Turn your street project idea into reality with Better Block PSU program

Carfree SW Montgomery Street being painted by PSU students last year.
(Photo: PSU TREC)

What do Better Naito, the SW 3rd/Ankeny plaza, and new bus lanes on SW Madison and the Burnside Bridge have in common? They all started as ideas from students and activists and ended up as real projects on the ground.

If you have an idea to make streets and public space work better, now is your chance to give it some wings.

As we shared last spring, tactical urbanism organization Better Block PDX and Portland State University have joined forces to help great ideas become reality. Through PSU’s Transportation Research and Education Center (TREC), they’ve created a program that aligns PSU transportation, engineering, and planning students with activists and community organizations to create official plans for pop-up projects.

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Job: Assistant Operations Manager – Left Coast Bicycles

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

Job Title

Assistant Operations Manager

Company / Organization

Left Coast Bicycles

Job Description

Are you an experienced bike mechanic that is great with people, looking for independence, weekends off, and competitive hourly pay? If so, we’d like to hear from you! We are in search of an Assistant Operations Manager to join our mobile repair team to lead bicycle service events for our network of forward-thinking workplaces and home-based customers.

Our ideal candidate exudes warmth and friendliness, is independent and has a confident attitude and character. You have a rich and varied experience in the bicycle industry and are comfortable working on all varieties of bikes from clunky commuters to high end carbon race bikes. You have excellent customer service skills, are able to communicate the nuances of each customers bicycle needs in an approachable, friendly way. You are a good problem solver with a can-do attitude, and you also work well as part of a team.

You will be responsible for moving our shop-on-wheels to each location via bike and van (mostly in central Portland) and providing friendly on-site bike service. Each event typically lasts 2-5 days. You will assist the Operation Manager tracking our inventory of parts, accessories and supplies to ensure that each of our fleet of repair kits is always stocked and ready for the next event. We offer competitive starting pay, weekends off and 401K up to 5% match.

Hours available will vary for this position.

24-40 Hrs per week average; April-November

16-30 hrs per week average; December- March

Key Responsibilities

Transport of our bike-shop on wheels via bike or van to repair events in the Portland Metro area. Mostly downtown Portland.

Thorough, personalized bicycle repair estimates and tune-ups

Assist leading a team of mechanics to complete repairs in a timely manner

Assist Ops Manager with Inventory management of repair parts, maintenance supplies, and accessories

Assist Ops Manager to maintain our fleet of bike-shops-on-wheels and Lloyd workspace

Strong Candidates

At least 5 years experience in bike shops repairing a variety of bikes with exceptional mechanical ability and knowledge

Experienced manager, proactive leader, and troubleshooter

A people person and a good communicator

Excellent time management

Independent and able to perform an accurate bike repair estimate efficiently

Mature, responsible, team player

Clean driving record

Strong computer skills – Google docs, Microsoft Office Suite

Prompt email access and effective digital communicator

Excited about the bike lifestyle and culture

Experience managing inventory and purchasing

Compensation

Competitive starting hourly pay $15-$19 DOE

401K with up to 5% match

Access to wholesale parts and new bikes

How to Apply

Email your resumé and cover letter to info@leftcoastbicycles.com

Tell us a little bit about yourself and why you think you would be a great Assistant Operations Manager.

Job: Sale Associate – Bike Clark County

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

Job Title

Sale Associate

Company / Organization

Bike Clark County

Job Description

Bike Clark County is expanding – come join us, have fun, and create a positive influence on our community!
Bike Clark County (BCC) is a non-profit organization that creates opportunities for empowerment, education, and social change through bicycles and bicycle repair. As a nonprofit, we repair bicycles donated from the community, and redistribute them through our charitable programs and bike sales. We teach the community how to repair their own bicycles in our shared use shop space. Our charitable programs seek to make bicycles, and bicycle repair/safety education available to the entire community regardless of income.

Job Duties and Responsibilities:
Greet customers, answer phone, light mechanics.
Maintain a clean work environment for customers as well as other mechanics.
Help with merchandising as needed.
Organize parts area.
Help customers on sales floor.
Operate Point of Sale system.

Qualifications needed to do the job successfully:
Outgoing, friendly customer service skills.
Excellent people skills that will enable you to work with a wide variety of clientele.
Outstanding communication skills.
Good organizational skills & multitasking in a fast-paced, fun environment!

Please see our website to learn more about BCC! www.bikeclarkcounty.org
Part time to full-time positions. Hourly range is $14-$18/hr Depending on Experience.

Bike Clark County is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Individuals with diverse abilities, people of color, women, trans & gender non-conforming people are encouraged to apply.

How to Apply

Send Resume & cover letter to info@bikeclarkcounty.org

Job: Mechanic, Part Time – Left Coast Bicycles

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

Job Title

Mechanic, Part Time

Company / Organization

Left Coast Bicycles

Job Description

We are in search of a qualified bike mechanic to join our mobile repair team to run bicycle service events for our home-based customers and our network of forward-thinking workplaces. Are you an experienced bike mechanic that is great with people? Already working at a shop and looking for more hours? Are you looking for independence, a flexible schedule, weekends off, and competitive hourly pay? If so, we’d like to hear from you!

Our ideal candidate exudes warmth and friendliness, is independent and has a confident attitude and character. You have rich and varied experience in the bicycle industry and are comfortable working on all varieties of bikes from clunky commuters to high-end carbon race bikes. You have excellent customer service skills, are able to communicate the nuances of each customer’s bicycle needs in an approachable, friendly way. You are a good problem solver with a can-do attitude, and you also work well as part of a team.

Job Info

You will be responsible for transporting our shop-on-wheels via bike or van to each location and providing a friendly on-site bike service.

This is a contract part-time position. Our schedule is variable, our assignments range from 1 to 5 days in length and are assigned based on your availability.

More assignments are available during March-November.

$15-$18 hourly pay (DOE).

Opportunities for advancement and full-time employment for strong candidates.

Access to wholesale parts / new bikes

Key Responsibilities

Transport of our bike-shop on wheels via bike or van to repair events in the Portland Metro area.

Set up of bicycle repair station and LCB promotional materials.

Thorough personalized bicycle repair estimates and tune-ups.

Run repair events independently and assist our Head Mechanic with repair events when needed.

Strong Candidates

At least 3 years’ experience (preferably 5 ) working in bike shops wrenching on a variety of bikes and able to perform accurate repair estimates and tune-ups efficiently.

A people person, a good communicator and efficient mechanic

Independent with excellent problem-solving skills.

Strong computer skills – Google docs, Microsoft Office Suite a plus

Experience using point of sale systems.

Clean driving record.

Mature, organized and a responsible team player.

Excited about the bike lifestyle and culture.

How to apply

Email your resume and cover letter to info@leftcoastbicycles.com.

Tell us a little bit about yourself, your experience and why you think you would be a great addition to our team.

How to Apply

Email your resume and cover letter to info@leftcoastbicycles.com.

Tell us a little bit about yourself, your experience and why you think you would be a great addition to our team.

Rider’s letter to PBOT Commissioner Chloe Eudaly calls out conditions on N Williams

Video still from Chris H’s camera shows a man driving in the bike lane on North Williams.
Watch it below.

[Note from publisher: I was CC’d on the letter below to Portland Bureau of Transportation Commissioner Chloe Eudaly this morning. It’s from a reader named Chris H.]

Dear Commissioner Eudaly,

Last night, as I was riding down N Williams, I noticed a motorist move into the bike lane and start driving down the bike lane because they felt that they didn’t need to wait in the motorist-only lane. I frequently have to correct motorist on how to use bike infrastructure and out of my interactions with motorist, I’d say a good 80% either don’t know they are doing anything wrong or at least pretend that they don’t know they are doing anything wrong, and they correct their course.

As you know, N Williams, purported by PBOT to be the most heavily used bike route in the city, doesn’t have a contiguous bike lane, nor does it have a single foot of evidence-based protected bike lane.

When I stopped to let the motorist know that he wasn’t allowed to drive in the bike lane, this is what happened;

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Get Legal: Catch criminal behavior with an on-board camera

“When he slowed the video down, Hank was shocked to see that the vehicle’s passenger held a knife in his outstretched hand.”

Hank Bosak had front and rear cameras on his bike when he was assaulted with a knife by a passing car user.
(Photos: Thomas, Coon, Newton & Frost)

This post by lawyers Chris Thomas and Ray Thomas is part of a paid promotional partnership with Thomas, Coon, Newton & Frost.

Sometimes video evidence is essential to holding dangerous road users accountable. The case of our client Hank Bosak illustrates this well.

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Weekend Event Guide: Slough Country Ramble, NW neighborhood gathering, and more

Sponsor This Post!

We’re looking for a great company that wants to be the sponsor of our Events Calendar and Weekend Event Guide. Please contact mausjonathan@gmail.com if interested.

I know all the sun this week has been distracting while you sit at work. But just a few more hours and you’ll have the whole weekend to soak it up.

Check our selection of to-dos below and have a great time out there…

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Portland Police online crime reporting system now includes bike theft

Screen grab from PPB Citizen Online Reporting site.

In a bid to make crime reporting more convenient and free up officers for other calls, the Portland Police Bureau announced this week they’ve expanded the types of crimes that can be reported online.

Along with identity theft, telephone scams, shoplifting, and other crimes, you can now use the PPB’s Citizen Online Reporting System to report a bicycle theft. The new system can be used if the value of your bicycle is below $10,000 and there are no known suspects.

Officer Dave Sanders, founder of the PPB Bike Theft Task Force, says it’s a welcome step forward. “Hopefully this will encourage more folks to report their stolen bikes,” he shared with me earlier this week. Ofcr. Sanders added that he references police reports daily in his ongoing battle against Portland’s rampant bike theft problem (they’ve already recovered over 50 bikes so far this year). “We just got a bike back for a guy this morning in spite of an absent serial number,” he shared.

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