THE LAST THURSDAY in August, 10 blocks of Northeast Alberta swirled with a mob of 8,000 happy people. At each intersection, a different band performed and the crowd stood in knots, listening, before flowing past. But as Last Thursday comes under stronger city control, organizers have found themselves coming face to face with serious questions of class, race, and the shape of community.
Alberta’s 10-year-old art walk outgrew the sidewalks three years ago and this summer marked the first city-sanctioned and sponsored street closure. The increasingly huge monthly event has built an exciting new identity for the previously run-down area—but it has also become a major symbol of change in a neighborhood grappling with the struggles and benefits of gentrification.
In June, Magnus Johannesson, an artist, roustabout, and self-proclaimed founder of Last Thursday, blocked NE Alberta with two painted junker cars. This action snagged him a police citation for disorderly conduct but also got the attention of City Commissioner Sam Adams’ office, which soon collaborated on legally closing the street for Last Thursday. Adams’ office directed the city to shoulder the financial cost of a Last Thursday street closure during August and September, agreeing that it benefits the community.
The business benefits are obvious. Alberta is lined with shops that have opened in just the last five years: two coffee shops, a handful of bistros and art galleries, and a crêperie. As business has increased thanks in part to Last Thursday, so have property values. The value of the vacant lot on the corner of NE 20th and Alberta has jumped from $13,000 to nearly $319,000 in the last 10 years.
“But there are some businesses that are benefiting from it and some that aren’t,” says North/Northeast Business Association President Gary Marschke.
“It was the creative community that recognized the value of real estate in Northeast back in the ’80s when it was all boarded-up storefronts. In order for the creative community to survive, they created Last Thursday to bring in retail traffic,” Marschke continues. “What it also did was create an environment that led to gentrification, that for all intents and purposes excluded the long-term neighborhood residents.”
For the first time on August 28, Portland Department of Transportation shelled out about $1,600 for barricades, informational flyering, insurance, and day-after trash cleanup. The police department also spent $4,300 in overtime pay for the 10 officers and two sergeants usually assigned to the scene in the busy summer months.
For Paige Coleman, executive director of the Northeast Coalition of Neighborhoods, the permitting of Last Thursday underscores the city’s 10-year absence from regulating the rowdy event.
“There are questions coming from the community about whether the city has applied its policy in a fair and equitable way,” says Coleman, explaining that many neighbors believe that if 10 years ago the neighborhood’s predominantly African American and Latino residents had thrown an un-permitted and boozy block party, the police would have shut it down.
“It feels a little bit out of control and neighbors do wonder, ‘Why isn’t the city cracking down on it?'” says Office of Neighborhood Involvement Crime Prevention manager Stephanie Reynolds, who leads the newly formed Last Thursday Steering Committee.
Northeast Precinct Lieutenant Bill Walker does not agree that city policy has been enforced unequally, explaining that the police did not see a need to regulate Last Thursday.
“As long as they’re on the sidewalks, they’re not breaking any laws—even though it was an un-permitted event,” Walker says. “You can’t shut down the sidewalks.”
Walker says officers have always had a “zero-tolerance policy” on alcohol, though they hand out surprisingly few citations. August’s Last Thursday was full of obvious on-street drinking, but the dozen officers handed out only 11 open-container citations.
Long-term Northeast residents’ chilly attitude toward Last Thursday stems from both practical problems—trash, parking, intoxicated hooligans—and larger cultural issues. Emails sent to the Last Thursday Steering Committee tell of nine-to-fivers winding up in shouting matches with artist types over coveted parking spaces. “Their street party is destroying quality of life for the locals!” railed one email.
“It’s an intimidating event—like a mini Mardi Gras,” says Marschke. “For some residents, there aren’t a whole lot of people out on the street that look like them and the perception is that this is a bunch of art for some affluent white people and doesn’t reflect the heritage of the neighborhood around it.”
So far, the signs of increased coordination for Last Thursday have been subtle but definite. The steering committee distributed fliers listing the four rules of the event: It ends at 10 pm, throw away trash, no open containers, and consider not driving. The committee plans to meet all winter to figure out what Last Thursday will look like as the neighborhood continues to change.
God damn yuppies take over every thing! I miss the NE Ghetto. It makes me sick to see how the white bread eaters are quietly forcing the blacks out of North Portland, and congratulating themselves for “cleaning up” the neighborhood. Give me a break. Some call it community improvement, I call it politically correct racism. True community seeks to include people not exclude them. I would rather live in a community with cultural and economic diversity than live with a bunch of pretentious Fashion Fascists.
Just a comment, but I would guess that other than buying up all of those huge NE homes and businesses at somewhat affordable prices – the white and other ethnic non-blacks doing it are also more likely eating trendy organic whole wheat bread. Times change, and so should the insults.
I don’t get it, Pinki… anyone who wants to can set up a table for Last Thursday. So how is that intentionally excluding anyone? I share your wish that the event would be more diverse, but I don’t understand what it is that you think the organizers are doing to intentionally excluded certain economic classes or races. Perhaps you should join the steering committee and help come up with ways to keep the event more diverse?
“full of obvious on-street drinking”? was the author of this piece even THERE? I was a volunteer for the event and was walking the streets from before they were blocked off until after it ended. I was specifically looking for people with alcohol as that was what we’d been tasked to do. I saw exactly one person with a drink in their hand on the street during the entire course of the evening. the general vibe of the police officers after the event was mild surprise that there was so much less drinking going on than we’d all been led to believe. so whatever problems you may have with the event, please stop implying that it’s some kind of raging kegger where you can’t walk down the street without tripping over someone’s beer bong, because that is a drastic misrepresentation of what really goes on out there.
Thatguy,
really? no obvious drinking? the reason a lot of us were lead to discover last thursday was not for the art itself. though i and most of my friends bring trinkets and crafts to display. it’s the drinking. sure, you aren’t walking around with tall boys anymore.. cause there’s more cops. but it’s definitly the thought as last thursday rolls around: who’s heading to the liquor store? break out the flasks. soda pop half full of liquor provides shot-strength drinks that aren’t considered “open containers” to the naked eye. There is much drinking, it’s just been subdued a bit. but take that away and you take away the spirit of freedom provided by last thursday. maybe you’re not a binger … but lord knows there’s many who are
As sad as gentrification is it is not a conscious act carried out by these horrible horrible white people. It starts with people who are poor themselves coming to an area where they can afford to live and work. Often Artist are the first to take this step because they see a place free from these so-called upper class citizens(and their high prices). Artists make it interesting, and then the people with the money come to get a taste. Which often drives the artist out to a new area and the whole thing starts all over again. It is too bad that the log time res don’t enjoy the fact that people have brought art and music to there streets. These people weren’t exactly making anything happen there themselves before the artist came. bla bla bla bla…
What does gentrification mean? Does it mean that environmentally concious people are wanting to live “closer in”. That previously “bad” neighborhoods allow for more affordable housing options for the people that move there? How about improved services and better living for people of all colors in that neighborhood? Or would a better option be to have segregated unlivable inner city neighborhoods like most U.S. cities?
So what could be done to make Last Thursday more inclusive? Rent controls? Encouragement to allow minority business owners to participate?
I’m wholeheartedly for the idea of fighting or challenging gentrification as inevitable, but I’d really like to hear some ideas as to how both sides can commit towards preventing forced demographic change.
Minority business owners can participate. As was noted above ANYONE can participate. There is nothing about Last Thursday that is excluding or pushing out anyone that wants to participate.
Gentrification is only sad if it replaces a rich and thriving community with something not rich and thriving. What is going on in the Alberta area is anything but sad.
You can still catch some of the old neighborhood any night of the week after about 10:00pm just by hanging around the corner of 18th and Alberta. If that’s the type of activity you prefer over an art festival that, really lets be honest here, cannot be accurately described as anything but peaceful and is helping the continued thriving of business and real community ( as in community not simply bound together by skin color ) than I hope your ass gets gentrathefuckedoutta here soon.
I live in the neighborhood and I love Last Thursday! Not for the booze, not for the party. But for the art, culture, people watching and a great community event. Yes, I said culture. Culture is not defined by white or black, rich vs poor. Take a look around up there- the culture also represents an eclectic group of people in all terms. The tall-bikers, the street performers, the tourists, the locals, the jewely makers, the woodworkers, the crazy-stuff builders. It is a celebration of how unique Portland is and why this is a city we all love.
But then there are people like “Pinki” up there creating and fueling this fire, unable to resist adding the negativity. “Yuppies” and “White bread eaters” wanting to “clean up the community”- Cleaning up the community doesn’t mean “forcing the blacks out of the community.” It means we want a safe neighborhood to raise our families and promote this great community. Everyone is welcome in that mission, any color, rich or poor. Developing a community is the normal life cycle of a neighborhood. People move to an area, more people move there, property values go up, commerce flourishes. Look outside your little bubble, this isn’t some hate-filled “politically correct racism.” This is how the world works.
I find it ironic Paige Coleman and the Northeast Neighborhoods Office talks about equity with so little integrity, ethics or action. Seems they should put their words to work and get more directly involved.