Oregon Public Broadcasting

This morning Portland City Council was supposed to consider an agreement to bring a major league soccer team to town. It’s been pulled from the agenda for further consideration.

The team is one of several big projects Mayor Sam Adams has spent time on during his first few months in office. But, as April Baer reports, the scandal around Adams’ affair with a much younger man has affected his agenda.

This would have been a gut-churner of a year for Portland’s mayor under any circumstances. The economy’s as tight as it’s been in living memory. But Mayor Sam Adams has the added burden of a scandal that just won’t die.

It’s still common for people to show up at City Council meetings with a comment on Adams handling of his relationship in 2005 with then-teenager Beau Breedlove.  And Adams faces endless questions from reporters, too.

Reporter #1  “Mayor do you think your personal problems are affecting city business?"

Sam Adams  “Any other questions on the budget? We’re here to talk about the budget, those are the ground rules...."

Reporter #2  “We understand that but...."

Sam Adams  “So we’re happy to stand by later and answer questions individually.”

Adams’ main defense has been a relentless dedication to message. He’s also keeping busy.

Over the past three months, Adams has turned in a budget that pleased most of his fellow commissioners.  He’s negotiated with county officials to get support for a new convention center hotel. He’s worked on a deal to bring Major League Soccer to Portland -- although the effort appears to be stalled for the moment.

Next week, he’s in Brussels to talk about Portland’s accessibility for bikes. 

As busy as he’s been, it’s hard not to notice the hesitation in people’s voices when you ask if Adams has been successful.  

Longtime lobbyist and political veteran Len Bergstein notes that mayoral power in Portland is not a blunt instrument.

Len Bergstein   “City Hall is always a game of three. You need three votes to do anything. Under the best of times, strongest mayors, most visionary still has got to get a couple of colleagues to go along to get an agenda. And it’s never one program, it’s a series of programs that give the public the sense that government is in charge, is up to the problems that we have as a complex metropolitan area.”

But Bergstein says even casual observers can see that Council has not functioned at maximum efficiency since the Breedlove scandal broke. He says it’s kind of hard to know who’s in charge.

Behind the scenes, city hall insiders are playing a waiting game.  Everyone’s mindful of how the dynamic may change once attorney general John Kroger’s staff delivers a highly-anticipated report.

Investigators are determining whether Adams’ relationship with Breedlove crossed the line into criminal behavior.

Adams has not talked publicly about his effectiveness. But his chief of staff, Tom Miller, was willing to discuss whether Adams has been a persuasive advocate within Council.

Tom Miller “Issues like the prospects of funding a new baseball stadium or a convention center hotel are difficult and complex and time-consuming, and will invariably produce a range of opinions under any circumstance. And true to reality that’s exactly what we’ve seen here. I would not expect 5-0-0 votes on anything of that consequence.”

Miller says staff keeps track of Adams' Hundred Day action plan, and will report back on those goals later this month.

Efforts to dethrone Adams also moved forward this month.

Jason Wurster, with the group Recall Sam Adams is not impressed with the Mayor's ambitious To-Do list.

Jason Wurster  “If anything his lack of public trust and political capital is what’s causing him not to be able to do these projects.”

Wurster is raising money for the recall campaign that will begin in July, but indicates he doesn't expect to raise much, relying instead on volunteer labor.

As of Thursday morning, it appears that the plan to bring soccer to PGE park, and build a new baseball stadium has gained new momentum. The city is in discussions to move the Portland Beavers baseball team to Lents. We'll follow the story with updates.