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Three years ago, Julie moved from Maryland to Portland. She didn’t know anyone here, but she did know Portland’s reputation as a young, hip, artsy city. She wanted to be a painter. But three years later, that dream remains on the shelf as Julie (who asked that her real name not be used) serves coffee […]
In July, two popular stores along SE Division–Portico and Mirador–were told they would be fined $50 a day if the murals decorating their buildings were not removed within a week. Although the murals were innocent enough–one has a dancing blue water sprite in the foreground; the other shows colorful ribbons–they run afoul of strict city […]
It started last February, when a 31-year old cab driver was murdered. Randy Leonard, a newly elected city commissioner at the time, went to the funeral. While he was there, he saw something he couldn’t quite stomach: The cab driver’s young son crying and tugging at the casket. “I’m not going to another funeral, and […]
Supporters for presidential hopeful Dennis Kucinich are wondering whether national news reporters are actually becoming newsmakers. Last week, after a brisk exchange between Congressman Kucinich and ABC anchorman Ted Koppel during a Democratic Presidential debate, ABC pulled reporters from the Kucinich campaign, as well as those of both African American candidates, Rev. Al Sharpton and […]
On Friday, the Portland Business Alliance (PBA) made a surprise announcement: Their controversial president, Franklin “Kim” Kimbrough, was resigning. Since arriving in Portland three years ago, Kimbrough has been an unwelcome force in city politics. In the short span of three years, he managed to strain and scar relationships between city hall, the business community, […]
The police never intended for the list to become public. Created by officer Jeff Myers several months ago, the list contains the names of dozens of people whom the police are putting extra effort into clearing out of Old Town and downtown. Like a “wanted” poster from the Wild West, the list identifies suspected criminals […]
The Kenton Fire House stands quietly amid tree-lined North Portland streets, a turn-of-the century two-story brick building radiating a sense of history. But this quaint building was transformed last month into a “neighborhood center” and, in the process, has become a hornet’s nest of controversy between residents and city hall. At the heart of the […]
For the past decade, defense attorneys have banged their heads against the Drug Free Zones (DFZ), four territories in the city from which police can kick out suspected drug users and sellers. Under the rule, a police officer can boot a person from these zones for 90 days based on the mere suspicion that he […]
A month ago, the police hacked down a community garden near First Presbyterian Church, which had apparently become a haven for homeless men and women. At the time, homeless advocates warned that cutting down the flowers and clearing out the homeless was not an isolated event, but a pilot project to sweep the entire I-405 […]
It’s not a trial to change the course of history and it won’t set any precedents demanding better police behavior. But the case of Mark Wilson is a reminder that activists in town are not simply rolling over for the police. Five months ago, Wilson was standing along Belmont Avenue during a Critical Mass ride. […]
VERA’S GANG Last Friday, Mayor Vera Katz hosted a long overdue “summit” on gang violence. Over the past two years, there’s been a marked increase in crimes associated with gangs around Portland, and in the past year alone there have been 11 unsolved murders attributed to battles between local gangs. But even before the summit […]
by Anna Simon Last Wednesday, Powell’s employees gave a glimpse of what Christmas could be like. Unhappy about ongoing contract negotiations, masses of workers paraded in noisy picket lines around the store’s entryways, virtually shutting down the flagship store along Burnside. A few shoppers did ignore the picket line’s request to “shop tomorrow” and broke […]
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