Make Local Government Boring Again

So you can focus on living your life and not managing problems left unresolved or created by the government.

One of my biggest concerns right now is that we declared the wrong emergency.

What Portland has been facing is fundamentally a mental health and addiction crisis. Lack of accountability, ownership, and defining responsibilities has led to businesses and community members becoming the front-line to something they should never be responsible for or are reasonably able to address.

Defining the right emergency would have focused our energy on coordinated action across City, County, and State partners, rather than leaving the City to carry responsibilities that were never meant to be handled alone.

Until we tackle this collaboratively and together we will remain challenged in recovering as a city, economy, and culture. If it happens in Portland then it is a Portland leadership problem to own and address.

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Campaign Phase One (January - March)

This part of the campaign was all about getting out there to meet people, get my feet wet and hands dirty, and exploring all the different ways people engage with the local government. It has been a beautiful experience to learn more through directly through attending meetings, volunteer opportunities, niche forums, conferences, town halls, and other types of events that have led to insightful conversations that have helped reshape my platform and provide some compelling ideas after connecting some dots.

You can see a quick video recap of what this looked like here. The goal was to help close the gaps being a political outsider, and start building important relationships in the community.

Campaign Phase Two (April - June)

This part of the campaign is about getting people together to ideate and problem solve. I will lean on my community organizing experience to host a number of events with other candidates and community partners to convene stakeholders, neighbors, and folks interested in making a difference.

The first event is a candidate forum on May 3rd starting at 1:15 pm to 4:35 pm, learn more here. Two more are in the works with one date set for May 28th for a Comedy Showcase called Political Theater at the Covert Cafe. It will feature some local comedians, and a mock debate to poke fun at our own dysfunction as a city. I’ll update the website and social media as more details solidify.

Please follow along for updates and if you want to get involved with the other one which will be a Visioning Session you can email me at tomforpdx@gmail.com. I will invite former City Council staff members to be present and in the mix as we gather some folks from the community to problem solve together.

Campaign Phase Three (June - August)

I’ll update this as time gets closer.

Campaign Phase Four (September - November)

I’ll update this as time gets closer.

Economic Independence, Civic Engagement, and Local Resilience

Tom Sollitt’s Platform (A Work in Progress)

Portland’s strength has always come from people willing to build something locally and stick with it through good times and hard ones.

Companies that started here in Oregon like Bob’s Red Mill, Reser’s Fine Foods, Nike, and Laika didn’t just grow businesses. They created jobs, supported innovation, and reinvested in the communities that helped them succeed.

Artists, musicians, and creators from popular performers like Amine to your local event producer like the Flow Show host help tell Portland’s story and bring visibility, pride, and energy back into our city.

Small businesses and local talent stay when times are tough. They adapt, collaborate, and keep showing up. That commitment is what builds true resilience and not short-term investment that disappears when profits drop.

A resilient city is built by people who have roots here and it would be great to have a government that helps them grow.

Our Six Big Economic Opportunities!

  • Turn underused land in Gateway Shopping Center into a regional economic engine

    • Support partnerships already advancing the Portland MLB stadium effort

    • Activate underused industrial land into jobs and mixed-use development

    • Expand tourism, hospitality, and local business revenue

    • Create thousands of construction and long-term service jobs (local jobs to D1)

    • Position Portland as a national. destination again

    If we want national attention again, we need projects big enough to earn it

  • Preserve a regional anchor before decline spreads in the area...

    • Preserve the central Lloyd footprint not all of it as an active community destination

    • This protects the Lloyd Ice Rink as a youth and family anchor

    • Support adaptive reuse instead of complete demolition and vacancy

    • Encourage mixed-use redevelopment that keeps activity in the district

    • Prevent long-term economic hollowing of the area and economic decline

    You don’t rebuild cities by abandoning their anchors, you rebuild them by stabilizing them.

  • Invest in relatively small public upgrades to unlock major funding

    • Dedicate targeted infrastructure funding (~$3M range)

    • Upgrade public roads, utilities, and access needed for development

    • Unlock tens of millions already pledged but waiting from many sources

    • Expand education, science, and innovation jobs

    • Turn delayed investment into visible progress and positive growth

    A small public investment that we should be doing anyways unlocks millions is the definition of smart government.

  • Bring people back by giving them real stake, ownership, equity, and influence

    • Create pathways for community ownership of key cultural assets

    • Reduce long-term city financial burden

    • Unlock diaspora and international funding sources

    • Encourage return of Asian-owned businesses and residents

    • Build long-term stability through local stewardship

    Revitalization doesn’t happen through programming, it happens through ownership.

  • Turn the river back into working infrastructure that reduces carbon and impact on roads

    • Support phased launch of river-based transit routes

    • Connect major riverfront destinations and job centers

    • Activate waterfront businesses and public spaces

    • Reduce pressure on roads, bridges, and our overall carbon footprint

    • Reconnect Portlanders to the Willamette as infrastructure

    We have a working river and we should and can use it like one.

  • Support the people. Invest in the infrastructure. Promote the culture.

    • Support the individuals who anchor the scene

    • Invest in grassroots infrastructure such as venues and production hubs

    • Recognize District 3’s emerging comedy corridor as a legitimate cultural and economic district

    • Reduce friction for small venues through clear permitting, noise standards, and event flexibility

    • Celebrate the scene publicly through festivals, partnerships, and citywide recognition

    • Export Portland comedy nationally through tourism campaigns, touring networks, and cultural exchange opportunities

    We have a working river and we should and can use it like one.

Split Development into Three Bureaus

  • Most people in local government understand that busy streets build strong economies and a safer environment... In order to meaningfully achieve this events, tourism, nightlife, and shared spaces should work as one coordinated system.

    We need to create one activation system by bringing together coordination across:

    • Arts & Culture

    • Events & Film

    • Tourism

    • Nightlife (Night Mayor)

    Focus on:

    • Streamlined permits or waiving certain permits

    • Citywide activation planning

    • Sunday parkways, street fairs, marathons

    • Shared contracts to reduce event costs

    • Year-round use of shared spaces

    We can look at things holistically instead of one-off situations one at a time.

  • Most small businesses don’t fail from lack of effort they fail from lack of the right supportive infrastructure or by a thousand cuts from permits or fines that don’t make sense.

    As well as absorbing issues that the City has been unable to manage that increase costs due to broken windows, fires, insurance, loss in foot traffic, security costs, the list goes on...

    Focused on businesses:

    • Under 25 employees

    • Pop-ups (at Markets) & Commercial Tenants

    • Service Providers & Gig Workers

    Focus on:

    • Costs triggered by leasing or upgrading space

    • Landlord-tenant challenges & legal support

    • Grants that match the realities of being tenants

    • Shared infrastructure group purchasing)

    • Stabilizing neighborhood business districts

    This bureau should focus on the realities of being a small business and sole proprietor.

  • Major investment doesn’t happen by accident it requires focus, advocacy, and coordination.

    Attract Major Investment:

    Recruit large employers, industries, and transformative projects to Portland.

    Remove System-Level Barriers:

    Work with city, state, and federal partners to fix policies that block economic growth.

    Prepare Portland for Growth:

    Identify land, infrastructure, and sites ready for large-scale development.

Fund The Office of Civic Life

After attending a lot of Neighborhood Associations, and other points of community engagement, it has been clear we need to support points where people get involved civically. This is a moral responsibility because we need better data to work off of, and it is clear to me who is and is not in the room and who feels comfortable being there.

Funding the Office of Civic Life in coordination with the Office of Small Business is an opportunity to provide more service without duplicating dollars or consolidating reinvesting tax dollars in an impactful manner. PEMO should also be coordinated through this.

Beyond anything else, we need to stop putting our Neighborhood Associations, Business Associations, and others in competition with each other under the guise of “fair process”, it means even more dedicated volunteer hours chasing after grants, and a lack of stability or consistency at a neighborhood level. At the very least we should be able to provide annual Trash/Recycling Days, annual Street Fairs, and funding for regular Community Dinners. This is the foundation and fabric that keeps people in place and feeling at home. They also need the bandwidth to do the engagement that local government just can’t do alone or accurately.

Community led projects to keep an eye on are the Better Center, Frog Ferry, Depave, Fruit Tree Project, Friends of Trees, Bike Portland, Portland Free Store Project and many more.

Introduction

My name is Tom Sollitt. I believe the best governance is often invisible because when systems work, people are free to live their lives, pursue their goals, and feel safe doing so. Good governance protects human rights, respects due process, and creates conditions where people can thrive without constantly fighting the system.

I grew up in Corvallis, Oregon, and was adopted from South Korea. My life as an immigrant has been shaped by displacement and reintegration more than once. After earning a BFA in Visual Communications from Oregon State University, I returned to South Korea and lived there for several years. I began as an English teacher while learning Korean, and later built a professional career in branding, marketing, and communications within Korean organizations.

Living in Korea as someone of Korean descent without native language fluency meant navigating belonging from a complicated position, not fully seen as American, and not fully accepted as Korean. Returning to Oregon as an adult brought a different realization: how much stability, opportunity, and safety depend on whether systems and communities actually make space for people. That perspective shaped how I understand leadership and public systems.

Professionally, I’ve spent years building platforms for and with other entrepreneurs, artists, organizers, and community members who needed opportunity, visibility, and space to grow. Much of this work has happened collaboratively and behind the scenes, focused on outcomes rather than optics. I’ve built projects without institutional power, coordinated complex efforts across sectors, and worked directly with people navigating real-world barriers.

Through that work, I’ve come to believe that the strongest communities are built when leadership, power, and agency are shared rather than concentrated. Strong systems don’t control people, they enable them.

The perspective I bring to public leadership is shaped by lived experience and grounded in execution. My focus is simple: build stronger foundations so everyday Portlanders can experience more stability, more safety, and more confidence in the direction of their city.

[Learn more about my latest community impact project Asian American Town

[Recent recognition for community-based work Taste for Equity Innovation Award]

Supporting this Campaign

  • I am currently still in a listening and relationship-building phase of my campaign. My time is deliberately flexible to reach out to community members who would like to be heard.

    • Provide lived testimonials

    • Provide insights into your communities

    • Host listening sessions

  • I am currently not pursuing affiliations with any organizations other than labor unions. The voters of Portland should not have to question if my focus is on their priorities first and foremost and not any special interest groups.

    This means a reliance on my own resources, and volunteers until fundraising has achieved a threshold to hire support services.

    • If you have a talent or skill you would like to share with this campaign please get in touch

    • There are 18 unique neighborhoods within District 3. I’m looking for local advocates that share the values of this campaign in each one to help spread the word when the time comes or keep me up to date on what is happening locally

    • Join a ready to mobilize list of folks to canvas and share campaign collateral when the time comes

    Volunteer needs will become more apparent as the campaign unfolds. I will of course remain accessible and open to talking with any organization that is impacted by city activity.

  • The only endorsements I am currently seeking are from individual community members that or small businesses, and some labor unions.

    All City Councilors represent the totality of Portland, Oregon, and I believe the goals of the new Portland Charter needs to be realized with geographic representation.

    Looking forward to being your local advocate, representative, and supporter!

Funding is being raised to pay for a Treasurer, Campaign Manager, and campaign related marketing initiatives.

Donation link can be found here.