Concordia Neighborhood Association | Portland, Oregon

Columbia Slough Awards Celebration, February 1

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The Columbia Slough Watershed Council (CSWC) is pleased to announce the winners of the 2007 Watershed Council Awards. The awards will be presented at the Council’s Ninth Annual Awards Celebration and Silent Auction on Friday, February 1, 2008 from 6:00 until 9:00 P.M. “These community leaders remind us how important the Columbia Slough Watershed is to our region and the health of our ecosystem,” said Jane Van Dyke, CSWC Executive Director. “It is important to take time to recognize their dedication and contribution to improving our community and watershed.”

2007 Leadership Award Winners

The Council’s Leadership Awards recognize “individuals who demonstrate an extraordinary and long-term commitment to the watershed”.

  • Erwin Bergman – Council Member – Neighborhood Advocate
  • Richard and Gyrid Towle – Columbia Children’s Arboretum Advocates

2007 Achievement Award Winners

The Council’s Achievement Awards recognize “extraordinary projects or project-related efforts”.

  • City of Gresham – Keri Handaly and Kris Rein – Fairview Creek-Burnside to Stark Restoration Project
  • Multnomah Youth Cooperative – Rose Sandy and Jeff Walker – Youth Watershed Restoration Crew
  • Northwest Discoveries – Ken Barker and Jerry Lanz – Canoe Week and Explorando el Columbia Slough Paddle Guides
  • New Columbia – Housing Authority of Portland, Steve Fancher and KPFF Consulting Engineers – Green Streets and Stormwater Facilities

This year’s celebration will be held at the Acadian Ballroom at 1829 NE Alberta Street in Portland. The celebration will include dinner, silent auction, entertainment, and presentation of the awards. Tickets are $35 per person and can be purchased online at www.columbiaslough.org or by calling 503.281.1132. Reservation deadline is January 25th at 4:00 P.M.

To learn more about the event, visit the Columbia Slough Watershed Council.

For more information contact:
Katie Meckes, 503.281.1132, katie.meckes@columbiaslough.org

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Faubion PTA Family Night, January 30

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In November, our PTA had the privilege to meet with Oregon PTA President Anita Olsen at one of our functions. Anita was apparently impressed with our effort and wrote a complimentary article about Faubion PTA in the December/January 2008 Newsletter. I am pleased to share excerpts from the newsletter with our neighbors here:

“I am privileged to receive invitations to visit from PTAs all over the state – and I try to visit as many as I am able. Last month, I was invited to Faubion PTA in Northeast Portland. Faubion is a PTA with the same challenges many (other PTAs) have: how to get parents and families into the school to see the importance of their involvement while at the same time going on to their jobs during the day and preparing their children for the next school day each evening. And, after two years of struggling, Faubion is finding the answer. I was invited to an old fashioned kaffeeklatch before school one Friday morning. In and among the coffee and doughnuts, I met about a dozen wonderful folks – moms, dads, grandmas, and grandpas. They told me about family nights they organized: a craft night in October, a bingo night in November. Each event was designed to bring families into the school and it did just that – 40 to 50 people – often different families at each event, who heard about the importance of family involvement at their school while enjoying their children’s and one another’s company.”

Thank you, Anita, for your attendance and kind words. Faubion is “living the idea of Family-School Partnerships” and the results are heartening. We had a lot of fun at bingo night and from its reception, there will be more of the same in the future.

Our next Family Night event will be Wednesday, January 30, 2008 at 6:30 P.M. We haven’t decided on which type of event yet (our PTA business meeting on December 20 will attend to that) but it will be advertised and it will be – again – family fun. Watch for it and please attend. You don’t have to be a PTA member; you don’t even have to have kids at Faubion. It is an opportunity to see our school and neighborhood, meet some of its members and have a good time.

Faubion PTA and the 350 wonderful kids who attend our neighborhood public school wish you and yours a wonderful holiday season and a happy new year.

Master Recyclers Sponsor Free Recycling Roundups (January 26)

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Recycle those hard-to-recycle plastics on January 26 and February 9th. Master Recyclers will collect plastic material that cannot be recycled curbside including buckets, food tubs, plastic bags, lawn furniture, nursery pots, and trays.

Agri-Plas, a recycler located in Brooks, Oregon, will process the collected plastic for recycling into new products. Past Master Recyclers plastic roundup events successfully recycled and found reuse options for over 73 tons of plastic.

Collections will take place:

Saturday, January 26, 9 A.M. to 2 P.M. at:

  • Southeast Portland: Floyd Light Middle School 10800 SE Washington
  • North Portland: Hosted by Kaiser Permanente West Interstate 3325 N Interstate (off Fremont and Overlook Park)

Saturday, February 9, 9 A.M. to 2 P.M. at:

  • Lake Oswego: Hosted by Shorenstein Realty Services LP and Autodesk, Inc.
    5400 Meadows Road.
  • Rock Creek: Westview High School 4200 NW 185th Ave.

Please sort and rinse plastics into the following categories ahead of time:

  • Plastic bags (dry cleaning, store sacks, bubble wrap, six-pack rings, zip lock bags, etc.)
  • Plant pots and trays (please knock out dirt ahead of time)
  • Sort by numbers (bags and pots go in first categories)
  • Miscellaneous plastics without numbers: bottle caps, drink lids, DVDs, CDs, CD cases, straws, cereal liners, vinyl, lawn/patio furniture, toys (think slides!), pet igloos, laundry baskets, kiddie pools, and more. (Bring it, we’ll try to take it.)
  • Plastic reuse items (good lawn chairs, tables, cat litter buckets, and more)

We are sorry we CANNOT accept:

  • Styrofoam blocks, peanuts, food trays, or egg cartons.
  • Plastic printed “compostable” or # PLA 7.
  • Plastics with a neck (these are accepted in all curbside programs.
  • PVC pipe.
  • Food-contaminated or dirty plastic.
  • Foam or rubber.
  • Small toys that have metal in them.
  • Plastic with metal or electronics inside (spray bottle nozzles and hand lotion pumps have springs in them; please remove the spring or toss the pump).

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Stop Car Idling for Kids, Environment

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In cold weather and in school parking lots, we see a lot of car idling. The City of Portland urges you to reduce car idling, which has a negative impact on children’s health and air quality in the Concordia neighborhood.

All of us have idled our vehicles while waiting to pick up kids from school, waiting at the drive-up window, or waiting for a bridge. Part of the reason is that when we were just beginning to drive, the mindset was that it’s better to leave the car running rather than turn it on and off.

Well, maybe that was true then, but it’s certainly not true now. As a matter of fact, it’s actually better for your vehicle to turn it off if it’s going to be idling for more than 10 seconds.

This fact leads to the top ten reasons to turn off your vehicle when you’re not moving:

  1. Studies have shown a direct link between contaminants in vehicle emissions and significant respiratory health effects.
  2. Vehicle exhaust is the leading source of toxic air pollution in Oregon.
  3. Excessive idling can be hard on your engine. Because it isn’t working at peak operating temperature, fuel doesn’t undergo complete combustion, leaving spark plugs dirty, which can increase fuel consumption by 4 to 5%. Also, the engine oil becomes contaminated by idling.
  4. According to Ford and the Auto Alliance, vehicles produced after the mid-‘80s don’t require additional time to heat a “cold engine.” The best way to warm up your vehicle is to drive it, even in cold weather.
  5. Besides, idling warms only the engine, not the wheel bearings, steering, suspension, transmission, and tires. These parts warm up when the vehicle is driven.
  6. Frequent restarting has little impact on engine parts such as the battery and starter motor. The wear on components that restarting the engine causes adds about $10 a year to your costs. This is money that you’ll likely recover several times over in fuel savings from reduced idling.
  7. More than 10 seconds of idling uses more fuel than restarting the engine.
  8. Toxic air pollutants account for an additional 700 cases of cancer for every million residents.
  9. Children breathe 50% more air per pound than adults, and their asthma symptoms increase as a result of car exhaust.
  10. When you idle you get 0 miles per gallon.

    11. For education resources and for any questions, contact Donna Green at the Portland Office of Transportation at 503.823.6114, donna.green@pdxtrans.org.

Radon: Is your home safe?

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If you live in the Concordia Neighborhood, there is almost a 50% likelihood that the radon level inside your home is higher than the EPA’s recommended action level potentially putting your family at unnecessary risk of lung cancer.

Radon, a naturally occurring radioactive gas, concentrates inside buildings. Nationally, radon is responsible for 15,000-22,000 lung cancer deaths every year—more deaths than caused by drunk driving and drowning combined. The second leading cause of lung cancer in America, radon is the leading cause of lung cancer in non-smokers.

According to a Portland State University study, nearly the half the homes (old, new, with or without a crawlspace or basement) in the Concordia Neighborhood have indoor radon levels exceeding EPA’s recommended action level of 4 pCi/L (pico curies per liter of air). That’s the bad news. The good news is that testing for radon is simple and inexpensive and that, when needed, reducing indoor radon to safer concentrations is affordable.

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Northeast Portland Kwanzaa Events, December 26 – January 1

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[Ed. note – Apologies for not getting this posted before some of the events have taken place; events will go through year-end however…]

Kwanzaa, December 26 through January 1, is a unique holiday celebrating the strengths and accomplishments of the African American community. Kwanzaa activities will be featured at two Portland Parks and Recreation sites – the Matt Dishman Community Center and the Interstate Firehouse Cultural Center (IFCC).

On Wednesday, December 26, the Matt Dishman Community Center (77 NE Knott) will honor the first day of Kwanzaa, Umoja (Unity) with a presentation of the Feast of the Seven Tables, a performance by Liquid Moves Entertainment. The event runs from 5:30 P.M. to 8:30 P.M., with the candle lighting at 6:30 P.M.

The Interstate Firehouse Cultural Center (340 N. Interstate) honors Kujichagulia (self-determination), the second day of Kwanzaa week, with live performances by poets and drummers throughout the Gallery from 4:30 P.M. to 7:30 P.M. on Thursday, December 27. The candle lighting ceremony will be held at 6:30 P.M.

In addition, IFCC is presenting a Kwanzaa Marketplace from 11 A.M. to 4 P.M. on Saturdays and Sundays through December 30. The Marketplace will also be open during the Kujichagulia celebration on December 27. Great gifts and art finds by African American artists will be available, as well as art supplies, décor, and ideas for creating one’s own Kwanzaa Celebration. Artists featured at the Marketplace include Donna Smith, Renee Mitchell, Kemi Arigibon, Vivienne Mathis, Kahunya Wario, Marsalis Brown, GG, Romaine Harris, Jaime Lee Christiana, Wanda Wright, and Blacque Butterfly.

The IFCC Gallery will feature the works of artists GG, Mo, Art Alexander, Raymond Alexander, Adriene Cruz, Helen Montgomery, and Wanda Wright, each of whom have created an altar dedicated to each of the Seven Principles of Kwanzaa. Connected to The Center for Black Studies at Portland State University, Senator Avel Gordly, Reverend Dr. W.G. Hardy Jr., and Dr. Dalton Miller-Jones share their photos from a recent trip to Ghana. The works will be on view in the Gallery from 11 A.M. to 6 P.M., Tuesday – Friday, and 11 A.M. to 4 P.M. Saturday and Sunday, through December 31.

For more information, visit portlandparks.org.

CNA Honored With Spirit of Portland Award

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The Concordia Neighborhood Association will be receivea 2007 Spirit of Portland Award as “Neighborhood of the Year,” recognizing numerous community projects, including the playground structure at Fernhill Park, sponsored by the neighborhood. Congratulations!

The Spirit of Portland Awards have been presented annually since 1985 to Portland neighbors and organizations who have made outstanding contributions to the community. Winners are selected from nominations submitted by citizens. Each year, the selection committee is comprised of representatives from Council Members’ Offices, the Office of Neighborhood Involvement, neighborhood coalitions, neighborhood business associations, and past recipients.

Here is the full press release listing the rest of the 2007 award recipients.

Boeing Emissions Proposal Q&A

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NE Neighbors for Clean Air provided us with some additional information related to Boeing’s application to discharge contaminants at their Portland Airport painting facility. Click the link below for the complete text (with minor edits for length/style). You can also check out previous stories posted on the CNA website related to this issue.

Boeing wants to emit 99 tons per year (tpy) of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and between 10 tpy of any single hazardous air pollutant (as defined by the EPA) and 25 tpy aggregate. It’s important to note that if Boeing had asked for a permit to emit 100 or more tons per year of VOCs (or more) they would have been required to obtain a Title V permit from the EPA, which would have required additional monitoring.

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Petition to Oppose New Emissions

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You may have already seen the petition included in this month’s Concordia News opposing approval of Boeing’s request to dump 99 tons of pollutants into our airshed. If you haven’t had a chance to act, here’s an easy one – you can sign the online petition. Leave a comment here as well if you like – we’ve noticed that the website has been getting a little traffic from both Boeing and Oregon DEQ servers lately, so this is your chance to speak out.

For more information on the Boeing issue, see our previous stories, archived here.