Hi Sunnyside! Hope you all are doing well and getting outside when you can to enjoy all the beautiful weather, spring flowers and neighborly cheer around in the springtime!
In April, the SNA Board voted to support efforts to fight the CEI Hub, which stores volatile chemicals and fuels along the Willamette River. This energy storage facility presents so many dangers to all of Portland. The trains that bring these chemicals here travel right through the Columbia River Gorge and through many Portland neighborhoods and present the risk of disaster in the event of a derailment, like the incident that occurred last year in tiny East Palestine, Ohio and is still causing hazards to residents’ health. Second, by now you’ve heard about the coming Cascadia earthquake and the other potentially active faults that Portland sits on. Well, the CEI Hub sits on soil along the river that will basically turn to liquid in the event of a major earthquake – a process called liquefaction. Imagine all of those tanks coming crashing down and releasing their contents into our river and our air. Finally, one of the operators in the storage facility, Zenith Energy, has proved an unreliable partner, promising to improve their practices, but never following through to the spirit of the agreement. For all of these reasons, the SNA is proud to partner with the CEI Hub Task Force to fight against the unnecessary and unconscionable risks that the facility holds.
In other news, have you walked by the Sunnyside Piazza at 33rd and Yamhill? If so, you’ve probably thought to yourself that this beloved space could use a little attention. Good news. The SNA, in partnership with nearby residents and area businesses, is planning to repaint the piazza, hopefully later this summer prior to the Belmont Street Fair. We are just gearing up for this project. If you are interested in helping with planning, please email [email protected].
Interested in meeting the candidates for District 3 council seats? SE Uplift will be holding a candidate mixer on Thursday, May 23rd from 6-8 p.m. Find more info and RSVP at shorturl.at/kqA17.
Finally, Thursday, May 9th at 7 p.m. at SE Uplift, we will hold our annual Board elections. If you are interested in joining the Board and would like to learn more, please send an email to me at [email protected]. Everyone is invited to come out and help us vote for new Board members to serve two-year terms. It’s always a fun meeting. It’s pretty short and there are refreshments!
That’s it, I’ll be back next month with a “year” end review of what the SNA has been working on for Sunnyside and Portland!