Councilor calls out no-show city manager at meeting
Skolnik says Gray's absence was 'unprofessional,' 'unacceptable'
In a rare public rebuke of a municipal employee, Councilor Dan Skolnik on Tuesday criticized city manager Joe Gray in front of a packed audience at City Hall, accusing Gray of not attending the meeting despite assurance that he would be there.
Skolnik told roughly 100 people crowded into council chambers for the monthly Public Safety Committee meeting that it was the second time in recent months Gray had promised to attend a meeting then never showed up.
"The Chair notes that City Manager Joe Gray apparently was unable to make it this evening, even though he said he would be here, and the agenda reads 'Communication From the City Manager,'" Skolnik said.
"This is the second time he has said in no uncertain terms that he would 'be here at the meeting' and then was not," he continued. "The Chair finds this highly discouraging, unprofessional, and frankly, unacceptable."
Gray was apparently expected to speak at Tuesday's meeting about possible software upgrades for the Portland Police Department that would make calls for service records more precise. Over the past few months, Skolnik has lobbied for police department software upgrades that would allow dispatchers to include more detailed information about the location of service calls.
Right now, when calls come in, they are often reported as being "in front of" or "across" from a bar depending on details provided by the caller. That practice has come under fire during recent liquor license renewals because the call records can be used against bars looking to renew their licenses.
Gray didn't return an email message seeking comment about Skolnik's claims.
City Spokesperson Nicole Clegg said in an email that Gray "intended to be at yesterday's Public Safety Committee meeting, however as is often the case, he needed to address another matter at the same time."
It wasn't immediately clear which other recent meeting Gray reportedly said he would attend, but didn't. Contacted Wednesday, Skolnik declined to comment further.
In Gray's place Tuesday, the city's director of information systems Dan Boutilier explained that the software upgrades Skolnik was seeking would cost about $8,200. He suggested recently installed upgrades would achieve the desired results.
"We believe a recent improvement to the software used by officers in their vehicles will allow us to meet the reporting requests of the Public Safety Committee and help us avoid the cost of a custom modification," he said after Tuesday's meeting.
City Hall sources say Skolnik's push in recent months for information about the software upgrades -- and his displeasure at the answers he was getting -- caused tension between Skolnik and several city staffers.
"He was unhappy with where he was getting with staff, and he wanted to call in (Joe Gray)," said one person familiar with the situation.
Skolnik declined to comment on the status of his relationship with the city manager.
