Tom Hughes | |
---|---|
President of the Metro Council | |
In office 2011–2019 | |
Preceded by | David Bragdon |
Succeeded by | Lynn Peterson |
Constituency | Metro,the Portland (Oregon) metropolitan area |
Mayor of Hillsboro,Oregon | |
In office 2001–2009 | |
Preceded by | Gordon Faber |
Succeeded by | Jerry Willey |
Member of the Hillsboro City Council | |
In office 1977–1980 | |
Personal details | |
Born | 1943 (age 78–79) Hillsboro,Oregon,U.S. |
Spouse | Gayle Hughes |
Residence | Hillsboro,Oregon |
Alma mater | University of Oregon University of Arizona |
Occupation | Consultant |
Profession | Educator |
Tom Hughes (born 1943) is an American politician and former educator. He was the president of Metro,a regional government in the Portland metropolitan area,from 2011-2019,and was the mayor of his home town of Hillsboro from 2001-2009. He also on the city's planning commission and city council. During his time a mayor,the city built the Hillsboro Civic Center as the new city hall,with the exterior plaza then named in his honor after he left office.
Hughes was a public school teacher for 30 years and taught in Aloha. He also briefly worked as a consultant for a law firm.
Tom Hughes was born in Hillsboro, [1] Washington County,Oregon,in 1943. He is the older brother of John Hughes,an educator in the Pacific Northwest. After spending some time in Eastern Oregon at a logging camp where his father was the bookkeeper, [2] the family moved back to Hillsboro in 1952. [3] He was raised in that city and attended Hillsboro High School,where he graduated in 1961. [4] In 1965,he graduated from the University of Oregon in Eugene with a bachelor of science degree in history. [4] He originally planned to become a chemistry teacher,but switched to history. [5] Two years later he earned a master of arts degree in history from the University of Arizona in Tucson. [4]
After college,he spent some time in San Francisco,California,where he sold roofing material before returning to Oregon. [5] Back in Oregon,he began teaching first as a substitute teacher,and later as a full-time teacher in the Beaverton School District. [5] [6] He also received a teaching certificate from Portland State University. [5] Hughes was married about 1969 to Gayle,and they had two daughters named Kristen and Karen. [6]
Hughes taught at Aloha High School beginning in 1973 and taught a variety of social studies subjects. [5] [7] As a teacher he taught government and helped organize the Model Democratic Presidential Nominating Convention beginning in 1972. [8] In 2003,Hughes retired from teaching at Aloha High School. [9] Hughes is also a member of the Rotary Club and the local Chamber of Commerce. [6]
Hughes was elected to his first political office in 1976,winning a spot on the Hillsboro City Council,where he remained until 1980. [7] After leaving the city council he worked as a lobbyist for the League of Oregon Cities from 1980 to 1982. [8] In 1982,he ran for a seat in the Oregon Legislative Assembly and lost. [8] Hughes then took a position on Hillsboro’s Planning and Zoning Hearings Board in 1985 and in May 1989 was appointed to the Hillsboro Planning Commission,where he remained until 2000. [5] [10] During this time he also served on the budget committee for Hillsboro High School (1986–1987) and was on a county committee that examined the county’s charter (1982–1984). [4]
In 2000,Hughes launched a campaign to become mayor of the city. [11] He ran against John Godsey on a platform of slower growth,including opposing the addition of the South Hillsboro urban reserve to be within the urban growth boundary. [11] [12] Hughes also proposed televising the city council meetings during the campaign. [11] During the campaign,Hughes raised about $8,800 compared to Godsey’s approximately $6,000. [13] Major donors to Hughes' campaign included the firefighters' union,a teacher political action committee,and the Oregon League of Conservation Voters. [13] In the November general election Hughes defeated Godsey to win a four-year term as mayor,winning 61% of the vote. [7] [14]
Hughes took office on January 2,2001,with priorities to increase the size of the Hillsboro Police Department and improve transportation. [15] The next year he called for more land for the city to accommodate growth and in hopes of adding a university to the area during his State of the City address. [16] Later that year he and other county leaders expressed dismay at Metro,the regional government,concerning the purchase of open spaces in the county using bond money approved by regional voters. [17] Hughes complained that the county and city were not receiving as much land as they should based on the tax amounts. [17] On May 29,2003,he suffered a mild heart attack and had minor heart surgery at Providence St. Vincent Medical Center to undergo angioplasty and install a stent. [9] [18] [19]
At the time,Providence Health System was looking to build a hospital in the city,and Hughes opposed the building of a new hospital that would compete with the only hospital in the city. [9] Hughes would have been taken to that hospital,Tuality Community Hospital,but the emergency room was full. [9] After three days in the hospital, [19] Hughes was released and a week later took part in the demolition of a building. [3] He operated a track hoe to tear down part of the building as part of a groundbreaking ceremony for the new Hillsboro Civic Center that would serve as the new city hall. [3] During his first term as mayor,he also was the chairman of the Metro Policy Advisory Committee [20] and worked to alleviate tensions over noise at the Hillsboro Airport. [21]
In 2004,he ran for re-election against Bob Imbrie,grandson of the homesteader who established Imbrie Farm. [5] Hughes won re-election to a second four-year term with 72% of the vote. [7] [22] During his second term he traveled to Mexico for a conference held by the Mexican government where he also hoped to find a city to partner with as sister cities. [23] The city also worked to revise the city’s charter,but kept the two-term limit and basic role of the mayor the same. [24] Hughes earned a Certificate of Achievement in Leadership from the National League of Cities in 2007 [25] and served as president of the League of Oregon Cities. [26]
He also was the co-chair of the Fairgrounds Revitalization Task Force that proposed changes to the Washington County Fairgrounds in Hillsboro, [27] made city service available on the Internet,and began the broadcasting of city council meetings. [28] In 2008,he shared an award from the League of Oregon Cities with Beaverton Mayor Rob Drake for his work in government. [28] During his time in office the city built the Civic Center,opened the new main branch of the Hillsboro Public Library,and created the Glenn &Viola Walters Cultural Arts Center,while working to attract the Pacific University Health Professions Campus and a Genentech facility,and working to re-open the Venetian Theatre. [7] He also fought Metro on the urban growth boundary,while residents near Turner Creek Park complained about recurring sewer overflows. [7] On January 6,2009,Hughes left the $3,000-per-year position and Jerry Willey was sworn in as the new mayor. [7] [29] In April 2009,the city renamed the plaza at city hall as the Tom Hughes Civic Center Plaza, [30] and in May the Hillsboro Chamber of Commerce named him their distinguished citizen for 2009. [31]
After leaving office,he took a position with Tonkon Torp LLP,in the law firm’s public affairs office as a senior policy adviser. [32] Hughes announced in December 2009 that he would run for the office of president of the Metro Council in the 2010 election. [33] He finished first in a three-way race in the primary,garnering 37 percent of the vote after endorsements by most of the area's newspapers and chambers of commerce. [34] Hughes faced Bob Stacey in the November 2010 general election and won by approximately 1,000 votes out of 400,000 votes cast. [35] Hughes was sworn into office on January 4,2011. [36] [37]
Hillsboro is the fifth-largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon and is the county seat of Washington County. Situated in the Tualatin Valley on the west side of the Portland metropolitan area,the city hosts many high-technology companies,such as Intel,locally known as the Silicon Forest. At the 2020 census,the city's population was 106,447.
Willow Creek/Southwest 185th Avenue Transit Center is a transport hub in Hillsboro,Oregon,United States. Owned and operated by TriMet,it is a light rail and bus station. The transit center is the ninth station eastbound on the Blue Line and a hub for bus routes mostly serving Washington County in the Portland metropolitan area. It is located by the intersection of Southwest Baseline Road and 185th Avenue near the city's boundary with Beaverton. Opened in 1998,the station was originally conceived as the western terminus of the Westside MAX,but the line was extended further west into Hillsboro,due to population growth occurring at the time the line was being planned. Artwork at the stop represents a reading motif,as a library was planned for the station,but never built. Willow Creek is near the Oregon National Primate Research Center and the rest of the Oregon Health &Science University's West Campus in the Tanasbourne neighborhood.
Derrick Kitts is a Republican politician from Hillsboro in the U.S. state of Oregon. A native of Washington,he served two terms in the Oregon House of Representatives before giving up his seat in an unsuccessful bid for Congress in 2006.
Tanasbourne,Oregon,is a neighborhood in Washington County,Oregon,where NW 185th Avenue and the Sunset Highway intersect. It is located within the Portland metropolitan area. The area sits between Beaverton and Hillsboro,and is generally considered to be south of U.S. 26,north of Walker Road,west of 158th,and east of Cornelius Pass Road. Adjacent to Aloha and part of the West Metro region,Tanasbourne has many shopping areas and is the former home of the defunct Tanasbourne Mall.
Shute Park is a municipal park in the city of Hillsboro,Oregon,United States. Acquired in 1906,the 13-acre (53,000 m2) park is the oldest park in the city. Located at southeast Tenth and Maple streets along Tualatin Valley Highway,Shute Park includes an aquatic center,a branch of the Hillsboro Public Library,and a community center. The park once had a pavilion that contained a roller skating rink,and was the center of civic activities before the opening of the Washington County Fairgrounds. Named for businessman John W. Shute,the park at one time included land on the east side of the highway that consisted mainly of a baseball field.
The Hillsboro Civic Center is a government-built,mixed-use development in downtown Hillsboro,Oregon,United States. The development includes the city hall for the county seat of Washington County,located west of Portland,Oregon. Covering 6 acres (24,000 m2),the Civic Center has a total of over 165,000 square feet (15,300 m2) in the complex. The total of six stories for the main structure makes the building the tallest in the city,tied with Tuality Community Hospital. In addition to government offices,the Civic Center includes retail space,public plazas,and residential housing. The complex was built to centralize city government functions under one roof.
Bruce Starr is an American politician and businessman in Oregon. A Republican,he served two terms in the Oregon House of Representatives before winning election to the Oregon State Senate in 2002. There he joined his father Senator Charles Starr and they became the first father-son team to serve at the same time in Oregon's Senate. Bruce had previously been a member of the Hillsboro City Council,and was re-elected to the Senate in 2006 and 2010,but lost a bid in 2012 to be the Oregon Labor Commissioner.
Venetian Hillsboro,last known as the Venetian Theatre &Bistro,is a former movie theater and performing arts venue in downtown Hillsboro,Oregon,United States,which since 2022 has been in use by a venue named Venetian Hillsboro. Formerly the Town Theater,the building re-opened in 2008 after more than a decade of inactivity and revitalization plans. Built in 1888 as a bank,later mayor Orange Phelps converted the property into a theater in 1911 and in 1925 converted it into a two-story Italianate building with a larger auditorium. Prior to renovation the theater was owned by the city of Hillsboro who purchased it from Act III Theatres.
Chuck Riley is an American politician who served as a member of the Oregon State Senate for the 15th district,which includes Hillsboro,Forest Grove,and Cornelius in western Washington County. He served three terms in the Oregon House of Representatives from 2005 to 2011.
Rood Bridge Park is a municipal park in southeast Hillsboro,Oregon,United States. Opened in 1999,the park encompasses 60 acres (24 ha) on the north bank of the Tualatin River at its confluence with Rock Creek. Rood Bridge is near Hillsboro High School and sits across the river from Meriwether National Golf Course. The park is the city’s largest,and contains tennis courts,a meeting facility,trails,a canoe launch,and a rhododendron garden among other features.
Reedville Creek Park is a municipal park in the Reedville neighborhood of Hillsboro,Oregon,United States. Opened in 2003,the 9.6-acre (39,000 m2) park is along Cornelius Pass Road at Francis Street in the southeast area of the city. The park includes basketball courts,children’s play equipment,a picnic shelter,tennis courts,and sports fields among other amenities. Reedville Creek was the first and is the only park in Hillsboro with a skatepark.
Shirley Todd Huffman was an American politician and legal secretary in the U.S. state of Oregon. Raised in Dayton,Oregon,she settled in Hillsboro,Oregon,where she served on the city council before serving two terms as mayor from 1985 to 1993. During her time as mayor,plans for the Westside Light Rail were approved,with Huffman receiving credit for the extension into downtown Hillsboro. After leaving office,she served on the board of directors of TriMet and as a development coordinator for the city.
53rd Avenue Park is a municipal park under development in Hillsboro,Oregon,United States. Partially opened in 2008,the park covers 43.5 acres (17.6 ha) along northeast 53rd Avenue in the middle of the city. Currently the park includes two multi-purpose sports fields covered with artificial turf with other sports amenities and a water fountain under construction. Plans call for a large indoor recreation center at the park including pools,basketball courts,tennis courts,and exercise facilities to go along with outdoor park items that include children's play equipment and walking trails. Land for the park was purchased from exercise equipment maker Soloflex beginning in 2001.
Gordon C. Faber was an American politician and businessman in the U.S. state of Oregon. A native of Pennsylvania,he grew up in Hillsboro,Oregon. He joined the U.S. Air Force during the Korean War and was a small business owner before becoming a real estate agent and entering politics. He served on Hillsboro's budget committee and city council before serving two terms as mayor from 1993 to 2001. The Gordon Faber Recreation Complex in the city's northeast corner is named in his honor.
Kaiser Westside Medical Center is a hospital in the Tanasbourne neighborhood in Hillsboro in the U.S. state of Oregon. Opened in August 2013 with 126 hospital beds,the Kaiser Permanente facility is planned to later expand to 174 beds. It was designed by Ellerbe Becket Architects and Petersen Kolberg &Associates Architects/Planners. The $220 million hospital includes Kaiser's Sunset Medical Office that opened in 1987 on the west side of the Portland metropolitan area.
Tualatin Hills Park &Recreation District (THPRD) is a special parks district located in the eastern part of Washington County in the U.S. state of Oregon. Created in 1955,the district covers all of the city of Beaverton and many of those communities surrounding Beaverton in the Portland metropolitan area. The district covers an area of 50 square miles (130 km2) and serves a population of about 220,000,making it the largest parks district in Oregon. Tualatin Hills operates over 200 facilities totaling 2,100 acres (850 ha),including eight swimming centers. The district has an annual budget of $40 million and is overseen by a five-person board of directors.
Orange Phelps was an American businessman and politician in the state of Oregon. A native of California,he attended colleges in the Midwest where he played baseball before moving to Oregon. Phelps settled near Portland in Hillsboro where he opened the first movie theater and later served as a mayor of that city and on the city council. He continued in the movie business until the 1970s and also opened the first drive-in theater in the county.
Tualatin Valley Fire &Rescue (TVF&R) is a special-purpose government fire fighting and emergency services district in the Portland metropolitan area of Oregon. Established in 1989 with a merger between Washington County Fire District 1 and the Tualatin Rural Fire Protection District,it primarily provides fire and emergency medical services in eastern Washington County,but also provides services in neighboring Multnomah,Clackamas,and Yamhill counties. It serves unincorporated areas along with the cities of Beaverton,Tigard,Tualatin,West Linn,Wilsonville,and Sherwood,among others. With over 400 firefighters and 27 fire stations,the district is the second largest fire department in the state and has an annual budget of $197 million.
Miller M. Duris was an American politician in the state of Oregon. A native Oregonian,he served as mayor of Hillsboro,Oregon,and as chairman of the Washington County Board of Commissioners in the 1970s and 1980s. He served in the United States Navy and worked for nearly 30 years at Tektronix.