[Congressional Record Volume 160, Number 40 (Tuesday, March 11, 2014)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E350-E351]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




                 HONORING WILLIAM RICHARD (DICK) COOLEY

                                 ______
                                 

                          HON. EARL BLUMENAUER

                               of oregon

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, March 11, 2014

  Mr. BLUMENAUER. Mr. Speaker, last month, Portland lost an 
extraordinary citizen with the passing of William Richard (Dick) 
Cooley. It was my honor to know and work with Dick Cooley for most of 
our professional lives. My friend was first and foremost a planner. It 
ran in his blood, he came by it honestly.
  His father, Bill Cooley, was a big picture guy, a successful 
developer who served on the Multnomah County planning commission and 
was someone who was extraordinarily helpful to me when I was a new 
county commissioner. He had great depth of understanding about what was 
then Oregon's second largest city: unincorporated mid-Multnomah County. 
Bill Cooley played a significant role as a developer in an area where 
homes spring up rapidly, but he didn't just help build

[[Page E351]]

the community, he located his family in the middle of it, and then 
helped lead it.
  Dick Cooley grew up in the midst of this dramatic change in the 
region. I had a connection being in an adjacent high school district, 
Centennial, next door to him. His high school alma mater was David 
Douglas, which was then the largest high school in the state of Oregon. 
It was then a symbol of excellence and Dick Cooley fit right in. It's 
where he developed the characteristics and skills that would serve him 
so well later in life. He was far more than a planner; he was a 
successful developer and builder who also had a career in banking and 
later, was in key business positions in the real estate arm of Pacific 
Power and Light, Pacific Development. This company took the audacious 
step of buying a huge tract of urban central city property known as the 
Lloyd district, well over 100 acres of opportunity that has continued 
to be a source of developmental activity, to be a key new district now 
blossoming within the central city. Dick Cooley was an investor who 
made strategic property purchases not just on the highest rate of 
return or the fastest rate of return, but working to put the pieces 
together to create long-term value.
  It was this combination of the instincts of planner and an investor 
that made him a natural choice to follow in his father's footsteps to 
become a member of the Multnomah county planning commission.
  I was pleased to appoint him to the Portland Planning Commission 
where he was an extraordinarily valuable leader in the important 
activities of the late 1980s and 1990s. He provided leadership not just 
as the chair of the planning commission, but understanding how to help 
people come together to create value. He played a vital role in helping 
shape and guide my Albina community plan, which was perhaps the high 
water mark in Portland's planning for people. This lead to the 
revitalization of some of Portland's most troubled neighborhoods. 
Streets you wouldn't feel comfortable driving down then, you can now 
stroll with visitors to show Portland at its best. Dick was essential 
in bringing fellow planning commissioners, citizens and the city 
council together to make it happen.
  Yet his planning, patience and investment strategies were most 
compelling when it came to people. It started with his circle of family 
and friends, especially his loving 20 year relationship with his wife 
Leslie. It was a joy to be around them both. No one worked harder at 
being a parent then my friend Dick, and his children, Sarah and Alex 
were never far from his thoughts.
  Whether Dick was planning, being a father, husband, friend, he was 
always giving of himself. He never forgot that he was a kid from mid-
Multnomah County, David Douglas High School, and he would return to his 
community roots time and time again. Most notably and recently, the 
countless hours he spent trying to assist his former neighbors contend 
with a community that is now fighting decline. He worked with them 
helping realize their vision for the gateway area, long after he left 
the planning commission.
  He could not keep himself from providing leadership. He provided 
leadership until last year for the Portland street car, another Dick 
Cooley contribution to revitalizing our community and inspiring cities 
across America. Dick's values blended seamlessly. Friendship, family, 
business, community; they were all part of a broader sense for the 
greater good. It is trite to say, but he was truly a unique human 
being. I've never seen anyone tie together those pieces the same way in 
such shy, quiet, unassuming fashion. He was smart as a whip and 
credentialed, but he didn't care about status and credentials, for 
himself or anyone else. He was still the kid from David Douglas, who 
just happened to be student body president, an athlete, an actor, a 
successful scholar who went off to Harvard. He didn't just wear this 
well, he disguised it. What he cared about was the human connection. If 
you knew Dick well, that was what you expected; you almost took it for 
granted. If you went on an early morning walk, he was the guy with the 
flashlight for you, maybe an extra bottle of water wondering if you're 
going to be late for your next appointment. He was always asking how 
you were. It was a detailed sort of checking in, about how you were 
really doing, your family, what you were thinking, who you were 
connected with.
  His men's group was a critical part of who Dick was for two decades, 
but he wanted to share and understand that type of experience. He 
encouraged others to stake out their own circles to have the same 
connection. Dick will always be connected to us. Truly an extraordinary 
human being, who left us too soon, but who lived an amazingly rich and 
full life. We're all richer for that connection with him today, which 
continues every evening at 6:30 as his friends pause to remember Dick 
and what he meant to us all.

                          ____________________