Tag: SE Stark

Business Closing, Business Relocating, Food and Drink

Hungry Heart Consolidates

On December 18th, Hungry Heart Bakery served its last meal from the 7940 SE Stark Street location and will return to its former space a block away at 414 SE 80th Avenue. Since April 2022, the Rabbit Hole Market and Sweets shop has operated from the SE 80th location. Jax Hart owns both businesses, and the two locations worked together to meet the varied appetites of customers throughout the day. This weekend, December 30th and 31st, the restaurant’s owner will sell surplus supplies as they consolidate operations into the smaller space.

Inside Rabbit Hole Market and Sweets

Hungry Heart Bakery opened in Montavilla on January 3rd, 2015, after five years of running the successful Hungry Heart cupcakes food cart. From 2017 to 2019, Hungry Heart opened a sister business, Heartbreaker, a block over at 411 SE 81st Avenue. They closed that business with plans to open a new restaurant on SE Stark Street called White Rabbit Cafe and Bakery in the spring of 2020. The pandemic set White Rabbit’s launch back, with the SE Stark location opening in early 2021 under the Hungry Heart name. As restrictions lifted on indoor dining, Hart expanded the menu and embraced the original brunch menu planned for White Rabbit. The restaurant began a transition to the intended name, adopting both logos. However, they never completed that transition, and a change of business operations was needed.

In December, Jax Hart publicly announced that the company would relocate to the original space. “The decision to downsize has not been easy, but gives us the opportunity to slow down and return to our roots,” reads a notice on the Hungry Heart website. Consolidating the two locations requires selling some of the surplus restaurant supplies. The staff invites people to buy items at the weekend sale from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. on December 30th and 31st inside the closed location at 7940 SE Stark Street. They intend to reopen the consolidated shop at 414 SE 80th Avenue on January 5th, 2024. Watch the Hungry Heart Instagram account for updates.

Article and photos by

Jacob Loeb

Community, Crime

SE 86th Ave Closed for EPA Cleanup

Earlier today, crews working with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA) and the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) closed a one-block section of SE 86th Avenue from SE Stark Street to SE Washington Street in an effort to contain a mercury spill. A representative for the EPA indicated that a person deposited the hazardous substance on a vehicle in an act of vandalism. The car is parked along the west side of SE 86th Avenue and is currently surrounded by plastic containment tarps to prevent the mercury from spilling onto the ground. 

Cleanup efforts will continue tomorrow and may last several days. Mercury is a silvery-white metal that remains liquid at room temperature. Mercury spills have the potential to cause damage to the human nervous system if a person suffers prolonged exposure or encounters high levels of the element. Cleanup crews are monitoring the site for signs of mercury vapor, which forms from droplets that evaporate. It is an odorless, colorless vapor that is invisible to the eye. People should be safe from the ill effects of mercury vapor if they stay outside the closed-off area.

People should avoid the area while cleanup is underway and not touch any mercury droplets if they encounter them. This is a developing story; we will update it with more information when it becomes available.

Update (August 27th, 2023): NWFF Environmental crews working with the US EPA and Oregon DEQ have returned to the site today. They anticipate another full day of cleanup followed by more testing. The results of those tests will determine if they need to return. The intentional mercury spill occurred in the early morning of August 24th. It took the car’s owner several days and many attempts to escalate the incident to the right agency.  

The initial examination found mercury droplets on the vehicle and mercury vapor inside the car’s engine compartment. EPA and DEQ officials on-site noted the dangerous “hot spot” for mercury is relatively confined. Crews have focused on the three curbside parking spaces around the vehicle and the planting strip next to them. Officials created a wider perimeter around the street and sidewalk to keep people from getting too close to the work zone. 

Article and photos by

Jacob Loeb

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Crime, View of Montavilla

Shot Driver Involved in 102nd Ave Crash

Update July 11th, 2023: The Portland Police Bureau released the name of the person who died in this crash. Eleven-year-old Ryan Ambrose was a passenger in a vehicle driven by his family member when the collision occurred. The other vehicle’s driver suffered non-life-threatening injuries from the accident and a previously obtained gunshot wound. He was transported to a local hospital for treatment and then released into police custody. He is currently being held in the Multnomah County Detention Center, charged with Driving Under the Influence of Intoxicants and Manslaughter in the First Degree. The police investigation revealed that speed and alcohol impairment were the primary factors in the crash.

Ryan Ambrose, 11. Image courtesy of his family

On July 8th, at 10:19 p.m., Portland Police responded to a crash involving two cars near Mall 205. The rollover collision sent two people to the hospital, where one person succumbed to their injuries, and another is receiving care for a previously received gunshot wound. The investigation closed parts of SE 102nd Avenue, SE Washington Street, and SE Stark Street.

Images in this article provided by the Portland Police Bureau

When officers arrived at SE 102nd Avenue and Washington Street, they discovered the driver of one crashed vehicle shot, apparently from a previous incident at another location. The passenger from the other vehicle had life-threatening injuries. Officers performed CPR at the crash site before ambulances transported the injured to an area hospital. This crash is the 34th vehicle-related fatality in 2023.

By

Jacob Loeb

Infrastructure

New Sidewalk Corners on SE Stark East of 88th

Crews working with the Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) will rebuild several corners on SE Stark street at the intersections of SE 88th, 89th, and 90th Avenues. Work will demolish the existing corners and curb ramps, replacing them with updated versions that better meet city standards for accessible infrastructure. City staff will relocate and upgrade storm drains at many of the corners, preventing flooding at the ramp’s edge. This section of SE Stark Street lacks consistent sidewalks. Consequentially, some new corners will lead to unpaved paths.

Northwest corner of SE 89th Avenue and Stark Street

Developers of the two properties fronted on SE Stark Street between SE 89th and 90th Avenues neglected to install sidewalks. Building codes did not require pedestrian infrastructure at the time of construction. Instead, the front of the properties features mature trees and a degraded asphalt parking lot. Recently one of the businesses closed, while the Filipino American Association uses the other building for their events. Complete sidewalk infill on this block will likely wait until substantial work on the adjacent property triggers mandatory curb reconstruction. However, the new corners should help people transition from the street to a flat surface before traveling through the parking lot.

Image from Portland Maps with illustrations by Montavilla News

These improvements are a small step towards making a pedestrian-friendly path along this major roadway. Work will likely occur sometime this summer, depending on crew availability. When construction begins, pedestrians should favor the south side of SE Stark Street to bypass any sidewalk closures.

Northeast corner of SE 89th Avenue and Stark Street
Northwest corner of SE 89th Avenue and Stark Street
Northwest corner of SE 90th Avenue and Stark Street showing some sidewalk construction

By

Jacob Loeb

Promotion: Montavilla News has a Patreon account. We invite those who can contribute to this local news source to please consider becoming a paid subscriber or sponsor. We will always remain free to read regardless of subscription.