🌱 Potential Portland Power Outages + Free Monkeypox Vaccines

It's a Friday, Portland, and that makes me pleased as punch! We've finally got people supporting charter reform, we've got The End of Dystopia and one of our pizza places will be on Netflix! That sounds like a Friday to me. Let me tell you about it.

First, today's weather:

It's not just hot today, but windy, as well. The high will be 91, with wind gusts of up to 20 MPH.

Here are the top five stories in Portland today:

1. Do you still have power? Of course you do, or you wouldn't be reading this, but thousands of PGE customers were warned about potential shutoffs due to wildfire conditions. Portland General Electric officials on Wednesday night said it is “increasingly likely” it will shut off power in 10 areas because of the risk of fire, impacting about 30,000 customers. Pacific Power said Wednesday that it has notified about 12,000 customers in Linn, Douglas, Lincoln, Tillamook, Marion and Polk counties of a potential public safety power shutoff from early today through Saturday. (OPB)
2. Hey, what do you know, not everyone is against city charter reform. A coalition formed to champion the ballot measure to radically reshape Portland’s form of government and election system has amassed a six-figure fundraising haul as it kicks its campaign into high gear, records show. The group, Portland United for Change, reported raising slightly more than $200,000 through Wednesday, according to its first public filings with the Oregon Secretary of State’s Office, a sum that far surpasses what opponents to the Nov. 8 proposal have collected thus far. (OregonLive)
3. Legacy Health in Portland is responding to monkeypox in Multnomah County by providing free monkeypox vaccines on Saturday at its clinic in Northwest Portland to high-risk groups. “It’s important that we use all the tools at our disposal to slow the progression of hMPXV (monkeypox virus) infections in our communities, said Dr. Nick Kashey, clinical vice president of population health for Legacy Health. (KPTV)
4. It's been a tough time for hotels lately, so it's no surprise that three Portland hotels are in foreclosure proceedings and could go up for auction. The hotels, which are all downtown, are the Hilton’s flagship, which is near 6th and Broadway, along with The Duniway on SW Taylor and The Dossier on SW Alder. It comes as more hotels raise the alarm over a two-fold issue in downtown Portland in a Travel Portland report, which cited a lack of office workers and corporate clients needing rooms and conference spaces along with the rise in vandalism, crime and homeless camps downtown throughout the pandemic. (KOIN)
5. If money talks, the Democratic Governors Association says Oregon’s three-way contest for governor is a close race. The national political action committee donated $500,000 on Sept. 1 to former House Speaker Tina Kotek’s gubernatorial bid. That brings the total the Democratic fundraising machine has given to Kotek’s campaign since May to nearly $1.9 million. The Republican Governors Association has spent nearly as much on its party’s nominee, former House Minority Leader Christine Drazan: $1.54 million. And Betsy Johnson? Nike co-founder Phil Knight has bankrolled her campaign to the tune of $1.75 million. (Willamette Week)

Today in Portland:

• For a night of comedy, head over to Curious Comedy Theater for XXXY Hot Mic. Your local boyband is here to offer a fusion of drag performances and karaoke! Visit them to sing your hearts out and enjoy the performances of XXXY (triple XY) and their guests! The fun starts at 9:30 p.m.
• Oh, you want jazz? Then go to the Jack London Revue to see the Matt Mayhall Septet play the soundtrack to Blow-Up by Herbie Handcock. Drummer/composer/arranger Matt Mayhall leads a septet of Portland’s finest improvisers in a faithful exploration of Hancock’s themes from the film, ranging from poignant and reflective to funky and upbeat. Doors open at 8 p.m.
• Have you been waiting for The End of Dystopia? Then check it out at The Haven Arts Collective in SE Portland. Performance poet Felicity Artemis wields her words to help make sense and create hope in these times of chaos and uncertainty. Doors open at 8 p.m.
• I mentioned this a while ago, but I would be remiss if I didn't remind you that Rose City Comic Con starts today. Premium passes and three-day fast passes are sold out, but there are still tickets available. Comics legend Jim Lee is going to be there, as well as Rainn Wilson for some reason. I mean, really, I love the guy, but the only comic booky thing he's done is Galaxy Quest. Okay, I guess he's been in Super, and Cooties, and Star Trek: Discovery. Okay, I take it all back. He belongs there. 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Friday.
• This ain't your average campaign event! Come to the Multnomah Arts Center for a fabulous evening of fun as Dacia for Oregon kicks off the re-election campaign for Rep. Dacia Grayber with Poison Waters and Friends. There will be drag queen bingo with prizes, wine tasting, dancing and a guaranteed good time for all! 7 - 9 p.m.

From my notebook:

• Portland Audubon: "A Merlin popped up in our Rare Bird Alert recently at Whitaker Ponds. These small falcons are powerful flyers and fierce hunters catching songbirds or shorebirds in mid-flight at high speeds. " (Portland Audubon via Instagram)
• Portland Art Museum: "🎂 Jacob Lawrence was born #OnThisDay in 1917. This painting is from a suite of thirty paintings in which Lawrence presented vignettes of the Harlem of his youth. " (Portland Art Museum via Instagram)
• Portland Parks & Recreation: "Due to a safety hazard created by low water levels in the Willamette River, there is currently no northbound or southbound access along Portland Parks & Recreation's Eastbank Esplanade between the Steel Bridge and the Burnside Bridge." (Portland Parks & Recreation via Facebook)
• Saturday is the 2nd Annual Block Party for ReClaim It. Dozens of artists will be selling their work made of reused and salvaged materials. There will also be live music, snacks, art activities for kids, community reuse partners and more! (Reclaim It PDX)
• If you've never been, let me just say that Lovely's Fifty Fifty in the Mississippi neighborhood is awesome. Easily one of the best pizza places in Portland. Well, they're getting recognition for their excellence in the form of a Netflix special. One of the six episodes of Netflix's Chef's Table focuses on Sarah Minnick, whose distinctive pizzas featuring unconventional ingredients have helped make her Portland restaurant, Lovely’s Fifty Fifty, a nationally known home for outstanding pizza. (The Oregonian)
• Wait, they directed drivers onto a bike path? Turns out that allowing people to drive across the Columbia Slough bike path is part of a traffic control plan endorsed by the city of Portland. A section of the path, where the Slough trail goes under North Denver Ave (Hwy 99W) has not been completely decommissioned as a road. Good to know. (Bike Portland)

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Wow, what a fun Friday! Of course, Fridays are inherently fun. Enjoy your ever-loving selves, my friends, just know that I'll be back tomorrow to talk about all the fun that Saturday will bring.

— 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.

Have a news tip or suggestion for an upcoming Portland Daily? Contact me at portland@patch.com