Today, as a council, we unanimously approved $3 million in emergency funding for our COVID-19 response. This money will be used for small business relief and the city's emergency response.
More help is on the way. Today, as a council, we unanimously approved $3 million in emergency funding for our COVID-19 response. This money will be used for small business relief and the city's emergency response.
As a City, our priorities are to protect public health and maintain the essential services that Portlanders rely on to keep moving forward. My colleagues and I are laser-focused on both achieving those goals and supporting the resilience and recovery of our community, both socially and economically.
Tuesday, I was joined by Portland Police Chief Jamie Resch, Portland Fire Chief Sara Boone, Portland Bureau of Emergency Management (PBEM) Director Mike Myers, Chief Administrative Officer Tom Rinehart and Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) Director Chris Warner to share what the city has done and continues to do—to protect public health, its employees, to ensure critical services remain online and to respond to citywide emergencies during the COVID-19 crisis. We are grateful for every public servant who is working around the clock. Thank you.
Following Governor Brown’s executive order to stay home, Portland Police Bureau will be educating violators about the importance of following the Governor’s directive, while also preparing to mobilize in uncertain times.
Police Chief Resch assured us that Portland Police continues to take calls for service and Fire Chief Boone said she is modifying their response for the most critical calls. Emergency responders remind people not to call 911 unless there’s a true emergency, and to call the police non-emergency line instead at (503) 823-3333.
PBOT Director Chris Warner has also reduced the frequency of the Streetcar and is focused PBOT’s efforts on keeping our transportation system running and addressing essential needs like sewer breaks and broken signals.
If Portlanders see an urgent street repair that needs to be reported, they should call 503-823-1700. This is our street maintenance hotline and it is staffed 24 hours a day.
With the citywide State of Emergency due to expire at 8 a.m. on Thursday, March 26, I extended the emergency declaration by two more weeks with the expectation that additional extensions will be needed so long as this pandemic continues.
We collectively control how long this crisis lasts. My actions impact your health, your actions impact my health. We’ll get through this together.
Stay home and save lives. Thank you for looking out for each other.