One thing you can’t do is ignore Pat Edwards.

Pat Edwards Image Credit: KOIN 6 News
Pat Edwards
Image Credit: KOIN 6 News

Back in the day, Pat Edwards would call the Victoria Taft Show. His signature sign off would be, “Bring it, Baby!”

The phrase was a throw down; a dare-you move and marker the-now East Portland resident would toss off as he signed off. He hasn’t changed. He’s a git-her-done kind of guy.

Pat’s an extraordinary man. After getting out of the Marines, he became an entrepreneur, fast-car fanatic, went back to school and re-calibrated his career. He’s now eased into life as an East Portland resident and can’t believe how this part of town gets such a short shrift.

KATU reports Edwards is now part of a group of East County residents trying to secede from the rest of the City:

According to the group, East Portland has since been forced to deal with drawbacks like an increase in crime, and an inequity in spending on services, roads and park development.

Movement spokesman, Pat Edwards, says, “We’re finding that it’s becoming very difficult as a citizen in this community to have a quality of life based upon the amount of taxes that we contribute to the city of Portland.”

Image Credit: KATU
Image Credit: KATU

 

He’s part of an effort by the East Portland de-Annexation Movement to collect 31,000 signatures to put the secession to a vote in November of 2016.

A Facebook page has been set up to call attention to the effort.

Pat is a fair minded, independent thinker. You should pay attention to him.

One Response

  1. An interesting idea. I would sign such petition and try collecting at least a few other signatures. But because East Portland is in such state of neglect, I worry tax increases in East Portland would be necessary to address the neglect. Otherwise, I would move from core City of Portland to the outer east side (about as far as my wife will agree to move…would like myself to move entirely out of Portland, and for that matter, Oregon.