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Big milestone ahead as State of Oregon set to hand off 82nd Ave to Portland
At Thursday’s Portland City Council meeting, commissioners will vote to adopt an Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) between the Portland Bureau of Transportation and the Oregon Department of Transportation giving the City of Portland will official jurisdiction over 82nd Avenue as of June 1.
Until now, ODOT has managed 82nd Ave, a.k.a. State Route 213, and one of the most dangerous corridors in the city for all road users. The IGA is the final administrative hurdle that sets 82nd onto a future that (hopefully) looks much different than its past.
Activists have been ringing the alarm about 82nd Ave for years, and this agreement marks a big milestone in the fight to make this crucial corridor a safer place.
Last June, we reported the Oregon Legislature voted to spend $80 million in American Recovery Plan Act ARPA funds to facilitate the transfer. Preceding that, PBOT Director Chris Warner and ODOT Director Kris Strickler co-signed a letter to the legislature making a case for these funds, which gives an idea of how the two agencies have been on the same page on this issue for some time.
Along with the shift in which agency will oversee the street, Thursday’s vote will formally accept the ARPA grant so PBOT can make “safety, asset and mobility improvements” to 82nd Ave. In addition, ODOT will be providing PBOT with $70 million in other federal funds for this corridor, and the city is committing to another $35 million. In short: there’s going to be a lot of money to use on making this street safer and more accessible.
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Since the ARPA money needs to be spent within five years, advocates and agency staff are under relatively tight time constraints to get the first wave of projects done. PBOT is calling this first round of spending its “Critical Fixes.”
In the IGA documents, these projects are described as “safety upgrades and multi-modal improvements” that includes things like new crossings and enhanced safety at existing one, adding enough street lighting so the entire street meets PBOT standards, speed reduction measures, updated signal timing and ensuring ADA standards on sidewalks and curb ramps are met.
Beyond the meaning this has to the community and people who’ve been fighting for a safer 82nd Ave for years, this IGA is important because it hasn’t been commonplace for ODOT and PBOT to work together in this way. IGAs are often signed for smaller projects, but a move like this on such a large corridor (and with so much money involved) is rare.
You can watch Portland City Council make this agreement official at 2:00 pm tomorrow. There is 90 minutes allotted to this ordinance, and public testimony will be accepted, which you can sign up for here.
To learn more about what the future of 82nd Avenue might look like, there’s a session at the Oregon Active Transportation Summit today hosted by Oregon Walks 82nd Ave Coalition and Project Manager Zachary Lauritzen that will share more about the transfer and will ask attendees, “to dream big and imagine what 82nd avenue could be.”
Job: Customer Service Representative – Inline Sales – Castelli Sportful USA
Job Title
Customer Service Representative – Inline Sales
Company / Organization
Castelli Sportful USA
Job Description
Date: April 25, 2022
Position Title: Inside Sales
Reports To: Castelli Director of Sales
Hourly or Salaried: Salary + Commission
Position Description:
The inside sales position works closely with Castelli’s territory representatives and retail accounts across the US. The objectives of the position are to build strong customer relationships through great customer service, and to ensure the company’s financial goals are met by facilitating accurate, on-time order deliveries.
Duties and Responsibilities:
• Order management
o Collect orders, allocate and submit revisions where necessary
o Work with reps to ensure orders are sent out on time
o Ensure all orders are entered accurately according to the terms of sale
o Help create forecasts for monthly shipments
• Manage customer communications
o Respond to customer email inquiries in a timely manner with accurate information
o Field incoming phone calls from customers
• At-once selling
o Leverage knowledge of product line and accounts to generate additional sales from customer calls
• Set up new customers
o Review dealer applications for completeness and accuracy
o Create customer accounts and build opening orders
• Process warranties
o Review submitted claims, build and ship replacement orders for qualifying claims
Personal Qualifications:
The ideal candidate would be someone who has a passion for cycling and understands the importance of quality cycling apparel and can communicate its importance, has excellent customer service skills, and enjoys interacting with our customers to create an enjoyable experience. This person is excited to work with our customers and to create a close working relationship with your reps to maintain healthy account relations.
• Excellent customer service skills
• Excellent communication skills (email/phone)
• Attention to detail regarding customer orders
• A team player who is willing to be flexible and help in other areas as needed
• Preferred but not required: Experience working in customer service and in an inside sales role.
• Position is in-office at Portland headquarters
Education & Work Experience Qualifications:
• Bachelor’s degree preferred but not required
• 2 years in customer service experience
• Knowledge of the cycling, sports and/or outdoor industries a plus
About Castelli/Sportful:
Castelli/Sportful is a premium cycling apparel manufacturer, with world headquarters in Italy and US headquarters in Portland, Oregon. We operate two apparel brands: Castelli and Sportful. We have a history of product innovation and performance that goes back over 75 years. Our products have been used by Tour de France winners, World Champions and Olympic Gold Medalists.
Our office and warehouse are in the Hollywood/Laurelhurst district of NE Portland and close to MAX and bike routes.
Full-time positions offer competitive salary, health care, 401k, paid time-off, and a generous product allowance.
The Castelli/Sportful team strives to create an inclusive workplace that promotes and values diversity. Companies that are diverse in age, gender identity, race, sexual orientation, physical or mental ability, ethnicity, and perspective are proven to be better companies. More importantly, creating an environment where everyone, from any background, can do their best work is the right thing to do. We welcome all applicants.
How to Apply
email a resume to careers@castelli-us.com
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(Photo: Jonathan Maus/BikePortland)
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Oregon snags second place in 2022 ‘Bicycle Friendly State’ rankings
According to The League of American Bicyclists, which recently released its 2022 list of the most bike friendly states, Oregon is the second most bike friendly state in the United States, coming in right behind Massachusetts. We made second place the last time the League published their rankings in 2019, when we were beaten out by Washington.
Speaking of Washington, our neighbor to the north slipped from its first place placement for the first time since the League started publishing these rankings, this year coming right behind us at third place. (Psst: while we enjoy a little friendly Pacific Northwest rivalry, keep it between the Ducks and the Huskies. We want to see all states succeed when it comes to biking.) California and Minnesota came in at fourth and fifth respectively.
The rankings are determined based on five factors, which are outlined below. Here’s how our report card looked:
Oregon is one of 10 states to have adopted all five of the League’s ‘bike friendly actions,’ which include a Complete Streets policy, a safe passing law, a statewide bike plan, spending 2% or more of federal transportation money on biking and walking and having a bicycle safety emphasis area.
Oregon comes in at first place nationally for bike commuting mode share, as almost 2% of commuters bike to work here. This number is higher in cities like Portland, Eugene and Corvallis (the last of which beat Portland handily as Oregon’s top city for bike commuting in 2020), and we’d like it to be higher statewide, but considering how rural much of Oregon is, coming in first place here is nothing to scoff at.
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Despite doing so well overall, the League did provide some ideas of how we can improve in their individual state report for Oregon. These suggestions are things Portland bike advocates talk about often, like how we need to increase mode share in non-emitting modes of transportation like biking and walking, and that “reducing or increasing scrutiny of projects to increase motor vehicle capacity will be key to achieving reductions in greenhouse gas emissions.” With multiple anti-freeway campaigns taking place in Portland right now, there is certainly the people power to make this happen.
The League praises Oregon’s bold commitments to climate action, but also says leadership needs to act to reduce transportation-related greenhouse gas emissions in order to actually meet those goals.
In fact, the League calls out the Oregon Department of Transportation by name, saying they’ve had “high-profile opportunities for cultural changes at the agency” but haven’t acted on those opportunities as they should.
“As a national leader in bicycling and walking, how the Oregon DOT and other partners navigate these changes can have national impacts. The League hopes to see positive cultural changes that embrace equity, communities, and active transportation gain momentum moving forward,” the report says.
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Taking a 10,000 foot view, this report shows some national improvements, stating there has been a “marked increase” in bicycle friendly actions over the last 10 years.
“We found many states answering the call to design safer streets for all people. The League of American Bicyclists congratulates every state that is taking action to improve the safety and experience of people bicycling. Since 2015, we have seen the number of states taking all five of our recommended Bicycle Friendly Actions nearly double,” the League reports.
It’s good to see national trends indicating biking and bike safety is on the rise. There has been much ado about the ‘pandemic bike boom,’ and with this report, it looks like leadership is at least attempting to meet the demand.
Since I’ve lived in Oregon for so long, it’s hard for me to remember what biking anywhere else was like, and I think I take it for granted how nice it is to bike here. That being said, we can acknowledge we’re doing a comparably great job while still holding our leadership accountable.
You can read the whole report here and find out more about how the League suggests leaders act on making their states more bike-friendly.