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James Armstrong
Armstrong is co-founder of Cathedral Eye Care in St. Johns and is a member of the St. Johns Boosters Safety and Livability Committee.
At a recent breakfast hosted by the Portland Metro Chamber, members of the business community and leaders of the city’s economic development agency gathered to celebrate the small businesses that power our community. The chamber released the results from the 2023 State of Small Business Report showing that small businesses make up 94% of establishments in Multnomah County. Those, in turn, employ 35% of workers in the county. These numbers are impressive, coming in higher than our Keep Things Weird peer, Austin, and our Pacific Northwest rival, Seattle.
Portland’s small business districts are indeed impressive, and for many of us, they are the reason we chose to call Portland home. Our neighborhoods, each distinct in their own way, offer residents the community feeling of a small town. But small businesses are struggling amid theft, property crime and the chaos caused by our crises of untreated mental health and homelessness. The support we all share for our favorite restaurants, local shops and grocers makes it all the more frustrating that city and county leaders have been unable to provide any solutions to the non-stop safety and livability concerns in our business districts.
In the St. Johns neighborhood, where my wife and I run an eye care clinic, an all-too familiar theme is magnified by the unique characteristics of our city’s north peninsula. At the end of the bus line, “above the cut” as the locals call it, St. Johns sees frequent occurrences of theft, mental health episodes, street racing and gun violence. Recently, such instances have included an armed robbery at a local bar and a brief elementary school lockdown prompted by a man experiencing a mental health episode near the school.
Small business owners along Lombard are struggling. Businesses are being hit repeatedly – as soon as glass is replaced from one break in, another one occurs. Local retailers in the district are reporting that sales this summer were far lower than expected. They attribute the reduction of foot traffic directly to the crime and drug use that have become too routine here. It is not sustainable to think these businesses – owned by individuals and couples who may have little financial cushion to absorb such hits, with or without insurance – can continue to operate this way.
Six months ago, the St. Johns’ Boosters business association convened a town hall that was attended by elected officials and their representatives. Local businesses told them about the challenges they face on a daily basis, noting that 33 St Johns area businesses collectively sustained more than $660,000 in theft and vandalism losses last year, as a North Peninsula Review story at the time recounted. Local officials promised action. But progress has been slow. While a deputy district attorney has recently been assigned to St Johns to focus on bringing justice to repeat offenders – six months after the idea was first proposed – the plodding pace of action fails to recognize the urgency that small businesses feel every single day. Other promises are slow to materialize or have fallen by the wayside. The Portland Police have assigned multiple district liaison officers, none remaining in their position for longer than a month. The county, who we count on to oversee mental health related issues in our community, has provided no visible additional support to the area. Business owners remain forced to settle for calling 911, often requesting Portland Street Response, but instead receiving an armed police response – usually long after the incident had occurred.
There’s been considerable attention to the news that Target is closing three of its stores in Portland due to theft. That comes after REI also has announced it will close its store in the Pearl District for similar reasons. These are big losses to the community and deserve the response that the news is getting.
But small businesses are feeling the same pressures without the ability to simply close and rely on sales elsewhere to make up the loss. Small businesses represent individuals and families in our community. And while I talk about the difficulties for businesses in St Johns, the story is repeating itself across all Portland’s neighborhoods.
Small business owners are used to getting things done. When we have an issue with our business, we stop what we are doing and address it immediately. If we need more staff, we hire. If customers have a complaint, we try to resolve it. And unfortunately, when someone breaks into our store, we watch the sunrise from our business while we clean up and try to secure our livelihood.
We know the challenges that our city leaders face, but small businesses are bearing the consequences of inaction. Small businesses are hailed as the backbone of Portland’s economy, but we need help before we break.
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