Portland, Oregon

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Portland, Oregon
Flag Seal
Nickname: City of Roses", "Stumptown," "Bridgetown," "PDX
Location in Multnomah County and the state of Oregon
Coordinates: 45°31′12″N, 122°40′55″W
Country	United States
State	Oregon
County	Multnomah County
Incorporated	February 8, 1851
Government
- Mayor	Tom Potter
Area
- City	145.4 sq mi (376.5 km²)
- Land	134.3 sq mi (347.9 km²)
- Water	11.1 sq mi (28.6 km²)
Elevation	50 ft (15.2 m)
Population (2006)
- City	562,690
- Density	3,939/sq mi (1,533/km²)
- Metro	2,095,861
Time zone	PST (UTC-8)
- Summer (DST)	PDT (UTC-7)
Website: http://www.portlandonline.com/

Portland is a city at the confluence of the Willamette and Columbia rivers in the U.S. state of Oregon. With a population of 562,690^[1] it is Oregon's most populous, and the third most populous city in the Pacific Northwest, after Seattle, Washington and Vancouver, British Columbia. Approximately 2 million people live in the surrounding metropolitan area (MSA), the 24th-most populous in the U.S.

Portland was incorporated in 1851 and is the seat of Multnomah County. The city and region are notable for strong land-use planning and investment in public transit, supported by Metro, a distinctive regional-government scheme. Portland lies in the Marine West Coast climate region marked by warm summers and rainy but temperate winters, ideal for roses. Indeed, for more than a century Portland has been known as "The City of Roses," and has many rose gardens, most prominently the International Rose Test Garden. Portland is also known for its large number of microbreweries, and as the home of the Trail Blazers NBA basketball team.

[edit] History

Main article: History of Portland, Oregon

Portland started as a spot known as "the clearing",^[2] which was on the banks of the Willamette about halfway between Oregon City and Fort Vancouver. In 1843, William Overton saw great commercial potential for this land, but lacked the funds required to file a land claim. He struck a bargain with his partner Asa Lovejoy of Boston, Massachusetts: for 25¢, Overton would share his claim to the 640-acre (2.6 km²) site. Overton later sold his half of the claim to Francis W. Pettygrove of Portland, Maine. Pettygrove and Lovejoy both wished to name the new city after their own home town; this was decided with a coin toss, which Pettygrove won.^[3]

At the time of its incorporation on February 8, 1851 Portland had over 800 inhabitants,^[4] a steam sawmill, a log cabin hotel, and a newspaper, the Weekly Oregonian. By 1879, the population had grown to 17,500.^[5]

Portland's location, with access both to the Pacific Ocean via the Willamette and the Columbia rivers and to the agricultural Tualatin Valley via the "Great Plank Road" through a canyon in the West Hills (the route of current-day U.S. Highway 26), gave it an advantage over nearby ports, and it grew quickly.^[6] It remained the major port in the Pacific Northwest for much of the 19th century, until the 1890s, when Seattle's deepwater harbor was connected to the rest of the mainland by rail, affording an inland route without the treacherous navigation of the Columbia River. During this time, corruption in the government allowed for some very unsavory activities to go on as well: "white slavery", specifically including the abduction of men to be used as forced labor on sailing ships, was so common that a network of underground tunnels, the Portland Underground (also known as the "Shanghai Tunnels"), was built to accommodate the practice.^{[citation needed]}

The first known reference to Portland as "The City of Roses" was made by visitors to an 1888 Episcopal Church convention, the nickname growing in popularity after the 1905 Lewis and Clark Centennial Exposition where Mayor Harry Lane suggested that the city needed a "festival of roses"^[7] The first Portland Rose Festival was held two years later, and remains the city's major annual festival a century later.

[edit] Law and government

See also: List of mayors of Portland, Oregon

The city of Portland is governed by the Portland City Council, which includes the Mayor and four other Commissioners; and an auditor. Each is elected citywide to serve a four year term. The auditor provides checks and balances in the commission form of government and accountability for the use of public resources. In addition, the auditor provides access to information for all Council members and the public and issues reports on various matters of city government.

The city's Office of Neighborhood Involvement serves as a conduit between city government and 95 neighborhood associations, which are grouped into seven coalitions.

Portland and its surrounding metropolitan area are also served by Metro, the United States' only directly elected regional government. Metro's charter includes land use and transportation planning, solid waste management, and map development. It also owns and operates the Oregon Convention Center, Oregon Zoo, Portland Center for Performing Arts, and Portland Metropolitan Exposition Center. The Multnomah County government also provides many services to the Portland area, along with that of Washington and Clackamas Counties to the west and south.

[edit] Planning and development

Portland is often cited as an example of a city with strong land use planning controls;^[8] the opposite extreme, a city with few or no controls, is typically illustrated by Houston, Texas. This is largely the result of statewide land conservation policies adopted in 1973 under Governor Tom McCall, in particular the requirement for an urban growth boundary (UGB) for every city and metropolitan area.

Portland's urban growth boundary, adopted in 1979, separates urban areas (where high-density development is encouraged and focused) from traditional farm land (where restrictions on non-agricultural development are very strict^{[citation needed]}). This was atypical in an era when automobile use led many areas to neglect their core cities in favor of development along interstate highways, in suburbs, and satellite cities.

As a result, one can see pastoral farmlands and old red barns within 15 miles of downtown Portland, literally across the street from large suburban developments (where that street is the urban growth boundary.) Opponents argue that this growth boundary has limited growth and increased the costs of housing; proponents argue that it has preserved valuable farmland, made possible the popular farmer's markets in Portland, and brought more efficient public transportation and less traffic than similarly sized cities.

As the population has grown, and undeveloped land inside the urban growth boundary has dwindled, there has been pressure to change or relax the rules. The rapid growth of two major employers in Washington County, namely Nike and Intel, contributed to this pressure.

The original state rules included a provision for expanding urban growth boundaries, but critics felt this wasn't being accomplished. In 1995, the State Legislature ordered cities to expand UGBs to provide enough undeveloped land for a 20 year supply of future housing at projected levels, and to complete the expansion by the end of 1999.^[9]

The Portland Development Commission is a semi-public agency that plays a major role in downtown development; it was created by city voters in 1958 to serve as the city’s urban renewal agency. It provides housing and economic development programs within the city, and works behind the scenes with major local developers to create large projects. It has been criticized for clubbiness and lack of transparency.

In the early 1960s, the PDC led the razing of a large Italian-Jewish neighborhood downtown, bounded roughly by the I-405 freeway, the Willamette River, 4th Avenue and Market street. It was replaced by concrete office developments that proponents find clean and modern, and opponents find antiseptic and lifeless at night.

Mayor Neil Goldschmidt took office in the 1970s as a proponent of bringing housing and the associated vitality back to the downtown area, which was seen as emptying out after 5pm. The effort has had dramatic effects in the 30 years since, with many thousands of new housing units clustered in 3 areas; west of Portland State University (between the I-405 freeway, SW Broadway, and SW Taylor St.); the RiverPlace development along the waterfront under the Marquam (I-5) bridge; and most notably in the Pearl District (between I-405, Burnside St., NW Northrup St., and NW 9th Ave.).

The Urban Greenspaces Institute, housed in Portland State University Geography Department's Center for Mapping Research, promotes better integration of the built and natural environments. The institute works on urban park, trail, and natural areas planning issues, both at the local and regional levels.

In 2006, Portland was ranked overall number 1 of 50 U.S. cities by the organization SustainLane on quality of life and economic factors that affect personal sustainability.^[10]

Since the 1950s, if not earlier, Portland has strongly favored the Democratic Party at all levels of government. Although local elections are nonpartisan, most of the city's elected officials are Democrats. Democrats also dominate the city's delegation to the Oregon Legislature.

Federally, Portland is split between three congressional districts. Most of the city is in the 3rd District, represented by Democrat Earl Blumenauer, who served on the city council from 1986 until his election to Congress in 1996. Most of the city west of the Willamette River is part of the 1st District, represented by Democrat David Wu. A small portion of the city is in the 5th District, represented by Democrat Darlene Hooley. Oregon's senior Senator, Ron Wyden, is from Portland.

[edit] Geography and climate

Portland lies at the northern end of Oregon's most populated region, the Willamette Valley. (As the metropolitan area is culturally and politically distinct from the rest of the valley, local usage often excludes Portland from the valley proper.) Although almost all of Portland lies within Multnomah County, small portions of the city lie within Clackamas and Washington counties, with mid-2005 populations estimated at 785 and 1,455, respectively.^[11] The Willamette River runs north through the city center, separating the southwest and southeast quadrants of the city, before veering slightly northwest to join with the Columbia River (which separates the state of Washington from the state of Oregon) a short distance north of the city.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 145.4 mi² (376.5 km²). 134.3 mi² (347.9 km²) of it is land and 11.1 mi² (28.6 km²), or 7.6%, is water.

Portland lies on top of an extinct Plio-Pleistocene volcanic field known as the Boring Lava Field.^[12] The Lava Field includes at least 32 cinder cones such as Mount Tabor,^[13] and its center lies in Southeast Portland. The potentially active volcano Mount Hood, to the east of Portland, is easily visible from much of the city, and the active volcano Mount Saint Helens, to the north in Washington, is visible in the distance from high-elevation locations in the city, and is close enough to have dusted the city with volcanic ash during its spectacular 1980 eruption.

[edit] Climate

Portland's climate is temperate and seasonal. The rainfall averages 37 inches per year. Portland averages 155 days with measurable precipitation a year. Snowfall is uncommon. Although it lies in the Marine west coast climate zone, Portland shows many characteristics of a Mediterranean climate. The city has mild, wet winters, and hot, dry summers. The summer months (June through September) mark the driest period, averaging no more than one inch of rain per month, but it is not uncommon for summer months to receive little or no precipitation. November through April is the rainy season, with 80% of the total annual rainfall occurring in those months. Winter low temperatures hover around 35 °F (2 °C), and summer highs average around 80 °F (27 °C), however summer heat waves with temperatures exceeding 100 °F (38 °C) do occur. But for the most part, the Portland summers are very pleasant with abundant sunshine. The lowest temperature ever recorded in Portland was −3 °F (−19 °C), set on February 2, 1950. Portland recorded a record high temperature of 107 °F (42 °C) numerous times, and temperatures of 100 °F (38 °C) have been recorded in each of the months from May through September.

Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Avg high °F	46	50	57	62	68	74	80	81	74	63	51	46	63
Avg high °C	8	10	13	16	20	23	27	28	23	17	11	8	17
Avg low °F	37	39	41	44	50	54	58	58	55	48	42	37	47
Avg low °C	3	4	5	7	10	12	14	14	13	9	6	3	8
Rainfall inches	6.24	5.07	4.51	3.62	3.10	2.00	1.60	0.50	0.90	3.39	6.39	6.75	44.07
Rainfall mm	158.5	128.8	114.6	78.7	63.2	50.8	40.6	12.7	22.8	86.1	162.3	171.4	1119

[edit] Sections and neighborhoods

See also: Portland, Oregon neighborhoods

Portland straddles the Willamette River near its confluence with the Columbia River. The denser and earlier-developed west side is mostly hemmed in by the nearby West Hills (Tualatin Mountains), though it extends over them to the border with Washington County. The flatter east side fans out for about 180 blocks, until it meets the suburb of Gresham. Rural Multnomah County lies farther east.

In 1891 the cities of Portland, Albina, and East Portland were consolidated, and duplicate street names were given new names. The "great renumbering" on September 2, 1931 standardized street naming patterns, and changed house numbers from 20 per block to 100 per block. It divided Portland into five sections: Southwest, Southeast, Northwest, North, and Northeast. Burnside St. divides north and south, and the Willamette River divides east and west. The river curves west five blocks north of Burnside and in place of it, Williams Ave. is used as a divider. The North section lies between Williams Ave. and the Willamette River to the west.

The streets of Portland are for the most part laid out on a grid, with named "streets" running perpendicular to the Willamette River and numbered "avenues" running parallel to (and with numbers increasing with distance from) the river. The grid breaks down in hilly regions, particularly in the West Hills, where roads follow the contours of elevation. The "logic" of the grid also breaks down slightly in the North section: it's the only section on the east side where address numbers go higher towards the river. In the rest of the east side, the numbers go higher away from the river.

On the west side, the RiverPlace, John's Landing and South Waterfront Districts lie in a "sixth quadrant" where addresses go higher from west to east toward the river. This "sixth quadrant" is roughly bounded by Naito Parkway and Barbur Boulevard to the west, Montgomery Street to the north and Nevada Street to the south.

[edit] Southwest

Downtown Portland lies in the Southwest section between the I-405 freeway loop and the Willamette River, centered around Pioneer Courthouse Square ("Portland's living room"). Downtown and many other parts of inner Portland have compact square blocks (200 ft [60 m] on a side) and narrow streets (64 ft [20 m] wide), a pedestrian-friendly combination.

Many of Portland's recreational, cultural, educational, governmental, business, and retail resources are concentrated downtown, including:

• South Park Blocks, Pettygrove and Lovejoy Parks, and Tom McCall Waterfront Park
• Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall, Portland Art Museum, and Oregon Historical Society Museum
• Portland City Hall, the Portland Building, Pioneer Courthouse, and Mark O. Hatfield United States Courthouse
• Portland State University, with the largest student body of any in Oregon
• The Meier & Frank Building, Pioneer Place mall, Wells Fargo Center, and the World Trade Center

Beyond downtown, the Southwest section also includes:

• The campuses of Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU), Lewis & Clark College, and Portland Community College/Sylvania
• Neighborhoods like South Portland, South Burlingame, Hillsdale, and Multnomah, with unique residential houses and well defined commercial and retail districts
• Alpenrose Dairy in the Hayhurst neighborhood, the grounds of which host track cycling and Little League sports
• Washington Park, site of North America's deepest transit station, the Oregon Zoo, Hoyt Arboretum, the International Rose Test Garden, the Portland Japanese Garden, the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, and many hiking trails.
• The south Willamette riverfront along SW Macadam Ave., over 100 acres (0.4 km²) of former industrial land. This area is undergoing redevelopment as a mixed-use, high-density neighborhood, with an anticipated 2,700 residential units and 5,000 high-tech jobs after build-out.

[edit] Northwest

Northwest Portland includes the Pearl District, most of Old Town Chinatown, the Northwest District, and various residential and industrial neighborhoods. A range of streets in Northwest Portland are named alphabetically, from Ankeny north to York. (Several characters in Portland native Matt Groening's TV show The Simpsons have names based on these: Ned Flanders, the bully Kearney, Reverend Lovejoy, Mayor Quimby, Sideshow Bob Terwilliger, and possibly C. Montgomery Burns[ide].)

The Pearl District is a recent name for a former warehouse and industrial area just north of downtown. Many of the warehouses have been converted into lofts, and new multistory condominiums have also been developed on previously vacant land. The increasing density has attracted a mix of restaurants, brewpubs, shops, and art galleries. The galleries sponsor simultaneous artists' receptions on the first Thursday of every month.

Between the Pearl District and the Willamette is the Old Town Chinatown neighborhood. It includes Portland's Chinatown, marked by a pair of lions at its entrance at NW 4th Ave. and W Burnside St. and home to the Portland Classical Chinese Garden. Before World War II, this area was known as Japan Town or Little Tokyo; Chinatown was previously located just south of W. Burnside St. along the riverfront.

Further west is the compact but thriving NW 21st and 23rd Avenue restaurant and retail area, the core of the Northwest District. Parts of this area are also called Uptown and Nob Hill. The residential areas adjacent to the shopping district include the Alphabet Historic District (with large Victorian and Craftsman homes built in the years before and shortly after 1900) and a large district centered around Wallace Park. The neighborhood has a mix of Victorian-era houses, apartment buildings from throughout the 20th century, and various businesses centered around Legacy Good Samaritan Medical Center. The Portland Streetcar connects Nob Hill to downtown, via the Pearl.

West of the developed areas is the northern portion of Portland's West Hills, including the majority of extensive Forest Park.

[edit] North

North Portland is a diverse mixture of residential, commercial, and industrial areas. It includes the Portland International Raceway, the University of Portland, and massive cargo facilities of the Port of Portland. Slang-names for it include "NoPo" (shortened from North Portland) and "the Fifth Quadrant" (for being the odd-man out from the four-cornered logic of SE, NE, SW, and NW).

North Portland is connected to the industrial area of Northwest Portland by the St. Johns Bridge, a 2,067 ft long suspension bridge completed in 1931 and extensively rehabilitated in 2003-5.

During World War II, a planned development named Vanport was constructed to the north of this section between the city limits and the Columbia River. It grew to be the second largest city in Oregon, but was wiped out by a disastrous flood in 1948. Columbia Villa, another wartime housing project in the Portsmouth Neighborhood, is being rebuilt; the new $150 million community will be known as New Columbia and will offer public housing, rental housing, and single family home ownership units. Since 2004, a light rail line runs along Interstate Avenue, which parallels I-5, stopping short of crossing the Columbia River.

[edit] Northeast

Northeast Portland contains a diverse collection of neighborhoods. For example, while Irvington and the Alameda Ridge boast some of the oldest and most expensive homes in Portland, nearby King is a more working-class neighborhood. Because it is so large, Northeast Portland can essentially be divided ethnically, culturally, and geographically into inner and outer sections. The inner Northeast neighborhoods that surround Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd. were once predominantly African American, resembling typical urban inner-city environments found in most major U.S. cities. That is now changing due to the process of gentrification. Inner Northeast includes several shopping areas, such as the Lloyd District, Alberta Arts District and Hollywood, and part of the affluent Irvington, Alameda, and Laurelhurst neighborhoods and nearby developments. The city plan targets Lloyd District as another mixed-use area, with high-density residential development.

At the base of Northeast is the Rose Quarter. It is named after the Rose Garden Arena, home of the Portland Trail Blazers, and also includes the Blazers' former home, the Memorial Coliseum. The Coliseum is the home to Portland's hockey team, the Portland Winter Hawks, of the Western Hockey League, though they often play at the Rose Garden. The newest Rose Quarter tenants are the LumberJax of the National Lacrosse League. The city still holds the lease to the land and owns the Coliseum, but the Rose Garden and other buildings were owned by private business interests until they went into receivership. The area is quite active during the teams' home games, and the city hopes to extend the activity by promoting a major increase in residential units in the quarter using zoning and tax incentives.

[edit] Southeast

Southeast Portland stretches from the warehouses by the Willamette, through the historic Ladd's Addition, to the Hawthorne and Belmont districts. Southeast Portland residents initially tended to the blue-collar but have since evolved into a wide mix of backgrounds; inner southeast is home to several thriving subcultures including Hippies, Hipsters, and environmentalists, while the outer edges are populated by a diverse, largely working-class population which includes immigrant communities from Eastern Europe and Southeast Asia. The Hawthorne district is known for its hippie/radical crowd and small subculturally oriented shops.

Between the 1920s and the 1960s, Southeast was home to Lambert Gardens. Southeast Portland also features Mt. Tabor, an extinct volcano that has become one of Portland’s more scenic and popular parks.

[edit] People and culture

[edit] Demographics

Historical populations
Census	Pop.		%±
1850	821		–
1860	2,874		250.1%
1870	8,293		188.6%
1880	17,577		111.9%
1890	46,385		163.9%
1900	90,426		94.9%
1910	207,214		129.2%
1920	258,288		24.6%
1930	301,815		16.9%
1940	305,394		1.2%
1950	373,628		22.3%
1960	372,676		-0.3%
1970	382,619		2.7%
1980	366,383		-4.2%
1990	437,319		19.4%
2000	529,121		21.0%

(footnotes for table)^[4][14][11]

As of 2000, there are 529,121 people residing in the city, organized into 223,737 households and 118,356 families. The population density is 1,521/km² (3,939.2/mi²). There are 237,307 housing units at an average density of 682.1/km² (1,766.7/mi²). The racial makeup of the city is 77.91% White, 6.64% African American, 6.33% Asian, 1.06% Native American, 0.38% Pacific Islander, 3.55% from other races, and 4.15% from two or more races. 6.81% of the population are Hispanic or Latino of any race.

Out of 223,737 households, 24.5% have children under the age of 18 living with them, 38.1% are married couples living together, 10.8% have a female householder with no husband present, and 47.1% are non-families. 34.6% of all households are made up of individuals and 9% have someone living alone who is 65 years of age or older. The average household size is 2.3 and the average family size is 3.

In the city the population is spread out with 21.1% under the age of 18, 10.3% from 18 to 24, 34.7% from 25 to 44, 22.4% from 45 to 64, and 11.6% who are 65 years of age or older. The median age is 35 years. For every 100 females there are 97.8 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there are 95.9 males.

The median income for a household in the city is $40,146, and the median income for a family is $50,271. Males have a reported median income of $35,279 versus $29,344 reported for females. The per capita income for the city is $22,643. 13.1% of the population and 8.5% of families are below the poverty line. Out of the total population, 15.7% of those under the age of 18 and 10.4% of those 65 and older are living below the poverty line. Oregon has a 9% income tax which tends to suppress accurate reporting. Figures delineating the income levels based on race are not available at this time.

Portland is becoming increasingly diverse. Recent trends have more young people moving into the city as older, more established white families with children move to the suburbs^{[citation needed]}. Although the city has the highest percentage of white residents of an American city of 500,000 or more, 60% of people moving to Oregon are non-white^{[citation needed]}.

However, though the population of the city is increasing, the total population of children is diminishing, which has put pressure on the public school system to close schools. A 2005 study found that Portland is now educating fewer children than it did in 1925, despite the city's population having almost doubled since then, and the city will have to close the equivalent of three to four elementary schools each year for the next decade.^[15]

Portland's public school system has remained racially imbalanced. As of the 2000 census, three of its high schools (Cleveland, Lincoln and Wilson) were over 70% white, while Jefferson High School was 86% non-white. The remaining four schools are more ethnically balanced.^[16]

The imbalance can be explained through Portland's demographic history. Prior to the Second World War, Portland had very few residents of non-European ethnicity. This was primarily due to the fact that Portland (and Oregon as a state) was a Sundown town for much of its history.^{[citation needed]} In 1940, Portland's African-American population was approximately 2,000 and largely consisted of railroad employees and their families. During the war-time liberty ship construction boom, the need for workers drew many blacks to the city. Due to institutionalized racism in the real-estate community at the time, this new influx of blacks was guided to specific neighborhoods, such as the Albina district and Vanport. The post-war destruction of Vanport eliminated the only integrated neighborhood, and the ghettoization of blacks into the NE quadrant of the city continued.

[edit] Media

The Oregonian is the only daily general-interest newspaper serving Portland, and circulates statewide.

Smaller local newspapers, distributed free of charge in newspaper boxes and at venues around the city, include the Portland Tribune (general-interest paper publishing twice a week), Willamette Week (general-interest alternative weekly), the The Portland Mercury (another weekly, targeted at younger urban readers), The Asian Reporter (a weekly covering Asian news, both international and local), and The Portland Chinese Times (a Chinese-language weekly).

Portland Indymedia is one of the oldest and largest Independent Media Centers. The Portland Alliance, a largely anti-authoritarian socialist monthly, is the largest radical print paper in the city. Just Out, published in Portland twice monthly, is the region's foremost LGBT publication.

Portland Monthly is a monthly news and culture magazine. The Portland Business Journal, a weekly, covers business-related news, as does The Daily Journal of Commerce. BarFly Magazine is a popular weekly periodical covering the city's nightlife and bar scene. Exotic Magazine is the major monthly magazine covering the city's adult entertainment and nightlife since 1993. The Mid-county Memo is a neighborhood newspaper serving the Gateway and Parkrose neighborhoods on Portland's east side. PORT is an art macroblog dedicated to the vibrant art scene that provides daily updates on the arty goings on around town. Oregon Business magazine covers business from a statewide perspective. Oregon Home magazine is the region's remodeling and decor publication.

Portland is well served by television and radio. The metro area is the 23rd largest Designated Market Area (DMA) in the U.S., consisting of 1,086,900 homes and 0.992% of the U.S. market. The major network television affiliates include:

• KATU 2 (ABC)
• KOIN 6 (CBS)
• KGW 8 Northwest NewsChannel 8 (NBC)
• KOPB-TV 10 Oregon Public Broadcasting (PBS)
• KPTV 12 Fox 12 Oregon(FOX)
• KPXG 22 (i)
• KRCW 32 (The CW)
• KPDX 49 (MyNetworkTV)
• KWVT-LP 52 (America One)
• KPXG-LP 54 (i)

See also: List of radio stations in Oregon

[edit] Parks and attractions

See also: Tourist attractions in or around Portland, Oregon

Portland is proud of its parks and its legacy of preserving open spaces. Parks and Greenspace planning dates back to John Charles Olmsted's 1903 Report to the Portland Park Board, inspiring generations of urban greenspace advocates.^{[citation needed]} In 1995, voters in the Portland metropolitan region passed a regional bond measure to acquire valuable natural areas for fish, wildlife, and people. Ten years later, more than 8,100 acres of ecologically valuable natural areas had been purchased and permanently protected for the public.^[17]

Portland along with Bend, Oregon are the only cities in the contiguous U.S. with extinct volcanos within their boundaries. Mt. Tabor Park was inadvertently built on one of Portland's; it is known for its scenic views and historic reservoirs.^[18]

Forest Park is among the largest wilderness parks within city limits in the United States, covering over 5,000 acres (20 km²). Portland is also home to Mill Ends Park, the world's smallest park (a two-foot-diameter circle, the park's area is only about 0.3 square meters). Washington Park is just west of downtown, and is home to the Oregon Zoo, the Portland Japanese Garden, and the International Rose Test Garden.

Tom McCall Waterfront Park runs along the west bank of the Willamette for the length of downtown. The 37-acre (150,000 m²) park was built in 1974 after Harbor Drive was removed and now plays host to large events throughout the year. Portland's downtown also features two groups of contiguous city blocks dedicated for park space; they are referred to as the North and South Park Blocks.

The only state park in Portland is Tryon Creek State Park; its creek still has a run of steelhead. Adjacent to the park is the Tryon Life Community Farm, an aspiring urban ecovillage and educational center.

The Beverly Cleary Sculpture Garden, which immortalizes three of the award-winning author's best known characters with bronze sculptures, quote plaques, and a fountain, is located in Grant Park, just a few blocks from the real Klickitat Street of "Henry Huggins" fame.

Leach Botanical Garden is a 15.6 acre botanical garden in the Southeast section of the city, emphasizing plants of the Pacific Northwest.

Crystal Springs Rhododendron Garden is a 9.49 acre garden in the Southeast section of the city, adjoining Reed College, featuring more than 2,500 rhododendron, azalea, and companion plants.

Hoyt Arboretum is a much-beloved Portland open space, covering 185 ridge-top acres about two miles west of downtown. It is home to a collection of trees representing more than 1.100 species gathered from around the world.

Audubon Society of Portland, founded 1903, is one of the largest local Audubon chapters in the country with over 10,000 members. The Chapter's book store, wildlife care center, and administrative offices are located on a 143 acre sanctuary nestled against Forest Park only 5 minutes from downtown Portland. The sanctuary trails are open to the public.

[edit] Arts and culture

Portland is home to a diverse array of artists and arts organizations, and was named in 2006 by American Style magazine as the 10th best Big City Arts Destination in the U.S.

Major performing arts institutions include the Oregon Ballet Theatre, Oregon Symphony, Portland Center Stage, and the Portland Opera. Over 75 other arts organizations produce theatre, music, dance, folk art, media arts in Portland, helping Portland achieve its reputation as an arts destination for cultural tourists.

The Portland Art Museum owns the city's largest art collection and presents a variety of touring exhibitions each year. Art galleries abound downtown and in the Pearl District, as well as in the Alberta Arts District and other neighborhoods throughout the city. Other organizations displaying visual arts include the Portland Art Center, Disjecta, and Portland Institute for Contemporary Art (PICA).

The Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (OMSI) is located on the east bank of the Willamette River across from downtown Portland, and contains a variety of hands-on exhibits covering the physical sciences, life science, earth science, technology, astronomy, and early childhood education. OMSI also has an OMNIMAX Theater and is home to the USS Blueback (SS-581) submarine (which was featured in the film The Hunt for Red October).

Portland is also home to Portland Classical Chinese Garden, an authentic representation of a Suzhou-style walled garden. Local construction workers provided the site preparation and foundation, and dozens of workers from Suzhou, using material from China, constructed its walls and other structures, including a tea house.

Portlandia, a statue on the west side of the Portland Building, is the second-largest hammered-copper statue in the U.S. Portland's public art is managed by the Regional Arts & Culture Council.

[edit] Beer

Portland is well-known for its beer. It is often said that Portland is the home of the microbrew revolution in the United States. Some illustrate Portlanders' interest in the beverage by an offer made in 1888, when local brewer Henry Weinhard volunteered to pump beer from his brewery into the newly dedicated Skidmore Fountain. However, the renown for quality beer dates to the 1980s, when state law was changed to allow consumption of beer on brewery premises. In short order, microbreweries and brewpubs began to pop up all over the city. Their growth was supported by the abundance of local ingredients, including two-row barley, over a dozen varieties of hops, and pure water from the Bull Run Watershed.

Today, with 28 breweries within the city, Portland is home to more breweries than any other city in the country, and possibly the world.^[19] The McMenamin brothers alone have over thirty brewpubs, distilleries, and wineries scattered throughout the metropolitan area, several in renovated theaters and other old buildings otherwise destined for demolition. Other notable Portland brewers include Widmer Brothers, BridgePort, and Hair of the Dog, as well as numerous smaller quality brewers. In 1999, author Michael "Beerhunter" Jackson called Portland a candidate for the beer capital of the world because the city boasted more breweries than Cologne, Germany. The Portland Oregon Visitors Association is promoting "Beervana" and "Brewtopia" as nicknames for the city.^[20] In mid-January of 2007, Mayor Tom Potter officially gave the city a new nickname-- Beertown.^[21]

Portland hosts a number of festivals throughout the year in celebration of beer, including the Oregon Brewers Festival.^[22] Held each July, it is the largest gathering of independent craft brewers in North America. Other major beer festivals throughout the calendar year are: the Spring Beer and Wine Festival in April,^[23] the Portland International Beerfest in July, and the Holiday Ale Festival in December.

An unusual feature of Portland entertainment is the large number of movie theaters that serve beer, often with second-run or revival films. Examples include the Academy Theater, Bagdad Theater, Clinton Street Theater, Edgefield, Kennedy School, Laurelhurst Theater, and Mission Theater.

[edit] Sports

Main article: Sports in Portland, Oregon

Portland has one major league sports team (the Trail Blazers) and a variety of minor league teams. Running is a major sport in the metropolitan area, which hosts the Portland Marathon and much of the Hood to Coast Relay (the world's largest such event). Skiing and snowboarding are also highly popular, with a number of nearby resorts on Mount Hood, including year-round Timberline.

It was formerly home to the Portland Rosebuds of the Pacific Coast Hockey Association, the first professional sports team in Oregon and the first professional hockey team in the U.S.

Club	Sport	League	Championships	Home Venue	Founded
Portland Trail Blazers	Basketball	National Basketball Association	1 (1976-77)	Rose Garden Arena	1970
Portland Timbers	Soccer	United Soccer Leagues First Division	0	PGE Park	2001
Portland Winter Hawks	Ice Hockey	Western Hockey League	2 (1982-83, 1997-98)	Rose Garden Arena, Memorial Coliseum	1976
Portland Naughty Dogs	Paintball	National Professional Paintball League	Multiple tournaments	None	1996
Portland Beavers	Baseball	Pacific Coast League	0	PGE Park	2001
Rose City Rollers	Roller Derby	Women's Flat Track Derby Association	0	Portland Metropolitan Exposition Center	2004
Portland Chinooks	Basketball	International Basketball League	0	Multiple arenas	2005
Portland LumberJax	Indoor lacrosse	National Lacrosse League	0	Rose Garden Arena	2006
Portland Wolfpack	Mixed Martial Arts	International Fight League	0	Rose Garden Arena	2006

[edit] Popular culture

Main article: Portland, Oregon in popular culture

Portland is well known as a hub of American youth culture. It has produced many artists of significant impact within their respective fields, including The Dandy Warhols, Everclear, Pink Martini, The Shins, Elliott Smith, and The Decemberists (music); Matt Groening and Gus Van Sant (film/television); Beverly Cleary, Katherine Dunn, Ursula K. Le Guin, and Chuck Palahniuk (literature); SuicideGirls (erotica).

[edit] Famous residents

See also: List of Portlanders

[edit] Education

[edit] Public education

The Portland Public Schools district consists of about 100 schools covering in various combinations grades K through 12, as well as 50 special education programs. The number of students in the school district is approximately 53,000 — over 90% of the available school-age children, a higher percentage than other large urban school districts.^[24][25] Nonetheless, total school enrollment is declining, accompanying a change in Portland's demographics, and the Portland Public Schools are facing increasing budget pressure.

Notable public high schools include: Grant High School, Woodrow Wilson High School, Lincoln High School, Cleveland High School, Jefferson High School, Metropolitan Learning Center and Benson Polytechnic High School. Lincoln, the oldest public high school west of the Mississippi River, was built in 1869 and boasts several famous alumni, including cartoon voice Mel Blanc, singer-songwriter Elliott Smith, Matt Groening (creator of The Simpsons) and astronaut S. David Griggs. Both Lincoln and Cleveland draw many students due to the International Baccalaureate program. Phil Knight, the founder of Nike, graduated from Cleveland. Benson is a citywide magnet high school named for lumber baron and social entrepreneur Simon Benson, who in 1917 endowed the school with a grant worth $1.5 million in 2006 dollars.

School districts in the suburbs include: to the east, Parkrose, Centennial, Gresham, Reynolds Schools, and David Douglas; to the west, Beaverton, Tigard-Tualatin, Lake Oswego, and Riverdale; to the south, North Clackamas, West Linn-Wilsonville, and Oregon City; to the north, Vancouver and Evergreen.

The region also has several top private schools, including: the Catlin Gabel School, Central Catholic High School, French American International School, Jesuit High School, The Northwest Academy, Oregon Episcopal School, St. Mary's Academy, Waldorf School, and Valley Catholic High School. Portland is also home to Montessori Institute Northwest, an internationally recognized (AMI) teacher training facility, and the city and nearby suburbs are known as a nexus for Montessori education from preschool through junior high.

[edit] Colleges and universities

Portland State University, with graduate and undergraduate enrollment of around 26,000, is Oregon's largest university. Its primary campus is at the southern edge of downtown. PSU has masters programs in liberal arts, business, engineering, computer science, performing arts, social work and urban affairs. PSU's doctoral programs include biology, civil engineering, education, electrical & computer engineering, computer science, environmental sciences, mathematics, mathematics education, psychology, public administration, urban studies, social work, sociology, systems sciences and technology management.

Oregon Health and Science University (OHSU) includes a major medical school (see below), and several major research departments, including: Vollum Institute for Advanced Biomedical Research, Neurological Sciences Institute, Center for Research on Occupational and Environmental Toxicology, Oregon National Primate Research Center, Advanced Imaging Research Center, Center for Biostatistics, Computing & Informatics in Biology & Medicine, Center for the Study of Weight Regulation and Associated Disorders, Oregon Stem Cell Center, Vaccine and Gene Therapy Institute, and the Oregon Graduate Institute School of Science and Engineering.

Portland Community College has three major campuses in the city—Cascade, Rock Creek, and Sylvania—as well as the smaller Southeast Center and Metropolitan Workforce Training Center.

Private colleges and universities include: Cascade College, Capstone College, Concordia University, Lewis & Clark College (including Lewis & Clark Law School), Multnomah Bible College and Biblical Seminary, University of Portland, Reed College, Warner Pacific College, and Portland Bible College.

Other: Concorde Career Institute and Western Culinary Institute.

[edit] Medical schools

OHSU has a major medical, dental, and nursing school at its primary campus just south of downtown, in the West Hills. The campus anchors a medical district (affectionately called "Pill Hill") surrounded by other hospitals including a Veterans Affairs Hospital, Portland Shriners Hospital, and Doernbecher Children's Hospital.

OHSU has residency training programs in the following disciplines: Anesthesiology, Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Internal Medicine, Dentistry, Dermatology, Diagnostic Radiology, Emergency Medicine, Family Medicine, General Surgery, Medical Genetics, Neurology, Neurological Surgery, Nursing, Obstetrics and Gynecology, Ophthalmology, Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery, Orthopaedic Surgery, Otolaryngology/Head and Neck Surgery, Pathology, Pediatrics, Psychiatry, and Public Health and Preventive Medicine.

Schools of alternative medicine include Oregon College of Oriental Medicine, the National College of Naturopathic Medicine, and Western States Chiropractic College.

[edit] Art schools

These include the Art Institute of Portland, Pacific Northwest College of Art, Oregon College of Art and Craft, and Northwest Film Center.

[edit] Transportation

Main article: Transportation in Portland

The Portland metropolitan area has the typical transportation services common to major U.S. cities, though Oregon's emphasis on proactive land-use planning and transit-oriented development within the urban growth boundary means that commuters have multiple well-developed options.

TriMet operates most of the region's buses and the Metropolitan Area Express, or MAX, light rail system, which connects the city and suburbs. 5th and 6th avenues used to be the Portland Transit Mall, devoted primarily to bus traffic (soon light rail) with limited automobile access, running north/south through downtown. During construction of the new Portland Transit Mall, busses have been moved to 3rd and 4th avenues respectively, and 5th and 6th avenues have been closed for construction between West Burnside Street and about Southwest Clay.

I-5 connects Portland with the Willamette Valley, Southern Oregon, and California to the south and with Washington to the north. I-405 forms a loop with I-5 around the central downtown area of the city and I-205 is a loop freeway route on the east side which connects to the Portland International Airport. US 26 supports commuting within the metro area and continues to the Pacific Ocean westward and Mount Hood and Central Oregon eastward. US 30 has a main, bypass and business route through the city extending to Astoria, Oregon to the west; through Gresham, Oregon, and the eastern exurbs, and connects to I-84, traveling towards Boise, Idaho.

Portland's main airport is Portland International Airport, located about 20 minutes by car (40 minutes by MAX) northeast of downtown. Scheduled international flights depart to Japan (Tokyo), Singapore, Germany (Frankfurt), Mexico (Guadalajara, Mexico City, Cabo San Lucas, and Puerto Vallarta), and Canada (Vancouver, British Columbia).

Amtrak, the national passenger rail system, provides service to Portland at Union Station on three routes. Long-haul train routes include the Coast Starlight (with service from Los Angeles to Seattle) and the Empire Builder (with service from Portland to Chicago.) The Amtrak Cascades commuter trains operate between Vancouver, British Columbia and Eugene, Oregon, and serve Portland several times daily in both directions.

Portlanders have other transportation alternatives. The Portland Streetcar operates from the southern waterfront, through Portland State University north to nearby homes and shopping districts. The city is particularly supportive of urban bicycling and has been recognized by the League of American Bicyclists among others for its network of paths and other bicycle-friendly services. Car sharing through Flexcar is also available to residents of the city and some inner suburbs. The new Portland Aerial Tram connects the South Waterfront district on the Willamette River and the Oregon Health & Science University campus on Marquam Hill above. Construction of the tram was completed in December 2006.

Bicycling is a popular transportation and commuting option in Portland. The Bicycle Transportation Alliance sponsors an annual Bicycle Commute Challenge, in which thousands of commuters compete for prizes and recognition based on the length and frequency of their commutes.^[26]

[edit] Nicknames

The most common nickname for Portland is "The City of Roses".^[7] Other nicknames for Portland include "Stumptown" (due to early logging to clear land for development^[27]), "Bridgetown" (due to its numerous bridges^[28]), "Puddletown" (due to the rainy weather), "\City officials are promoting Portland's thriving microbrewery industry with the nicknames "Beervana", "Brewtopia", and "Beertown".^[20][29]

Former US President George H. W. Bush used to refer to Portland as "Little Beirut" because of the protesters he encountered during his visits.^[30]

[edit] See also

• Architecture in Portland, Oregon
• List of artists and art institutions in Portland, Oregon
• List of hospitals in Portland, Oregon
• Portland metropolitan area
• Downtown Portland

[edit] Sister cities

Portland has eleven sister cities, as designated by Sister Cities International:

Portland also has a friendship city relationship with Tallinn, Estonia.^[31]

[edit] References

[edit] Further reading

• Chuck Palahniuk, Fugitives and Refugees: A Walk in Portland, Oregon. Crown, 2003. ISBN 1-4000-4783-8
• Stewart Holbrook, The Far Corner. Comstock Editions, 1952. ISBN 0-89174-043-0
• E. Kimbark MacColl, The Shaping of a City: Business and Politics in Portland, Oregon 1885 to 1915. Portland: Georgian Press, 1976. OCLC 2645815 ASIN B0006CP2A0
• E. Kimbark MacColl, The Growth of a City: Power and Politics in Portland, Oregon 1915 to 1950. Portland: Georgian Press, 1979. ISBN 0-9603408-1-5
• Jewel Lansing, Portland: People, Politics, and Power, 1851-2001. Oregon State University Press, 2003. ISBN 978-0870715594

[edit] External links

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• City of Portland, Oregon
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[edit] Portland wiki sites

• PortlandWiki
• WikiWikiWeb installed by Howard Cunningham from Beaverton
• Portland (Oregon) travel guide from Wikitravel
• Laurelhurst Neighborhood

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