By Don MacGillivray Portland is known for its lack of racial diversity and its lack of African Americans. With the Black population at six percent and Latinos at 10 percent …
Portland’s Struggle with Diversity Read More
By Nancy Tannler In November, 58 percent of Oregon voters approved ballot Measure 110. This yes vote is intended to provide the state with more addiction recovery services, partially financed …
Measure 101 Promises Addiction Recovery Tools Read More
By David Krogh As one of the by-products of Portland’s Commission form of government, City Council members (each of whom are referred to as “Commissioner”) are assigned to oversee city …
Commissioner Bureau Assignments for 2021 Read More
By David Krogh Mayor Ted Wheeler has made the Commissioner bureau assignments for 2021 and will have oversight of the Police Bureau under his umbrella. In response, City Council Commissioners …
City Commissioners Raise Safety Concerns Read More
By Ellen Spitaleri Everyone is hoping for better times in 2021, but Jacobsen Valentine has specific items on his wish list for the new year. As the founder and executive …
Feed the Mass Feeds the Community Read More
By Don MacGillivray Since early spring, the Laurelhurst Park homeless camp along SE Oak St. grew until it was finally removed a week before Thanksgiving. A few tents appeared along …
The Beginning and End of Laurelhurst Camping Read More
By David Krogh Portland City Council formally appointed 20 community members to the 2021 Charter Commission on December 3. The Commission will meet throughout a two-year period to identify issues …
Charter Commission Chosen Read More
By Nancy Tannler As cases of COVID-19 continue to rise, we have all become aware of the important duty front line workers are taking on in this crisis. It has …
Nurses Propel Healthcare Reform Read More
By Jack Rubinger While many of us drive up and down 82nd Ave., the sights and sounds are familiar – car dealerships, fast food restaurants and the occasional dispensary. Certainly …
Avenue of the Roses 15th Anniversary Read More
By Don MacGillivray No one ever dreamed that peace loving, but weird, Portland, OR would become a center of attention for nightly rioting and citizen demands for law and order …
By Nancy Tannler When Mark Bartlett first requested access to legal opinions and documents from the City Attorney back in 2015, he never imagined it would take five years, four …
Bartlett vs. The City Read More
By Daniel Perez-Crouse A new study commissioned by Multnomah County (and neighboring cities) assessed the feasibility of a publicly owned fiber-to-the-premises network. The study provides data and information relevant to …
By Nancy Tannler Beginning last month, business owners could apply for free permits to winterize their existing street space or to create one. PBOT, Portland Bureau of Transportation, started the …
Winter Healthy Businesses Program Read More
By Gabe Frayne Picture, if you will, your last visit to Chicago, New York or any other noisy megalopolis. While visual images may come to mind, sounds are equally evocative. …
Gas-Powered Leaf Blowers Read More
By Don MacGillivray A plea for police accountability has been the root cause of the nightly unrest in the streets of Portland. Demonstrators want police reform so that people of …
Police Oversight Measure on Ballot Read More
By Nancy Tannler Voters in Multnomah County will decide on Preschool for All, Ballot Measure 26-214 in November. Multnomah County Commissioner Jessica Vega Pederson, District 3, championed this cause along …
Equalizing the Future: Measure 26-214 Read More
By Midge Pierce The November ballot will include two City Council positions with run-offs against Portland’s Mayor Wheeler and Commissioner Eudaly. As violence, crime and houselessness rise and confidence in …
Mayoral, City Commissioner Races Read More
By Jack Rubinger Oregonians will vote on whether to legalize psilocybin in November. Psilocybin is a naturally occurring psychedelic compound produced by more than 200 species of mushrooms. Oregon Measure …
Legalizing Psilocybin Read More
By Midge Pierce Multnomah County Library officials are forging ahead with a measure on the November ballot during a time when household finances have already been impacted by the pandemic. …
Library Seeks Levy for New Building and Expansions Read More
By Kris McDowell In early September, on the heels of public input and technical analysis, the Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) released an alternatives evaluation for the Hawthorne Pave and …
PBOT Releases Alternatives Evaluation for Hawthorne Pave and Paint Read More
By Ellen Spitaleri A normal summer for Portland Parks & Recreation (PP&R) features crowded swimming pools, alert lifeguards and plenty of outdoor activities for families and seniors. However, the summer …
Measure 26-213: PP&R Operating Levy Read More
By Nancy Tannler The Green Loop was approved in 2012 by City Council as part of the Central City 2035 Plan. It is a six-mile, linear park and active transportation …
Southeast in the Loop Read More
By Nancy Tannler The people of Portland are not ones to crumble in the face of adversity. Small business has been hit hard during this global pandemic, but they are …
Safe Streets | Healthy Businesses Read More
By Gabe Frayne In 1955 the New York state legislature, facing rising urban poverty, enacted the Mitchell-Lama housing program, which allowed private developers to build affordable rental housing in exchange …
Housing Affordability for the Long-Term Read More
Editor’s Note: The Southeast Examiner went to press before Portland Public Schools announced earlier this week that it would not reopen classrooms in September and only distance learning would be …
PPS Stresses Safety in Fall Reopening Plans Read More
By Nancy Tannler At the July meeting of the Lents Neighborhood Livability Association (LNLA), Tremaine Clayton of Portland Fire & Rescue gave an update on Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty’s plans …
Portland Street Response Gearing Up Read More
By Midge Pierce Portland has a new police chief, a revamped police budget and is on its way toward significant police reform influenced by momentum gained outside SE Portland’s Revolution …
SE Stands Up for Reform Read More
By Nancy Tannler After reading an article in the June edition about the cost of water in the near future, a reader inquired about other utility rates over the next …
Foreseeing Future Utility Rates Read More
By Midge Pierce In the midst of the dual challenges of pandemic and civil unrest, Commissioners heard two days of public comment on amendments to the controversial Residential Infill Project …
Debate Over RIP Continues Read More
By Midge Pierce Portland will have a new, Long Span, seismically safe Burnside Bridge within the decade; more than a century after the original span was built, if all goes …
Burnside Bridge Replacement Design Chosen Read More
By Jack Rubinger Portland Public Schools (PPS) was recently awarded a grant from Portland General Electric (PGE) and PacifiCorp to purchase an electric bus and install a charging station. “We …
PPS Charging Ahead with Electric School Buses Read More
Note to readers: The Portland Water Bureau (PWB) contacted The Southeast Examiner after publication of this article in the June 2020 issue with concerns about inaccuracies. Below the original article …
Taking Another Look at Filtration Read More
By David Krogh Thanks to Oregon’s mail-in ballot procedure, the May 19 Primary was relatively uneventful compared with other states. This year’s Primary Election was unique – not only did …
Oregon’s May Primary Produces Runoff Elections Read More
By Nancy Tannler Over the past 18 months, the Bureau of Planning and Sustainability (BPS) has been working on a project called Expanding Opportunities for Affordable Housing. The code change …
Removing Regulatory Barriers to Development Read More
By Midge Pierce Since closing on March 14 due to COVID-19, Multnomah County Library (MCL) has ventured deeper into the world of electronic media delivery, nearly tripling its material costs …
Pandemic Refocuses Library Priorities Read More
By Jack Rubinger It’s hard to say exactly why whistleblowers are busting Portland Water Bureau (PWB) and Portland Parks & Recreation (PP&R) employees, but the good news is there’s a …
Portland’s Fraud Hotline Read More
By Midge Pierce Before the world ground to a corona virus-induced halt, climate seemed the Earth’s most pressing problem. Yet, long after this virus crisis passes, the Earth will still …
Climate Crisis in the Age of COVID-19 Read More
By Gabe Frayne The City of Portland continues to make measured progress in its mission to provide affordable housing to low and moderate income residents frozen out of the booming …
Affordable Housing, Part Two Read More
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By Midge Pierce A spike in gun violence has added steam to Portland residents who talk of leaving the City and its problems behind. New Police Chief Jami Resch gets …
Police Bureau Pledges Ongoing Reforms Read More
By David Krogh The Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) is undertaking a project which will impact SE Hawthorne Blvd. from SE 24th Ave to SE 50th Ave. The SE Hawthorne …
Hawthorne Pave and Paint Project Read More
By Nancy Tannler At the Lents Neighborhood Livability Association meeting (LNLA), a presentation was given that explains Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty’s plans to assist the police and fire departments with …
Pilot Program to Address Non-Emergency Police Calls Read More
By David Krogh As previously reported in The Southeast Examiner, the City of Salem recently instituted a ban on camping on public property aimed at curbing homeless camps and litter …
Courts Create Confusion on Homeless Camping Bans Read More
By Midge Pierce Despite living in an earthquake zone, few Portland residents think about the danger of crossing the Willamette River on our aging bridges. Yet for 40,000 cars crossing …
Burnside Bridge: Retrofit or Rebuild? Read More
By Midge Pierce Few issues rile up Portlanders quite so much as parking. On the eastside, it is dividing those who seek it from those who seek to reduce it. …
Richmond Considers Parking Permits Read More
By Don MacGillivray The congestion and poor condition of Portland streets is a frequent public complaint. The first effort at “Fixing Our Streets” was a 10 cents per gallon gas …
By Gabe Frayne Jeanne Favini looks back with a mixture of bitterness and embarrassment at the moment she realized she faced an imminent choice between homelessness or moving into her …
Portland’s Struggle with Affordable Housing Read More
SE Uplift announced that Leroy Eadie has been hired to fill the Executive Director role that was vacated when Molly Mayo left. He comes to the organization with over 25 …
SE Uplift Names New Executive Director Read More
By Midge Pierce Code Change 3.96 would reform Portland’s public engagement system, and is intended to give marginalized communities more voice. After accusations that Office for Community and Civic Life …
OCCL Seeks 3.96 Resolution Read More
By David Krogh Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler, his election opponent Ozzie Gonzalez and City Council candidate Jack Kerfoot were hit with campaign finance complaints on January 9. Ronald Buel, representing …
Campaign Fund Complaints Hit Council Candidates Read More
By Midge Pierce A perfect storm of conditions: an unprecedented police shortage, anti-police sentiment and diminishing crime prevention activity may threaten Portland’s safety. This summer’s contract negotiations could add to …
Police Strive to Turn Tide of Crime and Negativity Read More
By David Krogh Portland City Commissioner Nick Fish lost his battle with stomach cancer Thursday, January 2 and passed away at his home with family present. Only two days prior, …
Commissioner Nick Fish Passes Away Read More
By Midge Pierce Like it or not, quadplexes and possibly six or eight plexes are likely coming soon to Portland’s single family neighborhoods. That is the expectation following city council …
RIP Gains Traction Amid Calls for More Density Read More
By David Krogh During the last week in October, City crews painted two of the bus only lanes in downtown Portland’s transit mall a bright shade of red as an …
Painting the Streets Red Read More
By Midge Pierce As old Portland and new spar over the City’s future, Commissioners are in the hotseat hearing issues that split the City and blame current residents for past …
Council Wrestles Over Contentious Code and Infill Proposals Read More
By Nancy Tannler On December 4, 2019 City Council Commissioners Amanda Fritz, Nick Fish and Mayor Ted Wheeler voted to proceed with Portland Water Bureau’s (PWB) plans to construct a …
Treating Portland’s Water: Filtration vs. UV and Ozone Read More
By David Krogh May 19, 2020 is the date for Oregon’s primary election. Regarding the Portland City Commission, there are three positions up for grabs. The positions and candidates registered …
Oregon’s Primary Coming Up in May Read More
By Jack Rubinger Portland Community College (PCC) reached tentative agreements with the Federation of Classified Employees and the Federation of Faculty and Academic Professionals December 13 for successor contracts covering …
PCC Reaches Agreements with Faculty and Academics Read More
By Midge Pierce As Fire Drill Friday climate protests swept the globe imploring action to save the planet, Portland took steps to curtail carbon emissions and protect the urban tree …
City Takes Trees and Climate Seriously Read More
In late December, the Oregon Liquor Control Commission (OLCC) adopted a rules amendment to ban the inclusion of CBD in manufactured products. They will be taking a closer look into …
OLCC Bans CBD + Alcohol Read More
By Midge Pierce Since New Seasons announced its sale under Good Food Holdings to South Korean E-mart, reactions at both the Hawthorne and Sellwood stores ranged from shrugs, to chagrins …
New Seasons’ New Owners Read More
By David Krogh Oregon’s distracted driving fines are the highest in the US. Rosenblum Law, a New Jersey law firm, conducted a survey and determined that first time offenders in …
Oregon’s Distracted Driving Fines Are Highest in the Nation Read More
By Midge Pierce A coalition called Inner Powell Alliance (IPA) has formed with Creston-Kenilworth, Richmond, Hosford Abernethy and Brooklyn Neighborhood Associations to improve safety and livability along Powell Blvd. With …
Walkabout Kicks Off Alliance Read More
By Midge Pierce Score a success for neighbors seeking to retain a pipeline to City Hall. Postponement of a code change vote that could have upended Portland’s renowned Neighborhood Association …
Neighborhood Associations Live Another Day Read More
By Don MacGillivray Housing costs, transportation, homelessness and poverty were the highest concerns from Oregonians surveyed in a recent poll conducted this fall by DHM Research. Other high priority issues …
Preschool Education Addressed, Funding Increased Read More
By Nancy Tannler After twenty-two years in the military watching over the lives and well being of her fellow soldiers, Sergeant Tina Kennedy returned to civilian life only to see …
Helping Oregon’s Veterans Read More
By David Krogh By the year 2035, the City is expected to grow by 123,000 households. Since Portland’s leaders have determined Portland will grow up and not out, most of …
DOZA: Changing the City’s Design Review Process Read More
By Don MacGillivray Road congestion has almost reached the breaking point. Rush hour traffic is terrible on many freeways and arterials. Unless a major solution is found, the situation can …
By Jack Rubinger The District Office, at the corner of Stark and MLK, is one of Portland’s first cross-laminated timber buildings; a new and exciting innovation using decarbonized methods and …
By Larissa Gordon From Astoria to Brookings, Baker City to Medford, over 5,500 dedicated volunteers came out in full swing, Saturday, September 21, to take care of Oregon as part …
Solve Volunteers Clean Up Read More
By Midge Pierce Greta Thunberg should take heart. The planet’s children have issued a spectacular message that climate is a ticking timebomb. As schools emptied across the globe on September …
A Day of Climate Action Read More
By Midge Pierce The fate of the city’s Neighborhood Associations continues to shift following Commissioner Chloe Eudaly’s threats to Council colleagues for their refusal to support a controversial code proposal. …
Cracks in Code Change Surface Read More
By David Krogh Every part of the City of Portland is included within a neighborhood, and all of these have Neighborhood Associations (NAs) which residents and businesses can be involved …
What do Neighborhood Associations do? Read More
By Midge Pierce Just as Portlanders were getting used to the idea of three and four-plexes in their single family neighborhoods, a proposal surfaced to allow six-plexes. Locals leery of …
RIP Eyes Anti-displacement Read More
By David Krogh Portland area interstate highways, feeder streets, and even City streets have become more and more congested in recent years. That suggests two very different, yet interrelated areas …
Congestion Pricing and Congestion Read More
By Midge Pierce If you value public input on landuse, transportation, infrastructure and livability, thank Neighborhood Association pushback for postponement (and perhaps reconsideration) of a City Council vote on a …
NAs Vow to Keep Portland Neighborly Read More
By Midge Pierce In the face of protests, car thefts, Next Door burglary reports, public drug use, “sharps” (preferred word for needles) on streets and playgrounds and a general rise …
Officer Calls for Patience Read More
By Don MacGillivray Controversy, criticism, and change challenge neighborhood associations today. It is not just city problems troubling the neighborhood system, but the possibility that the fifty-year system of public …
History of Neighborhood Associations Read More
By Midge Pierce A silver lining of the attack on Neighborhood Associations is the growing outreach to under-represented groups. It’s not always easy, as groups that do not share language …
Summertime and the Livin’ is Easy Read More
By Meera Ramachandran A scary book can help some folk nestle into the mood of the Halloween season. With the fall around the corner, it’s good to know about a …
A Solution to Climate Change Read More
By David Krogh Note: The Southeast Examiner discussed the Portland Bureau of Transportation’s (PBOT’s) implementation of a new one-year pilot project starting next April for e-scooters in our June issue …
More and More Scooters Coming Read More
By Jack Rubinger One of the dangers of getting used to the homeless problem in Portland is that you start feeling numb, then angry, then sad, then you just want …
Homelessness in SE Portland Read More
By Allen Field Approximately two hundred and fifty volunteers, young and old, fanned out from locations near 82nd Ave. and the Central Christian Church on SE Cesar E. Chavez Blvd. …
Paint the Town Green Read More
By David Krogh An old boarded up triangular brick building on Foster Rd. is about to be reborn. Located at SE 67th St., it originally got its start as the …
By Midge Pierce A City Bureau under Commissioner Chloe Eudaly is rushing a code change to Council that, under the guise of equity and inclusion, weakens government accountability and eliminates …
Code Challenges Neighborhood Clout Read More
By Gabe Frayne On a quiet street off of NE Glisan, a one-story, century-old cottage fell to the wrecking ball three years ago to make way for a modern single …
RIP’s search for land: Responsible Growth or Demolition Derby? Read More
By David Krogh A stress filled and sometimes chaotic 2019 Oregon State legislative session is now over. Several bills that passed are noteworthy and will be briefly examined as follows. …
State Bills Passed in 2019 Read More
By Midge Pierce A riddle making the rounds goes, “What do you get when you co-opt worthy goals of inclusion and diversity behind closed doors? A bureaucratic power grab and …
Overreach Called War on Neighborhoods Read More
By Midge Pierce RIP Gets Red Carpet It’s all over but the shouting. The passage of HB 2001, the nation’s first statewide ban on single family zoning, makes Council approval …
By Midge Pierce Portland Neighborhood Associations’ fragile tethers to City Hall are growing ever more tenuous. That’s because changes in the Code for the Office of Community and Civic Life …
Associations May Go Dark Under New Code Read More
By Don MacGillivray Farsighted leaders have for many years, dreamed of ferrying commuters and tourists on the rivers around the region. Water-borne commuting remains a desirable option, but it will …
Commuting by Water Taxi Read More
By Don MacGillivray Ever since the creation of the oil fields in the Dakotas and Central Canada, the Pacific Northwest has been concerned that railroads will ship large amounts of …
Prepare for More Oil Trains in PDX Read More
By David Krogh Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) has been receiving substantial publicity lately and much of it is negative. Here is a composite detailing several media reports. Sidewalk Repairs: …
By Midge Pierce Family Housing Relief Coming Some one hundred and eighty low-income families should get needed affordable housing in a five-story, Home Forward development that could break ground next …
By Midge Pierce The June walkout of state Senators gave critics of pending legislation like statewide upzoning in HB 2001 time to amp up objections before a final vote was …
What Densification Means to Portland Read More
By Jack Rubinger Myron Ryan, a Franklin High School metalworking and manufacturing teacher, has received the Circle of Excellence Award from OnPoint Community Credit Union. He will receive a $1,500 …
Franklin Teacher Awarded Read More
By Jack Rubinger Cleveland High School’s robotics team, The Pigmice (FRC 2733), recently wrapped up one of their most successful competition seasons at the FIRST Robotics Championships, also known as …
Cleveland Robotics Goes to the Worlds Read More
By Midge Pierce The Kids Are Alright Grade school kids are leading the way toward racial understanding and sensitivity at Buckman Elementary. This spring 19 Buckman students, under the guidance …
By Midge Pierce Imagine inner Eastside without those infuriating mile-long trains stopping you in your uh, tracks. A pipedream? Not according to a 20-something with a railyard redevelopment vision and …
Railroad Retracking Becomes Possible Reality Read More
By Don MacGillivray This year’s budget for the City of Portland Parks and Recreation Bureau (PP&R) indicates a major disconnect between PP&R and the City’s annual budget process. Parks needs …
Stringent Parks Budget Read More
