1) Active shooter training on Swan Island Sunday
2) OKNA opposes expanded tar sands shipments to Zenith
4) OKNA appeals land use decision for project at Interstate and Alberta
5) OKNA general meeting on Tuesday
1) Active shooter training on Swan Island Sunday
The Navy Reserve Center on Swan Island will conduct an active shooter training scenario with Portland Police beginning about 10 a.m. on Sunday, May 19. They will utilize blank ammunition, and some neighbors might hear that gunfire. There is no danger from shooting blanks.
The training will be contained to the main building at 6735 N Basin Ave. in order to minimize the possibility of bystanders thinking it is a real-world situation.
2) OKNA opposes expanded tar sands shipments to Zenith
The Overlook Neighborhood Association Board voted at its May meeting to formally oppose expanding tar sands and other oil shipments to the Zenith facility. We’re developing a letter of opposition that we will share with neighbors when it is complete.
3) Adidas crane going up
A reminder that adidas plans to erect its third construction crane Monday to Wednesday next week. It will be at the south end of the campus near where the tennis courts were. Pedestrian traffic could be impacted along the N Delaware Avenue path.
4) OKNA appeals land use decision for project at Interstate and Alberta
The proposed affordable housing project on the northeast corner of Interstate and Alberta (5020 N Interstate Ave.) was granted a reduction to the amount of active use normally required on the ground floor of its project. Under the Centers Main Street overlay zone adopted by the city to promote pedestrian-friendly, active development in community centers, 25 percent of the ground floor should be uses such as shops, restaurants, etc. City planners are allowing 19 percent instead.
The OKNA board strongly supports the development of affordable housing on the site, but we also recognize that it is important to develop Interstate Avenue in a way that creates a vibrant, walkable town center. The minimum requirements in city code encourage that. The board is concerned that if an exception is allowed in this case, future exceptions could be granted along the Interstate corridor, undermining the goals of the code and leaving Overlook with a canyon of tall, blank building fronts that do not foster a sense of community.
This zoning is still relatively new, and this is one of the first projects in the city to fall under it. City staff is still feeling out the boundaries of what it allows and how firmly they should enforce it. The board therefore voted to appeal this one element of the land use decision. We will urge the design review board to follow the code and require at least 25 percent of the ground floor be active uses such as shops, restaurants or other public-facing space.
The hearing has not yet been scheduled. We will be sure to let everyone know when it is and will post any written testimony we submit.
5) OKNA general meeting on Tuesday
The Overlook Neighborhood Association will hold its monthly general meeting on Tuesday, May 21 at 6:30 p.m. at Kaiser Town Hall (3704 N Interstate Ave.). The agenda includes a presentation of a proposed development at the Killingworth-Campbell intersection (1901 N Killingsworth St.) and a discussion about next steps on adidas use of residential houses for construction work.