Last week, city council honored Women’s History Month. Watch Commissioner Hardesty’s remarks here.
Screenshot of a Portland City Council meeting. You can see small images on the left of Commissioner Hardesty, the city seal, Mayor Wheeler, and Commissioners Mapps, Ryan, and Rubio. On the right is a larger image of Commissioner Hardesty wearing a bright red shirt.
Illustration of women of all colors, shapes, sizes, and abilities dressed as Wonder Woman.
Nominations open all month for city’s 12th Annual Wonder Woman Awards. This year's theme is Everyday Greatness. Nominate any woman working at the city who stands out as a community connector, supportive resource, inclusive leader, mentor, or recognized as a fabulous city employee! Remember, you can nominate more than one woman for the Wonder Woman award and/or the Fabulous Wonder Woman award.
In this issue of Street Cred:
Have you voted yet on PBOTers’ Picks, our March Madness-style bracket for your favorite food and beverage spots around PBOT buildings? If not, better hustle and take the first PBOTers' Picks survey to ensure your favorite spot makes it to the first bracket. Voting closes tomorrow, Thursday, March 17 at 10 a.m.! Campaigning for your favorite spot on the Peer Support Groups Food Channel is encouraged.
PBOT's Healthy Businesses program was awarded the 2021 Portland Award by Travel Portland, which recognizes the greatest overall contribution to Portland’s Visitor Industry. A description of the program from the award reads, in part: “Enabling many businesses to continue serving visitors and locals alike, this initiative helped countless businesses pivot during the pandemic by allowing them to expand their operations to create outdoor dining, curbside pickup and more, providing a lifeline to local businesses when they needed it most.”
PBOT staff Kalise Rucker, Bridgette Coleman, Gena Gastaldi, and Nick Falbo with Travel Portland President Jeff Miller pose for a picture at the Travel Portland awards ceremony.
“I am pleased to announce the recipient of The Portland Award,” Travel Portland President Jeff Miller said at last week’s ceremony. “This is such a special award as it encourages us to step back and take a long look at Portland as a destination and what – and more importantly, who – has shaped the city over the years. The award recognizes some of the greatest overall contributions to the promotion of Portland’s visitor industry, and this year it is my honor to congratulate the Portland Bureau of Transportation. PBOT’s Healthy Businesses and Safe Streets Initiative enabled countless businesses to make pandemic pivots in create ways to continue serving visitors and locals alike. The initiative allowed businesses to expand their operations via innovative outdoor dining, curbside pickup and more, providing a lifeline to local businesses when they needed it most. As you sit down to happy hour in a covered and heated outdoor patio this spring, be sure to toast PBOT.”
Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty and PBOT Director Chris Warner announced the extension of both Healthy Businesses and Public Street Plazas at a press conference Monday held in the middle of the Pride Plaza along SW Harvey Milk Street. They were joined by speakers Eli Johnson, co-owner of Atlas Pizza, 5 & Dime, and Dots Cafe, Neil Mattson, President of the Montavilla East Tabor Business Association, Naomi Pomeroy, James Beard award-winning chef and owner of Ripe Cooperative, as well as a number of PBOT staff and community members.
Eli Johnson, Neil Mattson, Commissioner Jo Ann Hardesty, Naomi Pomeroy, and PBOT Director Chris Warner stand together and smile after speaking at a press event for PBOT’s Healthy Businesses program in the Pride Plaza on SW Harvey Milk Street.
We want to acknowledge the creative thinking and hard work of the PBOT staff who made Healthy Businesses and the Portland Public Street Plazas a reality: Bridgette Coleman, Kalise Rucker, Kim Harrison, Dana Dister, Nick Falbo, Gena Gastaldi, Geoff Judd, Nico Lim, Brady Lovell, Terry Redeau, Dylan Rivera, Hannah Schafer, Mike Serritella, Mauricio LeClerc, Louis Waller, and Yen Tan.
Group shot of PBOT staff and speakers from PBOT’s Healthy Businesses press event on Monday, March 14, 2022.
Thank you to Francesca Jones for leading PBOT’s last two Lunch and Learns. Last week’s workshop and discussion were both helpful and cathartic. Thank you to everyone who came and participated.
Mark your calendars for our next Lunch and Learn April 6 with host Tammy Boren-King: “How Development Shaped Portland’s Street System.” Have you ever walked or driven down a street in Portland and asked, “How on earth did this get built this way?” or “Why is this street so different from the next street over?” Tammy tells part of the story of how we got here. Without going into all of Portland’s 150-year history, she’ll help us understand what happened and how an 1850s law signed by President Millard Fillmore still fundamentally shapes the transportation network we all use and work with today. Click here to join the meeting
Interested in hosting a Lunch and Learn? We’re currently booking for June and beyond. Contact Kailyn Lamb to secure a spot on our schedule.
I would like to share a significant accomplishment from the Development Review team. The city’s Design Commission approved the RiverPlace Central City Master Plan on March 3! After nearly a year working through complex issues at several public hearings, there was unanimous support for the overall buildout framework. The plan covers an 8-acre site between South Waterfront and Tom McCall Waterfront Park. If this 3-million square feet, mixed-use proposal is realized, it will be a transformational and dynamic update to the central city.
In my many years at PBOT, I’ve worked on some of the most intense and significant projects the city has seen. The sheer scale of the RiverPlace plan, its location, and all the potential impacts to the transportation system, meant extensive coordination and collaboration with parts of PBOT not typically included in the development review process. Without everyone below, this project would not have been approved.
Many thanks to Mauricio Leclerc, Ningsheng Zhou, Charles Radosta, Mark Haines, Roger Geller, Dave McEldowney, Sarah Johnston, Steve Townsen, Steve Szigethy, Michelle Dellinger, Liz Hormann, Steve Hoyt McBeth, Adam Moore.
SPECIAL thanks to Kurt Krueger for stepping in when it was necessary for you to do what you do best.
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Stephanie Evjen for scheduling countless coordination meetings. The effort to find time on so many calendars for so many meetings was not insignificant.
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Christopher Wier, a working manager balancing his responsibilities to his team while reviewing some of the most complex public right-of-way improvement plans. Extremely commendable.
ROCK-STAR STATUS thanks to
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Jamie Jeffrey, another working manager balancing her responsibilities to her team and stepping into a land-use review well into the second half of the game. Truly remarkable to tap in after not having looked at a land-use review-related Transportation Impact Study for well over a decade, then delivering the way she did—outright PBOT-legendary stuff!
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Tammy Boren-King, my wing-person, my co-pilot. Her brilliant mind, her attention to the many important details, her craving to learn by always asking pertinent questions. Without her, what PBOT delivered during the land use process would have been filled with holes.
SUPERSTAR PLATINUM-STANDARD thanks to (sadly, two amazing former staff):
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Amanda Owings. From day one, before the project was a project, Amanda’s expertise, experience, consistent calm under fire, and clear understanding of so many issues provided reassuring guidance to us all.
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Teresa Montalvo. This project would have been a no-go without Teresa’s constant support, the confidence she expressed about her team, the gentle nudges to correct course, the well-timed insertion of her years of expertise in large-scale project management, and, most of all, her care for my wellbeing.
Many heartfelt thanks to everyone. An exemplary confirmation that we can and do work with one another to achieve great success.
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PBOT’s very own Judge Kemp (pictured left) was interviewed recently for an article on Mac’s List, laying some of Judge’s journey to working at PBOT. When asked why he loves his job, Judge said, “There are several reasons. I love the gender and racial diversity of my workgroup. I also feel valued, heard, and appreciate being able to provide my feedback on initiatives.
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The work also provides sufficient professional challenges to encourage my brain to think differently. Since it’s a public position, there are opportunities to grow within my organization and beyond.”
Read the full “Utilizing Your Network: Judge Kemp’s Job Search Success Story” article here.
Last week, crews with Maintenance Operations installed the third and final design from the 2021 Bike to Books contest. Jerry Munson and Pennen Brelin, with support from Justin Buchanan, installed “Roarcycle,” designed by Marco De Ieso, the Pre-K–2nd Grade winner. I was there to take pictures as I never miss one of these!
A traditional, white bike sharrow has been redone with a green, fire-breathing dragon riding a blue, yellow and red bike.
Of course the real magic of bringing these designs to life happens behind the scenes. I love watching the puzzle pieces as they’re put into place. Crews take so much care to ensure the designs match the illustration perfectly.
On the left: Jerry Munson and Pennen Brelin people in orange safety vests lay down pieces for the new Bike to Books sharrow on SE Gladstone Street. On the right:Jerry Munson, Pennen Brelin, and Justin Buchanan wearing safety vests consult the original illustration to determine where the pieces should be placed.
On the left: Jerry Munson and Pennen Brelin wearing safety vests place the bike seat piece on the sharrow design. On the right: Pennen Brelin person kneels at the top of the sharrow, placing the final pieces of the design.
Once everyone is satisfied with placement, crews use a blow torch to heat the thermoplastic so it melts onto the road surface.
On the left: Looking west toward SE 52nd Avenue, Jerry Muson holds a blow torch to seal the design. On the right: Jerry Muson finishes torching the final “Roarcycle” design on SE Gladstone Street.
Crews let the design cool a few minutes and then the Bike to Books bike lane art is done!
Two hands hold the winning Bike to Books entry of “Roarcycle” next to the newly completed bike sharrow.
In recognition of Women’s History Month, I bring you stories of women with disabilities making history.
First is Judy Heumann who the Washington Post called “the mother of disability rights and a badass.” As a child, Judy developed polio and began to use a wheelchair. She wasn’t allowed to attend school because she was considered a “fire hazard.” She had supportive parents, but Judy soon determined that she and other people with disabilities had to be their own advocates. She did go to school, and after she graduated from Long Island University, she sued the New York City school district who denied her a teaching license because of her disability. She was a leader in the Section 504 Sit-In at the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare building in San Francisco. Judy’s story is part of the documentary Crip Camp: A Disability Revolution. As a nod to last month’s Accessibility Corner, both you and the young people in your life can read more about Judy in her memoir Being Heumann: An Unrepentant Memoir of a Disability Rights Activist and the young adult version Rolling Warrior.
By the time this is published, the Paralympic flame will be extinguished, but not before several American Paralympians demonstrated their talent and dedication on the world stage:
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Oksana Masters was already a 10-time Paralympic medalist coming into the 2022 winter games. Oskana was born in Ukraine and lived in orphanages until she was adopted and brought to America when she was seven. She had her legs amputated at ages nine and 14 due to birth defects believed to be caused by the Chernobyl nuclear disaster. Competing summer and winter sports, she won bronze in the 2012 London Paralympics as a rower in mixed sculls. She started these Paralympic games earning gold in the biathlon.
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Grace Miller is a Nordic skier raised in Alaska after being adopted from China at age three. She started skiing at four. This is her second Paralympic appearance. She graduated from the University of Alaska Fairbanks in three years with a biology degree.
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Brenna Huckaby is a two-time Paralympian and 2022 bronze medalist in snowboard cross as of this writing. She was a gymnastics enthusiast until 2010 when she had her right leg amputated due to cancer. A month later, with a prosthetic leg, she moved from Louisiana to Salt Lake City with her sights on snowboarding. She won two gold medals in the 2018 Winter Paralympics in Pyeongchang, South Korea.
Finally, meet the cofounder and executive director of Disability EmpowHer Network, Stephanie Woodward. Stephanie is passionate about empowering girls and women with disabilities to reach their highest potential, including building their confidence to lead. Beyond her mentoring and skill-building work at EmpowHer, she is an attorney, activist, and organizer who has advised U.S. senators on disability issues and litigated disability rights cases. She is somewhat proud of the arrest record she has from leading disability rights demonstrations.
As we celebrate women this month, let’s recognize that women with disabilities are among them.
By Kailyn Lamb
If you don’t know me, part of my job is internal communications like this, keeping you up-to-date on all things PBOT through Street Cred, the Scoop, Lunch and Learns, Coffee Talk, you get the idea. But the other half of my job is running PBOT’s social media accounts. As you can imagine, I see a lot of negative comments which is why I was so happy to see this Reddit thread filled with love for PBOT programs and services! In fact, I was so excited I immediately started taking screenshots and emailing them to myself as to not lose them. Take a look:
User writeonscroopy writes, “I reported a clogged sewer drain & they fixed it right away.” With replies commented underneath that read: “Same with potholes. Peek pothole season and it still only took a few days after reporting via pdxreporter.org” and “I had the same experience with a street light. They fixed it in 2 days.”
User florgblorgle wrote, “I have been trading emails with a few people at PBOT and BES over the past couple weeks regarding planning questions. Very detailed, prompt, professional, and informative interactions, every time.” Comments underneath read: “I’ve emailed the city twice over traffic concerns (mis-timed traffic lights both times) and I heard back right away with a thank you and a timeline for when they’d be able to send out a crew to fix the timer. Quite impressed with that,” and “I’ve had the pleasure of corresponding with PBOT planners a few times. They’ve all come across as dedicated, engaged, and polite.”
Text reads: “The roads are super maintained with very few exceptions. I can be driving on the Northeast side and the roads are great. Meanwhile in other cities when you leave downtown driving feels like you are constantly going over speedbumps.”
User emlabkerba writes, “I really like the parking kitty app for parking, so much easier than finding the thing and waiting for it to process my card and bringing back the little slip of paper for my car window. My friend who is a dishwasher just got a job that pays 20 dollars an hour, service industry owners are stepping up and paying workers much better than before. The thing passed to phase out gas powered leaf blowers for electric in Portland so those stinky loud guys will be going away. And my foot stopped hurting all the time!” User winningstad comments underneath, “big agree with parking kitty, makes parking so much more convenient. And being able to renew your time from the app without having to walk back to your car? So nice! Also I didn’t know about the other things, amazing stuff.”
A user writes “Foster (at least from Powell to the Mercado or so) is looking awesome! It has improved so much since I moved to the neighborhood 5 years ago.”
User museumnelson writes “They are finally putting in sidewalks on Halsey between 162nd and 122nd” and someone responded, “I’m excited to see this happen finally!”
User How_Do_You_Crash writes “This goes for the whole metro region, contiguous biking facilities. Y’all do it better than anywhere else I’ve had the pleasure of riding a bike. There’s always a neighborhood greenway or side street to take, that usually parallels a bike lane on a major neighborhood street or suburban thoroughfare. Trails connect to other trails and bike lanes with predictable regularity. SO many times biking in my last lives north in Bellingham, King County, Seattle, etc you would get dumped out onto 35-45 mph roads without warning because bike lanes haven’t been a focus until recently. Around Portland though? It’s like they’ve been a planning requirement for 20+ years AND they are actually retrofitted into street designs. Lots of supposedly pro-bike localities can’t deliver on the second part. Rebuilding roads is expensive but required for great bike infrastructure.”
One Redditor exclaims “BIKETOWN is expanding”
User regul writes “The Blumenauer bridge across 84 at 9th is supposed to open this summer!” Someone adds a correction saying, “It crosses HW 84 at NE 7th.” Another comments, “I cannot wait for the opening ceremony!”
A user writes “The Red Bus Lanes are a good start to making bus commutes more reliable as they won’t get stuck in traffic at some of the key bottlenecks in/out of downtown.”
A user writes “Better Naito is super epic. The beer scene is roaring back. The Willamette is cleaner than ever. The Division BRT opens later this year. The Blazers are doing an excellent job at tanking for a good draft pick. There’s a coffee shop and weed dispensary on every street corner.”
One user writes “I reported an issue to PBOT and they fixed it within 24 hours. Go PBOT!”
Another user writes “The quality of our roads compared to other cities is much better.”
A user writes “Lots of road improvements. I keep seeing construction in the streets. The city seems to be more focused on their roads than graffiti.”
A user writes “Urban planning. Bike infrastructure, tillicum crossing, rezoning.”
Here’s your reminder that for every upset person you hear from, whether you had any control over what they’re complaining about or not, there are 10 happy people you’ll never hear from!
Want to share a PBOT story here in Street Cred? Limit your copy to less than 500 words, provide detailed captions for any graphics, and email kailyn.lamb@portlandoregon.gov by 5 p.m. Thursday the week before so we have time to copy edit and proof. For longer featured articles please reach out to us first so we can target the best date for you.
Upcoming editorial deadlines:
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March 30 issue [deadline: March 24]
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April 13 issue [deadline: April 7]
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April 27 issue [deadline: April 21]
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