Victory for Sunnyside and Neighbors City Wide!

Clearwire withdraws cell tower applications from multiple Portland sites.

Hello neighbors,

We have some great news regarding some planned cell towers in our neighborhoods! Recently, Commissioner Amanda Fritz posted this on her blog:

Clearwire has formally notified the Office of Cable Communications & Franchise Management (OCC/FM) of the withdrawal of already-filed wireless applications for the following sites:
  • NE 37th and NE Fremont
  • SE Yamhill and SE 32nd
  • SE 65th and SE Reedway
  • N Greeley & Holman (Rosa Parks)
  • SE 70th and Flavel
You can read more on the Commissioner’s blog at: http://bit.ly/hWcKCJ

This is good news for the hundreds of Portlanders who spoke out at public meetings, wrote to officials, put signs in their yards and more to make it clear that they oppose siting cell towers in-front of people’s homes and near schools. While Clearwire was ultimately hampered by business issues, the strong reaction of Portlanders definitely resulted in a number of cell towers not being built in front of peoples homes as planned. We have heard from City Attorney’s office that any provider who wants to use a site previously approved “will have to go through the whole City siting process.” Thank you all for your hard work to date!

While many neighborhoods may have dodged a bullet, the story doesn’t end here. Clearwire will likely be back soon. Both AT&T and Verizon have recently announced that they will begin building new networks in Portland this year.

RespectPDX will continue to advocate for regulation that respects people’s investments in their homes and character of our communities.   In November last year, RespectPDX and Southeast Uplift co-sponsored a workshop.  There we presented a comparison of Portland’s ordinance with those of Glendale, CA, Hempstead, NY, and Bend’s proposed ordinance. All these cities strike a better balance in regulating wireless companies in a more responsible manner than the current Portland ordinance.

The powerful community response to date has helped make the City aware that we expect them to do everything possible to stop cell towers being built in front of our homes and our schools. Let’s continue to make ourselves heard and demand a better system so that what we have been through for the last year and a half doesn’t happen to others!

Thank you!

www.RespectPDX.org

 

The Big Day at Blair Garden!

Great news! The Blair Garden is opening on Saturday March 26th at SE
33rd and Stark. The garden has 19 (200 sq. foot) plots and will have 2-3
raised beds. On March 26th we will have a work party and opening of the
garden. The work party starts at 9am and goes to 11am. The celebration
will be from 11-12. You are encouraged to participate in both the work
party and the celebration.

Registration materials will be available for people previously in the
garden and those from the current Parks and Recreation waiting list.

More gardeners in the neighborhood may sign up on the list at
www.portlandparks.org go to Nature and to Community Gardens.

Thanks go to many people for renovating this space and getting the
garden up and going!

Laurelhurst Village Care Center-property owner and cash
supporter
Sunnyside Neighborhood Association
Portland Parks and Recreation Community Gardens
Portland Fire and Rescue
Friends of Portland Community Gardens
Hands on Portland
Riverdale HS Honor Society
Grant High School Environmental Club

Blair Community Garden
SE 33rd and Stark
Work Party and Celebration
Saturday, March 26th 9am-12noon

See you there!

Leslie Pohl-Kosbau
Dan Franek
Portland Community Gardens
Portland Parks and Recreation
503 823-1612

Opening Day for Blair Community Garden

March 26th marks the opening of the long-awaited return of the Blair Community Garden. Below is a link to the pdf announcing the Celebration from 11-noon and the Work Party from 9-11am.

The event is sponsored by Sunnyside Neighborhood Association, Laurelhurst Village, and Portland Community Gardens. Go to www.portlandparks.org to sign up on the wait list.

Work Party & Celebration for Blair Community Gardens

Opening Day for Blair Garden

Blair Garden Opening Day: March 26, By Tim Brooks

Mark your calendars for Saturday, March 26, Opening Day for the new Blair Community Garden!

Portland Community Gardens and SNA have hosted four garden work parties since October and we are just about ready to open the gates at the Blair Community Garden. By mid-March, we will build the remaining accessible raised beds, improve the path system and the shed, and then be ready to open.

The SNA would like to thank all the volunteers that joined us for the work parties. We would like to extend a special thank you to Holly Wilkalis from Hands On Portland and Lamar Hurd from the All in One Basketball Academy who helped coordinate the volunteer youth groups. SNA also wants to thank our partner in this effort, Portland Community Gardens, and their key staff Dan Franek, John Iott, and Leslie Pohl-Kosbau.

Come join us for a tour of the garden on March 26. The garden entrance is located on the west side of SE 33rd Avenue, half block south of Stark Street. For more on the garden’s rebirth, visit http://sunnysideportland.com/. For more information on the opening day event, check the SNA website and listserve, or call the SNA Hotline at 503 295-1699.

Temporary Bike Corral Closure

I wanted the community to know that the on-street bicycle corral at the corner of SE Belmont and 33rd Avenue will be removed this week due to traffic operation needs along this street.
The corral will be removed for approximately 2 weeks and then reinstalled using the newer City standards, which replaces the yellow curbing and reflective wands with white pavement markings.
We are also looking at ‘upgrading’ the bike corral at the corner of SE Belmont and 34th Avenue with the new standard design at the same time.
If there are any questions related to the bicycle parking changes I can be reached directly on 503-823-0805.
Thank you again!

– Sarah
SARAH FIGLIOZZI | Bicycle Program Specialist
City of Portland Bureau of Transportation
1120 SW 5th Avenue | Suite 800 | Portland, OR 97204
503.823.0805 |   [email protected]
Find more information about Portland’s Bicycle Parking at: www.portlandonline.com/transportation/bikeparking
The Portland Bureau of Transportation fully complies with Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, the ADA Title II, and related statutes and regulations in all programs and activities. For accommodations and additional information, contact the Title VI Coordinator at Room 1204, 1120 SW 5th Ave, Portland, OR 97204, or by telephone 503-823-2559, City TDD 503-823-6868.