Summary of KNA’s January Meeting

January 12, 2012

Hi all,

Here’s what we decided to do, and not to do, and maybe to do, last night:

KNA voted to appeal any denial of Portland Playhouse’s permit, with the cooperation of the Playhouse and its legal representation.

KNA decided not to oppose a liquor license for Jackson’s mart on MLK. Instead, we will pursue a good neighbor agreement. Jeff has agreed to shepherd this process.

We decided informally to apply for a neighborhood tree inventory project, without committing ourselves to definitely doing it if approved. Alan and Katy will tackle that application.

We’re doing the Movie in the Park application, based on movie suggestions from last night. We’ve got our eye on one movie in particular: The Wiz! Again, we’re not committed to doing the Movie in the Park if approved. However, the Portland Playhouse has offered to help with various aspects of it, we can apply for ‘financial aid,’ and it seems like we can get this done much more inexpensively than last year.

KNA voted to formally request that NECN invite all candidates for mayor and city council to its upcoming candidate forums, regardless of the perceived popularity of the individual candidacies. Alan will write a letter.

We agreed, informally, to go ahead with a neighborhood clean-up this year. Brian of the Playhouse has agreed to take the lead on the paperwork, with an assist from Irek.

We will schedule a food security meeting quite soon! Katy Kanfer and I will figure that out.

We will schedule a land use/economic development (and transportation?) meeting soon – Irek will help us settle on a date for that.

KNA voted to request that NECN invite all candidates for city council and mayor to its upcoming candidate forums, regardless of ‘status’ or publicity their individual campaigns may be receiving. Alan will write a letter to NECN.

Thanks all,

Alan Silver
Chair, King Neighborhood Association

McCoy Academy Art Fundraiser, Nov 4th

OUR DREAM COMES TRUE NOVEMBER 4TH

Stop in this weekend and support our project for raising funds
to give free art classes to young people in our community.

FIRST FRIDAY GRAND OPENING

Many thanks to McCoy Academy for providing us with a home.

Bobby Fouther
P.O. Box 9191
Portland, Oregon 97207

503-422-3076

View Artwork
bobbyfouther.com

KNA Special Meeting to Endorse Grant Seekers

King Neighborhood Association Special General Meeting:
October 31st, 6:00-6:45 pm
King Neighborhood Facility
4815 NE 7th Avenue

Hello all:

King Neighborhood Association has the opportunity to meet and discuss two proposed projects that are would affect livability in our neighborhood. Each of these projects is being submitted for a grant with the Northeast Coalition of Neighborhoods, whose grant process has a deadline of November 1st. The proposals were not completed in time to be considered at KNA’s last meeting, so we’ve scheduled a special Halloween meeting to look each of them over and decide whether to endorse them.

• KING SCHOOL PARK/KING SCHOOL MURAL AND GRAFFITI ABATEMENT PROJECT
Local artist Rodolfo Serna working with the arts-to-schools program, the Right Brain Initiative, will work with students at all age levels in King School as an artist-in-residence to produce a mural to beautify the King School Park grounds and create a sense of place and identity out of a blank wall adjacent to the tennis courts. This area is a frequent target for graffiti due to its large empty vertical surface. Murals have been shown to reduce the incidence of graffiti and this project will fill a gap in King’s visual arts curriculum this year. As King continues to develop its International Baccalaureate program, integrating more art into the school will be crucial to developing the student body’s various means of expression and will develop investment in the wider community.

• DOOR-TO-DOOR SURVEY OF NORTHEAST MEN’S WELLNESS GOALS & FAVORITE ACTIVITIES, AS WELL AS REFERRALS TO NEIGHBORHOOD WELLNESS RESOURCES:
Manifest, an eight-year-old non-profit men’s wellness organization that empowers men to prevent & address chronic illness (heart disease, cancer, diabetes, HIV, & depression/suicide), will be doing a door-to-door survey this spring of hundreds of men’s’ wellness goals, challenges, & favorite activities in the Concordia, Vernon, King, & Sabin neighborhoods. We also will be referring these men to local businesses, non-profits, churches, government agencies, and neighbor organizations that can help them achieve their most important wellness goals. Men in our neighborhoods are dying five years before women from five completely preventable illnesses, and those illnesses are costing our county & state more than a $1 billion annually in unnecessary & painful treatments of diseases we could easily prevent & address right here in our neighborhood with existing resources like local wellness-related businesses, non-profits, churches, government agencies, & neighborhood groups. Men need regular exercise, good food, work, & community focused on wellness, and they are more likely to do these things regularly when they can do them close to home. Manifest intends to hire diverse local men to do the surveys and make neighborhood referrals as they are completing each survey.

We understand that Halloween plus such short notice may make it difficult to attend. If you have a bit of time to spare on Monday, we welcome your participation and input on these proposals. for more information, email us at info@kingneighborhood.org. We hope to see you there!

Friends of Last Thursday Seek Community Input

Friends of Last Thursday, the organization tasked with taking responsibility for the administration of the monthly street festival, is seeking feedback from the communities surrounding Alberta and the Last Thursday participants. This is your opportunity to explain what is good about LT and what needs to change.

From FoLT:

Friends of Last Thursday (FoLT) is on the move! Tasked by the city to localize stewardship of Last Thursday within the Alberta community, FoLT began hands on engagement during May Last Thursday to extremely positive result. Infractions were down, the street was reopened in record time and the FoLT Ambassador program made great progress in its education and outreach component. One of the cornerstones of the FoLT mission is to help create a safer event, which means working with participants to gain their compliance with city and county safety laws, including observance of ADA, parking, noise, fire and food handling codes, zero tolerance for open containers, and a Leave No Trace refuse goal. Also of high priority is engendering greater neighborhood respect. FoLT has listened to the concerns of our neighbors and is actively working to educate Last Thursday participants in the ways in which they can exert the lightest possible impact on our community.

FoLT Letter and Community Survey

Spanish Summer Camps and Adult Intensive Classes

Tierra Educational Center (TEC) at 2915 NE MLK Blvd (2nd floor of SCRAP’s building) has expanded to offer Spanish Summer Camps for children ages 4-11, in addition to the center’s wide range of adult, children, and family classes for Spanish learners of all ages and levels.

Summer is an excellent time to offer your child Spanish language education when their minds and bodies are alert and open to new ideas and activities. TEC Spanish Summer Camps provide small group, intensive exposure to the Spanish language and Latin American culture…all through the lens of play and music. Treat your child to a summer vacation abroad, without having to leave town!

Camps will be divided in two groups (5-10 students) of 4-6 year olds and 7-11 year olds and held Monday-Friday 9am-12pm July 25-29th and August 15-19th.

And for Mom and Dad, new morning Spanish Intensive courses for Beginner and Intermediate students will be offered July 12-August 11th. Weekly evening classes, private lessons, and family classes are available year-round at a flexible schedule. Visit www.tierracenter.com for more information, or call 503-213-3677.