Guest Author's blog

By WILLIAM YARDLEY

SEATTLE - State and local governments in many parts of the country are struggling to pay for roads, bridges and other building projects because of rising construction costs, adding another burden to budgets already stressed by the troubled housing market.

Peggy Anderson

On Sunday, June 17, Portland City Commissioner Sam Adams joined ten Nob Hill business owners and residents in a walk along NW 23rd Avenue to assess the street's proposed reconstruction and to hear the views and concerns of those who live and work in the area.  Adams oversees Portland's transportation system - which Adams says is "in trouble." The commissioner's website www.commissionersam.com outlines the following facts about the city's transportation infrastructure:

Phil Busse is Executive Director of The Northwest Institute for Social Change.

Nothing drives me more nuts than listening to a White House press conference. The reporters shy from any probing questions and have all but muzzled themselves.

There must be a better way.

That's why this summer we're hosting the Northwest Institute for Social Change here in Portland-an academic program for undergrads to learn how arts and the media can bring about positive and progressive social change. (Sam is on the Board of Directors.) We're hoping to turn out a new generation of truth-seeking filmmakers, bold journalists and rabblerousing musicians. Check out: www.nwisc.com. The institute is a mix of liberal-arts styled classroom academics (taught by Reed, PSU, UO profs) and real-life projects (like producing a series of short documentaries about gentrification and designing a media literacy curriculum for middle schools).

By David Zagel - David Zagel and Sam grew up together in Newport, Oregon; David now lives and works in Portland.

David: I saw in a couple of newspapers say that you are running for Mayor...

Sam: You could just as easily ask me if I am running for re-election and I'd say the same thing: I'll decide what to do with my future at the end of 2007. In the meantime, I am focused on the work in front of me. I work with a great staff and bureau teams; I have a wonderful job in a city I love.

Eloise Damrosch is the Executive Director of the Regional Arts & Culture Council.

Starting in January 2007, the Regional Arts & Culture Council (RACC) will be offering professional development workshops for working artists in all disciplines. These workshops are offered as part of RACC's commitment to provide relevant and inexpensive learning opportunities that help artists become more successful in their careers.

Simply stated, the City of Portland imposes a fee called the Business License Fee (BLF) on all business transactions that occur within its city limits.

Portland and Multnomah County's BLF/BIT did not cause us to leave the city. We stayed at our Northeast Portland location for eleven years. It was, however, a significant factor in our decision to relocate outside the city when we decided to upgrade our facility.

Rick Gill, Brad Howton, Steve Welch and Walter Valenta are residents and business owners on Hayden Island.

What do you think of when you hear Hayden Island? Jantzen Beach Super Center? Home of Hooters? Tax-Free Haven for Vancouver residents?

For the nearly 5,000 people, we call this island home--home to our families, our businesses and our community. For us, Hayden Island offers a community that is unique in Portland. It also means we face some distinct challenges as an island community: one (very congested) way on and off the island; underdeveloped riverfront property; the lack of a town center; safe pedestrian and bicycle travel; transit options; and preservation of affordable housing.

Dana Gioia is Chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts. What follows is the preface to their recent study, "The Arts and Civic Engagement: Involved in Arts, Involved in Life."

This study (PDF)may contain the most widely useful data of any recent NEA report. The Arts and Civic Engagement demonstrates—with statistically reliable data—that arts participation overwhelmingly correlates with positive individual and civic behaviors. Put simply, Americans who read books, visit museums, attend theater, and engage in other arts are more active in community life than those who do not.

By: Lisa Libby, BES

Later this summer, you will see a green wall among other sustainable stormwater treatments around the hostelIn 2001, the Hawthorne Hostel (3031 SE Hawthorne Boulevard) installed an ecoroof with a $5,000 grant from the City of Portland's Community Watershed Stewardship Grant Program. Now this neighborhood landmark is about to get a lot greener.

By Maggie Skenderian

Johnson Creek at "bankfull" stage last winterBES' Johnson Creek Team spent a lot of time during election week looking at data on the internet. We weren't watching the House and Senate races, but we were watching another close call.

Johnson Creek, known to flood on average every other year, rises quickly during major rain storms - which is why it's characterized as a 'flashy' stream. The creek rose and fell repeatedly during our last storm, and for a day or two, predictions looked like we were in for an event that rivaled November of 2006.

From Richard Florida, author of "The Rise Creative Class" 

Well, I'm at it again, cranking away at a new book - and I have a huge favor to ask you. I want your stories.

See, this book is about how people pick the places they live and why that's the single most important decision they'll ever make. It's a book for you, any of you, wondering about all the different options out there. Here's is what I'd like for you to do:

By: Chuck Lytle, Ph.D,

BES, Water Pollution Control Laboratory

It gives me great pleasure to announce that Renee Chauvin, Water Pollution Control Laboratory, Quality Assurance Specialist, has been awarded the Pacific Northwest Clean Water Association (PNCWA's) "Crystal Crucible" award and was inducted into the "Crystal Crucible Society" for "...having made a significant contribution which promotes professionalism, pride and high ideals among those working in wastewater analysis, education, training, certification and management, and promoting innovative laboratory operations... membership in this society represents significant effort over time, positively contributing to the betterment of individuals associated with wastewater laboratories..."

Guest Author: John Brush

Designing a Sustainable Urban Ecology: a TLC Farm Update

School kids learn first hand the joy of growing and building with the earthTryon Life Community Farm has had an eventful year! This sustainability research and education center on 7 acres surrounded by Tryon Creek State Park in SW Portland exists because thousands of area residents committed ourselves to a different vision of the city, a vision in which human and natural habitat is interwoven and interdependant. This approach stands in contrast to the "standard" model in which development devastates forest ecologies, diverts stormwater out of evolved cycles, and drains energy and resources.

Lisa Libby is with the Bureau of Environmental Services.

Butler Promotions, in partnership with the City of Portland's Bureau of Environmental Services, recently installed a stormwater management system at the front of their property on SE Division and SE 21st. On October 4th Butler held an open house to celebrate the completion of the system with community members and project participants, and passed out t-shirts that said, "precipitate change."

With a playful spirit of competition, Carolyn Sharp of BES challenges PDOT in the Bike Commute ChallengeCarolyn Sharp is with the Bureau of Environmental Services

This September marks my second year as the Bike Commute Challenge Coordinator for BES Employees stationed in the Portland Building. And it was a job that was easy to return to. In the 2006 Challenge, BES took top honors in our category against other large, government agencies, representing thousands of miles bicycled, dozens of wet socks laid out underneath desks to dry, and fortunately only a few flat tires.