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Alex Zielinski

Alex Zielinski is a former News Editor for the Portland Mercury. She's here to tell stories about economic inequities, cops, civil rights, and weird city politics that you should probably be paying attention to.
Posted inNews

How a California Nonprofit Has Shaped City Council’s Homeless Encampment Plan

Email records shows how input from an out-of-state organization took precedent over local expertise.
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Portland homeless shelter providers were taken by surprise in October when Mayor Ted Wheeler and City Commissioner Dan Ryan unveiled a plan to open several large-scale outdoor homeless encampments across town. Many longtime organizations, several of which already ran outdoor shelters similar to the proposed camps, had expected the city to seek their input in […]

Posted inGood Morning, News!

Good Morning, Portland: City Sweeps Southeast Camps, an Interstate Bridge Price Tag, and Protests in Peru

Avatar photo Alex Zielinski

The Mercury provides news and fun every single day—but your help is essential. If you believe Portland benefits from smart, local journalism and arts coverage, please consider making a small monthly contribution, because without you, there is no us. Thanks for your support! Good morning, Portland! I hope you had a restful weekend. Today brings […]

Posted inNews

PPB Changes Policy On When It Releases Officers’ Names After Shootings

The change comes months after the bureau stopped following the original policy.
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The Portland Police Bureau (PPB) has updated its internal policy on when the department releases the names of officers who use deadly force against members of the public—months after not adhering to the policy’s predecessor.  It’s long been PPB policy to release the name of an officer who uses deadly force against (ie: shoots a […]

Posted inNews

Update: Harney County Blocks Gun Control Measure from Going into Effect Hours After a Federal Judge Allowed It

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Update, December 8, 11 am:  On Wednesday, the Oregon Supreme Court rejected the Oregon Department of Justice’s request to throw out the Harney County ruling, meaning Measure 114 remains on pause until more details are ironed out in court.    Update, December 6, 3 pm:  A Tuesday afternoon decision by a Harney County judge has […]

Posted inNews

Black Portlanders File Civil Rights Lawsuit Against City and Legacy Emanuel Hospital Over 1970s Displacement

The plaintiffs allege the city and hospital conspired against their families due to the color of their skin.
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It’s been more than 50 years since hundreds of Black families were forcibly evicted from their North Portland homes to make space for Emanuel Hospital, now Legacy Emanuel Medical Center, under the guise of “urban renewal.” Now, those Portlanders and their descendants are seeking restitution from the city for undermining their families’ chance at creating […]

Posted inNews

Workers at Homeless Nonprofit New Avenues for Youth Announce Union Drive

Organizers cite low pay, limited time off, and lack of board representation as their main concerns.
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Staff at New Avenues for Youth, a Portland nonprofit focused on addressing youth homelessness, announced a plan to unionize Tuesday. According to workers, 80 percent of the estimated 130 employees eligible to join the union have expressed support of the labor movement.  More than twenty workers marched to the office of New Avenues’ Director Sean […]

Posted inGood Morning, News!

Good Morning, News: New Portland Charter Amendments Advance, a Court Ruling Looms on Measure 114, and Why Rail Workers Deserve Sick Days

Avatar photo Alex Zielinski

The Mercury provides news and fun every single day—but your help is essential. If you believe Portland benefits from smart, local journalism and arts coverage, please consider making a small monthly contribution, because without you, there is no us. Thanks for your support! Good morning, Portland! How are we all doing the day after the […]

Posted inNews

Q&A: Small Business Advocate Ashley Henry on How City Money Goes Into the Pockets of the PBA

Henry says city dollars are directly subsidizing the work and the political views of the powerful lobbying group.
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In June 2022, Ashley Henry stepped down as the head of Business for a Better Portland—a Portland business advocacy organization Henry had founded five years prior—and handed the role over to former state Representative Karin Power. At the time, it was characterized as a standard decision to transition leadership, rooted in Henry’s need to take […]

Posted inNews

City Council Passes $27 Million Budget Package to Fund Homeless Encampment Plan

According to the county, the budget package requires cuts that could lead to at least two current homeless shelters shuttering within the year—and the elimination of rent assistance programs.
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Portland City Council voted 3-0 Wednesday morning to approve a controversial budget package that lays the groundwork for a plan to criminalize street camping and build mass encampments to hold unhoused Portlanders by 2024. Both city commissioners Carmen Rubio and Jo Ann Hardesty were absent for the morning’s vote. (According to council staff, Hardesty is […]

Posted inCops

City Agrees to End the Use of “Flash-Bang” Grenades in Settlement With Don’t Shoot Portland

The settlement also includes a $250,001 payout to plaintiffs.
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The first federal lawsuit filed against the city of Portland for its officers’ actions against demonstrators during the city’s racial justice protests of 2020 has come to a close. On Monday, lawyers representing five demonstrators and the advocacy group Don’t Shoot Portland reached a $250,001 settlement with the city over a June 2020 lawsuit, which […]

Posted inNews

The Majority of Portland-Area New Seasons Stores Have Moved to Unionize

Ten out of 19 New Seasons grocery stores have joined the local labor movement.
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As of Monday afternoon, workers at more than half of all New Seasons grocery stores in the Portland Metro area have moved to unionize. A New Seasons store in Beaverton’s Cedar Hills neighborhood became the tenth to file a petition to hold a union election with the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB) Monday. As with […]

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