Mt. Tabor Neighborhood Association

Mt. Tabor Neighborhood Association: a year in review

Mar 03, 2004

By Diane Redd, MTNA president

Recently a neighbor asked me if MTNA was supporting the covering of the Mt. Tabor reservoirs. She wondered because the front-page article of the last newsletter covered the results of the reservoir design competition, and there were no other articles about the reservoirs.

Actually, MTNA formally voted in August to oppose the water bureau?’s plans to cover the reservoirs. This vote and its accompanying discussions and activities represent the work MTNA does on behalf of our neighborhood. Clearly, we have not kept you adequately informed about this work; following is a summary of what MTNA has done in 2003. If what has been happening interests you, please attend our monthly meetings on the third Wednesday of each month except December, 7:30?–9 p.m. at Bueermann Hall, Western Seminary, 55th & Hawthorne. Election to the board occurs in May, and candidates must attend two meetings before being elected.

Mt. Tabor Park
For the past two years, MTNA advocated for open public process in deciding the best option for ensuring the safety of Portland?’s water supply. MTNA members wrote letters, testified at city council, and worked with other neighborhood associations to promote citizen involvement in decision making. Because we were unsuccessful in opening up the process, MTNA voted to oppose the project as planned. This fall MTNA voted to provide up to $1,000 to the Friends of the Reservoirs toward the park?’s nomination for the National Historic Register (which may make it more difficult for the city to make significant changes to the park). Several MTNA board members sat on the city public advisory committee that wrote guidelines for what might go on top of the covered reservoirs. MTNA continues to monitor what?’s going on with off leash dogs at the park and will provide feedback on the one-year trial of a new off leash dog area and policies.

Infill development, land use monitoring & advocacy
Development pressures have been felt keenly in the neighborhood this year. MTNA provides a forum for developers to discuss their projects and for neighbors to discuss their grievances. Our land use coordinator, Dave Hilts, provides technical assistance to both groups and mediates disputes. MTNA has formally objected to the city about proposed developments that would adversely affect the neighborhood and submitted testimony on ?“skinny houses,?” 2,500-square-foot lots, and the replacement of quality single-family housing with more cheaply built attached or skinny houses. MTNA works with South-east Uplift to provide an area-wide response on land use.

Traffic
Following several years of hard work in this area, MTNA was less involved in traffic in 2003. The traffic -signal at 60th & Lincoln was installed this year following documentation of a high incidence of accidents. MTNA continues to monitor how changes to Mt. Tabor Park will affect traffic and provides feedback to the police about their local use of photo radar.

Crime
Community policing officers come to monthly meetings to report on crime activity in the neighborhood. MTNA supports community policing and donated $100 in recognition of their efforts in 2003. Several neighbors reported an increased incidence of graffiti this year and are forming a new committee for preventing and removing graffiti.

Funding community projects
MTNA supported the summer concerts in the park with a $500 donation and helped buy graffiti removal supplies. MTNA recently funded outdoor classrooms and gardens at local elementary schools and supported communitywide events. MTNA raises funds through a neighborhood clean-up (see article on this page), and reimbursement from the city for MTNA?’s labor in disconnecting neighborhood downspouts. Printing of the newsletter is supported by advertisements and a stipend from Southeast Uplift.

Communication
Thanks to a large corps of dedicated volunteers, four issues of the neighborhood newsletter were written, produced, and hand-distributed. The minutes of each month?’s meeting and a calendar of neighborhood events are posted on the MTNA website. MTNA coordinates its activities with Southeast Uplift, the coalition of southeast Portland neighborhood associations. We believe that by working together with our neighbors, more can be accomplished to benefit us all.