4/25: Hello readers and friends. I'm still recovering from a surgery I had on 4/11, so I'm unable to attend events and do typical coverage. See this post for the latest update. I'll work as I can and I'm improving every day! Thanks for all your support 🙏. - Jonathan Maus, BikePortland Publisher and Editor
SW Capitol Hill Road, looking south, from the Habitat for Humanity frontage. (Lisa Caballero/BikePortland)
This post is by Guest Contributor Don Baack
Don Baack
As our city government reorganizes itself to operate more efficiently, there has been a lot of talk this past couple of years about silos. Bureaus as silos, silos within bureaus. But what’s happening right now on SW Capitol Hill Road takes silos to a new level of inefficiency. It also illustrates how the piecemeal way sidewalks and bike lanes get built in the southwest results in so many gaps.
The simple outline of the story goes like this…
Hi-LO Trail
A few years ago, SWTrails PDX, an organization I founded nearly 30 years ago, successfully lobbied state representatives Senator Wagner and Congresswoman Salinas to fund a new trail, the Hillsdale to Lake Oswego (Hi-LO) trail. The Hi-LO trail includes a segment along SW Capitol Hill Road, a busy neighborhood collector in the Hillsdale Town Center that has a few stretches of sidewalks near Barbur Blvd, but mostly lacks a safe place for people to walk.
State funds came through in 2021, and the Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) planners were tasked with designing the new sidewalk segment between 19th Avenue and Nevada Court (segment 14 on the map above). After the usual rounds of public outreach, the planners decided it would sit on the east/south side of Capitol Hill Road, a placement which SWTrails supports.
Habitat for Humanity
Map of PBOT sidewalk infill projects on SW Capitol Hill Rd. BikePortland annotations in blue. Source: PBOT.
Meanwhile, north of Nevada Court, Habitat for Humanity acquired (also with state funding) a parcel of land from the Portland Bible Church which has about 400 feet of frontage on the west side of SW Capitol Hill Road. Habitat proposes to build 52 affordable housing units on the parcel.
City regulations call for a developer to build frontage improvements like sidewalks and bicycle lanes so that new development is accompanied by a supporting transportation network. The Development Review desk within PBOT oversees those public right-of-way requirements.
“The result is pedestrians walking in the street for the final 1,000 feet of dangerous road.”
But rather than requiring sidewalk and bike facilities that could possibly connect to PBOT’s Nevada Court work to the south, Development Review proposed a walking and bicycle path on private, Habitat for Humanity property—30 vertical feet above the street! The proposed path would dead-end about 300 feet north of the existing Nevada Court right-of-way. In other words, Development Review proposed a path which is up a steep hill, above the roadway, and does not connect to anything. Closing the 300 ft. gap between this proposed path and the nearest other right-of-way (SWTrail #3 and Capitol Hill Road) would require investment by either the City of Portland, the Portland Bible Church, or a future land purchaser. The connection, if built to existing bicycle route standards, would require about 300 feet (30 ft vertical at 10% grade) of steep grade from Capitol Hill Road.
So, to recap, on the same road one PBOT silo has designed infill sidewalk from the Safeway on Barbur Blvd to Nevada Court, while another PBOT silo (as part of code-required frontage improvements) is requiring a developer to build a public path on private property, above street grade—a path which will not connect to PBOT’s southern sidewalk infill projects. It’s not exactly the right hand not knowing what the left hand is doing, maybe the north and south hands?
The result is pedestrians walking in the street for the final 1,000 feet of dangerous road from Nevada Court up to the intersection of Capitol Hill Road with Bertha Boulevard.
Neighborhood pushback
SW Capitol Hill Road, looking north. This shows the beginning of the 1,000 foot sidewalk gap north of Nevada Court (Photo: Don Baack)
In response to neighborhood complaints, Habitat offered to contribute funding for a sidewalk on the east side of Capitol Hill Road, across the street from their property, in lieu of the above-grade path PBOT was requiring of them. An east side sidewalk would have partially filled the 1,000 foot sidewalk gap, and at least established a roadmap for future sidewalk infill on the northern third of Capitol Hill Road. PBOT responded with a firm no. [UPDATE: 4/5/2024, 10:45 AM — As part of fact-checking this post, Lisa Caballero made a public records request for the Habitat Public Works Alternative Review Decision form, which gives a summary of why Development Review required the path it did. The form was delivered after publication of this article.]
Source: PedPDX sidewalk completeness tool.
This disjointed funding and implementation is why southwest Portland has so many gaps in its already paltry sidewalk network, and why the bicycle network is so incomplete. Unfortunately, this particular situation is not unique, similar scenarios play out all over our neighborhoods.
The City of Portland has neglected southwest sidewalk and bike infrastructure for half a century, even as the climate and pedestrian death crises have so visibly worsened in recent years. The reasons that the city doesn’t push developers to build sidewalks in the southwest are complicated, but if there is a root cause, it is our area’s lack of a formal stormwater conveyance system. We don’t have a Big Pipe (although we pay for it), our water runs off into creeks and streams.
Stormwater is too big a topic to go into in this short article, but we badly need representatives who understand the issue—let’s make learning on the job a thing of the past! We deserve better. Elections are coming up in seven months, our part of town needs representatives at all levels who know how to advocate for making our streets safer. And that means knowing something about transportation, development and stormwater.
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It was a dream many years in the making that creates direct access for an entire neighborhood and connects to a key cycling route. I’ve heard multiple reports that the new path and crosswalk are already seeing a high volume of users.
But as with many City of Portland projects, if we want to see this reach its full potential, we’ve got to get the details right. And one detail of this project — getting people across Southeast Division Street at 64th Avenue — isn’t right. As I reported last week, the Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) has installed a painted crosswalk and a median island with plastic posts and curbs on the east side of the intersection. It helps, but given the behavior of drivers on Division, a more robust crossing treatment might be needed. (Parks also needs to improve the transition from the path to the crossing for southbound bike riders, but I’ll leave that for another post.)
To help illustrate this issue, I’ve shared a message below that I received from a reader yesterday. It helps drive home the dangers people face while biking — not just due to infrastructure design but the related bad behaviors on our streets:
“I used the crosswalk for the first time today at 64th and Division. I was on my bike traveling west in the bike lane on Division and was able to ride into the crosswalk and median from a complete stop in the bike lane. After that, a motorcycle and car failed to yield so I was stuck until they passed to get all of the way across. The driver of the car had that look, so I returned it with my middle finger.
Continuing home, I made it to SE Powell Blvd [a half-mile south of Division] and while I’m always uneasy crossing those five lanes, I was even more shaken by the screeching of tires beside me as the driver of the aforementioned car pulled up and started to tell me that what I did was stupid. He said the “psycho tweakers” would have run me over and then I would be “crying about how unfair it was.” He wanted to educate me on how I was supposed to walk my bike through crosswalks but when I asked his source for that knowledge he just kept repeating the same lines about how I was being stupid and acting like all of the other entitled cyclists. Eventually I was able to point out that he was the one that went out of his way to chase me down.
After another minute of him ranting and me refusing to apologize, he sped off I’m sure feeling like he got the last word and therefore won.
The crosswalk I’m referring to is new and already very popular as it leads right up to Mt Tabor through a neighborhood. This route is much friendlier than riding on 60th but the crossing at Division is just a simple sign and the white crosswalk stripes, no flashing lights. I think it needs to have lights and include a cyclist on the sign since the average driver doesn’t seem to know bikes can use crosswalks at a walking pace and cars must yield. I run into this issue fairly often all over the city. How can we educate drivers and/or make this a better crosswalk for all users?
This crossing is already very popular and it will only get more use with the coming summer months as it will serve as a main artery for pedestrians coming from the neighborhoods south of Mt Tabor. I encourage everyone to check out the new path. It’s honestly very nice and I love everything about it — except the crossing at Division.”
Asked for more information about this crossing, PBOT said a flashing beacon is not in the plans. “Both roadway geometry and traffic conditions indicate a median island crossing treatment for this intersection. The crossings already on either side of SE 64th, at SE 59th and Division and SE 67th and Division, are both median island crossings,” PBOT Communications Director Hannah Schafer shared with BikePortland last week.
PBOT is currently providing feedback to TriMet on a permanent design to come in the future as part of TriMet’s Powell-Division Safety and Access to Transit project. I’ve asked TriMet for more information and will update this post when I hear back.
On the Oregon Coast Bike Route, somewhere between Tillamook and Newport. (Jonathan Maus/BikePortland)
The Oregon Department of Transportation sent out a survey on the first of April that seeks to gather information about road safety. I think you should take it.
Given the high stakes of the coming legislative session where lawmakers will debate a massive new transportation spending and policy package, I feel like every opportunity to share feedback with ODOT should be seized. This is especially true because I’ve seen this same survey being shared in circles online where folks don’t believe ODOT should spend any money on things like traffic calming, road diets, or bike lanes — because things aren’t really “fixing the roads.”
The survey comes from ODOT’s Transportation Safety Office who says (on their website) that their main responsibility is to, “improve the safety of all roadway users, and all modes of travel in Oregon through education and outreach” with an overall goal to, “eliminate traffic fatalities and serious injuries on Oregon’s roadways.” This office is funded by grants from the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration (NHTSA) and it’s focused on communication and partnerships with community groups, not on infrastructure funding.
According to Safety Office Public Information Officer Mindy McCartt, this is the first time this office has pushed out their safety survey to such a wide audience. It’s part of their effort to fulfill demographic and reporting requirements from the federal government. In the past they’ve gathered this feedback primarily from in-person meetings around the state and from a smaller survey sample online.
What’s important to keep in mind is beyond reporting back to NHTSA, this survey will inform how the Safety Office spends its funding. “We’re going to also use it to help determine how the money is spent next year and the following years,” McCartt shared with me today.” And you can bet that the responses gathered will end up on slides in future ODOT presentations to the legislature and beyond.
The questions in the survey are pretty straightforward. They include:
What makes you interested in traffic safety?
How safe do you feel driving on Oregon roads?
What is the number one factor that impacts how you feel about driving on Oregon roads?
How safe do you feel on Oregon paths?
What is the number one factor that impacts how you feel on Oregon paths?
How can we best support traffic safety education in your community?
What community organizations or groups do you believe could benefit from traffic safety education?
How do you best receive traffic safety educational information?
The most intriguing question asks what specific programs ODOT should invest traffic safety dollars in. Survey takers are given 14 options and can select up to five. Here are the options:
Bicyclist and Pedestrian Safety
Distracted Driving
Driver Education
Impaired Driving
Judicial Outreach
Motorcycle Safety
Occupant Protection/Seat Belts/Child Car Seats
Older Driver Education Programs
Police Traffic Services/Emergency Responder Training
A bicycle rider waits for a chance to cross SE Powell at 79th. View is looking south. (Aaron Kuehn/Instagram)
Doing it right is more important than getting it done quickly. That’s the message road safety advocates have for the Oregon Department of Transportation after learning about imminent plans to finally build a new crossing treatment on Southeast Powell Boulevard at 79th.
Crossing marked in red.
This crossing (see map at right) has always been risky. It’s not just the four lanes of fast, state highway traffic on Powell you have to worry about. 79th is also a small, forgettable road at this location and on the south side it emerges from a frontage road. At just 700 feet west of roaring 82nd Avenue (another state highway), most drivers barely notice 79th at all, much less a person waiting to walk or bike across it.
It’s also why last week, three local nonprofits sent a letter to the three agencies that have a say in what happens here: the Oregon Department of Transportation, TriMet, and the Portland Bureau of Transportation.
(Graphics: BikeLoud PDX)
“We are writing to convey our concern that current designs for improvements at SE 79th and Powell will not create a crossing that is direct, safe, and comfortable for all users,” reads the letter, signed by leaders of Oregon Walks, the Asian Pacific American Network of Oregon (APANO), the Vestal Elementary Bike Bus, and BikeLoud PDX.
The groups point out that SE Powell is one of the deadliest streets in Portland and that plans on the table don’t go far enough to help people get safely across it.
As you can see in the images, the crossing currently has no marked crosswalks. According to the letter (based on plans obtained by BikeLoud PDX via public records requests), ODOT plans to install a “Crosswalk Closed” sign on the eastern corners. That closure would limit crossing options for walkers and bike riders and would, “Add out-of-direction travel and increase pedestrian exposure to traffic by requiring up to three separate crossings to reach the bus stop at the southeast corner of the intersection,” the letter states.
BikeLoud says they’ve asked ODOT, PBOT and TriMet to explain why the closure is necessary, but have not heard a satisfactory response.
Making matters worse, TriMet’s plan for the crossing appears to differ from ODOT’s (TriMet has oversight due to their Powell-Division Corridor Safety plan), and would have bike riders cross at an angle, northeast across Powell. “If professional planners disagree on how the design will be used, it is unlikely to be clear to ordinary road users, either for cyclists using the crossing or for drivers watching for crossing cyclist,” reads the letter.
ODOT plans to install a flashing beacon on the western crossing of the intersection, but advocates say a four-lane state highway with a record if crashes like Powell requires a full signal or some other treatment that requires drivers to stop on a solid red phase.
In addition to a stronger crossing treatment, the advocates say both crossings must remain open. They also want the agencies to get together and hash out a better plan.
“The time for action is now, the current plan would continue to reinforce the car-first design of the Powell corridor, and building it as currently envisioned would lock in that compromised design for decades to come.”
Eli Arnold in the BikePortland Shed, April 1st, 2024. (Jonathan Maus/BikePortland)
It took over a month for me to agree to interview Portland City Council candidate Eli Arnold. When most candidates reach out and ask for an interview, I reply much sooner and am eager to connect, either for a recorded conversation or an appearance at Bike Happy Hour.
But Arnold was different — because he’s a Portland Police officer.
But in recent years, my opinion of policing — and the PPB in particular — has soured. I participated in several of the Black Lives Matter protests as a Portlander and as a journalist between June 2020 and April 2021 and I currently have no contact with the bureau or any of its officers.
That why I’ve watched Eli Arnold’s candidacy for council District 4 (Sellwood, Eastmoreland, and everything west of the Willamette River) with interest. When he requested an interview last month, I thought about it for a long time before saying, “yes.”
I understand the risks of platforming a police officer in our current political climate. But as I weighed my decision, nothing emerged from my own thoughts or from what I’d seen or heard or researched about Arnold, that I considered to be disqualifying. Please note: Those two previous sentences do not encapsulate all my thoughts about Arnold or this interview and I’m happy to talk about them further in person, in the comments below, or wherever else. In the end, my gut told me I should talk to him and share our conversation with you.
We covered a lot of ground in the interview. I wanted to make it relevant and worthwhile in terms of the big issues, while also touching on Arnold’s cycling perspective and giving you a sense of who he is beyond his uniform.
“It’s the equation for photosynthesis, escape velocity and the Drake equation…and giant Sequoia tree paired up with a Saturn five rocket.”
He rolled up to the Shed in north Portland from Sellwood on his Trek Alpha.
Here’s a brief list of what we talked about:
Arnold’s experience on the bike squad.
Why Arnold started a community garden in his Savannah, GA neighborhood in 2014.
Why I’m skeptical he can be trusted to be a city leader with only Army and police experience.
How the killing of Michael Brown in Ferguson, MO in 2014 inspired Arnold to become a cop.
What he thinks about Former City Councilor Jo Ann Hardesty’s violence prevention tactics.
Policing in Portland and Arnold’s ideas for improving it.
What the big tattoo on his arm is all about (it’s related to his love of science fiction).
Why he thinks the we need more police — despite the problems on our streets being one of mental health, addiction, and other issues police are not suited to address.
How he’d approach traffic safety and his ideas to save lives.
and much more.
Listen in the player above or wherever you get your podcasts. You can hear an audio sample below or on Instagram. I’ve also pasted several exchanges below (edited for clarity):
[00:05:21] Jonathan Maus: When did you get to Portland and how did you decide to become a police officer here?
Eli Arnold:
“I got to Portland in 2015. I was just looking for something community oriented to do… Actually the first job I applied for was to be the head of the community garden program in Portland. I was not hired. Then I applied to be a background investigator the police bureau and somebody at that was like, ‘Why in the world are you not applying to be a police officer?’ And I had gone on a ride-along a few years prior, and prior to that no interest in the field. But it was really interesting actually. And so this guy talked me into it and I went ahead and applied.”
[00:07:16] Jonathan Maus: I think for a lot of people in America, [the response in Ferguson, MO to the killing of Michael Brown by a police officer] was when they started getting skeptical and negative about policing, maybe for the first time in their life, and it kicked off a lot of the turmoil of the next decade. I know you were in the Army, so you’re sort of in a law enforcement profession to some degree. Do you think that’s why that you leaned into policing in that moment instead of maybe coming away from it like a lot of people did?
Eli Arnold:
“I think the conclusion I reached was just that, this is important. Do it [policing] well or bad, there’s huge consequences. And so, you know, I think what attracted me as a young person to the military was, we’re going to deal with life and death stuff. We’re going to deal with big things. And I think my particular nature, uh, sort of suits me to certain things. I’m very non-reactive. So, you know, like flying a [night vision goggles] mission in Afghanistan doesn’t do much to me. An so I thought, you know, here’s the thing that maybe I’m suited to. So I guess it did have some appeal as like, I think I could do a good job at this.”
[00:14:52] Jonathan Maus: You mentioned the capacity issue with the police, but it seems to me that the issues on the street are issues that would be better solved by people that aren’t police officers. So whatever it is, social workers, something like Portland Street Response and other alternatives, right? So how do you balance those two proposals that you’re talking about — where you want to go back to more police yet you’re also saying you’re identifying all the problems police should be really responding to begin with?
Eli Arnold:
“I think we need both. I think just on the purely police side, we just don’t have the capacity we need to do the work that people deserve when they’re the victim of a crime.”
Jonathan Maus: Saying you want both is a nice, easy thing to say, but politics is about making choices. And I think some people listening to this may hear that answer and think, well, one of the reasons we can’t do some of the alternative care is because there’s so much focus and attention and money going into the policing and the staffing of police… Why should we increase the amount of officers in this city given the track record, given the distrust, given the lack of substantive reforms, even in the last few years?
Eli Arnold:
“Yeah. well, I think policing’s kind of a black box to a lot of people. It’s something most people don’t have very much experience with… I think the way that you improve a lot of this is by improving service. And you can’t improve service if you don’t have the staff… I think doing the job right requires the people, requires the time, requires the follow-up… So I really think we need those increases in the short-run. What we’re looking for are ways to reduce strain on that system and sort of deal with the surrounding issues.”
[00:20:04] Jonathan Maus: And for that, people I think reasonably should want something in return. And I’m just wondering, what are those meaningful reforms been to make it so that the Portland Police Bureau deserves that extra capacity, which is a lot of extra money from the community?
Eli Arnold:
“I will just tell you my experience coming in. I think a lot has changed in policing over the last 20 years. I learned about policing after becoming one, and the history really is that 40 years ago, there were no rules… And so we’ve been gradually moving from a complete free-for-all, total authority within the police system, to something much more regulated. And I think the West Coast is actually kind of leading the way with that, especially with the Ninth Circuit being so interested in sort of limitations and competing concerns… And I think the Portland Police Bureau, ten years ago, doesn’t look like the one that exists today.”
[00:25:39] Jonathan Maus: What can Portland do to prevent people from dying and getting hurt on the streets [in traffic crashes]?
Eli Arnold:
“I don’t wanna sound like a broken record, but I think it was 55% of the pedestrian deaths last year were from the homeless population. Again, I think the current free-for-all camping deal is killing people and I have I have seen myself somebody panhandling on a street and, we’ve got an intoxicated driver and you know, they die. There’s a there’s a spot off [Hwy] 99 just south of Ross Island Bridge. There’s a camp like tunneled under the highway and people constantly wandering across the highway all hours of the day and that’s gonna result in deaths. I’ve also seen somebody coming off 26th into downtown, you know, drive up onto the tents on the sidewalk before. If we can just put people in shelters or put them in camps in safer areas, we can really reduce that. So that’s really like, first in my mind.”
[00:38:57] Jonathan Maus: Did you work the protests when they were happening downtown?… When you think back to the protests, is that something that you feel some pride in Portland, or was that a moment of shame and something that was the wrong thing to do? How do you remember that, that moment?
Eli Arnold:
“You know, I think it’s a very messy moment. I don’t think it’s singular enough to just feel one way about it. I think it’s appropriate to feel every kind of way about it. And so to me, I’m almost resistant, to drawing a conclusion or an easy narrative out of it. It feels like a family fight, you know, like after it doesn’t feel good. You know, we’re all still here together. We need to move forward.”
[00:40:02] Jonathan Maus: One of your quotes that stood out to me is when you said, “Being a police officer is like being a community dad at-large.” That’s a nice image of policing, but if you look at things like use-of-force and all these other things, it doesn’t necessarily match the reality. Someone that’s been trained and has your [military and police] background is the opposite of a community dad in my opinion. How do you alleviate that concern of mine?
Eli Arnold:
“Well, first, I don’t think it’s the opposite of community dad. What is a parent? A parent is somebody who provides safety, but also deals with all those other little things, when somebody’s hurt, when somebody’s lost or they need some talking to, or some assistance. I mean, so much of what police end up doing is just not criminal, right? It’s looking after people because you just happen to be who’s out there. I’ve had elderly people with dementia who didn’t know where they lived and you, you’ve just got to solve that problem for for someone. And that’s why I describe it like that.
Obviously, sometimes you are dealing with violence or, or with other things. You know, I think policing a core function of the city. It’s a very important function and it’s important function to get right. And yeah, I understand your concern.
I think the thing about it though, is everything benefits from some understanding of the nuance that comes with first-hand experience. And we’re going to have a 12 person council, and the question is, will we have one person who is familiar with it in a way that isn’t vague or, or who can predict how a policy might impact some of that first responder world.
And so I think it’s an asset. And you know, this is a job I’ve done for seven years. It’s not my whole identity. It’s just something I went and did. And I’ve learned a lot — from mental illness to addiction issues, to how policies are playing out in the city. And so my intention is to sort of just take that and bring that to the table when we’re looking at those issues.”
[00:43:13] Jonathan Maus: But wouldn’t it make more sense for you to be advocating for more mental health responders, social workers, and those kind of things — and not necessarily more police?
Eli Arnold:
“I mean, I think we’ve got to get the whole ecosystem right. One thing I’m doing is I’m going to be going on a ride-along with the Portland Street Response next week, because I think Portland Street Response has been one of these groups that suffered from our tendency to fight over these things ideologically and I haven’t heard a whole lot of people talking about, like, practically, how can we refine this tool and make it the most useful thing it can be?”
[00:44:36] Jonathan Maus: Is there anything about policing in Portland that you would be willing to say is not going well right now?
Eli Arnold:
“I think there’s some room for improvement in some things, absolutely. One thing I’d like to see is like better customer service. I think there’s some ways that can be approached. You know, so much of it is actually about communication… I spent a lot of time thinking about it… Simple things like people will call 911 and say, ‘I see something happening. It’s of concern, but I don’t need to be called back.’ I’m always calling that person back. I want you to know you called, we heard you, I went, here’s what’s going on. I just think being better about those kinds of things is important for the community.”
[00:46:01] Jonathan Maus: I’m hearing candidates say, ‘Let’s get Portland back to normal. Let’s get Portland, back to some other thing,’ some heyday or whatever. What does that mean to you? What does Portland need to get back to in your mind?
Eli Arnold:
“When I got back here in 2015 it felt pleasant and optimistic in a way that I think it doesn’t to a lot of people right now. I’m actually hopeful we are kind of starting an upswing. I think we just need to sustain, you know, make some improvements, but I think we’re going to see improvements here in the next couple of years.
But really, I don’t think it’s about looking backwards, it’s about maybe missing some fundamentals that we had well-covered in the past. I think continuing to be a progressive, forward-looking place requires that we knock out those basics that free us up to experiment and enjoy blazing a path forward.”
[00:48:27] Jonathan Maus: Can I read you a quote that you shared on Instagram? You said you enjoy painting because, “To really see a thing changes the observed and the observer too. It’s been true for me. Responding to 911 calls, seeing the city at its best and its worst has changed me. I think our question now is, what are we going to do to find meaning and purpose when things feel stuck?”
So, what are we going to do, Eli?
Eli Arnold:
“I think we double down, right? We commit to the place and we say. ‘Yeah, how do we make this a great place for everybody?’ A place where you can push a stroller and feel good about it. Where the park down the street from your house is like a wonderful place to be on a sunny day.
There’s a weight in the air I feel like in Portland and I’d love to see it clear. And I think just by doubling-down and focusing on those basics, we can, we can do that relatively quickly.”
If you want to meet Arnold in person, along with Multnomah County Commission candidate Jessie Burke and City Council D2 candidate Mariah Hudson — and learn some Portland civics at the same time — check out this event on Sunday, April 14th.
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Responsibilities
– Perform assembly, tuning, and adjustments on bicycles according to established procedures and specifications.
– Conduct thorough inspections to identify any defects or issues in bicycle components, frames, or accessories.
– Diagnose mechanical problems and perform necessary repairs, replacements, or adjustments efficiently.
– Maintain a clean and organized work area, including tools, equipment, and parts inventory.
– Collaborate with other team members to streamline processes and improve overall efficiency.
– Provide exceptional customer service by addressing inquiries and assisting with technical support as needed.
Requirements
– Previous experience as a bicycle mechanic or in a similar role preferred.
– Working knowledge of bike maintenance and bike building.
– Desire to learn and expand knowledge in bicycle mechanics and repair techniques.
– Proficient understanding of bicycle components, mechanics, and repair procedures.
– Ability to use various tools and equipment effectively and safely.
– Strong attention to detail and precision in performing mechanical tasks.
– Excellent problem-solving skills and the ability to work independently.
– Good communication and interpersonal skills.
– Must be able to work in person at our Lake Oswego office.
Additional Skills (A Plus)
– Knowledgeable about bike painting techniques and processes.
Additional Information
– This position offers hourly compensation starting at $20 per hour.
– Flexible work hours may be available, with the potential for this position to evolve into a full-time role.
– A2 Bikes offers a friendly and collegial work environment that welcomes dogs.
How to Apply
To apply please send an email to Info@a2bikes.com with a resume attached.
Are you an experienced bike mechanic who is great with people? Are you 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!
We are seeking a qualified bike mechanic to join our mobile repair team to run bicycle service events for our network of forward-thinking workplaces. 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. You have excellent customer service skills and 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.
Key Responsibilities
You will be responsible for independently transporting our shop-on-wheels via bike or van to each location and providing friendly on-site bike service.
Set up of bicycle repair station and LCB promotional materials.
Thorough personalized bicycle repair estimates and tune-ups
Assist the Operation Manager in 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.
Strong Candidates
At least three years experience 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 an 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 responsible team player
Excited about the bike lifestyle and culture
Job Info
Our schedule is variable. Assignments range from 1 to 5 days in length and are assigned based on your availability.
Hours available will vary for this position. Generally, 8-32 Hrs per week are available; April-October.
Opportunities for advancement and year-round employment for strong candidates
Compensation
Contract Position $18-$22 DOE
Access to wholesale parts and bikes
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.
Hi everyone! Welcome back to the regular work week after a glorious weekend (and for many of you a spring break holiday).
Below are the most notable stories our community has come across in the past seven days…
The problem with fire bureaus: “For all the good they do, fire departments have increasingly emerged as a primary force preventing cities from embracing walkability, safer streets, transit, and affordable housing.” (Thesis Driven)
IBR secrets: The Just Crossing Alliance has obtained a copy of the Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) for the Interstate Bridge Replacement (IBR) project and it appears the folks behind the project are so worried about the truth they list public knowledge of it as a major risk and they are working hard to keep the EIS out of public view. (City Observatory)
A challenging journey: Andrew Mortensen spent 280 days in the saddle and traveled 27,000 miles on his global ride, and he did it while being openly gay and raising money for the Trevor Project, an LGBTQ+ suicide prevention nonprofit. (Austin Chronicle)
Special interest bike rides: Is it bad form for a city to allow a transportation-related nonprofit to host a bike ride on a public bridge while there’s an ongoing debate about a new road tax? An editorial board in Seattle thinks so. (The Seattle Times, and read the response from Seattle Bike Blog)
Bigger riders: Bike advocate Marley Blonsky knows all the things people get wrong about “fat cyclists” and she wants you to avoid these common misconceptions. (Cycling Weekly)
“Mega-cars”: I love that advocates in New York City took it upon themselves to count just how many oversized, multi-ton vehicles were using a weight-restricted bridge. We need more of this type of work to highlight the problem of massive vehicles and their impacts. (Streetsblog NYC)
I heart Montreal: I often think of Montreal as having the best bike network in North America, and with the success and growth of their bike share system (which has over 10,000 bikes), I’m wondering how the two are related and what Portland can learn from them. (Next City)
Dream vacation: As if I needed another reason to dream about a trip to Japan, now I learn they’ve got a burgeoning network of carfree bike paths built on former railway lines. (Kyodo News)
Smiling and cycling: I’ll admit I’m not the biggest “smile and nod” person when it comes to biking past strangers; but after thinking about the psychological and physical impacts it could have on me, I might start doing it more. (Cycling Weekly)
Coyote Wall: This beloved mountain bike trail in the Columbia River Gorge will receive a 2.6 mile addition of singletrack thanks to a grant from Uncle Sam. (Willamette Week)
White men and state power: New data on state DOTs reveals that their highest ranking staff are 71% male and 85% white, begging the question of how we will ever reform transportation if the same ol’ people are at the top calling all the shots. (Streetsblog USA)
Video of the Week: Portlander (and former BikePortland Podcast guest) Will Cortez was featured in an episode of “Out & Back” titled “Creating Brave Space.” (PBS Cascade)
A cyclist on the Springwater Corridor rolls by Ebetsu Plaza in Main City Park. (Jonathan Maus/BikePortland)
The sun has broken through and Portland is prepped for a perfect weekend. Before signing off and enjoying it myself, I wanted to share something I experienced today that would make for a great ride destination.
Earlier this week I stumbled upon a mention of the Gresham Japanese Garden. And since it’s spring break and my kids are home and my mom is in town (that’s why story production has been a bit lower this week), we decided to pile into the car and go check it out.
I didn’t realize until we arrived that the garden is directly adjacent to the Springwater Corridor path! The garden is located inside Main City Park, a place I’m familiar with because I’ve passed it so many times over the years as I whirred by on my bike. But I never stopped to really check it out.
The City of Gresham has done an amazing job integrating the Japanese Garden into the park. There are three elements to the gardens: Kyoudou Center, Tsuru Island, and Ebetsu Plaza.
The plaza is what you can see right from the path. It’s a grove of 12 Akebono cherry trees (donated by a nursery in Boring) planted around a small plaza in the middle. There are benches to sit on, a crane sculpture, and other fun treasures along the various paths. The blossoms are in bloom now and they rained down on us with each wind gust. When you go, check out the paving stones on the eastern edge of the plaza. I loved seeing all the stones folks had purchased (with a $125 donation to the park) that had a bicycle icon on them — I even recognized a few names of Portland Bicycling Club members.
Tsuru Island is the other part of the park worth checking out. Just north of the plaza, you’ll see a gorgeous bridge across the creek that leads into a small network of walking paths. Note the sign that says, “No Smokes, No Spokes, No Joke” — so you’ll have to leave your bike in one of the parking spots (or I suppose you could walk it). The island was formed by a fork in Johnson Creek, and the garden was created in the early 1970s by a group of local farmers and members of the Japanese-American Citizens League. It features several bonsai trees, a covered pavilion area, stone walkways — and don’t miss the “Kamekichi – Lucky Turtle”.
If you ride out to see the trees and garden, give yourself extra time to check out historic downtown Gresham, which is just across Powell Blvd.
I hope everyone had a good spring break. Now enjoy the sunny weekend and consider rolling out to Main City Park via the Springwater. To get there, just get onto the Springwater south of OMSI (and the Esplanade) and take it south for about 16 miles.
See you back here on Monday (if not sooner out and about!).
McKenzie Pass is a hallowed route for many cyclists. The 38 miles of Highway 242 between Sisters and Belknap Springs is some of the best riding not just in Oregon, but anywhere in the world. Already enshrined as an official State Scenic Bikeway, the Oregon Department of Transportation wants to make it even better for bicycle riders.
Earlier this month, ODOT began the McKenzie Highway Pavement preservation project. Using a $4.1 million grant from the FHWA’s Federal Lands Access Program (FLAP), ODOT will pave about 15 miles of the route — from the a few miles west of the Dee Wright Observatory down to junction with Highway 20 in Sisters.
People on bikes love smoother pavement on scenic roads like this because it allows them to descend with more confidence and climb with more efficiency. But there’s more to this project than just better pavement that will benefit cyclists: ODOT also plans to rebuild the shoulders, replace/repair safety signage (some of which targets cyclists) throughout the corridor, build new bathrooms at Cold Springs Campground and Dee Wright Observatory, install bicycle parking at the observatory, and add more turnouts and interpretive panels along the route.
The work is expected to continue through the end of this year and the new road, bathrooms and other improvements will be ready for use by next spring! Learn more at the project page.
