Register for this event HERE for this free online event presented by the National Alliance on Mental Illness affiliate in Multnomah County.
Lottie and Zula’s Indoor Dining Opens Soon and Picnic Box Option
The other day I took time out from work and publishing this issue of the Eliot News and stopped by for lunch at Lottie and Zula’s. If you haven’t had their breakfast or lunch sandwiches or really any of their menu offerings, you have been missing out.
Besides offering take-out, they now have an awesome patio on the west side of the building. But the best news is they are planning on opening up indoor dining sometime in July. That is exciting, and I can’t wait to check out how they have decorated the dining room.
If you’re headed to the Dawson Park Concerts this summer and fall be sure to check out the Picnic Box that they are offering. Eliot Neighborhood Association gets a portion of the sales of these boxes. You can order HERE or give them a call.
Lottie and Zula’s
120 NE Russell
503-333-6923
Hours
Tuesday—Saturday 8-4
Breakfast all day
Lunch at 10:30
Cliffs PDX: Come for the Food and Cocktails, Stay for the Southern Charm and Midwestern Friendliness
A few different businesses have occupied the bar under the Wonder Ballroom on NE Russell Street. Since I have been in the neighborhood, it has been Trigger and Bunk Sandwiches. Cliff’s PDX is the newest tenant, but Josh Luebke has been around for all three of the recent iterations of this space.
Adopt-a-Block update – We’re making Progress, but still need your help
By Jody Guth
It’s a beautiful day in our neighborhood – the skies are blue, the sun is shining, and the streets are looking better all the time. Many thanks and kudos to all involved with Eliot’s adopt-a-block team. While they may not take credit for the blue skies and sunshine, they most certainly can for the improved look to our streets and avenues.
We’ve had quite a few people sign-up this past quarter, and the ranks of trash-ridders are reflected in things looking as good as they are….mostly. And, because we’re greedy and can always use more volunteers, we’re seeking out more. Maybe yourself? You know you want to be a part of helping Eliot look its best, and I can show you how it’s done.
All you do is contact me, Jody, at jodyguth@gmail.com or call 971-320-8594, and I’ll get you set up with trash bags and gloves – plus, I have just a few more picker-uppers as well. If you’re one of the first two lucky winners to contact me, they’re yours. We’ll decide what block you’d like to “adopt,” you care for it like the adoptee it is, and then you’ll even be entered into a contest every three months where you could win a $100.00 gift certificate to your friendly New Season’s market.
What?!….crazy simple, right?….and prizes to boot! So what are you waiting for?…..
But before you do, let me announce the current winner of this quarter’s New Season’s gift certificate. Come on down, Laura and Michael Livingston! Laura and Michael take care of parts of Williams near Tillamook and around other areas as they walk their dogs. It can’t be overstated how grateful we are for all those critters who get their humans out for cleaning. Thanks, Dot and Pipa..
Please consider joining Laura and Michael, and the 6(!) other exemplary volunteers who joined this quarter….. big shout out to Richard DeWolf, Moses Wrosen, Laura Atkinson, Pamela Sery, Linda Kading, and Tyler Brunhart. You do Eliot proud.
Community Members: Sign Up for Cascadia Behavioral Health’s Annual Back to School Drive!
By Cascadia Behavioral Health
It’s important we set our students up for success this school year, and many children and families are still in need of school supplies. Once again, we are planning to purchase new backpacks filled with school supplies for the 150+ youth receiving our services, as well as additional families in the community. If your child is in need of supplies this year, we encourage you to participate!
We will also be providing FREE haircuts from professional stylists and sports physicals from Cascadia’s medical staff. To reserve your haircut and/or sports physical, make sure to complete the “add on” during the registration process and select which timeframe works for you.
If you have any questions, contact wellnessprogram@cascadiabhc.org. Thank you for being part of our whole community!
SIGN UP FOR THURSDAY 8/26
SIGN UP FOR FRIDAY 8/27
View this post on Cascadia Behavioral Health’s website
Time and Location:
Thursday August 26 2 pm – 6 pm and Friday August 27 9 am – 1pm
Cascadia’s Garlington Health Center, 3036 NE MLK Jr. Blvd
A Letter of Truth
By Jimmy Wilson, Co-Chair
As I look into the mirror each morning, I ask myself what do I see concerning the City of Portland. Do I see a city that resembles the city I once knew? A city that addresses itself to the needs of its people? As I note the extremely adverse media attention our city has received in many months, I ask myself: What is the mindset of the leadership we put in office? Don’t they see?! Don’t they care? Are they truly searching for answers to the problems that are literally destroying the beauty of the City of Roses? Is there a concern for improving the livability of our great city?
We blame much of our social ills on the Pandemic even though we were in trouble long before the disease took its toll. Some examples are: We have a Black Generation arguing with each other over land ownership who lost their land to others through no fault of their own; ODOT desires to expand the I-5 corridor while remaining under vigorous argument and lawsuits; the coalition of neighborhoods and the neighborhoods’ boards must bond together instead of faultfinding. These are just some of the innumerable challenges that must be addressed immediately.
Our City-wide communities need more help and support from our local police bureau. How can this be done when Portland’s Chief of Police announced the oncoming possibility of losing 200 officers who are stepping down due to controversial politics or retirement. Included here is the downsizing of police funding while simultaneously murders are up 30 percent due to gun violence. The US Government is suing the City of Portland over various challenges versus working as a team to overcome community issues. All of these adverse issues could be addressed if we had a healthy collaboration between a supportive community and city leadership. Already, Portland is being laughed at by other American cities for losing it! Are the glorious days of the spirit of the Rose Festival gone? Have we lost forever what was in recent years a bright city that millions would come, visit and relocate to? What was once a haven is now a trash heap.
It is high time that we who love our city take our rightful place in leadership rather than sitting back. We must lead the way to return our city to health, positive social justice, and social change.
What is the NEED?
1) Wealth creation for people of color since too many black families have been squeezed out of their homes and businesses by power brokers.
Note: it would take two hundred to two hundred and fifty years to retain, in today’s market, what the black people have lost in the past 50 years.
2) We need black teachers teaching black children the heritage of black history not to lose this precious history in our schools.
3) Black people need their own medical facilities. This topic in itself would take pages to write about.
4) Afro American’s need more control of their own affordable housing; they need ownership and need to be planted back into the soil to which they were accustomed: Reasonably price living conditions.
More about our city: From downtown to the neighborhood (I-5) offramp, we see people crammed into tents and trash strewn helter-skelter. All this represents a people seeking hope while our vested leaders do little to lead and support city-wide healing of this dilemma. Question: is the government of Portland doing all it can to make this degradation well? Are the people we voted in just collecting healthy paychecks without checks and balances to support their success and support in making sound decisions for this city? Do we have people following the financial paper trail representing money spent on governmental paychecks versus creating the immediate financial need for city-wide healing? The Chief of police – and his constituents – including the DOJ and the Attorney General cannot do it all in helping the people left behind. We need people holding high governmental offices to come down to where the rubber meets the road.
Find Your Oasis in the Portland Pre-K Desert
By Ben Earle
The possible closure of Portland’s largest preschool, Childswork Learning Center in Sunnyside serving 250 kids, alongside recent government and university studies indicating that all the state’s counties are becoming various levels of “child-care deserts,” only confirm what anyone with young children has long known – finding child care is a real challenge. And then COVID hit, making everything harder for parents and service providers.
Beyond the venerable word-of-mouth approach, fortunately, there are numerous resources to help locate a daycare or preschool program best suited for both your child’s and your needs.
- Google Maps, MapQuest, and Yelp are always good places to see what might be available nearby.
- Oregon’s Early Learning Division has teamed with Western Oregon University to compile a “Find Child Care Oregon” list of state registered and licensed programs, accessible online or by calling 211Info. Their websites provide step-by-step guides and helpful tips, plus links to a wide range of reports, research, and related info.
- On “The Press” front, both the long-running Portland Parent Magazine and Oregon Live have decent online search tools.
- Of the many listing sites a search for “preschools” or “daycare” in Portland reveals, the locally operated Growing Upwards pops up, along with the more generic Care.com Preschools, Expertise.com 12 Best Portland Preschools, Great Schools, Judy’s Book, Top Oregon Private Daycares and Preschools, Winnie.com, and YP.com, to name but a few. Checking Facebook, NextDoor, and even Craiglist’s “Daycare” section can sometimes also be helpful.
- Though they fill up fast, Portland Public Schools offers some Pre-K classes, as does Portland Parks & Rec. And Head Start now has a couple of east-side locations.
Be sure to check as many sources as possible since no particular one can capture all available options. Just remember to stay diligent, patient, and positive – with a bit of luck, you’ll find a good spot for your special little one that’s cost-effective and within a reasonable striking distance!
Home is Where the Heart is…
By Tess Fields, Executive Director, Home Share Oregon
Oregon is in an affordable housing crisis that threatens a stable future. While many equate homelessness with individuals who are suffering from addiction or mental illness, the reality is most individuals and families who are displaced or housing insecure, are gainfully employed or living on a fixed income.
Win Prizes! Join Library Summer Reading Program
From Multnomah County Library Website
Reading colors your world! Explore a world of science and art activities with the Summer Reading game.
Read for fun and prizes this summer. Babies, kids and teens can play the Summer Reading game by starting a daily reading habit. In addition, the library will have lots of fun interactive virtual performances, storytelling, and arts and crafts for kids and families. It all kicks off June 16.
Continue reading Win Prizes! Join Library Summer Reading Program
iUrban Teen is offering summer activities to teens and adults
iUrban Teen is a STEM+Arts education program that brings together underrepresented teens and young adults for career exploration and mentoring.
Click HERE to view and register and also visit their website at https://iurbanteen.org for more information about their programs and opportunities to donate or work with this great organization
NEW Details: Dawson Park FREE Concert this THURSDAY, July 22 5pm
- MC is the one and only Joe Bean Keller
- Live jazz music by the Yugen Music Project
- Family-friendly event including kids activity area provided by Irvington Co-operative Preschool
- Raffle prizes from the Nike Community Store on MLK
- Learn about Eliot’s history and tell us your story – Storytelling booth
- Give your input for a new intersection/street painting
- Food carts
- Picnic Box offered by Lottie and Zula’s at 120 NE Russell St, 503-333-6923 to order and bring to the event check out the link here: https://checkout.square.site/buy/6UXV2YEQZCDKD5KGTWIAILYO
- BBQ by Eliot Neighborhood Association with meat provided by Cason’s Fine Meats
- Covid Vaccine Clinic offered by REACH of Multnomah County Health Department
- Variety of vendor booths
- After Concert at Ex-Novo at 2326 N Flint and a portion of the Eliot IPA beer sales will go to the Eliot Neighborhood Association
This is the first of 4 events this summer/fall. (Other event dates: August 26, September 16, October 7)
Bring your family and friends and enjoy an evening at Dawson Park. Food available for purchase on-site or pack a picnic and snacks, don’t forget a blanket or low lawn chairs.
We can’t wait to see you all at the event!
To become a volunteer, sponsor, or vendor visit the Concerts page… we’d love you to be a part of this event or one of the 3 upcoming events!
The Untouchable Eliot Mess
By Anonymous
You wake up to the boom of a car stereo or the smell of cigarette smoke wafting through the back bedroom window. Aggressive drivers rev their engines and honk their horns. It sounds like rush hour, but it’s 6 AM, and this is the destination.
All-day long, looking outside is like playing bingo. Across, the headings are categories like violence, drugs, sex, vandalism, and driving.
FREE Dawson Park Concert – Thursday July 22nd
Join us at Dawson Park Thursday, July 22 from 5-8pm for a free jazz concert and family-friendly event. See the flier below for more details and also visit the website CONCERTS page here for more details and to sign up to be a sponsor, vendor, volunteer or just to donate.
We hope to have 3 more events this summer and fall.
Within and Beyond the Borders of Eliot: Murals and Street Art
By Julie Doumbia and Sue Stringer
It’s been a while since we have had a Within and Beyond the Borders of Eliot column. For this issue, we think it’s time for a sequel to the piece the Eliot News did three years ago. There’s a proliferation of new murals and street art in and around our neighborhood. You can also find the map online with links to larger color photos than we could publish in the print version. See the FAQs below the map legend for more information about murals and street art. Photo credits Julie Doumbia and Sue Stringer.
So put on some walking shoes and enjoy a day of wandering through the neighborhood and enjoy the free art show accessible to all. We’re still waiting to get an update on the new mural/art on the building at NE Russell and MLK Blvd., so check back with us in the fall for that one. Also, a mural was approved to be painted on PICA’s and RH Brown’s buildings. Installation starts sometime this summer or fall.
Click the link HERE to navigate to the Google map with all the murals and art and their locations. For a preview of what is on the map see the information below:
1. Women Making History: N Harding Ave and N Interstate Ave sponsored by In Other Words Women’s Books and Resources (closed) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Women_Making_History_in_Portland Artist Robin Corbo
2. Mural plus lots of street art: Ecliptic Brewing Warehouse 2410 N Interstate Artist Pablos Murals https://pablosmurals.com
3. MLK Jr. Mural 627 N Tillamook St: Artist Shane Grammer @shanegrammerarts, https://shanegrammer.com
4. Night Stars, Camping & street art: 2410 N Interstate Ave Ecliptic Brewing warehouse
5. Geometric patterns and scenes: N Mississippi and N Fremont (NE corner)
6. Salmon along a fence: Boise-Eliot-Humboldt Elementary N Borthwick at N Cook St
7. Michelle Obama: residential front door 329 N Fremont St. Artist Dianne Bocci
8. People and aliens: Grains of Wrath 3901 N Williams
9. Tropical fruits and desert-scape: MF Tasty food truck 3925 N Williams Ave
10. Geometric shapes: Parallax apartments 4030 N Williams Ave
11. Urbanscapes: Cook St apartments parking lot access via N Ivy between Williams and Vancouver
12. North Portland Jazz Scene “Unite Us”: Above The Waypost 3120 N Williams Ave
13. Honey in the Bee Ball—I Can’t See Y’all – Medallions: Dawson Park fence N Williams Ave at N Stanton St. Artist Isaka Shamsud-Din
14. Geometric design: Breadwinner Cycles 2323 N Williams Ave
15. Frogs: Port City Gallery (closed) 2170 N Williams
16. Birds: Pacific North Press 16 NE Tillamook St
17. Flowers: Tillamook Row 22 NE Tillamook St
18. “MIKE” (Multicultural Integrated Kidney Education Program) Mural: 1914 NE 7th Ave. Artist Robin Corbo
19. “In My Skin”: PDX RedWall, Oregon First Realty 2106 NE MLK Jr.- Rotating art -current artist Jason Hill
20. “Together” Rotating Mural: Open Signal 2766 NE MLK Jr. Artist: Limei Lai
21. Mural (by students?): Growing Seeds Child Development Center: 2808 NE MLK Jr.
22. “In My America” Flag mural: 2915 NE MLK Jr.
23. Mural and Tiles and Sculpture: Cascadia/Garlington Center NE MLK Jr and NE Morris St. Artists south side bldg. mural –Arvie Smith, panels at the front door on MLK –Jeremy Davis, sculpture by the parking lot –Hillary Pfiefer
24. “Jumptown Video Wall”: The Magnolia apartments 3262 NE MLK Jr. Artist Pamela Chipman. Thomas Robinson and Portland City Archive contributed photos and videos
25. Residential garage mural: 435 NE Cook St. Artist Ryan Bubnis
26. Waves of color: Mothership Music 3611 NE MLK Jr. Artist Pablos Murals
27. “Peace in the Hood”: mural on residential wall 3792 NE MLK Jr.
28. Women and shapes: Luna Wellness 3801 NE MLK Jr
29. Ahmaud Arbery, George Floyd, Breonna Taylor and BLM Protestors mural: North side of Sengatera Ethiopian Restaurant 3833 NE MLK Jr.
30. MESO murals, plant/art piece, garage mural -4008 NE MLK Jr. Artists: Southside -Adia Gibbs, Latoya Lovely, Kyra Watkins, Alex Chiu, Emmanuel Dempsey. Panels/plants -Peg Butler. Northside Isaka Shamsud-Din, Garage – Emmanuel Dempsey
FAQ about Murals and Street Art
What is street art?
- Street art is visual art created in public locations for public visibility.
- Themes may be historic, political, social critique, abstract, etc. depending on the intent of the person commissioning the art or the artist themselves.
Why is street art important? What’s the big deal?
- Street art is a way for an artist to share their perspective and thoughts with the broader community in a very public way. For example, given the rapid gentrification in this part of N/NE Portland and associated demographic shifts, its not surprising that there are historic scenes depicted in street art to remember how the neighborhood used to feel and educate newcomers that there is a lot of history here.
- Protest can take many forms and street art is one way to comment on social or political injustice. Due to its visibility, it can be a powerful way for artists to make their voice heard. For example, after the BLM protest marches began following George Floyd’s murder, many of the plywood panels (bare or chaulked) that started going up in downtown Portland began filling up with images and statements ranging from anti-police messages to motivational quotes and anti-racist statements and images (see https://www.streetroots.org/news/2020/07/11/photos-art-uprising).
- Urban art provides a unique sense of place that attracts happy pedestrians, customers, and employees. Street art contributes greatly to the development of the ‘creative city’ (Portland Street Art Alliance website).
What is the difference between street art and graffiti?
- It can be difficult to cleanly separate these forms at times, but street art tends to be image-based with a community/social commentary or purpose, while graffiti tends to be word-based and may be done for a variety of reasons that vary by person but may include a sense of not belonging, not being heard, resentment, lack of other outlets for creative energy, for the fear/adrenaline, or it be associated with gang activity, to name a few.
Where can I go to learn more about street art?
- Portland Street Art Alliance (pdxstreetart.org) has a lot of great information on their website, including recommended reading and walking tours where you can see many examples of local street art and (legally) try your hand at painting techniques at their location.
I’m interested in commissioning a mural for my property, where can I go to get information?
- If there’s a work you already like, check to see if there’s Instagram or other contact information for the artist. Many artists who have done the Eliot installations are local artists.
Portland Street Art Alliance has a long history of supporting community connections and they can help you scope your project and connect with an artist: http://www.pdxstreetart.org/commissions
FREE Covid Vaccines (2nd dose AND 1st dose also available) Friday, June 18, 11am – 6pm for ages 12 and older
By Desiree S. – University Park resident and Vaccine Event Promoter/Organizer
FREE Covid vaccines are available for ages 12 and up.
This event is for anyone needing their 2nd dose who attended the event back in May. ALSO, anyone else needing their 1st or 2nd dose of the PFIZER Covid vaccine is invited to attend.
This event at Holy Redeemer School (cosponsored by Immunize Oregon, Legacy Health, and Holy Redeemer School) is open to the general public and for those who are eligible for their 1st or 2nd Pfizer Covid Vaccine, ages 12 and up.
There are many appointments still available. Also, walk-ins are welcome. This is not just for North Portland residents, ANY eligible persons who are interested in attending are welcome.
We would greatly appreciate it if you could share with your neighbors by any means (social media, email, etc.)
Thanks, in advance, for your time and consideration!
Place: Holy Redeemer School Gymnasium , 107 N Rosa Parks Way
Date: Friday, June 18
Time: 11 am – 6 pm
Schedule your vaccine: Click HERE
Eliot Neighborhood 