Dear Neighbors, Friends, and District 4 Residents:
Happy Independence Day!
Now that 2025 is half over — and budget season is behind us — I want to take a moment to acknowledge the progress that we’re making as a city.
While Portland still has many challenges ahead, things have been turning around: We are seeing a drop in crime, we are seeing reduced vacancy rates downtown, and we are seeing an increase in foot traffic as the city comes back to life.
In addition, there are many good things on the horizon for District 4, like the James Beard Public Market, new neighborhoods coming to the Broadway Corridor and Montgomery Park, and a back-to-basics vision that I share with Mayor Wilson.
We need to continue making progress and executing on the promise of Portland. Constituents want to see results when it comes to feeling safer on our streets.
Please continue to stay engaged and stay in touch with my office. Great things are ahead when we work together!
P.S. I plan to pause the newsletter until next month. Please let me know if you have questions or topics you’d like me to address in this space!
 I’m dedicating time to meet with District 4 constituents both virtually and in their own neighborhoods — to hear what’s on your mind and to provide information on a variety of issues. You can find all of my event listings here.
Please save these dates:
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Hayhurst: 10 am-noon Wednesday, July 9th at Vermont Hills Church, 6053 SW 55th Drive.
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Hillsdale: 11 am-1 pm Friday, July 25th at PDX Coffee Club, 6369 SW Capitol Highway.
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Eastmoreland: 3-5 pm Thursday, August 14th at Eastmoreland Golf Course Bar & Grill, 2425 SE Bybee Boulevard.
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Arlington Heights: 11 am-1 pm Friday, September 12th at Hoyt Arboretum Visitor Center, 4000 SW Fairview Boulevard.
 This week I was invited to visit and learn about a District 4 treasure, Portland Japanese Garden, which is considered the world’s most authentic Japanese garden outside of the island nation. Senior Director of Operations Jason Sipe told me that the garden attracts half a million visitors every year — half local and half from around the world. I plan to become a member — please join me!
 Last month I met Adopt One Block founder Frank Moscow, who has empowered thousands of Portlanders to take action in their own neighborhoods to clean up the city we love.
All you do is agree to maintain your adopted square block free of litter over the course of one year — and they’ll even provide you with a free trash grabber, gloves, and bucket. So far Adopt One Block has recruited more than 10,000 Block Ambassadors — with 1,100 in District 4 alone!
In addition, Frank helps organize the “We Believe in Portland” volunteer cleanup events, which will soon extend beyond downtown and into the Inner Eastside. Save the date for the next one: Friday, September 19th!
 Last month I toured the North Reach of the Willamette River with the Working Waterfront Coalition, which represents 23 harbor businesses, from heavy manufacturing to barge transportation to steel, asphalt, and cement companies.
The coalition’s members provide more than 30,000 family-wage jobs that bring about $1.8 billion in personal income to the region’s economy. This industry puts the “port” in Portland!
 I recently joined my Council colleagues for a tour of City of Roses (COR) Disposal and Recycling, the nation’s only black-owned B-Corp waste company.
COR plays a key role in Portland’s world-renowned waste and recycling system, which aims to make our region more healthy, sustainable, and equitable. In 2019, COR transformed a long-abandoned 12-acre site in Northeast Portland into the city’s first privately owned transfer station — and a pioneering circular economy hub to incubate business startups using waste products as raw material to create innovative products.
 Last month I congratulated Sellwood Community House on the long-awaited reopening of The Shack at Sellwood Park! It’s going to be a terrific summer of concessions, equipment check-out, and drop-in programming with community partners. I’m hoping that this effort becomes a model we can transfer across the city in underutilized parks facilities.
 I recently enjoyed a backstage tour with the talented leaders of Portland Center Stage, the city’s largest theater company. For more than 35 years, PCS has not only entertained millions of patrons, but it also has engaged thousands of students and teachers through education programs and partnered with hundreds of nonprofits and community groups.
Like many other arts organizations, PCS is facing financial challenges as it recovers from the economic downturn. Development Director Edwina Kane and Artistic Director Marissa Wolf gave me an update on their campaign to raise $9 million by June 2026, including a $200,000 city commitment approved by Portland City Council.
Our arts organizations help keep the local economic engine running. Please consider becoming a season ticketholder!
 Last month I joined Portland Gay Men’s Chorus Board Chair Gary Carroll and Executive Director Mark McCrary to present Mayor Wilson’s proclamation honoring its 45th anniversary. One of Portland’s most successful music organizations, the chorus provides a vital space for self-expression, healing, and advocacy for singers and supporters.
 As Portland’s representative on the League of Oregon Cities board, I traveled to Pendleton recently to meet with my fellow board members from across the state. The league partners with local, state, federal, and community leaders to develop policies and share best practices that empower Oregon’s cities. We have so much in common, whether we come from an urban, rural, coastal, or mountain region!
I’m pictured here with Fossil Mayor and League Vice President Carol MacInnes and North Bend Mayor and League President Jessica Engelke. While in town I also got to meet Rachelle Erb, the hat shaper and historian at Hamley Western Store!
 How fortunate are we to have Washington Park’s outstanding International Rose Test Garden? So many visitors from all around the world!
 BikePortland reports that an astonishing 30% of the city’s land area is managed by the Portland Bureau of Transportation in the form of city streets! This came up at a recent meeting of City Council’s Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, which I chair. At a time when failing assets are eating into our limited budget, converting underutilized streets into plazas, cul-de-sacs, community gardens, and superblocks might be one solution. (However, the Oregon Legislature’s failure to pass a transportation funding package will hurt efforts to maintain our streets. More to come on this topic!)
Good news for District 4: Zaugg Timber Solutions is developing a mass timber housing and innovation campus at the Port of Portland! Also known as engineered wood, mass timber is a composite of wood material that’s increasingly being used in building construction; you’ve probably seen at in the new ceiling at Portland International Airport. When the facility is fully operational, OPB says it’s expected to have 60 workers producing about 700 manufactured homes a year.
Speaking of our beloved airport: It now ranks as the nation’s best! “It’s practically a nature bath,” The Washington Post raves. “Skylights built into soaring timber roofs filter sunlight onto the oak floor. Live trees and massive video walls showcase stunning landscapes. Sit for a spell on the stadium-style wood benches. Linger on the real-life view of Mount Hood from Concourse E. This space is — it’s hard to believe — relaxing.”
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