Dancers from the group Mai3m perform at the Metro Council inauguration on Jan. 6, 2015.
Four Metro councilors took the oath of office Tuesday, at an inauguration ceremony with a different tone, but similar message, to their last oath-taking in 2011.
Four years ago, with the Portland region mired in recession, Metro Council President Tom Hughes took office with a goal of regional facilitation and job creation. Now starting his second term in office, but under much different economic circumstances, Hughes said the jobs focus has worked.
Judge Youlee You administers the oath of office to Metro Council President Tom Hughes on Jan. 6, 2015 at the Oregon Convention Center.
"We have stepped to the plate and we have provided leadership in economic development in the region, and I think we've been very successful at it," Hughes said. "There is almost no decision made around economic development in the region now that Metro doesn't at least enter in to the discussion. That's exactly where we want to be."
But, Hughes said, more challenges await in his final term as Metro Council President. The Willamette Falls Legacy Project has to get off the ground, Hughes said, and the region must pass a management plan for the next 20 years of growth.
Also beginning her final term was Metro Councilor Kathryn Harrington, who is term-limited in representing District 4 on the council. In her remarks Tuesday, she pointed to the lasting legacy of the Metro Council's decisions as a reason she chose to seek a third term.
"Why I do this, serve in an elected capacity, day in and day out? One word – children," said Harrington, who started her first campaign for Metro Council in late 2005. "I know that the work we do together in our region, at Metro, as Metro councilors, lasts generations."
Councilor Carlotta Collette started her second full term on the council by talking about the balance the region must strike in maintaining its livability.
"People come here because they love it. They are coming here in droves and we have to figure out how to share this incredible place without tarnishing it," Collette said. "How do we balance sharing this place that we love and yet keeping it beautiful, keeping it, as Gov. (Tom) McCall used to say, not just livable but lovable? That's what brings me to those challenges, what gets me up in the morning."
Tuesday was the second inauguration for Councilor Shirley Craddick, who represents eastern Multnomah and Clackamas counties on the council.
She said she hopes to focus on improving the livability of the eastern part of the region in her second term on the council.
"I want the entire Metro region to be successful, to be considered the best place to live, to have good paying jobs, successful small business, affordable housing, access to cultural events and recreation possibilities," Craddick said. "Outer east Multnomah County is not an afterthought, it is a priority. When all of these opportunities are available to all of us, then we truly have a great region."
The first oath of the day was administered to Metro Auditor Brian Evans, elected to the seat last year after former Auditor Suzanne Flynn opted not to run for another four-year term.
Evans said his focus will be on building public trust in regional government.
"It seems there is no shortage of ways to give an opinion about any sort of political issue. What seems to get lost is independent and objective information. That's the value the auditor's office brings to the region," Evans said.
The inauguration took place at the Oregon Convention Center, and included an invocation from Grand Ronde Tribal Councilman Jon George, a dance performance by Mai3m and a variation of "Oregon, My Oregon" performed by Metro lobbyist Randy Tucker. The oath of office was administered by Multnomah County Circuit Court Judge Youlee You.