January 5, 2015 

The Regional Arts & Culture Council (RACC) is now accepting applications for the Expanding Cultural Access grants. 

The grants are for non-profit organizations dedicated to making arts and culture more equitable. 

Competitive applicants provide creative programs for Portland’s diverse communities, underserved neighborhoods, persons with disabilities, and other under-represented populations. 

Funding for the grants comes from the voter-approved Arts Education and Access Fund.  RACC plans to invest approximately $50,000 towards expanding cultural accessibility. 

Applications are due by March 3.  Visit RACC’s website for more information. 

Photo courtesy of RACC.

January 6, 2015

Portland has a valuable resource right beneath our feet – groundwater!

Groundwater is found in underground aquifers.  Portland’s groundwater comes from the Columbia South Shore Well Field Groundwater Aquifers, along the Columbia River. 

The well field is capable of producing nearly 100 million gallons of quality water per day!

The reserve is important because it’s our emergency water source.  During the hot summer months, or during winter storms, water from the well field is sometimes blended with water from the Bull Run Watershed, Portland’s main supply of water. 

Portland is fortunate to have some of the best drinking water in the world.  Among the Bull Run Watershed and the Columbia Shore Well Field Groundwater Aquifers, we have billions of gallons of quality drinking water. Our water system serves nearly a quarter of our state’s population.

Visit the Portland Water Bureau’s website for more information. 

January 7, 2015

This morning, our new Auditor, Mary Hull Caballero, swore me in to a new four-year term as City Commissioner.

I was joined by my family, colleagues, and honored guests, including former Mayor Bud Clark and former Governor Barbara Roberts.

Bud was the first Mayor to place homelessness at the center of the City’s agenda. Barbara has been my mentor for more than a decade. I am proud to call them both friends and role models.

I will continue to honor the trust voters have placed in me by working hard, by standing up for people who don’t have a voice in our government, and by always trying to live up to the standards of those who came before us.

Thank you!

Governor Barbara Roberts - 2008 Remarks

Photos by David Nguyen

January 8, 2017

Local weaver and textile designer Jessica Hickey provides unique artistic expression in the Portland Building’s latest art installation, Pliable Planes. 

The installation is a quilted, scaled-down version of the Portland Building.  The soft façade depicts hidden parallels in architecture and textiles, including the visual language of patterned grids and lines.

The Regional Arts & Culture Council (RACC) sponsors the Installation Art Series.  Selected through a juried process, each installation questions common perspectives through art. 

Pliable Plans is up from January 13 until February 6 in the Portland Building’s lobby.   

Check out RACC’s website for more information.  

Portland Building Installation Art Series

1120 SW 5^th Avenue

8 am – 5 pm

Photo courtesy of RACC.

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