Concordia Neighborhood Association | Portland, Oregon

Category Archives: CNA

Volunteers rescue and foster lost pet rabbits

Posted on by Posted in CNA, Volunteer Opportunities
Concordian Brian Duval rescued Morgan from his neighbor’s yard. Usually, he just fosters lost,  domesticated rabbits for the Rabbit Advocacy organization – but this one he adopted.

By Mac Larsen | CNA Media Team

Take a walk down the grocery store aisle during this season. You see chocolate, marshmallow and stuffed rabbits, and the list goes on and on.

For many, spring brings bunnies to mind more often than any other time of year, unless you’re a volunteer for Rabbit Advocates. Then bunnies are a year-round concern.

Concordian Brian Duval is a volunteer with Rabbit Advocates and recently rescued a large white rabbit from his neighbor’s yard.

“I was in between fostering rabbits, so I took the offer to take this one in, and foster it for the time being,” Brian said. “He’s just hilarious, following me around everywhere, nipping at the bottom of my pants to pet him.

“You know, it takes a really long time for a rabbit to warm up to you. But this guy was like, ‘I’m ready for a friend.’ And I was like, ‘Me too,’ so we put in the adoption papers.”

Rabbit Advocates is an all-volunteer nonprofit founded in Portland 20 years ago. The mission is to help stray domesticated rabbits find new owners after they’ve been abandoned or otherwise left without permanent homes.

“There are domestic rabbits and wild rabbits, which are different animals. And these animals that we’re fostering and we’re rescuing are domesticated rabbits that are meant to be pets,” Brian said.

The most noticeable difference between pet rabbits and wild rabbits is size and color. A wild rabbit usually is small and solid brown. If a rabbit looks larger, has spots or is white, then the rabbit may be a lost pet.

Rabbit Advocates’ volunteers are trained to care properly for the rescued rabbits until permanent homes are found.

“In 2021, Rabbit Advocates rescued 160 new bunnies from perilous situations and found excellent adoptive homes for 148 bunnies with the help of 85 certified foster families in the Greater Portland Area,” cited the Rabbit Advocates year-end report.

According to Brian, Rabbit Advocates’ work is important because domesticated rabbits can’t defend themselves in the wild. “They don’t have the breeding to understand predators or survive.”

Rabbit Advocates educates the public about the differences between wild and pet rabbits, how to spot the differences and provides rescue and adoption resources for those who’ve found lost rabbits.

If you’re interested in adopting or fostering a bunny through Rabbit Advocates, visit RabbitAdvocates.org.

As for the rabbit Brian rescued from neighbor Peter’s yard, he named it Morgan. “I couldn’t name him Peter. That would be too obvious.”

Mac Larsen is a graduate student at the University of Oregon, pursuing a master’s degree in journalism. He grew up in Concordia neighborhood and can be found frequently on Alberta Street, complaining about all the construction.

CNA seeks qualified candidates for the Concordia News editor paid contractor position

Posted on by Posted in CNA

Put your talents to work by joining the media team as editor for Concordia News. Provide a vital function for the monthly paper serving Concordia neighbors and businesses.

For a full description of the duties and requirements of this important contractor position, and how to apply visit: ConcordiaPDX.org/get-involved/CNews-editor-position. Questions? Please contact Peter Keller at Chair@ConcordiaPDX.org.

Neighbors pick up Concordia litter

Posted on by Posted in CNA, Volunteer Opportunities
Neighbors are invited to tackle the litter in Concordia Saturday, Dec. 4. Volunteers in the October event teamed up to pick up an estimated 1,000 pounds of litter from the northeastern area of Concordia. Directly above are Gina Levine and Javier Puga-Phillips, planners of the Concordia Neighborhood Association event.

Saturday, Dec. 4, is the next Concordia Neighborhood Litter Pick Up. It’s from 9 a.m. to noon, beginning in Alberta Park at Ainsworth Street and 22nd Avenue. Sign up at SolveOregon.org or contact Concordian Gina Levine with questions. She’s at CNewsBusiness@ConcordiaPDX.org and 503.891.7178.

An estimated 1,000 pounds of trash were removed from the neighborhood in early October. That’s when 55 volunteers spent three hours picking up litter in the northeastern portion of Concordia. It was the first of what’s planned for regular events.

“We filled 60 trash bags and four truckloads of items that had been thrown away,” she said. “It felt so great on the way home to see our litter-free neighborhood.”

The pick-up events are sponsored by Concordia Neighborhood Association. Leaders are Gina and board member Javier Puga-Phillips. Their efforts are supported by SOLVE, the statewide organization working to restore and preserve the environment by mobilizing the power of volunteers.

SOLVE was founded in 1969 by Oregon Gov. Tom McCall to reduce and clean up litter and vandalism throughout the state. The first volunteer beach clean up in the nation was organized by SOLVE in 1984. Since then, the concept has spread across the U.S. and to more than 100 countries.

Fresh air and social distancing are part of the CNA litter pick-up efforts.

“Participating in a litter pick up is COVID-friendly,” Gina pointed out.

“A few hours every few months will make a huge difference in how the neighborhood looks and feels,” she added. “We really hope you can join us for the next event.”

Want to get rid of trash more often?The city of Portland offers support and information about cleaning up Concordia and other neighborhoods. Among the many resources listed there are:

  • Adopt One Block: featured in CNews
  • The city’s hotline to report overflowing local public trash cans: WasteInfo@portlandoregon.gov and 503.823.7202
  • A hotline to report abandoned shopping carts in your neighborhood: 888-55- CARTS.
  • SOLVE’s volunteer events statewide: SOLVEOregon.org

Steve Elder, elder. monaville@gmail.com, is an inactive lawyer, a developer, activist and old grouch

From the Board – Be the change you want to see in Portland

Posted on by Posted in CNA 1 Comment

While it’s only October, it’s time to start thinking about the upcoming Concordia Neighborhood Association (CNA) board election, being held at our annual meeting on Nov. 3. I know that a lot of you consider volunteering for the CNA board or other community organizations. I understand this sentiment because I felt the same way for years.

With everything going on in Portland these days, many Portlanders complain that the city government is ineffectual and, like most of us, are pining for positive change.

We are all part of this city, and neighborhood associations are the grassroots level of city government. The CNA board represents 10,000+ Portlanders and, when we endorse issues or write letters, we are usually heard.

For example, this month we secured a meeting with the current owners of the Concordia University property, Lutheran Church Extension Fund, to lobby on behalf of the neighborhood. This resulted in some reassuring updates about the sale.

All of the members of our board volunteer their time because they want to be part of their community. Many of them have been on the board for years, and this continuity is really important in maintaining a nonprofit, all-volunteer board. That said, it’s great to get new volunteers who bring fresh energy and thinking.

At the moment, we are fully staffed. However, this could change in November if some current board members whose terms end in December decide not to run for re-election, and we don’t have new volunteers from the neighborhood to fill their board seats.

Just like any election, when a current board position is up for election/re-election, any qualified person can run for that seat regardless of whether the current board member is running for re-election.

So, if you’re interested in serving on the board, don’t be dissuaded because the position is currently filled. Put your hat in the ring, and may the best candidate win! That’s democracy.

In odd-numbered years like 2021, odd-numbered board seats are up for election. CNA board members serve two-year terms. The chair position, currently held by me, is only a one-year position so is up for election every year. So, by my count, that’s six board seats and one chair up for grabs.

Next month, I’ll provide an election primer. Meanwhile you can reach out directly to me with questions and/or check out our CNA bylaws to learn more: ConcordiaPDX.org/about-cna/bylaws.

Native Portlander Peter Keller has lived in Concordia since 1997. He runs a small marketing agency with partner Max, out of their home studio. He loves exploring outdoors with and without his dogs.

Concordia Art Works – Artist’s efforts pay tribute to his family, culture

Posted on by Posted in Arts & Culture, CNA
William Hernandez applies the culture of his native Peru to his allegorical art. Photo by Maquette Reeverts

Trained as a painter at the Escuela Nacional de Bellas Artes (National School of Fine Arts) in Lima, Peru, William Hernandez worked as a fine artist and graphic designer there before settling in Portland in 2009 at the age of 32.

William is one of the organizers for the first Intercambio de Artistas Latinos (Latin American Artists Exchange), which aims to create a network of artists in the Northwest. He is also an exhibitor, artist-in-residence and instructor at Milagros Theatre, and he organizes painting classes for immigrant workers at VOZ Workers Rights Education Project here in Portland.

Starting with a blank canvas, the artist paints without an initial sketch which he feels places limits on his creativity. Using oils or acrylics in bright rich colors he allows the creative process to be spontaneous.

William’s allegorical art reflects his culture. He expresses the stories of his childhood memories, his life before coming to the U.S. and the realities of the people of Peru. The past becomes a metaphor and, by using humor and sadness in a playful and dreamlike way, he draws in the observer.

“I would say that in many of my pieces my two sons and wife are represented in some form,” he pointed out. “The concept of family is very important to me as a visual expression.”

During the pandemic, his studio is now a more shared space with kids’ toys in the corner and a set up for online classes in another carved-out space. Although several public art projects were put on hold, he has stayed busy painting commissioned work.

To find out more about William’s work, visit WilliamHernandezArt.com or stop by the Blind Insect Gallery at Alberta Street and 29th Avenue.

Michel Reeverts, aka Maquette, holds a master of arts degree in art education, serves Alberta Art Works as director and Alberta Street Gallery as a board member. She is also a practicing artist. Contact her at Maquette@AlbertaArtWorks.org

Concordia Art Works – Exhibit opens on date of Last Thursday

Posted on by Posted in Arts & Culture, CNA, Local Businesses

By Maquette Reeverts | Alberta Art Works

Although crowds aren’t invited and street closures aren’t planned during continuing pandemic restrictions, Donna Guardino honors the Last Thursday tradition this month. The Guardino Gallery opens the “Toy Show” exhibit Thursday, June 24. Photo by Maquette Reeverts

The Guardino Gallery opened its doors in 1997 when many of the buildings on Alberta Street were boarded up and continued to suffer from years of disinvestment, demographic reshuffling and discriminatory lending by the city.

In the spring of that year a reporter labeled Alberta Street “the most killing street in Portland.” Donna and Sal Guardino had to get creative to attract people to patron their newly opened gallery.

Revitalization projects, dedicated locals and the start of Last Thursdays helped the business district begin a rebound. In the following five years, the number of businesses on the street doubled and Sal’s and Donna’s gallery found its stride.

Donna was a major force in the beginnings of Last Thursday that began the year they opened their doors.

This year the Guardino Gallery has added a fourth group show to the repertoire in hopes of lightening the mood after a difficult past year. The “Toy Show” will bring levity starting Last Thursday, June 24, and run until July 25.

It features 22 artists, many from northeast Portland and who express their own diverse interpretations on the theme.

“I love giving artists a theme and seeing what they come up with. You can expect surprises from artists,” Donna said with a smile.

There will not be a formal opening due to the pandemic, but the gallery is open daily except Mondays, and/or purchases can be made on GuardinoGallery.com.

Michel Reeverts, aka Maquette , holds a master of arts degree in art education, serves Alberta Art Works as director and Alberta Street Gallery as a board member. She is also a practicing artist. Contact her at Maquette@AlbertaArtWorks.org

School doors open to first grader

Posted on by Posted in CNA, Schools

By Marsha Sandman | CNA Media Team

Ari’s first day of first grade inside Faubion Elementary School didn’t occur until seven months into the school year. With pandemic restrictions in place, she and classmates are finally studying together in person. She likes it. Photo by Marsha Sandman

Seven-year-old Ariana (Ari) now attends first grade inside Faubion Elementary School. Until April 2, all of her first grade studies were at home.

School closures due to the COVID-19 pandemic had come on suddenly in March 2020 and sent Portland Public Schools students home from their classrooms. No one was prepared for such an event, so it was quite a challenge for the teachers and the school district to get everyone and everything up and running.

Ari’s online learning was a combination of video conferencing and computer lessons created by the school district. Kids learn at different levels, and addressing these needs virtually was quite the challenge.

Classes included reading, math, art, dance, science, health and problem solving.

Ari’s family helped to supplement her education with additional challenges – not an easy task for some families. The children in her class appeared eager to engage with each other and their teacher in their relatively short video windows four days each week.

Ari said she liked learning at home because she could be with her family, but she missed seeing her classmates and her teacher face to face.

She had a bit of a sleepless night before her first day inside the classroom. All those months of masks, extra hygiene, space and caution had contributed to some panic.

Ari reported she was excited and happy, but a bit nervous. When she encountered her 10 classmates, met her teacher face to face and learned the rules, she relaxed into the routine.

Pick-up and drop-off procedures, hygiene and bathroom breaks have been explained to parents, who are not permitted in the building and who meet their students at specified locations.

Stringent rules are established for absentee students and illnesses. If students have COVID-like symptoms, they are sent to the Symptom Room, screened by the health assistant and likely sent home. They remain home until the county determines it is safe to return. Class is only 135 minutes, four days a week with no recess and no lunch in the classroom.

Getting up at 7 a.m. is no fun. Only a few classes are in session from 8 to 10:15 a.m. A second group of students arrives at 12:15 p.m.

But arriving home by 10:30 a.m. with a sack lunch is not a bad deal for an active little girl.

Ari said she’s very happy to walk home from school, play and picnic outside with her new schoolmates.

After living east, south, north and west, Marsha Sandman is home at last. And she wants to hear your story. Contact her at MarshaJSandman@ gmail.com.

Urbanism: Council considers sheltering project

Posted on by Posted in CNA, Concordia News, Land Use & Transportation

Editor’s note: Read the latest updates on Shelter to Housing.

By Garlynn Woodsong | CNA Board Member, SW1 | CNA LUTC Chair

The city of Portland has been in a state of housing emergency since first declared on Oct. 7, 2015. (See ProsperPortland.us/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/Housing-Emergency.pdf.)

It has been extended roughly annually by successive city councils since then. In this context, Jan. 26, the Portland Planning and Sustainability Commission voted to send Shelter to Housing Continuum (S2HC) zoning code changes to council for adoption before the city’s current housing emergency declaration expires April 4.

The word “continuum” is used to emphasize the project goal of providing pathways for housing to provide legally to everybody. That includes temporary shelter for persons experiencing houselessness to longer-term transitional shelters with onsite supportive services to a wider variety of more affordable types of permanent housing.

The changes the S2HC proposal would make to code include:

  • Waive system development charges for outdoor shelters and for utility hookups for tiny homes on wheels
  • Allow day storage units and hygiene facilities to be located in the public right-of-way, such as in the parking strip
  • Eliminate the need for a conditional use permit to operate a meal program
  • Clarify the difference in the code between “housing,” which is intended for permanent occupancy, and “shelter,” which is intended to serve transitional or emergency needs
  • Allow longer-term occupancy of smaller shelters, such as tiny home villages, in certain zones
  • Allow outdoor shelters on small sites on publicly-owned land in industrial zones, except in general employment 1 & 2.
  • Exempt outdoor shelters from design review
  • Allow as many as 20 individual shelters as a conditional use on a site that previously allowed one
  • Remove the concept of a “household” – with its existing limitation on the number of people who may legally live in a dwelling unit – as a basis of regulation under the code
  • Replace the above with regulation of structure type and/or the number of bedrooms contained therein, as well as require a minimum amount of habitable floorspace per resident
  • Establish a threshold of as many as eight bedrooms in a dwelling unit for “household living” to distinguish it from “group living”
  • Provide the possibility to legalize as many as one tiny home on wheels per residential lot without having it count as a dwelling unit in density standards and regulate it as a vehicle and not a structure, but maintain the prohibition on using it as an accessory short-term rental

S2HC is an effort to change parts of the city code to facilitate a larger, multi-jurisdictional effort to provide safe, decent and affordable shelter and housing to every Portlander who needs it.

It will allow a range of shelters that have already been sited as temporary, emergency uses under the emergency ordinance to be reviewed and considered for approval through permanent code provisions and to allow them to be legalized and to remain once the emergency expires.

Garlynn Woodsong lives on 29th Avenue, serves on the CNA board and is an avid bicyclist. He also is a dad who is passionate about the city his son will inherit. He is the planning + development partner with Cascadia Partners LLC, a local urban planning firm. Contact him at LandUse@ConcordiaPDX.org.

Concordians fill final two board positions

Posted on by Posted in CNA, Concordia News

At its January meeting, the Concordia Neighborhood Association (CNA) Board of Directors voted to appoint Matt Boyd to the Southwest 2 position. No one had been nominated to fill that seat during the November annual meeting election. Matt served a two-year term previously in an at-large position.

Also at the January meeting, Joseph Fraley was elected by CNA membership to the East 2 position. His term is two years.

CNA Board of Directors

Chair | Chair@ConcordiaPDX.org Peter Keller
East 1 | East1@ConcordiaPDX.org Heather Pashley
East 2 | East2@ConcordiaPDX.org Joseph Fraley
Northwest 1 | NW1@ConcordiaPDX.org Isham “Ike” Harris
Northwest 2 | NW2@ConcordiaPDX.org Amelie Marian
Southwest 1 | SW1@ConcordiaPDX.org Garlynn Woodsong
Southwest 2 | SW2@ConcordiaPDX.org Matt Boyd
At Large 1 | AL1@ConcordiaPDX.org Robert Bowles
At Large 2 | AL2@ConcordiaPDX.org John Fitzgerald
At Large 3 | AL3@ConcordiaPDX.org John McSherry
At Large 4 | AL4@ConcordiaPDX.org Sonia Fornoni
At Large 5 | AL5@ConcordiaPDX.org Truls Neal
At Large 6 | AL6@ConcordiaPDX.org Brittany van der Salm

Add your voice to selecting board members – and the name of – Concordia Neighborhood Association!

Posted on by Posted in CNA, Events, Volunteer Opportunities

Wednesday, Nov. 4, is the CNA annual meeting. Six board positions and the chair are up for election/re-election, beginning at 7 p.m. Nominate yourself or others. 2020 chair Astrid Furstner details the qualifications at Concordiapdx.org/2020/11/chairs-corner-dont-forget-to-also-vote-in-cna-election.

Then stay tuned to discuss whether consideration should be given to changing the name of the Concordia Neighborhood Association. We were named for the university located here, and it’s now gone. Should we keep its name or consider others?

Details for joining the Google Meet session are at ConcordiaPDX.org/CNAMeetings.