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Portland, Oregon
*** Shopping-Tip: Portland, Oregon
{{Infobox City |official_name = Portland, Oregon
|nickname = City of Roses", "Stumptown," "Bridgetown
|website = http://www.portlandonline.com/
|image_skyline = Portland oregon skyline.jpg
|image_flag = Portland, Oregon flag.svg
|image_seal = PortlandOR seal.gif
|image_map = Portland Multnomah.png
|map_caption = Location in
Multnomah County, Oregon Multnomah County and the state of
Oregon
|subdivision_type =
Countries of the world Country Political divisions of the United States State List of counties in Oregon County
|subdivision_name =
United StatesOregonMultnomah County, Oregon Multnomah County
|leader_title =
Mayor
|leader_name =
Tom Potter (
United States Democratic Party D)
|area_magnitude = 1 E8
|area_total = 145.4 mi² - 376.5
|area_land = 134.3 mi² - 347.9
|area_water = 11.1 mi² - 28.6
|population_as_of = 2005
|population_total = 556,370
|population_metro = 2,127,881
|population_density = 643.9 /mi² - 1,667.8
|timezone =
Pacific Standard Time Zone PST
|utc_offset = -8
|timezone_DST =
Pacific Daylight Time PDT
|utc_offset_DST = -7
|latd = 45
|latm = 31
|lats = 12
|latNS = N
|longd = 122
|longm = 40
|longs = 55
|longEW = W
|elevation = 15.2
|footnotes =
}}
'''Portland''' is the largest city in the
U.S. state state of
Oregon, and county seat of
Multnomah County, Oregon Multnomah County. It straddles the
Willamette River south of its confluence with the
Columbia River. Portland is the second largest city in the
Pacific Northwest region of the
United States. Only
Seattle, Washington is larger.
The population of Portland is estimated to be 556,370 as of
July 1,
2005[http://www.pdx.edu/media/p/r/prc_2005_Table5_County_Split.xls], and that of the surrounding
Portland metropolitan area metropolitan area (
United States metropolitan area MSA), approximately 2 million (the
List of United States metropolitan statistical areas by population 24th largest in the
United States).
Portland is known as "The City of
Roses" or "Rose City", nicknames originated during the 1905
Lewis and Clark Expedition Lewis and Clark centennial exposition. Its climate is ideal for growing roses, and the city has many rose gardens, including the
International Rose Test Garden in
Washington Park, Portland Washington Park. Other nicknames for the city of Portland include "
Stumptown", "Bridgetown" (due to its numerous bridges), "Puddletown" (due to the weather), and "
River City" (due to its proximity to the Willamette and Columbia Rivers). Modern
colloquialism colloquialisms for the city include "
Portland International Airport PDX" (after the city's
IATA airport code airport code), "P-town", and "Rip City" (from an exclamation by
Portland Trail Blazers radio announcer
Bill Schonely when the team scored an exceptionally good play).
History
Image:portland_1890.jpg thumb|310px|Portland in 1890
{{main|History of Portland, Oregon}}
'''Portland''' started as a spot known as "The Clearing," which was on the banks of the Willamette River about halfway between
Oregon City, Oregon Oregon City and
Fort Vancouver. In 1843,
William Overton (Portland founder) William Overton saw great commercial potential for this land, but lacked the funds required to file a land claim. He struck a bargain with his partner
Asa Lovejoy of
Boston, Massachusetts: for
quarter (U.S. coin) 25¢, Overton would share his claim to the 640-acre (2.6 km²) site.
Bored with clearing trees and building roads, Overton sold his half of the claim to
Francis W. Pettygrove of
Portland, Maine. When it came time to name their new town, Pettygrove and Lovejoy both had the same idea; to name it after his home town. They flipped a coin to decide, and Pettygrove won.
Portland existed in the shadow of Oregon City, the territorial capital 12 miles (19 km) upstream on the falls of the Willamette. However, Portland was located at the Willamette's
head of navigation, giving it a key advantage over its older peer. It also triumphed over early rivals like
Milwaukie, Oregon Milwaukie and Sellwood. By 1850 Portland had approximately 800 inhabitants, a steam sawmill, a
log cabin hotel, and a newspaper, called the ''
The Oregonian Weekly Oregonian''.
Portland was the major port in the
Pacific Northwest for much of the 19th century, until the 1890s, when direct railroad access between the deepwater harbor in
Seattle, Washington Seattle and points east by way of
Stampede Pass were built. Goods could then be transported from the northwest coast to inland cities without needing to navigate the
Columbia Bar dangerous bar at the mouth of the Columbia River.
Like other
West Coast of the United States west coast ports, Portland was home to frequent acts of
shanghaiing. Tunnels under city blocks stretching for blocks from the Willamette River, although built for legitimate business reasons, became known as
shanghai tunnels because of their purported use in such kidnappings. Portland was unique because trap doors (known as "deadfalls") were used to drop the unsuspecting victims into the tunnels where they were held in cells until the ship was ready to set sail. From 1850 to 1941, Portland was known as the "Unheavenly City" due to this shocking practice. A variety of tours of these tunnels are now given.
Geography and climate
According to the
United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 376.5
square kilometre km² (145.4
square mile mi²). 347.9 km² (134.3 mi²) of it is land and 28.6 km² (11.1 mi²), or 7.6%, is water.
Although almost all of Portland lies within Multnomah County, small portions of the city lie within
Clackamas County, Oregon Clackamas and
Washington County, Oregon Washington counties, with mid-2005 populations estimated at 785 and 1,455, respectively.[http://www.pdx.edu/media/p/r/prc_2005_Table5_County_Split.xls]
The Portland metropolitan area is located within the
Willamette Valley, which follows the Willamette River and the I-5 Corridor. The valley consists of suburban municipalities sprawled around patches of farmland farther south. The further north you travel, towards Portland, the thicker the population density becomes. The vast majority of Oregon's population lives in the Willamette Valley.
Interstate 5 bisects the valley and a significant number of commuters travel the I-5 Corridor daily.
Portland lies on top of an extinct Plio-Pleistocene volcanic field. The
Boring Lava Field includes at least 32 cinder cones and small shield volcanoes lying within a radius of 13 miles of '''Kelly Butte''', which is approximately 4 miles east of downtown Portland.
Portland's climate is temperate and seasonal. The average rainfall is approximately 40 to 45 inches per year, but is spread out as Portland averages 155 days of precipitation a year. Although it lies in the
Marine West Coast climate zone, Portland shows many characteristics of a
Mediterranean climate. The city relatively has mild wet winters, and hot dry summers. The summer months (June through September) mark the driest period, averaging around 1 inch per month, but it is not uncommon for summer months to receive little or no precipitation at all. November through April is the rainy season, with 80% of the total annual rainfall occurring in those months. Winter low temperatures hover around 35 °F (2 °C), and summer highs average around 80 °F (26 °C), however summer heat waves with temperatures exceeding 100 °F (38 °C) can happen. But for the most part, the Portland summers are very pleasant with abundant sunshine. The lowest temperature ever recorded in Portland was −3 °F (−19 °C), set on
February 2 1950. Portland recorded a record high 107 °F (41 °C) numerous times, and can reach the 100 °F (38 °C) mark in months from May through September.
{| class="wikitable"
! style="background: #99CCCC; color: #000080" height="17" | Month
! style="background: #99CCCC; color:#000080;" | Jan
! style="background: #99CCCC; color:#000080;" | Feb
! style="background: #99CCCC; color:#000080;" | Mar
! style="background: #99CCCC; color:#000080;" | Apr
! style="background: #99CCCC; color:#000080;" | May
! style="background: #99CCCC; color:#000080;" | Jun
! style="background: #99CCCC; color:#000080;" | Jul
! style="background: #99CCCC; color:#000080;" | Aug
! style="background: #99CCCC; color:#000080;" | Sep
! style="background: #99CCCC; color:#000080;" | Oct
! style="background: #99CCCC; color:#000080;" | Nov
! style="background: #99CCCC; color:#000080;" | Dec
! style="background: #99CCCC; color:#000080;" | Year
|-
! style="background: #99CCCC; color:#000080;" | Avg high °C (°F)
| style="background: #FFFF99; color:#000080;" | 8 (46)
| style="background: #FFFF99; color:#000080;" | 10 (50)
| style="background: #FFCC66; color:#000080;" | 13 (57)
| style="background: #FFCC00; color:#000080;" | 16 (62)
| style="background: #FFCC00; color:#000080;" | 20 (68)
| style="background: #FF9900; color:#000080;" | 23 (74)
| style="background: #FF9900; color:#000080;" | 26 (80)
| style="background: #FF9900; color:#000080;" | 27 (81)
| style="background: #FF9900; color:#000080;" | 23 (74)
| style="background: #FFCC00; color:#000080;" | 17 (63)
| style="background: #FFCC66; color:#000080;" | 11 (51)
| style="background: #FFFF99; color:#000080;" | 8 (46)
| style="background: #FFCC00; color:#000080;" | 17 (63)
|-
! style="background: #99CCCC; color:#000080;" height="16;" | Avg low temperature °C (°F)
| style="background: #FFFFCC; color: black;" | 3 (37)
| style="background: #FFFFCC; color: black;" | 4 (39)
| style="background: #FFFFCC; color: black;" | 5 (41)
| style="background: #FFFF99; color: black;" | 7 (44)
| style="background: #FFCC66; color: black;" | 9 (50)
| style="background: #FFCC66; color: black;" | 12 (54)
| style="background: #FFCC66; color: black;" | 14 (58)
| style="background: #FFCC66; color: black;" | 14 (58)
| style="background: #FFCC66; color: black;" | 13 (55)
| style="background: #FFFF99; color: black;" | 9 (48)
| style="background: #FFFFCC; color: black;" | 6 (42)
| style="background: #FFFFCC; color: black;" | 3 (37)
| style="background: #FFFF99; color: black;" | 8 (52)
|-
! style="background: #99CCCC; color:#000080;" | Rainfall
millimeters (inches)
| style="background: #2288BB;" | 158.5 (6.24)
| style="background: #2288BB;" | 128.8 (5.07)
| style="background: #44AADD;" | 114.6 (4.51)
| style="background: #44AADD;" | 78.7 (3.62)
| style="background: #44AADD;" | 63.2 (3.10)
| style="background: #66CCFF;" | 50.8 (2.00)
| style="background: #66CCFF;" | 40.6 (1.60)
| style="background: #66CCFF;" | 12.7 (0.50)
| style="background: #66CCFF;" | 22.8 (0.90)
| style="background: #44AADD;" | 86.1 (3.39)
| style="background: #2288BB;" | 162.3 (6.39)
| style="background: #2288BB;" | 171.4 (6.75)
| style="background: #2288BB;" | 1119 (44.07)
|}
The city and the region
Image:DTPortlandORaerial.jpg 300px|thumb|Aerial view of central Portland
Portland is often cited as an example of a
Urban planning well-planned city. The credit for this starts with Oregon's proactive land-use policies, particularly the establishment of an
urban growth boundary in 1979. The boundary preserved
agriculture agricultural land in the mold of 19th-century farming techniques. This was atypical in an era when automobile use led many areas to neglect their core cities in favor of development along
interstate highways, in
suburbs, and
satellite city satellite cities.
Some developers and real estate investors dislike the urban growth boundary, and argue that it has brought not only benefits but the burden of high housing costs. Still, housing costs are lower than most urban areas in California and Washington, and residents enjoy many benefits of a more compact urban area, including efficient public transportation and less traffic than similarly sized cities. The
Portland Development Commission also plays a role in keeping the city livable; it was created by city voters in 1958 to serve as the city’s
urban renewal agency. It provides housing and economic development programs within the city.
The more densely populated parts of the city proper are somewhat asymmetrical, with the west side hemmed in by the West Hills, while the flatter east side stretches on for about 170 blocks, until it meets
Gresham, Oregon Gresham. They extend from the beginning of East Portland, at the Willamette River, to the outer fringes of the suburbs of Gresham. Further east lies rural Multnomah County.
Downtown Portland and many other parts of inner Portland have compact city blocks and narrow streets. Each block is 200 ft (60 m) square; by comparison,
Seattle, Washington Seattle's city blocks are 240 by 320 feet (70 by 100 m), and
Manhattan's east-west streets are divided into blocks that are from 600 to 800 feet (180 to 240 m) long. In addition, most streets are 64 feet (20 m) wide; the combination of compact blocks and narrow streets makes the downtown more pedestrian friendly. The 264 foot (80 m) long combined blocks divide one mile (1.6 km) of road into exactly 20 separate blocks.
:''See also:
Portland metropolitan area''
Portland's five "quadrants"
Image:portland.png thumb|right|245px|The sections of Portland.
As a result of a "great renumbering" on
September 2,
1931, Portland is divided into five sections: Southwest, Southeast, Northwest, North and Northeast. Burnside Street is the boundary between north and south, and the Willamette River divides the eastern and western sections. North of Burnside Street, the river curves west and in place of it Williams Avenue is used as a divider. Between Williams and the river is the fifth, North, quadrant.
Portland also has an unnamed sixth "quadrant", between Naito Parkway and the Willamette River, which has an east bend south of downtown. Instead of having its own name, negative numbers denoted by a leading zero are used (For example, "0110 SW Porter St." is an office building one block east of Naito Pky.)
= Northwest
=
''Northwest'' includes the
Pearl District, a fairly recent name for what originally was an old
warehouse area. Starting in the late 1980s, and peaking in the 2000's, many of the existing warehouses, some on
brownfield sites, have been converted into
lofts, and new multistory
condominium (housing) condominiums have also been developed. The increasing density has attracted a mix of restaurants,
brewpubs, shops, and art galleries, though in some cases pioneering tenants have been priced out of the area (see
Gentrification). Its galleries sponsor artists' receptions on the first Thursday of every month, spawning similar events on other days elsewhere.
Between the Pearl District and the Willamette is Portland's old
Chinatown, Portland Chinatown neighborhood. Its entrance is marked by a pair of lions at the corner of NW 4th and Burnside, and includes the district along the
Willamette River between Burnside and
Union Station (Portland) Union Station. Before
World War II, this area also had a Japan Town.
Further west is the tiny NW 21st and 23rd Avenue neighborhood and shopping area. When Portland natives say ''Northwest'', they often mean this area, which is also called ''Uptown,'' ''Nob Hill'' and the ''Alphabet District.'' This area has a mix of
Victorian-era houses, apartment buildings from throughout the 20th century, and various businesses centered around Legacy Good Samaritan Medical Center. The
Portland Streetcar connects this area to downtown. Characters from ''
The Simpsons'' are named from the alphabetical streets in this area—namely
Ned Flanders,
Reverend Lovejoy and
Mayor Quimby.
Even further northwest lies part of what is known as Portland's West Hills, including the majority of massive
Forest Park (Portland) Forest Park.
= Southwest
=
Image:1portland downtown 004.jpg 300px|right|thumb|Pioneer Courthouse Square in Downtown Portland
Part of the West Hills is in the ''Southwest'' quadrant, which includes Washington Park, site of North America's
Washington Park (MAX station) deepest transit station, the
Oregon Zoo,
Hoyt Arboretum, the
International Rose Test Garden, the
Portland Japanese Garden, beautiful hiking trails, and the Vietnam Veterans Memorial. The West Hills underwent rapid expansion during the 1960s and 1970s.
Southwest also includes:
* The heart of the Portland's Downtown, centered around
Pioneer Courthouse Square ("Portland's living room")
* The campuses of
Portland State University,
Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU), and
Lewis & Clark College
* Neighborhoods like Lair Hill, Burlingame, Macadam,
Hillsdale, Oregon Hillsdale, and
Multnomah Village, with unique residential houses and well defined commercial and retail districts
* Various suburban neighborhoods, including
Raleigh Hills, Oregon Raleigh Hills,
West Slope, Oregon West Slope, and
Garden Home-Whitford, Oregon Garden Home
*
Alpenrose Dairy, the grounds of which host
track cycling and
Little League sports
* The south Willamette riverfront along Macadam Avenue, over 100 acres (0.4 km²) of former industrial land. This area is undergoing redevelopment as a mixed-use, high-density neighborhood, with an anticipated 2700 residential units and 5,000 high-tech jobs after build-out
* Portland's
Gay village gay district, centered on Stark Street, one block south of W Burnside.
Downtown Portland is laid out on a grid, with named streets running roughly perpendicular to the Willamette River and numbered streets running parallel to the river. Many streets in the rest of Southwest follow the countours of the quadrant's hills, rather than adhering to a rigid grid.
= Northeast
=
''Northeast'' contains a diverse collection of neighborhoods. For example, while
Irvington, Portland, Oregon Irvington and the Alameda Ridge boast some of the oldest and most expensive homes in Portland, nearby Albina is a more working-class neighborhood. Because it is so large, Northeast Portland can essentially be divided ethnically, culturally, and geographically into inner and outer sections. The inner Northeast neighborhoods that surround Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. are predominately African American, resembling typical urban inner-city environments found in most major U.S. cities. Inner Northeast includes several shopping areas, such as the Lloyd District, Alberta Arts District and
Hollywood District Hollywood, and part of the affluent
Irvington,
Alameda, and Laurelhurst neighborhoods and nearby developments. The city plan targets Lloyd District as another mixed-use area, with high-density residential development.
At the base of Northeast is the Rose Quarter. It is named after the
Rose Garden Arena, home of the
Portland Trail Blazers, and also includes the Blazers' former home, the
Memorial Coliseum. The Coliseum is the home to Portland's hockey team, the
Portland Winterhawks Winterhawks, of the
Western Hockey League, though they often play at the Rose Garden. The newest Rose Quarter tenants are the
Portland Lumberjax Lumberjax of the
National Lacrosse League, January of 2006 the start of their inaugural season. The city still holds the lease to the land, but the buildings were owned by private business interests until they went into receivership. The area is quite active during the teams' home games, and the city hopes to extend the activity by promoting a major increase in residential units in the quarter using zoning and tax incentives.
= Southeast
=
''Southeast'' stretches from the warehouses by the Willamette, through the historic
Ladd's Addition, to the
Hawthorne, Portland, Oregon Hawthorne and Belmont districts. Southeast Portland residents initially tended to the blue-collar but have since evolved into a wide mix of backgrounds; inner southeast is home to several thriving subcultures including
Hippies,
Hipsters, pagans, and
environmentalists, while the outer edges are populated by a diverse, largely working-class population which includes immigrant communities from
Eastern Europe and
Southeast Asia. The Hawthorne district is known for its beyond-the-norm hippie/radical crowd and funky shops. Farther south, the
Brooklyn, Portland, Oregon Brooklyn,
Sellwood, Portland, Oregon Sellwood,
Woodstock, Portland, Oregon Woodstock, Brentwood-Darlington and
Eastmoreland, Portland, Oregon Eastmoreland neighborhoods near
Reed College are close to the Willamette River. The
Clackamas Town Center and Mall 205 are the largest retail centers serving the area.
Between the 1920s and the 1960s, Southeast was home to
Lambert Gardens. Southeast Portland also features
Mount Tabor, Oregon Mt. Tabor, a park with one of the only extinct volcanoes in a continental U.S. city, which (on the south slope) is home to
Warner Pacific College.
= North Portland
=
''North Portland'', like the unnamed fifth "quadrant", is not officially a quadrant of Portland and is instead a colloquial way to reference this area, which is spatially distinct enough from Northwest Portland to warrant such a direct reference. North Portland is also being referred to as NoPo. It includes the neighborhoods of
St. Johns, Portland, Oregon St. Johns, Cathedral Park, University Park (and the
University of Portland), Overlook, Portsmouth,
Kenton, Portland, Oregon Kenton, Arbor Lodge, Bridgeton,
Hayden Island, and Piedmont.
During
World War II, a planned development named
Vanport, Oregon Vanport was constructed to the north of this section between the city limits and the
Columbia River. It grew to be the second largest city in Oregon, but was wiped out by a disastrous flood in 1948. Columbia Villa, another wartime housing project in the Portsmouth Neighborhood, is being rebuilt; the new $150 million community will be known as New Columbia and will offer public housing, rental housing, and single family home ownership units. In 2004, a new light rail line opened along Interstate Avenue, which parallels I-5.
People and culture
Demographics
{| class="toccolours" align="right" cellpadding="4" cellspacing="0" style="margin:0 0 1em 1em; font-size: 95%;"
|-
! colspan=2 bgcolor="#ccccff" align="center"| Historical populations{{ref|census}}
|-
! align="center"| Census
year !! align="right"| Population
|-
| colspan=2|
|-
| align="center"|
U.S. Census, 1850 1850 || align="right" | 821
|-
| align="center"|
U.S. Census, 1860 1860 || align="right" | 2,874
|-
| align="center"|
U.S. Census, 1870 1870 || align="right" | 8,293
|-
| align="center"|
U.S. Census, 1880 1880 || align="right" | 17,577
|-
| align="center"|
U.S. Census, 1890 1890 || align="right" | 46,385
|-
| align="center"|
U.S. Census, 1900 1900 || align="right" | 90,426
|-
| align="center"|
U.S. Census, 1910 1910 || align="right" | 207,214
|-
| align="center"|
U.S. Census, 1920 1920 || align="right" | 258,288
|-
| align="center"|
U.S. Census, 1930 1930 || align="right" | 301,815
|-
| align="center"|
U.S. Census, 1940 1940 || align="right" | 305,394
|-
| align="center"|
U.S. Census, 1950 1950 || align="right" | 373,628
|-
| align="center"|
U.S. Census, 1960 1960 || align="right" | 372,676
|-
| align="center"|
U.S. Census, 1970 1970 || align="right" | 382,619
|-
| align="center"|
U.S. Census, 1980 1980 || align="right" | 366,383
|-
| align="center"|
U.S. Census, 1990 1990 || align="right" | 437,319
|-
| align="center"|
U.S. Census, 2000 2000 || align="right" | 529,121
|-
|}
As of 2000 As of the census of 2000, there are 529,121 people residing in the city, organized into 223,737 households and 118,356 families. The
population density is 1,521/km² (3,939.2/mi²). There are 237,307 housing units at an average density of 682.1/km² (1,766.7/mi²). The racial makeup of the city is 77.91%
White (U.S. Census) White, 6.64%
African American (U.S. Census) African American, 1.06%
Native American (U.S. Census) Native American, 6.33%
Asian (U.S. Census) Asian, 0.38%
Pacific Islander (U.S. Census) Pacific Islander, 3.55% from
Race (U.S. Census) other races, and 4.15% from two or more races. 6.81% of the population are
Hispanic (U.S. Census) Hispanic or
Latino (U.S. Census) Latino of any race.
Out of 223,737 households, 24.5% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 38.1% are
Marriage married couples living together, 10.8% have a female householder with no husband present, and 47.1% are non-families. 34.6% of all households are made up of individuals and 9% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.3 and the average family size is 3.
In the city the population is spread out with 21.1% under the age of 18, 10.3% from 18 to 24, 34.7% from 25 to 44, 22.4% from 45 to 64, and 11.6% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 35 years. For every 100 females there are 97.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 95.9 males.
The median income for a household in the city is $40,146, and the median income for a family is $50,271. Males have a reported median income of $35,279 versus $29,344 reported for females. The
per capita income for the city is $22,643. 13.1% of the population and 8.5% of families are below the
poverty line. Out of the total population, 15.7% of those under the age of 18 and 10.4% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line. Oregon has a 9% income tax which tends to suppress accurate reporting. Figures delineating the income levels based on race are not available at this time.
Portland is becoming increasingly diverse. Recent trends have more young people moving into the city as older, more established white families with children move to the suburbs. Although the majority of the city's population is still white, 60% of people moving to Oregon are non-white.
However, though the population of the city is increasing, the total population of children is diminishing, which has put pressure on the public school system to close schools. A recent ''
The New York Times New York Times'' story noted that Portland is now educating fewer children than it did in 1925, and the city will have to close the equivalent of three to four elementary schools each year for the next decade.
Portland's public school system has remained racially imbalanced. Three of its high schools (Cleveland, Lincoln and Wilson) are over 70% white, while Jefferson High School is 86% non-white. The remaining four schools are more ethnically balanced[http://www.pps.k12.or.us/depts/mis/enroll/current/EnrollxSchl95-03.pdf].
The imbalance can be explained through Portland's demographic history. Prior to the
Second World War, Portland had very few residents of non-European ethnicity. In 1940, Portland's
African-American population was approximately 2,000 and largely consisted of railroad employees and their families. During the war-time
Liberty Ship construction boom, the need for workers drew many blacks to the city. Due to institutionalized racism in the real-estate community at the time, this new influx of blacks was guided to specific neighborhoods, such as the Albina district and Vanport. The post-war destruction of Vanport eliminated the only integrated neighborhood, and the
ghettoization of blacks into the NE quadrant of the city continued.
Media
''
The Oregonian'' is the major daily newspaper in Portland. ''
Willamette Week'' is a major
alternative weekly publication distributed throughout the metro area. Other local weekly papers in the area include ''
Portland Tribune The Portland Tribune'' (a twice-weekly), ''
The Portland Mercury'', ''
The Oregon Herald'', and ''
The Asian Reporter'', a weekly newspaper covering both international and local Asian news. ''
Portland Monthly'' [http://www.portland-monthly.com/] is a monthly news and culture magazine. ''The Business Journal of Portland'', a weekly, covers many business-news-related stories, as does The Daily Journal of Commerce. ''
BarFly Magazine'' [http://www.barflymag.com] is a popular weekly periodical covering the city's nightlife and bar scene. [The Mid-county Memo]http://www.midcountymemo.com is a neighborhood newspaper serving the Gateway and Parkrose neighborhoods on Portland's east side. ''
PORT'' [http://www.portlandart.net] an art macroblog dedicated to the vibrant art scene provides daily updates on the arty goings on around town.
Portland is well served by television and radio. The metro area is the 23rd largest
Designated market area Designated Market Area (DMA) in the U.S., consisting of 1,086,900 homes and 0.992% of the U.S. market. The major network television affiliates include:
*
KATU 2 (
American Broadcasting Company ABC)
*
KOIN 6 (
CBS)
*
KGW 8 Northwest NewsChannel 8 (
National Broadcasting Company NBC)
*
KPTV 12 Fox 12 Oregon(
Fox Broadcasting Company FOX)
*
KPXG 22 (
I (TV network) i)
*
KWBP 32 (
WB Television Network WB)
*
KPDX 49 (
UPN)
*
KWVT-LP 52 (
America One)
*
KPXG KPXG-LP 54 (
I (TV network) i)
{{see also|List of radio stations in Oregon|Portland, Oregon in popular culture}}
Parks and attractions
Image:Portland_rose.jpg thumb|right|The rose has played a significant role in Portland's history and is the focus of the one of the city's nicknames.
Portland is proud of its parks and its legacy of preserving open spaces. In fact, it has one of the highest parks-per-capita ratios among cities in the United States. Parks and Greenspace planning dates back to the early 20th century when John Charles Olmsted, adopted step-son of Fredrick Law Olmsted, prepared his 1903 Report to the Portland Park Board. The report inspired generations of urban greenspace adovocates. In 1995, voters in the Portland metropolitan region passed a regional bond measure to acquire valuable natural areas for fish, wildlife and people. Ten years later, more than 8,200 acres of ecologically valuable natural areas had been purchased and permanently protected for the public.
Mt. Tabor Park is focused on an extinct volcano, making Portland one of two cities in the US with an extinct volcano within its city limits.
Forest Park (Portland) Forest Park is the largest wilderness park within city limits in the United States, with over 5,000 acres (20 km²). Portland is also home to
Mill Ends Park, the world's smallest park (a two-foot-diameter circle, the park's area is only about 0.3 square meters).
Washington Park, Portland Washington Park [http://www.parks.ci.portland.or.us/Parks/Washington.htm] is just west of downtown, and is home to the
Oregon Zoo, the
Portland Japanese Garden, and the
International Rose Test Garden.
Gov. Tom McCall Waterfront Park runs along west bank of the Willamette for the length of downtown. The 37-acre (150,000 m²) park was built in 1974 after
Harbor Drive was removed and now plays host to large events throughout the year. Portland's downtown also features two groups of contiguous city blocks dedicated for park space; they are referred to as the North and South Park Blocks.
The
Oregon Museum of Science and Industry, or OMSI, is located on the east bank of the Willamette River across from downtown Portland, and contains a variety of hands-on exhibits covering the physical sciences, life science, earth science, technology, astronomy, and early childhood education. OMSI also has an OMNIMAX Theater and is home to the ''
USS Blueback (SS-581)'' submarine.
Portland is also home to
Portland Classical Chinese Garden, an authentic representation of a
Suzhou-style walled garden. Local construction workers provided the site preparation and foundation, and dozens of workers from Suzhou, using material from China, constructed its walls and other structures, including a
tea house.
The only state park in the area is
Tryon Creek State Park; its creek still has a run of
rainbow trout steelhead. Nestled within the park is the
Tryon Life Community Farm [http://www.tryonfarm.org/], an aspiring urban
ecovillage and educational center.
Portlandia, a statue on the west side of the
Portland Building, is the second-largest hammered-copper statue in the U.S.
The [http://www.multcolib.org/kids/cleary/ Beverly Cleary Sculpture Garden], which immortalizes three of the award-winning author's best known characters with bronze sculptures, quote plaques, and a fountain, is located in Grant Park on N.E. 33 Avenue, between Knott Street and Broadway next to Grant High School. The garden is appropriately located in the Northeast section of the city where most of Cleary's characters lived, and is just a few blocks from the real Klickitat Street of Henry Huggins fame.
The city is also home to three
steam locomotives:
Southern Pacific 4449,
Spokane, Portland and Seattle 700, and
Oregon Railroad and Navigation 197. For many years after the engines were donated to the city in the
1950s, the three engines were on static display at
Oaks Amusement Park in Southeast Portland. Starting in
1974 all three locomotives moved to Oregon's last surviving
roundhouse. SP 4449 and SP&S 700 have been
refurbishment restored to operating condition by
volunteers operate in the city and Western
United States on [[excursion|
excursions]]. OR&N 197 is currently being restored.
Beer
Portland and certain other Oregon cities (such as
Hood River, Oregon Hood River and
Bend, Oregon Bend) are well-known for their
beer. It is often said that Portland is the home of the microbrew revolution. Some illustrate Portlanders' interest in the
alcoholic beverage beverage by an offer made in 1888, when local brewer
Henry Weinhard volunteered to pump beer from his
brewery into the newly dedicated Skidmore Fountain. However, the renown for quality beer dates to the 1980s, when state law was changed to allow consumption of beer on brewery premises. In short order,
microbrewery microbreweries and
brewpubs began to pop up all over the city. Their growth was supported by the abundance of local ingredients, including two-row
barley, over a dozen varieties of
hop (plant) hops, and the pure water from
Bull Run Watershed Bull Run and other
watersheds of nearby
Mount Hood.
Today, with 33 breweries within the city limits, Portland is home to more breweries than any other city in the world. The
McMenamins McMenamin brothers alone have over thirty brewpubs, distilleries and wineries scattered throughout the metropolitan area, many in renovated
movie theater theaters and other old buildings otherwise destined for demolition. Other notable Portland brewers include
Widmer Brothers Brewing Company Widmer Brothers,
Bridgeport Brewing Company and the
MacTarnahan's Brewing Company. In 1999, author
Michael Jackson (beer expert) Michael "Beerhunter" Jackson called Portland a candidate for the ''beer capital of the world'' because the city boasted more breweries than
Cologne, Germany. A popular nickname for the city in beer appreciation circles is "Beervana."
Portland hosts a number of festivals throughout the year in celebration of beer, including the [http://www.oregonbrewfest.com/ Oregon Brewers Festival]. Held each July, it is the largest gathering of independent craft brewers in North America. Portland is also the single largest market for Pabst Blue Ribbon beer.
Sports
Image:PortlandTrailBlazers 100.png 100px|right
The
National Basketball Association NBA Portland Trail Blazers are the region's only professional major league team, playing
basketball in the
Rose Garden Arena. The Blazers won their only
NBA Championship in 1977. The team has several players in the
Basketball Hall of Fame, including
Dražen Petrović,
Bill Walton,
Lenny Wilkens, and
Clyde Drexler Clyde "The Glide" Drexler.
At the minor league level, the city is home to the
Portland Beavers, a
Minor league baseball Triple-A baseball team affiliated with the
San Diego Padres; the
Portland Winterhawks, an
ice hockey team in the
Western Hockey League; and the
Portland Timbers, of the
USL First Division United Soccer Leagues, a second-tier professional
soccer team in the U.S. The Beavers and Timbers play in
PGE Park, and the Winterhawks play in Rose Garden Arena.
The
Portland Lumberjax is a professional
lacrosse team in the
National Lacrosse League. Portland is also one of the locations on the
Champ Car World Series circuit.
There has been recent interest in attracting a
Major League Baseball franchise to Portland. In 2004 the city made an unsuccessful bid for the
Montreal Expos, and in 2006 was contacted by the
Florida Marlins.
Skiing is particularly popular with Portlanders. The area is served by a number of resorts located on nearby
Mount Hood, including
Timberline Lodge National Historic Landmark Timberline, which allows skiing year round. The only other resort in
North America with summer skiing is
Whistler-Blackcomb Resort Whistler in
British Columbia.
The local
Alpenrose Dairy is host to the annual
Little League softball World Series.
Infrastructure
Government
The city of Portland is governed by a
mayor, four city commissioners and an auditor, who are each elected citywide to serve four-year terms. The
city council consists of the mayor (
Tom Potter as of 2005) and commissioners. The auditor does not have a vote on the city council or direct city operations, but provides checks and balances in the commission form of government and accountability for the use of public resources. In addition, the auditor gives access to information for all Council members and the public and issues reports on various matters of city government.
Portland and its surrounding metropolitan area are also served by
Metro (Oregon regional government) Metro, the nation's only directly elected regional government. Metro's charter includes land use and transportation planning, solid waste management, and map development. It also owns and operates the
Oregon Convention Center,
Oregon Zoo, Portland Center for Performing Arts, and Portland Metropolitan Exposition Center.
Education
Public Education
The
Portland Public Schools, Oregon Portland Public Schools district consists of about 100 public schools with grades K through 12, as well as 50 special needs sites. The number of students in the school district is approximately 53,000. The Portland Public Schools enroll over 90% of the available school -age children, a higher percentage than other large urban school districts[http://govinfo.library.unt.edu/cmb/cmbp/downloads/report-021301-schoolplanng.pdf][http://pdxnorml.org/lunch$.html]. Nonetheless, total school enrollment is declining, accompanying a change in Portland's demographics, and the Portland Public Schools are facing increasing budget pressure.
Notable public high schools include:
Lincoln High School (Portland) Lincoln High School and
Benson Polytechnic High School. Lincoln, the oldest public high school west of the
Mississippi River, was built in 1869, and boasts several famous alumni, including
singer-songwriter Elliott Smith,
Matt Groening (creator of
The Simpsons) and
astronaut S. David Griggs. Benson is a citywide magnet high school named for lumber baron and social entrepreneur
Simon Benson, who in 1917 endowed the school with a grant worth $1.5 million in 2006 dollars.
School districts in the suburbs include: to the east,
Parkrose [http://www.parkrose.k12.or.us/],
Centennial [http://www.centennial.k12.or.us/] and
David Douglas [http://www.ddouglas.k12.or.us/];
to the west,
Beaverton School District [http://www.beavton.k12.or.us/]
Tigard-Tualatin School District [http://www.ttsd.k12.or.us/],
Lake Oswego [http://www.loswego.k12.or.us/], and
Riverdale High School (Portland, Oregon) Riverdale [http://www.riverdale.k12.or.us/];
to the south is,
Milwaukie/
North Clackamas School District [http://www.nclack.k12.or.us/]
West Linn/
Wilsonville [http://www.wlwv.k12.or.us/] and
Oregon City School District [http://www.orecity.k12.or.us/].
The region also has several top private schools, including:
Valley Catholic High School [http://www.valleycatholic.org/],
The Catlin Gabel School Catlin Gabel School [http://www.catlin.edu/],
Central Catholic High School [http://www.centralcatholichigh.org/],
Jesuit High School (Portland, Oregon) Jesuit High School,
The Northwest Academy [http://www.nwacademy.org/profile.html],
Oregon Episcopal School [http://www.oes.edu/], and
St. Mary's Academy [http://www.stmaryspdx.org/].
Colleges and universities
Portland State University, [http://www.pdx.edu] with graduate and undergraduate enrollment of around 24,000, has its primary campus at the southern edge of downtown. PSU has masters programs in liberal arts, business, engineering, computer science, performing arts, social work and urban affairs. PSU's doctoral programs include biology, civil engineering, electrical & computer engineering, computer science, environmental sciences, math, psychology, public administration, urban studies, social work, systems sciences and education. The undergraduate program self defined as "University Studies" does not allow for the various kinds of learning styles that progressive education has as the core of it's value.
Oregon Health & Science University [http://www.ohsu.edu/] includes a major medical school, and several major research departments, including: Vollum Institute for Advanced Biomedical Research, Neurological Sciences Institute, Center for Research on Occupational and Environmental Toxicology, Oregon National Primate Research Center, Advanced Imaging Research Center, Center for Biostatistics, Computing & Informatics in Biology & Medicine, Center for the Study of Weight Regulation and Associated Disorders, Oregon Stem Cell Center, Vaccine and Gene Therapy Institute, and the Oregon Graduate Institute School of Science and Engineering.
'''Community Colleges''' include:
Portland Community College [http://www.pcc.edu/], with three major campuses in the city—Cascade, Rock Creek, and Sylvania—as well as the smaller Southeast Center and Metropolitan Workforce Training Center;
Mount Hood Community College [http://www.mhcc.cc.or.us/] in East
Multnomah County near
Gresham, Oregon Gresham;
Clackamas Community College [http://www.clackamas.cc.or.us/] in
Oregon City, Oregon Oregon City; Chemeketa Community College[http://www.chemeketa.edu/] in Salem, about 45 minutes south of Portland;
Clark College [http://www.clark.edu/] in
Vancouver, Washington.
'''Private colleges''' include:
Cascade College [http://www.cascade.edu/],
Capstone English Mastery Center Capstone College [http://www.capstone.edu/],
Concordia University (Portland, Oregon) Concordia University [http://www.cu-portland.edu],
George Fox University [http://www.georgefox.edu/],
Lewis & Clark College [http://www.lclark.edu/],
Linfield College [http://www.linfield.edu/],
Marylhurst University [http://www.marylhurst.edu/],
Pacific University [http://www.pacificu.edu/],
Reed College [http://web.reed.edu/],
University of Portland [http://www.up.edu/], and
Warner Pacific College [http://www.warnerpacific.edu/]
Willamette University [http://www.willamette.edu/agsm/pmba/]
'''Other:'''
Concorde Career Institute (Portland, Oregon) Concorde Career Institute [http://concorde.edu-search.com/] and
Multnomah Bible College [http://www.multnomah.edu/]
Schools of Medicine
Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) [http://www.ohsu.edu/] is a major medical school and research university, with primary campus just South of Downtown Portland, in the West Hills. The OHSU main campus anchors a medical district (affectionately called "Pill Hill") surrounded by other hospitals including: a Veterans Administration Hospital, Shriners Hospital for Children, and Doernbecher Children's Hospital. The lack of diversity among the students accepted to the University is well known among people of color pursuing a medical education. Known for many years as a racist institution the University is now trying to dispel that assumption by hiring "token" people of color.
'''OHSU''' includes medical schools of: Anesthesiology, Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, General Medicine,
Dentistry, Dermatology, Diagnostic Radiology, Emergency Medicine, Family Medicine,
Medical Genetics, Neurology, Neurological Surgery, Obstetrics and Gynecology,
Ophthalmology, Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Orthopaedic Surgery,
Otolaryngology/Head and Neck Surgery, Pathology, Pediatrics, Psychiatry,
Public Health and Preventive Medicine, General Surgery and Nursing.
'''Schools of Medicine''' also include:
Oregon College of Oriental Medicine [http://www.ocom.edu/], the
National College of Naturopathic Medicine [http://www.ncnm.edu/],
Western States Chiropractic College [http://www.wschiro.edu/], and
the school of Optometry at
Pacific University [http://www.pacificu.edu/].
Schools of Law
Lewis & Clark Law School [http://law.lclark.edu/],
Willamette University [http://www.willamette.edu/wucl/].
Schools of Art & Food
The
Art Institute of Portland [http://www.aipd.artinstitutes.edu/],
Pacific Northwest College of Art [http://www.pnca.edu/],
Oregon College of Art and Craft [http://www.ocac.edu/] and
Western Cullinary Institute [http://www.wci.edu/].
Transportation
Image:1portland max 029-med.jpg Metropolitan Area Express (Portland, Oregon) 250px|right|thumb|Portlanders waiting for [[Metropolitan Area Express (Portland, Oregon)|MAX downtown..html" title="Meaning of MAX.html" title="Meaning of 250px|right|thumb|Portlanders waiting for [[Metropolitan Area Express (Portland, Oregon)|MAX">250px|right|thumb|Portlanders waiting for [[Metropolitan Area Express (Portland, Oregon)|MAX downtown.">MAX.html" title="Meaning of 250px|right|thumb|Portlanders waiting for [[Metropolitan Area Express (Portland, Oregon)|MAX">250px|right|thumb|Portlanders waiting for [[Metropolitan Area Express (Portland, Oregon)|MAX downtown.
{{main|Transportation in Portland}}
The Portland metropolitan area has the typical transportation services common to major U.S. cities, though Oregon's emphasis on proactive
Land use forecasting land-use planning and
transit-oriented development within the
urban growth boundary means that
commuting commuters have multiple well-developed options.
In fact, Portland is well-known for its comprehensive
public transportation system.
TriMet operates most of the region's buses and the
Metropolitan Area Express (Portland, Oregon) Metropolitan Area Express, or MAX,
light rail system, which connects the city and suburbs. 5th and 6th avenues are the
Portland Transit Mall, an exclusive bus-only right-of-way running north/south through downtown.
For the most part, Portland's streets are arranged in a traditional grid-like pattern, with a few diagonal streets connecting various sections of the city and suburbs, and numerous bridges across the Willamette and Columbia rivers.
Interstate 5 I-5 connects Portland with the
Willamette Valley,
Southern Oregon, and
California to the south and with
Washington to the north.
Interstate 405 (Oregon) I-405 forms a loop with I-5 around the central downtown area of the city and
Interstate 205 (Oregon-Washington) I-205 is a
beltway on the east side which connects to the
Portland International Airport.
U.S. Highway 26 US 26 supports commuting within the metro area and continues to the
Pacific Ocean westward and
Mount Hood and
Central Oregon eastward.
U.S. Highway 30 US 30 has a main, bypass and business route through the city extending to
Astoria, Oregon to the west; through
Gresham, Oregon, and the eastern
exurbs, and connects to
Interstate 84 (west) I-84, traveling towards
Boise, Idaho.
Portland's main airport is
Portland International Airport, located about 20 minutes by car (40 minutes by MAX) northeast of downtown.
Portlanders have other transportation alternatives. The
Portland Streetcar operates from the southern waterfront, through Portland State University north to nearby homes and shopping districts. The city is particularly supportive of
urban bicycling and has been recognized by the
League of American Bicyclists among others for its network of paths and other bicycle-friendly services.
Car sharing through
Flexcar is also available to residents of the city and some inner suburbs. Commuter rail planning is being finalized, and -- if built -- a controversial planned aerial tram will connect the southwest waterfront and Oregon Health Science University (OHSU).
See also
*
Architecture in Portland, Oregon
*
List of hospitals in Portland, Oregon
*
List of Portlanders List of famous people from Portland
*
List of mayors of Portland, Oregon
*
Tourist attractions in or around Portland, Oregon Museums
*
Tourist attractions in or around Portland, Oregon Public Gardens
*
Tourist attractions in or around Portland, Oregon Amusement Park w/Classic Roller Rink
*
Tourist attractions in or around Portland, Oregon Worlds Largest Bookstore
*
Tourist attractions in or around Portland, Oregon
*
Downtown Portland
*
Portland General Electric
*
Personal Telco
*
Portland Linux/Unix Group
Sister cities
Portland has ten
Town twinning sister cities, as designated by
Sister Cities International:
According to the Mayor's Office, "in addition to these official relationships, Portland also has a friendship city relationship with
Tallinn, Estonia." [http://www.ci.portland.or.us/mayor/international/]
References
*
Stewart Holbrook, ''The Far Corner''. Comstock Editions ISBN 0-89174-043-0 (1952).
*E. Kimbark MacColl, ''The Shaping of a City: Business and Politics in Portland, Oregon 1885 to 1915''. Portland: Georgian Press, 1976.
*E. Kimbark MacColl, ''The Growth of a City: Power and Politics in Portland, Oregon 1915 to 1950''. Portland: Georgian Press, 1979. ISBN 0960340815
External links
{{sisterlinks|Portland, Oregon}}
-
Official City Government Website
*
-
Portland Maps (lot-level GIS)
*
-
Portland CrimeMapper
-
Official Metro Government Website
-
Portland Oregon Visitors Association
-
Oregon Tourism Commission: Portland
-
Photographs of Portland Neighborhoods
{{Geolinks-US-cityscale|45.52304|-122.640155}}
-
Dirt Cheap Guide to Portland a guide by a PSU student
-
inPortland.com Local Portland Guide
Portland Wiki Sites
*
WikiWikiWeb: WikiWikiWeb installed by
Ward Cunningham Howard Cunningham from
Beaverton, Oregon Beaverton
*{{wikitravelpar|Portland (Oregon)}}
-
Laurelhurst Neighborhood
-
Woodstock Neighborhood
-
Millenial Arts Renaissance
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