As part of the City of Portland’s effort to provide properties with sewer connections that comply with city code, Environmental Services continues construction on the Inner NE Sewer Extension project. This project will also help protect public health, property, and the environment by increasing the capacity of the public sewer system, reducing the potential for basement backups, and reducing the likelihood of emergency maintenance work in the future.

A project map is available at www.portlandoregon.gov/bes/InnerNE.

DEVELOPMENTS OF NOTE

Paving on NE 8th Avenue (Prescott to Going) begins tomorrow

• Crews are scheduled to begin paving the south half of NE 8th Avenue between NE Prescott and Going streets tomorrow. Crews are scheduled to grind down the existing roadway from curb to curb and perform additional preparations on Wednesday and Thursday.  Final paving is scheduled for Friday.
• Please observe NO PARKING signs.

Periodic traffic delays on NE Prescott will continue

• From 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. Monday through Friday, motorists and cyclists should expect delays on NE Prescott Street between NE 6th and 10th avenues.  Crews will be installing new main public sewer pipes and constructing several manholes. The work will be taking place in phases, and some phases will require flaggers to direct traffic around the work zone.

CONSTRUCTION SCHEDULE

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July 5^th. 2014

Portland Planning Commission

1900 SW 4th Avenue

Suite 7100

Portland OR 97201

To Whom It May Concern:

This letter comes to you on behalf the Board of the King Neighborhood Association. We are writing to express our support of Mr. Wally Tesfa’s request to rezone his property at 4069 NE MLK, from high density back to commercial.

We understand that the building on that property is not only a historical 1920 commercial building, but is also serviceable and ready to be occupied by tenants. Mr. Tesfa tells us that the current zoning restricts use of the property and is a financial burden on the current owner and future owners of the property. The current zoning virtually requires him to destroy this historic 1920 commercial building and replace it with new construction.

We realize that developers of residential construction have great interest in building quickly and profitably in our neighborhood, and we are alarmed at how often small businesses and local ownership are eradicated by new construction on the MLK corridor that runs through our neighborhood. Furthermore, commercial zoning at this property is more in line with the zoning of nearby properties, which are currently zoned for light industrial and employment.

The King Neighborhood Association supports Mr. Tesfa’s application to rezone 4069 NE MLK to “commercial.” We welcome your comments and thoughts on the matter. You may contact our Chair, Margo Dobbertin, at margo.dobbertin@kingneighborhood.org.

Thank you for your time and consideration.

Margo Dobbertin, KNA Chair

Irek Wielgosz, Co-Chair

Jeff Scott, Treasurer

Leigh Rappaport, Representative-at-Large

Andrew Neerman, Representative-at-Large

Diego Gioseffi, Representative-at-Large

Eilleen Kennedy, Representative-at-Large

Nick LaRue, Representative-at-Large

KING BACKPACK PROGRAM PARTNERS WITH

NEW NOT-FOR-PROFIT ONLINE

CHARITABLE SHOPPING VENTURE SHOP2CARE

The King Backpack Program is thrilled to announce that it has been selected by Shop2Care, a new not-for-profit online charitable shopping program, as one of its first cause partners.   An initial grant from the Shop2Care Foundation of $5,000 is providing two (2) meals per weekend, for 45 children, for a year, a total of 4,680 meals. Without this program, these children would not have access to nutritious food over the weekend. Shop2Care chose the King Backpack Program as a partner due to its strong collaborative programming, proven track record, and high social return on investment.

The King Backpack Program, a fiscally sponsored program of the Northeast Coalition of Neighborhoods, anticipates that it will be the recipient of thousands of dollars of future donations from Shop2Care members as they determine how to direct the retailer rebates generated from their normal online shopping behavior. All of this will occur at no additional cost to the member, but will have a significant impact on the issue of hunger.

Alan Silver, King Backpack Program Director, states, “The King Backpack Program is grateful to partner with Shop2Care in gathering funds to directly reduce hunger for the most vulnerable among us. Regular meals are foundational to healthy, vital lives for our youth.”

Shop2Care founder, Mark Asofsky, a dedicated philanthropist, adds, “Shop2Care donates consumers’ retailer rebates, when directed by members to do so, to nonprofit agencies that create significant impact on specific areas of need in the United States. We believe that the King Backpack Program will be a strong cause partner, helping Shop2Care powerfully impact the issue of hunger.”

Shop2Care’s partnership with the King Backpack Program is described in more detail on the Shop2Care website, at www.shop2care.org in the ‘Cause’ section under ‘Hunger’.

About The King Backpack Program

The King Backpack Program serves two weekend lunches to fifty-five King Elementary School children who are at risk of hunger on the weekends, by putting the lunches in their backpacks every Friday. The King Backpack Program is a partner to the Northeast Portland Backpack Lunch Program, a regional coordinator of lunch programs for children in need.

About Shop2Care

Shop2Care is an innovative charitable shopping program that enables it members to generate donations for causes they care about all while shopping online, at no additional cost to them. Members can direct their donation dollars to any number of the following causes: human services, hunger relief, health, children’s services and education. Shop2Care’s mission is to enable anyone to become a philanthropist simply by purchasing the products and services they already need or want while seamlessly shopping on their favorite online sites; to identify and highlight responsible, effective and impactful nonprofit organizations within the United States; and to raise money to benefit those in need in America. For more information on Shop2Care, or to register for free, visit: www.shop2care.org.

• Mt Tabor Park
• Laurelhurst Park (NEW Site!)
• Irving Park
• Peninsula Park
• Sellwood Park
• Albert Kelly Park (NEW Site!)

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What is this project?

The project is a $20 million financing initiative in North/Northeast Portland over the next five years. The effort is focused in the Interstate Corridor Urban Renewal Area in response to the community’s well documented need for affordable housing and other investments in neighborhoods most impacted by displacement.
While the funds, along with those previously budgeted and programmed, will mostly be used to invest in buildings, the process for determining how and where to spend the money provides an opportunity to engage community members in ways that begin to address a long history of institutional racism and displacement of residents and businesses. (more)

Your voice is needed.

Community input will help shape the strategy. During Summer/Fall of 2014, Portland Housing Bureau (PHB) and community stakeholders will design a set of recommendations for prioritizing investment of these housing resources, that begins to address affordable housing needs.

Attend a Community Forum:

You will learn information about the current opportunities and how available affordable housing tools can be used. Participants will also see alternative scenarios for investments and programs. The goal is to seek consensus about which strategies most directly improve affordable housing stability and choices.

• Thursday 9/18/14 from 6:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. at Highland Christian Center, 7600 NE Glisan Street
• Saturday 9/27/14 from 1:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. at Matt Dishman Community Center, 77 NE Knott
• Thursday 10/9/14 from 6:00 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. at Gresham City Hall
• Saturday 10/11/14 from 9:00 a.m. – Noon at New Song Community Church, 2511 NE MLK

Here’s how you can be involved:

• Attend a Community Forum
• Learn more here (reports, media, etc.)
• Join the email list here
• Send us your thoughts and ideas here (email and phone)