seekers and homeless Mainers, whose numbers far exceed the capacity of its Family Shelter and Oxford Street Shelter. As of last Wednesday, the city was finding shelter for 1,594 people on a nightly basis. By comparison, at the peak of a 2019 influx of asylum seekers, the city had about 240 people being housed at the Portland Expo, which it opened as a temporary shelter to accommodate them." More info is in this April 19th PPH article providing the most recent numbers and factors - it's a must read. 
• The FY23 Portland Public Schools Budget is well underway. The School Board approved a $133.1M Budget with the theme, "Keeping the focus on teaching and learning". The proposed budget represents a 5.2% increase in expenditures (requiring an increased investment of $4.8M from local taxpayers), which translates into a 4.1% increase in the school portion of the tax rate. The PPS Budget was received by the City Council on April 11th, and has been referred to the Council's Finance Committee for review and recommendation. There will be a First Read and Public Comment period on the PPS Budget on May 2nd, and a second Public Hearing and Final Vote on May 16th;
• The City Manager's Recommended FY23 Budget presentation was postponed from April 11th to April 25th. Interim City Manager West will present her recommended budget on the 25th, and I will have the chance to comment on the Manager's Budget before the Council on May 2nd;
• We await the adjournment of the Legislative Session in Augusta. Expected adjournment is April 20th;
• The City Council's Search Committee continues to manage process toward hiring both a City Manager and our City Clerk. We hope to have a new Clerk in place in June, just ahead of our current Clerk's retirement on July 1. The committee meets regularly on Thursday mornings at 8:00am. Please access meeting information on the City's Agenda Center
• City Council Rules were adopted on April 11th. Of note: the Public Comment period for items not on the Council's agenda will move from 6:00pm to 5:00pm. To see the full set of Rules, with redlined amendments considered for 2022, please click here: Rules, as Passed
• The Charter Commission's work is ongoing. Meeting Dates and Agendas are here. I plan to send a separate email regarding the Council's schedule for receipt of, and public hearing for the preliminary report and the final report as directed by the Maine Statute governing Charter Commissions.

Please see below for general information regarding access to City Updates, and City Council work.

Sincerely,
Kate Snyder
 

City Council Meetings: The Portland City Council meets the 1st and 3rd Monday of the month. In the case of a Monday holiday, we typically meet the next Wednesday. In the case of school vacation weeks, we typically push the meeting by a week. Agendas and Info, go here.

The next City Council meeting is Monday, April 25th at 5pm.

Council Workshops: Please Check in here to see all upcoming meetings.

City News & Updates: Sent every Friday afternoon straight to you. Email or Text. 

If you’re generally curious about City updates and news - please click here to subscribe to the ‘City News’ group. You can also go to that page to click on the latest weekly update - and look back through the news, too. The weekly compile has everything from Council decisions to construction updates to news about things happening around town. It’s a fantastic, concise, easy to read resource.