WEBVTT 1 00:02:26.396 --> 00:02:33.987 Audio sounds great. 2 00:02:34.776 --> 00:02:35.229 Awesome. 3 00:02:37.822 --> 00:02:39.876 Mind if I test out the screen share? 4 00:02:41.096 --> 00:02:41.641 Yeah, go for it. 5 00:02:42.700 --> 00:02:47.611 Great. 6 00:02:50.710 --> 00:02:53.375 Okay, that's working. 7 00:02:53.713 --> 00:02:54.812 It's getting there. 8 00:02:55.022 --> 00:02:56.153 Hasn't started yet. 9 00:02:57.526 --> 00:02:58.931 Okay. 10 00:03:00.527 --> 00:03:05.175 Uh, I see your Zoom, uh, login page. 11 00:03:05.368 --> 00:03:06.842 Is that the page you were intending to show? 12 00:03:06.914 --> 00:03:07.616 Oh, there, that looks better. 13 00:03:12.359 --> 00:03:14.981 It's a slide deck, but it's not at full screen. 14 00:03:18.079 --> 00:03:19.741 How about now? 15 00:03:20.663 --> 00:03:21.745 Beautiful, perfect. 16 00:03:21.890 --> 00:03:22.713 Okay, great. 17 00:03:22.794 --> 00:03:26.122 I'm gonna stop sharing and I'll come back to it one more time. 18 00:03:26.441 --> 00:03:27.562 Sounds great, thank you. 19 00:05:48.178 --> 00:05:53.100 Okay, good afternoon. 20 00:05:53.182 --> 00:06:03.230 I am going to call the meeting I now call the meeting of the Housing and Permitting Committee to order on Tuesday, October 20th, at 2:01 PM. 21 00:06:03.874 --> 00:06:04.935 Diego, please call the roll. 22 00:06:05.610 --> 00:06:06.012 Good afternoon. 23 00:06:06.447 --> 00:06:06.737 Green? 24 00:06:07.800 --> 00:06:07.865 Here. 25 00:06:08.461 --> 00:06:08.911 Pirtle-Guiney? 26 00:06:10.877 --> 00:06:12.117 Here. 27 00:06:12.793 --> 00:06:13.196 Novick? 28 00:06:14.002 --> 00:06:14.130 Here. 29 00:06:14.730 --> 00:06:14.961 Avalos? 30 00:06:15.223 --> 00:06:15.569 Present. 31 00:06:16.475 --> 00:06:18.086 Claire, can you please read the statement of conduct? 32 00:06:19.490 --> 00:06:20.007 Thank you, Chair. 33 00:06:20.411 --> 00:06:22.935 Good afternoon and welcome to the meeting of the Housing and Permitting Committee. 34 00:06:23.346 --> 00:06:33.947 To testify before this committee in person or virtually, you must sign up in advance on the committee agenda at portland.gov/council/agenda/housingandpermittingcommittee or by calling 311. 35 00:06:34.639 --> 00:06:37.827 Registration for virtual testimony closes 1 hour prior to the meeting. 36 00:06:38.423 --> 00:06:41.610 In-person testifiers must sign up before the agenda item is heard. 37 00:06:42.447 --> 00:06:47.798 If public testimony will be taken on an item, individuals may testify for 3 minutes unless the chair states otherwise. 38 00:06:48.473 --> 00:06:50.401 Your microphone will be muted when your time is over. 39 00:06:51.062 --> 00:06:51.992 The chair preserves order. 40 00:06:52.201 --> 00:07:00.086 Disruptive conduct such as shouting, refusing to conclude your testimony when your time is up, or interrupting others' testimony or committee deliberations will not be allowed. 41 00:07:00.824 --> 00:07:02.699 If you cause a disruption, a warning will be given. 42 00:07:03.069 --> 00:07:05.297 Further disruption will result in ejection from the meeting. 43 00:07:05.793 --> 00:07:08.726 Anyone who fails to leave once ejected is subject to arrest for trespass. 44 00:07:09.416 --> 00:07:12.350 Additionally, the committee may take a short recess and reconvene virtually. 45 00:07:13.247 --> 00:07:15.154 Your testimony should address the matter being considered. 46 00:07:15.492 --> 00:07:17.223 When testifying, state your name for the record. 47 00:07:17.687 --> 00:07:20.237 If you are a lobbyist, identify the organization you represent. 48 00:07:20.637 --> 00:07:24.341 And finally, virtual testifiers should unmute themselves when the clerk calls your name. 49 00:07:24.564 --> 00:07:24.822 Thank you. 50 00:07:26.007 --> 00:07:26.504 Thank you, Claire. 51 00:07:27.209 --> 00:07:29.374 We have 2 main items on today's agenda. 52 00:07:29.454 --> 00:07:40.370 We'll start off as we always do with some public comments on housing and permitting issues of concern or interest, and then we will have ample time for public testimony and discussion on the climate and health standards policy. 53 00:07:41.060 --> 00:07:44.798 But before we get to those items, we need to adopt climate our committee minutes. 54 00:07:45.632 --> 00:07:53.425 Uh, and so let's see, we are approving our committee minutes for our September meetings, and they are approved by unanimous consent. 55 00:07:53.608 --> 00:07:54.781 So are there any objections? 56 00:07:56.605 --> 00:07:58.454 Seeing none, minutes are approved. 57 00:07:58.956 --> 00:08:00.204 Diego, please read item 2. 58 00:08:01.649 --> 00:08:07.526 Item 2, document number 2026-376, Housing and Permitting Community Feedback. 59 00:08:08.072 --> 00:08:12.672 Great, we will, um, take some feedback from community on issues related to housing and permitting. 60 00:08:12.735 --> 00:08:13.685 So, uh, go ahead and call up our testifiers. 61 00:08:16.290 --> 00:08:18.004 We have 3 individuals signed up. 62 00:08:18.329 --> 00:08:23.442 Lacey Sutton, Brian Owendoff, Amber Cook. 63 00:08:28.459 --> 00:08:29.103 Welcome. 64 00:08:31.605 --> 00:08:32.475 Go ahead. 65 00:08:33.927 --> 00:08:48.913 I once asked an expert if a tree on our property, a 125-foot-tall, 50-inch-wide Douglas fir was more likely to fall away from the damage Habitat for Humanity did to its critical root system during construction, or toward it? 66 00:08:49.732 --> 00:08:52.320 Away from our houses or toward them? 67 00:08:52.946 --> 00:08:54.552 And I will never forget his response. 68 00:08:55.019 --> 00:08:57.783 He asked me, do you like going to Vegas? 69 00:08:58.794 --> 00:08:59.470 And I said no. 70 00:09:00.336 --> 00:09:01.332 And he said, me neither. 71 00:09:02.650 --> 00:09:06.201 The city of Portland, though, likes going to Vegas. 72 00:09:06.827 --> 00:09:08.337 Habitat likes going to Vegas. 73 00:09:08.386 --> 00:09:08.499 Thank you. 74 00:09:09.013 --> 00:09:11.804 Likes betting on our lives, on our children's lives. 75 00:09:12.687 --> 00:09:16.635 They both know we don't have the resources to take them on in court. 76 00:09:17.341 --> 00:09:24.900 They know that will change if that tree falls toward the damage they caused and allowed, especially after I've been making such a fuss about it. 77 00:09:25.702 --> 00:09:28.110 Over a year ago, I filed a code complaint. 78 00:09:28.527 --> 00:09:33.518 I sent the city photos of the excavation and construction that occurred horrifically close to this tree. 79 00:09:33.967 --> 00:09:34.947 You don't have to be an expert. 80 00:09:35.010 --> 00:09:35.106 Thank you. 81 00:09:35.331 --> 00:09:39.090 To see it, but they sent out an inspector, said the tree was fine. 82 00:09:40.251 --> 00:09:41.849 Does that sound familiar to you? 83 00:09:44.019 --> 00:09:46.750 Wasn't there just a lawsuit that went something like this? 84 00:09:46.927 --> 00:09:51.250 The city said it was fine, and then the tree fell on the house and nearly killed a child. 85 00:09:52.312 --> 00:09:56.357 Did anybody learn anything from that, or did we just cut them a check? 86 00:09:58.537 --> 00:10:03.179 I set up my phone on the ground near our tree on Thursday night, which was a little windy. 87 00:10:03.803 --> 00:10:08.927 And I sent the video I took to the highly qualified arborist who was doing a risk assessment for us. 88 00:10:09.710 --> 00:10:13.254 I asked if it was normal for the ground to move like that. 89 00:10:16.789 --> 00:10:22.024 He told me this tree's likelihood of failure is imminent, not just possible or probable. 90 00:10:22.750 --> 00:10:23.490 Imminent. 91 00:10:24.296 --> 00:10:30.938 In the arbor— arboricultural world, that word means it could fall over at any minute. 92 00:10:30.988 --> 00:10:31.248 Oh, my God. 93 00:10:31.864 --> 00:10:38.370 Emergency removal is required now, and it's going to be expensive because the tree is so close to the house. 94 00:10:38.433 --> 00:10:40.265 They might need a crane or 2. 95 00:10:40.860 --> 00:10:42.225 We may have to evacuate. 96 00:10:43.254 --> 00:10:45.840 Do you have any idea how that might disrupt our lives? 97 00:10:46.402 --> 00:10:47.125 Where are we going to go? 98 00:10:47.928 --> 00:10:49.390 A hotel for a day or 2? 99 00:10:50.322 --> 00:10:54.225 We can't afford to pay for this, and I'm not going to waste my time explaining that. 100 00:10:54.434 --> 00:10:55.993 We shouldn't have to pay for it. 101 00:10:56.668 --> 00:10:58.355 This is on Habitat, and it's on the city. 102 00:10:59.089 --> 00:11:02.114 And I don't even care how you want to split the bill. 103 00:11:03.674 --> 00:11:11.259 I don't care where the money comes from, so long as it's not our wallets, our dinner tables, our gas tanks, our medicine cabinets. 104 00:11:11.763 --> 00:11:13.514 I've done enough figuring this out. 105 00:11:15.655 --> 00:11:16.524 It's your turn now. 106 00:11:17.427 --> 00:11:19.535 Figure this out for us today. 107 00:11:20.566 --> 00:11:27.011 Kids are going to be getting off the bus in an hour, and the arborist said he wouldn't even park his car near that tree. 108 00:11:27.077 --> 00:11:27.211 Thank you. 109 00:11:27.833 --> 00:11:34.950 10 children will sleep under it tonight in a building he assured me this tree would slice in half. 110 00:11:36.527 --> 00:11:41.529 But hey, it's like a 50/50 chance, and maybe it falls away, you know. 111 00:11:41.595 --> 00:11:43.613 So like heads or tails, you know. 112 00:11:45.854 --> 00:11:46.890 I'm gonna see you guys tomorrow. 113 00:11:47.134 --> 00:11:47.442 Thank you. 114 00:11:47.716 --> 00:11:51.120 Thank you, Lacey. 115 00:11:52.173 --> 00:11:53.470 My name is Brian Owendoff. 116 00:11:53.534 --> 00:11:57.376 I'm a District 4 resident, business owner, and commercial real estate professional with more than 30 years of experience. 117 00:11:59.813 --> 00:12:09.804 Since 2008, I've delivered $1.5 billion of office, apartment, and mixed-use developments in Portland's urban core and have completed more than 5 million feet of office leasing over my career. 118 00:12:10.681 --> 00:12:14.366 I understand what attracts investment and what drives it away. 119 00:12:16.679 --> 00:12:25.346 Portland has an income problem and a jobs problem, yet City Hall keeps proposing new mandates that makes doing business more expensive. 120 00:12:26.394 --> 00:12:48.083 For the past 20 months, the Peacocks has operated as a bad idea factory, churning out DSA and ACLU-backed policy experiments that do virtually nothing to address Portland's most urgent problems: public safety, homelessness, untreated mental illness, economic decline, and the deteriorating quality of life for all Portland residents. 121 00:12:48.886 --> 00:12:57.649 Instead of governing, you've prioritized ideological posturing over practical solutions and political agendas over the needs of the people who elected you. 122 00:12:59.750 --> 00:13:04.690 Instead of governing, you've prioritized ideological posturing. 123 00:13:05.350 --> 00:13:10.150 This 2026-377 legislation is among the most reckless yet. 124 00:13:10.701 --> 00:13:17.513 Its potential economic damage threatens to surpass even the harm inflicted by your previous parade of disastrous policies. 125 00:13:18.107 --> 00:13:19.605 Portland's businesses are struggling. 126 00:13:19.798 --> 00:13:20.799 Investment is fleeing. 127 00:13:21.192 --> 00:13:28.633 Employers are reconsidering their future here, and taxpayers are increasingly being asked to subsidize the consequences of your failures. 128 00:13:29.469 --> 00:13:30.722 How many businesses must leave? 129 00:13:31.318 --> 00:13:33.042 How many jobs must disappear? 130 00:13:34.684 --> 00:13:40.000 How much more investment must Portland lose before this council accepts responsibility for the damage it's causing? 131 00:13:42.113 --> 00:13:47.177 Portland does not need another ideological experiment designed to satisfy political activists. 132 00:13:47.826 --> 00:13:54.548 It needs competent leadership, fiscal discipline, public safety, and policies grounded on economic reality. 133 00:13:55.365 --> 00:14:02.440 Your job is to govern for all Portlanders, not to use the city as a laboratory for the DSA's political agenda. 134 00:14:03.225 --> 00:14:04.653 Stop manufacturing problems. 135 00:14:05.326 --> 00:14:12.000 Stop punishing the people who create jobs and generate tax revenue and start fixing the city you have been entrusted to lead. 136 00:14:12.288 --> 00:14:12.625 Thank you. 137 00:14:12.787 --> 00:14:13.636 Thank you. 138 00:14:16.618 --> 00:14:17.475 Amber is online. 139 00:14:17.816 --> 00:14:20.099 Amber, you're welcome to unmute and begin when you're ready. 140 00:14:23.919 --> 00:14:24.452 Great, thank you. 141 00:14:25.714 --> 00:14:27.072 Greetings, committee members. 142 00:14:27.509 --> 00:14:28.738 My name is Amber Cook. 143 00:14:29.302 --> 00:14:34.962 I'm here with some testimony on the recurring misconduct of our housing authority leaders. 144 00:14:35.998 --> 00:14:42.759 Last month, Andrea Bell, the director of the state housing agency, was exposed for misconduct and ethics violations. 145 00:14:43.552 --> 00:14:55.253 She neglected to disclose that she is married this whole time and that her husband works in housing development, running a company that her housing agency has awarded millions of dollars to. 146 00:14:56.695 --> 00:15:11.520 A year ago, Maggie Harris sat on the Housing Stability Council and repeatedly voted yes on giving the architecture firm she works for 4 different lucrative housing contracts with no disclosure until a member of the public watching those meetings exposed her. 147 00:15:13.059 --> 00:15:22.918 Our city housing officials are highly paid and also fired or removed very expensively on our backs, even when misconduct is involved. 148 00:15:23.768 --> 00:15:35.405 As we all know, you know, this year with Ivory Matthews, CEO of Home Forward, forced to step down after being exposed for abusing taxpayer money and disability discrimination, right? 149 00:15:35.470 --> 00:15:44.754 She left with $171,000 severance plus another $500,000 in career— $50,000, excuse me, in career transition services. 150 00:15:45.413 --> 00:16:00.970 That's $220,000 we taxpayers paid for her abusing us above her $343,000 yearly salary, along with car allowance, and of course the $100K or more she stole from us for vacations she didn't have to pay back. 151 00:16:02.649 --> 00:16:07.297 OJEC opened an investigation on Maggie Harris, but she was only issued a warning letter. 152 00:16:08.532 --> 00:16:26.596 It's disturbing that we taxpayers are burdened with paying them so much of our money for salaries that have mysteriously skyrocketed each and every year in the last decade, while riding atop a 14-year housing crisis that is only getting substantially worse every single year. 153 00:16:28.614 --> 00:16:39.337 To see how much misconduct is occurring unchecked and unpunished is also disturbing, and worse knowing we will again be footing the shockingly large bill for their safety nets. 154 00:16:40.196 --> 00:16:46.876 How much will Bell get for her knowing violations that have been enriching her household unethically for the last 2 to 3 years? 155 00:16:48.366 --> 00:16:56.394 What chance is there that there is no link between the degree of misconduct being allowed and the length and the severity of the housing crisis? 156 00:16:57.596 --> 00:17:08.939 How is it Portlanders are told that we lack money in the budget for basic services, but somehow there's yet another golden parachute for the next criminal director or CEO of housing? 157 00:17:09.035 --> 00:17:09.194 Thank you. 158 00:17:11.369 --> 00:17:13.208 Salaries, they do need to be reconsidered. 159 00:17:14.640 --> 00:17:16.384 Golden parachutes eliminated. 160 00:17:17.174 --> 00:17:18.806 Misconduct punished. 161 00:17:19.984 --> 00:17:23.717 And I hope this committee will call for it even stronger at the city level. 162 00:17:24.855 --> 00:17:25.067 Thank you. 163 00:17:26.791 --> 00:17:27.914 That concludes testimony. 164 00:17:31.477 --> 00:17:36.198 Thank you for your time and sharing, um, your comments with us. 165 00:17:37.981 --> 00:17:40.602 Let's get some follow-up on some of those if you want to reach out to my office. 166 00:17:42.928 --> 00:17:45.897 Okay, so, oh yeah, go ahead and call the next item, please. 167 00:17:47.705 --> 00:17:53.655 Item 3, document number 2026-377, Climate and Health Standard. 168 00:17:54.153 --> 00:18:10.243 Add climate and health standards for building codes to reduce carbon emissions of commercial and multifamily residential buildings and provide information to tenants to improve the affordability, health, and resilience of rental housing, replace Code Chapter 17.104. 169 00:18:12.069 --> 00:18:12.345 Thank you. 170 00:18:12.409 --> 00:18:12.909 That's a mouthful. 171 00:18:12.990 --> 00:18:13.795 Appreciate you, Diego. 172 00:18:14.647 --> 00:18:23.606 Um, all right, so colleagues, we are moving forward with our next step in the process of considering code changes to adopt the climate and health standards for large buildings in Portland. 173 00:18:24.398 --> 00:18:42.304 This is an exciting policy because it tackles multiple problems with rental housing at once: a lack of information about a building's energy use and cost burden for tenants considering applying to rent a unit, And the huge cumulative impact of pollution emitted by Portland buildings due to combustion of fossil fuels and wood on site for heating. 174 00:18:43.074 --> 00:18:46.907 By adopting the climate and health standards, we can solve both of these issues at the same time. 175 00:18:47.566 --> 00:18:54.160 We can create an environment where Portlanders breathe clean air that is unpolluted by the appliances in large commercial and residential buildings. 176 00:18:54.769 --> 00:19:00.689 We can make it so that renters know upfront before signing a lease how much to budget for their energy bills and whether a unit has air conditioning. 177 00:19:01.428 --> 00:19:04.784 This is essential information in our current affordability crisis. 178 00:19:05.459 --> 00:19:10.967 Electricity bills in Portland have risen by 50% on average over the past 5 years, outpacing inflation. 179 00:19:12.027 --> 00:19:15.463 This is also essential information for all of us living in a climate crisis. 180 00:19:16.122 --> 00:19:30.885 Climate change is making it so that extreme heat events happen increasingly often, such as the 2021 heat dome that tragically claimed the lives of dozens and dozens of our community members, many of whom many of whom were at home and without cooling. 181 00:19:32.690 --> 00:19:37.921 A whopping 42% of our city's carbon footprint comes from heating, cooling, and powering buildings. 182 00:19:38.597 --> 00:19:49.287 By reducing allowed emissions gradually over time, we can help ensure that our city meets its climate emergency work plan goals and successfully achieves zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. 183 00:19:50.611 --> 00:19:52.682 These are important housing policy issues. 184 00:19:53.432 --> 00:19:57.728 It is up to us to do our part and target the emissions that we cannot impact by making different choices in our everyday lives. 185 00:19:59.259 --> 00:20:04.912 Our constituents are looking to us to make sure that everyone does their fair share to address our city's contribution to climate change. 186 00:20:05.730 --> 00:20:06.919 And everything that we do matters. 187 00:20:07.352 --> 00:20:16.987 Lowering emissions means better weather outcomes long-term, and many of the same solutions that lower greenhouse gas emissions also make us better prepared to survive and thrive amidst increasing extreme weather. 188 00:20:18.415 --> 00:20:29.398 The state of Oregon has passed policy requiring our 2 biggest electric utilities to be emissions-free by 2040, and the state has passed building performance standards that help address commercial buildings 20,000 square feet and larger. 189 00:20:29.833 --> 00:20:32.900 And residential buildings 35,000 square feet and larger. 190 00:20:33.686 --> 00:20:40.721 But we have heard from our experts at the Bureau of Planning and Sustainability that the state policies don't go far enough to address pollution from Portland buildings. 191 00:20:41.621 --> 00:20:53.410 Our climate and health standards would cover about 40% of Portland's building sector emissions, making a substantial dent in the sector where all hands are on deck are needed between large building owners and small-scale property owners. 192 00:20:54.486 --> 00:21:08.025 We spent a good deal of our time at our Housing and Permitting Committee meeting on October 6th, earlier this month, learning about the history of this policy proposal, 6 years in the making with extensive community engagement throughout the process. 193 00:21:09.020 --> 00:21:22.063 We also had a chance to ask questions and hear from experts near and far about how we landed at this particular approach and how other cities with building standards have dealt with it, such as Seattle, New York, Boston, and Cambridge, Massachusetts. 194 00:21:23.219 --> 00:21:30.670 Now it is time to dig back into this policy, get a refresher on what it does, how we got here, and hear from the public about their current thoughts on the proposal. 195 00:21:31.344 --> 00:21:33.190 And then we will move to public testimony. 196 00:21:33.287 --> 00:21:43.113 I'll note for members of the public that we will be limiting testimony to 2 minutes per person since we have over 40 people signed up to testify, so we can make sure to get through all of that in this meeting. 197 00:21:43.852 --> 00:21:47.480 And then we'll have an opportunity to discuss the policy as councilors on this committee. 198 00:21:48.836 --> 00:21:52.801 I will also hand out some documents here, um, for the committee members in a moment. 199 00:21:53.931 --> 00:22:05.099 So to kick us off, I am excited to announce my newest team member, Damon Mott Story, our Director of Policy and Communications, to ground our discussion in where we have been so far. 200 00:22:05.211 --> 00:22:06.969 So Damon, take it away. 201 00:22:08.726 --> 00:22:09.922 Thank you so much, Councilor Avalos. 202 00:22:10.067 --> 00:22:10.713 Can you hear me okay? 203 00:22:11.715 --> 00:22:13.605 Can we put up the volume in the chambers? 204 00:22:14.214 --> 00:22:14.586 Try again. 205 00:22:15.733 --> 00:22:18.173 Testing, 1, 2, 3, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. 206 00:22:19.125 --> 00:22:19.771 That sound all right? 207 00:22:23.380 --> 00:22:26.159 Okay, one more time, Damon. 208 00:22:27.347 --> 00:22:29.180 Testing, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. 209 00:22:29.259 --> 00:22:29.919 Can you hear me all right? 210 00:22:30.079 --> 00:22:30.561 Much better. 211 00:22:30.962 --> 00:22:31.203 Thank you. 212 00:22:31.285 --> 00:22:31.541 Good afternoon. 213 00:22:31.605 --> 00:22:32.747 It's wonderful to be with you all. 214 00:22:32.810 --> 00:22:39.178 For the record, my name is Damon Mott Storey, um, and I am here to present a quick recap on the climate and health standards. 215 00:22:39.671 --> 00:22:40.645 I'm going to share my screen. 216 00:22:47.690 --> 00:22:48.204 Right, here we go. 217 00:22:48.848 --> 00:22:56.190 All right, so the climate and health standards, as Councilor Avalos was sharing with us, were shared in greater detail on October 6th. 218 00:22:56.817 --> 00:23:04.465 I'm going to take us through just a quick recap of the policy and that discussion, and we'll go through real quick here so we can get to the testimony. 219 00:23:04.515 --> 00:23:04.627 Thank you. 220 00:23:05.574 --> 00:23:07.549 So, uh, part 1, the problem. 221 00:23:07.823 --> 00:23:09.124 What are we actually trying to solve? 222 00:23:09.348 --> 00:23:10.087 Let's get into it. 223 00:23:11.276 --> 00:23:14.939 So large buildings in Portland are a major source of pollution and carbon emissions. 224 00:23:15.452 --> 00:23:23.034 They're a combined total of 42% of the city of Portland's emissions, and 16% of the city's emissions come from large buildings alone. 225 00:23:23.724 --> 00:23:27.788 It's not just carbon pollution that we're solving for here, it's also air pollution. 226 00:23:28.784 --> 00:23:35.357 Buildings make up cumulative a really large source of indoor and outdoor nitrogen oxide pollution. 227 00:23:36.115 --> 00:23:44.027 So solving for greenhouse gas emissions in this equation also solves for a public health issue that impacts Portlanders regardless of where they live. 228 00:23:45.980 --> 00:23:51.385 Breaking it down a little bit, the reason for this is that building energy use is currently a mix of a whole lot of different things. 229 00:23:51.499 --> 00:24:00.865 So it's electricity, of course, and that electricity is powered by both renewables and fossil fuels, a big mix of electricity from Pacific Power and Portland General Electric. 230 00:24:01.893 --> 00:24:07.234 In some buildings, there's still things like oil and wood burning that is used for energy use. 231 00:24:07.669 --> 00:24:19.267 And then a lot of buildings also rely on gas appliances, furnaces, hot water heaters, etc., that also vent to the outdoor air and contribute to greenhouse gas and air pollution. 232 00:24:20.357 --> 00:24:22.219 So this is the energy mix of buildings right now. 233 00:24:23.086 --> 00:24:39.009 Our dream and our vision for 2050 is that Portland buildings are powered by 100% emissions-free electricity, and that's because Oregon law requires Pacific Power and Portland General Electric to switch to 100% emissions-free electricity by 2040. 234 00:24:40.086 --> 00:24:52.336 And then with the climate and health standards, we would gradually, gradually move towards reducing emissions in large buildings in Portland and ensure that the electricity that they're powered by comes from those renewable sources. 235 00:24:53.958 --> 00:25:02.044 Another large part of the problem is that energy costs for rentals are not transparent, and we're in the midst of a really historic affordability crisis. 236 00:25:02.973 --> 00:25:13.515 Now, as we heard a little bit ago, both of our major electric utilities have increased rates by a very large amount over the past 5 years that has outpaced inflation. 237 00:25:14.589 --> 00:25:28.471 In just this one example, Oregon Citizens Utility Board spokesperson Charlotte Schuff was sharing it with OPB earlier this year, that there's been a nearly 50% increase between 2021 and 2025 for PGE alone. 238 00:25:28.616 --> 00:25:30.955 So these costs are really stacking up. 239 00:25:31.421 --> 00:25:49.713 And as we heard at the committee hearing on October 6th, Taryn Evans from the Coalition of Communities of Color reminded us that in many of the workshops around energy burden and cost, that they heard about tough choices that many communities community members face, such as choosing to pay energy bills or for medication and groceries. 240 00:25:49.761 --> 00:25:52.458 These are choices that people should never have to choose between. 241 00:25:53.566 --> 00:26:08.294 And so by, you know, making these costs more transparent and allowing people to plan and prepare and also know about the utility bill assistance programs, we can help to solve this issue and, and solve the problem of energy burden. 242 00:26:10.135 --> 00:26:19.590 We've heard a little bit also about Oregon's building performance standards, a law passed in 2023 that addresses building performance and energy efficiency statewide. 243 00:26:20.458 --> 00:26:29.320 Now, this is a pretty busy slide that I'm not going to go super in-depth on, but you can check out the Oregon Department of Energy's website for this graphic and more information. 244 00:26:30.010 --> 00:26:38.328 The bottom line here is that the state standard only covers commercial buildings over 20,000 square feet and residential buildings over 35,000 square feet. 245 00:26:38.376 --> 00:26:38.424 Okay. 246 00:26:38.924 --> 00:26:43.007 And that leaves a significant amount of Portland's building emissions uncovered. 247 00:26:43.604 --> 00:26:58.519 We heard from the Bureau of Planning and Sustainability on October 6th that that would only get at about 5% of the carbon emissions from Portland's covered buildings, but that our climate and health standards, if passed, would cover about 40% of Portland's building sector emissions. 248 00:26:59.470 --> 00:27:04.229 So this helps to fill in the gaps, which brings me to the solution, right? 249 00:27:04.278 --> 00:27:06.051 So this So, this was the problem. 250 00:27:06.244 --> 00:27:10.220 Now, the climate and health solution— climate and health standards are the solution. 251 00:27:10.396 --> 00:27:12.223 And let's take a look at what that means. 252 00:27:12.817 --> 00:27:27.693 The ordinance itself does sort of 3 broad category issues: multifamily residential annual energy reporting, adding residential buildings to the already existing standard for commercial annual energy reporting for buildings. 253 00:27:28.528 --> 00:27:36.761 And that just means that we are tracking the data much better for what our large buildings are doing and how much energy they're consuming and from what sources. 254 00:27:38.239 --> 00:27:46.428 The ordinance also sets minimum carbon performance standards, and that's the mechanism by which we actually track reducing emissions from large buildings down to zero. 255 00:27:47.791 --> 00:27:55.836 And then the climate and health information and transparency for tenants, and this is about disclosing energy costs up front so that people can make informed decisions. 256 00:27:56.366 --> 00:28:01.568 About whether to rent an apartment based on its energy mix and cost. 257 00:28:03.029 --> 00:28:05.230 Let's get into that for— that one first. 258 00:28:05.776 --> 00:28:17.834 So the idea behind this is that we want to be able to make it a standard for Portlanders to expect that there's clear and transparent information about the costs of a potential unit that they are going to rent. 259 00:28:18.477 --> 00:28:29.541 So the ordinance will require building owners to track and disclose the energy cost peaks and averages for units' utility bills, what kinds of energy cost assistance programs are available. 260 00:28:29.670 --> 00:28:40.569 These programs have expanded significantly over the past 5 years, and so there is a lot of support for folks that are struggling to pay utility bills, but often people just don't even know that that support exists. 261 00:28:41.530 --> 00:28:54.553 And then the other piece of information disclosed will be the types of appliances in the unit, such as whether a unit has central air conditioning or some form of cooling, and whether the unit has a gas furnace, electric heat pump, etc. 262 00:28:55.196 --> 00:29:04.608 And these kinds of pieces of information will help tenants to be able to make informed decisions about what kinds of energy use is in their apartment and how much it costs. 263 00:29:06.886 --> 00:29:19.301 The carbon performance standards mean that we're going to be on a gradual and, and very realistic timeline from now to 2050 to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from large buildings. 264 00:29:20.521 --> 00:29:23.316 Owners can select a baseline reporting year that works for them. 265 00:29:23.364 --> 00:29:31.905 There's a lot of flexibility and a lot of options for alternative compliance pathways that help to meet the unique needs of different types of buildings and building owners. 266 00:29:32.757 --> 00:29:51.622 But the basic gist of all of this is that we want everybody to be on the same track for reducing emissions to 100% emissions-free and here you can see the ways that that's been split out, starting in 20% reductions in 2030 and then an additional 20% every 5 years. 267 00:29:52.682 --> 00:30:01.355 And again, the reason that this works is that we are counting on the state law for PGE and Pacific Power to deliver 100% emissions-free electricity by 2040. 268 00:30:01.452 --> 00:30:02.943 That's an essential component of this. 269 00:30:05.541 --> 00:30:07.798 Another component of this, as I was Uh, thank you. 270 00:30:07.877 --> 00:30:16.054 So, the first thing I was mentioning is that we have phased flexible timeline with plenty of alternatives and options for compliances— options for compliance. 271 00:30:16.261 --> 00:30:19.676 And, uh, and, and there's a couple of different broad category things here. 272 00:30:19.868 --> 00:30:28.877 Regulated affordable housing is exempt, and we're seeing that a lot of that is already being covered by Portland Clean Energy Fund grants and other types of programs. 273 00:30:28.925 --> 00:30:31.955 So those buildings are already becoming very green and clean. 274 00:30:32.692 --> 00:30:44.396 And then there's there's a carbon pollution impact fee if a large building's energy usage is off track, and this helps to incentivize the kinds of upgrades and retrofits that we want to see in order to get emissions reductions. 275 00:30:45.472 --> 00:30:59.088 There are alternative compliance pathways for institutional campuses that have large shared energy systems, and so there are options and flexibility for compliance and special considerations for those kinds of energy users. 276 00:30:59.907 --> 00:31:06.394 And basically, additional considerations and exemptions will be made on a case-by-case basis under the policy as written. 277 00:31:07.212 --> 00:31:26.547 The idea here is that everybody's going to be headed towards 100% emissions reductions by 2050, but that there is a wide range of different kinds of buildings, ages, construction types, maybe upgrades that have already been made or deferred maintenance, and there's just a lot of different unique needs between different buildings. 278 00:31:26.659 --> 00:31:34.729 And so the policy intentionally has a lot of flexibility to make it as easy as possible for all sorts of different types of building owners to comply. 279 00:31:37.167 --> 00:31:50.534 A really important piece of feedback that was received over the many years of community engagement done by both the city and community-based organizations is that we heard pretty extensive Thank you. 280 00:31:50.662 --> 00:31:56.731 Councilmember Herbold, I think you mentioned this extensively, that tenant protections and anti-displacement measures for renters was really paramount importance in this process. 281 00:31:57.663 --> 00:32:07.328 It's important to focus on improving the health and efficiency of, of rental housing in Portland, but not at the expense of stability for renters. 282 00:32:07.988 --> 00:32:15.663 And so the policy has a number of different guardrails and sideboards to make sure that tenants are kept in place and can stay at home. 283 00:32:16.656 --> 00:32:50.594 And in the event that— in a very rare case in which a building upgrade would require temporary relocation for a tenant, there is extensive language in the ordinance that would help to make it very clear how to support that tenant, what the landlord's responsibility is if there is a need for a temporary relocation, a guarantee of a right to return to the same dwelling unit after those upgrades are complete, and also a whole other section that essentially just says the cost from the carbon performance standard retrofits and fees should not be passed on through to residential tenants. 284 00:32:51.298 --> 00:33:07.964 And we also discussed at the October 6th meeting an Eco Northwest study that that was performed, taking a look at the possible economic impacts to building owners and renters, and it found that there would really be no net impact to the cost of rent and utilities. 285 00:33:08.291 --> 00:33:11.113 For tenants in buildings that get upgraded. 286 00:33:13.430 --> 00:33:23.117 Finally, just sort of zooming out a little bit, this is just a recap on the really extensive community engagement and collaborative policymaking that has gone into this ordinance so far. 287 00:33:23.877 --> 00:33:33.565 There have been 60 different organizations that have been engaged in various ways, and that spans housing, industry, real estate, higher education, healthcare, and environmental justice. 288 00:33:33.791 --> 00:33:34.722 To stakeholders. 289 00:33:35.461 --> 00:33:49.085 There's been many multiple rounds of feedback and revision over the course of 6 years where the Bureau of Planning and Sustainability has worked collaboratively with a number of different community-based organizations that have worked on energy issues for a long time. 290 00:33:50.064 --> 00:33:55.663 And then in addition to all of that, Councilor Avalos convened her own feedback and input workshop in preparation for this discussion. 291 00:33:55.777 --> 00:34:09.282 So it's been a long road coming here, but now it's time for the City Council committee to really dig into it and, and discuss and make any other further observations that need to be made. 292 00:34:10.268 --> 00:34:14.289 And I look forward to being a part of helping to answer questions as part of that conversation. 293 00:34:14.860 --> 00:34:17.898 So that's my recap of the climate and health standards. 294 00:34:18.932 --> 00:34:21.083 And with that, I will pass it back to you, Chair Avalos. 295 00:34:22.715 --> 00:34:23.750 Thank you so much, Damon. 296 00:34:23.864 --> 00:34:28.137 Really grateful to have you on the team and appreciate you explaining the policy. 297 00:34:28.938 --> 00:34:32.818 So, um, we have a ton of testifiers. 298 00:34:33.186 --> 00:34:38.829 I'm sure we also have some questions that we will have as a committee and maybe technical questions. 299 00:34:39.327 --> 00:34:43.847 Are there any quick technical questions we want to get out of the way first, or do we want to move forward with testimony? 300 00:34:43.927 --> 00:34:44.391 Let me just get a—. 301 00:34:45.032 --> 00:34:46.315 We're okay with moving forward? 302 00:34:46.780 --> 00:34:49.474 Okay, well, in that case, uh, let's go ahead and jump on in. 303 00:34:49.697 --> 00:34:52.215 Diego, go ahead and call the first panel. 304 00:34:53.032 --> 00:34:54.554 Just a few reminders for our testifiers. 305 00:34:54.956 --> 00:34:59.114 Those signed up to testify, each verbal testifier will receive 2 minutes each. 306 00:34:59.693 --> 00:35:01.443 I will call up folks in groups of 5. 307 00:35:01.876 --> 00:35:07.208 For those testifying in person, you'll see the timer countdown displayed on the monitor in front of the testimony table. 308 00:35:07.818 --> 00:35:10.563 For those testifying virtually, the timer is displayed in Zoom. 309 00:35:11.269 --> 00:35:14.047 When testifying, you'll hear the timer chime twice. 310 00:35:14.320 --> 00:35:19.780 The first chime is a warning when there are 30 seconds left, and then a second is when your time is up. 311 00:35:20.570 --> 00:35:23.996 And finally, before you begin your testimony, please state your name for the record. 312 00:35:25.110 --> 00:35:36.157 First up, Vivek Shandas, Andrew Mason, Kaeleigh Sheehan, Greg Moawad, Jonathan Clay. 313 00:35:42.896 --> 00:35:44.574 Hey, hello, hello everyone. 314 00:35:44.623 --> 00:35:45.371 I hope you can hear me. 315 00:35:45.990 --> 00:35:46.494 We can hear you. 316 00:35:47.065 --> 00:35:47.739 Okay, great. 317 00:35:48.188 --> 00:35:50.659 Hi, for the record, my name is Vivek Shandas. 318 00:35:50.996 --> 00:35:55.021 Thank you, Chair Avalos, Vice Chair Green, and members of the committee. 319 00:35:55.086 --> 00:35:58.567 For the record, I— Vivek, I use he/him pronouns. 320 00:35:58.614 --> 00:36:06.347 I'm co-chair of the Policy and Implementation Committee within the city's Sustainability and Climate Commission, here on behalf of the full commission. 321 00:36:07.117 --> 00:36:14.398 On August 20th, the commission voted to endorse the climate and health standards after reviewing the code language section by section. 322 00:36:15.217 --> 00:36:19.976 Our endorsement letter was in your packet at the October 6th committee meeting. 323 00:36:20.681 --> 00:36:27.619 I want— I primarily want to respond to a few questions from the last meeting and why we continue to urge you to advance this policy. 324 00:36:28.277 --> 00:36:29.735 First, on rental impacts. 325 00:36:30.199 --> 00:36:38.034 As Damon noted, the Eco Northwest study looked at rent plus utilities and found no net impact on renters. 326 00:36:38.307 --> 00:36:48.797 Most upgrades for multifamily residential developments come around 2040 to 2045, leaving ample time for implementation, and owners can draw on state energy trust and PSEF funding. 327 00:36:50.715 --> 00:36:54.315 On affordable buildings, each building is measured against its own baseline. 328 00:36:54.731 --> 00:37:05.692 That way, the worst-performing buildings, often the most affordable housing, don't have the— don't have to make the biggest jump in terms of meeting these standards. 329 00:37:05.740 --> 00:37:05.853 Thank you. 330 00:37:06.561 --> 00:37:14.925 On policy efficacy, in the city's pilot, reporting took a few hours in the first year and less than 2 hours after that. 331 00:37:15.536 --> 00:37:21.219 Other cities settled the details, including hospitals and campuses, in rulemaking processes. 332 00:37:22.278 --> 00:37:25.681 On tenant protections, the community asked for them. 333 00:37:25.971 --> 00:37:34.525 Renters get key information before signing a lease and, and a lease plus relocation help and a right to return. 334 00:37:34.878 --> 00:37:38.630 We see decarbonization and rent protection as one goal. 335 00:37:39.367 --> 00:37:48.679 On leadership, the state standard would cut emissions from Portland's covered buildings by only about 5%, and it starts at 35,000 square feet, as Damon mentioned. 336 00:37:48.985 --> 00:37:55.862 Portland's 20,000 square feet threshold reaches more of our housing and gets us closer to our emission reductions goals. 337 00:37:56.471 --> 00:38:05.880 Something that's on the commission's mind, I, I would be remiss to not mention, is that the current proposal, uh, is that it does not include maximum indoor temperature standards. 338 00:38:06.538 --> 00:38:12.902 Um, we support taking that up in the next step, though still urgently moving that forward. 339 00:38:13.126 --> 00:38:15.451 And finally, our guidance hasn't changed. 340 00:38:15.530 --> 00:38:17.936 Please advance the climate and health standard. 341 00:38:18.096 --> 00:38:18.753 Thank you for your time. 342 00:38:20.179 --> 00:38:20.836 Thank you, Vivek. 343 00:38:21.847 --> 00:38:25.085 And clerk, it doesn't sound like the other bell worked. 344 00:38:25.148 --> 00:38:26.175 Is it going to work on the next one? 345 00:38:26.416 --> 00:38:27.385 We're going to troubleshoot that. 346 00:38:27.579 --> 00:38:28.789 Okay, sounds good. 347 00:38:29.903 --> 00:38:30.405 All right, thank you. 348 00:38:30.775 --> 00:38:31.713 Whoever would like to go next? 349 00:38:37.766 --> 00:38:41.456 Good afternoon, Chair Avalos, Vice Chair Green, and members of the committee. 350 00:38:41.588 --> 00:38:44.213 My name is Andy Mason, Facilities Director of Providence Health. 351 00:38:44.840 --> 00:38:47.621 I'm joined today by my colleague from Legacy Health, Kaeleigh Sheehan. 352 00:38:48.456 --> 00:38:56.032 And in addition to our brief comments today, we have, uh, submitted a letter Uh, going into greater detail on our position on the climate and health standards. 353 00:38:56.690 --> 00:39:02.856 So let me start by saying that Providence and Legacy share the city's goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions and improving community health. 354 00:39:03.690 --> 00:39:07.157 Providence's vision statement is health for a better world. 355 00:39:07.849 --> 00:39:11.925 Ensuring a stable climate and healthy planet is a crucial element of our envisioned world. 356 00:39:12.681 --> 00:39:30.413 At Providence, we are taking bold action to reduce our carbon emissions in this decade, working towards being carbon negative as an organization and we continue to make substantial progress across our system with energy reducing and carbon reducing projects throughout our portfolio. 357 00:39:31.440 --> 00:39:41.097 We've also gone to great lengths to understand what it will take to decarbonize a complex healthcare facility by investing in a detailed engineering study on the feasibility and impact of fully electrifying a major medical center. 358 00:39:41.643 --> 00:39:44.402 And we now have a clear picture of the costs and pathways to achieve this. 359 00:39:44.451 --> 00:39:44.563 Thank you. 360 00:39:45.655 --> 00:39:51.079 However, hospitals serve as a healthcare safety net to our communities and must remain available at all times. 361 00:39:52.074 --> 00:40:05.106 During the 2021 heat dome that stressed building systems far beyond their design, and the 2024 MLK Day storm that closed roads and knocked out power throughout the region, people depended on us to remain open, functional, and available to provide care. 362 00:40:05.942 --> 00:40:13.469 That is why resiliency, in addition, in addition to efficiency, must remain a central consideration in any policy affecting hospital operations. 363 00:40:14.545 --> 00:40:19.864 Hospital infrastructure requires long-term planning and investment, as major systems cannot be replaced overnight. 364 00:40:20.586 --> 00:40:29.568 Transitioning away from existing equipment often requires replacement of entire integrated systems, not just a boiler or a chiller, which can take years and significantly impact the facility. 365 00:40:30.114 --> 00:40:46.516 Throughout Oregon, hospitals are operating at or near capacity every day, and taking critical, critical clinical spaces offline to replace complex infrastructure can have significant impacts on health Thank you. 366 00:40:50.253 --> 00:40:51.731 Thank you. 367 00:40:53.775 --> 00:41:00.512 Councilmember Herbold. 368 00:41:01.251 --> 00:41:04.333 Good afternoon, Chair Avalos, Vice Chair Green, and members of the committee. 369 00:41:05.065 --> 00:41:08.639 My name is Kaeleigh Sheehan, Director of Environmental Sustainability with Legacy Legacy Health. 370 00:41:09.313 --> 00:41:13.320 As my colleague from Providence shared, we recognize climate change as a public health issue. 371 00:41:13.963 --> 00:41:19.429 Environmental stewardship is central to our mission of good health for our patients, our people, our communities, and our world. 372 00:41:20.278 --> 00:41:23.389 Legacy has a public goal of net-zero emissions by 2050. 373 00:41:23.740 --> 00:41:32.077 We've made meaningful progress through energy efficiency improvements, renewable energy investments, climate resilience assessments, and reducing the environmental impact of patient care. 374 00:41:32.943 --> 00:41:33.985 We're committed to this work. 375 00:41:34.483 --> 00:41:40.052 We share the city's goals of reducing emissions from our buildings, but we have real concerns over the policy as it's currently written. 376 00:41:40.983 --> 00:41:45.606 Hospitals are uniquely complex facilities operating under strict healthcare regulations. 377 00:41:46.182 --> 00:41:52.427 Our central utility plants, ventilation, sterilization, and emergency power systems are essential to patient safety. 378 00:41:53.101 --> 00:41:58.606 These systems are interconnected, require substantial capital investment and planning, and are replaced over decades. 379 00:41:59.440 --> 00:42:07.237 We appreciate the addition of the alternative compliance pathway for campuses, However, significant questions remain about how that pathway would actually work. 380 00:42:07.878 --> 00:42:11.936 The policy lacks a clearly defined process to amend or update these plans over time. 381 00:42:12.673 --> 00:42:15.849 These would be legally binding agreements recorded against the property. 382 00:42:16.668 --> 00:42:22.697 Hospitals need the ability to adapt as infrastructure, technology, regulations, and circumstances change. 383 00:42:23.643 --> 00:42:32.559 We recognize that many implementation details can be addressed through rulemaking, but the ordinance itself Council itself needs to establish the framework and authority for that flexibility. 384 00:42:33.199 --> 00:42:40.268 We cannot responsibly plan decades of investment, near $1 billion, around requirements that remain undefined. 385 00:42:40.813 --> 00:42:43.362 The potential financial implications are substantial. 386 00:42:43.539 --> 00:42:51.106 As nonprofit healthcare providers facing significant financial pressures, we must balance these investments with maintaining access to essential patient care. 387 00:42:51.954 --> 00:42:53.510 We are not asking for an exemption. 388 00:42:53.862 --> 00:43:00.434 We're asking council to pause advancement and work directly with healthcare and other affected stakeholders to establish a clear, flexible, achievable framework. 389 00:43:00.483 --> 00:43:00.579 Thank you. 390 00:43:02.012 --> 00:43:06.494 Our joint written testimony provides additional technical detail on these concerns. 391 00:43:07.090 --> 00:43:08.219 We share the city's climate goals. 392 00:43:08.266 --> 00:43:09.894 We want to be part of the solution. 393 00:43:10.940 --> 00:43:12.340 Thank you. 394 00:43:14.094 --> 00:43:18.346 Good afternoon, Chair Avalos, Vice Chair Green, and members of the Housing and Permitting Committee. 395 00:43:19.300 --> 00:43:26.161 For the record, my name is Jonathan Clay, government and public affairs manager and registered lobbyist for Multifamily Northwest. 396 00:43:26.920 --> 00:43:32.644 Building efficiency and lower carbon emission goals are completely admirable. 397 00:43:32.840 --> 00:43:34.349 The issue is just how we get there. 398 00:43:36.210 --> 00:43:46.050 Housing providers of Multifamily Northwest remain very concerned with the uncertainty and liabilities this ordinance would impose on Portland's rental housing market. 399 00:43:46.710 --> 00:43:55.349 Portland needs a better policy that doesn't force arbitrary, unfunded building retrofits that neither renters nor housing providers can frankly afford. 400 00:43:55.400 --> 00:43:55.503 Thank you. 401 00:43:56.518 --> 00:43:59.679