Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler said "it's possible" Portland police might not be following their chief's de-escalation directives after activists voiced concerns about police accountability in a Friday morning open forum with some only-in-Portland moments.

The meeting--billed by Wheeler as an open session for people to air their grievances over city action and inaction--was the first of several new steps the mayor said he will consider taking to improve communication with the public.

Wheeler said he will continue to hold public forums. He said he liked activists' suggestions to add more public testimony slots to Portland's weekly City Council meetings. He said he'll also consider inviting residents to come speak when there's not enough city business to last through the slotted weekly meeting time. He welcomed an offer to create a workgroup that would help those voicing frustrations with City Hall to help create the change they seek.

"I actually strongly agree with this," Wheeler said. "The frustration you're hearing is genuine...People are really frustrated, and business as usual isn't going to work."

The mayor and Commissioner Amanda Fritz spent an hour Friday listening and responding to Portlanders' concerns about police protest response, homelessness and a proposal to proactively exclude frequent disrupters from Portland City Council meetings. Participants in the forum expressed a variety of frustrations, but the overarching theme was the city government's lack of transparency and communication with the public.

Wheeler said he thinks he and the activists agree "from a philosophical perspective, that we're trying to move in the same direction."

"We've just had disagreements on how to get there," Wheeler said. "This isn't the complete answer, but today I think we got bits and pieces of a better answer for how to conduct business going forward."

Portlander Mary Sipe pleaded with both the activists and the mayor to learn to work better together. She offered to coordinate a work group at the city where protesters, perhaps using city-provided white boards and markers, can turn their frustrations into action.

"It is not realistic or reasonable to expect that everything that is brought to the attention of City Council is addressed but somehow there should be a mechanism to identify issues that can and should be addressed," Sipe said.

Activist Joe Walsh, known for his no-holds-barred attacks on Wheeler and his predecessors, said he and others have been asking for these types of meetings since Sam Adams was mayor in 2009.

Walsh attends almost every Portland City Council meeting and won a lawsuit against the city after then-Mayor Charlie Hales barred him from meetings for as many as 30 days at a time.

On Friday, he urged Wheeler to keep open communication with the public.

"You've got to listen to us and say, 'This is what I've done,' " Walsh said. "Then come back again and say, 'This is what the results are.' You can't just do this for an hour."

Walsh said Friday's forum made him cautiously hopeful. He doesn't trust politicians. He said when he talks to commissioners, he wants to hear more about what they have done and what they can do to address concerns. Meanwhile, he plans to reflect on how he can be more effective.

He said he needs to "look in the mirror and say 'You know what, Joe, maybe you're a little outrageous sometimes.'"

At the end of the day, Walsh said, he wants to stand with, not against, the Portland city government. He wants Portlanders and their government to stand united against the federal government when and if they come after immigrants, protesters and sanctuary cities.

"What's coming is a lot worse," Walsh said. "That's why I'm so upset by this."

--Jessica Floum

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