Friday Roundup
Jul 12, 2013 at 1:33 PM
News from and about Portland City Commissioner Nick Fish
phone: 503-823-3589
Email: nick@portlandoregon.gov
1221 S.W. 4th, Room 240, Portland, OR 97204
$1.36 Million Awarded in Oregon Arts Commission Grants
Jul 16, 2013 at 10:09 AM
July 16, 2013
Today, the Oregon Arts Commission announced its first round of grant awards for the 2013-14 fiscal year.
Grants were awarded in three different categories. Operating Support grants were awarded to leading arts groups throughout Oregon for their role in social, educational, and economic arenas. Arts Learning grants are for in-classroom, after-school, and off-site activities, contributing to Oregon’s high level goals for education. The third category is in Arts Services which provides operating funds for arts councils, like Portland’s Regional Arts & Culture Council (RACC), to make art accessible in all parts of Oregon.
Portland was honored with the largest amount of grant money awarded by the Commission. Local recipients include RACC, Oregon Ballet Theatre, Portland Art Museum, and the Oregon Symphony Association.
Special thanks to the Commission for supporting our local arts community!
Oregon Arts Commission gives $1.36 million to arts groups
David Stabler in The Oregonian
photo courtesy of the Oregon Arts Commission
Be smarter with your water
Jul 18, 2013 at 8:50 AM
July is Smart Irrigation Month!
July 18, 2013
July is Smart Irrigation Month!
The summer month brings warmer weather and our lawns, vegetable gardens, and flowers all need a little more water attention. With the rise of water use during these hot days, the Portland Water Bureau has made a simple list to help make every drop count.
Following these smart practices can make your outdoor space not only vibrant, but also efficient.
- Water when the potential for evaporation is low – late in the evening or, preferably, early in the morning.
- If you water your landscape with a hand-held hose, use a device with an automatic shutoff nozzle.
- Use a drip irrigation system in planting beds that allows water to work its way slowly into the soil and keeps evaporation at a minimum.
- Regularly inspect and repair broken heads and pipes if using an in-ground automatic irrigation system.
To learn more about efficient irrigation systems visit the Portland Water Bureau website.
In the summer it’s important to water smarter, not harder!
Our Environmental Services
Jul 19, 2013 at 4:34 PM
This morning, Nick was pleased to tour the Bureau of Environmental Services' (BES) Water Pollution Control Lab in North Portland and the Columbia Boulevard Wastewater Treatment Plant.
July 19, 2013
This morning, Nick was pleased to tour the Bureau of Environmental Services' (BES) Water Pollution Control Lab in North Portland and the Columbia Boulevard Wastewater Treatment Plant.
The Water Pollution Control Lab is an important piece of Portland’s pollution prevention. Staff ensure rapid response to pollution spills, investigate threats to the environment (such as preventing industrial pollution), and help manage stormwater.
The Columbia Boulevard Wastewater Treatment Plant is the largest in Portland. The plant, built in 1952, collects and treats sewage 24 hours a day for 600,000 customers. Dozens of pump stations and thousands of miles of sewer lines are part of a system that brings wastewater to the plant.
It may not be the most glamorous piece of the city, but our Environmental Services help make Portland’s clean water and sustainable practices the envy of the nation!
The Big Pipe
Jul 22, 2013 at 2:54 PM
Last Week, Willamette Week ran a poem by Richard Grunert about one of our city’s unseen and important heroes: the Big Pipe.
July 22, 2013
Last Week, Willamette Week ran a poem by Richard Grunert about one of our city’s unseen and important heroes: the Big Pipe.
The Big Pipe is used to control combined sewer overflows. Older neighborhoods in Portland have a sewer system that mixes untreated sewage and stormwater run off into a single pipe. During heavy rain storms, runoff from buildings, streets, and other hard surfaces can fill these combined sewers – causing them to overflow. Controlling the sewer overflows, with the help of the Big Pipe, plays a key role in keeping the Willamette River safe and healthy.
It took 20 years to complete the project, but our once-polluted Willamette River has now become a safe place for Oregonians to swim and play.
Read Richard Grunert’s poem online.