Author: Hannah Wallace

Getting to Know Your Neighbors

Q&A with Vahid Brown

As one of the founders of Hazelnut Grove, the houseless village at N. Interstate and N. Greeley, Vahid Brown knows a thing or two about advocating for Portland’s houseless population. For the past five years, he has worked as the Housing Policy Coordinator for Clackamas County’s Department of Health, Housing & Human Services. Recently, he has transitioned into a role leading the Clackamas implementation team for funds raised by Metro Measure 26-210. The measure, which passed by a sizable margin in May, is expected to raise $250 million a year for homeless services in Clackamas, Multnomah, and Washington counties. “It’s the largest per capita investment in homeless services the U.S. has ever seen,” Brown says.

How long have you lived in Sunnyside? Since the beginning of the year. I was in Raleigh Hills before this and I did not like living in outer Southwest. There were no sidewalks where I lived! No coffee shops! If my partner and I wanted to eat a vegan brunch, we’d come to Southeast.

Do you rent or own? Rent. I have a friend who told me the other side of the duplex he lives in was vacating.  

What do you love about Sunnyside—besides the vegan brunches? I love the walkability and the trees. It’s been a balm during COVID to walk so much. 

What’s one thing you would love to see change about Sunnyside?  I’m already seeing it: making the folks experiencing homelessness more welcome and having their needs better served. I was introduced to the Sunnyside Neighborhood Association’s Community Safety & Livability committee recently and I was happy to see they are working on this. 

Many housed Portlanders think that all we need to solve the homeless “problem” are more shelters. Can you explain why this may be shortsighted? While it does make sense to invest in expanding access to shelters, it should be a place where they can be for more than one night and where they can keep their things—a shelter that will allow them to stabilize. While an emergency shelter that’s a night out of the cold is a necessary intervention to save lives, it’s not the be-all-end-all. We also need alternative outdoor shelters and accommodations with community, with friends, and with family. There are some people experiencing homelessness who are seriously traumatized and are choosing their community where they live—people who they trust and feel safe with. They may have a mistrust of government systems and homeless services. A shelter may not seem a safe option to them.

There’s something that we’re missing. If someone gets a long term rental assistance voucher and moves into an apartment, it’s not uncommon that their street community will come over, hang out, use the shower. These are communities. We have to grapple with ways to treat them as communities.

Emergency Preparedness and the SNA Board

Save the date for the virtual SNA Board meeting on January 14, 2021, 7–8:30 p.m. 

Part of this meeting will be dedicated to SNA Board members’ sharing their preparedness efforts. I will be moderating this meeting and I will ask board members to share where they are on the preparedness continuum. Also, other members of the Sunnyside NET (Neighborhood Emergency Team) will attend. If time allows, other Sunnyside residents may share their preparedness efforts. I hope that you will be there.

Adopt a Storm Drain

Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) crews work to keep city drains clear and prevent flooding. With over 58,000 drains in the city, we can’t get to them all. “Adopt” a storm drain near you and help keep them clear of debris. Tips on clearing drains and information about stormwater runoff.

Tips for clearing storm drains

  • Use a rake, shovel, or broom. Don’t use your hands.
  • Wear gloves. Be careful of sharp objects!
  • Wear reflective clothing so people driving can see you. Watch out for traffic!
  • Only clear drains you can reach from the sidewalk. Don’t stand in the street and don’t clear drains that are in the middle of a street.
  • Clear drains before the rain, whenever possible.
  • Clear 10 feet on both approaches to the drain.
  • Watch for standing water to avoid slipping or stepping on sharp objects.
  • Make sure adults are supervising if children are helping.
  • Clear surface debris only. Call PBOT Maintenance Dispatch 24/7 at 503-823-1700 for any emergency hazards or if the drain is still clogged after removing surface debris.
  • Never lift storm drain grates. They are very heavy.
  • Don’t put leaves in the street. Place leaves in a yard debris roll cart for curbside pickup. If you have too many for the cart, simply bag them and place them next to the roll cart for pickup.
  • If snow or ice is blocking the drain, clear a 10-12 inch path along the curb for melting snow and ice to reach the drain.

Thank you for helping keep Portland’s streets clear and safe!

https://www.portland.gov/transportation/weather/adopt-storm-drain

Getting to Know Your Neighbors – Gordon Lee

Q&A with Gordon Lee 

Pianist and composer Gordon Lee’s first musical gig was in a rock ’n’ roll band in Westchester County, New York. He was just 14. He went on to earn a bachelor’s in music from Indiana University, where he met Portlander Richard Burdell, a trumpet player and composer. “He painted Portland as the promised land for gigs!” Lee recalls. So in 1977, Lee moved to Portland. Sure enough, gigs were plentiful. He performed with saxophonist/singer/composer Jim Pepper and traveled all over the states and Europe with him. After a hiatus in Brooklyn, New York, where he had a regular gig at a glitzy Village restaurant, he returned to Portland where he played at Jimmy Mak’s, Clyde’s, The 1905, and Arrivederci in Milwaukie. This May, he launched “Front Porch Jazz” on his front porch at 32nd and Alder Street. These free concerts have been one of the bright spots of the pandemic for Sunnyside residents, most of whom found out about them via word of mouth or just by walking by. 

How long have you lived in Sunnyside? I’ve lived here for 18 years now and in the same house! Amy Rose, my wife, bought the house before I moved in.

Do you rent or own? We own.  

What do you love about Sunnyside? It is a diverse neighborhood—and it’s becoming more diverse, which is great. That’s been the goal of jazz music for 100 years—it pulls in people from all different ethnic backgrounds and countries. It’s the universal language. 

What’s one thing you would love to see change about Sunnyside? There’s been a lot of homeless people and it’s difficult. If I’m giving a concert and less than a block away there’s a huge pile of garbage in the street from a homeless camp—that is not healthy. It’s personally not healthy, and it’s not healthy for the homeless people. 

Tell me how Front Porch Jazz got started. 

My wife Amy, who is a piano teacher — we’re a two piano family — was encouraging me to do house concerts for some time, even before the pandemic. Then my neighbors also started to say, “You should play a concert on your front porch!”  When several different people tell you the same thing, you should listen to what they’re saying. I first had a duo with Renato Caranto on sax. Then I had a trio — adding Tim Gilson on bass. Then finally I added Carlton Jackson on drums. I also had James Powers — he’s a trombonist. And John Nastos plays alto sax. There’s a long tradition of summer jazz festivals. So we were able to attach to that kind of energy. There’s a bunch of seniors out there and they’re all having fun! They bring chairs, a bottle of wine.

I’ve had 7 concerts and look forward to having more next Spring 2021. I want to thank my neighbors and the community for being so supportive and encouraging. It’s been my only opportunity to perform during COVID. It’s given me so much focus and direction.

Thank You Newsletter Delivery Volunteers

As Thanksgiving approaches, we wanted to take a moment and give thanks to our wonderful crew of more than 60 newsletter delivery volunteers for their dedication and community service. Some have volunteered their time for many years – even decades – to deliver the newsletter each month to households in Sunnyside.

I asked our volunteers for their thoughts on what delivering the newsletter means to them. Here are a few perspectives:

Toni Anderson

[Toni has delivered the newsletter for 36 years!]

How long have you lived in Sunnyside? We moved to Sunnyside in February of 1980.

What do you love about the neighborhood? There are so many things I love about Sunnyside. The first thing that comes to mind is the physical compactness of the neighborhood. I love being able to walk to four major grocery stores, the library, Laurelhurst Park, the optometrist, local coffee shops, bookstores, and boutiques on Belmont and Hawthorne. All are within a 10-minute walk of my house. I like the energy that results in this compactness. It produces an underlying hum that resonates with me in an agreeable way. I love the sense of community. My neighbors are all so friendly and wonderfully supportive.

What do you value about the newsletter? I value the extreme localness of the news it imparts — what’s happening at the library down the street, what’s on the mind of the SNA’s President, and what issues are up for discussion at their meetings. I also tune into the articles that tell me a bit more about the lives of Sunnyside’s individual residents. 

What do you enjoy about delivering newsletters? Well, one obvious benefit of delivering the newsletters is that you’re going to get a nice walk out of it! It also gives me a chance to experience my neighborhood in a more intimate way. Striding up each walkway, stepping onto each porch, encountering each door — so many chances to expand my appreciation of the dwellings around me. And then there are the neighbors that you encounter along the way, chatting or just exchanging a brief hello — so many chances to expand my appreciation of the people around me. 🙂

Any newsletter delivering stories you’d like to share? The reason I know I’ve been delivering the newsletters for 36 years is because that’s how old my eldest daughter is. I started delivering the newsletters when she was a newborn — strapped to my front in a baby carrier. Later she accompanied me in a stroller, then a wagon. A few years after that her little sister joined us, moving up the ranks, until I was pulling them both in the wagon. It took a lot longer to finish the route than it does today, but we had a lot of fun doing it!

Shelley Bedell-Stiles 

[Shelley delivers newsletters to over 200 households in Sunnyside, more than any other delivery volunteer!]

How long have you lived in Sunnyside? In 1985, on my daughter’s first birthday, we purchased our 1907 Portland Transitional house which became a remodeling project that continues to need maintenance. I don’t recall the exact year that I started walking an SNA newsletter route, but maybe 10+ years. I realized after receiving it monthly that it didn’t just magically appear on my porch. A quiet volunteer delivered it!

What do you value about the newsletter? I value knowing about SNA meetings, these meetings’ content, and the volunteers who serve as Board members and monthly contributors. 

What do you enjoy about delivering newsletters? Soooo much! I enjoy walking my routes to meet and greet neighbors, to comment about gardens and pets, or to add a specific note about the newsletter content.  

Any newsletter delivering stories you’d like to share? There is an exceptional variety of home and garden design along my delivery routes. One house has a unique fruit tree, not a Persimmon but a Medlar! I inquired during a November newsletter drop-off with a note at the door and the homeowners contacted me and shared their tree’s fruit. How lucky – and all because I was delivering SNA newsletters!

Laurie Watson

I’ve been delivering Sunnyside Neighborhood News to neighbors for more than 20 years, from two different homes and to various different blocks throughout the years. Although I often don’t see anyone on my deliveries, I cherish the occasional conversations that have enlivened my route. I especially enjoy spring and summer when I can ogle (and sometimes borrow ideas from) the lovely gardens that I pass.  I respectfully admire the way artistic neighbors have created a welcoming space at their front doors. Delivering the news is also great exercise, because my route includes many stairs.  I’m happy to bring Sunnyside news to my community. 

Thanks to our current delivery volunteers (listed) and to our past ones too. We appreciate you! 

  • Toni Anderson
  • Vinnie Balistreri
  • Gary Ballou
  • James Barry
  • Shelley Bedell-Stiles
  • Gwyn Benders
  • Tara Bresee
  • Chris Carter
  • Francine Chinitz
  • Jenny Combs
  • Diana and Isabel Deumling
  • Joan Dobbek
  • Rich Dodson
  • Ellen Earsley
  • John Elkington
  • Daniel Fogg
  • Linnea Gilson
  • Chris Hale and Jill Campbell
  • Ashley Hartmann
  • Lorraine Henriques
  • Eric Hollstein
  • Gloria Jacobs and Sean Nolan
  • Shannon Jones and Jeremy Weber
  • Cealila Kosonen
  • Lori Kovacevic
  • Laurie Kovack
  • Wendy Lebow
  • Anna Leisy
  • Rachael Lembo
  • Don Mack
  • Jessie Maran
  • The Martinson family
  • Maggie McGann
  • Lynn Montgomery
  • Carole Most
  • Cheryl Olson
  • Mark Oshin
  • Greg Podolec
  • Carol Poliak
  • Michelle Potter
  • Sandy Reina
  • Jim Rennard
  • Kent Richardson
  • Terry Richardson
  • Amie Rose
  • Darci Rudzinski
  • Madeline Scarp
  • Kelli Scott
  • Fran Siefer
  • Jim Sjulin
  • Bridgett Spicer
  • Amy Stahl
  • Valerie Strickland
  • Gwyneth and Bruce VanBuskirk
  • Laurie Watson
  • Tara Weidner and Tom Roidt
  • Lea Wheeler