Portland police investigate the officer-involved shooting of Quanice Hayes in February. Dirk VanderHart Portland police could press forward with immediately compelling statements from officers involved in shootings if a new proposal from Commissioner Nick Fish and Mayor Ted Wheeler is approved on Wednesday. The change, to be floated in a planned substitute ordinance [PDF], would […]
Dirk VanderHart
I'm a news reporter for the Mercury. I've spent a lot of the last decade in journalism — covering tragedy and chicanery in the hills of southwest Missouri, politics in Washington, D.C., and other matters elsewhere.
I've been in Portland three years, love it and want to help make it better. Let's keep it amicable!
Posted inNews
Unite Oregon’s Kayse Jama Will Also Challenge Sen. Rod Monroe, Filings Suggest
Facebook Add Kayse Jama to the list of people looking to unseat state Sen. Rod Monroe. Jama, the executive director of Unite Oregon and a longtime community organizer, announced over the weekend on Facebook that he is “planning to move my years of advocacy and community building work to the next level.” Jama hasn’t formally […]
Posted inNews
An On-Duty PBOT Employee Trolled Under Armour with a Nike Swoosh—Then Retired
(Photo by Spencer Platt/Getty Images) The rivalry between Nike and Under Armour is hitting the streets. In a bizarre and delightful series of events, the City of Portland is trying to collect more than $250 from a former transportation worker, after he decorated a road in front of Under Armour’s new Southwest Barbur outpost with […]
Posted inNews
Jo Ann Hardesty Will Challenge Commissioner Dan Saltzman Next Year
Jo Ann Hardesty Facebook The race for Commissioner Dan Saltzman’s city council seat just got interesting early. Jo Ann Hardesty, a former state representative (1995-2001), president of the local chapter of the NAACP, and a constant police oversight advocate, informed Saltzman this afternoon she’d be challenging him in the May primary. First, though, Hardesty tried […]
Posted inHousing
Sorry, Laurelhurst. You’re Not Getting “Safe Zones” From Homelessness
Doug Brown “Safe zones” aren’t coming to posh and leafy Laurelhurst anytime soon. Last month, residents in the neighborhood forwarded a plea to Mayor Ted Wheeler, asking him to step up penalties for people who camp, use drugs, or go to the bathroom outdoors within 1,000 feet of a school, park, or another place frequented […]
Posted inHousing
After Crackdown, the City’s Opening an East Portland Park to Homeless Outreach Workers
Volunteers with Operation Nightwatch hand out sandwiches to the homeless on Saturday, July 29. Thomas Teal As some Lents residents fume over an uptick in homeless meal services in their neighborhood, the City of Portland is offering up a city park for that purpose. At least during the current heat wave. Paul Underwood, executive director […]
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Portland Is Going to Build a Massive Filtration Plant for Its Oft-Lauded Water Supply
The humble ultraviolet wave, it seems, never had much of a chance. From the first moments of a lengthy hearing Wednesday afternoon on what type of federally mandated water treatment Portland would choose, the cheapest option—a $105 million plant that would use UV rays to eliminate a parasite found rarely in Portland’s water—was painted as […]
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The City’s Going to Bat for Its Innovative, Maybe-Unconstitutional Ban on New Fuel Terminals
FRANÇOIS VIGNEAULT Portland’s about to try to salvage the nation’s strongest limitations on new fossil fuels facilities from the junk pile. This morning, City Council voted unanimously to appeal a July 19 opinion from the state’s Land Use Board of Appeals (LUBA) finding that strong restrictions on new oil and natural gas terminals in city […]
Posted inUncategorized
Good Morning, News: A Water Treatment Reprieve, a Mayoral Recall Threat, and Your Future As a Puddle
As we trudge toward our painful fate as liquids, I wanted to say it’s been a pleasure, dear readers. Liquids don’t write or read news digests, so it looks like this is our last time together. The latest forecast: Too hot. And since your power’s probably going to go out because everyone’s got their ACs […]
Posted inNews
East Portland Advocates Are Trying to Fill a Sudden Gap in Homeless Assistance
But Their Meal Services Are Angering Neighbors
But their meal services are angering neighbors.
Posted inNews
Hall Monitor: Slap Yourselves, Portland
Proposed Police Oversight Changes Are Hugely Important. So Wake Up!
Proposed police oversight changes are hugely important. So wake up!
Posted inNews
Officials Want More Time To Scrutinize a New Water Treatment Plant—But A Decision Still Might Come Tomorrow
Getty Images With Portland City Council potentially prepared to approve a huge and expensive water filtration facility tomorrow afternoon, Commissioner Nick Fish and Mayor Ted Wheeler have asked for more time before a decision on the matter must be made. In a letter to the Oregon Health Authority today, Fish and Wheeler are requesting an […]