🌱 OR Nixes E-Filing Options + PSU Food Cart Future At Risk

It's the weekend, folks, and our last one for the month of March. There's a lot going on here in Portland, so let me get right to it.

First, today's weather:

A cloudy day with a high of 63. That's Portland perfect!

Here are the top five stories in Portland today:

1. For taxpayers who don’t want to pay to file their taxes electronically, the Oregon Department of Revenue long provided free options. Last year, nearly 70,000 Oregonians used one. But Oregon quietly discontinued its most-used versions this year, leaving previously eligible Oregonians with taxable incomes above $73,000 with no option to file for free online. That is nearly half of Oregon tax filers. The state cited a decision by Intuit, maker of market-dominating tax software TurboTax, to discontinue technical support for the free service. (The Oregonian)
2. Catalytic converter thefts continue to be an issue at the Portland International Airport. According to the Port of Portland, airport authorities reported seven catalytic converter thefts from January through March of 2021, compared to 38 during those same months in 2022, just over five times higher than the 2021 period. To combat catalytic converter thefts, the Port of Portland tells KOIN 6 News it increased private security patrol, Port of Portland Police patrols and undercover patrols.(KOIN.com)
3. For the first time in more than a decade, Multnomah County saw its population shrink in 2021, according to new figures released today by the U.S. Census Bureau. The county’s decline— by 12,494 people, or 1.5% — drove a more modest decline (0.2%) in the Portland metro area. The loss of population comes amid more dramatic declines in some of the nation’s largest cities, a trend that experts link to COVID-19 deaths and people trying to escape rising housing costs. (Portland’s decline pales in comparison to the exodus from San Francisco, which lost 6.3% of its residents in a year.) (Willamette Week)
4. Law enforcement agencies across the area are trying to fill empty positions, and their biggest competition is each other. From the draw of a female police chief shattering glass ceilings in Tigard to the $25,000 signing bonus for lateral officers in Vancouver, police agencies are trying to recruit. The Portland Police Bureau, which is also offering signing bonuses, just recently ramped up recruitment. (KATU)
5. A Portland-based developer has filed an application to build a seven-story apartment building on the downtown site of a food cart pod near Portland State University. SERA Architects and Florida-based developer Mill Creek Residential Trust filed an application on March 9 proposing a 40,000 square-foot mixed-use building at Southwest Fifth Avenue and College Street. Neither SERA nor Mill Creek responded to questions about the proposed development, or whether there are plans to relocate the food cart vendors that now use the site. (OregonLive)

Today in Portland:

• Tonight is Vestal Social Justice Night happening in NE Portland, presented by Montavilla Jazz. As one of eleven recipients of Metro’s Community Placemaking grant this year, Montavilla’s Vestal Elementary expands its annual Social Justice Night, creating deeper impact and joyful programming. With a focus on intergenerational storytelling, art, food, and music, this special evening unites one of Portland’s most culturally, linguistically, and ethnically diverse neighborhoods. 5:00 - 9:00 PM.
• There will be an adoption event at Ecliptic Brewing in SE Portland. Come on by to meet adoptable dogs and their wonderful fosters & volunteers! This is in association with Three Little Pitties Rescue. Three Little Pitties requires that all potential adopters fill out an application and undergo a thorough interview process before a pet can be adopted. 2:00 - 4:00 PM.
• In collaboration with Headsplit Records, The Lay Low Tavern will be hosting another Heavy Metal Swap! Buy, sell, and trade all things heavy metal... records, CDs, tapes, merch and more! The swap will be followed with free performances by local Black Metal bands Peste Umbrarum and Bicephalic. 3:00 - 10:00 PM.
• Check out Comedy: The Musical at the Cruzroom in NE Portland. Comedy: The Musical is a stand-up comedy and musical improv show. A comedian tells jokes then the musical improvisers sing a funny song inspired by their punchlines! Those musicians make up every song on the spot after hearing the comic's jokes for the first time. This month's musical theme is 80s hair metal! Tickets are available online or at the door. 9:00 - 10:30 PM.
• Phoenix Nights will be at Floyd's Coffee Shop in downtown Portland. Celebrating genre bending spoken word and world/jazz featuring Blacque Butterfly and Shvvvr. Original music featuring Gordon Lee, Malcolm Lewis, Michael Galen and
• Adam Carpinelli. Co-sponsored by Afro World Music PDX, Northwest Alliance for Alternative Media and Education, Keys, Beats, Bars. Tickets are available online. 7:00 - 10:00 PM.

From my notebook:

• Can the destruction of art be an art in and of itself? That’s the question at the heart of director Matt McCormick’s short documentary The Subconscious Art of Graffiti removal, a classic part of DIY Portland cinema that is now streaming for free (and has been newly restored). Directed by McCormick and narrated by Miranda July, The Subconscious Art of Graffiti Removal argues that graffiti removal is one of the most important art movements of the 21st century, likening it to Abstract Expressionism, Minimalism and Surrealism. (Willamette Week)
• The owner of Roman Russian Market in Southeast Portland has made it her mission to hire Ukrainian refugees who've fled their home country. Fatima Magomadova came to the U.S. more than 25 years ago after fleeing the Russian republic of Chechnya. She said she understands what a lot of the refugees are dealing with. The Roman Russian Market, located off Southeast 109th and Division, has the Ukrainian flag hanging outside the building, which is meant to show support and solidarity. Magomadova said she's hired five refugees so far and is looking to hire more. (KGW)
• The Public Library Associations' National Conference has hit the Oregon Convention Center, marking the first large event to come to Portland since the start of the pandemic — a small comeback for the embattled events industry. (YouTube)
• Portlanders take their gardening very seriously, and for good reason; our damp winters and bright summers mean this city can make anyone’s thumb green. And with winter behind us and the buds of spring all around, now is the perfect time to visit local plant shops and nurseries and spruce up your own plot. Whether it’s to gorgify your garden or add more cheer inside your home, here are some of Portland's favorite spots around town to boost your foliage. (Portland Monthly)
• After sitting empty for years, what was once Wapato Jail has now been thriving as a homeless shelter and services center since October 2020, successfully helping unhoused people get off the street and into stability. So far, Bybee Lakes Hope Center has largely done it without financial support from taxpayers. Alan Evans, the founder and CEO of Helping Hands Reentry Outreach Centers, which operates Bybee Lakes as well as other shelters around Oregon, was homeless for 25 years. (KGW)

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That's your Saturday, peeps. Get out there and squeeze every ounce of fun from it. I'll see you all next week, so I call tell you more cool stuff about Portland.

— Dominic Anaya

About me: Doctor, educator and now a writer/artist, I'm just chillin' in Portland, OR with my wife, our ferrets, our chickens and our goats.