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About The Southwest Portland Post. (Portland, Oregon) 2007-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 1, 2014)
Garden Home’s Matt Miner is keeping the music live – Page 6 Celebrating 21 years of continuous Southwest news coverage! Volume No. 22, Issue No. 11 www.swportlandpost.com Portland, Oregon Lee Braymen-Cleary reviews “Taming of the Shrew” – Page 8 Complimentary September 2014 West Portland resident Jon “Yosh” Yoshiwara recalls his days with the Portland Mavericks By Lee Braymen-Cleary The Southwest Portland Post In July, Netflix released a compelling, high quality documentary, entitled “The Battered Bastards of Baseball.” Written and directed by Portland Mav- ericks owner Bing Russell’s grandchil- dren Chapman and Macclain Way, it uses original footage and recounts how the Mavericks played superior heart- felt baseball with a zany irreverence, sealing themselves into the annals of Portland’s sports and cultural history. Jon “Yosh” Yoshiwara is calm and level headed, personable and honest. This West Portlander is the sort of man parents would want for their children’s physical education teacher. And from 1980 to 2010 that’s what Yoshiwara was: an elementary and middle school PE teacher, instilling fair play and strengthening young bodies. Yoshiwara taught first at Portland’s Astor Elementary School in North Port- land and later at Jackson Middle School. He is now retired, but one peek at his apple-green dining room reads baseball. For a well framed photo of Boston’s Fenway Park as well as a dozen baseball player nutcrackers garbed in varied red, white and blue baseball uniforms domi- nate. (His wife, Theresa, wild about nutcrackers, supports his passion.) The game has figured in his life for so long that Yoshiwara, whose given name is Jon, cannot remember when he became “Yosh.” “Jon disappeared long ago when I got into sports,” he said. Because his father, Ted, played base- ball, his older brothers, Ted and Dean swallowed the baseball bug, too. So their younger brother Jon’s baseball activities were all but a foregone con- clusion. A native of Southern California, Yo- shiwara played high school ball there before playing in junior college. Next it was Cal-Poly State University at San Luis Obispo. “If it doesn’t work out here, come up and see me in Portland” said Bing Rus- sell, the successful character actor who played many roles including Clem, the (Continued on Page 7) Jon “Yosh” Yoshiwara played for the Portland Mavericks back in the 1970s. He hung on to his jersey and cap. (Post photo by Lee Braymen-Cleary) Sears Armory property redevelopment moves along…slowly By Erik Vidstrand The Southwest Portland Post The former SFC Jerome F. Sears Army Reserve Center, future home of Portland’s west side emergency op- erations facility, recently was granted a new zoning designation by the Portland City Council: EG2 (general mixed employment) with conditions. According to Ordinance 186711, The Portland City Council recently approved a zone change for the Sears Armory property, allowing the Bureau of Emergency Management to move forward on development. (Post photo by Erik Vidstrand) Don’t forget to renew your subscription. Form on Page 2. The Southwest Portland Post 4207 SE Woodstock Blvd #509 Portland, OR 97206 the city wanted to “insure the future long-term development of the site which respects the fabric and height allowances in surrounding zones.” Originally slated for affordable housing, the city of Portland took pos- session of the site in September 2012 after a multi-year process involving federal agencies, city bureaus, and the surrounding neighborhood. The City Council considered con- cerns raised by the Multnomah Neighborhood Association, as well as information submitted by the ap- plicant’s representative. According to memos from the city, any request to increase building height beyond 45 feet, the process shall be subject to a Type II Adjust- ment Review. According to the city auditor, La- Vonne Griffin-Valade, the ordinance also addresses a 25-foot (front) build- ing setback. “This will contribute to a building envelope that respects the fabric of the established neighborhood,” Va- lade wrote. “It sets a 15-foot setback where the site abuts to the rear of the lot.” Jim Peterson, Multnomah Neigh- borhood Association’s land use chair, has been communicating with the city for years about this project. “[Without a height limitation] they could build another U.S. Bancorps Tower if they wanted to,” Peterson exclaimed. “We need to monitor the city at every move.” The Post contacted the city and asked about the height limit. The city said there were some exemptions. “A free-standing communication tower is not subject to the land review process,” said Dan Douthit, public in- formation officer at Portland Bureau of Emergency Management. “A fueling station will be built first,” Douthit explained, “but the current budget [of $1.2 million] will not be enough to cover the project. The facility needs ADA updates, earthquake retrofitting, and other components of the master plan that was approved.” Douthit reminded everyone that the Sears Armory property was free: it was a gift from the Department of Defense. “The city places a high priority on this project,” Douthit continued, “There is a big need for an emergency center on the west side.” A new emergency center just opened at Southeast Powell Bou- levard and 99th Avenue. City and other emergency personnel will preside here in the event of a major emergency. A fueling station is located at Southwest First Avenue and Jefferson Street. However, if bridges are down, and debris makes it impossible to fuel vehicles, the new west side emer- gency location would be utilized. According to the city, the project is expected to take 18 months. “We’re willing to come back to the neighborhood meeting in the fall,” Douthit said. “We want to be as transparent as possible during the entire process.” Multnomah Neighborhood Associ- ation meetings are held on the second Tuesday of each month at 7:00 p.m. at the Multnomah Arts Center, Room 30. For more information about the Sears Armory progress, please con- tact project manager, Rich Attridge at rich.attridge@ci.portlandoregon.us.
