Nicholas Stuyvesant Fish (September 30, 1958 – January 2, 2020) was an American politician and lawyer who served as a Commissioner of

Portland, Oregon Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers, Portland is the county seat of Multnomah County, the most populous co ...

from 2008 to 2020. A

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

, Fish worked with

Portland Parks & Recreation Portland Parks & Recreation (PP&R) is a Bureau of the City of Portland, Oregon that manages the city parks, natural areas, recreational facilities, gardens, and trails. The properties, which occupy a total of more than . The bureau employs a total ...

, the Portland Housing Bureau, and the Bureau of Environmental Services.

Early life

Fish was born and raised in

Millbrook, New York Millbrook is a village in Dutchess County, New York, United States. Millbrook is located in the Hudson Valley, on the east side of the Hudson River, north of New York City. Millbrook is near the center of the town of Washington, of which it is a ...

. He is a member of the prominent Fish political family. He was the son of Julia MacKenzie and Hamilton Fish IV, who represented New York in the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the Lower house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...

from 1969 to 1995. His grandfather,

Hamilton Fish III Hamilton Fish III (born Hamilton Stuyvesant Fish and also known as Hamilton Fish Jr.; December 7, 1888 – January 18, 1991) was an American soldier and politician from United States Congressional Delegations from New York, New York State. Born ...

, represented New York in the

from 1920 to 1945 and served in 369th U.S. Infantry Regiment known as the "Harlem Hellfighters." Fish's great-great grandfather was

Hamilton Fish Hamilton Fish (August 3, 1808September 7, 1893) was an American politician who served as the 16th Governor of New York from 1849 to 1850, a United States Senator from New York from 1851 to 1857 and the 26th United States Secretary of State fro ...

, the 26th

United States Secretary of State The United States secretary of state is a member of the executive branch of the federal government of the United States and the head of the U.S. Department of State. The office holder is one of the highest ranking members of the president's Ca ...

Career

After graduating from

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...

in 1981, Fish worked as a legislative aide for

Massachusetts Massachusetts (Massachusett language, Massachusett: ''Muhsachuweesut assachusett writing systems, məhswatʃəwiːsət'' English: , ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is the most populous U.S. state, state in the New England ...

Congressman

Barney Frank Barnett Frank (born March 31, 1940) is a former American politician. He served as a member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Massachusetts from 1981 to 2013. A Democrat, Frank served as chairman of the House Financial Services Committee ...

. He received a

Juris Doctor The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice law ...

degree from

Northeastern University Northeastern University (NU) is a private university, private research university with its main campus in Boston. Established in 1898, the university offers undergraduate and graduate programs on its main campus as well as satellite campuses in ...

in 1986. Fish practiced law in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

and in

. Fish spent ten years representing health care workers and unions in

. He was appointed to Manhattan Community Board Five, a neighborhood association, serving as chair for two years. Fish championed the renovation of the

Times Square Hotel The Times Square Hotel is located in New York, New York. The building was built in 1922 and was added to the National Register of Historic Places on May 4, 1995. History and description Built by the developer Henry Claman in 1922, as president ...

. Working with community non-profit Common Ground, the hotel was remodeled into affordable housing and a thriving community of theater district workers, residents living with

HIV/AIDS Human immunodeficiency virus infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (HIV/AIDS) is a spectrum of conditions caused by infection with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), a retrovirus. Following initial infection an individual ...

, and formerly homeless individuals. The Times Square renovation received the

Rudy Bruner Award for Urban Excellence The Rudy Bruner Award for Urban Excellence (RBA) was established in 1986 by Cambridge, Massachusetts architect Simeon Bruner. The award is named after Simeon Bruner's late father, Rudy Bruner, founder of the Bruner Foundation. According to the Bru ...

in 1997. Fish moved to

in 1996 after his wife, Patricia Schechter, was offered a teaching position in the History Department at

Portland State University Portland State University (PSU) is a public research university in Portland, Oregon. It was founded in 1946 as a post-secondary educational institution for World War II veterans. It evolved into a four-year college over the following two decades ...

. Prior to running for elected office, Fish practiced employment law in Oregon, and hosted ''Outlook Portland with Nick Fish'', a public affairs show on KRCW. Fish served on the boards of

Home Forward Home Forward, established in 1941 as the Housing Authority of Portland, is a housing authority that serves Portland, Oregon, and surrounding areas in Multnomah County, Oregon, United States. Home Forward maintains properties in Portland, Gresha ...

(formerly the Housing Authority of Portland), the

Oregon Cultural Trust Oregon Cultural Trust is a cultural promotion and preservation organization in the U.S. state of Oregon Oregon () is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the Western United States. The Columbia River delineates much of Oregon's northe ...

Volunteers of America Volunteers of America (VOA) is a nonprofit organization founded in 1896 that provides affordable housing and other assistance services primarily to low-income people throughout the United States. Headquartered in Alexandria, Virginia, the organiz ...

, and the St. Mark's Historic Landmark Fund.

Politics

Fish first ran for a seat on the Portland City Council in 2002, losing to Randy Leonard. He ran again in 2004, losing to future Mayor

Sam Adams Samuel Adams ( – October 2, 1803) was an American statesman, political philosopher, and a Founding Father of the United States. He was a politician in colonial Massachusetts, a leader of the movement that became the American Revolution, and ...

. In 2008, Fish again ran for the Council, this time in a special election for the unexpired term of resigned Commissioner Erik Sten. He won the seat with 61.4% of the vote. He was re-elected to a full four-year term in 2010 with just under 80% of the vote. Until February 2013, Fish served as Commissioner-in-Charge of the Portland Housing Bureau and

. In 2010, Fish led the creation of the new Portland Housing Bureau, streamlining and consolidating the City's housing programs and services. In 2011, he celebrated the opening of Bud Clark Commons, a cornerstone of the City's 10 Year Plan to End Homelessness. In June 2013, a shuffling of bureaus among the commissioners by Mayor Hales saw Fish assigned the Bureau of Environment Services and the

Portland Water Bureau The Portland Water Bureau is the municipal water department for the city of Portland in the U.S. state of Oregon. The bureau manages a water supply that comes mainly from the Bull Run River in the foothills of the Cascade Range east of the city a ...

, and placed in charge of the

Regional Arts & Culture Council The Regional Arts & Culture Council (RACC) is an organization that administers arts grants in Multnomah, Washington, and Clackamas Counties that also do advocacy in the Portland metropolitan area in Oregon, United States. It evolved from the city� ...

Personal life

Fish and his wife lived in the Goose Hollow neighborhood of Portland. Fish was diagnosed with stomach cancer in 2017. On December 31, 2019, Fish said he was no longer able to carry out his work as a commissioner and announced his plan to resign upon the election of a successor. Two days later, Fish died at his home in Portland.Portland City Commissioner Nick Fish dead from stomach cancer
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References

External links

Commissioner Nick Fish
on City of Portland website {{DEFAULTSORT:Fish, Nick 1958 births 2020 deaths 21st-century American politicians Deaths from cancer in Oregon Deaths from stomach cancer Nicholas Stuyvesant Harvard University alumni Lawyers from New York City Lawyers from Portland, Oregon Northeastern University School of Law alumni Oregon Democrats People from Millbrook, New York Portland City Council members (Oregon) United States congressional aides