By Don MacGillivray There are many causes of homelessness, but the lack of affordable housing is fundamental. It took years to create Portland’s housing crisis and now much of the …
Addressing Homelessness with Built for Zero Read More
By Don MacGillivray Portlanders are having difficulty just finding housing and they often must take what is available instead of what they need or want. As Portland works to create …
Think Out Loud’s Future of Cities Read More
By Don MacGillivray Finding daycare and preschool for young children in Portland has always been difficult. This is especially true for families where affordability is an issue. And over the …
Increasing Access to Preschool Read More
By Don MacGillivray It is well known that Portland has a housing problem, which is the primary cause of increased homelessness. The only satisfactory answer to the problem is to …
Building Villages to Address Homelessness Read More
By Don MacGillivray Lone Fir Cemetery is the oldest and most diverse cemetery in Portland. It began with the burial of Emmor Stephens in 1846, only two years after the …
Cultural Heritage Garden Plans Progress at Lone Fir Cemetery Read More
By Don MacGillivray The Portland Police Union (PPU) contract is now complete and final after a lengthy, contentious process. The previous contract was expected to expire June 2020 and be …
Portland Police Union Contract Finalized Read More
By Don MacGillivray In recent years, Portland has undergone significant challenges including COVID-19 health issues, racial concerns, forest fires and climate change. While everyone has been stressed by these conditions, …
By Don MacGillivray In many of Portland’s neighborhoods the homeless crisis is increasingly observable. The lack of progress in addressing this crisis is due, in part, to the pandemic, but …
Update: Homelessness 2022 Read More
By Don MacGillivray Lloyd Center has been one of the largest urban shopping centers in the Pacific Northwest for many years. It is built on a 50-acre site located one …
Lloyd Center’s Evolution Read More
By Don MacGillivray Portland’s transportation system today is inequitable, contributes to climate change and presents safety risks due to the traffic on our crowded streets. There is a significant need …
Pricing Options for Equitable Mobility Read More
By Don MacGillivray The glowing tributes for Oregon are flawed by a few egregious realities. One is Oregon’s lack of care for the mentally ill. According to a recent study …
Oregon’s Struggle to Address Mental Illness Read More
By Don MacGillivray Portland’s housing crisis is now seven years old and the nation is waking up to the same reality. Even before the 2008 recession, the US saw a …
National Housing Crisis Read More
By Don MacGillivray The modernization of the I-5 Columbia River freeway bridge between Portland and Vancouver is a critical objective for the next decade. The I-5 Bridge, previously known as …
CRC Bridge Replacement Project Read More
By Don MacGillivray It might be said that Portland’s Office of Community and Civic Life (OCCL) is a Utopian experiment that potentially could save us from a Dystopian present. Portland …
OCCL Continues to Change to Address Problems Read More
By Don MacGillivray Policing in Portland is in torment over racism, human rights, mental health, violence and public safety issues. This is not new. Studies and reports have circulated nationwide …
LWV Police Study: Opportunities for Change Read More
By Don MacGillivray A recent article in Forbes magazine has suggested that Portland is dying. The article’s author stated that Portland’s ranking among major US cities has dropped from 11 …
21st Century Doughnut Economics Read More
By Don MacGillivray Homelessness in Portland was generally unseen until the 1980s when it was exposed by various economic and social changes. These included a lack of growth in real …
History of Homelessness Read More
Op-Ed By Don MacGillivray Currently the City of Portland and the police union are in the middle of difficult contract negotiations. There is a high degree of polarization going on …
Police Union Faces Funding, Staffing and Public Relations Difficulties Read More
By Don MacGillivray In this period of school closures due to COVID-19, the education of children and teenagers is left to the resources of parents. Therefore many alternative learning options …
Khan Academy Aids Students and Teachers Read More
By Don MacGillivray Over the summer, Portland’s impassioned demonstrations and accompanying riots have received national attention. Law enforcement in Portland has been seriously scrutinized, but the other half of the …
Multnomah County Justice System Read More
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 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 Don MacGillivray A man-made climate emergency threatens our city, our state and the natural world. Although Portland is playing its part to restore a safe climate and we continue …
By Don MacGillivray In approximately four years, the Burnside Bridge will be demolished and replaced with a modern new bridge, perhaps Portland’s greatest concession to the seismic future of Oregon. …
Burnside Bridge Replacement 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 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 Don MacGillivray Homeless encampments have grown exponentially in Portland since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic along with public health and safety concerns. Since March, 40 additional campsites have …
Homeless Solutions Remain Elusive Read More
By Don MacGillivray The United States finds itself challenged by shifting political, economic and social conditions. There is a prevailing sense of crisis in America and with the challenges of …
By Don MacGillivray The Rose Lane Project is an innovative way to improve bus and streetcar service in Portland. Adopted by City Council in February, it will create a network …
Rose Lane Project Moves Forward Read More
By Don MacGillivray Nuclear energy as a method of producing electricity has always been highly controversial. Still, the need to reduce global warming requires that every viable option must be …
Considering Nuclear Power Read More
By Don MacGillivray Earth Day is now a major worldwide event that will be celebrated by over one billion people in at least 193 countries making it the largest secular …
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 Don MacGillivray The 21st century will be defined by Climate Change or, in other words, Global Warming as the earth’s surface and atmosphere is being warmed by greenhouse gases. …
Measuring and Addressing Climate Change Read More
By Don MacGillivray The challenge of homelessness has always been part of Portland. During the depression and World War II, housing development was restrained. The late 1940s, 50s and 60s …
Solving Portland’s Homeless Challenge: a Long-Standing Conundrum 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 Don MacGillivray It is a great tragedy that there is little remaining salmon habitat throughout the Pacific Northwest. One hundred years ago, streams and rivers were thick with Chinook …
Restoring Watersheds and Salmon Runs 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 …
