Author: SNA

The Scourge of Gas-powered Leaf Blowers

Is your quality of life enhanced by the sound of gas leaf blowers or the fumes those blowers emit?

Quiet Clean PDX (QCPDX) is a coalition of concerned Portlanders working to eliminate gas leaf blowers locally and beyond. We have over 1,800 subscribers to our monthly newsletter and you can find the organizations that endorse us—including 15 Portland neighborhood associations at www.quietcleanpdx.org. 

Gas leaf blowers:

•  Create high-intensity intrusive noise    that disturbs neighborhood residents, passersby, and shoppers and can lead to permanent hearing loss for the operator

•  Create health risks with the emissions of toxic substances that can cause cancer, heart and lung disease

•  Cause air pollution with the emission of smog-forming chemicals

•  Require fossil fuels (gas and oil) for operation and thereby emit carbon dioxide, which contributes to climate change.

QCPDX is hopeful that the Sunnyside Neighborhood Association will endorse our goal of transitioning to alternatives including battery-operated leaf blowers and manual tools like rakes. We hope to encourage a healthier and simpler approach to lawn and garden care that reduces the need for gas-powered equipment.  

Thank you for your consideration- The Quiet Clean PDX Steering Committee

Note: The SNA will be voting at our General Meeting on January 12th about whether or not to endorse Quiet Clean PDX’s mission.

Celebrate the Holidays on Peacock Lane

Greetings! The residents of Portland’s beloved “Christmas Street” are pleased to announce the schedule for this year’s Lights on Peacock Lane Event. The lights will be on daily every night from 6 p.m. to 11 p.m. starting on December 15th  and ending on December 31st.

Returning this year are the Hot Cocoa Booth and pedestrian-only nights! 

The Hot Cocoa Booth provides hot cocoa and cider (free of charge) to the public during the event. Donations are, of course, accepted and help defray certain costs, but they are not required. The booth runs from December 15th – 24th, while supplies last.

We’re delighted to announce the return of pedestrian-only nights, which will take place on December 15th, 16th, and 17th!

During these nights, the Lane will be closed to vehicle traffic, which means the public may walk on the Lane itself for an even better view of the lights. On December 18th, pedestrian-only nights end and vehicles can drive down the Lane, though we recommend planning ahead as traffic will get heavy. 

And, of course, Peacock Lane is always free!

Emergency Preparedness is a (Community and Individual) Act of Kindness

The ways in which we are kind during, and after, any type of weather-related emergency also manifests itself in many big and little ways.

Give yourself credit for the invisible and visible ways that you are kind on a daily basis. 

The other day I had the opportunity to hand deliver about forty SNA newsletters. On the north side of SE Taylor and the south side of SE Yamhill, from Cesar Chavez to SE 42nd Avenue, and on the east side of SE 42nd Avenue between these two blocks. There was a lot of climbing up and down the mostly uneven stairs with many not-so-stable handrails to guide me. It was a sunny day with no snow or ice – just a few damp leaves and branches scattered about. 

I share this story with you so that you consider making it safer for those who deliver mail and other items to our homes every day. Making it easier for people to navigate to our front doors would be an act of kindness.

As winter comes (well, it feels like it’s already here), let’s keep the streets and sidewalks in front of our homes free from leaves, garbage, ice and snow so that it’s safe for all of us to get around by car, bicycle and on foot.

Be prepared, not scared.

Portland Mennonite Church Celebrates 100th Anniversary

Portland Mennonite Church at 35th and Main (1312 SE 35th Ave.) will hold a community Open House on Saturday, November 12, 2022 from 10:00am until noon as part of its 100th anniversary celebration. Mennonites are an historic Peace Church and PMC is committed to seeking the peace of the city.

More than two dozen quilts will be displayed that were handmade by volunteers from the congregation. Historical photographs from the early years—when the congregation was located on NW Savier Street in Northwest Portland—will also be on display. A centennial collage by local artist and church member Tim TK Klassen will also be displayed.

At 11 a.m. local stained glass artist David Schlicker will give a historical overview of the many stained-glass windows in the building, including some by the renowned Povey Brothers. The building was constructed in 1918 by the First Friends Church of Portland and includes one wing that was their original building that was moved directly across Main Street where it had previously been their main meeting house. In 1969, the building was sold to Portland Mennonite Church; First Friends built a new building near Reed College and became Reedwood Friends Church.

At 7 p.m. on the same evening there will be a centennial hymn sing featuring music from four different time periods. Please join us to learn more about the history of Sunnyside’s only Mennonite Church. For more info, go to www.portlandmennonite.org.

Critic’s Corner: Sunnyside Book Houses

A book house is like a tiny, free bookstore that you can take books from and give books to. You find book houses in front of some peoples’ houses. There are a lot of book houses in our neighborhood. We decided to make a map of all the book houses in Sunnyside by riding our bikes around. It was fun; we got to know our neighborhood better and found a lot of cool book houses. 

These were our favorites: 

• Best curation – 36th/Yamhill – A tall book house owned by a used-to- be-teacher

• Best decorated – A TIE between 32nd/ Main (collage and painted pictures on the outside and lots of picture books inside) and 44th/Main (landscape paintings on the sides + a rooster on top!)

• Personal favorite – 33rd/Washington– This is the book house on our street; it has lots of kids and picture books and is always full 

• Honorable mention – 34th/Salmon – This book house is planted in a pot! 

• Biggest – Main between 34th/35th – A huge book house with LOTS of books

 Two other great things we found:

• Wishing Tree (36th/Main)

• Street murals (42nd/Washington
and 33rd/Yamhill) 

Sunnyside students, please submit ideas or a review to [email protected].

Live near any of the blocks marked in black on the book house location map? We need your help! Contact [email protected] to volunteer for our delivery service.