Neil Goldschmidt, a transformative figure in Oregon politics who as Portland’s mayor in the 1970s shaped the city into a vibrant, progressive, pedestrian-friendly downtown — a time when he molested a teenage girl, he later admitted — died Wednesday. at his home in Portland. He is 83 years old.
Family members said the cause was congestive heart failure.
As mayor of Portland, and then governor of Oregon from 1987 to 1991, Mr. Goldschmidt earned a reputation as a visionary architect of urban renewal. The idea of ​​making cities more walkable and less dependent on cars is becoming a template for municipal officials across the country.
In Portland, he opposed a federal plan for a freeway that would run right through the city, diverting funding for the project to create an urban park and light rail transit system. They also spend money to restore damaged neighborhoods and support mixed-use developments that combine housing, shops and offices.
“They understand that when you attract new families to old neighborhoods, you provide jobs and customers for downtown businesses,” Carl Abbott, a historian at Portland State University, said in an interview. “And if downtown businesses are strong and downtown is attractive and fun, then people want to live there.”
In 1979, after Mr. Goldschmidt served two terms as mayor, President Jimmy Carter appointed him secretary of transportation. After Mr. Carter left office in 1981, Mr. Goldschmidt joined Nike, one of Oregon’s best-known companies, as a senior executive. He won election as the 33rd governor of the state in 1986.
Viewed as a rising star in national politics, Mr. Goldschmidt stunned political observers in 1990 when he announced he would not seek a second term and he separated from his wife, Margaret Wood, after 25 years of marriage.
Rumors of an extramarital affair have swirled around Mr. Goldschmidt for years.
“Serving the country I love has come at the cost of another love, my family,” he said when announcing his decision not to run.
Mr. Goldschmidt started a consulting firm and served on the Oregon Board of Higher Education.
Then, in May 2004, the scandalous 30-year secret was revealed.
Willamette Week, an alternative newspaper, reported that Mr. Goldschmidt, when he was mayor of Portland, had many sexual relations with a teenage girl for three years from the age of 14. , the newspaper reported.
When Willamette Week was about to publish its story online, Mr. Goldschmidt admitted to a reporter from The Oregonian daily newspaper during a 50-minute interview. He said that the girl, a neighbor, was the daughter of someone who had worked on his campaign for mayor.
“I’m just living with this personal hell,” he said. “It’s been too long to lie.”
He also admitted that rumors of an extramarital affair are not just rumours.
“If people work hard enough, I think you will find indiscretions,” said The Oregonian. “But nothing as bad as this.”
The statute of limitations on possible criminal charges against Mr. Goldschmidt, including statutory rape, had expired decades earlier. The abused woman later gave several interviews to Margie Boulé, a columnist for The Oregonian, describing her relationship with the mayor.
The woman said the first abuse started when she was 13, on her mother’s birthday. It literally destroyed her, she said. He attempted suicide at the age of 15 and later became addicted to alcohol and cocaine. He died in 2011.
“I have a lot of potential,” he told Ms. Boule. “I am bright. I like to read, I like to study.”
Neil Edward Goldschmidt was born June 16, 1940, in Eugene, Ore., to Lester Goldschmidt, an accountant, and Annette (Levin) Goldschmidt.
After graduating from the University of Oregon in 1963 with a degree in political science, he moved to Washington, DC, and worked as an intern for Senator Maurine B. Neuberger of Oregon.
Mr. Goldschmidt left Washington after a year and moved to Mississippi to work on a voter registration drive with Charles Evers, the brother of civil rights activist Medgar Evers.
After several months in the Deep South, he entered law school at the University of California, Berkeley, graduating in 1967. Instead of joining his classmates who went on to earn big salaries at big law firms, Mr. Goldschmidt went to work at Legal Aid. Society in Portland.
In 1970, he won a seat on the City Council. He was elected mayor in 1972 and served two four-year terms.
Mr. Goldschmidt married Diana Snowden in 1994. She survives, along with his children from his first marriage, Rebecca McMillan and Josh Goldschmidt; two stepchildren, Kirsten and Neilan Snowden; his brother, Steve; and eight grandchildren.
After his confession, Mr. Goldschmidt spent the rest of his life out of the public eye.
“Although he battled many health problems over the years, he actively engaged his family and friends in discussions about school, business, politics and wine until the day he died,” his family said in a statement, and they hope people will remember . “the significant positive contribution he made to our community.”
Political figures in Oregon have struggled to define their legacy.
“In what he has done and what he has meant for this country, Neil belongs among the political icons of the past 50 years,” Angus Duncan, a former aide to Mr. Goldschmidt, told The Washington Post after sexual abuse was disclosed. “They are larger-than-life creatures that have a lasting impact on the landscape.”
After his death, his assessment was less charitable.
“Neil Goldschmidt’s abuse of a young girl destroyed her life, a horrific act that should make any further discussion of his political career moot,” Senator Ron Wyden of Oregon said in a statement. “The best response to this news is to contribute to organizations dedicated to preventing sexual abuse, such as the Oregon Association for the Treatment and Prevention of Sexual Abuse.”
