MULTNOMAH
NOTEBOOK:
SERVING
Burlingame • Capitol Hill
• Garden Home
• Glen Cullen • Hillsdale
• Multnomah Village
• Raleigh Hills • South Portland
• Vermont Hills
• West Portland
Traffic calming
needed along
Garden Home Road
Southwest Portland’s Independent Neighborhood Newspaper
Volume No. 20, Issue No. 2
www.swportlandpost.com
First Friday in the Village
Portland, Oregon
Complimentary
By Lee Perlman
The Southwest Portland Post
NEIGHBORHOOD NEWS
By Lee Perlman
The Southwest Portland Post
Rebuilt Burlingame Fred
Meyer offers more
The “new and improved” Burlin-
game Fred Meyer, closed since May,
reopened in October following a $19
million renovation. The store at 7555
SW Barbur Blvd. has increased in size
by 15,000 square feet, to 92,000 square
feet overall, but manager Jack Molen-
camp says much of this is storage space.
What counts is what’s inside.
The store now boasts bigger and
better gourmet cheese, meat, seafood,
natural foods, wine and dry grocery
sections, and a dessert kiosk that’s “just
beautiful,” Molencamp said. There
are now elevators to the upper level
parking.
“We’ve dramatically increased the
holding power of our frozen food dis-
plays,” Molencamp said. The on-site
eating area has more than doubled in
As its first stage, City of Portland
planners associated with the Barbur
Concept Plan are looking at existing
conditions on the boulevard. To gain
additional public feedback, they have
scheduled an open house from 5:30
to 7:30 p.m. December 6 at Markham
School, 10531 S.W. Capitol Hwy.
The Plan’s emphasis will be on land
uses along Southwest Barbur Bou-
levard, and will determine what is
appropriate there and what changes,
including zone changes, are best calcu-
lated to achieve them.
The Barbur Plan is associated with
a larger plan, the Southwest Corridor
Study, which will look at potential new
major travel facilities, including a pos-
sible new light rail line.
The project staff has compiled a
report of existing conditions, and dis-
cussed them with their citizen advisory
committee last month.
Although there are 20 different zon-
ing classifications for the land adjacent
to Barbur, the report found, four basic
classifications predominate: multi-
family and single family on the north
end, with a small cluster of commercial
at Southwest Hamilton Street, and
general commercial and office South of
Southwest Terwilliger Boulevard.
This reflects the uses on the north
end, although between Hamilton and
Terwilliger on the west side is the area
known as “the woods,” wooded hill-
sides attached to either single family,
open space or undeveloped land. In the
north end there are historic and design
overlays governing redevelopment.
South of Terwilliger, Barbur is given
over to commercial use. It includes
the newly-refurbished Burlingame
Fred Meyer and the soon-to-be rebuilt
Safeway but, the staff report notes, is
dominated by “1950s-style car-oriented
restaurants” and Class B and C office
(Continued on Page 3)
size, and has a handy Sushi bar and an
on-site Peet’s Coffee dispensary. They
hold regular wine tastings.
In addition to having more to sell, the
store is also greener. Numerous new
skylights have been installed, and are
used for “daylight harvesting.” When
there is bright sunshine outside, sen-
sors dim the already energy-efficient
fluorescent bulbs so that they don’t use
more energy than necessary. Even the
store’s exterior sign has been equipped
with more energy-efficient lighting.
And how do the customers like it?
“They’re so glad to have the store back,”
Molencamp said. “It’s the local neigh-
borhoods that own this store, and I’m
happy to fill that role.”
Stromer pleads guilty to
eleven counts of ‘theft by
deception’
Reversing an earlier plea, former
Southwest Neighborhoods, Inc. (SWNI)
Operations Manager Virginia Stromer
pleaded guilty to all of the 11 counts of
Theft by Deception with which she had
been charged. The thefts from SWNI,
carried out over a period of seven years,
Don’t forget to renew your subscription. Form on Page 2.
The Southwest Portland Post
4207 SE Woodstock Blvd #509
Portland, OR 97206
December 2011
Planners examine ‘High Crash’ corridor;
Open house scheduled for December 6
at Markham School
BARBUR CONCEPT PLAN
The Columbia Basin Basketry Guild displayed exquisite baskets and
demonstrated their craft on November 4 at the Multnomah Arts Center.
Story and additional photos on Page 5. (Post photo by Polina Olsen)
– Page 4
The newly rebuilt Burlingame Fred Meyer store from the north side. (Post photo
by Don Snedecor)
totaled more than $130,000. A sentenc-
ing hearing has been set for January 20.
Suspicions were first aroused on
October 5, 2010 when a check bounced
because of insufficient funds, and a
quick check by SWNI Executive Direc-
tor Sylvia Bogert uncovered other ir-
regularities. She called Stromer at home
and asked her to report to work early
to discuss the issues. Stromer, who had
served SWNI for 15 years, resigned the
next day via e-mail.
A nine-month investigation by De-
tective Ken Sukumoto, of the Portland
Police Bureau, led to the indictment
in July 2011. Stromer surrendered to
authorities, was released on her own
recognizance, and initially pleaded
“not guilty” to the charges. Trial dates
were postponed twice at the request of
Stromer’s attorney.
After protracted negotiations, SWNI
reached a settlement with its insurance
carriers. The amount was confidential
as a condition of the settlement.
Interstate 5 ramps open,
Multnomah Boulevard work
continues
On November 17, to the sound of
(unheard) trumpets and applause, the
Interstate 5 freeway access ramps to
Southwest Multnomah Boulevard were
re-opened, marking the completion of
this phase of the Burlingame Sewer
Project. To the chagrin of Multnomah
Village merchants, the ramps had
been closed since early October for the
project.
However, Portland Bureau of En-
vironmental Services spokesperson
Stephen Sykes told The Post, work
will now commence on the north side
of Multnomah between Southwest
22nd and 25th avenues. This work
will be done at night, Sykes said, and
during this time the ramp from south-
bound Southwest Barbur Boulevard
(Continued on Page 3)