Journalist By Nature: A Walk Through Urban Renewal

Fourteen city winter walkers huddled in the bone-chilling fog to explore the Albina Riverfront to Hilltop Loop as set forth in Karen Foster's Portland Hill Walks book. This area around the Emanuel Hospital complex and Boise-Eliot elementary school roughly parallels Interstate 5 in North Portland. Historical tidbits noted here are rephrased from Foster's book.

The area was first known as Albina, a city platted out in 1872 by Edwin Russell, William Page and George Williams and named for William's wife Albina. Immigrants of many nationalities came to Portland to work in the waterfront dockyards, lumber mills and railroad yards. Albina was described as the center of a business district second only to downtown Portland. In 1941, as America entered World War II, the demand for ships sharply increased and Henry Kaiser, an industrialist, opened shipyards in Portland and Vancouver. A town called Vanport, so named for Vancouver-Portland, sprang up and became a densely populated labor housing district. It was the largest public-housing project in the nation and second largest city in Oregon. By 1943 forty thousand people lived in a place which one year earlier had been vacant bottomland along the Columbia River. May 30, 1948 brought a flood that destroyed most of the living area and displaced eighteen thousand people. Most of these people migrated into the Albina area.

I-5/405/Kerby St. cement "octopus"

In the late 1950's churches, businesses and 476 housing units were leveled to make way for the Memorial Coliseum, and the commercial district relocated to the intersection of Williams and Russell. Interstate 5 was constructed soon after, removing more houses and businesses. The civil unrest of the 1960's dealt another blow to Albina through riots and destruction. The last blow came in 1970 when Emanuel Hospital razed 33 blocks in the center of the neighborhood for the Emanuel Hospital Urban Renewal Project. However, Federal funds ran out leaving many buildings vacant rather than being renewed. In the 1990's, young homeowners looking for bargains began buying up cheap homes and repairing them. This began a revitalization of the area, pressing home prices up to less affordable prices. 2004 saw the addition of the MAX Yellow Line bring new traffic to the area. Businesses saw new opportunities for expansion.

One of our group members has a personal history in the area, notably the White Eagle Cafe, originally owned by her grandfather and father. It was a boarding house and restaurant/bar serving the labor force of the area. The McMenamin brothers currently own the building and have turned it into one of their stock historic hotel/eateries. The Widmer Brothers Brewery is nearby.

Our four mile walk was a journey through Portland's early history, up close and personal as we witnessed still-delapitated buildings awaiting the magic touch of new businesses and homeowners. Those homes and buildings that have experienced revitalization are a tapestry of bright colors, modern store fronts and signage, attractive shops and restaurants. The salvaged historic places are a testimony to investment vision, money and hard work and are places that the current generation of Portlanders can visit and enjoy.

A planned stop at Rebuilding Center's warehouse was too brief. This is a business that salvages everything imaginable from houses and buildings being torn down or remodeled. One person's trash is another's treasure. Walking aisles of doors, windows, fireplace mantles, bathroom fixtures and hardware inspired thoughts of "how could I use this?" Shoppers pulled carts piled with odd items and salesmen discussed novel uses for pulleys, beams and pieces of glass. One of our walking group had bought a used toilet here to avoid having to install a low flush type. I stumbled upon an antique-appearing free standing mailbox which could be used as a garden ornament but ended up on my front porch as an amusing entry "object d'art". If the final scene of the Indiana Jones film "Raiders of the Lost Ark" comes to mind, this is what the warehouse looked like: seeming acres of objects and not enough time to explore them all!

Lunch at Tasty and Son, located in the building where the Chop charcuterie is housed, was a delightful experience in community dining and plate sharing with strangers, conversation being the door that opened new connections. My table companion, Omar, recently relocated to Portland via Senegal and New York City. He was a charming meal companion, as was the psychoanalyst beside him and the other people sharing the farm-style table. The food was inventive and freshly prepared one dish at a time and we were encouraged to share tastes around the table as the plates arrived. The European family eating style was a positive change-up from the usual closed table dining experience.

Finishing our walk we passed Title Wave, the award-winning building that was once the Albina Library. Designed in 1912 by Ellis Lawrence in the Spanish Renaissance style, it originally housed books in most of the European languages to accommodate the needs of the neighborhood's diverse immigrant population. It was funded by the Carnegie Library Building Fund and is decorated with fabulous polychrome glazed terra-cotta pilasters and window boxes. In 1919 it was designated by the American Institutes of Architects as one of the ten best buildings in Portland. In 1988 it became Title Wave, part of the Multnomah County library system selling its unneeded books. Sales have generated $1.5 million in revenues from over 700,000 titles.

Whatever weather Portland dishes out, brave the elements and walk through history as you explore the many fascinating neighborhoods of the city. The research available in Foster's books will enrich your journey and help you to appreciate the city you live in or near. Portland is weird and wonderful. Get to know it better through city walks while you wait for the forest trails to open. Happy walking!