SNA Safety & Livability Update for October 6th Meeting

At the most recent Community Safety & Livability meeting, we discussed a draft of the Community First Strategy to Address Houselessness in Portland, Oregon and shared it with members of the neighborhood who attended the meeting to get their thoughts and feedback. We started the process of brainstorming how we might take actionable steps to help the houseless neighbors in our community immediately and voted unanimously to do so.

We like the Community First Strategy as a high-level, inclusive guideline to work from, as it attempts to address many perspectives. Of particular interest is the Action Plan near the bottom, which begins with the sentence  “There must be programs for short, medium and long term solutions.” If you’d like to look it over, it can be found on our website at https://sunnysideportland.org/comfirst-draft/.

We are reaching out to adjoining Neighborhood Associations to get their thoughts, and to examine processes already in action to address the emergency of houselessness as winter approaches. We’re also seeking strategic alliances with other organizations who can help.

The Houseless emergency will likely encompass most of the discussion at our next meeting which has been moved to November 10th to provide everyone undivided attention to vote in the Tuesday, November 3rd election.

Please join us at the next Community Safety & Livability Meeting Tuesday after Election Night. Discussions have remained collaborative and solution-focused with all perspectives shared and  respected.

Land Use and Transportation in Sunnyside and Beyond!

In the Neighborhood

4738 SE Belmont St. A new three-story, mixed-use structure is proposed on the .13-acre site at the southwest corner of SE Belmont and SE 48th. The proposed building includes 19 apartments—15 studios and 4 one-bedrooms. Three of the units will be priced to be affordable for those at 50% of median family income. The ground floor will host 1,150 sq. ft. of commercial lease space along Belmont St. A dry well on the south end of the site will dispose of all on-site stormwater. The architect anticipates a minimum of six months before he receives an approved building permit.

Hawthorne Pave and Paint.

For on-going updates on this project visit: https://www.portland.gov/transportation/planning/se-hawthorne-pave-and-paint

In the Region

The NW Broadway Bus/Bike Lane Improvements project creates a signature northbound bike facility on NW/SW Broadway from the Broadway Bridge to SW Oak Street. Construction began on Oct. 3rd and is expected to last eight weeks. For more information on the project components, likely traffic impacts and contractor contact information, visit the project website at https://www.portland.gov/nw-broadway

SNA Interview: Rhys Scholes, author of Portland’s Hawthorne Boulevard

What motivated you to do a book on Hawthorne Boulevard? 

I wanted to celebrate the fabulous place where we live and tell the story of how it got this way.

What were some of the most interesting things you learned about Hawthorne Blvd.?

The building on the southeast corner of 36th and Hawthorne is a great example.  It was a Safeway store when it was built and then it was a Fred Meyer.  Later the windows were boarded up and it was a warehouse for Union Furniture.  Today, it is the Bread and Ink Cafe, and you can tell it was a grocery by the newer bricks under the windows that were added to fill the openings where produce racks once extended out on the sidewalk.

This book contains both description and images. What images stand out?

The bridge fire in 1902, the Rose Festival Grand Floral Parade on Hawthorne in 1948, the giant cake at the Fred Meyer Grand Opening in 1951, and the neighborhood that disappeared under the bridge ramps in 1957.

How can readers obtain this book?

Visit www.hawthornebook.com to buy a book and join the discussion of Hawthorne history, or find it in your local bookstore.

HBBA Pave and Paint Recommendation

In an October 1st statement the Hawthorne Boulevard Business Association endorsed Pave and Paint option #2 that would reconfigure Hawthorne west of Cesar Chavez to match Hawthorne east of Cesar Chavez.

See https://www.portland.gov/transportation/planning/se-hawthorne-pave-and-paint for more details on the project.

HBBA chose to recommend option #2 after multiple PBOT presentations and their stated reasons include safety, traffic flow and parking. You can read HBBA’s official statement about their Pave and Paint choice on their website: https://hawthorneblvd.com/?tv=5882719069798400.

October SNA Meeting Notes

At the October 8th SNA general meeting, Jim Toporek presented the design of a proposed three story, 11,473 sq. ft. mixed-use structure at 4738 SE Belmont. The proposed building includes 19 apartment units and ground floor commercial space. Please direct questions and comments to [email protected].

We elected and welcomed new board member Christy Yeoumans. One board position remains open.

The SNA continues to make communication through our website, newsletter, and meetings a priority. Not every neighborhood has a newsletter, and we hope to leverage communication to help all our neighbors get through this crazy time. We welcome stories on any topic but especially contributions that might ease the burden of work/life/health in our Sunnyside neighborhood. We also hope to promote the cultural and business contributions of our residents (200 words max. please).

The November 12th meeting will feature Oregon House Representative Rob Nosse. Rob’s insights on legislative issues are always insightful. We also will continue to discuss the worsening homeless situation. All SNA meetings continue to be via Zoom, so please see the SNA website for the time and connection info; we’d love to have you join us. Stay safe.