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Issue #23
Posted April 28, 2008
Serving Hillsdale. Supported by The Hillsdale Alliance
In This Issue
Food Front seeks key
Dava Bead closing here
Learning center opens
SOLV/SWNI clean-up
Remington commentary


Commentary:

In the name
of neighborhood

It's self-disclosure time again. I've told you before that I see this community through several lenses, starting with the fact (and potential conflict)  that I am a journalist and an activist.

I edit and write this newsletter, and I also serve on the board of the Hillsdale Neighborhood Association, just for starters.

Because I see Hillsdale from varying perspectives, I think about whether our community is being portrayed accurately. More than that, I grapple with the meaning of community, both as a word and as a concept.

When I hear someone say "the community approves of that," or "the neighborhood supports this," I grit my teeth.

Who speaks for Hillsdale? Who speaks for the community? Do we, as a collection of residents and business owners agree on anything?

Broadly speaking, probably.

But when it comes down to specifics (the placement of solar panels, whether higher density housing is good, the design of gateway signs, speed bumps or whether private parking lots should be shared among businesses), we may well disagree.

When specific proposals come before the Hillsdale Neighborhood Association or the Hillsdale Business and Professional Association, those present will vote to approve or disapprove.

The problem comes with how that vote, by 20 or 30 people, is portrayed. Often it is communicated by word of mouth and takes the form of "The neighborhood approves of that" or "the business community opposes this."

It sounds as though someone is speaking for you and me.

But if you have never  been asked for your opinion, indeed, if you were unaware of the issue, you might rightly feel you, and your neighbors, are being misrepresented.

School and city officials, who have worked with neighborhood associations and business associations understand this "shorthand," but others may not. Moreover, the literal meaning of "the neighborhood agrees" must certainly add weight, never mind what the neighborhood actually believes - if it believes anything about the topic.

Recently I have begun to speak out against this sort of misrepresentation. I do not want some vote I cast as a neighborhood association board member to be construed as anything more than what it is -my vote, not yours.

And when you serve on the board (PLEASE do!) and I no longer do, I don't want your vote to be construed as mine.

The neighborhood association system is participatory. The good news is that anyone can participate. The bad news is that few do, and so the system is often trivialized.

The mayor's charter commission had a chance to empwer neighborhoods two years ago, but it dropped the ball.

Until the neighborhood association is truly representative and can justifiably speak for the neighborhood, it needs to disclose how it arrives at its positions and how many, or few, neighbors  were involved.

Rick Seifert
Editor
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outfield fence

Without notifying the neighborhood association or the PTA, Portland Public Schools began installing this fence.


Neighborhood leader seeks
end to School District surprises

Two planned projects on the Rieke/Wilson campus that took neighborhood leaders by surprise have prompted Hillsdale Neighborhood Association Chair Don Baack to seek a requirement that similar future school district projects be subject to public notification of and review by affected neighborhoods and PTAs.

One of the projects, an outfield fence on the woman's softball diamond, was underway but halted after Baack and others from the neighborhood stated concerns about its interfering with other activities.

Womens' softball supporters have wanted the field, part of Wilson High School sports facilities, maintained exclusively for softball teams. For a softball parent's perspective see the letter to the editor in the Oct. 26 issue of The Hillsdale News.


The other project under consideration is a cell tower and an adjacent 30' by 15' equipment building. The district and a wireless company were considering placing the tower and building near the "Home of the Trojans" sign at the Capitol Highway school entrance.

School Board member Ruth Adkins and Bryan Winchester, director of the school district's facilities management, met with representatives from the Rieke PTA and the neighborhood Wednesday, April 23. Winchester said the district would look into other sites for the tower and building. Adkins, who lives in Hillsdale and whose three children attend its public schools,noted that the board is considering potential health problems with cell towers and transmitters that have been cited by parents at other schools. (See letter to the editor below.)

As for the outfield fence, Winchester said his office is investigating making the fence posts removable. Under that plan, the posts and fence would be in place only during softball season.

Construction of the permanent fence was stopped after its posts were set in concrete. The fence would have blocked use of the slope above the field for sledding and other activities, Baack and others said. It also would have prevented multiple use of the field - including a much-discussed amphitheatre.

Neither the Hillsdale Neighborhood Association nor the Rieke PTA were informed that the fence would be installed nor that a cell tower was on the drawing board.

Yet another land-use issue to be decided over the next few months is the placement of a solar-voltaic panel at Rieke. As reported in the Hillsdale News' April 14 issue, the slope above Bertha Court is under consideration, but a few have complained about its "industrial" appearance and intrusiveness.

Winchester said the project is still in the "investigatory" phase. He said its construction timeline was not tied to current federal tax incentives ending this year. Several at the meeting believe the solar construction incentives would be extended beyond December.

The resolution drafted by Baack states: "All projects which will affect the exterior appearance or function of the building or grounds of any PPS property should be reviewed by the adjacent neighborhoods and the respective school PTA's in a joint review process."

While the fence and the cell tower were the immediate causes of the Baack resolution, Baack said the process for deciding how the entire Rieke Elementary School site is developed is the greatest concern. The district has announced that it plans eventually to replace the present Rieke building. The work and its timing are dependent on the public's approving a future bond measure, which could be years away.

Baack said that a required community/PTA review of projects would lead to a greater understanding between the school district and the community, save staff time, and "result in much greater support for our public schools in the long run."

The resolution would have to move through several layers of review before going it could be considered by the school board and the city council for a vote, Baack said.

At the April 23 meeting, Winchester assured the neighborhood delegation that the school district would do a better job of informing the community of proposed projects on district property.

Baack called the meeting "very positive," adding, "Bryan is taking the first steps towards developing a process to inform the community."

The "Key" decision

Food Front, property owners negotiating over lease

Food Front has lined up contractors to paint and install lights and the floor. Now all the co-op's managers need is a lease agreement - and the front door key - to build the grocery they hope to open in August.

"The final step is to sign a lease," said Food Front general manager Holly Jarvis, who plans to meet the week of April 28 with Ardys Wardin Braidwood,
one of the Wardin Family property owners, and with her husband John to continue the step-by-step negotiations.

"We need to come up with an agreement," she said. "We hope to have the keys to the building soon."

Without a lease, Jarvis can't buy the new equipment the store needs. Delivery could take up to 12 weeks, which has pushed the opening back to August, she said.

The Hillsdale store would be the second for Food Front, which owns the NW Thurman street building that houses its only store. The co-op, which started in 1972, now has more than 3,000 members-owners.

The Hillsdale site is the anchor space in the Hillsdale Shopping center and was previously occupied by Wild Oats. That operation was bought out by Whole Foods, which closed the Hillsdale store last October.

Dava Bead to close Hillsdale shop
Yoga studio to take over space

After 17 years in Hillsdale, Dava Bead & Trade is closing its store here on June 8.  The company will also close its store at 1815 NE Broadway but will consolidate both operations into one large. 5,000 square-foot space at 2121 NE Broadway.

The new store, which will open July 1, will be more than two and half times the size of the Hillsdale store and will have room for a metal-smithing studio, a wholesale showroom and space for the company's retail and wholesale web sites, said owner Anita Bermont.

Bermont, who started the business in Hillsdale when she lived here, said in a written statement, "I would like to thank the Hillsdale community for being 'home' both for the raising of my family and for the 'raising' of my business!"

She said that she and her staff look forward to welcoming Hillsdale partrons to the new store.

Moving into the Hillsdale space will be OM Base Yoga Studio, which hopes to open between the end of August and mid-September.

Owners Todd Williamson and Vittoria Palazzi currently operate Sacred Onion Yoga as a home business in Maplewood.
Learning Center with Japanese origins opens here

A Kumon Math and Reading Center branch opened on April 10 in Hillsdale in the old former Anastasia Hair Salon next to Edward Jones.

The drop-in center at 6343 SW Capitol Highway is operated by Noriko Vitkevich, a native of Japan, and is part of a multi-national chain that started in Japan. The American operation is headquartered in New Jersey, but Kumon centers are in 43 countries.

The company is named for its founder Toru Kumon, who started the Kumon program 50 years ago.

Vitkevich explained that the Kumon method emphasizes giving the student a sense of accomplishment by providing short, progressive assignments.

Shelves of curriculum work sheets line a wall of the colorful, after-school center, which is open Monday and Thursday from 2:30 to 6:30. Parents pay a $100 monthly tuition for each subject plus a registration fee of $50 to $75.

The center's students range from pre-schoolers to high school students.

Vitkevich said that the Hillsdale location was chosen because of its highly educated population and its proximity to several schools.

Phone (503) 336-1874 for more information.
Briefly:

It's time for the spring SOLV/SWNI clean-up

Spring cleaning time is here for Southwest's littered roadways and shoulders. The litter has piled up since last fall's clean-up.

The annual spring SWNI/SOLV litter pickup will be Saturday, May 10, starting at 9 a.m. Volunteers meet at the Portland Christian Center at the corner of Beaverton-Hillsdale Hwy and Dosch Road.

All it takes is a couple of hours and to get the litter picked up. Pizza and raffle prizes reward your participation.

Recyclers will also be on hand in the Center's parking lot for neighbors to use.

Litter patrol volunteers should contact Karen Johnson to participate. Her e-mail is: [email protected]

Hayhurst School's summage sale set May 9 and 10

The Hayhurst School community is holding a rummage sale Friday, May 9, from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., and Saturday, May 10, from 9 a.m, to 3 p.m., at Vermont Hills United Methodist Church, 6053 SW 55th Dr.

Donations will be accepted on Thursday. May 8, at the church.

All sales benefit Hayhurst School Enrichment Programs.

Letter to the Editor

Cell Towers pose danger

(Editor's note: The following letter was sent to the Hillsdale Neighborhood Association.)

I am writing to make you aware that there is a proposal to mount RF antennas on the Wilson High School, and to let you know what we in the Beaumont-Wilshire neighborhood are doing to oppose a parallel proposal to mount similar equipment on our Beaumont Middle School.

I am a parent living just behind Beaumont Middle School. In January I happened to read an article about in The Ecologist magazine (UK, the world's leading environmental affairs magazine) about the health effects RF radiation from cellular antennas and other wireless transmitters.

The peer-reviewed studies cited in the article documented a wide range of health effects from RF antennas, including headache, fatigue, irritability, depression, memory loss, and dizziness, as well as increased rates of childhood leukemia and other cancers. Significant effects were found at distances as great as one-quarter mile (400m) from the antennas.

A week or two later I received a land-use proposal from the city, saying that Clearwire US was planning to mount 10 RF transmitters on Beaumont Middle school � about 150m behind my house.

Since then I have taken a number of steps to education myself about the issue, and to oppose the proposal for Beaumont Middle School, including raising the issue with the Beaumont-Wilshire Neighborhood Association, which voted to oppose the proposal, and discussing the issue with the PPS Board.

A number of school districts in other states - including the  Los Angeles Unified School District - have banned RF antennas from their school buildings due to concerns about the health effects of RF radiation.

The PPS Board will soon vote on whether to approve the Clearwire proposal. They have been receptive to public comment on the issue of health concerns about the proposed RF antennas. There are already several RF antennas on PPS schools, but we are proposing that the district declare a moratorium on siting new RF antennas on schools, and allow existing antenna leases to expire as they come up for renewal.

I encourage you to read up on the issue. Friends and I have created a simple website with concise information about the health effects of RF radiation, and about what other school districts are doing to protect their students from it: www.healthybw.org ("healthybw" for "healthy Beaumont-Wilshire")

Also, encouraging as many people as possible to submit their comments on this issue to the PPS Board, and to spread the word about this issue.

Ric Bernat
Rick Seifert
Editor, Hillsdale News
(503) 245-7821
[email protected]