View of downtown Portland from our office
October 11-15, 2022
Last week I visited Portland on a business trip. When we checked in at the Royal Sonesta hotel in Portland’s West End, my colleague Alison was handed a map of the surrounding neighbourhood. Dozens of nearby blocks were shaded blue and she was instructed not to venture there alone – day or night. On a morning run I went though one of these blue blocks and the level of visible urban poverty was intense: Homeless encampments lined the streets. A man reclined naked mid-sidewalk. Trash rustled in the wind with a waft of cannabis.
Back in the non-blue blocks, downtown streets were eerily deserted. Few cars and fewer office workers filled the streets, even at rush hour. Whole blocks of buildings were boarded up. Local hotels are going bankrupt. It’s the most deserted downtown core I’ve ever seen.
I don’t envy the mayor of Portland.
By contrast, the leafy suburbs are bustling. A steady stream of walkers huff up the 293 steps to the top of Mt. Tabor, where real estate is in high demand. Patio bars are packed. Young families are out and about. The consequence of a wasted downtown is heightened pressure on the suburbs.
Back in the mid-1800s, Portland was growing quickly and the forest was cleared to make room for new homes. Builders were in such haste they didn’t bother to root out stumps. As the stumps remained year after year, locals whitewashed them to be more visible – and Portland acquired the nickname Stumptown.
Today, the original stumps are long gone and Portland is filled with creative souls and clever restaurants. Yet new stumps dot the front yard of this mini metropolis: profound urban poverty, palpable spiritual hunger, addiction. I pray Stumptowners have the wisdom and creativity to start rooting them out again.
Photo Gallery - Portland
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