Our City Dweller Compares and Contrasts
Portland, Oregon's rose gardens.
Jessica Tomlinson
Last week I went to Portland, Oregon. I have always been curious about “the other Portland” as I have known several Portland, Mainers who have made the move out there and ultimately moved back. (This boomerang effect was not true of Francis Pettygrove, a native of Portland, Maine who partnered with Asa Lovejoy of Boston in a deal to purchase a tract of land in Oregon. They named the city in a coin toss. Pettygrove won and named it Portland after his hometown.)
I was immediately taken by the hipness factor that pervaded the city.
The independent streak was palpable. The city motto is Keep Portland Weird. To get downtown from the airport, I got on the light rail public transportation where the guy across from me was rolling away. He must have had the proper papers for medical marijuana, which is legal in Oregon. Still, nobody batted an eye. At the next stop, a group of bicyclers got on and hung their bikes up on of the multiple hooks provided for this very purpose. As the train approached got the city, I noticed each rail stop featured a piece of local art that reflected that sense of place for that station. Everyone on the train looked relaxed. Nobody was wearing a tie.
Once downtown, I was taken aback by all the green space and public art that covered the city. After walking around for a few hours, I was convinced that every resident was given a primer on good design and stress free living. People were exceedingly friendly. The built environment exhibited high attention to detail. In the 1970s, the local government made a significant commitment to stemming urban sprawl, committing to low impact transportation and preserving green space. The results are evident to the visitor.
I stayed at the Ace Hotel, where every square inch exuded sassy. The vintage-modern boutique hotel featured hand painted murals by different artists in each room, bikes for rent and record players in the bedrooms. Across the street was legendary Powell’s Books with acres, yes acres, of books. The neighborhood was filled with thrift shops, breweries, indie theaters and gourmet cupcake bakeries. A hop on the rail the next day brought me to a city park with 500 acres and an astounding rose garden.
Flying out a few days later, I noticed an installation in the airport dedicated to bikes handmade in Oregon. What was with this people?
I started feeling bad for Portland, Maine. I wanted to move.
We can’t seem to get planning for the life of us. We think density is a dirty word, we like our cars and we pride ourselves on boiled sea creatures.
Before I beat myself up too badly, I remembered that we are not comparing apples to apples. The Other Portland has half a million people and an average January temperature of 40 degrees. We have 65,000 people and an average January temperature of 11 degrees. They have 7000 roses. We have 600.
In Oregon it felt like everything was done. Some folks had laid a strong foundation years ago and everyone is building upon it. Here in Maine, we are like the gorgeous librarian who pulls her hair back and wears glasses – we don’t know what we’ve got. I kind of like that. We are all about potential and the work that needs to be done. Maybe that’s what excites me about being here, is being part of the team that builds the foundation. It’s a rare opportunity really. I think I’ll stay.
Posted on Monday, September 29, 2008 in Permalink
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Reader Comments:
i like the librarian reference. very accurate.
I'm a native of Portland (Oregon), and as much as I love my city, we can be an obnoxious lot. We are so filled with a sense of smug self-satisfaction that it can be a little cloying (and I accuse myself of this!) Get an Oregon-Portlander started on sustainability, recycling, bike-riding-as-a-way-of-life, mass-transit, or how they are more extreme-than-thou, and be prepared to be annoyed ("Oh, you just rafted the upper Amazon? How quaint. i did that years ago... I'm going mountain biking in Mongolia. Outer Mongolia...")
But for the most part, we're fairly friendly and harmless, and we try to take care of the amazing place we are lucky to call home. Anyway, thanks for visiting I look forward to checking out the original Portland some day!