New council date, final projects set for Central City in Motion plan

Cover of PBOT’s newly published Central City in Motion Implementation Plan .

After many changes in the past few months, the ink is finally drying on the Central City in Motion plan.

This week the Portland Bureau of Transportation published a bunch of new documents (including the official Implementation Plan) and changed the council hearing date to this coming Thursday November 15th at 2:00 pm.

This is not a drill.

With two years of public outreach and planning all tied up in a bow, all that’s left is to make closing arguments, get this thing passed at City Council, and start building.

Here’s what made the final cut…

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Closures of Rhine-Lafayette overpass begin November 26th

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

UPDATE: The closure of the Rhine-Lafayette Pedestrian Overpass in southeast Portland that had been planned for Monday, Nov. 19 through Wednesday, Nov. 21, has been postponed. The elevator improvement project will now begin Monday, Nov. 26, with elevators closing Monday, Dec. 17 through Friday, Jan. 4. Full closures of the overpass will be necessary at times. We will install HVAC equipment inside the elevator towers to regulate the temperature and humidity year-round. We also will be installing canopies over both elevator towers and adding drainage at the base of the towers to prevent rain from getting into the elevator mechanisms. More.

Be advised that TriMet is doing work on the Rhine-Lafayette bridge elevators that will close it to bicycle users for three days this month and then again for two weeks in December. Check the official statement below for more info:

Three-day closure begins Monday, Nov. 19 with intermittent closures of elevators through Jan. 4

The Rhine-Lafayette Pedestrian Overpass in southeast Portland will close Monday, Nov. 19 through Wednesday, Nov. 21, as TriMet makes improvements to increase the reliability of the bridge’s elevators. The pedestrian overpass spans railroad tracks in the Brooklyn neighborhood, and connects SE Lafayette Street with SE Rhine Street. It provides connections to TriMet’s MAX Orange Line at the SE 17th Ave & Rhine St Station as well as to the Line 17-Holgate/Broadway, Line 70-12th/NE 33rd Ave and Line 291-Orange Night Bus. We will install HVAC equipment inside the elevator towers to regulate the temperature and humidity year-round. We also will be installing canopies over both elevator towers and adding drainage at the base of the towers to prevent rain from getting into the elevator mechanisms.

Construction closure schedule
The improvements will take about seven weeks and require the full closure of the Rhine-Lafayette overpass at times. The first full closure of the bridge comes at the beginning of the Thanksgiving holiday week.

Full closure of the pedestrian overpass:
– Monday, Nov. 19 – Wednesday, Nov. 21

Construction continues with no impact to users:
– Monday, Nov. 26 – Friday, Dec. 14

Elevators closed and intermittent closures of the overpass possible:
– Monday, Dec. 17 – Friday, Jan. 4

Also, SE Rhine Street east of SE 18th Avenue and SE Lafayette Street west of SE 20th Avenue will be closed Monday, Nov. 19 through Friday, Jan. 4.

Plan extra time for detour
During the closures, a detour will guide pedestrians and cyclists north to SE Powell Boulevard to cross under the railroad tracks. Those who use the Rhine-Lafayette overpass should plan an extra 10 to 15 minutes to navigate the detour between both sides of the bridge.

From the east side of the bridge, proceed north on SE 20th Avenue about 0.2 mile, then go west on SE Powell Boulevard another 0.2 mile. Cross SE Powell Boulevard Frontage Road and proceed south about 0.15 mile to SE Rhine Street.

From the west side of the bridge, proceed north on SE 17th Avenue about 0.15 mile and cross SE Powell Boulevard Frontage Road to SE Powell Boulevard. Go east on SE Powell Boulevard for another 0.2 mile and turn south on SE 20th Avenue for 0.2 mile to reach SE Lafayette Street.

— Jonathan Maus: (503) 706-8804, @jonathan_maus on Twitter and jonathan@bikeportland.org

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Portland’s new commissioner-elect sees a carfree future with fareless and fast transit

One of the biggest local consequences of last night’s election is that Jo Ann Hardesty will be sworn-in as a Portland city commissioner in January.

Her presence on the five-member council could have far-reaching implications as we debate and consider major transportation-related issues in the coming years. Hardesty and her new colleagues on Portland City Council will have a say on key issues ranging from mega-projects to micromobility. Since we haven’t sat down with her for an extended conversation yet, I thought I’d share what she’s said on the record thus far.

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Review: The Silca Ypsilon “Y” wrench

Quality tools encourage you to do learn about your bike and work on it yourself more often.
(Photos: Jonathan Maus/BikePortland)

As with many of Silca’s products, their latest tool called Ypsilon Wrench caught my eye and I could not resist. This is a quality tool that looks the part.

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The City of Beaverton wants a dockless bike share system

SW Canyon Road in Beaverton.
(Photo: Jonathan Maus/BikePortland)

A major suburb just a few miles west of downtown Portland wants a dockless bike share system.

The City of Beaverton (population 100,000) has launched an official request for information (RFI) to learn more from companies that, “can provide useful and relevant information on a dockless bike share program.” Bike-share is called out in Beaverton’s 2017 Active Transportation Plan and city planners say it’s a needed weapon in their fight against congestion which is only expected to get worse as the city grows.

Here’s more from the RFI (PDF here):

“Metro anticipates that the Beaverton Regional Center will increase by 4,500 new jobs and 10,000 new residents over the next 25 years. As the City continues to grow, congestion on local roadways will continue to increase. As one way to help reduce or at least moderate congestion, the City is looking to increase multi-modal opportunities for residents to get to work, to transit, and in the case of walking and biking, as a general form of mobility and recreation.”

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In Oregon, election night was great for Democrats and progressive policies

Parking reform activist Tony Jordan at a campaign event for Jo Ann Hardesty (center).
(Photo: Tony Jordan)

In the first national election since Donald Trump assumed the presidency — and despite gerrymandered districts, voter suppressions efforts, and racist campaigning by some Republicans — America tilted to the left last night. Here in the Portland region, the swing toward Democrats and progressive policies was even more pronounced.

In the race to replace longtime Portland City Commissioner Dan Saltzman, Jo Ann Hardesty cruised to an easy win over Loretta Smith. Hardesty becomes the first black woman to hold a council seat. Hardesty was endorsed by The Street Trust and nearly every transportation reformer in the BikePortland orbit was a major supporter.

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Job: Senior Associate – Urban Planning & Sustainability – Urban Land Institute

Buffered Bike Lane with a bike symbol and arrow pointing forward

Job Title

Senior Associate – Urban Planning & Sustainability

Company / Organization

Urban Land Institute

Job Description

Passionate about environmental sustainability and urban planning? Savvy with both projects and people?

ULI Northwest is looking for a member to join our small team of energetic professionals. Our work group is the productive force behind an array of programs and initiatives in real estate development and land use in the Pacific Northwest. As the local District Council of the Urban Land Institute, a non-profit research and education organization, we carry forth ULI’s mission to connect the global real estate community and provide leadership in the responsible use of land and to create and sustain thriving communities. We have more than 40,000 members worldwide representing the entire spectrum of disciplines, working in private enterprise and public service.

We currently have an opening for a Senior Associate in Portland, OR.

The Senior Associate is the “hub” of ULI Northwest programs and initiatives. The Senior Associate provides leadership, tracks project details and ensures all trains are running on schedule. The successful candidate will be passionate about land use, self-driven, energetic, highly organized, and able to multi-task effectively in a fast-paced and fluid work environment. Work will be done independently as well as part of an integrated team.

The Senior Associate will see and steer potential in groups and implement a balance of stepping up to lead groups while knowing when to lead from behind. The Senior Associate will have a strong sense of the “big picture” and also carefully implement projects, attending to and tracking all necessary details. The most successful candidate will help brainstorm new projects, ask great questions and contribute creative ideas; and enjoy interacting with a diverse swath of the Northwest real estate community. There will be occasional travel throughout Oregon and Washington and occasional work early mornings and evenings.

Areas of responsibility include:
• Leadership: maintain key external alliances, support management committees, implement community outreach initiatives, be a liaison between committees, manage and support programs such as the Center for Sustainable Leadership Women’s Leadership Initiative, Urban Product Council, and the Young Leaders Group, including all aspects of planning and implementation
• Committees: send invitations, track RSVPs, recruit volunteers, prepare for meetings, ensure members complete assignments, attend meetings, take minutes and send notes, assist in creation of annual plans
• Programs: prepare handouts and presentations, assist with meeting logistics, coordinate with support staff, track volunteers and volunteer assignments
• Communications: draft and finalize persuasive written communications on complex topics, contribute ideas and finished pieces for marketing, participate in sponsorship and new member recruitment, keep aware of and utilize new technologies
• Administration: access the database to print labels/badges and make reports, answer calls and emails, do some admin tasks and special projects, be the backup for administrative staff

Great candidates have a BS/BA degree, 4+ years of experience in many of the areas listed above, and the capacities and approaches described. Substantive knowledge in real estate and land use is preferred, but not required.

Compensation is competitive for this full-time position with great opportunity for growth.

EOE/m/f/d/v

How to Apply

To apply send an email to northwest.uli@gmail.com with all of the following:
1. A personalized cover letter
2. Your resume
3. Salary expectations
4. LinkedIn or equivalent social media links

No phone calls, please.

Family Biking: Let’s (not) talk about safety

On Clinton, and only Clinton, we ride side by side even when cars are near.
(Photos: Madi Carlson)

Last week I wrote a “rah rah” post about making a plan to pedal more and beat the winter blahs. That post inspired a few comments about readers’ plans for winter biking; but there was one commenter who felt I, “Missed a huge opportunity to point out that riding at night or even in a light rain increases one’s chances dramatically of death and maiming.”

So this week I figured I should write about safety. Or rather, why I don’t write about safety.

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