Complaints to the city range from mundane to expensive
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Portland's office of the ombudsman fielded 319 complaints related to the city in 2022 — ranging from allegations of a city contractor parking in a private condo space to a community garden not accommodating a blind patron.
- The highest rate of complaints per capita came from the ZIP code that runs between West Burnside and the Pearl. (The office had ZIP code data for 77% of the complaints.)
Why it matters: The office can't change city policy, but it can investigate and help citizens. Its purpose is to "make sure City government treats residents and businesses fairly."
- Staff track the neighborhoods complaints come from and are on the lookout for individual complaints that suggest a citywide system or practice should change.
Context: Complaints ran the gamut of urban life: water bureau billing, wrongly towed cars, bad drivers in city vehicles, noise, rude behavior by city employees.
- "We often hear from people who have been trying to get their issue resolved or getting bounced around within the city," ombudsman Jennifer Croft, who joined the office late last year, told Axios. "A lot of people just appreciate getting a call back."
By the numbers: The office fielded almost 550 requests for help, according to its annual report, but nearly half were not about Portland. Those were redirected.
- Among those related to Portland, the Bureau of Transportation got the most complaints — 30% of the total.
- The ZIP code that made the highest number of complaints — 19 last year — was 97202, which covers the inner east side south of Division.
- Citizens made 90% of the complaints, while 10% came from city employees.
Details: Last year, 42 complaints triggered investigations.
- One investigation led to Portland Parks & Recreation paying $10,000 to a man whose boat was destroyed after being ticketed for removal. The man had been living on the boat.
- Another led to Multnomah County and Metro waiving penalties and interest on unpaid income taxes for preschool and housing programs for the first year the taxes were due. Portland's revenue office collects the tax and the ombudsman investigation found it was waiving penalties only for people who asked, but not informing others of the possibility.
- Changing the policy is underway, a water bureau spokesperson told Axios, but it requires updating city code, public comment and technical fixes, so there's no clear timeline for completion.
Reality check: Complaints about encampments, portable toilets and trash generally didn't spur ombudsman action. Croft told Axios that her office would typically refer concerns about specific sites to the city program that cleans or sweeps campsites, which prioritizes responses based on its own criteria.
- For more general complaints about camping or trash, staff might suggest calling elected officials, she said.
Of note: Portland's ombudsman can't investigate complaints against elected officials, only administrative actions by city bureaus.
How it works: You can contact the ombudsman office in a variety of ways, though it does recommend trying the bureau you're concerned about first.
- Expect a reply within a week.