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About The skanner. (Portland, Or.) 1975-2014 | View Entire Issue (Oct. 11, 2017)
OCTOBER 11, 2017 25 CENTS Portland and Seattle Volume XL No. 2 News .............................. 3,8-10 A & E .....................................6-7 Opinion ...................................2 Breast Cancer Awareness ...9 Calendars ........................... 4-5 Bids/Classifieds ....................11 CHALLENGING PEOPLE TO SHAPE A BETTER FUTURE NOW PHOTO BY CHRISTEN MCCURDY INDIGENOUS PEOPLE DAY Reworked ‘In Our America’ Sticker Appears Metro area residents reporting more anonymous, harassing stickers and flyers PHOTO BY SUSAN FRIED Karen Wells stands next to her mailbox on the front porch of her home in Portland’s Alameda neighborhood Several hundred people celebrated Indigenous Peoples Day Oct. 9 by gathering at Westlake Park and then marching to City Hall for a traditional meal, indigenous singing and dancing and speeches by community leaders. Tenants Sought for Alberta Commons A t the end of August, Karen Wells looked in her mailbox and found a sticker, without an envelope, address or stamp. It looked a lot like the signs that have become a common sight in many Port- AP PHOTO/JOHN LOCHER See STICKER on page 3 Flowers, candles and other items surround the famous Las Vegas sign at a makeshift memorial for victims of the mass shooting in Las Vegas. Stephen Paddock opened fire on an outdoor country music concert killing dozens and injuring hundreds. World News Briefs California Fires, Las Vegas Masacre, and more page 8 Kam Reviews ‘A Question of Faith’ page 6 Successful applicants are offered reduced rent at the new development By Melanie Sevcenko Of The Skanner News A fter contentious community debate and a shifting of an- chor tenants, con- struction began last fall on the long-vacant parcel of land at Northeast Martin Luther King, Jr. Blvd. and Northeast Alberta Street. The 20,000-square-foot site, called Alberta Com- mons, is being developed by Majestic Realty and African American, fami- ly-owned Colas Construc- tion as the general contrac- tor. Completion is slotted for next month. With Colorado-based Natural Grocers at the helm, the development is dedicating 50 percent of the lot’s commercial space as affordable for local busi- nesses from underserved communities. To help fill those spots, Alberta Commons is par- ticipating in Prosper Port- land’s Affordable Commer- cial Tenanting Program, which will secure busi- ness space for four to five successful applicants at reduced rent through its master lease with Majestic. In addition, the selected businesses will be offered a tenant improvement package to fund construc- tion costs, as well as tech- nical assistance provided by Micro Enterprise Ser- vices of Oregon (MESO), a nonprofit which grants micro-loans to minority entrepreneurs. “We’re looking for busi- nesses that are going to be a great fit for Alberta Commons and be a great fit together,” said Prosper Portland program man- ager Alison Wicks. “But businesses that don’t end up in these retail spaces, there’s definitely more op- portunities within North and Northeast Portland, so we’ll be continuing to work with them.” Prosper Portland is set to begin reviewing prospec- tive tenants on Oct. 13. Af- terwards, additional appli- cations will be accepted on a rolling, first-come first- serve basis until all spaces are filled. The development agency is also working with a retail tenanting sub- committee to help steer the selection process. Created to address Port- land’s dramatic uptick in retail rents — exacerbated by a decrease in vacancies — the tenanting program is an attempt to compen- sate for the loss of several vulnerable businesses that had fallen prey to gentrifi- cation in the area. Its focus, in particular, is to boost businesses from underrepresented com- munities — mainly those See ALBERTA on page 3 Community Rallies Around KairosPDX The majority-Black charter school is in danger of displacement if new PPS policy passes By Melanie Sevcenko Of The Skanner News W hile KariosPDX is faced with losing its building next year, community members and elected offi- cials have rallied around the charter school to demand it stay put. The Portland Public School board is currently tasked with deciding whether or not to pass a policy which would open two new middle schools and convert several existing K-8 schools to K-5. The district’s proposal is aimed at providing richer and more focused curriculum to all students, while addressing under-enrollment at the middle grade level. Among the changes, the histori- cally Black Harriet Tubman Middle School would re-open and ACCESS See KAIROSPDX on page 3 PHOTO COURTESY OF KAIROSPDX By Christen McCurdy Of The Skanner News KairosPDX students
