Shawn-Laree and I went to Portland recently for a wedding. I had never been there, even though I helped create the Portland version of EveryBlock. So I took pictures and looked at things. Following is a random set of observations and thoughts.
There are a few things about Portland I did not know:
They like to keep interesting but seemingly unusable cars on their lawns/ in their driveways:
They call themselves “the city that works”, even though I believe that moniker is already taken. I was unsurprised to discover that the Straight Dope has tackled this before.
It is necessary to have a permit to put a sign on the street (“Car Wash — $10” or “Valet Parking”, for instance). Each of these signs has a sticker, though I forgot to take a picture (trust me). I’ve heard rumblings of a move here in Chicago to regulate such things as well.
Speaking of taxes, there is no sales tax, so things cost what they say they cost. Also, there is less use for pennies. If the coffee cost $3.50, that’s it– that’s how much it costs. For someone used to City of Chicago and Cook County taxes, I found that weird.
There are ferns there that smell like cat urine.
I love how they keep their lawns– very little grass fetish; lots of interesting plantings. I would love to see more of that in Chicago.
They have a “help me grow” program for trees. Trust and joint collaboration.
I took an amazing walk/ run/ slide down steep hills in Forest Park. I took the Wildwood Trail, a 5 mile loop– to the Pittock Mansion and back. Pittock Mansion was wonderful. I was struck by the innovation in layout, with the semi-circle. Shower jet placement was serious business for the late 1800s. Also: it seems like there could be some awesome card games in that basement. Epic all around.
Boise-Elliot Neighborhood
I bought Shawn-Laree some cool boots for her birthday. Good Mission burrito, although I really don’t know what constitutes a “Mission Burrito“. Seems like a “burrito”. Also bought the graphic novel, “Green River Killer”. Good stuff.
Historic Irvington District
Really nice houses, but nothing that really blew our minds. We wanted it to match our last destination wedding experience– San Antonio’s King William Historic District.
One thing about this neighborhood that struck me was the number of movable basketball hoops that were semi-permanently placed on the parkway, hanging over the street, This is a good example of the feature/ bug continuum that I’ve seen on EveryBlock (“maple trees are awesome!” / “maple trees are terrible!“). Clearly, there is an aesthetic in this neighborhood that says it is a desirable thing to have some hoops on the block. I didn’t see any hoops anywhere else in the city, and we went through a bunch of hoods pretty extensively (I could be wrong– can someone disabuse me?). Basketball hoops hovered over the street is apparently a feature in this neighborhood. There may be people in the neighborhood who consider it to be a bug– I would love to hear from some, if they do. But the group consensus says it is a feature.
I guess I’m interested in how this came to be. Was it painful? Was there shouting and public meetings? Was it necessary to pass an ordinance? I know that in Chicago there is a significant amount of heat around the topic of basketball hoops— I wonder what kind of nuttiness would ensue if people tried to extend hoops into the parkways.
All Hail Portland!