Concordia Neighborhood Association | Portland, Oregon

Author Archives: Javier Puga-Phillips

Social Column – CNA invites neighbors to party

Posted on by Posted in Concordia News, Events

The holidays are here, and we’d like to invite all of our neighbors to Concordia’s holiday party! This year we are having our holiday party from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. Wednesday, Dec. 14, at Teote Alberta, 2700 NE Alberta St. CNA will provide a buffet-style dinner, and the bar will be open for adult beverages.

In addition, we are lucky to have Robin Jackson and Lewis Childs performing holiday music for us from 5 p.m. onward. We will have some candy and prizes for children attending.

We plan to have a silent auction to raise funds for CNA, including art and gift certificates donated by our local businesses. Thank you, Astrid Furstner, for all your help and collaboration getting this silent auction ready and organized.

Vaccination cards are not required this year, but vaccines are heavily encouraged. Please RSVP at Social@ConcordiaPDX.org for a head count, as we would like to make sure we have enough food for everyone.

Alberta Gnome

CNA would like to thank Maquette Reeverts, local artist and CNews contributing writer, as well as her team, for putting together this year’s Alberta “Gnome for the Holidays.” This is a fun free event for an opportunity to win prizes.

Grab a “Gnome Card” at Frock Boutique, 1439 NE Alberta St., Mimosa Pottery Studios, 1718 NE Alberta St. or Alberta Street Gallery, 1829 NE Alberta St. and hunt for gnomes. From Dec. 2–26, walk Northeast Alberta from NE 13th to NE 30th avenues and look for hidden gnomes at participant businesses listed on the Gnome Cards. Each gnome has a letter next to it, so write down the letter on the corresponding business square and reveal a hidden message.

Return your completed gnome card to any of the drop-off locations, including any of the locations mentioned above, and enter for an opportunity to win. You do not need to find them all to participate in the raffle, which takes place Dec. 27.

Last Thursday on Alberta

It was brought to my attention that Last Thursdays on Alberta are year-round affairs among our artists and galleries and do not take place only during the summer months.

Share the Road

On a more serious note, we’d like to remind our drivers to please follow the speed limits on our streets. Remember that Alberta Street and 42nd Street are our commercial areas, and we have a lot of pedestrians walking those streets. We have seen some drivers in a rush and/ or at high speed at Prescott and Killingsworth unnecessarily putting in danger the lives of our neighbors. Slow down, and let’s share our streets with bikers and pedestrians alike.

As we wrap up this year, we’d like to thank all the people who made this year a success for our neighborhood. CNA hosted Bi-Monthly neighborhood pickups, and we picked up over 15 tons of trash from our street. We brought back our Annual Easter Egg Hunt, Concerts in the park, National Night Out, Annual Yard Sales and other fun events.

Thank you to our Social Committee volunteers and businesses who have made 2022 a success, and Happy New Year!

Javier Puga-Phillips holds the Southwest 1 position on the Concordia Neighborhood Association (CNA) Board of Directors, manages rentals of the McMenamins Kennedy School Community Room and chairs the CNA Social Committee. He is a real estate professional locally, and he is a published author and motivational speaker in Latin America and Spain.

Social Column – Last Thursday ends; new restaurant opens

Posted on by Posted in Concordia News, Local Businesses, Volunteer Opportunities

Hello Concordia! We’d like to start our social column thanking all the businesses, neighbors and participants in “Last Thursday” on Alberta this year. We had a lot of fun helping bring this event back, and we would love to hear your feedback.

Also, we’d like to welcome Abyssinian Kitchen to Concordia. Located on the corner of Northeast Alberta Street and Northeast 30th Ave., this new Ethiopian and Eritrean restaurant has opened its doors, adding more flavors to our neighborhood. Kuflom Abbay, the owner of the restaurant, is usually there to greet customers and answer any questions regarding the menu.

Litter Pickup set Dec. 3

Volunteers with SOLVE, an Oregon community group, participate in the Oct. 1 Concordia
litter pickup. Photo by Gina Levine.

Another successful neighborhood litter pickup took place on Oct. 1. Thank you to all the volunteers who participated. Special thanks to our neighbor Sigrid Casey, who drove her own truck and helped pick up large items left on the streets. At this point, we have picked up around 15 tons of trash from Concordia’s streets.

On a side note, since the weather has changed, we’d like to kindly ask neighbors to refrain from leaving “Free” piles of items on the streets. Many of these items get wet and damaged, potentially becoming debris. We suggest taking those items in good condition to your favorite charity or offering them to neighbors on such social media sites as OfferUp, Nextdoor, or Facebook Marketplace instead.

Our final litter pickup of 2022 is at 9 a.m. Saturday, Dec. 3, at Alberta Park.  Let’s close this year with a cleaner neighborhood.

Hearty Halloween

We’d like to thank Bar Cala, 2703 NE Alberta St., for hosting this year’s Halloween Party! We had a lot of fun, and it was a success all around. We gave candy to the kids and some prizes for the best costumes. Thank you for everyone who participated and helped, and special thank you to those in Concordia who supported this event. You’ll find pictures on our website or social channels.

Scavenger hunt

This month, Clary Sage Herbarium, in cooperation with other businesses on Alberta, and CNA will be hosting the annual Scavenger Hunt Nov. 25–27. This is a great way to get social and visit different businesses in our neighborhood. It is easy to participate. Just stop by Clary Sage, 2901 NE Alberta St., to pick up your “passport” with the different businesses on Alberta Street, and begin the scavenger hunt by collecting stamps from the participating businesses. Once you have collected all the stamps, bring the completed passport to Clary Sage, and we’ll enter you in a raffle to win prizes.

Room ready

We’d also like to remind everyone that CNA is mainly funded by the rentals of the Community Room at Kennedy School. The room is available to be rented by the hour with special rates for nonprofit organizations. On this note, please be advised that we are changing the rental rates to $40 per hour and $25 for nonprofits.

We currently need volunteers. Please reach out to me at 503.343.5561 or Social@ConcordiaPDX.org for volunteer opportunities.

Follow us in Instagram at @CNAPDX and use #SocialConcordiaPDX for shoutouts. We also have a Facebook group page, @ConcordiaPDX, for updates.

Javier Puga-Phillips holds the At Large 4 position on the Concordia Neighborhood Association (CNA) Board of Directors, manages rentals of the McMenamins Kennedy School Community Room and chairs the CNA Social Committee. He is a real estate professional locally, and he is a published author and motivational speaker in Latin America and Spain.

Social Column – Yard sales a success, Halloween bash set

Posted on by Posted in Concordia News, Events, Volunteer Opportunities
Concordia residents shopped at several homes Sept. 2 to 4 during the neighborhood’s annual yard sales event. Photos by Javier Puga-Phillips

Thank you very much for all your support and help bringing events back to Concordia. I am happy to report that the annual yard sales event, Sept. 2 to 4, was a success. We had 34 official addresses on the roster this year, plus a few neighbors who decided to jump in and hold their yard sales lastminute.

During the yard sales, I had the opportunity to meet many neighbors who happily shared different businesses in Concordia and adjacent neighborhoods in Northeast Portland that they feel are worth giving a shout out here.

Mis Tacones, 1670 NE Killingsworth St., was brought up several times as a great option for vegan food. Green Bean Books, 1600 NE Alberta St., was also mentioned a few times as a great option for our younger readers. Thank you to those businesses for being an important part of our neighborhood, and thank you to the residents who took time to talk to me and share their experiences and feedback.

I’d also like to thank Jessica Chace and Michelle Fitzgerald who helped me put this event together. Thank you to Andrea Boyd, a graphic designer who came up with the map and made it easier for us to locate the participants’ homes and, of course, thank you to all the participants and/or residents and shoppers who were key to the success of this event.

A special thank you to Madeleine Chace, who shared her art work with our neighbors and elevated our yard sales to a walk of art.

Up Next

Moving on with our agenda, our next neighborhood Litter Pickup is scheduled for 9 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 1. We are meeting at Alberta Park, at the corner of Northeast Ainsworth and Northeast 22nd Avenue.

These events are in coordination with SOLVE as well as our neighbors. At this point, we have picked up over 12 tons of trash from the streets of Concordia. Thank you to Gina Levine, our neighbor who has helped with this project for a year.

Halloween Treats

Our next party event is our Halloween Party, Monday, Oct. 31. We’d like to extend a special thank you to Bar Cala, 2703 NE Alberta St., which is hosting our festivities.

This year’s theme is “Masquerade,” and we will be at Bar Cala passing candy out to the neighborhood kids and will have prizes for the children. The party will be held from 5–8 p.m. Stop by to celebrate with us and wear your best costume. We will be having a costume contest.

Room for Rent

We also like to remind everyone that Concordia Neighborhood Association is funded mainly by the rentals of the community room at McMenamins Kennedy School, 5736 NE 33rd Ave.

The room is available to be rented by the hour with special rates for nonprofit organizations. All proceeds from the room are used to keep funding more events, Concordia News and other important projects for Concordia.

We currently need volunteers. Please reach out to me at 503.343.5561 or Social@ConcordiaPDX.org for volunteer opportunities.

Follow us in Instagram @CNAPDX and use #SocialConcordiaPDX for shoutouts. We also have a Facebook page @ConcordiaPDX for updates.

Javier Puga-Phillips holds the At Large 4 position on the Concordia Neighborhood Association (CNA) Board of Directors, manages rentals of the McMenamins Kennedy School Community Room and chairs the CNA Social Committee. He is a real estate professional locally, and he is a published author and motivational speaker in Latin America and Spain.

Last Thursdays on Alberta return this month

Posted on by Posted in CNA, Events, Local Businesses, Volunteer Opportunities
Kara Maymi takes care of business at Clary Sage Herbarium, 2901 Alberta St. Photo by Christopher Baker.

Thank you again to all the volunteers and for all of the support from our community during the Spring Egg Hunt. The winners of the egg hunt raffle were Donna Amrein, Katie Schaumleffle, Brian Jensen, Michael French, and Catherine Swanson.

Last Thursdays
June is a great month for social events, including the return of last Thursdays on Alberta Street. The plan is to celebrate on Alberta Street between NE 15th Ave. and NE 30th Ave. from 6-9 p.m. every last Thursday of the month. Make sure to mark your calendars and show up to support our local businesses and vendors.

Black United Fund will open up their lot (corner of Alberta St. & NE 29th Ave.) to host several tents supporting our BIPOC community. Alberta Art Works (NE 19th St & Alberta St) will also be hosting live performances, art and many more surprises.

Additionally, Blind Insect (corner of NE 29th Ave. & Alberta St., across the street from Black United Fund) will host “Barrio Parties” on Last Thursdays from June to September, with a different theme each month:

  • June: African Party
  • July: Argentinian Party
  • August: Brazilian Party
  • September: Cabaret theme

Several other businesses on Alberta are getting ready to celebrate Last Thursdays, among them:
Bonne Chance (corner of Alberta Street and NE 22nd Ave.) will be celebrating with an eclectic selection of music and adult beverages.
DB Desserts (Alberta St. between NE 26th & NE 27th Avenues) is offering specials on some of their sweet treats to celebrate.
Holy Beanz Coffee (next door to DB Desserts) will host their “After Sundown Spoken Word & Poetry” from 7-9 p.m.
JRJ Skillets (on Alberta St. between NE 25th & NE 26th Avenues) will offer “Aguas Frescas, Tamales, Elotes, Tacos & Nachos” for the whole family on its brand-new patio.

Free concerts
Also coming this summer, the Concordia Neighborhood Association will collaborate with the City of Portland to bring back “Summer at the Park” concerts. The first band, Son de Cuba, a Latin jazz/merengue/salsa group, performs from 6:30-8:30 p.m. Friday, July 15, at Alberta Park. Please stay tuned to next month’s column for more details.

Litter pick-up events
Moving on with neighborhood updates, the neighborhood litter pick-ups have been incredibly successful. Thanks to our many volunteers we have picked up more than 9,000 pounds of trash from Concordia’s streets. We still have work to do though, so please sign up for our next litter pick-up event from 9 a.m. to noon Saturday, June 4, at Alberta Park. See Page 2 for more details. If you cannot make it to this one, we have future litter pick-ups scheduled on Aug. 6, Oct. 1 and Dec. 1.

Yard sales
A quick survey for residents: We have received several requests for different events. One of them is a coordinated “Neighborhood Yard Sale” where neighbors can set up their own yard sales. If you are interested in this event please email with the subject “Yard Sale.” Depending on the response we will plan to help coordinate.

Clary Sage
The Concordia Neighborhood Association would like to highlight Clary Sage Herbarium, 2901 Alberta St., which opened in 2011 and changed ownership in 2021. Kara Maymi is the entrepreneur currently behind the shop.

Maymi started her herbarium education as an intern at Clary Sage. Later, when an opportunity to join the management for Clary Sage materialized, the pandemic hit. Instead of letting the business close, Maymi decided to purchase the shop and continued following her passion for medicinal plants.

According to Maymi, her calling is the plant world. The shop has a large variety of medicinal plants, some sourced locally. Sharing knowledge of plants f rom scient if ic, spiritual and practical points of view with customers is a priority.

“We love to see how people express themselves through plants,” Maymi said. In addition to plants, Clary Sage offers house-made essential oils , candles, crystals, incense, body care and many other natural products. They are also proud of the quality of their teas and herbal extracts.

Originally from Puerto Rico, Maymi now considers herself a Portlander at heart, and said she finds Concordia to be her community. Community is one of the pillars of the Clary Sage approach. Plants, like people, live in diverse communities, she said. “When we engage with plants, we can learn how important community is and their relationships among themselves and even with humans.”

Volunteers needed
The social committee needs volunteers for all events. Please email social@ConcordiaPDX.org, or call/text Javier Puga-Phillips, chair of the social committee, at 323.573.1516. Finally, make sure to follow us on instagram @CNAPDX and use #SocialConcordiaPDX to get a shoutout.

Javier Puga-Phillips holds the At Large 4 position on the Concordia Neighborhood Association (CNA) Board of Directors, manages rentals of the McMenamins Kennedy School Community Room and chairs the CNA Social Committee. He is a real estate professional locally, and he is a published author and motivational speaker in Latin America and Spain.

JRJ features tastes of owners’ Oaxaca roots

Posted on by Posted in Concordia News, Local Businesses
Look for mimosas and cantaritos on the menu at JRJ Skillets soon. Ramiro Eusebio Sanchez and his business partners expect to serve those in March, while continuing to offer cuisine from their homeland. Photo by Nancy Varekamp

JRJ Skillets brings traditional Mexican flavors to Concordia. The owners are proud of their Mexican roots, and they are incorporating Oaxaca’s flavors into their menu. “I like to recreate the flavors of my childhood and share them with my clients,” Ramiro Eusebio Sanchez said.

JRJ combines the first initials of Ramiro and his fellow entrepreneur,: José Cruz Lopez and José Juan Trejo Resendiz. They opened their doors at 2529 N.E. Alberta St. in October.

Ramiro is the main chef, and he is responsible for the menu and day-to-day operations. Most of JRJ’s salsas & mole are modeled after his mom’s cooking. “My mother is the biggest inspiration, teacher and critic of my food,” he pointed out.

However, the restaurant also offers American items such as biscuits and gravy, and burgers.

A best seller and recommended by the chef are the chilaquiles with green or red sauce and over-easy eggs. Also popular are carnitas and carne asada. “The enchiladas of mole are a must have.“ José Cruz said.

Ramiro immigrated to the U.S. at the age 16. At 35, he has nearly two decades of experience pouring into JRJ.

“I have worked in all aspects of the restaurant business. I’ve been a dishwasher, waiter and manager.” He found Portland to be the right city for him and Concordia the perfect spot for his longtime dream to open a restaurant.

As a business owner, Ramiro understands the importance of quality and feedback, and he believes they set JRJ apart. Owners import from México many of the key ingredients that cannot be found in the U.S., like chilies and spices – while using as many fresh local vegetables as possible.

“The quality can be tasted. We care, from the flavor and presentation of our plates to the presentation of our staff,” Ramiro reported.

“We want to offer excellence in taste, plating and quality,” he pointed out. For instance, the coffee is an original blend available only at JRJ. In addition, he takes to heart every review left on Yelp. com, and he invites all Concordia neighbors to visit, try the food and share their feedback online.

JRJ owners are in the process of acquiring an alcohol license, and they are hoping to have their fresh mimosas and tasty cantaritos on the menu in March. “We use fresh-squeezed juices, not concentrate” Ramiro promised.
The full menu is available on JRJSkillets.com.

Nota del editor: Artículo disponible en Español, visita ConcordiaPDX.org/JRJSkillets.

Javier Puga-Phillips holds the Southwest 1 position on the Concordia Neighborhood Association (CNA) Board of Directors, manages rentals of the McMenamins Kennedy School Community Room and chairs the CNA Social Committee. He is a real estate professional locally, and he is a published author and motivational speaker in Latin America and Spain.

Shop adds a spoonful of sugar to Concordia

Posted on by Posted in Concordia News, Local Businesses
Damala Badon opened her second bakery in October, this one on Alberta Street. Both are rooted in family, and she credits her sons for supporting her success. Photo by Nancy Varekamp

Concordia has a new ally to satisfy sweet-tooth cravings and to help celebrate any occasion. DB Dessert Company customizes festivities with personalized cakes, cupcakes, cookies and other pastry options.

“The business that I do is about love and happiness and celebration,” reported Damala Badon, owner of DB Dessert.

She grew up next door in Vernon and graduated from Concordia University. She opened DB Dessert at 2624 N.E. Alberta St. in October.

It’s the second bakery for DB Dessert, following two successful years at the northeast Glisan Street location. An opportunity to open the latest outlet on Alberta simply materialized.

Now she has plans to open a third shop soon in the Rockwood neighborhood. “Follow us on social media to be updated,” Damala encouraged. Those include Facebook.com/DBDessertCompany and Instagram.com/DBDessertCompany, and DBDessertCompany.com.

“My sons are my inspiration and support this adventure,” she pointed out. When she began her new career seven years ago, all three children slept at the bakery while she baked through the night.

In fact, her middle son in particular was her inspiration to teach herself how to make custom cakes. Nine years ago, when he was a toddler, he asked for a birthday cake that looked like a dog bone in a bowl. That’s when she was inspired to start carving sculptures from cake.

“Because he was kind of the driving force of me trying that out, his initials kind of represent what the company started on,” Damala explained. She actually has the same initials.

Today DB Dessert offers a wide variety of flavors and designs. It even offers custom cake combinations to satisfy any taste. Damala constantly looks for new flavors and designs to add to the menu.

Next up are classes, part of Damala’s hope to bring neighbors together and to help build community. Due to the continuing pandemic, a Valentine’s Day class may have to be online.

“We want to celebrate and be safe and cook together from the safety of your own home.” She hopes in the future to offer in-person classes.

Does she have advice for future female entrepreneurs, especially women of color like herself? One pointer Damala offered is that she doesn’t let being afraid or scared keep her from setting goals and pursuing them.

“If your dreams don’t scare you, they are not big enough. The way that I operate in business is I try to operate in a space of fearlessness.”

Nota del editor: Artículo disponible en Español, visita ConcordiaPDX.org/DBDessert.

Javier Puga-Phillips holds the At Large 4 position on the Concordia Neighborhood Association (CNA) Board of Directors, manages rentals of the McMenamins Kennedy School Community Room and chairs the CNA Social Committee. He is a real estate professional locally, and he is a published author and motivational speaker in Latin America and Spain.

Bonne Chance foretells good luck for owners

Posted on by Posted in Concordia News, Local Businesses

Bonne Chance, the newest addition to the wine scene in Concordia, is in the former location of Ciao Vitto at 2203 N.E. Alberta St.

Brothers Mark and James Ehrman opened their lounge and wine bar in August. They transformed the location to focus on being a place for building community.

“I love seeing people meeting at our bar and at another time dining together,” Mark said.

The experienced mixologist teamed with James, a sommelier with over two decades of experience in wine scene cities like San Francisco, Los Angeles and New York City. They aim to provide unique beverage experiences tailored to their customers’ individual tastes.

“Bonne chance” is French for “good luck.” James explained, “I am a firm believer in luck.”

The business opportunity came when COVID-19 put both brothers out of work, and it was time to reinvent themselves. Mark had worked at Ciao Vitto. “After six years of working in this location – and remembering how welcoming everyone was from the get go – I decided to stay.”

The menu is inspired by bar cuisine. James recommends the new savory waffle. “The waffle has the egg, cheese and meats inside and topped with burrata,” he pointed out. The chef’s burger is also a popular menu item.

Another innovating concept from Bonne Chance is – instead of creating a restaurant around a particular chef or cuisine – the brothers are taking advantage of their open kitchen concept.

They plan to invite several chefs and restaurants to participate in Bonne Chance pop-up dinners. The guest chefs will offer their unique views on cuisine. This concept is expected to allow customers to taste meals that are changing constantly.

Mark described the approach as less pretentious and without judgment. He also announced the wine classes coming soon to Bonne Chance, when attendees can learn facts while listening to great stories.

“My favorite wine tasting is when the client tells me what they like, and I can find something they love” James said.

The wine selection at Bonne Chance is also changing rapidly with biodynamic wines, organic wines and a variety of local and international small wineries from all over the globe.

Mark, who lives in Concordia, takes pride in working and living here, and the approach the neighborhood offers. Customers are known by name and become part of the Bonne Chance family.

BonneChancePDX.com offers information about the new venue, its menu and owners, and the opportunity provided on the home page to subscribe to its mailing list.

Nota del editor: Artículo disponible en Español, visita ConcordiaPDX.org/BonneChance

Javier Puga-Phillips holds the At Large 4 position on the Concordia Neighborhood Association (CNA) Board of Directors, manages rentals of the McMenamins Kennedy School Community Room and chairs the CNA Social Committee. He is a real estate professional locally, and he is a published author and motivational speaker in Latin America and Spain.