By James Huffman

Thirty three years ago, Alexis and Elias Bakouros and Gerry Tsirimiagos opened a Greek restaurant on the corner of NW Second and Burnside in Portland. Their food was superb, the atmosphere that of an Athens taverna and, best of all, the Bakouros and Tsirimiagos families made you feel like old friends even on your first visit. The place was packed every night.

James Huffman

Three decades later we really are old friends, so a couple days ago I dropped in for some kalamarakia, salata horiatiki and conversation with Gerry. Before I could sit down, Gerry handed me an ouzo, said “ygeia mas” and asked about my family. Usually, conversations with Gerry are interrupted frequently as he greets every customer at the door and keeps a close watch on every table.

But this time there were few interruptions. Every table at the Alexis restaurant, save one, was empty. When I left an hour and a half later, only five tables were occupied.

It’s not the food. The kalamarakia is still the best I have ever had and the staff is as friendly as ever. No, Gerry’s problems are not inside. They are outside, and the folks in charge are doing nothing to help.

Gerry has battled with the city over reduced parking on Burnside to accommodate buses. He got a few of those parking spaces back. But the city now bans nearby on-street parking after 10 p.m. on Fridays and Saturdays so that police patrols won’t be obstructed by parked cars. Gerry’s pleas to move the prohibition back to 11 p.m. or midnight have fallen on deaf ears.

The biggest problem, however, is the homeless camp just one block away. Congregations of homeless people have always been a reality for Chinatown businesses, but the “Right 2 Dream Too” camp encourages even more while discouraging pedestrian traffic, particularly in the evening.

The camp is illegal. Yet it has been there for more than two years. Commissioner Amanda Fritz has tried to negotiate an alternative site, but that’s on hold because Mayor Charlie Hales is concerned about the effect of a new campsite on nearby business interests.

But what about the interests of Gerry Tsirimiagos and the other business people struggling to make a living in this neglected part of our city? I confess I have a small dog in this fight as owner of a small share of Ping, a nearby, once-thriving restaurant that had garnered national recognition. It is now closed, and has been since business plummeted right after the homeless camp arrived. Gerry says the camp had the same effect on his business.

Can he prove it? Probably not, but there’s plenty of anecdotal evidence from former customers and the balance sheets of both restaurants don’t lie.

Gerry had over 30 employees before the camp arrived. Now he has about 20. The now-closed Ping left 40 people to look for other work. Does it occur to anyone in City Hall that more jobs would help solve the homeless problem?

Gerry has taken his concerns to the mayor’s office. So have I. We have both been told that our concerns are legitimate and that they will get back to us soon. But we hear nothing, and the city does nothing.

Inevitably those who object to the homeless camp in the heart of our city are accused of being heartless. But Gerry is not a heartless man. He wants the best for those in need, but he knows that an illegal camp in the middle of a struggling part of the city is no solution for the homeless.

Gerry says he does not deserve to be treated the way he has been by his adopted city. And he is right. Thirty three years ago these young immigrants left their homes in Greece to make a better life in Portland. And they have. But the real winner was Portland. We got a great Greek restaurant where we could meet friends and experience, if only for an hour or two, a culture that truly knows how to care for its own.

So as our plodding city leaders contemplate what to do about the very real problem of the homeless, it would be nice if they might give some thought to the very real problems of my friend Gerry and the neighboring businesses that have tried to make a go of it in Chinatown. It’s great to be on the side of the homeless, but part of the solution is also being on the side of those who invest in our city and employ the unemployed.

-- James Huffman is dean emeritus of Lewis & Clark Law School in Portland.