There are a record four open seats on city council this year, including for mayor, and we interviewed almost every candidate running to fill them. This is one in a series.  

Michael O’Callaghan, running for Mayor of Portland

“The city needs to create access through bottom-up decision-making.”

What’s the most pressing problem facing Portland and what are you going to do about it? 

Housing. We have four potential solutions: 

  1. Garage occupancy
  2. Villages 25 or smaller
  3. Buy or build temporary storage building
  4. Tax unoccupied dwellings

How would you define a successful term in office?

Finding where the community agrees through call-in phone surveys. The city needs to create an access through bottom-up decision-making. 

What’s something that people would be surprised to know about you? 

I was made a national hero by starting a free food program with a bike and trailer where we gave away over 15 million pounds of food on a $0.00 budget with 84 volunteers. Also gave away 2.5 million pounds of salmon in Alaska with 120,000 pounds in Portland.