by Taylor Griggs

The Mercury provides news and fun every single day—but your help is essential. If you believe Portland benefits from smart, local journalism and arts coverage, please consider making a small monthly contribution, because without you, there is no us. Thanks for your support! 

Good morning, Portland! There's rain on the menu for today, but you probably didn't need me to tell you that. Hopefully you know how to layer for November in Portland by now. Anddddd that's all the small talk we have time for this morning, so chop chop. It's news time. 

IN LOCAL NEWS: 

• Portland City Council is set to vote today on a five-year contract renewal for the Downtown Portland Clean & Safe district, as well as a major expansion of the service area it covers and a fee hike. A couple weeks ago, when this item was first brought to the council, many Portlanders testified against the contract renewal. Now, four incoming city councilors (Mitch Green, Sameer Kanal, Tiffany Koyama Lane and Angelita Morillo)—along with community organizations and dozens of residents, have penned a letter to the current City Council asking them to postpone the contract renewal. 

Why the negativity for Clean & Safe? Well, as an excellent new article from our Courtney Vaughn details, the Clean & Safe district is overseen by an organization that has significant overlap in its management with the Portland Metro Chamber, AKA the Portland Business Alliance. The new contract would funnel a good portion of the $58 million contract to the Metro Chamber, which they will spend on lobbying efforts for private business interests. The program is also convoluted and lacks oversight, and it contributes majorly to the criminalization of homeless people in downtown Portland. So there's a lot wrong with it. Read the article for more of the details, and stay tuned for City Council's decision today. 

• The Portland Auditor's Office has released a much-anticipated (by me, at least) report on the Portland Bureau of Transportation's (PBOT) Vision Zero Action Plan, which the city adopted in 2016 in an effort to eliminate traffic crash fatalities and serious injuries. But in the eight years since the Vision Zero plan was adopted (and been updated twice), traffic crash deaths have increased in Portland, especially in the last four years. In 2023, 69 people were killed in traffic crashes on Portland streets. Given the current reality, it's understandable that people are questioning how effective the Vision Zero program is. 

While the Auditor's Office isn't seeking an overhaul of the program, the report recommends PBOT makes several key changes to improve Vision Zero outcomes. The audit report says PBOT should create a better project evaluation system, install more speed cameras, and use more qualitative data to determine the most equitable safety projects. According to PBOT, most of the concerns expressed in the audit report have already been addressed in the most recent Vision Zero update.

PBOT leaders did say they are hopeful more traffic safety improvements will be possible when Portland finally (fully) transitions to its new, less-siloed form of government in January. The report just came out this morning, so there hasn't been much in the way of community response yet, but I'm sure it will spark some Thoughts, capital "T." 

•  On a related note, the World Day of Remembrance of Road Traffic Victims is this Sunday, an annual day to honor the many lives lost prematurely to traffic violence. Community organizations Families for Safe Streets, BikeLoud PDX, and Oregon Walks will join PBOT, elected leaders, and community members for a gathering at Portland City Hall. Find out more about the event here. 

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A post shared by Families for Safe Streets PDX (@fss_pdx)

• Here's a painful fact, courtesy of a new investigation from OPB and ProPublica: Despite President Biden's repeated promises to save old growth forests in the Pacific Northwest, the Bureau of Land Management is allowing timber companies to log such forests now more than in the last 10 years. Biden's BLM is on track to log 47,000 acres of public lands during his four years in office— about the same amount that Trump oversaw during his first term in office. And, get this: This is after Biden made an executive order to protect mature and old-growth forests in 2022! Considering the rare beauty of these forests—and, more importantly, their importance to ecosystems and ability to mitigate carbon emission—this is very unfortunate. The Biden administration hasn't answered for the BLM's actions, or if they're planning to take steps to further protect old growth forests in preparation for the next Trump administration. Let's hope he makes some changes while he still can, because we all know Trump will be a lot worse. 

• Rene Gonzalez, after losing his bid for mayor, is seeking donations of up to $579 because his campaign is in debt. I wonder if anyone will pay him. 

Stealing this from the other site because y’all need to see it. Anyone gonna donate $579 to Rene Gonzalez’s failed campaign for mayor??? @pradapdx.bsky.social

[image or embed]

— Taylor Griggs (@taylorgriggs.bsky.social) November 12, 2024 at 5:11 PM

IN NATIONAL/WORLD NEWS: 

• President-elect Donald Trump (ouch) has asked Vivek Ramaswamy (ouch again) and Elon Musk (commentary unnecessary here) to lead a new government agency that he plans to create in order to regulate federal spending. The new agency will be called the Department of Government Efficiency, which just happens to create the acronym DOGE, a reference to the Shiba Inu meme of the mid-2010s and the joke cryptocurrency by the same name that Musk promoted. Apparently, a Department of Government Efficiency needs to be run by two people. I hope I am adequately conveying my tone of contempt here. 

As ridiculous as this all is, it's also extremely bad. Trump, Musk, and Ramaswamy's plan is to fire thousands of federal employees, cut necessary regulations, and ultimately destroy many of the most crucial components of the federal government. All we can do is hope that SOME Republicans in Congress (we don't need all of them!) will realize how idiotic this is and block Trump's attempt to create a new government agency, which he can't do without congressional approval. Or can he? The limit to this idiocy knows no bounds.

However, given these men's volatility—which is replicated in many others in Trump's sphere—it does seem pretty likely that they'll all be in a huge fight by the time Trump takes office. I do think there are some major catfights on the horizon, if that gives you any comfort in these trying times. 

fundamentally this is what Trump administrations are all about: the guys. there will be new guys every week. they will startle you, you'll be astounded by them, and then as quickly as they appeared they will fade into an indistinguishable mass, leaves on the forest floor.

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— Peter (@notalawyer.bsky.social) November 12, 2024 at 4:39 PM

• Here's something that will NOT give you comfort in these trying times: Despite the hope last year would mark a global carbon dioxide emissions peak, humans are burning more fossil fuels this year than we did last year. The world is on track to put 0.8 percent more carbon into the atmosphere than in 2023. Though this is not surprising, it IS actually crazy behavior from humanity (and let me be clear, it's a tiny minority of humans leading the charge on this, though a substantially larger minority are eagerly/mindlessly participating in burning fossil fuels at a rate incompatible with the future of life on this planet). Good thing we will have strong climate leadership in the White House come January. NOT!!!! 

• One way people are attempting to #resist Elon Musk after he helped Trump get into office and will now seemingly play a key role in his administration? Leaving Twitter, AKA X, the social media site he bought and ruined. Bluesky may be the place to be now. (I am finding it much more pleasant.) 

In the week since the U.S. presidential election, Elon Musk has used X, the social media platform he owns, to reiterate his support for President-elect Donald Trump. Some of X’s users have decided they want to post elsewhere. Among the largest beneficiaries of that desire is Bluesky. nyti.ms/48JtYAt

[image or embed]

— The New York Times (@nytimes.com) November 12, 2024 at 10:46 PM

• Okay, here's some actual good news: The U.S. House voted down a bill that would've helped Trump censor and persecute his political opponents. The Stop Terror-Financing and Tax Penalties on American Hostages Act had previously received bipartisan support, but after Trump was elected, some Democratic lawmakers (and The Intercept) raised alarm bells. The bill would give the U.S. Treasury Department complete authority to revoke the tax-exempt status of nonprofits it deems are "terrorist supporting organizations," which Trump could use to enable the destruction of nonprofits that the future president doesn't politically align with. WHEW. 

• Finally, please watch this video of a little boy and his crow friend. ???????? Bye bye! 

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A post shared by Dogs | Puppies | Family (@yourpaws.global)

Australia’s premier business organisation dedicated to promoting investment and trade with China will be the first bilateral business chamber to be part of the Victorian Coalition Government’s new International Chamber House (ICH). The Australia China Business Council (ACBC) will move its head office from Sydney to Melbourne to be part of ICH, which is set to open later this year in Melbourne’s city centre.

Ameresco Inc. announced that it has partnered with the National Research Council of Canada (NRC) on a new energy savings project. The $3.9 million (CAD) comprehensive energy efficiency and facility renewal project at NRC research facilities is expected to save over $330,000 annually in utility costs.

11/18/2024 - 7:00 PM - Venue: City Council Chambers

VIENNA, 20 July 2016 – Presenting the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly’s work concerning the refugee and migrant crisis at a special meeting of the OSCE Permanent Council in Vienna today, Swiss parliamentarian Filippo Lombardi laid out the Assembly’s plan of action going forward, which includes monitoring the situation on the ground and developing policy recommendations for the OSCE and its participating States.

The meeting was convened by the OSCE German Chairmanship to present and discuss the report by Amb. Claude Wild, Chair of the OSCE Informal Working Group Focusing on the Issue of Migration and Refugee Flows. The participants discussed in particular the importance of improving global migration governance and how the OSCE can lend its contribution to promoting regional implementation of a global migration governance architecture.

Lombardi noted that the OSCE PA’s Ad Hoc Committee on Migration, which he chairs, has been active in three main areas, including by organizing field visits, strengthening co-operation with the OSCE and other international actors, and promoting discussions on the migration crisis within the OSCE PA.

“The migration and refugee crisis remains high on the agenda of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly as highlighted by the importance accorded to this issue in the Tbilisi Declaration adopted at the OSCE PA Annual Session on 5 July,” Lombardi said. “Indeed, the various aspects of this complex issue are addressed in the resolutions of all three general committees as well as in a number of supplementary resolutions” adopted in Tbilisi, he added.

Stressing the need for better communication strategies between governments and the public, Lombardi said that while media plays a fundamental role in shaping public opinion on migration, “political forces bear an equally important responsibility.

“Governments, diplomats and parliamentarians must join forces to tackle the root causes of migration,” he said.

Lombardi further highlighted a recent field visit to camps in Calais and Dunkirk, the Parliamentary Assembly’s contribution to the 27 June meeting of the Informal Working Group, which was addressed by five OSCE parliamentarians, and noted that the PA’s Ad Hoc Committee on Migration met officially for the first timeduring the OSCE PA Annual Session in Tbilisi on 3 July.

In June, the OSCE PA’s then-human rights and humanitarian committee chair, Portuguese parliamentarian Isabel Santos, joined a delegation of the OSCE’s Special Representative and Co-ordinator for Combating Trafficking in Human Beings, Ambassador Madina Jarbussynova, for a visit to Lampedusa, Italy, to an aircraft carrier in the Mediterranean Sea, and to a refugee reception centre in Catania.

Migration will also occupy a prominent position in the discussions of the OSCE PA Autumn Meeting to be held in Skopje from 29 September to 2 October, Lombardi pointed out.

Other than Lombardi’s presentation, today’s special meeting of the Permanent Council included a comprehensive report by Amb. Wild, who noted that addressing the migration crisis requires a multidimensional response based on protection, combating crime, border management, successful integration, and solidarity and partnerships. The OSCE has a number of comparative advantages when addressing migration and refugee flows and is thus uniquely positioned to address this crisis, he emphasized.

Lombardi welcomed the priorities of the OSCE’s Informal Working Group and stressed that members of the PA’s Ad Hoc Committee have agreed to keep in mind the principles identified by this body in carrying out its work.

The Permanent Council and the Ministerial Council are the primary decision-making bodies of the OSCE.

To learn more about the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly’s work in the field of migration, please click here. A video interview conducted with Ad Hoc Committee Chair Filippo Lombardi is available on the OSCE PA’sYouTube channel.

The OSCE Project Co-ordinator in Baku and the Azerbaijani Press Council are pleased to announce two contests for media reports highlighting the problems of domestic violence in Azerbaijan.

The first contest is for the articles published in newspapers and online media, the second one for TV reports. An evaluation committee comprising the representatives of the OSCE, Press Council and the State Committee for Family, Women and Children Affairs will award prizes for the best reports produced from 1 May 2015 to 30 November 2015.

The deadline for entries is 30 November 2015. The results will be announced in December 2015.

The competition is open to media representatives only. The authors of the winning articles and reports will receive certificates and cash prizes: first place - 1500, second – 1200 and third – 1000 AZN. Each contest also includes an award for the best report from young journalists – 1000 AZN. These contests are part of the PCiB’s project on supporting the implementation of the law on the prevention of domestic violence.

Questions about the contest may be directed to Zhala Azizova, National Project Officer, at zazizova@osce.org and Avaz Rustamov, representative of the Press Council, at evez.rustemov@gmail.com.

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• OSCE supports study visit of Azerbaijani officials to the Netherlands on Holocaust education and remembrance

Addressing the OSCE Permanent Council in Vienna on 2 June 2016, OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities Astrid Thors described country engagement and highlighted the disturbing increase in hate speech.

The statement covered the High Commissioner’s activities since her last statement to the Permanent Council in November 2015. During this period Thors visited Kyrgyzstan, Serbia, Ukraine, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Croatia, Hungary, Slovakia and Moldova.

The High Commissioner expressed concern about the increase in hate speech targeting national minorities. Thors called for renewed efforts to tackle hate speech in order to prevent tensions and to promote integration with respect for diversity.

Thors also informed the Permanent Council about the work her institution is doing together with researchers to identify best practices that highlight the bridge building potential of national minorities in diverse societies.

The full statement can be found here.

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VIENNA, 20 July 2016 – Presenting the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly’s work concerning the refugee and migrant crisis at a special meeting of the OSCE Permanent Council in Vienna today, Swiss parliamentarian Filippo Lombardi laid out the Assembly’s plan of action going forward, which includes monitoring the situation on the ground and developing policy recommendations for the OSCE and its participating States.

The meeting was convened by the OSCE German Chairmanship to present and discuss the report by Amb. Claude Wild, Chair of the OSCE Informal Working Group Focusing on the Issue of Migration and Refugee Flows. The participants discussed in particular the importance of improving global migration governance and how the OSCE can lend its contribution to promoting regional implementation of a global migration governance architecture.

Lombardi noted that the OSCE PA’s Ad Hoc Committee on Migration, which he chairs, has been active in three main areas, including by organizing field visits, strengthening co-operation with the OSCE and other international actors, and promoting discussions on the migration crisis within the OSCE PA.

“The migration and refugee crisis remains high on the agenda of the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly as highlighted by the importance accorded to this issue in the Tbilisi Declaration adopted at the OSCE PA Annual Session on 5 July,” Lombardi said. “Indeed, the various aspects of this complex issue are addressed in the resolutions of all three general committees as well as in a number of supplementary resolutions” adopted in Tbilisi, he added.

Stressing the need for better communication strategies between governments and the public, Lombardi said that while media plays a fundamental role in shaping public opinion on migration, “political forces bear an equally important responsibility.

“Governments, diplomats and parliamentarians must join forces to tackle the root causes of migration,” he said.

Lombardi further highlighted a recent field visit to camps in Calais and Dunkirk, the Parliamentary Assembly’s contribution to the 27 June meeting of the Informal Working Group, which was addressed by five OSCE parliamentarians, and noted that the PA’s Ad Hoc Committee on Migration met officially for the first timeduring the OSCE PA Annual Session in Tbilisi on 3 July.

In June, the OSCE PA’s then-human rights and humanitarian committee chair, Portuguese parliamentarian Isabel Santos, joined a delegation of the OSCE’s Special Representative and Co-ordinator for Combating Trafficking in Human Beings, Ambassador Madina Jarbussynova, for a visit to Lampedusa, Italy, to an aircraft carrier in the Mediterranean Sea, and to a refugee reception centre in Catania.

Migration will also occupy a prominent position in the discussions of the OSCE PA Autumn Meeting to be held in Skopje from 29 September to 2 October, Lombardi pointed out.

Other than Lombardi’s presentation, today’s special meeting of the Permanent Council included a comprehensive report by Amb. Wild, who noted that addressing the migration crisis requires a multidimensional response based on protection, combating crime, border management, successful integration, and solidarity and partnerships. The OSCE has a number of comparative advantages when addressing migration and refugee flows and is thus uniquely positioned to address this crisis, he emphasized.

Lombardi welcomed the priorities of the OSCE’s Informal Working Group and stressed that members of the PA’s Ad Hoc Committee have agreed to keep in mind the principles identified by this body in carrying out its work.

The Permanent Council and the Ministerial Council are the primary decision-making bodies of the OSCE.

To learn more about the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly’s work in the field of migration, please click here. A video interview conducted with Ad Hoc Committee Chair Filippo Lombardi is available on the OSCE PA’sYouTube channel.

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Serbia’s legal framework for governing elections to the High Judicial Council and the State Prosecutors’ Council is fairly comprehensive although there are a few minor issues with implementing the laws and regulations, partly as a result of gaps in the law. This is the conclusion of a joint Report launched on 24 May 2016 by the OSCE Mission to Serbia and the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR).

The OSCE Mission and ODIHR followed the elections of judges and prosecutors to the High Judicial Council and the State Prosecutors’ Council throughout Serbia in December 2015, in partnership with the Lawyers’ Committee for Human Rights (YUCOM), a local civil society organization. The election processes were conducted without any major irregularities observed.

The Report makes a number of recommendations, largely similar for both the judicial and prosecutorial councils, including amending and further developing the legal framework regarding the election process for the judicial and prosecutors’ councils, the candidates’ nomination process, and procedures for resolving disputes and providing effective remedies.

The findings and recommendations resulting from the election monitoring will help inform the public about the ongoing judicial reform process in Serbia. The relevant state institutions and justice stakeholders will also have an objective assessment to assist them in further strengthening the independence, accountability and efficiency of the Serbian judiciary.

The Report is available at: https://www.osce.org/odihr/242346

The OSCE Mission to Serbia and ODIHR stand ready to continue supporting the legal reform efforts of the Serbian authorities in line with the recommendations of this report and OSCE commitments.

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Addressing the OSCE Permanent Council in Vienna on 2 June 2016, OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities Astrid Thors described country engagement and highlighted the disturbing increase in hate speech.

The statement covered the High Commissioner’s activities since her last statement to the Permanent Council in November 2015. During this period Thors visited Kyrgyzstan, Serbia, Ukraine, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Georgia, Croatia, Hungary, Slovakia and Moldova.

The High Commissioner expressed concern about the increase in hate speech targeting national minorities. Thors called for renewed efforts to tackle hate speech in order to prevent tensions and to promote integration with respect for diversity.

Thors also informed the Permanent Council about the work her institution is doing together with researchers to identify best practices that highlight the bridge building potential of national minorities in diverse societies.

The full statement can be found here.

Related Stories

• OSCE High Commissioner on National Minorities holds fifth regional summer school on multilingual and multicultural education in Central Asia
• Language rights, participation, security and access to justice fundamental to welfare of communities in Kosovo, says High Commissioner Thors
• OSCE High Commissioner encourages inclusive approach to integration and education issues in Moldova and welcomes joint working group on Gagauzia

[New Zimbabwe] THE Harare City Council (HCC) has approved a US$548,1 million budget for the year 2025 with water and sanitation and road rehabilitation receiving the biggest shares.

On Wednesday, King County Council Member Claudia Balducci announced her candidacy for King County Executive. Her announcement came the morning after current Executive Dow Constantine announced he would not seek reelection. by Ashley Nerbovig

On Wednesday, King County Council Member Claudia Balducci announced her candidacy for King County Executive. Her announcement came the morning after current Executive Dow Constantine announced he would not seek reelection.

Thirty-ish years ago, Balducci moved from New York into a house in Bellevue’s Lake Hills neighborhood with her then-boyfriend, now husband. She’s stayed right there ever since, not counting a brief return to New York for law school. 

Her political career began at the Bellevue City Council. She served as mayor of that mall town from 2014 to 2016. Voters elected her to the King County Council in 2016. Throughout that time, she advocated for more housing density, defended Sound Transit’s East Link extension, and pushed for improvements to the criminal legal system.

She considers housing, transit, and public safety the pillars of her campaign for King County Executive. Plus, she supports finding progressive revenue streams for the county. When we asked her if, as someone from the Eastside, she felt additional pressure from big business to oppose legislation such as a payroll tax, she responded: “No more so than somebody from Seattle.” Touche, Balducci.

Balducci views herself as a coalition-builder, someone who reaches across the aisle. The biggest difference she sees between herself and her would-be predecessor, Constantine, is her approach: Rather than solely focusing on rallying advocates to push an idea across the finish line, she believes in sitting down with people who disagree with her to reach consensus. 

“You might come out with something that's a little different than what you thought, but hopefully we start to build deeper and more lasting support, not just for that thing, but for all of government,” Balducci said.

If elected as County Executive, Balducci says her first four years in office would focus on addressing the human suffering and disorder in King County’s downtown cores without increasing the jail population. She wants to ensure that people have the services they need to help them address substance abuse, their mental health, and maintain housing. Though she headed up the King County Department of Adult and Juvenile Detention, she was not a “lock-them-up sort of person,” though she did say she’d like to see crime go down in city centers.

She also wants to focus on delivering light rail expansion projects in a reasonable amount of time. 

A Yimby Year One

Balducci found her YIMBY calling in the early 2000s, when the owners of her neighborhood shopping center, Lake Hills Village, sought to redevelop the mall due to a lack of business and businesses. But as the property owners pushed to change zoning requirements to allow a mixed-use, multistory complex Balducci says many of her neighbors came out to oppose the redevelopment. She readily supported the idea and said so in front of her neighbors. Standing up in those meetings almost two decades ago launched her political career, she says. 

On Tuesday ahead of her campaign launch, she showed The Stranger around the redeveloped lot. Shops now fill the storefronts, and the Village houses a branch of the King County Library along with a community space. The large apartments attached to the complex–many three or four bedrooms–are some of the largest in the area. None are “deeply affordable, but they're not outrageously expensive either.” Balducci’s only regret is that the property couldn’t also connect to the light rail. The complex’s large parking lot in the center makes it clear the Lake Hills community still has a car-centric, commuter mindset.

Lake Hills was the first stop on Balducci’s Bellevue Accomplishments Tour. As we drove to our next stop, she chatted about the County’s need to build more housing and Eastside developers’ need to build more townhomes on single lots instead of the giant homes she often sees built in her neighborhood. (She acknowledged those townhomes would be expensive.)

A Defender of Transit

From Lake Hills Village, Balducci whisked us off to Wilburton Station, which she reluctantly called her favorite while saying, “It’s like my children, I love them all equally.” Balducci came alive as she talked about the importance of light rail planning, and how building along the freeway can limit how much density can pop up around a station. She pointed out The Spring District, which happened to be at the end of a rainbow that appeared as the rain slowed to a drizzle. The Spring District is a sort of evolved version of what Balducci did for Lake Hill Village. A developer turned an area of Bellevue made up mostly of warehouses and parking lots and turned it into a housing, shopping, and business core, complete with a light rail station right in the center that had support from private investors. Again, Balducci acknowledged the housing in Spring District probably wouldn’t be something anyone could afford, with the cost of a cheap studio hovering around $1,994, but the project brought more housing and more jobs, all made possible because of the light rail.

Balducci explained how unlike in Seattle, many people in Bellevue vehemently opposed light rail. She fought for years to bring the option to the Eastside as a member of the Bellevue City Council, fighting not only against her fellow council members, but also those who challenged it in court. She came from a city where you could survive without a car and saw the benefit and importance of a reliable transportation system. She called building the Eastline a labor of love. 

As King County Executive, she’d have a huge say in how light rail expanded, because not only would she become a member of the Sound Transit Board, but she’d have the ability to appoint another nine members to the 18 member board. Much of her political life has been dedicated to the issue of improving and expanding transit, and as King County Executive, she says, she’d throw herself into delivering the light rail the county promised to voters as quickly and efficiently as she can.

Not Zero Youth Detention, but Less Youth Detention

Balducci has never styled herself as an abolitionist. She’s a reformer, someone who helped to change conditions at the King County Jail after the US Department of Justice found that the facility had violated people’s constitutional rights by failing to adequately protect them from harm. When the issue of the new youth jail came up, Balducci said she saw a need for an improved youth jail, a smaller one, that could be refitted as the county worked to reduce the number of kids in lock up. But she never saw the existence of the building as a problem, it's more about how the county manages the building and treats the people inside. She also stressed she supports diversion programs and upstream investments to help reduce the number of kids who find themselves on the path to prison. She said she believes in community-based diversion programs and has supported increasing funding to them.

Final Stop

Balducci ended the tour at Porchlight, a men’s shelter in Bellevue that she helped establish during her time as Mayor. The whole process involved a lot of planning, funding, and dealing with community pushback, but it resulted in a 100-bed shelter and the first permanent shelter for men in all of East King County. From there, Bellevue wanted to expand the site, eventually purchasing the property from the county and expanding it to create permanent supportive housing as well as 300 units of family housing, Balducci said. She acknowledged that this particular project may not be the best example of the coalition style governance she wants to represent as King County Executive — a lot of neighbors still had issues with the project — but in the end, many came around. 

Balducci sees herself as somebody who fights Nimby-ism wherever it sprouts. With the drop from her colleague King County Councilmember Girmay Zahilay Tuesday night, announcing he also planned to “strongly consider” a run for King County Executive, Balducci probably won’t end up the most outwardly progressive candidate in the race. However, given Zahilay’s recent retreat on criminal legal system issues, Balducci may be able to style herself as a more consistent, left voice who delivers on her promises. Plus, she’d be the county’s first woman King County Executive in the position’s 56-year history. Wild we haven’t managed to elect one of those yet.

By Gerardo Zavala

Team officials said this development proposal was possible thanks to a “major investment” from a new ownership group: Wilton Rancheria, the Tribe which owns Sky River Casino in Elk Grove. 

City officials said Wilton Rancheria is the first Tribe to hold majority ownership in a men’s professional sports franchise. 

“This partnership is far more than a business transaction, it represents a significant step forward,” said Wilton Rancheria Chairman Jesus Tarango. “[It] honors the Tribe’s deep and enduring connection to this land, while celebrating the diversity that defines the Sacramento region in an industry where ownership has traditionally lacked diversity.”

Former majority owner and team CEO Kevin Nagle will remain a part owner and manage the team-Tribe partnership.

Wilton Rancheria Chairman Jesus Tarango holds a custom Sacramento Republic FC jersey with his name on it at a press conference in Downtown Sacramento on Thursday, Nov. 7, 2024.Gerardo Zavala/CapRadio

Sacramento’s long fight for a Downtown soccer stadium

In 2019, city and team officials similarly held a press conference announcing plans to develop a soccer stadium and entertainment district in the Downtown Railyards. But that came with one big caveat: It would only be built if Major League Soccer picked Sacramento as a franchise location.

City Council approved the $262 million plan just days after the announcement was made. Five months later, MLS announced Sacramento Republic FC would be its newest expansion franchise. 

“In a few short years, your club has captured the hearts and minds of soccer fans in this city and throughout the region, and the entire sport has taken notice,” MLS Commissioner Don Garber said in 2019. “There is no doubt that this is a soccer city.”

The team was initially supposed to make their MLS debut in 2022. But the pandemic pushed back that start date to 2023, and then lead investor Ron Burkle backed out in 2021, scrapping Republic’s opportunity to play in the top division.

In the years since, there have been a number of rumors around new investment groups and potential MLS expansion bids, but none have come to fruition.

“If the opportunities down the road appear, I think we'll be more than welcome to that opportunity, and I think [MLS] would be more than welcome to have Sacramento's region involved in that, especially with our media market here,” he said on Thursday.

Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg and Sacramento Republic CEO Kevin Nagle shake hands at a press conference announcing plans to build a long-awaited soccer stadium on Thursday, Nov. 7, 2024.Gerardo Zavala/CapRadio

Postseason exit and a leadership change

The announcement of a new stadium comes after the end of The Indomitable Club’s 2024 season. Sacramento reached the USL Championship playoffs for the 10th time in its 11-year history, traveling to Cashman Field on Nov. 1 to face Las Vegas Lights FC in the Western Conference Quarterfinal. It was only the second time in the team’s history that Republic FC played on the road for the opening round.

The teams played to a scoreless draw after 120 minutes and the match went to a penalty shootout, which Las Vegas won 3-2.

Following their playoff exit, Republic FC announced on Nov. 4 that it was parting ways with head coach Mark Briggs after five years.

Briggs was Republic FC’s fourth head coach and the longest-tenured coach in the club’s history. He led the team to the postseason in four out of five seasons — the opening round in 2020 and 2024, the Western Conference Semifinal in 2022 and the Western Conference Final in 2023.

Briggs also coached Sacramento to a historic U.S. Open Cup final in 2022, beating three MLS teams along the way. This was the first time a second-division club reached the cup final in almost two decades.

“Sacramento is a very special place, with a one-of-a-kind club and incredible fans. I’d like to thank the players who’ve been a part of the past five years, the front office who’ve been incredibly supportive, and the fans who welcomed me into the club with tremendous passion and vigor,” Briggs said in a prepared statement earlier this week. “I’m grateful for my time here and it has been an honor to be a part of this community.”

The Legal Practice Council has refused to release records linked to professional misconduct complaints lodged against Dali Mpofu, because the advocate “did not give his consent for sharing his information”.

Several Yellowknife city councillors say they're in favour of publicly reprimanding a councillor who violated the code of ethics by trying to get the city to reimburse them for a laptop they misplaced.

The mayor of Charlottetown says P.E.I. Housing Minister Steven Myers is trying to usurp his council's power when it comes to a decision about the Community Outreach Centre’s future.

A councillor in Three Rivers, P.E.I., says the vitriol in the town has become so bad that she has trouble sleeping at night, worries what her family will hear on the streets, and can't even go to the grocery store without plotting an exit strategy.

Councillors narrowly voted to terminate David Boghosian’s employment contract with the city after several around the council table expressed dissatisfaction with his reports and investigations.

Toronto city council approved on Wednesday a plan to support the building of 20,000 new rental homes in the city.

The upcoming GST Council meeting in Rajasthan on December 21-22, 2024, may bring potential tax relief for insurance policyholders. ...

Mayoral elections today; ruling party says L-G should have considered either incumbent Mayor or most senior councillor for role to ensure fairness; AAP in habit of casting aspersions, says BJP

Inner West Council pushes ahead with cafe in park in face of strong community opposition  ABC News

A municipal councilor in Arayat, Pampanga was killed while his companion was wounded in an attack by motorcycle-riding assailants in Barangay Telapayong on Tuesday.

Cardinal Hugo de Sancto Caro is often given credit for first dividing the Latin Vulgate into chapters in the real sense, but it is the arrangement of his contemporary and fellow cardinal Stephen Langton who in 1205 A.D. created the chapter divisions which are used today. They were then inserted into Greek manuscripts of the New Testament in the 15th century. Robert Estienne (Robert Stephanus) was the first to number the verses within each chapter, his verse numbers entering printed editions in 1551 (New Testament) and 1571 (Old Testament - Hebrew Bible). The division of the Bible into chapters and verses has often elicited severe criticism from traditionalists and modern scholars alike. Critics charge that the text is often divided in an incoherent way, or at inappropriate rhetorical points [i.e. Isaiah chapter 53], and that it encourages citing passages out of context. Nevertheless, the chapter and verse numbers have become indispensable as technical references for Bible study.

Acacius' proposed creed: -- Preface: "We having yesterday assembled by the emperor's command at Seleucia, a city of Isauria, on the 27th day of September, exerted ourselves to the utmost, with all moderation, to preserve the peace of the church, and to determine doctrinal questions on prophetic and evangelical authority, so as to sanction nothing in the ecclesiastic confession of faith at variance with the sacred Scriptures, as our Emperor Constantius most beloved of God has ordered. But inasmuch as certain individuals in the Synod have acted injuriously toward several of us, preventing some from expressing their sentiments, and excluding others from the council against their wills; and at the same time have introduced such as have been deposed, and persons who were ordained contrary to the ecclesiastical canon, so that the Synod has presented a scene of tumult and disorder, of which the most illustrious Leonas, the Comes, and the most eminent Lauricius, governor of the province, have been eye-witnesses, we are therefore under the necessity of making this declaration. That we do not repudiate the faith which was ratified at the consecration of the church at Antioch; for we give it our decided preference, because it received the concurrence of our fathers who were assembled there to consider some controverted points. Since, however, the terms homoousion and homoiousion have in time past troubled the minds of many, and still continue to disquiet them; and moreover that a new term has recently been coined by some who assert the anomoion of the Son to the Father: we reject the first two, as expressions which are not found in the Scriptures; but we utterly anathematize the last, and regard such as countenance its use, as alienated from the church. We distinctly acknowledge the homoion of the Son to the Father, in accordance with what the apostle has declared concerning him, "Who is the image of the invisible God." -- Creed: "We confess then, and believe in one God the Father Almighty, the Maker of heaven and earth, and of things visible and invisible. We believe also in his Son our Lord Jesus Christ, who was begotten of him without passion before all ages, God the Word, the only-begotten of God, the Light, the Life, the Truth, the Wisdom: through whom all things were made which are in the heavens and upon the earth, whether visible or invisible. We believe that he took flesh of the holy Virgin Mary, at the end of the ages, in order to abolish sin; that he was made man, suffered for our sin, and rose again, and was taken up into the heavens, to sit at the right hand of the Father, whence he will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead. We believe also in the Holy Spirit, whom our Lord and Saviour has denominated the Comforter, and whom he sent to his disciples after his departure, according to his promise: by whom also he sanctifies all believers in the church, who are baptized in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost. Those who preach anything contrary to this creed, we regard as aliens from the catholic church."

Unity and Apostolic Truth in the Early Christianity: If I have to pick the outstanding feature of this era, then I choose the independence of the churches. People like to say that a hierarchy began to form before Nicea. It began in the 3rd century, but not in the 2nd. The ante-Nicene churches were simple and free. They found their unity in wholehearted devotion to Christ, not in a systematic theology or set of doctrines. ... Holiness in the Early Churches: The other notable thing about this era was the holiness of the early churches. Christians were still subject to intermittent persecution in the early Christianity. As a result, those who chose to follow Christ were those willing to commit everything to the kingdom of God. It could cost them their lives! Holiness and perseverance lessened as the 3rd century wore on; however, the remarkable lives of Christians during the 2nd century-their deep love for one another and their endurance during persecution-were powerful testimonies to the Romans around them. -- By the 3rd century, Christianity was becoming popular: The result was that there were Christians who were not so separated from the world as others before them. Tracts can be found calling Christians to separate from Roman entertainment and other worldly pursuits. ... Evangelism in Early Christianity: It is worth noting that unlike the apostolic era, Ante-Nicene Christianity had no famous evangelists or apostles. When Justin Martyr describes those converted to Christianity in the mid-2nd century, he says it was caused by: • The consistency they witnessed in their neighbors' lives, • the extraordinary forbearance they saw in fellow travelers when defrauded, • and the honesty of those with whom they conducted business. (First Apology 16)

Such councils include the **Council of Jerusalem (50 AD) [Acts 15:6], the Council of Rome (155 AD), the Second Council of Rome (193 AD), the Council of Ephesus (193 AD), the Council of Carthage (251 AD), the Council of Iconium (258 AD), the **Council of Antioch (264 AD), the Councils of Arabia (246-247 AD), the Council of Elvira (306 AD), the Council of Carthage (311 AD), the Synod of Neo-Caesarea (314 AD), the Council of Ancyra (314 AD) and the Council of Arles (314 AD). -- and later the **Council in Nicaea, Bithynia (Turkey) in 325 A.D.

At the time, most followers of Jesus (which historians refer to as Jewish Christians) were Jewish by birth and even converts would have considered the early Christians as a part of Judaism. According to Alister McGrath, the Jewish Christians affirmed every aspect of then contemporary (Second Temple) Judaism with the addition of the belief that Jesus was the Messiah. Unless males were circumcised, they could not be God's People. Genesis 17:14 said "No uncircumcised man will be one of my people." The meeting was called because, according to the NRSV translation of Acts 15:1-2, "Unless you are circumcised according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved." However, this command is given considerably before Moses' time, stemming from the time of Abraham (see also Abrahamic covenant), but it is cited as 'the custom of Moses' because Moses is the traditional giver of the Law as a whole. And then the circumcision mandate was made more official and binding in the Mosaic Law Covenant. Jesus himself also says in John 7:22 that Moses gave the people circumcision. It was hard for Gentile Christians to keep up with all the laws listed in the Jewish Scriptures, which many Christians came to generally call the "Old Testament", a term linked with Supersessionism.

Excellent!!

The Council of Jerusalem: We may prove this quite readily by turning to Acts 15:6-31, where we read of the first General Church Council. A serious question of doctrine arose, and "the apostles and the presbyters came together to consider this matter" (Acts 15:6). After hearing the arguments and testimony of Peter, Paul and Barnabas, the leader of the Council, James [half brother of Jesus, writer of the book of James], then passed a decree with the words, "Therefore I judge" (Acts 15:19, 'dio ego krino'). This passage describes no truly democratic process, but rather it describes submission to the judgment of a central ecclesiastical authority [an authority completely submitted to Jesus Christ]. -- After receiving the judgment of James, "it pleased the apostles and presbyters together with the whole Church" (Acts 15:22: 'apostolois kai tois presbyterois syn hole ekklesia') to dispatch delegates with a letter promulgating the decree of the Council. The council then drafted a letter in the name of "the apostles and the brother-presbyters" (Acts 15:23: 'hoi apostoloi kai hoi presbyteroi adelphoi'). This phrasing, and especially the apposition of 'presbyteroi' and 'adelphoi', is quite precise in establishing the authority of the decision of the Council in the office of the ministers who serve and lead the Church, as opposed to a democratic process. -- Does the phrase "whole Church" here refer to the universal Church, or merely to the entirety of the congregation at Jerusalem. Recalling that the leadership of the Council was comprised of the apostles who were planting local churches in the Hellenistic world, delegates of the Hellenistic churches, and the presbyters of the church at Jerusalem, we can only rightly conclude that they spoke in the name of the universal Church. Indeed, the letter explicitly states that the authors speak in the authority of the Holy Spirit (Acts 15:28); since Paul tells us that it is by one Spirit that we were baptized into one body (1 Cor. 12:13) which is Christ (1 Cor. 12:27) and over which Christ is the head (1 Eph. 1:22-23), when Luke writes in Acts 15:22 of the leadership of the whole Church assenting to the decree of James which is binding on all Gentile Christians, he is necessarily speaking of the Church in its universal or catholic sense. -- The Council then sent the letter to the local churches in Antioch, Syria and Cilicia. This letter remarks that the false doctrine which the council repudiated was in fact discernibly false because "we gave no such commandments" (Acts 15:24). Hence, the Bible tells us that right doctrine is subject to the discernment of the leadership of the whole Church. The decree of the Council of Jerusalem went on, then, to establish a binding obligation upon all Christians in the local churches of Antioch, Syria and Cilicia: "that you abstain from things offered to idols, from blood, from things strangled, and from sexual immorality" (Acts 15:29). Did the local churches bristle at this imposition of doctrine and practice from the ecclesiastical leadership of the whole Church? Not at all, but rather they "rejoiced over its encouragement" (Acts 15:31). Clearly, the Bible itself sets a precedent for the government of the universal Church by means of General Councils.

FOX Corporate Housing is certified as a Women's Business Enterprise (WBE) through the Women's Business Enterprise National Council (WBENC), the nation's largest third party certifier of businesses owned and operated by women in the US.

Developers behind one of Coventrysbiggest ever building projects face D-Day when the official application goes before the council's planning committee....

Leadership is a critical difference between the most effective and healthy Orthodox Christian parishes and ministries, and those not fulfilling their potential. If you’re a parish council member or ministry leader, join Bill to learn about the 6 Elements of the Stewardship Calling Orthodox Servant Leadership Model and how to apply them so your parish can fulfill its responsibilities and calling.

In Part 9 of his series on Bishops, Fr. Thomas looks at the canons of the 3rd Ecumenical Council.

In Part 10 of his series on Bishops, Fr. Thomas looks at the canons of the 4th Ecumenical Council.

Fr. Tom begins looking at the 102 Canons of the "Quinisext" or 5th and 6th Ecumenical Councils sometimes referred to as the Council in Trullo. Maximus the Confessor is affirmed and many Patriarchs and Popes are anathematized.

Fr. Tom continues looking at the 102 Canons of the "Quinisext" or 5th and 6th Ecumenical Councils sometimes referred to as the Council in Trullo. Today he talks about the laws concerning relationships with the Jews and the marital relationships of clergy.

As Fr. Tom continues talking about the canons found in the Council of Trullo, he looks today at those canons that speak about issues like the selling of sacraments, clergy behavior, and the settlement of controversies.

What are the canons about clergy marriage? What should the clergy wear out on the street? Why is water mixed with wine in the Eucharist? These and other issues are addressed in this episode with Fr. Thomas Hopko.

The canons under discussion today by Fr. Tom deal with the rank and place of hierarchical sees and how that is affecting the structure of the Church today.

As Fr. Tom continues his reflections on this historic council, he today speaks about monasticism, baptism, and marriage.

Some interesting canons are discussed in today's program including a canon against feigning insanity!

As Fr. Tom continues his look at the so called Quintisext councils, the issues of church attendance and mixed marriages are among the topics addressed.

What is the Orthodox teaching about remarriage after adultery? What about re-baptism of one brought into the Church? Fr. Tom talks about this and more in today's episode.

In this final episode on the so called Council in Trullo or the 5th and 6th Ecumenical Councils, Fr. Tom completes his commentary on the 102 canons. This includes the issue of not kneeling in church on Sunday, how to bring in Christians from other denominations, the creation and consumption of pornography, and more.

The Orthodox Church is the Church of the 7 Councils and the 7th one is far more important than some would believe. Learn about the importance of Icons as well as the importance of the Holy Scriptures.

Fr. Tom is exploring the canons of the 7th Ecumenical Council held in Nicea and today talks about bishops who are appointed by secular heads of state as well as the frequency and nature of the meetings of bishops.

Fr. Tom continues his look at the canons of the 7th Ecumenical Council including those that have to do with the books written by the iconoclasts, relics in the altar, and the financial affairs of the Church.