Greenway and bike lanes coming to 60th Avenue corridor

PBOT will remove all on-street parking on this section of 60th to make room for buffered bike lanes.

The Portland Bureau of Transportation is poised to install bike lanes on a key section of Northeast 60th Avenue and create a neighborhood greenway in the Rose City Park neighborhood south of Alameda Ridge.

The changes are coming as part of PBOT’s $9.5 million 60th and Halsey Area Improvement Project. Last month, the city announced changes on the project website that funding cuts would delay some of the bike-related updates. The project website states that, “this project will no longer include bike improvements as part of the 60s Bikeway from SE Davis Street to NE Sacramento Street.” That announcement led to speculation online that all the project’s bike facilities would be cut.

I followed up with PBOT Communications Director John Brady for clarification, and it turns out the news isn’t as bad as it appears.

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Job: Community Programs Manager – Community Cycling Center

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

Job Title

Community Programs Manager

Company / Organization

Community Cycling Center

Job Description

ORGANIZATIONAL OVERVIEW
We love Portland and bikes. So, we put our two loves together over 25 years ago, creating a nonprofit organization on a mission to broaden access to bicycling and its benefits.

Our vision is to help build a vibrant community where people of all backgrounds use bicycles to stay healthy and connected. We believe that all Portlanders—regardless of income or background—should have the opportunity to experience the joy, freedom and health benefits of bicycling. This is the motivation behind everything we do.

In addition to delivering dynamic programs that benefit underserved communities, we operate a full-service bike shop in NE Portland that is staffed by highly experienced mechanics from diverse cycling backgrounds. Our programs and shop services combined help riders build their skills and confidence; empower young people to ride to school and adults to ride to work; offer educational opportunities for teens to earn school credit; and support everyone in riding for health and recreation. We also collaborate with numerous community partners to generate pathways to employment and engagement within the growing bicycle movement by training new educators, leaders, advocates and mechanics.

Our goal is to help create a healthy, sustainable Portland for all community members.

The Community Cycling Center is an equal opportunity employer and strongly values diversity, equity and inclusion. Individuals with diverse backgrounds, abilities and experiences are encouraged to apply.

JOB SUMMARY
The Program Manager is responsible for working with principals, teachers, partner non-profits, neighbors, and volunteers to establish how bikes can help people in the communities we engage with stay healthy and connected. The Program Manager develops or adapts community-led

Successful candidates are collaborative and attentive leaders deeply embedded in the programs they are responsible for. They have a proven track record of leading with equity to engage

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS
Please note that the percentage indicators below represent an estimate of how much time each week will be spent fulfilling these functions. In terms of importance, all areas are valued equally.

Community-Based Bicycle Services (30%)
● Manage the delivery of programming at the New Columbia Bike Repair Hub, including youth internships, earn-a-bike, bike library, and open repair hours
● Supervise a team of staff including the program mechanic in the delivery of services at the Bike Repair Hub and other Core Partner programming
● Maintain relationships and coordinate activities with organizational partners including schools, housing organizations, governmental agencies, and community organizations
● Maintain open process for participant and community-wide input and refinement

STEM Education Program (40%)
● Deliver STEM education through bicycle mechanics paired with science curriculum to high-school age youth in 3 alternative high schools in the Portland area
● Supervise and support the Program Mechanic who will assist you in the delivery of STEM Education Program
● With support of a classroom teacher, manage a classroom of 6-16 teenagers for academic lessons, bike workshop time, and to lead them on group rides
● Work with the Intern and Volunteer Manager to provide meaningful work opportunities through internships and apprenticeships for youth; mentor and support the youth throughout their time in our organization
● Model and guide students in professional development, interpersonal skills, goal setting, time management, and communication
● Organize and lead an annual one-week bicycle mechanic intensive program with STEM students on-site at our bike shop
● Manage relationships with school partners to plan, schedule, and prepare for classes; work together to meet the needs of the school and students on an ongoing basis throughout each course

Andando en Bicicletas Y Caminando (10%)
● Supervise and support the Andando en Bicicletas Y Caminando (ABC) Coordinator
● Collaborate with the ABC Coordinator and ABC members to develop an annual work plan
● Serve as an alternate contact for ABC
● Conduct an annual evaluation of our efforts to increase bicycling access to Spanish-speaking community members
● Coordinate with program leadership at Verde and Hacienda CDC to ensure that we are collaborating on projects where our organizations’ goals align
● Look for opportunities for ABC to realize their self-identified goals
● Look for fundraising opportunities, grants, and contracts to support ABC’s budget

General Management and other duties (20%)
● Provide regular check-ins with direct reports to create opportunities for close collaboration with Programs staff to address staff concerns and identify areas of growth.
● Support recruitment of scholarship candidates for our Community Bike Drives and Community Camp, and support the engagement of community partners to help deliver both programs
● Collaborate with the Program Director and development team to do research, prepare proposals and write reports for government, foundation, and corporate funders
● Manage/oversee Community Program budgets including STEM, ABC, and the Hub
● Manage special initiatives, including equity curriculum development, program manual development, and optimization efforts
● Work with staff to manage systems for tracking program outcomes, budgets, registration, inventory, and supplies
● Maintain records of participation, mode share, and learning objectives for all Community Programs
● Work closely with Shop leadership to secure resources for community programs and maintain an inventory of parts and supplies needed for offsite classes
● Collaborate with Development team to pursue continued funding for our mission-centered programs and grant reporting efforts
● Assist with our other programs and enterprises and other tasks and projects as assigned

QUALIFICATIONS & CHARACTERISTICS
REQUIRED
● 3 years’ experience in program management
● Personable, receptive, and compassionate approach to collaboration
● Professional or lived experience working in communities of color and/or immigrant communities on community projects
● Experience supervising, training, and supporting staff
● Effective planning and time management skills
● Ability to maintain composure and a respectful and cooperative attitude through high stress situations
● Capacity to work independently and deliver on objectives
● Ability to work a flexible schedule that includes some evenings and weekends
● A demonstrated commitment to equity and social justice
● Ability to communicate in Spanish
● Commitment to non-violent and compassionate responses in a safe, supported, learning-centered environment
● A base-line knowledge of bicycle systems and anatomy
● A working knowledge of basic physics concepts including combined gas laws and Newtonian physics, or an ability to learn concepts
● Criminal background check required

PREFERRED
● Experience working as a bicycle mechanic
● Experience in young-adult education and working knowledge of best practices in experiential education including but not limited to inquiry-based learning, student-centered teaching, collaborative learning, and culturally appropriate teaching
● Proficiency in program tracking and evaluation
● Experience with grant reporting process
● Experience with creating budgets, tracking spending, and analyzing progress against goals
● Working knowledge of evaluation methods and systems including but not limited to logic models, theories of change, quantitative and qualitative methods, and authentic assessment
● Proficient in Microsoft Office Suite, Salesforce, Quickbooks, Sharepoint, Adobe

How to Apply

How to Apply
Please submit a cover letter and resume by email with “Community Programs Manager” as the subject line to jobs@communitycyclingcenter.org

Who is Mt. Tabor’s moto man?

Dan the moto man at Mt. Tabor last Wednesday.
(Photo: Greg Schmitt)

(Please welcome new contributor Hannah Moraes! You might recall her post-race interviews from the Red R Crit last week.)

A motorcycle rider on Mt. Tabor? During the weekly bike race?

After a collision between a rider and skateboarder brought an abrupt end to the third week of the Mt. Tabor Race Series on June 16th, attendees and organizers were worried about future incidents in the final weeks of the series. With an open course, volunteers placed at intersections do their best to keep the myriad other summertime mountain-goers from interfering with the race.

However, one person saw an opportunity to step up and offer an additional measure of safety that hadn’t previously been used: a moto-pacer that would stay ahead of each race to make sure the road was clear of pedestrians and party-goers alike.

I caught up with Moto Man after last week’s race. He revealed himself to be Dan, who happens to be husband to another important player in Oregon bike racing, women’s cycling advocate and Oregon Bicycle Racing Association Board Member Christy Hawk. Dan graciously agreed to an interview right after he got off his bike after a long evening of work.

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Book Review: Last Best Hope, America in Crisis and Renewal

Cover of Last Best Hope by George Packard
Cover of Last Best Hope by George Packard
Book cover.

Last Best Hope: America in Crisis and Renewal (Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2021-06-15) is an essay on the meaning of the year 2020. If the gift of the virus was to interrupt us, author George Packer uses the interruption to take a close look at America, a “long middle-aged stare in the mirror.” Packer’s examination puts our particular year in Portland into a larger context. His general analysis doesn’t perfectly fit our specifics, but it is a sharp lens through which to look at ourselves, and it helped me better understand our local issues.

The book is a cross between tough-love and a bad diagnosis from the doctor. This month’s Atlantic magazine excerpts a section in which Packer describes the fracturing of America into four parts, each with its own narrative and idea of what our country should be. He calls the parts Free, Real, Smart and Just America. Treat yourself and read this piece, it looks like it is available online free of charge.

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Riding the Portland heat wave (video)

Holy heck Portland! Record heat. It is stifling out there.

I don’t have much time because I’m leaving for vacation tonight and I’ve got family in town, but wanted to share a little video I did yesterday biking in the hottest part of the day. I went out in my neighborhood to try and find people riding bikes and ask what they were doing, and how it felt to ride in the record-setting heat.

And of course today (Sunday) is even hotter. And Monday will be hotter still. I have deep and dark feelings about what this heat means for us in a broader context, but for now let me just share this video and ask if you can tell us how you’ve coped with it.

I know many of you were on the Loud n’ Lit ride last night. Thousands of people rolled out for that annual party. It looked amazing!

Are you riding in the heat? What has it been like for you?

While I’m here, let me say that I’m headed to Florida for some time with my family for the next 10 days. I’ll be checking in from time-to-time and we have some stories planned. Contributor Lisa Caballero will be moderating comments while I’m gone. If you have an opinion or a story to share, please send it to us and I’ll try to get it posted.

Please be careful out there. This heat is no joke.