Established in 1970
www.portlandobserver.com
Volume XXXX, Number 15
Wednesday • A pril 14, 2010
.
¡Portkttth
bgerlier
Free Prom Dresses
Making Dreams Come True
see page 21
years °f
‘City of Roses’
• / community service
Committed to Cultural Diversity
photo by
M ark W ashington /T he P ortland O bserver
Charles Lewis, executive director of the music education group Ethos, Inc., and Michele Anderson, music director for the non-profit, make an appeal to operate the
Interstate Firehouse Cultural Center at 5340 N. Interstate Ave. The community center’s previous operators closed shop due to lack of funding.
Rescue Bid
Suitor lines up
for firehouse
J ake T homas
T he P ortland O bserver
E thos M usic C enter, a local non­
profit that has provided m usic ed u ­
cation for disadvantaged youth for
by
the past 10 years, is h oping to o c ­
cu p y the new ly -v acan t Interstate
Firehouse C ultural C enter, a co m ­
m unity resource that has served
the m u lticultural and diverse p o p u ­
lations o f north and n ortheast P ort­
land for decades.
. E thos w ould continue its ed u ca­
tional program s at the center, w hich
Chief Calls
for Improved
Interactions:
has been sim ilar to the IFCC ’s offer­
ing A frican dance, break dancing,
m usical theatre, and oth er ed u ca­
tional opportunities.
The group w ould m aintain its
focus on north and northeast Port­
land and w ould continue to use the
building as a launching pad for up-
a n d -c o m in g th eatre g ro u p s and
artists looking for exposure, accord­
ing to C harles L ew is, E thos ex ecu ­
tive director.
T he financial ro ller co aster ride
for the firehouse at 5340 N. Inter­
state Ave. cam e to an end last m onth
w hen the currently o p erators ran
out o f m oney.
For 28 years, the IFCC has strived
to foster diversity in P o rtlan d ’s art
scene, and m any artists w ho got
their start at the cen ter now occupy
p rom inent positions in the c ity ’s
artistic landscape. Som e have risen
to national prom inence.
A new bid to carry the torch o f
the IFC C co m es as w elco m e new s
after the c e n te r’s closing caused
jitters that Portland m ay be left w ith­
ou t an in cu b ato r for d iv ersity in the
arts.
“ W hile w e m ourn the loss o f our
arts-fo cu sed n eighbor, E thos has a
v ision for using the bu ild in g as an
arts in cu b ato r o f the likes o f w hich
Portland has n ev er seen b efo re,”
said Peter van d er M eulen, E th o s’
board o f d ire c to rs’ president.
Ethos also p oints out that it has
su ccessfu lly run tw o b u ild in gs lo-
continued
0 « page 15
During police encounters with mentally ill
Police Chief Rosie Sizer
In re sp o n se to tw o re c e n t o ffic e r-in v o lv e d
sh o o tin g d e a th s o f p e o p le in c ris is, P o rtla n d
c ity o ffic ia ls h a v e u n ro lled a n ew set o f p ro p o s ­
als to b e tte r e q u ip th e p o lic e fo r e n c o u n te rs
w ith th e m e n ta lly -ill.
P o lic e C h ie f R o sie S iz e r an d C ity C o m m is ­
s io n e rs D an S a ltz m a n an d A m a n d a F ritz o u t­
lin e d a p la n la st w eek w h ic h c a lls fo rm m o re
o ffic e r in te ra c tio n w ith th e m e n ta lly ill in non-
c o n fro n ta tio n a l s e ttin g s; a s tro n g e r ro le fo r an
a d v iso ry c o u n c il th a t h e lp s th e P o lice B u reau
c ra ft p o lic ie s in th is a re a; an d su p p o rt fo r the
c o u n ty g o v e rn m e n t to b u ild a n ew c e n te r for
p e o p le on th e c u sp o f a b re a k d o w n .
continued
on page 4