(PORTLAND, OR.) – The Portland City Council meeting on February 11th, 2026, is marked by public frustration over leadership and mismanaged funds.
Photo Credit: YouTube
“Public commenters lambasted the council for deflecting responsibility, mismanaging funds, and failing to protect residents from federal agency overreach at the Macadam ICE facility,” OpGov.ai said.
Portland resident Deborah Haymon criticizes the council for deflecting responsibility and delivering ineffective 'half measures,' which she believes has eroded public confidence.
She cites the recent discovery of tens of millions of unspent housing funds as an example of oversight breakdown.
Photo Credit: YouTube
“Just last week, the city government announced it found tens of millions of dollars in urgently needed unspent housing funds. That kind of breakdown in oversight and lack of clear responsibility for it raises serious questions about this body’s credibility and competence. Haymon said”
Haymon continues, specifically highlighting the Macadam ICE facility, arguing the council prioritized the landlord's property rights over public safety and civil rights.
“We're seeing that same breakdown in oversight and transparency with the McAdam ice facility. Instead of exercising your authority to protect Portlanders, you have pushed responsibility onto unelected departments and avoided direct accountability,” Haymon says.
Addie Smith addresses the council virtually. She implores the council to allow public commenters to sign up for every meeting, not only once per month.
Photo Credit: YouTube
“As it stands, if a public commenter provides a comment today, they aren't allowed to speak again until next month. This is ridiculous. This must change either with this group of city council members or newly elected city council members,” Smith says.
Smith advocates for newly discovered housing funds to be allocated to rental assistance organizations like Self-Enhancement and Oregon Eviction Prevention Rapid Response, explicitly advising against funding the United Way of Oregon due to alleged discrimination against African Americans.
“This newfound funding needs to go towards rental assistance to organizations like Self-Enhancement and Oregon Eviction Prevention Rapid Response. Do not provide funding to the United Way of Oregon as they do not disperse assistance to African Americans,” Smith states.
On the agenda is the Affordable Housing Opportunities Project (AHOP) proposed amendments to the Comprehensive Plan Map and Zoning Map. The amendments focus on locations where zoning changes align with access to transit, services, and community infrastructure, such as around mixed-use centers and corridors.
Jake Antles, a Cully neighborhood resident and construction worker, fully supports the Affordable Housing Opportunities Project.
He expresses frustration as both a community member and a furloughed construction worker over the year-and-a-half it took to implement these 'common sense changes,' which he finds a waste of time and resources in a soft construction market.
“We need to make this process easier. It's a complete waste of time and resources to spend over a year and a half to do all these commonsense changes to our zoning code,” Antles says.
Council President Jamie Dunphy shares his thoughts on the project.
Photo Credit: YouTube
“We hear the concerns of neighbors about density and scale and scope, but this is a council that is dead set on building as much housing as we can. And I personally love the idea of building density and height in areas that can absolutely support it,” Dunphy says.
Ultimately, the Affordable Housing Opportunities Project (A-HOP) amendments to the Comprehensive Plan Map and Official Zoning Map were passed to a second reading on February 25th, 2026, OpGov.ai reports.
City Administrator Raymond Lee gave his report, which included an ongoing review for the ICE detention facility impact ordinance, which is currently delayed in rulemaking.
Media: YouTube / eGov PDX
OpGov.ai will continue its reporting on the Portland City Council and the Macadam ICE facility.
If you would like to comment on or add to this report, please email me at rory.h@lead4earth.org.
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