The Metro Council has appointed residents with expertise in freight, public transit access and the needs of underserved communities to an influential transportation committee.
The council on Thursday, Nov. 29, appointed five community representatives to the Transportation Policy Alternatives Committee, a 21-member panel that advises regional policymakers on transportation projects and plans across the Portland metropolitan area.
A selection process that started in September drew 29 applications for the volunteer positions.
Three new members were appointed to two-year terms:
- Adrian Esteban, a transportation engineer at David Evans and Associates, has experience as a project manager and transportation engineer for numerous transportation design projects. He was a community representative on the Regional Travel Options Subcommittee and a board member of the Rose City Park Neighborhood Association.
- Heather McCarey, executive director of the Westside Transportation Alliance, has an urban planning degree and experience serving on numerous transportation and land use related committees, including Sullivan’s Gulch Project Advisory Committee, Westside Economic Alliance and Hillsboro Vision Implementation Committee.
- Cora Potter, a service specialist with Ride Connection, has experience in planning for the transportation needs of seniors, people with disabilities and other underserved communities. She has been active in the Lents Neighborhood Association, Portland Streetcar Citizens Advisory Committee and Lents Town Center Urban Renewal Advisory Committee.
Two new members were appointed to one-year terms, filling vacancies:
- Steven J. Entenman, an engineer at Harper Houf Peterson Righellis, Inc, has provided professional structural engineering services for public and private transportation related projects. He has served on committees including the East Metro Connections Plan, East Metro Economic Alliance and the City of Gresham Transportation Subcommittee.
- Jeffrey Swanson, an adjunct faculty member at Portland State University, has experience as an economist and consultant on land use, transportation and environmental issues. He has served on committees including the Portland Freight Committee, Working Waterfront Coalition and St. Johns Neighborhood Stakeholder Advisory Committee.
All the new members will start their terms in January.
The committee is comprised of 15 professional transportation staff appointed by area cities, counties and government agencies, and six at-large community representative members.
The Metro Council president nominates three community representatives each fall, and more if there are vacancies. In looking to have the committee reflect the diverse needs of the region, Metro this year sought four areas of expertise:
- the transportation needs of low income and minority communities, commonly referred to as environmental justice concerns;
- economic development, the economy, small business or freight movement;
- the needs of underserved communities such as the elderly and disabled and youth;
- health, air quality, and climate change connections to transportation.
An important responsibility of the committee is to advise the Joint Policy Advisory Committee on Transportation, or JPACT, a panel of elected officials and transportation agency executives that, along with the council, controls federal transportation spending in the Portland area.
The committee also advises the Metro Council, which reviews and must approve all major JPACT actions.