Mult. Co. Chair Vega Pederson walks ‘Stadiumhood’ with concerned residents, sees trash and drug use

Neighbors and business owners in a southwest Portland neighborhood have been testifying at Portland City Council and Multnomah County Board meetings for months about drug activity and safety issues near their homes, schools, and businesses.

Earlier this month, Karen Chirre who owns the convenience store outside Providence Park, Stadium Superette, said she’s tired of the regular shoplifting and drug activity on her property.

“I will speak at every single Multnomah County council meeting until they come out here and do a walk around our neighborhood and see exactly what it is that we’re dealing with,” Chirre said.

On Tuesday morning, that’s exactly what Multnomah County Chair Jessica Vega Pederson did.

The County Chair met a group of neighbors and business owners, including Chirre, at the McDonald’s on West Burnside Street, a known fentanyl hotspot, and accompanied the group on a walk through the neighborhood.

“I wanted to respond and just be here to see for myself exactly what is happening in these areas and hear from them about what life is like in this neighborhood,” said Vega Pederson.

There are several schools in the area, including the Cathedral School, where students were seen walking to class at the same time neighbors were showing the Chair the drug use and the trash right across the street.

“I heard a lot about the concern for the kids that are going to schools in this neighborhood, for the businesses in this neighborhood and what they’re dealing with, and you know, rightly so, a lot of frustration about this,” said Vega Pederson.

“I think that it was encouraging to hear her say that it’s something that she’s going to try to put top of mind because there are schools in this area,” said Kiki Hanover, who has children that the Cathedral School. “I was a little discouraged just to hear how long she’s been in the office. To see that, it seems that she might be a little disillusioned.”

The group of neighbors call themselves ‘Stadiumhood.’ They said they’ve been trying for months to get Vega Pederson to witness the things they see on their streets every day.

“I hope she just saw that these aren’t some entitled, privileged people who want something special,” said Andreas Loeffler with St. Mary’s Cathedral. “They just think decency belongs to everybody.”

The group said the real test will be what happens next.

“I think it’s great that she was able to come out, that she was willing to be here, but to be honest with you, I’m just weary about the kind of change that’s going to happen,” said Hanover.

“Success to me will be when the streets aren’t littered with debris and people have places to live,” said Laura Curry, who lives in the neighborhood. “And there’s enough rehabilitation and mental health services that it doesn’t become everybody’s, all the other citizens’ issues to deal with.”

https://katu.com/news/local/multnomah-county-chair-does-walk-through-with-neighbors-outside-providence-park-jessica-vega-pederson-portland-city-council

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News post in at: December 19, 2024, 3:00 am.

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