Category: Entertainment

Community, Entertainment, Event

Free Public Events Focused on Mt. Tabor Park

Beginning in March, Montavilla Jazz and Portland Jazz Composers Ensemble (PJCE) will host informative events revealing Mt. Tabor’s history in relationship to marginalized communities and examining its current influence. Three composers will use these events to create new musical works performed at the 2023 Montavilla Jazz Festival’s free public concert held in Mt. Tabor Park on September 1st, 2023. The three-part series is titled Views of an Urban Volcano and is free to attend with advanced registration.

Views of an Urban Volcano will take place Sunday, March 5th, at 2 p.m. at the Oregon Historical Society, Saturday, March 18th, at 4 p.m. at Taborspace’s Copeland Commons, and Saturday, April 15th, at 10:30 a.m. in Mt. Tabor Park. The composers, currently being selected through a panel review process, will attend each event to build a shared understanding of this iconic park’s role in the city. They will use those experiences to craft musical pieces that the 12-member PJCE group performs at the 10th Annual Montavilla Jazz Festival. Community participation is needed to feed this creative process. The organizers encourage people to register now to reserve free tickets to the events.

Views of an Urban Volcano: A discussion on Mt. Tabor Park
March 5th, 2023, 2–3:30 pm at Oregon Historical Society
1200 SW Park Avenue

The event features a panel discussion on the history and impacts of Mt. Tabor Park from the perspectives of Portland’s Chinese, Black, and Indigenous communities from 1896–2020. Light refreshments will be available. Panelists include Hap Pritchard, Board Member, Friends of Mt. Tabor Park; David Harrelson, Cultural Resources Department manager and member of The Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde; Darrell Millner, Professor Emeritus of Black Studies at Portland State University; and Dr. Marie Wong, Professor Emerita, Seattle University Institute of Public Service, Asian Studies, and Public Affairs.

Views of an Urban Volcano: Community Forum
March 18th, 2023, 4–5 pm at Taborspace’s Copeland Commons
5441 SE Belmont Street

An open forum for lovers of Mt. Tabor Park to share their own stories about its significance with the composers. Attendees will have the opportunity to meet the selected composers and project leads and contribute to the community-driven creative process.

Views of an Urban Volcano: Guided Tour of Mt. Tabor Park
April 15, 2023, at 10:30 am at Mt. Tabor Park Visitor Center
SE Salmon Way and SE Park Drive

Led by Friends of Mt Tabor Park, this 90-minute guided tour of the park will begin at the Mt. Tabor Visitor Center and highlight historical and cultural points of interest and the park’s impressive vistas. Participants should dress for the weather and bring their questions.

Views of an Urban Volcano is presented in partnership with Friends of Mt. Tabor Park and the Oregon Historical Society with support from Oregon Cultural Trust and Regional Arts and Culture Council.

By

Jacob Loeb

Bar, Entertainment, Event, Food and Drink, Montavilla

Montavilla’s Saturday Winter Celebration

Two events will attract visitors to Montavilla’s commercial corridors this Saturday evening. Winter Wassail along NE Glisan Street features festive beverages, snacks, carolers, and holiday lighting. Participating stores and restaurants between 82nd and 68th Avenues will remain open for last-minute holiday gifts and festivities. People are invited to Wassail (Go from location to location caroling and/or drinking in merriment) on Glisan from 4 to 8 p.m. this December 17th.

Promotional image provide by event coordinators

That same night, SE Stark Street businesses will host the Montavilla Soiree & Pub Crawl from 6 to 9 p.m. The Montavilla East Tabor Business Association (METBA) organized this winter celebration in the historic downtown to support neighborhood businesses as they enjoy the best parts of the colder months.

Promotional image provide by event coordinators

Drinkers, shoppers, and anyone looking for a fun Saturday night can explore the collection of holiday-themed cocktails, food specials, live music, and late-night last-minute shopping in one big evening event. No matter where you reside, some part of Montavilla will have an activity to warm your spirit on a cold night.

These are some of the participating businesses on Glisan Street:

These are some of the participating businesses on Stark Street:

Rahabs Sisters will be collecting gloves, hats, jackets, blankets, and tents. Drop off locations will be Union Rose and Wink Vintage.

By

Jacob Loeb

Disclosure: The author if this article serves on the Montavilla/East Tabor Business Association (METBA) board. METBA sponsors some of these events.

Entertainment, Event, Food and Drink, Infrastructure

A SE Division Party on Saturday

TriMet will host a grand opening celebration for the new FX2-Division bus line this Saturday. Activities will span three festival locations in SE Portland and Gresham. Each site features entertainment, prize giveaways, and food vendors. Attendees can take unlimited free rides on the new articulated FX buses along the route between noon and 6 p.m. on September 17th. The new service begins regular operation on Sunday the 18th, offering high-capacity and fast bus service along Division Street. Montavilla residents should arrive to the event at the SE 82nd and Division stop near Portland Community College, located at 2305 SE 82nd Avenue.

Raimore Construction partnered with TriMet for this Grand Opening Celebration. The construction company is the prime contractor for TriMet’s Division Transit Project. As a minority-owned firm, this project represents the largest contract awarded to a certified Disadvantaged Business Enterprise in Oregon. It is a notable success for the City’s Inclusive Contracting initiatives.

Raimore Construction President Jeff Moreland speaking, TriMet Interim General Manager Sam Desue, Jr and Division Transit Project Director Michael Kiser left. April 3, 2021

TriMet posted full schedules for each event location on its website. Guests are encouraged to take the bus between each celebration site at OMSI Station, PCC Station, and the Gresham Farmers’ Market. Participants will have the opportunity to contribute to a giant “paint-by-numbers” mural project. Event coordinators placed sections of the mural project at each of the three event sites. Cascade Behavioral Health building on SE 42nd and Division will host the completed public art project.

Attendees should plan a long day exploring SE Division Street and experiencing the new FX bus service. Drivers in the area should anticipate a change in bus operation beginning tomorrow as the new extended transit platforms go into service with more frequent service. Bus riders not attending the events should plan for higher than usual usage of the number 2 bus route. However, the new higher-capacity vehicles should accommodate the surge in demand.

By

Jacob Loeb

Title images courtesy of TriMet

Disclosure: The author of this article servers on the Board for a group partnering with TriMet on this event.

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Entertainment, Event

Gospel on the Grass Musical Event

Today, at 10 a.m. St Peter & Paul Episcopal Church will host a musical event open to the community. Located at 247 SE 82nd Avenue, the religious organization will present favorite and little-known gospel tunes for their Sunday service on the SE Pine Street lawn. Sunday, August 21, is the Gospel on the Grass event featuring musical guest Ethan Anderson, singer-songwriter and front man for the Seattle-based country-rock band Massy Ferguson.

by

Jacob Loeb

Title image from Google Maps