Like others, you probably worry about the impact that COVID-19 has on your well being. As your city councilor, I’ll build on plans to keep our community healthy and local businesses thriving.
Back in March, as the COVID-19 virus swept the nation, we started taking common-sense actions as individuals to keep ourselves, our loved ones, and our communities safe. We started washing our hands more often. We started wearing masks. We cut back on socializing.
At the same time, as a city councilor, I swung into action. I led on measures to keep our people safe, particularly our most vulnerable neighbors. However, there’s much more that we can and should do to keep its residents healthy and secure.
Here’s some information about the state of the pandemic in Gresham, and my plans for our short-term response and longer-term recovery.
Gresham City Council Response to Coronavirus
Handling the coronavirus pandemic is one of the most important issues facing Gresham. There’s no sugar-coating it – it’s a serious and often tragic situation. Over 130 of our neighbors have lost their lives, countless people have lost their jobs, and many local businesses have closed.
The virus is still spreading in Multnomah County, and we expect things to get worse over the winter. I have helped lead the city to take action to help keep everyone healthy and make sure that everyone is treated fairly.
Here is some of what the City Council has done:
- Disbursed over $800,000 in grants to small local businesses.
- Banned evictions for businesses and renters.
- Capped the fees that third party providers like Uber can charge restaurants for delivery. This keeps money in our local economy and protects restaurants and delivery drivers.
- Proactively checked in on elderly Gresham residents to make sure they are getting the support they need. (We delivered toilet paper when it was needed.)
- My Plans for Economic Recovery in Gresham
- We need to remain resilient and healthy as possible through the winter. We also need to plan for a strong and equitable recovery. Here are a few ideas to promote stability now, and a brighter future ahead.
- As Gresham Mayor, these are the areas of focus I’ll recommend to City Council to help us through this difficult time.
- Support child care and adult care for working families.
- Ban utility shut-offs.
- Defer and/or forgive city taxes and homeownership fees.
- Continue to reach out to vulnerable communities, such seniors, to make sure they are receiving the resources they need.
- Continue to provide free meals to children in our public schools.
- Create a task force representing Gresham’s most impacted communities, service providers, local business, and government to design a just recovery.