i$) Minority & Small Business Week
September 26, 2007
Page A5
Diversity Embraced on Killingsworth
continued
Ethnic Restaurant
Invites ‘All to Come’
fro m F ro n t
ra liz a tio n p ro c e ss but still
w anted to run som e type o f
h ead q u arters fo r cultural tra n ­
sition. H er solution com b in es
the n eed fo r an im m ig ran t
gath erin g space w ith cravings
o f the city for eth n ic food.
D a m te w ’s a tte n tio n to d e-
ta il is im p r e s s iv e , a n d it
se e m s q u ite lik e ly th a t she
w ill s u c c e e d ju s t w ith th e
e x c ite m e n t o f n eig h b o rs. B ut
c ity o ffic ia ls w o u ld lik e to
s e e K i l l i n g w o r t h f o llo w
A lb e r ta an d M is s is s ip p i’s
d e s tin a tio n sta tu s.
I t’s u n c le a r w h e th e r w e
h a v e le a rn e d h o w to p r e ­
v en t d is p e rs a l th a t ca n c o m e
w ith g e n trific a tio n . A s w ith
o th e r stre e ts , o ffic ia ls see
s tr e e t im p r o v e m e n ts c u r ­
re n tly
u n d erw ay
on
K illin g sw o rth as the “g ro u n d
f lo o r ” fo r in c re a s in g its tax
base.
H ig h p ro p e rty v a lu e s on
th e s tr e e t m a y m e a n th a t
o n ly e s ta b l is h m e n ts w ith
h ig h v o lu m e c a n s u rv iv e ,
le a v in g th e m s e n s itiv e to th e
w h im o f th e m a rk e t. T h e
s tre e t a lso c o u ld u se b u s i­
n e s se s th a t o f fe r o th e r ty p e s
o f g o o d s th a t th e c o m m u ­
n ity n e e d s , b u t it h a s a t­
tra c te d a few q u a lity fo o d
o u tle ts re c e n tly , an d th a t’s
a g o o d sta rt.
E'Njoni Café opens on Killingsworth
by R aymond R endleman
T he P ortland O bserver
by R aymond R endleman /T he P ortland O bserver
Sonya Damtew, owner o f the E'Njoni Café, 910 N. Killingsworth St., demonstrates how olive
oil and bread go with a hot fava-bean dish topped with fresh minced vegetables, as restaurant
patron Debbie Bemnet looks on.
A frican-im m igrant activist turned
restaurateur Sonya D am tew hoped to
create a sense of hom e for people w ho
com e to her E ’Njoni C afé., a new Af-
rican/M editerranean restaurant at 910
N. K illingsw orth St.
A fter opening the doors ju st last
m onth, a steady stream o f custom ers
has already found an atm osphere of­
fers m ore than ju st authentic food.
W orking for the Im m igrant and
Refugee C om m unity O rganization
helped D am tew understand the diffi­
culty o f finding foreign cuisine in
Portland with much cultural com pe­
tency.
“W e d o n ’t have a w hole lot of
restaurants around here that reflect
the tradition besides ju st the food,”
says D am tew , who decided to build
the café with m uch m ore than a nod to
the practices o f her hom eland. Every
piece o f art o f the w alls represents a
carefully thought-out piece o f A fri­
can history and culture that she is
more than willing to talk about.
C om ing from Italian colonized
Eri trea on the coast ju st north o f Ethio-
pia, D am tew recognized the need for
a site in Portland that accepted ju st as
many A frican and M editerranean in­
flu e n c e s. S he sa y s, “ T h e nam e
Clic
Vanport Square Near Complete
(E ’ Njoni) itself means that: 'All com e,’
so everyone feels w elcom e, and it’s
great to hear so many languages b e­
ing spoken.”
Through her immigrant activism,
E ’Njoni began "as kind of a joke,” she
says, “I started gathering in churches
and mosques in the area, and people
were saying, 'Sonya, you should start
a coffee shop or som ething.'”
W hen D am tew took the idea seri­
ously enough to look into a full-on
r e s ta u ra n t, h e r m om re p o rte d ly
thought she was crazy because it was
so different from the kind o f w ork that
she had been doing before. D am tew
contended that she often had to coor­
dinate large meals for im m igrants
through the center, and making that a
business w ouldn’t be too much o f a
jump.
A good location and a wildfire word
o f mouth among Portland’s immigrant
com m unity gave a stroke o f luck to
D am tew , who says, “ W ithout having
to do a w hole lot o f work, we opened
it up, and it got busy." The quality o f
the food also may have som ething to
do w ith it, as Damtew carefully con­
siders each ingredient.
The butter, for example, is not just a
sp e c ia lty sto re-b o u g h t item , but
co ntinued
on page A 14
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North Portland Bible College
4905 N. Vancouver Ave., Portland, O R 97217
503-288-2919
w w w .northportlandbiblecollege.org
Fall Term Schedule
September 24 - December 6,2007
photo by
M ark W ashington /T iie P ortland O bserver
Classes to enhance m inistry, f o r anyone, a n y m o rn in g o r night
When Living Color Beauty Supply moves into the new Vanport Square complex ju st down the street from Martin Luther King Jr.
Boulevard later this month, demolition will begin on the corner of MLK and Alberta Street to make room for the new Magic Johnson
24-Hour Fitness, a signature sports facility with two gymnasiums that will take up the entire block.
contin u ed
fr o m F ro n t
Leary defended him self and his
plan, only to see the calling center
anchor drop away. The PDC granted
several extensions o f the develop­
ment deadline, but they becam e
visibly uneasy about the project's
lack o f progress and the agency’s
com m itm ent o f $ 10 m illion in cash
and tax credits.
11 was the I ure o f the com mercial -
condom inium concept that finally
allowed the project to succeed, even
w ithout a m ajor retail anchor.
“It was the chance for ow ner­
ship that was the catalyst," Leary
says. “People will happily pay to
ow n their own space at a rate they
w ould balk at to rent that space."
Even so, it w asn 't an overnight
su ccess.
“Each deal was a challenge in
and o f its e lf ’ he says. “W e had to
fig h t fin a n c ia l c o n ­
straints and politics.
V anport used all nine
o f its lives.”
T hat it succeed ed
w as due not ju s t to
L eary and W o o lle y ’s
p e rse v eran c e and the
v alid ity o f the c o n ­
ce p t, but the lo y alty
o f th eir backers.
“It com es dow n to Ray Leary
relationships,” Leary
says. “W e w ere able to establish
cham pions that saw this as vital to
P D C ’s m ission andjum ped intoour
com er. W e also had buyers who
signed on five or six years ago and
stayed with us every step o f the
w ay.”
The com m unity and the city have
ju st begun to realize
the potential for this
sort o f business self­
o w n e r s h ip , L e a ry
says.
Commercial rents on
MLK are now running
in "the high teens” per
square foot. Leary said
in order to make m ajor
red e v elo p m e n t p o s­
sible, it w ould have to
clim b to about $25 per
square foot, “and w e’re not there
yet.” But they are getting closer;
the M agic Johnson Fitness C enter
is paying the sam e rate for its space
that it would pay in other parts o f
You Can Get:
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503 281 9900
the city.
He said ow nership opportuni­
ties are a prem ium that can increase
the value o f developm ent projects.
“This will be a catalyst, not ju st
for small, infill development, but for
largerprojects. It will bring privately
financed developm ent to MLK.
Y ou’ll see projects that are attrac­
tive enough to lure regional and
national com panies," Leary says.
W ould Leary have signed on to
the Vanport Project back in 1999 if
he had foreseen w hat eight years
would bring?
Sm iling ruefully he says, “ I’m
glad I d id n 't know what was com ­
ing. The converse is that ignorance
kicked into perseverance and that
eventually led m e to opportunities
I’d only thought about."
MONDAY MORNING (9:00 -1 2 noon)
0T 203 * Book of Deuteronomy
Alan Cushway. ThM, M. Dlv.
The Book of Obedience, quoted the most by Jesus
MONDAY
0TS101 * Old Testament Survey, I
Jim Sellers. M.Dlv.
Genesis through II Samuel
CH202 ’ Church History David Brown. M.Dlv.
Apostolic Church to the Reformation
TUESDAY
BF101 ’ Inductive Bible Study
Alan Cushway.ThM, M.Div.
Develop skill for independent Bible study and teaching
WM 205 ’ Introduction to the Religions of the World Geoff Hartt, M.Div.
Major religions, their teachings and daily life practices
WEDNESDAY
N T 101 ’ NewTestament Survey I
Rob Robinson, D.M.
Matthew through John
GE 111 * Basic English
Connie Stanton, B.A.
Paragraph structure, outlining, essays, formal
correspondence, book reviews, etc.
( Students ate required to take PCC Placement test unless their transcripts Indicate no need)
THURSDAY MORNING (9:00 - 12 noon)
NT 209
’ The Kingdom of God in the Teachings of Jesus
Beth Nance, M.Ed M.Div. Explore whether the Kingdom of God Is present or future
THURSDAY
UM 209 ’ Ministries to Urban Families
Linda Thompson. MSW
Leant strategies to assist inner-city families with special needs.
SATURDAY MORNING (9:00 -1 2 noon)
NT 209 Greek Grammar Daniel Willard, BA NT
Fundamentals Greek grammar and vocabulary
memorization. Greek/ Bible TH.
MU 080 Basic Plano (Individual/Group lessons)
Zetta Burton. B.A.
Monday. Wednesday, and Thursday (by appointment only,
call 503-709-2905)
a-zebra@a-zebra.com
Any Property Anywhere
I
All evening classes are from 6:3 0 -9:30pm . * Tuition: $120 per course
* Required for the ACM degree in Christian Ministry.