Maria Thi Mai's blog

Columbia Crossings Recommendations Available on Podcast

Maria Thi Mai — Mon, 22 Jan 2007 15:34:13 -0800

[img_assist|nid=2056|title=This project addresses congestion on I-5 bridge between Vancouver and Columbia Blvd|desc=|link=popup|align=left|width=70|height=94]Columbia River Crossing is a bridge, transit and highway improvement project to address the congestion on I-5 between SR 500 in Vancouver and Columbia Boulevard in Portland. It is lead by the Oregon and Washington departments of transportation which are working to identify ways to improve traffic flow, safety and transit service on this stretch of highway.

The project is at an important decision time about which bridge and transit options to include in the draft environmental impact statement. As a reader of this forum, you might be interested in commenting on the transit and bridge recommendations because the ideas that are advanced are the only ones that will be considered for further analysis.

Interested? Learn more by clicking here or click here to listen.

Of course, you are can also attend our open houses:

Thursday, January 25, 2007
4:30 p.m. - 7:30 p.m.
Oregon Association of Minority Entrepreneurs (OAME)
4134 N Vancouver Ave. (at Skidmore St.) Portland, OR
TriMet Bus #40 Mocks Crest

Tuesday, January 30, 2007
6:30 p.m. - 8:30 p.m.
Across from Hayden Island Safeway
12050 N. Jantzen Dr. Portland, OR
TriMet Bus #6 M.L. King Jr Blvd"

Columbia Crossings Recommendations Available on Podcast

Maria Thi Mai — Mon, 22 Jan 2007 15:33:04 -0800

Interested? Learn more by clicking here

You can learn more about these recommendations by checking out the project's web site http://www.columbiarivercrossing.org or by listening to our new podcast here: http://www.wsdot.wa.gov/inform/downloads/ColumbiaR iverCrossing.mp3. Its conversational story-telling approach gives you more background about the decisions ahead.

Of course, you are can also attend our open houses:

Thursday, January 25, 2007
4:30 p.m. - 7:30 p.m.
Oregon Association of Minority Entrepreneurs (OAME)
4134 N Vancouver Ave. (at Skidmore St.) Portland, OR
TriMet Bus #40 Mocks Crest

Tuesday, January 30, 2007
6:30 p.m. - 8:30 p.m.
Across from Hayden Island Safeway
12050 N. Jantzen Dr. Portland, OR
TriMet Bus #6 M.L. King Jr Blvd"

Oregonian: Airport noise study back in public's court

Maria Thi Mai — Fri, 12 Jan 2007 09:56:45 -0800

Air traffic - After four years of work, another round of comments is in order on the Port's plan

Monday, December 25, 2006

A plan to reduce or control noise from Portland International Airport is moving into a public comment period, allowing opponents of aircraft noise to lobby one more time for proposals that were rejected during a study that covered four years.

To read more, click here.

To learn more about Airport noise, click Port of Portland Noise Management

Townhall Meeting: How to 'Plant' More Rain Gardens and Eco Roofs in Portland

Maria Thi Mai — Wed, 13 Dec 2006 17:09:08 -0800

The City of Portland has had an ecoroof program since 1996 when BEOrpinela EcoroofS first constructed a small ecoroof and monitored it's rainfall management characteristics. The results were successful and since that modest beginning numerous other demonstration Ecoroofs have been installed; and codes and policies blostered to support installation of more Ecoroofs.

The city was first in the nation and envied by other larger cities. Perhaps most significant are three policies that set Portland at the forefront of this economic and environmental building practice. First, and based on BES monitoring data in 1999, Ecoroofs are considered to meet all stormwater management requirements of Title 17.38. Second, in spring 2001 the city added to Title 33.510 that Ecoroofs could obtain Zoning FAR bonuses. Third, the city passed a resolution in 2005 that all future re-roofing or new roofs on city owned buildings must have Ecoroofs (when practical). In addition, the city provides grants and technical assistance to building owners who wish to install ecoroofs.

Portland Building EcoroofWe have done and learned a lot in the process. Ecoroofs work; they manage rainfall, insulate buildings, reduce urban heat island, provide wildlife habitat, extend the life of a roof system, provide jobs and numerous other benefits. We have also learned that not all Ecoroofs are equal, they don't all work the same, and even though they are becoming more acceptable they are not mainstream, yet. Plus, the most sustainable design for the Pacific NW Region is yet to be determined. Although our ecoroof acreage is less than others, we have more policies and efforts than, perhaps, any other city. And, yet with all this, Portland only has less than 0.2% of its rooftops in ecoroofs. Of the 12,400 acres of rooftop in Portland today only 8 acres have Ecoroofs. However, more than 40 projects are under construction or on the drawing board — the time is ripe for Portland to take several actions that will improve the health of our city and set us ahead of all other cities in the Americas, including our closest competitor, Chicago.Walker Macy Landscape Architects

In August of 2006, Sam convened an Ecoroof Workshop which was held on December 1, 2006. That afternoon, more than 100 ecoroof enthusiasts joined with the commissioner and representatives of the ecoroof industry and citizens of Portland to help chart the next course for the advancement of Ecoroofs in Portland.

Rood GardenMembers of the audience shared their ideas, concerns and visions for Ecoroofs in Portland. Topics included, designs appropriate for this climate, the difficulty of getting insurance on single family homes with Ecoroofs, lack of information, contractors, suppliers, incentives, policies, city codes, research, greenspaces, energy, livability, stormwater, habitat and many others. Commissioner Adams assured all that we would work on these issues and convene another workshop in 2007. The issues raised will be investigated by the city with the intent of setting the next course for the Portland Ecoroof Program

Ecoroofs:

Portland Public School District

The Mt. Tabor School raingarden

Web Links

Portland's Ecoroof Program

Portland Ecoroof Tour

Office of Sustainable Development

Stormwater Management Manual

Trains, Planes, and Trucks: Reducing Noise in North Portland

Maria Thi Mai — Wed, 13 Dec 2006 13:17:13 -0800

As a North Portland resident, Sam experiences and understands noise issues. Within weeks of being in office, Sam and his staff began addressing cargo aircraft noise from the PDX airport. This quickly expanded to train, freeway, and race track noise throughout the City with the proponderance of the noise focused on North Portland.

Sam recognized that citizens living in North Portland faced a significant set of noise sources and promised to evaluate the extent of the problem and to develop possible solutions. With a small earmark in the 2006 budget, Sam initiated a two-year project to evaluate the noise problems in North Portland.

With help from the City's Noise Review Board and the North Portland Noise Reduction Committee of North Portland stakeholders, the project completed the first year of work. In the first year two separate community surveys were completed by Grove Insight, one prior to the summer open window season and one at the end of summer. The findings from the polling firm offered preliminary indications that North Portland residents were impacted by noise in at a similar level average urban citizens both in the United States and abroad. The second survey focused on a more localized basis of smaller sections of North Portland to help indicate if particular segments of neighborhoods have greater concerns.

Simultaneous to the polling study, an acoustical engineering firm (Greenbusch Group) began collecting sound level measurements. The consultant will be completing a mid project update for January 2007. The consultant and the Noise Review Board are reviewing the data from the second community survey to help direct the second year of Noise Data collection.

The acoustical study will include a series of noise maps that articulate noise sources and their impacts. While this approach of using Noise Maps has been used extensively in Europe and Asia, Portland is the first U.S. city to use this innovative urban planning tool.

The combined years of experience among Noise Control Officer Paul van Orden, Noise Board member and Acoustical Engineer Kerrie Standlee, and the Greenbusch Group is 80 plus years. With the help of our technical experts and all the community members of Sam's North Portland Noise reduction Committee, we will continue working to find solutions to the growing issue of urban noise pollution in our City and in particular in the North Portland neighborhoods.

During this upcoming year, the committee will focus on four major noise pollutants: trains, truck traffic, PIR, and aircraft. If you're interested in learning more about the committee's work, join us at our next committee meeting, January 25, 6:30pm, Kenton Fire Station, 8105 N. Brandon St.

Related Documents

North Portland Noise Survey Results, June 2006

North Portland Noise Survey Results, October 2006

Economic Impact Analysis of PIR

Media Mentions

Tribune: City Checks out Decibel Levels

Oregonian: Small Cargo Planes wil Test New Flight Path...

Oregonian: Panel will hear about Noise from Box Haulers

Oregonian: In Oregon Though Neighborhoods Surrounding

Weblogs

Sam is no fly by night

Green Streets will Remove 60 million Gallons of Stormwater from Sewers

Maria Thi Mai — Wed, 13 Dec 2006 11:39:24 -0800

Beginning in the fall of 2005, Commissioner Sam Adams charged City SW 12th & Montgomery Street Plantersbureaus with creating a programmatic approach to implementing Green Streets as part of all road projects. This resulted in a Phase 1 Report (completed March 2006) which identified opportunities and challenges to implementing solutions.

Sam led City Council efforts to draft a Green Streets Resolution which will be presented to Council early 2007. This resolution officially adopts the Green Streets Policy: promote and incorporate the use of Green Streets to manage stormwater, enhance neighborhood livability and improve the function of the right of way, provide habitat corridors, and promote connectivity between Portland neighborhoods.

Stormwater management matters to all of us because we all live in a watershed…

NE Siskiyou Stormwater Curb ExtensionBefore Portland was developed, forests and open spaces absorbed rainwater. Today, rain falls on buildings, streets, sidewalks, and other hard surfaces and runs off into rivers and streams. If not managed properly, stormwater can carry sediment, oil, metals and other pollutants into our rivers and streams.

Green Streets help the City of Portland comply with pollution preventionSE 21st and Tibbets (at People's Co-op) and resource protection regulations by managing water at its source. Green Streets process stormwater in a way that mimics nature — just as forests and open spaces once did. The soil and vegetation slows stormwater runoff, filters out pollutants and allows it soak into the ground, enhancing watershed health by improving water quality, recharging groundwater and reducing the amount of stormwater entering Portland's rivers and streams. In our urban areas alone these facilities have been shown to retain more than 90% of our total annual rainfall.

These popular designs, recognized nationally by the American Society of L NE Siskiyou Standscape Architects (ASLA) receiving a 2006 Honor Award, not only manage stormwater, but enhance the streetscape through added vegetation and decreased pavement. The multi-objective benefits also result in improved pedestrian environments, cooling of the air and water, greenspace linkages for pedestrians and bicyclists and increased opportunities for habitat.

Recently completed projects can be seen at SE 21st and Tibbetts, NE Sandy Blvd. (in construction) and on SW 12th and Montgomery.

Related Documents

Green Streets Strategy

BES Sustainable Stormwater Management

EPA Nonpoint News-Notes

Stormwater Magazine

Natural Resources Defense Council

Community Partners

Portland State University

Weblogs

Media Mentions

ASLA Award for PSU Greenstreest Project

Milestones

Competed Green Streets Strategy Phase I Report

Guest Editorial: Merkley on New Clean River Rewards Program

Maria Thi Mai — Tue, 12 Dec 2006 17:47:18 -0800

Guest Author: Oregon Representative Jeff Merkley

Jeff Merkley is Oregon's Speaker of the House for District 47My fight for storm water discounts began in 1998 when Portland cancelled our storm water discounts after promising them during annexation. Dr. Howard Horner , former David Douglas School Superintendent and water fee advocate and I organized the East Portland Coalition against Unfair Storm Water Fees and the battle was on.

By 2000 we had a partial victory-an agreement to restore a 35% discount to families that used drywells or otherwise managed their storm water on their own property. Portland delayed implementing the discount until a new billing software program was developed and implemented, shifting additional millions of dollars out of our community.

With the election of Mayor Potter and Commissioner Sam Adams last year we had a chance to renew the effort to get the storm water discount implemented. Both responded to our arguments and Sam, as the new commissioner in charge of the Bureau of Environmental Services, put together a much improved plan incorporating many of the elements I was advocating. These included:

a one-year retroactive credit;
a deadline for implementation with extended retroactivity for citizens if the city misses the deadline;
a full 35% discount even if you have a driveway that slopes to the street;
the discount stays with the property if the property is sold;
a much simplified application; and
elimination of the demand for detailed blueprints or drawings.

Sam also is planning a strong outreach program that would educate citizens about the discount as well as the City's utility discount. The utility discount helps reduce utility fees to many families but is not well known outside of Southeast Portland.

On November 30th Dr. Horner and I testified at city hall in support of Adams' plan. We thought that we had the support of three commissioners but were surprised and pleased to see all the city's elected officials support the plan.

To read the Resolution, click here.

Wanted: Volunteer Environmental Policy Associate (Intern)

Maria Thi Mai — Mon, 11 Dec 2006 17:02:57 -0800

Are you motivated, intelligent, hard working, and interested in a "greener" Portland?

If the answer is Yes, consider volunteering as a Staff Associate in our dynamic, fast-paced and welcoming office.

Primarily, you will be working with Sam's Environmental Policy Director in two main capacities:

assisting the director on environmental policy issues such as: stormwater manageement, watershed implementation, brownfields, greenstreets, ecoroofs, superfund, and invasive species; and
taking a primary, lead role in advancing one or more office specific initiatives related to environmental policy for Portland

You may also be asked to perform administrative tasks, depending on the needs of the office.

Requirements:

Interest in local environmental policy issues
Interest in local governance
Ability to focus on one major project, while simultaneously handling other smaller tasks
Good communication skills
Excellent writing ability
Superior research skills
Good critical thinking skills
Ability to commit to and adhere to a regular set schedule
Ability to work well within a diverse office
General computer literacy and office skills
Ability to learn quickly in a fast-paced environment
Ability to take direction and work independently with minimal supervision
Flexibility and adaptability to change

Desirable but not required:

Background in Urban Studies, Environmental Policy, Natural Resources, Public Administration, Political Science, Sociology, or Urban Planning
Interest in environmental-related issues

Timeframe:

Flexible
At least 3-4 months, or one semester of the school year desired

Fill date:

January - March (flexible)

Please submit:

Cover Letter
Resume
Writing Sample

Click here to read what our other interns have said about their experience.

Please send resume and a cover letter to:

Maria Thi Mai, Senior Policy Director
mthimai@ci.portland.or.us

(503 823-4045
(503) 823-3017 (FAX)

Or mail it to
1221 SW 4th Ave., Rm. 220
Portland, OR 97204

Launched: Stormwater Discount Program - Clean River Rewards

Maria Thi Mai — Fri, 08 Dec 2006 14:03:21 -0800

After nearly eight years of effort, Portland launched Clean River Rewards and began granting stormwater discounts to ratepayers who control stormwater runoff on their property. The discounts are worth as much as 35% of stormwater management charges, and ratepayers may earn an additional credit for as much as 12 months worth of discounts. Any Portland stormwater ratepayer may register and qualify for Clean River Rewards. City Council committed to offering stormwater discounts through June 30, 2017.

Work on the program began in 1998 when Commissioner Sten met with advocates for stormwater rate reform. The ratepayers, mostly from East Portland were led by State Representative Jeff Merkley and Dr. Howard Horner, the former superintendent of David Douglas School District. Working tirelessly, Rep. Merkley and Dr. Horner convinced the City Council of the need for sweeping utility rate reform in 2000. The centerpiece of their efforts was a program of stormwater discounts.

City Council was forced to delay the start of the discount program in December 2000 due to ongoing problems with a newly-installed utility billing system. In 2002, City Council decided to replace the billing system entirely. The decision delayed the start of the discount program for another four years. Ratepayers and rate reform advocates were understandably upset by the delay and lobbied City Council to guarantee some form of retroactive benefit. Council considered a number of options and final adopted a maximum 12-month retroactive credit to be applied to qualified accounts once the discount program was implemented.

In July 2005, Sam began a detailed review of the proposed discount program. He spoke with rate reform advocates and community and business representatives. He conducted three community forums, and in the fall of 2005 recommended a comprehensive set of program enhancements. His recommendations made the program easier to use and more accessible to homeowners. He increased the program's public education, technical assistance and marketing efforts, and added new initiatives to increase ratepayer access to financial assistance programs. His refinements were adopted by Council in November 2005.

In April 2006, the City implemented a new utility billing system. The news was received with much relief for those who worked so hard to implement stormwater discounts. The successful launch of the new billing system removed the last obstacle for Clean River Rewards. Commissioner Adams guided the efforts of the Bureau of Environmental Services, Revenue Bureau, Bureau of Development Services and Bureau of Technology Services to implement the discount program within six months of the start of the new billing system.

Clean River Rewards was launched on Halloween, October 31, 2006. The program is capable of processing discount registrations via the mail, Internet and over the telephone. More than 1200 ratepayers signed up for stormwater discounts during the first month of operations. The Bureau of Environmental Services is mailing program information directly to ratepayers on a daily basis, and more aggressive market efforts will get underway in the new year. Our goal is to attract the highest possible participation in the program. Doing so will fulfill a very old promise to ratepayers, provide meaningful rate relief, and provided incentives to protect our rivers and streams.

For more information, click here or 503-823-1371.

Related Documents

Community Partners

Creating Assets, Savings, and Hope (C.A.S.H)

Media Mentions

Weblogs

Milestones

Work on the Stormwater Discount program began in 1998 when Commissioner Sten met with advocates for stormwater rate reform.
In November, 2005, Commissioner Adams refinements to the Stormwater Discount program were adopted by City Council. These refinements resulted in an increase in the program's public education, technical assistance and marketing efforts and added new initiatives to increase ratepayer access to financial assistance programs.
The Clean River Rewards program was officially launched on Halloween, October 31, 2006
More than 1200 ratepayers signed up for stormwater discounts during the first month of operations.

OHSU Center for Health and Healing Goes Platinum

Maria Thi Mai — Wed, 06 Dec 2006 11:59:51 -0800

Dignitaries cut the ribbon for OHSU's new Center for Health and HealingLast Sunday, the morning light streamed through the big bright windows of OHSU's newest building on the South Waterfront. This facility represents one of the first of many innovative developments that will transform this once blighted land into a dynamic community.

This LEED certified facility collects rainwater and reuses it to flush toiletsThis building will receive platinum LEED certification, a perfect example of how innovation can be beautiful and green. From the solar paneled sunshades to the reused rain water, this building will tread lightly on this sensitive land. Micro turbines will provide efficient eclectic power and outside air will ventilate parts of the building, allowing the building to breathe sustainably. This building exemplifies the future of green ideas, connecting healthy building with building health.

Southwaterfront is both a symbolic connection with our past economy and the physical labors of shipbuilding and steel harvesting and a vital link to our future labors in research and health sciences.

Welcome OHSU!

Remember First Thursday Bikecraft Show at City Hall

Maria Thi Mai — Wed, 06 Dec 2006 09:06:07 -0800

Inspired by chains, derailers and other bike parts, James and Amy DeRosso create unique terra cotta pottery for your homeJust a friendly reminder that you can do your holiday shopping at City Hall this Thursday at our First Thursday BikeCraft Show.

Here's what Bike Portland's blog has to say... Portland BikeCraft is the bike-lover's holiday gift bazaar that showcases local, handmade, bike-themed arts, crafts, films, music and more. Last year the event debuted at a coffee shop and the room was absolutely packed, so organizer Jonathan Maus has moved it to a larger venue - the main floor of the City Hall (1221 SW 4th Ave). Vendors include furniture fabricator Matt Cartwright, wool bike cap creator Shaun Deller, functional bike-adorned pottery makers James and Amy DeRosso and components manufacturer Chris King unveiling a new, unique catalog for 2007. Live music by the Trash Mountain Boys. The event goes from 4-8:00 pm.

Click here for Vendor list )

Raise your paddles for Conduit Dance

Maria Thi Mai — Tue, 05 Dec 2006 10:58:13 -0800

Conduit Dance provides support for dancers and choreographersLast Sunday, Sam asked the audience to "Raise your paddles" and help raise funds for artists of Conduit Dance. We enjoyed performances by: Gregg Bielemeier, Tim DuRoche, Lyndee Mah, Tere Mathern Dance, Oslund+Co/Dance and the Minh Tran & Company.

Oregon Literary Arts is a Winner

Maria Thi Mai — Mon, 04 Dec 2006 10:27:11 -0800

George W Sr Aguilar won the Sarah Winnemucca award for creative nonfictionLast Friday night, Sam and I joined hundreds of other book enthusiasts to honor Oregon writers at the 20th Annual Oregon Literary Arts Book Awards at the Oregon Art Museum. We began the evening with Barry Lopez who spoke eloquently about the evening's full moon and community of the landscape.

Literary Arts wrote that "The ceremony celebrated the state's finest authors and nearly 500 people attended, including State Senator and Oregon Cultural Trust board member Ben Westlund, Portland City Commissioner Sam Adams, and many past recipients of Oregon Book Awards and Oregon Literary Fellowships. " Click here to read more.

Portland challenges Chicago with ecoroofs

Maria Thi Mai — Fri, 01 Dec 2006 18:35:19 -0800

Doug Christi of Anderson Roofing harvests tomatoes from his ecoroof in NW PortlandLast Thursday (Dec 1) more than 100 ecoroof enthusiasts joined with Sam and representatives of the fledgling ecoroof industry and citizens of Portland to help chart the next course for the advancement of Ecoroofs in Portland. Presentations were made about the progress made over the past 10 years when the first ecoroof was constructed to test its rainfall catchment performance. (It worked then and subsequent testing of other Ecoroofs has shown they can retain as much as 60% of the rain that falls on them. Acting very much like our evergreen forests.)

Hundreds of sedums help green up the ecoroof on the Portland buildingOther presenters included representatives from Ecoroofs Everywhere; GBD Architects, Portland State University, Gerding Edlen Development, Gold Properties, and Portland Office of Sustainable Development. Almost all aspects of ecoroof development was covered, including the good news (they work to address at least 10 major urban issues) and the bad news, not all are equal and quality of design and construction is very important.

Sam's enthusiasm was contagious as the group readily shared their ideas, concerns and visions for Ecoroofs in Portland. Topics included, designs appropriate for this climate, the difficulty of getting insurance on single family homes with Ecoroofs, lack of information, contractors, suppliers, incentives, policies, city codes, research, greenspaces, energy, livability, stormwater, habitat and many others. All will be investigated by the city with the intent of setting the next course for the Portland Ecoroof Program.

Another aspect of the workshop were the generous efforts made by the presenters and the citizens who took time out of their schedules to help move Ecoroofs forward in the city. Thanks very much to you all!

"See and Be Seen" Bike Light Public Service Safety Campaign Shines

Maria Thi Mai — Thu, 30 Nov 2006 14:02:10 -0800

Bikers- Light up! Drivers-Be aware!On November 30th, Sam launched Portland's first Bike Light Parade at the Community Cycling Center. This parade kicked off our winter cycling safety campaign, "See and Be Seen." We brightened up a chilly Alberta Street Last Thursday with an array of bike lights, Christmas lights, reflective gear, glow sticks, and more. Although Sam's bike was bright enough to leave you seeing spots, he had some serious competition in the all of the "Best and the Brightest" contest categories. Any bike that arrived without proper lighting departed with a free set of front and back lights installed by Jeff Bernards, the founder and operator of the Get Lit campaign.

Last night was also the unveiling the "See and Be Seen" campaign logo that will begin showing up around town in mid-December. Tri-met is donating space on bus backs, bus shelters, channel cards, and bench backs for the next 8 weeks. The public service announcement is aimed at both drivers and bikers. The ads mean to remind drivers to ‘see' bikes and bikers to ‘be seen' by lighting up -- a simple concept that can have detrimental consequences if overlooked.Brightly colored cycles of all shapes and sizes rode down Alberta Street for the Bike Light Parade

The campaign has received enthusiastic support from the community. In addition to Tri-met's generous donation of advertising space, PGE, Hoffman Construction, NW Natural Gas, OHSU, and the Alliance for Community Traffic (Acts Oregon) are all sponsors for the public service announcement. Many local bike shops are offering discounts on reflective and winter cycling gear for those who attend "See and Be Seen" events. The BTA, the Community Cycling Center, Shift2bikes, GetLit, and bikeportland.org also deserve a big kudos for their participation and support.

These signs can also be seen inside buses and bus sheltersLook for the "See and Be Seen" advertisements and for more bike light events. And more importantly, keep an eye out for bikes when driving and light up your ride when cycling after dark.

You can learn more about the kickoff by clicking on the "See and Be See" video link on the KOIN News 6 website or through Katu News 2's article on the event.