If you have a 3- or 4-year-old, your child can receive free preschool through Preschool for All. Applications are now open through April 30 for the 2026–27 school year.
Seats are available across the county, and all families are eligible. The most important step is to apply.
You can choose the preschool programs that feel like the best fit for your child, including community-based centers, home-based programs, and school classrooms.
Choose your preferred programs. You can choose up to eight.
Submit one application per child
The application is available in six languages, and you can get free, one-on-one help if you need it. Just reach out to pfa.support@multco.us
After you apply, you may receive a placement offer by email. If one of your top choices isn’t available right away, your child will be placed on waitlists for the programs you selected.
Apply by May 14 to be included— it only takes a few minutes to get started.
The Eliot Land Use and Transportation Committee is Cancelled for May
Eliot Dumpster Day is coming this Saturday 10am-2pm – On Graham Street between N Williams and N Vancouver (on a Legacy Emanuel Hospital Parking Lot). This is the cheapest way to get rid of your stuff all year.
The Eliot News is out! Check your mailbox for your copy.
Albina Library will close to the public starting May 18, 2026 to install brand-new lighting, door operators, artwork and more. The construction will last through May 24 and the library will reopen on May 26, following the Memorial Day holiday.
Midland Library will close to the public on May 26, 2026 to install upgrades to the restrooms, the sewer line, the community gallery and more. Please note Midland will also be closed on Monday, May 25 for the Memorial Day holiday. The library will reopen on June 7, 2026.
During these brief closures, due dates will be extended and holds will stay on the holds shelf an extra week. Patrons do not need to change their holds location. If there are questions about due dates and holds, patrons may contact the library directly.
At Albina, updates include:
A refinished Knott Street entry with refinished doors, wood panels and new accessible door operators.
Accessible door openers on the ADA restrooms, terrace and courtyard doors.
Lighting for the hanging sculptures in the Russell Street lobby.
New exterior sculptures from artist Greg Robinson from the Regional Arts & Culture Council.
Contingency funds that benefit the community
Multnomah County Library is hard at work to build, expand and renovate library spaces for the public as a result of the voter-approved 2020 Multnomah County Library Capital Bond. Most of the newest upgrades at Albina are part of the contingency funds through the library capital bond projects. These funds are the result of completing a library project and using the project savings that come from good financial stewardship.
The library bond project teams have adhered to cautious financial management of the projects due to increased materials costs as a result of inflation during COVID-19 and beyond. The Library has remained committed to staying within budget and time constraints.
The community is invited to use alternate locations while Albina is closed:
Have you ever driven past the train-station shaped building at the intersection of N Vancouver and N Russel and wondered “What’s going on inside that building?” The answer is more delightful than you might imagine.
Inside the Columbia Gorge Model Railroad Historical Society in the Eliot Neighborhood is a 60’ x 70’ HO-scale model of the Gorge, complete with intricately detailed models of Union Station, the Vista House, Multnomah Falls, in situ. HO scale trains, both steam and diesel, traverse the detailed landscape, which stretches from Portland to Bend.
As you enter the layout, you’re first greeted by miniature Portland, set in 1957, complete with the society’s newest building (built in 2025) – Portland’s own Franz Bakery with its spinning loaf. In this miniature world where people stand just ¾ inch tall, no detail has been spared. Amusement rides really spin at Oaks Park, an animated woodchopper chops logs in Hood River, and coal cars transport fuel along the Oregon Trunk Line.
The diverse group of Portlanders that maintains the layout comes from all walks of life – the oldest member is in their 90’s and the youngest members are just 12 years old. The Historical Society’s 140 members meet every Tuesday evening, at which time the public can pre-arrange to visit the layout, or attend a meeting to consider joining the society. Without a doubt, however, the best time to visit the layout in action, with trains galore, is during their biannual Open House, taking place in May and November.
The next CGMRHS Open House is Saturday, May 2nd and Sunday May 3rd, from 10 am – 5 pm. Tickets are available online and pre-purchase is encouraged: www.cgmrhs.org. Tickets are $12 for adults, $5 for kids aged 3 – 12, and free for under 3 years.
Albina Vision Trust and the City of Portland are hosting a community workshop as part of the Reconnecting Albina Planning Project, an ongoing effort to shape the future of Lower Albina through community voice.
The April 30th workshop builds on the December 2025 Open House and will include project updates and facilitated discussions on open space, connectivity, future development, and community history and identity. Current neighbors, those with historical ties to Albina, and anyone with a stake in the area’s future are encouraged to attend.
In the southwest corner of Eliot at 501 N Dixon St. lies the Matthew Prophet Education Center. Completed in 1979, this building is home base for Portland Public Schools.
In recent years, PPS has been open to selling the Prophet Center. Some serious proposals for the site have included a Costco warehouse store and an eastside mirror of the Pearl District, but all of them struck out.
Portland Diamond Project also briefly considered this location opposite the Pearl. The idea of Major League Baseball in Eliot did not come out of left field: it was the second organized effort.
Service on line 24- Fremont/NW 18th is changing March 1st
– N Kerby Ave and N Russell St will be eliminated for faster trips between North, Northeast and Northwest Portland.
Note: map updated January 13.
Map shows part of north Portland from N Russell St to N Fremont, with details of the old route for bus Line 24 side-by-side with the new route. The old route travels from the Fremont Bridge, down Kerby, turns east at Russell, and forms a loop on Vancouver and Williams past Russell, Knott, Graham, Stanchion, Morris, Monroe, Fargo, Cook, and Ivy before turning at N Fremont St. The new route eliminates the turn on Kerby, and instead continues generally east from the Fremont Bridge to N Fremont S, where it turns onto Vancouver, then Morris, then Williams, to form a loop back to Fremont. Stops 14099 and 14031 will be closed, and the following stops will no longer be included on Line 24: 5997, 6006, 6364 and 6362. Stop 5984 at Red Cross will become an eastbound stop to Gateway Transit Center.
It looks like there will still be connections from line #24 to lines #4 and #44.
Many Eliot residents will have a longer walk to get to line #24
Where: Meet at Harder Day Coffee on MLK and Tillamook. 2031 NE Martin Luther King Jr Blvd, Portland, OR 97212
What:
We will walk North along MLK and talk about the benefits of adding street parking along the majority of the corridor to revitalize the street, improve business access and calm traffic.
We will do some data collection about vacant spaces
We may post some flyers
We will also talk about the places, spaces and buildings and the spots that could be future places.
Walking tour 2/21 3pm – StrongTownPDX, L&C Students
MLK Grant exists – upgrading crosswalks. Was at city council recently
Discuss the Lloyd Center Master Plan – there’s been some opposition to demolishing the mall. Do we want to take a position on the project and send a letter to the city?
Motion 3-0 – Anders will send a letter supporting redevelopment
Update on Parking District
City Council has this on their radar after we sent a letter
Current parking price of $5/hr is not reducing on-street occupancy the way we want
The city is doing parking studies
Any other topics you are interested in
Dawson Park street closure or parking removal- why no action from the city. Individuals will follow up
