Where to begin
@Morning Jazz Radio ?
Its changed so much. I know Covid did a number on most cities but it really did a number on Portland. Let me preface this by saying I work with houseless young people, I am not a fan of the cops and I still love this city...
But...
This city has no vision on how to support the unhoused. Covid meant no sweeps (We all know they don't solve anything anyway) and most working and middle class neighborhoods have had to bare the brunt of having huge camps semi-permanently erected on the doorsteps. This involves everything from cars being taken apart on your sidewalk, syringes in your gutter line, people in desperate mental health crises outside your window. The police do not respond to petty crime. The barely respond to violent crime. We do now have more specialized mental health professionals responding to these situations but they only work in limited neighborhoods and there is still not enough of them. I hear it will be expanding though. All to say, there is collective Compassion Fatigue. Housed people are fed up and the unhoused fall deeper into shit. Organized gangs are now actively praying on the houseless down town.
Shootings are through the roof. Not since the early 90s during the gang heydays, have we experienced homicide rates like this. Just when I think I am hearing less shots popping off and less sirens, I read the stats and news and its not getting much better. Of course, the victims are mostly those caught up in crime but too many innocent randoms have also lost their lives in the last two years. Several kids I work with and staff who work for me have had family and friends shot in the last two years.
The police basically gave up after the relentless George Floyd uprising protests. I fully backed it but it did get to a point where you had to wonder how much good the nightly riots were continuing to do for the people we were supposed to be supporting. That's a huge and worthwhile debate but not for this purpose.
Meanwhile the cost of rent and property value continues to go up despite some white flight.
In saying all that, I would not deter you from moving back. Just come back with eyes wide open. A lot of what you likely loved about Portland is still here and there are some counter-cultural advantages to living in this dystopian like setting. There are several rad DIY parks popping off, graffiti is rampant and you'll never get a traffic citation as cops have given up. You can get away with a lot.
The only way Portland will bounce back is if those of us who give a shit, stick it out and make a contribution.
Topic: Portland (Read 5519 times)