PORTLAND, Oregon — The owner of Oregon’s first fossil fuel-free trucking company has emerged as a leading Portland mayoral candidate. Keith Wilson says that Portland needs “real change,” particularly on issues of homelessness, housing and crime.
Wilson serves as the president and CEO of Titan Freight Systems and the founder of a nonprofit called Shelter Portland. He has never held an elected office and points to his “executive experience” as his record of success.
“It’s a real varied level of experience,” Wilson said. “But it really hits on many of the things that I’ll need to become and be a successful mayor for Portland.”
His campaign for mayor is centered on ending unsheltered homelessness in Portland. In this episode of Straight Talk with Laural Porter, Wilson gives his pitch on why voters should elect him.
In part, Wilson says that he’s created a blueprint based off examples from other U.S. cities that have significantly reduced the number of people living unsheltered. In looking elsewhere, a common theme emerged: a network of nighttime emergency shelters.
But to do that, Portland would first need more day shelters — which is where Shelter Portland comes into play. The nonprofit’s focus is on creating a system of nighttime walk-in emergency shelters that then hand-off to a day shelter with services available for people seeking help.
Of all Portland mayoral candidates, Wilson’s plan is the most ambitious. According to his campaign’s website, he plans to end homelessness in Portland within his first year as mayor.
“Somebody said that Portland is not an ocean liner, it’s more of a dilapidated barge that’s not running well,” Wilson said. “So, I would challenge Portland and say they criticize that my plan is ambitious. But I will tell you it’s not ambitious when we’re simply using proven plans that other cities have employed. That’s not ambitious.”
He added that with more shelters, he believes that Portland’s livability and public safety will increase.
“Make sure nobody is left behind and raising the community up to the standards that we expect the mayor to deliver,” Wilson said.
Another goal of his is reducing carbon emissions. If elected, Wilson said he hopes to make Portland into a city with the lowest carbon footprint in the nation. To do this, he plans to lean heavily on his business experience.
This mayoral election is a historic one in Portland, as it is the first time voters will pick elected leaders under the new city government structure, which includes a slightly different role for the mayor.
READ MORE: Portland City Council triples in size next year, taking on an entirely new role in local government
"It's time for us to focus on Portland's renaissance, and it is within our reach," Wilson said.
Straight Talk airs Saturday and Sunday at 6:30 p.m., and Monday at 7 p.m. Straight Talk is also available as a podcast.