Willamette Week, April 12, 2023 - Volume 49, Issue 22 - "Big Kid on Campus"

NEWS: La Mota Plot Thickens. P. 8

FOOD: Manny’s Burritos Are Back. P. 17

FILM: No Time Like Shoe Time. P. 23 420 Guide Inside!

With enrollment cratering, Portland schools are competing for kindergartners.

By Rachel Saslow. Page 11

WHAT WE LEARNED FROM READING THIS WEEK’S PAPER VOL. 49, ISSUE 22

No, you shouldn’t remove your neighbor’s license plate 4

Fentanyl use in library restrooms is soaring. 7

The Oregon Bureau of Labor & Industries canceled a half-million-dollar contract after WW asked questions. 9

People living in gullies at the foot of the Morrison Bridge were paid $20 an hour to landscape them. 10

Portland schools are losing students at more than double the national rate. 11

Portland Forest School’s kindergarten open house smelled like whittled sticks. 15

Newberg’s official flower is the camellia 16

One of WW’s Best New Bands, Pool Boys, takes the stage with the Camas High School choir this week. 16

Remember Manny Lopez’s God-tier burritos at Angel Food & Fun? They’ve resurfaced at Ki’ikibáa. 17

Bierly, a gluten-free brewer in the wine-centric town of McMinnville, is Small Brewery of the Year. 18

Kind Heart dispensary has not one but two notable walls: one for cloned plants, another for selfies. 20

Nellie McKay would “rather end factory farming and vivisection than ever write another song.” 21

Portland is the lesbian Xanadu 22

Ben Affleck suggests Converse was a kingdom for Rolex-loving phonies and Adidas was a haven for Nazi apologists. 23

You know what’s super fun?

Defending the medieval English against the Deadite scourge 24

ALBERTA ROSE THEATRE

APR 14

APR 15

all genres of the written word matched with burlesque, boylesque, + draglesque artists

writer, actor, musician, and award-winner

APR 16

NELLIE MCKAY

APR 20

+ Dan Haley unique, genre-crossing vocal/guitar duo

TUCK & PATTI + Adlai Alexander

APR 21 WILLIE PORTER

APR 27

RUTHIE FOSTER

+ Christopher Worth

GARCIA BIRTHDAY BAND

Cinco De Mayo Show

MAY 10

OTTMAR LIEBERT & LUNA NEGRA

UPCOMING SHOWS

In recent days, scrutiny has increased on the conditions at Washington Center first reported by WW. Several television stations dedicated segments to the open-air fentanyl market operating at the corner of Southwest 4th Avenue and Washington Street, and The Oregonian also gave it some attention. Gov. Tina Kotek called conditions “unacceptable” at the vacant property owned by companies controlled by the prominent Menashe family. Mayor Ted Wheeler has assigned a 24-hour police patrol to the site. But who exactly bears responsibility for overdose deaths circling Washington Center? That’s the question WW explored in last week’s edition (“Death on the Plaza,” April 5). The political action nonprofit People for Portland certainly has an opinion: It posted a billboard attacking Multnomah County District Attorney Mike Schmidt just two blocks away. Here’s what our readers had to say.

PDXBILL, VIA WWEEK.COM: “The voters of Portland are responsible. We get what we elect, and what we now have is a tragedy that no one is able or willing to correct.”

associated with preventing it. The Menashes, refusing to pay… Clean & Safe fees, do the exact opposite.”

MICHAEL OLIVER, VIA TWITTER: “I’m old enough to recall when [the Portland Police Bureau] had officers on the streets, walking & targeting places/discouraging crime by their presence—not hiding in their cars and SUVs.”

LU, VIA WWEEK.COM: “It’s a dumb billboard, but Schmidt has been a travesty and any one of the women who have left the DA’s office during his tenure would be a much better option. I hope one of them decides to run.”

and until the feds, UPS, DHL, FedEx and freight companies step up their detection methods and resources, cities, counties and states will never have a chance against it. You could quadruple local police budgets, and it would still barely make a dent.”

DERRICK BRADLEY, VIA FACEBOOK: “Well...since it’s apparently never the responsibility of the person taking the drugs or people dealing the drugs, I guess it’s the rest of us. It must be me, I’m responsible!”

CORRECTION

APR 24

CHRIS CARVALHO, VIA TWITTER: “Measure 110 had so much promise, but its execution has been tragic. Decriminalization assumes a safe time window between addiction and access to treatment, but fentanyl has closed that to a blink of an eye.”

APR 29

STEPHANIE ANNE JOHNSON

RON POPE + Lydia Luce + Caleb Hearn with Brad Parsons + The Quick & Easy Boys + Arietta Ward

6

7

JUDY BLUE EYES

CROSBY, STILLS, NASH, & YOUNG TRIBUTE

honoring David Crosby featuring CSN guitarist Jeff Peva

RODNEY CROWELL W/ ROB ICKES AND TREY HENSLEY

5/13 - HOWIE DAY

5/17 - BLOOD BROTHERS FEAT. MIKE ZITO & ALBERT CASTIGLIA

5/18 - ANTONIO REY

5/19 - TONY STARLIGHT PRESENTS NEIL DIAMOND’S 80TH BIRTHDAY TRIBUTE

JULIE WOELFER, VIA FACEBOOK: “Who’s responsible? The person who chose to put an illicit substance in their body. There would be no sellers if there were no buyers.”

TK, VIA WWEEK.COM: “Most of it comes shipped from overseas,

SOPHLADY, VIA WWEEK. COM: “A combination of factors is responsible for the deaths. If these were tort cases, it would be contributory negligence. The addict is negligent. Not so much for for getting hooked on illicit drugs, but staying hooked. The lack of viable recovery programs is a factor. Both governments and the private sector could do better. And, of course, easy access to illicit drugs matters.

“A responsible property owner would value not allowing this activity to occur over the costs

Dr. Know

BY MARTY SMITH @martysmithxxx

The law says anyone can remove the plate from a vehicle with expired tags. You just bend the plate upwards or remove it completely and put it in a mailbox. The USPS will forward it to DMV and registration will not be renewed. —Gene A.

Gene here is referring to a previous column dealing with the enforcement—or lack thereof—of laws against low-level traffic violations, notably expired tags. While I’m happy to talk about whether it’s a good idea to go around prying the license plates off strangers’ cars (spoiler alert: It’s not), first I need to correct the record:

Last week’s column erroneously included expired tags on the list of violations deprioritized under Oregon Senate Bill 1510, signed into law in March 2022. (I misread “noncompliant registration plate LIGHT” as “noncompliant registration plate,” period.) It’s been fixed on the WW website, but those of you who read the print edition (perhaps as part of a Civil War reenactment group) deserved the truth too. Dr.

Due to an editor’s error, a Murmur on April 5 initially referred to People for Portland as a political action committee. In fact, it is a 501(c)(4) nonprofit, which may advocate for policies but not for political candidates. WW regrets the error.

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR must include the author's street address and phone number for verification. Letters must be 250 or fewer words.

Submit to: PO Box 10770, Portland OR, 97296

Email: mzusman@wweek.com

Know regrets the error.

Now, on to removing those plates: I suspect you’re thinking of the procedure for surrendering your own plates when you no longer need them (perhaps you’re selling the car, or you just got vanity plates): You’re supposed to bend them and scrape off the tags, which keeps them from being reused illegally. After that, you can return them to a DMV office, or even mail them to DMV headquarters in Salem. (Or, you know, just recycle them with the rest of the aluminum.)

Look, I understand your resentment toward scofflaws, but even expired tags tell cops whose car they’re following. Why would you punish a miscreant by doing something that makes it easier for them to rob a bank? If the practice caught on, the system would REALLY break down. Anyone could ditch their plates and do whatever they wanted, blaming tag vigilantes for their car’s lack of identification.

This is more or less what’s happening in East Coast cities like New York and Washington, D.C., except it’s not missing plates, it’s bogus trip permits. These readily available fakes allow folks to stick it to The Man by dodging speed cameras and automated tolls. Of course, they also make it easier to move stolen cars. Car theft rings are more profitable, and now carjackings are way up. And you thought bad stuff only happened in Portland!

Questions? Send them to dr.know@wweek.com.

LAWSUIT CHALLENGES ROSS ISLAND PERMIT:

The Northwest Environmental Defense Center filed a lawsuit April 10 challenging a permit the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality issued last year to Ross Island Sand & Gravel for its reclamation of the island’s lagoon. The company mined the river bottom there for 76 years, finishing in 2001. Now, it is refilling the mined areas under an agreement with the state. But environmentalists say the lagoon, which is shallow and stagnant, is the source of summertime algal blooms that spread into the river, posing health hazards to humans and animals. NEDC says in its lawsuit that the reclamation plan by Ross Island Sand & Gravel, part of R.B. Pamplin Corp., would exacerbate the algal blooms. Therefore, it argues, DEQ shouldn’t have issued Ross Island’s permit, which the lawsuit says is “in contravention of state and federal water quality protection laws, is insufficient to protect aquatic resources and water quality, and is harmful to the state and each of its citizens.” Ross Island Sand & Gravel is not a party to the lawsuit. A DEQ spokesman says the agency is reviewing the lawsuit.

PORTLAND

STATE UNIVERSITY REARMS ITS

COPS: Campus police at Portland State University are getting their guns back in response to an increased number of weapons being found on campus and limited assistance from a thinly stretched Portland Police Bureau, according to a campuswide email sent April 11 by university president Stephen Percy. The school disarmed its cops in 2021 in response to years of protests after campus police fatally shot Jason Washington, a 45-year-old Black man who was trying to break up a fight outside a sports bar in 2018. “While this may seem like a step backward in our ongoing efforts to achieve lasting change, it does not alter our commitment to actively pursue a campus safety system that prizes deescalation, respects the dignity of our diverse campus community, and finds a path to return to regular unarmed patrols on campus,” Percy wrote. In an accompanying video, campus security chief Willie Halliburton called it a “hard decision,” adding that he had not “abandoned unarmed patrols” and that his nine officers would have discretion whether to carry a firearm.

POLICE OCCUPY WASHINGTON CENTER: At the direction of Mayor Ted Wheeler, the Portland Police Bureau flooded the zone this week at Portland’s de facto drug bazaar, the square block between Southwest 4th and 5th Avenues north of Washington Street. Dealers and users had mobbed the vacant 1960s-vintage complex in recent weeks, and a young woman died March 31 of a drug overdose, putting pressure on the city and the buildings’ owners—the Menashe real estate family—to do something. What a difference some cops make. The sidewalks were clear almost immediately. Nothing is free, though, and attention to one hot spot means others go unpatrolled, says Sgt. Susan Billard, who staked out the building earlier this week. She’s under orders to have two officers at the site at all times.

“When we put all these resources into an area, the blocks outside of it start to see the effects as well,” Billard says. “Having to staff this location with two officers every hour can be a real challenge.” But help is on the way, Billard says. “We’ve hired a hundred officers that are going to be going through the training process. I’m super excited about getting them out to the street.”

FORMER OREGON LOTTERY CHIEF BETS ON

CITY HALL: Barry Pack, a longtime high-level state government official, has come full circle, taking a job on Mayor Ted Wheeler’s staff last month. Pack, a top aide to former Gov. Kate Brown when Brown was secretary of state, most recently served as director of the Oregon Lottery from 2016 to 2023, overseeing strong revenue growth and the agency’s expansion into mobile sports betting. Now, Pack is back working for the city of Portland, where he began his career in government 30 years ago. Pack says he’s working on special projects, including the expansion of Interstate 5 through the Rose Quarter and the Interstate Bridge replacement, and aiding the city’s transition to the new form of government voters approved last year. “My time is split between serving as the mayor’s representative on all things charter transition,” Pack says, “and working directly with the transition team in the Chief Administrator’s Office building a new government structure.”

ROSS ISLAND LAGOON ALGAL BLOOM

SENATE BILL 614

In Portland, police body-worn cameras are like the Rapture, or a Trail Blazers championship parade: long-promised, of great interest, and always just around the corner. But with the Portland Police Association and City Hall seemingly close to an agreement on policies describing how the cameras would be used (“Instant Replay,” WW, March 22), the city of Portland has gone to Salem seeking to amend the state law governing a very important point: when officers can activate their body cameras.

CHIEF SPONSORS: State Sens. Chris Gorsek (D-Troutdale) and James Manning (D-Eugene). Both are former police officers.

WHAT IT WOULD DO: SB 614 would allow what the Portland City Attorney’s Office calls “buffering.” Oregon law currently allows police officers to turn on their body cameras when they have probable cause or reasonable suspicion to believe a crime has occurred or might occur. The bill would create an exception to current law and allow police to turn their cameras on earlier, prior to developing probable cause or reasonable suspicion.

Critics worry the bill conflicts with fundamental Oregon civil rights law (ORS 181.250) dating from 1981. That law prohibits police from gathering and maintaining information about people’s political, social or religious views without probable cause to believe a crime has occurred.

PROBLEM IT SEEKS TO SOLVE: In testimony, Mike Porter, a deputy attorney for the city of Portland, described the bill as simply the modernization of old legislation that would offer greater flexibility, context and transparency for police interactions with the public. Porter said officers may want to turn on their cameras in anticipation of something that might occur, or to document another officer’s misconduct, but would be prohibited from doing so by current law. By collecting “buffering” footage, which could be deleted if nothing untoward occurs, Porter said, police could document their work more fully.

WHO SUPPORTS IT: The Oregon State Sheriff’s Association and the Oregon Association Chiefs of Police. There has been limited public testimony on the bill, but former Marion County Sheriff Jason Meyers, who testified on behalf of both groups, said they would like to see greater clarity in the bill, which a subsequent amendment accomplished.

WHO OPPOSES IT: The Oregon Trial Lawyers Association and the ACLU of Oregon. Both groups have expressed concerns that allowing officers to turn their cameras on earlier will allow them to collect and store information that infringes on the civil liberties of protesters and others who are acting lawfully.

ACLU legal director Kelly Simon says the bill would massively expand what officers can record because it allows them to film for “any other lawful purpose,” which Simon says is undefined and broad. Simon notes that major law enforcement agencies, such as the Oregon State Police, have been using body cameras for years under the current restrictions without major problems.

Simon adds: “Oregon does not need a body camera exception to ORS 182.250,” the law that prohibits gathering social, religious or political information without probable cause. “This bill is disheartening.” NIGEL JAQUISS.

Loose Leaf

BY SOPHIE PEEL speel@wweek.com

Last month, WW published the results of a monthslong investigation into La Mota, the second-largest cannabis dispensary chain in the state. Public records revealed that the co-owners of the chain and the companies they control have been issued more than $3 million in tax liens over the past five years and faced 30 lawsuits in Oregon circuit courts, even as they bankrolled top Democratic politicians (“Strange Budfellows,” March 29).

Records also show that the Oregon Liquor and Cannabis Commission, tasked with overseeing the recreational cannabis industry, did little to regulate La Mota in the past six years. While granting La Mota companies more than 50 licenses, it appears the agency did not examine its tax history, its legal battles or the status of its investors.

Those questions would have raised red flags across the border in Washington state, where the Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board follows much stricter rules for cannabis companies.

A comparison shows that the Oregon Legislature gives great authority to the OLCC to set rules for companies seeking licenses—but does not require that the agency actually enforce those rules. The Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board, meanwhile, has much stricter agency rules than those at the OLCC.

The OLCC would not make anyone available to discuss its rules on the record with WW, but in a statement, agency spokesman Mark Pettinger said cannabis regulation is an ever-evolving process.

Below are four policies on which the two states diverge on regulatory oversight of cannabis licensees.

TAXES

WASHINGTON: The Washington State Liquor and Cannabis Board collects marijuana taxes monthly and can suspend or cancel a license for nonpayment. In addition, an applicant must be “current in any tax obligations…as an individual or as part of any entity in which they have an ownership interest” to receive a license.

OREGON: The Oregon Department of Revenue collects marijuana sales taxes four times a year. That agency reports to the OLCC which of its cannabis licensees are delinquent on taxes. Just like in Washington, the OLCC can—but doesn’t have to—suspend a license for nonpayment. Laws and agency rules do not mention an applicant’s taxpaying status with the state, either as an individual or entity, as a factor when seeking a new license.

WHY THAT MATTERS: Washington will not grant a new license to anyone who isn’t current on their state taxes. Oregon, meanwhile, granted dozens of licenses to La Mota co-owners Rosa Cazares and Aaron Mitchell even as they, and some of their companies, faced liens for unpaid marijuana and personal income taxes.

FINANCIAL BACKERS

WASHINGTON: The cannabis board must “verify source of funds used to acquire the business” and “verify the true party or parties of interest” in each license application. In addition, “the board will conduct a financial and criminal background investigation on all financiers.” State law authorizes the agency to revoke, suspend or cancel a license if it lists “funds that cannot be verified for the acquisition, startup and operation of the business.”

OREGON: State law gives the OLCC the authority to list the names of anyone with “a financial interest in the business.” But no state law or agency rule mentions verification of those investors.

WHY THAT MATTERS: Washington checks the claims of who’s investing; Oregon apparently doesn’t. In La Mota filings provided by the OLCC, three former professional skateboarders are listed on a license application, alongside Mitchell, as managing members. When contacted, one of the individuals said they’d never invested in the business. The spouse of a second said the same. A third did not respond to inquiries. Under Washington’s rules, the agency would have contacted them prior to issuing the license.

CHAINS

WASHINGTON: “Any entity and/or principals within any entity are limited to no more than five retail cannabis licenses.”

OREGON: There is no cap on how many retail licenses one person can hold.

WHY THAT MATTERS: By limiting one person to no more than five retail licensees, Washington effectively barred retail chains. In Oregon, La Mota grew to more than 32 retail shops because the state does not limit how many retail licenses any one person can hold. Smaller companies have alleged that La Mota has used its size to take advantage of vendors.

UPFRONT PAYMENT

WASHINGTON: The state requires upfront payment for all goods purchased: “A cannabis licensee must pay cash for cannabis prior to or at the time of delivery.”

OREGON: Upfront payments aren’t required.

WHY THAT MATTERS: In lawsuits filed against La Mota companies, five vendors alleged unpaid bills. That wouldn’t be possible in Washington, because the state requires that cannabis companies pay prior to or at the time of sale. No payment plans are allowed.

Oregon allowed La Mota to expand with few questions asked. Washington state has much stricter rules.

Some Democrats want to give cops more leeway about when to turn on their body cameras.

Locked Library Loo

As drug use increases in public library restrooms, so do exclusions.

People have always lit up joints in the restrooms of Multnomah County’s library branches. Now, they’re using stronger drugs.

“ While the issue of illegal activity is not new, library locations have experienced more instances of suspected meth use in restrooms,” says Multnomah County Public Library spokesman Shawn Cunningham. Fentanyl too, he added. The issue’s been popping up since the middle of last year. The library system has had to temporarily limit access to restrooms as a result, sometimes requiring keys or prioritizing families, Cunningham explains.

CHASING GHOSTS: PROPERTY TAX DEBTS

It’s not clear just how dangerous second-hand fentanyl or meth smoke is. The county health department issued a memo downplaying the issue in February. “There are no known local cases of a bystander or responder suffering serious health effects from breathing in secondhand meth or fentanyl smoke,” it noted.

Still, the library is prepared. “ We have a protocol in place to close restrooms for 30 minutes to air out spaces before they are returned to service,” Cunningham says.

So, how many times have library patrons been caught lighting up? “The library doesn’t have a

GOOSE HOLLOWED

A prime spot in Southwest Portland lies fallow.

ADDRESS: 1541 SW Market St.

YEAR BUILT: 1964

SQUARE FOOTAGE: 13,000 (land), 2,625 (office space)

MARKET VALUE: $1.895 million

OWNER: Market Street Holdings LLC

HOW LONG IT’S BEEN EMPTY: Unclear

WHY IT’S EMPTY: Family curse?

It’s pretty obvious what should be happening at 1541 SW Market St.: The rectangular property is surrounded on three sides by multifamily housing.

What is happening: very little. Even before the pandemic, the owner, Market Street Holdings LLC, fell behind on its property taxes, and now the tab for back taxes on the address, which comprises two tax lots, is $83,223, nearly five years’ worth of payments.

Lane Lowry, the registered agent for the property’s owner, describes himself on LinkedIn as a “32-year real estate entrepreneur and consultant providing creative techniques to maximize real estate project returns.” Lowry did not return calls seeking comment.

But the returns on the property, which is just short walk from Lincoln High School and the Multnomah Athletic Club, so far look pretty lousy.

Records show that Market Street Holdings bought the property in August 2018 for $1.001 million and borrowed $1.375 million against it. One explanation for the difference is that the new owner wanted to use the difference for pre-development work.

But the single-story medical office building that was there then is still there now, covered in graffiti and bearing evidence of freeloading guests, who have breached the security fence around the property. A forlorn baby pool filled with rain and an eclectic assortment of trash is the only

database of such incidents per se,” Cunningham says.

But it does track the number of patrons excluded for illicit activities, including drug use.

Here’s the number of people that have been given lengthy exclusions from Multnomah County Libraries over the years. LUCAS MANFIELD.

sign of recent life. (Records show four nuisance complaints were filed against the property last year.)

The building’s sad present echoes its sad past. In 2017, records show, the building’s then-owner, a Lake Oswego engineer named Dan Kovtynovich, died suddenly. He’d inherited the property from his father and built a successful business but died without a will. Under Oregon law, his two sisters, who lived in California and Washington, stood to inherit his estate, which included several other properties. They did so, but only after withstanding an impassioned

appeal from other relatives who felt they were owed part of Kovtynovich’s estate.

But after years of inaction, there may finally be progress: Records show Market Street Holdings applied for a demolition permit Feb. 8. NIGEL JAQUISS.

Every week, WW examines one mysteriously vacant property in the city of Portland, explains why it’s empty, and considers what might arrive there next. Send addresses to newstips@wweek.com.

HAMMER TIME: The owner of 1541 SW Market St. is finally moving toward demolition.

Source: Multnomah County Library

Puff, Puff, Pass

BY SOPHIE PEEL speel@wweek.com

On March 29, WW published the results of an investigation into the business dealings of Rosa Cazares and Aaron Mitchell, co-founders of cannabis dispensary chain La Mota. The story reported on $3 million in federal and state tax liens issued against the couple and their companies in recent years, and detailed 30 lawsuits filed in Oregon circuit courts, many alleging unpaid bills. At the same time they were failing to meet their obligations, the couple contributed hundreds of thousands of dollars to the political campaigns of top Democratic Party candidates.

The same day WW published its story, the Oregon Bureau of Labor & Industries formally terminated a half-million-dollar grant awarded to a brand-new nonprofit co-founded by Cazares, and asked for the money back.

It’s an unprecedented reversal, and records show the grant (the largest awarded in that funding round) was controversial when first considered by a council run by BOLI last year. The current and former heads of the agency received campaign contributions from Cazares. The revelations now raise questions about two state agencies—BOLI and the Oregon Liquor and Cannabis Commission—and their dealings with the state’s second-largest cannabis chain, whose owners are the Oregon weed industry’s largest Democratic campaign contributors.

Joy Hudson co-owns Nimble Distribution, a cannabis company. She says the grant—and

its sudden cancellation—sows further public distrust of the industry.

“Trust in the industry is totally broken from this,” Hudson says. “We’re affected by all these poor decisions.”

Here is what we know.

On Aug. 26, 2022, BOLI awarded more than half a million dollars to a nonprofit co-founded by Rosa Cazares, who also runs La Mota, the second-largest cannabis dispensary chain in the state.

BOLI gave the $554,990 grant to the brandnew nonprofit ENDVR, which pledged in its application to create an apprenticeship program for botanical extractionists—that is, lab workers who extract chemical compounds from the cannabis plant.

Cazares told the Oregon State Apprenticeship and Training Council that ENDVR, whose place of business in state filings is listed as a mini storage unit in Beaverton, would deliver. “We are all very motivated women,” Cazares said.

ENDVR had no evident track record in job training—or of performing any work. Nevertheless, then-Oregon Labor Commissioner Val Hoyle called it an “important investment” and vouched for the program. The council approved the grant, which was the largest of the 10 grants issued in that round of funding. The other grant recipients included a number of well-established educational institutions, like Chemeketa Community College.

“ We’re looking at a time when [cannabis]

will be legal federally. Without federal legalization, this is a billion-dollar industry in Oregon,” Hoyle said at a July 27 meeting of the council to vet the grants. “And when this can be exported across state lines, it’s going to be larger. So professionalizing the workforce is important.”

“Are you asking if they bought their access into this apprenticeship program for $6,000? No.”

Cazares and Mitchell contributed $26,800 to Hoyle’s election campaigns over the past year and a half. That sum includes $5,800 given by the couple to Hoyle’s congressional campaign to succeed retiring 4th District Congressman Peter DeFazio, two days before the grant application opened. Cazares also contributed $4,000 to current Labor Commissioner Christina Stephenson, and Cazares’ PAC donated another $3,500 to Stephenson.

Cazares founded ENDVR in December 2021 with Laura Vega, who founded a cannabis products company and served on an array of cannabis advisory bodies.

Public records show the IRS approved

A nonprofit co-founded by La Mota’s boss got a half-million dollars from the state.

HOT POTATO: From left: BOLI Commissioner Christina Stephenson, La Mota’s Rosa Cazares, former BOLI Commissioner and now-U.S. Congresswoman Val Hoyle.

PHOTOS BY BLAKE BENARD, THE NEW ERA, AND COURTESY OF VAL HOYLE

ENDVR’s nonprofit status on April 16, 2022, two weeks before BOLI opened the application period for the apprenticeship grants.

Current board members of the nonprofit include Cazares, who is board chair; Fred Voelkel, the chief operating officer of La Mota; and Mary Allen, who worked under contract with La Mota helping to manage its payroll. (Allen declined to say whether La Mota is still a client.) That means three of the four current board members of the nonprofit are affiliated with La Mota. None responded to phone calls, and Cazares’ attorney did not answer emailed questions.

Vega did not provide concrete examples of prior work ENDVR accomplished.

Back on July 27, 2022, the Oregon State Apprenticeship and Training Council greenlighted $1.6 million in grants for workforce training. It approved all 10 apprenticeship proposals presented that day. Except one: the application from ENDVR for the largest amount of money requested by any of the applicants.

In a recording of the meeting, members of the council expressed skepticism about ENDVR’s high personnel costs—$97,000 a year for Vega alone—and how so few graduates, only four, would actually be trained.

“I’ve read this I don’t know how many times, and I’m baffled as a taxpayer how you can expect half a million dollars to support four people being trained,” said council member Evan Stuart at the July meeting. “I don’t even know how this got through the committee.”

Hoyle interceded. She asked Vega to come back with a stronger proposal the following month. “I look forward to seeing you in a month and being able to support this,” Hoyle said.

When the council reconvened in August, Vega brought witnesses to vouch for the program.

One was board member Matt Maletis of the Oregon Liquor and Cannabis Commission, which regulates cannabis. “I got to know Rosa…when La Mota had maybe one or two stores, and what she’s done, as well as Laura, from the time I got to know them to now, is just phenomenal,” Maletis said. “The fact that they’re willing to give back and train others how to do this is admirable.”

The council approved the grant

unanimously. Three members who had expressed skepticism initially ended up voting for it.

Hoyle told WW in a phone call that she remembers speaking to Vega about the apprenticeship prior to the application period, but can’t recall if she ever spoke to Cazares. (Vega says she did not speak with Hoyle.)

“I know Laura, and certainly she called and asked me about it, and I said, yeah, sure, go ahead,” Hoyle says. “I don’t recall [talking to Rosa]. I may have, I’m not saying I did or didn’t.”

Hoyle insisted Cazares’ and Mitchell’s campaign contributions did not affect her support for the ENDVR grant.

“Are you asking if they bought their access into this apprenticeship program for $6,000?” Hoyle said. “No.”

Nevertheless, under new leadership since the election of Christina Stephenson in November, BOLI has reversed course. On March 16, WW contacted Stephenson with questions about La Mota. That same day, BOLI emails show, the agency discussed canceling the contract. On March 29, the same day WW published its findings on La Mota, BOLI sent a formal termination letter to ENDVR.

“You are hereby directed to immediately cease all grant-related activities and expenditures unless otherwise directed in writing by BOLI,” wrote agency grants manager Kiely Corti. “ENDVR must return all currently unexpended funds…BOLI will not disburse any additional funds.”

Vega wrote back March 30, sounding surprised.

“ We believed we were exceeding all of the grant criteria and so this cancellation comes as a complete shock,” Vega wrote. “We had made significant progress in achieving our goal of providing opportunities for populations of color.”

Vega tells WW that ENDVR will continue its work and hopes eventually to get the state’s stamp of approval as a certified apprenticeship program.

A BOLI spokeswoman declined to give the reason for canceling the grant, but says ENDVR is expected to return all of the remaining grant money not yet spent. As of March, that totaled just over $180,000. The agency has not yet received the unspent funds from ENDVR; Vega says she’s awaiting return instructions.

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Snarky Puppy

Washout

Portland jettisons a project that paid unhoused people to tend the bioswales where they lived.

BY LUCAS MANFIELD lmanfield@wweek.com

For two years, city of Portland contractors paid homeless campers $20 an hour to maintain the landscaping surrounding their tents at a trio of grassy gullies in the Central Eastside.

It’s not clear city officials fully realized what they were funding. But the reality was that the “stewards” lived amid the landscaping they were paid to maintain, inside the cloverleaf ramps of the Hawthorne and Morrison bridges.

For a while, the city hailed the program as a success. The campers got a semi-permanent home with a small salary, and the gentrifying industrial neighborhood got badly needed greenspace. The city was so impressed it presented the local business association with an annual award for facilitating it.

Then, with little warning, it all fell apart. The program’s contract was canceled last month and the city surrounded the three blocks with a locked chain-link fence.

The once-lauded program was certainly facing challenges.

The campers’ presence may have proved more harmful than helpful. The bioswales where they lived and worked were small greenspaces designed to filter contaminants from floodwaters before they entered the river system. But the campers’ very presence undermined that goal.

Large portions of the bioswales turned into mud pits, and fires were frequent. One such blaze destroyed a prized tree. Another killed a litter of puppies.

Meanwhile, the bioswales were swept up in the larger debate over the city’s treatment of its homeless residents. In January, City Hall began cracking down on the most visible camps that Central Eastside businesses were reporting as nuisances, including those that housed the stewards the city was paying an hourly wage.

Barbra Weber, the project’s manager, says she has mixed feelings about its collapse. On one hand, as an ardent environmentalist, she’s

happy the ecosystem can heal after withstanding so many years of boots and tents.

On the other, she’s watched the community she’s nurtured be uprooted and destroyed. “I was devastated,” she says. “I feel like I failed.”

The city announced the bioswale restoration program on April 29, 2021, with a two-day tree planting event, attended by newly elected City Commissioner Mingus Mapps. “This tree planting and the long-term program behind it brings people together to create lasting relationships, lasting opportunity, and lasting stewardship,” he said at the time.

local businesses and property owners. It then subcontracted the maintenance work out to a local nonprofit called Trash for Peace, which distributed cash to stewards. (Central Eastside Together is managed by the district’s business association, the Central Eastside Industrial Council.)

The program ultimately cost the city around $25,000, according to estimates provided to WW by the city’s Bureau of Environmental Services.

Two years in a row, the Portland City Council declared the business association a “most valuable partner” for its “partnership with the houseless community.”

But that “long-term program” was really just a two-year pilot. And it didn’t make it even that long, falling victim to a political reset at City Hall, pressure from neighborhood businesses, and high-profile fiascoes in the bioswales.

Late last year, Central Eastside businesses, including Salt & Straw, pleaded with Mayor Ted Wheeler to intervene in camping conditions and threatened to leave the city if he didn’t. “People don’t come to shop,” CEIC executive director Clare Briglio tells WW. “People don’t feel safe walking to work.”

One of them, Emre Taskin, owns a nearby shop selling Turkish rugs that has been repeatedly burglarized and vandalized. The city’s utopian ideals have backfired, Taskin says, citing the camps that ringed his business and the trash that piled up in the bioswales.

Taskin moved here from Istanbul in 2013 and now plans to leave for New York once his lease expires. “It’s a bad experiment,” he says. “We’re fed up.”

February, the number of mass encampments had dropped from 150 to less than 90, Briglio says.

Soon, the camps in the bioswales were swept away too. They were a safety hazard, Briglio explains. In one, firefighters had to come out 39 times, according to city data shared with WW Police were an even more frequent presence.

Then, on Valentine’s Day morning, a fire in the bioswales had citywide repercussions.

An encampment burned to the ground, killing six puppies and their mother. Weber traced the blaze back to a donated cabin with insulation that was improperly fireproofed.

The incident grabbed the attention of Portland’s new fire commissioner, Rene Gonzalez. That day, he directed bureaus under his control to stop handing out tents, citing the seven killed dogs in his press release.

Shortly thereafter, Weber was informed that the city was shutting down her program. She was stunned and blamed the fire. She had just entered negotiations with the city to expand the program from once-a-week to daily cleanups, which she felt would minimize the ecological damage caused by the camps. She dreamed of one day paying stewards to give public tours of the bioswales. Instead, on March 23, the city fenced them off.

“The mayor’s office appreciated that this program, at this specific location, was not working and needed to end,” Eric Zimmerman, Wheeler’s central city policy adviser, said in a statement. “We were very supportive when the Central Eastside Together group and the Bureau of Environmental Services quickly agreed to end the relationship. Those sites were in dire need of clean up and safety improvements. Anyone who drove by in the last year knows that.”

In a separate statement, Commissioner Mapps said: “We tried something new here, and all involved tried to create solutions for unhoused people, for infrastructure that we all depend on, and for environmental stewardship. These sites didn’t work as intended and became a safety issue, so we are ending that part of the contract. We are returning the bioswales to their original intention and natural function.”

After the trees were planted, Weber recruited weekly maintenance crews from the dozens of tents that dotted the bioswales. On Fridays, she rewarded their labor with cash. City officials deny being aware that stewards were living on the site. “We did not monitor where the stewards lived,” a Bureau of Environmental Services spokesperson tells WW

For a while, it was a success, she says. Longtime hoarders learned to pick up after themselves to protect the fragile grass. And reliable wages gave them hope they could eventually get off the streets.

The city wrote the program into its contract with Central Eastside Together, one of the city’s three enhanced service districts that fund security and cleanup services through fees levied on

Spurred on, Mayor Wheeler sprang into action, launching a “90-day reset,” modeled on last year’s similar effort in Old Town. By

Weber is heartbroken. Back in 2015, she lived in the bioswales herself. She saw parallels in her efforts to help both their ecology and the people that called them home. Now, she’s lost track of many of the people who once lived there. “These people are completely forgotten about. They fall off into no man’s land,” Weber says. WW tracked down one of them. Tom was living several blocks west on vacant Oregon Department of Transportation property under the Morrison Bridge. He declined to give his last name, saying he’s been homeless for eight years while dodging an out-of-state arrest warrant.

Tom remembered the bioswale fondly: “I thought it was a place I could stay awhile.”

A photo distributed with the press release shows Mapps in jeans, a yellow safety vest and a baseball cap, flanked by volunteers happily planting trees in one of the program’s three bioswales. (A bioswale is an urban planning term for a vegetated channel designed to filter pollutants from groundwater.)

FENCED OFF: Barbra Weber managed the environmental stewardship program that was summarily shut down last month.

LUCAS MANFIELD

LUCAS MANFIELD

“We tried something new here.”

RUNOFF: The bioswales caught drainage water from encircling bridge ramps.

Big Kid on Campus

on Campus Big Kid

BY RACHEL SASLOW @RACHELLAUREN12

Ruby Fuller is a strawberry blond 4-year-old girl who lives in the Woodlawn neighborhood of Northeast Portland and loves rainbows, sparkles and unicorns. A classic pandemic child, she stayed home with her parents from ages 1 to 3. She has a hard time speaking up because she’s never had to do it—she has attentive parents and no siblings to compete with.

“She’s never going to be the one to push her way to the front of the crowd,” says her mother, Tanya Fuller. “Because, also, we don’t let her in crowds.”

Another thing about Ruby? She’s the hot recruit coveted by six local schools for the kindergarten class of 2024.

Ruby is so sought after because Portland elementary school enrollment has plunged by 17.3% since the 2018-19 school year, according to the school district. That’s a loss of 4,300 children, enough to fill about 10 elementary schools.

Overall, Portland schools saw a 7.5% decline in enrollment. In other words, Portland’s K-12 schools are losing students at more than double the rate of the rest of the country and at one and a half times the rate of Oregon schools as a whole (see “The COVID Drop,” page 13).

That’s an existential threat to Portland Public Schools because funding follows enrollment. Every child who lives within a school’s attendance boundary but does not attend represents dollars

CONTINUED ON PAGE 12

With enrollment cratering, Portland schools are competing for kindergartners.

MICK HANGLAND-SKILL

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 11

walking away—$14,829 of them, to be precise. That’s what PPS spent per pupil in the 2019-20 school year, according to the National Center for Education Statistics.

At the same time, parents now have an abundance of free educational choices, thanks to charter schools, “focus” schools and neighborhood schools. And with fewer children to compete with, principals are telling families on the sly that this will be an easier year than most to get in. Parents will see if that holds true once lottery results are emailed to them this spring.

Parents with incoming kindergartners feel like they’re on a shopping spree. “I wasn’t raised with any kind of school choice, so it feels very privileged to have lots of options,”

Tanya Fuller says.

Does she w ant “project-based learning” and tons of field trips for Ruby? Hit up the Emerson School in Northwest Portland. A hands-on Little House on the Prairie-style Waldorf education? Portland Village School it is. Continue Ruby’s Montessori preschool path but at a charter in North Portland? That would be the Ivy School. One more charter, a private Montessori and finally her neighborhood school, Woodlawn K-5, round out her list.

With more choice comes the nagging guilt that families might be betraying their neighborhood school, a key component of what makes Portland special.

The fact that wealthy families have historically sent their children to public schools just like everyone else has long been a key ingredient in Portland’s civic recipe.

“There’s a lot of school pride in Portland,” says PPS board member Julia Brim-Edwards. “Plumbers, painters, teachers and police all send their kids to school with the children of the governor, the Supreme Court, and CEOs. You have the whole community invested.”

WW sat through kindergarten open houses for the past two months and interviewed families and district leaders to get to the bottom of what is luring Portland parents away from neighborhood schools. As we followed the Fullers and other families through their decisions, three reasons stood out.

Neighborhood schools are losing students because families are leaving Portland.

Some K-5 schools have lost more than a quarter of their students over the past five years, including Abernethy, Alameda, Chapman, Kelly, Rosa Parks and Whitman. One reason? Families have bailed.

In a recent report, Portland State University’s Population Research Center attributed the school district’s enrollment drop to families moving out of the city or choosing other school options, including private schools, online charter schools or homeschooling during the pandemic.

For the second consecutive year, Multnomah County’s population declined in 2022, about 1.3%, amid widespread civic frustration over a high cost of living and poor municipal services. Thanks to remote work, fewer people feel obligated to live close to downtown. Others can’t afford to.

Whether people left because of livability concerns is hard to tease out from data alone, says Josh Lehner, a state economist. “Multnomah County has been losing young families for most

of the last decade already,” he says. “Even during the ‘good times,’ so to speak.”

Angelica Cruz, PPS’s director of early learning, has a pretty good sense of why kids aren’t coming back to school post-pandemic. Cruz meets monthly with a group of teachers, administrators and community organizations to talk about pre-kindergarten through third grade education in Portland.

“Honestly, what we’re hearing from people is

that they’re getting pushed out and can’t afford to live in the city anymore,” Cruz says.

In 2022, average Portland rent was $1,614 per month, a 3.7% increase over 2021, according to a report by the city’s Housing Bureau. The median

“This whole thing is like a part-time job. I feel overwhelmed by choice.”

“It is a little hard to swallow the idea of him going to a bigger school when there are all the shootings.”

home sales price hit $525,000 in 2021, the report says, a 17% increase since 2016.

Cruz herself is an example of Portland’s costof-living problem. She has five children: two in college and three at home. When she moved from Arizona to Portland in 2018 to become the principal at Creston Elementary School in Southeast, she couldn’t afford a home within the district where she was hired to work. They settled in Damascus.

Meanwhile, PPS’s biggest enrollment losses were in the 2020 and 2021 kindergarten classes, which lines up with a birth rate that has plummeted steeply since 2016, according to the report by PSU. There were 30% fewer births to Portland residents in 2021 compared with the 2008 peak. In other words, some of the kindergartners missing from PPS aren’t just tucked away at private schools—they were never born.

Ruby’s mom, Tanya Fuller, chose to have only one child due to the stress of parenting during the pandemic.

“It feels like nobody is having children,” she says. None of her Portland friends has any, despite all being in the second half of their 30s. “Ruby is the spoiled only child of our little friend family.”

The COVID Drop

Public schools across the nation saw declines in enrollment amid the COVID-19 pandemic. But Portland’s was steeper than most.

U.S.

Students lost between fall 2019 and fall 2021: 1.3 million

Decline: 3% Oregon

Students lost between fall 2019 and fall 2021: 30,000

Decline: 5% Portland

CHOICES: Tanya Fuller at Woodlawn Park in Northeast Portland. Her 4-yearold daughter is zoned to attend Woodlawn K-5 School.

Last month, Fuller, 37, listened to the presentation in the “Magnolia” kindergarten classroom at the Portland Village School.

Preschoolers stacked wooden blocks in the back of the room while their parents asked about after care, discipline, the bell schedule, school buses, the talented and gifted program, and “the potty situation.”

By then, she was on her third of five school tours on her quest to find the perfect fit for Ruby. She wants small class sizes. A connection to the community. A disciplinary plan in case of bullying.

“This whole thing is like a part-time job,” says Fuller, who works full time as the manager of a bank’s fraud department. “I feel overwhelmed by choice.”

Neighborhood schools are losing students because parents are afraid for their children’s safety.

This school year alone, there have been shootings near Cleveland, Franklin and Jefferson high schools, resulting in five students being hit by gunfire but no deaths. (Two

CONTINUED ON PAGE 14

Students lost between fall 2019 and fall 2021: 4,000

Decline: 7.5%

Portland elementary schools only*

Students lost between fall 2019 and fall 2021: 4,300

Decline: 17.3%

*Middle school enrollment is flat for this period while high school numbers increased.

Sources: U.S. Department of Education, Oregon Department of Education, Portland Public Schools

RACHEL SASLOW.

MICHAEL RAINES

CONTINUED FROM PAGE 13

Portland high school students were shot to death last month in a high-profile triple homicide, but it wasn’t near a campus.)

School shootings are America’s nightmare. But gun violence at Portland Public Schools appears to be a greater problem than in other cities.

The K-12 School Shooting Database reports that gunshots on school grounds are more common here: six incidents in 2022, with few similarly sized cities on the West Coast reporting more than three. That perhaps reflects the spike in homicides among Black youth that began during the pandemic.

In the past few years, the school district has outfitted all of its schools with surveillance cameras and buzzers at main entrances. A 2020 security bond will pay for hardware upgrades to allow all classrooms to be locked from the inside. Returning police officers to school campuses remains a contentious debate.

“If every child feels safe and secure coming into kindergarten, and the families feel safe sending their kids to school, we are hoping that will impact enrollment,” Cruz says. PPS declined to make her available for follow-up questions regarding whether school safety might play a role in declining enrollment.

Erik Hartmann, 48, lives in Grant Park and sends his 6-year-old daughter to kindergarten at a public elementary school. He is seriously considering homeschooling her due to concerns about gun violence. (He plans to see how this school year wraps up before deciding whether to withdraw her.)

“We’re playing Russian roulette every time we send our kids to school,” Hartmann says. “It’s a matter of when, not if, something serious is going to happen.”

Hartmann has a particular expertise: He does

PLAY IT SAFE: Danny Tumia and Susan Snow play with their son Rowan Tumia at Luuwit View Park earlier this month. Snow is concerned about Rowan’s safety in kindergarten next year.

counterterrorism work as a security consultant. He believes U.S. schools should have perimeter barriers and guarded entry points.

School safety was top of mind for Susan Snow, 36, when she attended the Buckman Elementary School open house with her 4-year-old son, Rowan, in mid-February.

Snow, stylish with tattoos, platinum hair and white Dr. Martens, rents an apartment in Northeast Portland near Delta Park and is zoned for Faubion School on outer Northeast Dekum Street.

But she might move to inner Northeast soon. She hears gunshots as she works her job from home as a business process consultant for a major health care company. For both of those reasons, she is not considering Faubion for Rowan.

On the Buckman tour, Snow wondered but did not ask if all exterior doors were protected with key fobs, who has access to the playground, and how the children are watched when they are outdoors. Rowan currently attends a small preschool near the airport.

“It is a little hard to swallow the idea of him going to a bigger school when there are all the shootings,” Snow says. “I think of it as being a random thing that could happen.”

Rowan’s father, who wore a nametag that night that said “DADDY,” is zoned for Buckman. He and Snow are no longer together but co-parent harmoniously and attended the kindergarten open house together.

Buckman also accepts lottery students because of its arts program. The dozens of families who attended the open house have a better shot at admission this year than most: Buckman’s enrollment dipped below 400 students this year for the first time in recent memory—a 12% tumble from when the school enrolled 450 students five years ago.

Neighborhood schools are losing students because even Portland liberals are lured by charter and private schools.

Charter schools, which came on the scene in Oregon in 1999, are funded by the government but independently run. Students are admitted via a lottery system. Same goes for the district’s language-immersion programs and focus schools that specialize in areas such as art or science.

This year, about 1,300 children opted to attend Portland Public Schools charter schools rather than their neighborhood school. That’s about 3% of enrollment, according to PPS. Charter schools’ enrollment has dipped 13.4% over the past five years, roughly aligning with the rest of the district.

In other words, charter schools are taking away a same-sized slice of what’s now a smaller pie.

Oregon’s charter school law was hotly debated in the late ’90s, failing in two state legislative sessions before finally passing. According to news coverage at the time, critics worried that an influx of charter schools would create a twotiered public school system, pitting neighborhood schools with more marginalized populations against charter schools that would attract more affluent, white students.

Jim Scherzinger served as PPS’s superintendent from 2001 to 2004, when charter schools were just finding their footing.

“Parents wanted to find a program that was special,” he says. “Charter schools had an advantage because in order to exist they had to actually talk with parents about what their educational philosophy was. The neighborhood school was viewed as generic.”

Oregon parents are now accustomed to re-

thinking their children’s education after the 18 months they did not have full-time, in-person school during the pandemic.

“The pandemic’s impact on enrollment has a long tail,” says board member Brim-Edwards. “If you send your first child to a private school, you’re more likely to send the other children because it’s easier if your kids are in the same school. Parents made some other choices—and that isn’t unreasonable, but you can’t deny that has an impact.”

Lourdes Quintanilla, a pediatric ear, nose and throat doctor, considered the full swath of private, charter and public school choices for her firstborn daughter Eleonora when she attended an open house at the Trackers headquarters on Southeast Milwaukie Avenue.

The space smelled like campfires and whittled sticks as Trackers co-founder Tony Deis explained his outdoor educational philosophy. The Portland Forest School charges $16,950 a year and is taught mostly outside.

“In a classroom, it’s very linear,” he said. “When you’re in a meadow or a forest, everything opens up.”

Quintanilla grew up attending private schools in the U.S. and Mexico. Her husband is an Italian emergency room doctor. Their daughters, ages 3 and 5, speak English, Spanish and Italian.

In addition to the Portland Forest School, Quintanilla is considering Le Monde, a K-8 French-immersion charter school at Southeast 20th Avenue and East Burnside Street, and her neighborhood school, Irvington.

“We want to support our public school system and not contribute to the inequality in society,” Quintanilla says. “It’s very reasonable to try it and maybe it will be awesome. That’s my hope.” Private and charter schools get a head start on neighborhood schools when it comes to recruiting kindergarten students. Private schools host their open house events around January; charter schools follow in February and March to line up with their lottery period.

Neighborhood schools traditionally host open houses after spring break, says administrator Angelica Cruz, in an effort to reach parents who have fewer resources and options. “Otherwise, we’re mainly connecting with parents who are already shopping for schools,” Cruz says.

Cruz takes pride in the fact that when the first bell rings in August, all PPS kindergartners will have had the opportunity to meet the school principal, their teacher, and a counselor. They can tour their classroom, have a play date with their new classmates at a nearby park, and partake in an ice cream social. Making sure all prospective students have that opportunity, she says, is more important than giving early attention to parents considering several options.

For Quintanilla, the charter school was her

front-runner, Irvington was a close second, and she had scratched the Portland Forest School off the list. Turns out open meadows couldn’t quite compete with staying in the neighborhood.

“The community part of it and knowing the families around you and seeing your child thrive?

It’s priceless,” she says of Irvington.

But it’s still her second choice behind a charter school with a built-in international community. She’ll send trilingual Eleonora to Irvington if she doesn’t get into Le Monde through its lottery this month.

While everyone affiliated with Portland Public Schools has been talking about the “COVID drop” in enrollment, nobody interviewed has heard whispers about shuttering schools.

Nonetheless, that’s the threat that looms around all conversations about declining enrollment.

grades,” she says.

But that’s just one year. Over the past five years, the school’s numbers dropped 18.6%.

“I’m not concerned,” she says. “I don’t control the birth rate in my neighborhood. We just take whoever comes.”

She is more effusive about the benefits Ruby’s family would experience at Woodlawn, including support services like a counselor, social worker and a family engagement coordinator. Woodlawn teaches social justice and early civic engagement; second graders just planted eight new trees.

“There’s a support system that’s built for the child and the family,” Porter-Lopez says. “Whether it’s sports teams, pickup after school, who do you play with on the weekend, how do you hear about things—you get a built-in network.”

All of that sounds pretty sweet to Fuller, who spent most of the pandemic feeling “alone on an island with a baby.”

Also, the charter school shopping spree might

Post-pandemic, the Jefferson County School District in suburban Denver voted to close 16 schools; St. Paul, Minn., will close six. Oakland, Calif., planned to close 11 schools but winnowed the list down to six after a backlash that included protests, walkouts and an 18-day hunger strike by two middle school teachers.

“There’s a lot of anxiety and stress at the school level because that’s how they get funded,” says PPS board member Brim-Edwards. “As district leadership, I believe we should share that urgency and create an enrollment plan to get families back into PPS.”

Yet in the reporting of this story, such urgency was hard to spot in the school district.

Andrea Porter-Lopez, the principal of Ruby Fuller’s neighborhood school, Woodlawn K-5, was touchy about the idea that the school’s enrollment is in decline. “Last year, we were down by only eight children, and that’s across all six

have been only a mirage: Last week, the Emerson School emailed Fuller to tell her that Ruby is 11th on the waiting list.

So Fuller’s back online, reading Woodlawn’s parent threads on Facebook, where she just saw that the school’s art teacher might be cut to half time. (The district says that is speculation; the budget will not be final for months.) Parents are planning to testify en masse for more school funding. She is spooked.

Fuller and her husband had a heart-to-heart about the ethics of straying from Woodlawn: “Is this a bad thing to do? Is this a selfish thing to do?” they asked each other.

They vote for public school funding, shop locally, own a home and pay taxes. Charter schools are also public schools.

“Am I taking something from the neighborhood if I don’t put her there? It doesn’t necessarily feel like I am.”

“The community part of it and knowing the families around you and seeing your child thrive? It’s priceless.”

GET BUSY

EAT & DRINK: Wine & Dine

With Domaine Pouillon

Skamania Lodge has partnered with Domaine Pouillon to host an educational and exclusive experience featuring the best of both the wine and culinary worlds. The evening begins with a meet-and-greet reception with vigneron Alexis Pouillon, which will be followed by a five-course dinner prepared by executive chef Zac Janssen. Dishes like Columbia River salmon with juniper, spruce tips, nettles and ramp as well as Reister Ranch lamb chops accompanied by a Hasselback potato were designed to pair with beverages from the Lyle, Wash., winery. Seating is limited, so make those reservations today. Might as well book a room at Skamania while you’re at it so you can guzzle as much as you’d like and then sleep off the booze inside the cozy four-story Cascadian-style lodge. Skamania Lodge, 1131 SW Skamania Lodge Way, Stevenson, Wash., 844-432-4748, skamania.com. 5:30 pm Thursday, April 13. $150.

EAT & DRINK: Planet Oregon B-Earth Day Party

Planet Oregon Wines, produced and bottled by Soder Vineyards, has a noble motto: The only mark we leave on this planet is a wine stain or two. In order to minimize its environmental footprint, the business farms its grapes sustainably, protects streams and rivers from harmful runoff, and monitors carbon emissions as well as waste production. On top of all that, a portion of Planet Oregon’s profits go to the Oregon Environmental Council. To celebrate that 15-year partnership, the two entities are throwing a soirée, where Tony Soter and his team will pour the drinks, Plant Based Papi will keep everyone fed with a spread of vegan delicacies, and DJ Action Slacks will have the party grooving

to her extensive collection of 45s. Union/ Pine, 525 SE Pine St., 503-662-5600, sotervineyards.com. 6:30 pm Thursday, April 13. $30.

GO: Newberg Camellia Festival

Newberg is known for many things: its rare, still-operating drive-in movie theater, world-class wine and, more recently, its problematic school board. But what fewer might associate with this Yamhill County town is the camellia. Turns out, that’s Newberg’s official flower, and they’ve been hosting a festival to honor the blossom with Asian origins for the past 15 years. The all-day event features taiko drumming, a performance by the White Lotus Dragon Dancers, a tea ceremony, a plant sale and more. The day kicks off with a run/walk (5k and 10k) at 9 am. Chehalem Cultural Center, 415 E Sheridan St., Newberg, 503-487-6883, chehalemculturalcenter.org. 10 am-4 pm Saturday, April 15.

Phagwa Holi Festival of Colors

Attending Portland’s cultural festivals is one of the best ways to bond with the community, and this one has an added bonus: Revelers get to throw brightly colored powder at friends and strangers alike. Bollywood Dreams and Lil’ America food cart pod vendor Bake on the Run co-host this celebration of spring, which should be as vivid and lively as the seasonal blossoms on the trees at Waterfront Park. Lil’ America, 1015 SE Stark St., dreamsperfected. com. 5 pm Saturday, April 15. Free.

LISTEN: Pool Boys Featuring Camas High School Choir

In the past year, Pool Boys was named one of WW ’s Best New Bands and featured as the opening track of PDX Pop Now’s local compilation. They’ve shared stages with the likes of Jerry Paper, Tonstartssbandht,

as well as Vinyl Williams, and will now join the Camas High School choir for a special performance directed by music teacher Ethan Chessin with an opening set by Hannah Glavor. Alberta Abbey, 126 NE Alberta St., albertaabbey.org. 8 pm Saturday, April 15. $10 in advance, $15 at the door.

WATCH: Churchill

Winston Churchill stands tall among the most fascinating individuals of the 20th century, and this one-man play featuring veteran British actor David Payne recounts just some of his life. Set in 1963 just after President John F. Kennedy awarded Churchill honorary citizenship, the former prime minister addresses the American-Oxford Society, describing portions of his personal and professional history, including details about two of the most important women in his life—his wife Clementine and Queen Elizabeth II. At times funny and often touching, Churchill features elements of both The Crown and Darkest Hour Dolores Winningstad Theatre’s Antoinette Hatfield Hall, 1111 SW Broadway, 503-248-4335, portland5.com. 2 and 7:30 pm Saturday, 2 pm Sunday, April 15-16. $64.

WATCH: Choir Boy

Before he became known as the Academy Award-winning writer of the groundbreaking film Moonlight, Tarell Alvin McCraney authored Choir Boy, another comingof-age story. The play follows Pharus, a young gay student who leads the gospel choir at his elite, all-boys prep school. This Tony-nominated hit is filled with rousing music and soul-stirring dancing that reinforces the message that, no matter the pressures to conform, we should all march to the beat of our own drum. Portland Center Stage at the Armory, 128 NW 11th Ave., 503-445-3700, pcs.org. 7:30 pm

Wednesday-Friday, 2 and 7:30 pm Saturday-Sunday, 2 pm select Thursdays. April 15-May 14. $25-$98.

WATCH: Fast Break

The Clinton hosts a rare screening of the 1978 documentary Fast Break, which follows the Portland Trail Blazers on their way to winning the NBA World Championship during the 1976-77 season. The cinéma vérité-style film—rare for a sports doc—steps outside the basketball court and into the everyday lives of the players and coach Jack Ramsey. Stick around after the movie for a Q&A session with author Larry Colton, who interviewed the team in Fast Break. There will also be opportunities to share memories of Blazer announcer and local icon Bill Schonely. Clinton Street Theater, 2522 SE Clinton St., 971-808-3331, cstpdx.com. 7 pm Sunday, April 16. $8.

LISTEN: Fatoumata Diawara

Fatoumata Diawara is heralded as one of the most vital standard-bearers of modern African music. Her spectacular 2011 debut album, Fatou, made the Malian singer and guitarist the most talked about new African artist on the planet at the time. She’s also worked with the likes of Bobby Womack and Herbie Hancock, played Glastonbury and other major festivals, toured with Cuban pianist Roberto Fonseca, and even shared a stage with Sir Paul McCartney. Now she’s coming to Portland to perform a new single from her upcoming album sung in Bambara, Mali’s official language. Revolution Hall, 1300 SE Stark St., 971-808-5094, revolutionhall.com. 8 pm Tuesday, April 18. $35 general admission, $30 PDX Jazz member.

PREACHING TO THE CHOIR: Behind the scenes at a rehearsal of Portland Center Stage’s upcoming production, Choir Boy

FOOD & DRINK

Editor: Andi Prewitt

Contact: aprewitt@wweek.com

Unburritoble

Former Angel Food & Fun chef Manny Lopez and his exceptional burritos are back at Ki’ikibáa.

Buzz List

WHERE TO DRINK THIS WEEK.

1. GIGANTIC BREWING TAP ROOM AND CHAMPAGNE LOUNGE

5224 SE 26th Ave., 503-208-3416, giganticbrewing.com. 2-9 pm Monday-Friday, noon-9 pm Saturday-Sunday.

When considering a collaboration, Upright Brewing’s Alex Ganum posed this question to Gigantic founders Ben Love and Van Havig: “What would happen if we brewed an imperial Pilsner like an IPA?” Naturally, that led the trio to experiment, and the result is Czech Your Cold IPA, a crisp, light-bodied brew with hints of lemongrass and lemon peel. You can find it on tap and in bottles at Gigantic’s flagship as well as its two other locations.

2. FRACTURE BREWING

1015 SE Stark St., fracturebrewingpdx. com. 4-10 pm Wednesday-Thursday, noon-11 pm Friday-Saturday, noon-8 pm Sunday.

This month, the Lil’ America food cart pod welcomed its final tenant, and if you haven’t checked out the eclectic mix of vendors—Guyanese bakes are sold feet from crab boils, vegan corn dogs and Hainanese chicken rice—the recent opening is a good excuse to get out there. Be sure to order a beer (but, really, you should get several) made by Fracture’s Darren Provenzano. During our last visit, the medallionlike West Coast IPA and the canary-colored Hazy were both standouts, but the Pilsner trio (classic, West Coast, New Zealand) is what really stole our hearts. Yes, they all taste different.

3. MILK+T

Inside the Portland Food Hall, 827 SW 2nd Ave., milkandt.com. Noon-6 pm Tuesday-Thursday, noon-8 pm Friday-Sunday.

Hot Plates

1. SALT & STRAW

Various locations, saltandstraw.com. 11 am-11 pm daily.

More than a decade ago, cousins Tyler and Kim Malek began changing people’s taste for ice cream—daring them to go beyond Baskin-Robbins’ 31 flavors—by opening Salt & Straw and working with unique ingredients. The company, which has expanded considerably since then, is marking its 12th anniversary this month by unlocking its flavor vault and bringing back dormant varieties. That means for a limited time you can get old favorites, like black olive brittle and goat cheese, honey marshmallow rocky road and mango habanero IPA sorbet as a scoop, or in pints and milkshakes.

2. KAEDE

8268 SE 13th Ave., 503-327-8916, kaedepdx.com. 4:30-9 pm Wednesday-Sunday.

Seating by online reservations only.

Kaede, a 16-seat “sushi bistro” in Sellwood, shifted recently from takeout service to dine-in and reservation only, making the bar the best place to be. It’s where you can sit with a cup of sake in hand and become entranced watching co-owner Shinji Uehara slice fish flown in from Tokyo and gently hand-mold the rice for nigiri. There’s no omakase meal here, but the nigiri premium will get you eight chef’s choice rice-and-fish delicacies. And keep an eye out for anything that’s rare in our neck of the woods, like the bright pink Japanese alfonsino fish we had during our visit.

3. NEXT LEVEL BURGER

1972 W Burnside St., 503-660-4800, nextlevelburger.com. 4121 SE Hawthorne Blvd., 503-486-4400.

BY ANDREA DAMEWOOD

The buzz around the food Manuel “Manny” Lopez cooks has always had an IYKYK (if you know, you know) element to it.

Lopez was the force behind Angel Food & Fun in Cully, a small, somewhat depressing space shared with a video lottery and pool hall. But Lopez’s incredible Yucatecan dishes and arguably the city’s best burrito made a visit worth it nonetheless.

Then in 2017, Lopez—and those burritos—were gone. Rumors swirled about his whereabouts until earlier this year, when Lopez and his wife, Suny Parra Castillo, quietly opened Ki’ikibáa on Northeast 82nd Avenue near McDaniel High School. Lopez gave his full story to The Oregonian. I’m thrilled that the tale ends with us having access to a cheery space and an expanded menu of Yucatecan staples and specials.

With a menu full of panuchos, salbutes, relleno negro and menudo, it feels sacrilegious to start with an ode to Lopez’s burritos, but I’m gonna do it. I love these burritos passionately. Go for the asada, which is seasoned and grilled, layered with black beans made with lard and spices, and given the usual sour cream, cheese and guac treatment. But the true God-tier move is the layer of crispy griddled cheese, which adds salt and crunch, resulting in deep satisfaction.

The tamales are also a testament to how tender masa can truly be. Done here in the Southern style wrapped in banana leaves, shredded chicken and pork are simmered with achiote spices, encased in the masa-leaf cocoon, and served with a tomato sauce on top. Corn husk tamales sometimes come out dry; banana leaf tamales can be too soggy.

Somehow, this tamale mimics the texture of a well-made French omelet: soft yet substantial. Go with a friend or two and get a plate of three panuchos and another with salbutes in order to try the full array. The panuchos are corn tortillas lightly filled with black beans and come with asada, pollo or cochinita pibil, the iconic citrus-braised pork served with pickled red onions. Salbutes have the same toppings, but provide a puffy-fried corn tortilla base. I’d say the salbutes edge out the panuchos at Ki’ikibáa, but priced at $4 each or $10 for a plate of three, ¿Porque no los dos?

Finally, the Yucatan has some of the finest soups known to the planet. If you haven’t had relleno negro or blanco, this is the place to try it. I like the black version: a goth scotch egg of ground pork and turkey wrapped around the yolk comes in a smoky broth with beans and shredded turkey as well as tortillas on the side for dipping. A bowl of menudo I brought home to eat later was sinus-clearingly spicy, with impeccably soft tripe and cilantro, onions and lime to brighten the red, oily broth.

On a recent weekday, a few McDaniel students in the know munched on burritos while their classmates thronged the McDonald’s across the street; meanwhile, the tables filled with groups eager to order a little of everything. The name Lopez and Parra Castillo gave their new restaurant, Ki’ikibáa, means “delicious food.” From someone else, that could have been overly hubristic; here, it’s just truth in advertising.

EAT: Ki’ikibáa, 3244 NE 82nd Ave., 971-4291452. 11 am-9 pm Tuesday-Sunday.

MILK+T, pronounced “milk and tea,” is a Beaverton Asian- and women-run bubble tea bar making the leap across the West Hills by opening an outpost in downtown Portland. A pint-sized version of the suburban shop is part of the revival of the Portland Food Hall, which was slow to reopen following the pandemic lockdown. Despite MILK+T’s closet-sized space, it serves drinks with big flavors and premium ingredients, like the Classic (a black milk tea) and the adorably named Piglet (strawberry coconut milk).

4. WORKSHOP FOOD AND DRINK

1407 SE Belmont St., 971-229-1465, fermenterpdx.com. 5-10 pm Thursday-Sunday, 5-11 pm Friday-Saturday. Aaron Adams, the chef behind the self-dubbed “beneficial bacteria emporium” Fermenter, has launched a late-night lounge right next door to that house of fermented foods. Small plates at Workshop Food and Drink are all vegan and inspired by Adams’ Cuban roots, but we’re most excited about the deep list of cocktails. Many use kitchen byproducts to help offset waste, like Yes Whey, a classic milk punch with a housemade cashew yogurt whey.

5. MCMENAMINS 23RD AVENUE BOTTLE SHOP

2290 NW Thurman St., 971-202-7256, mcmenamins.com. 10 am-10 pm daily. For the second year, McMenamins has partnered with Great Notion Brewing so that each can make the other’s beer recipe while giving it a unique spin. This time around, the industry old timer has produced two different Great Notion beers: What’s Colder Than Cold, a double IPA inspired by Juice Box fermented with lager yeast for a crisp finish, and an even bolder 13.9% ABV Ice Cold Triple IPA. The latter could only be bottled because McMenamins has a distilling license. Drink with care.

While many food companies have been perpetrators of shrinkflation over the past two years, Next Level Burger is heading in the exact opposite direction. You’ll now find even larger patties on the plantbased chain’s menu (weighing in at 4 ounces instead of 3) along with a slew of new items. We’re most excited to try the chipotle burger—the black bean faux meat is slathered in chipotle mayo and topped with guac and pickled jalapeños. Go all in on the vegan junk food theme and wash that down with a coconut soft serve chocolate chip cookie dough shake, which was also recently added to the lineup.

4. BUMPER BURGER

17980 SW Baseline Road, Beaverton, 503-828-7340, bumperburger.com. 11 am-6 pm Thursday-Friday, noon-6 pm Saturday-Sunday.

Bumper Burger has declared war against price creep on America’s favorite sandwich. Founder-cook Mat Norton sells his quarter-pounders for truly jaw-dropping rates: $3.50 for the entry-level hamburger, $4 for one with a slice of gooey American cheese, and for the extra-hungry, there’s the $9.50 People’s Meal, which features the double-patty 50/50 Burger. No matter what sandwich you order, always get the made-fresh-daily pimento cheese. The pleasantly piquant spread adds velvetiness to every bite—and it costs only a dollar extra.

5. PELICAN BREWING

SILETZ BAY

5911 Highway 101, Lincoln City, 541-6144216, pelicanbrewing.com. Noon-10 pm daily.

Pelican Brewing’s new gleaming waterfront property in Lincoln City has opened the final portion of its pub that you won’t find at any of its other locations: a seafood market. In February, the Siletz Bay location launched Phil’s Nest Crab Boil Experience, an indoor-outdoor dining space that sells items for consumption on the premises and to go. We recommend ordering a crab cocktail before sinking into an Adirondack chair on the expansive patio overlooking the water. It’s the best place to wait for a table.

MEAT TRIO: At Ki’ikibáa, order a plate of panuchos, corn tortillas filled with asada, pollo or cochinita pibil, and plan to share with a friend.

Heavy Medal

Beer

BY ANDI PREWITT aprewitt@wweek.com

The Oregon Beer Awards returned to a sold-out Revolution Hall on Thursday, April 6, and based on the crowd’s rowdy enthusiasm, the state’s craft brewers—along with their biggest fans— were more than ready to celebrate the industry following another year of pandemic challenges.

Lines formed at the doors leading into the venue’s auditorium well before the WW-sponsored ceremony began—brewers and drinkers alike were looking to snag prime seats. Others hung out with beers near one of the venue’s many bars, greeting friends, some of whom they see often, others not since the last OBAs in 2022.

When registration for the Oscars of Oregon Beer closed at the end of February, there were nearly 1,100 entries in 30 categories. As usual, the class with the most entries was the India Pale Ale, with 100 submissions. Normally, Hazy or Juicy India Pale Ale is the second-most popular category; however, this time Fresh Hop IPA or Pale Ale bumped that into third place since it got 71 entries compared to 54. Lagers also saw a bump in submissions, reflecting its rise in popularity both among brewers and drinkers, who have gravitated toward beers that are more sessionable and refreshing.

Winners were selected by dozens of judges during the state’s only double-blind tasting competition, held two weekends in March. In addition, more than 200 industry professionals picked the area’s top brewpubs, bottle shops, beer bars and more in a balloting system.

The big winners of the night were Breakside and 10 Barrel, which both took home seven medals. And while many familiar, decorated names nabbed awards—Von Ebert, Wayfinder, Great Notion—this year’s competition saw a diverse lineup of breweries getting recognition, including Assembly, the Southeast Foster Road pub specializing in Detroit-style pies; Eugene’s often-underrated ColdFire; Van Henion, one of Bend’s newest brands; and Weekend Beer out of Grants Pass.

There were also some surprises when it came to the breweries of the year: 10 Barrel, which is corporately owned but each brewery is given creative freedom, took home the honor in the “Large” category. Washington-founded Grains of Wrath won Brewery of the Year: Medium, and gluten-free Bierly Brewing, which operates in McMinnville, is the title holder in the Small category.

For the full list of winners, go to wweek.com/drink.

This year’s Oregon

Awards recognized a diverse lineup of breweries.

CHEERS: Janet LaDuca-Grothe from Fort George Brewery accepts an award.

MAGNIFY PHOTO

420 GUIDE

Northwest Cannabis Company

Our favorite spring holiday is here–420! This is your annual excuse to stock up on the products you love or venture out of your comfort zone to try something special. Don’t be afraid to mix it up–playing it safe is fun, but we promise to provide a plethora of exciting new options for you, at a deal. Here is our list of must-visit spots offering unique products at some of the best deals in town.

Horn Creek Hemp

NORTHWESTCANNAFEST.COM

THE CANNABIS SUPERSTORE WITH A HIGH-QUALITY, BROAD SELECTION AT AN EXCEPTIONAL VALUE.

Deals + Discounts:

Northwest Cannabis Company presents its second annual Northwest Cannafest, Oregon’s largest 420 Cannabis and music festival. Northwest Cannabis Company is offering allday Cannabis specials, up to 50% off their already low prices while supplies last. They will also have free VooDoo Donuts, Swag giveaways, live glass blowing, and the Dank Deeds Bus with an incredible DJ. The music festival will take place just across the street from Northwest Cannabis Company, located At the Garages, featuring Pigs on the Wing (Pink Floyd), TribU2 (U2) and Gold Dust (Fleetwood Mac) tribute bands, and Coloso Band (Reggae).

https://www.northwestcannabis.com/

Electric Lettuce

ENJOY LOCALLY MADE HANDCRAFTED CBD/CBG PRODUCTS, FLOWER, AND MORE- 20% OFF SITEWIDE

Deals + Discounts:

Enjoy some of our customer favorites made from superior ingredients like our 10,000mg CBD/CBG Ruby’s Max Salve, award winning gourmet chocolates, CBDA Capsules for the most biodynamic availability, and even Bacon Pet tincture for our furry friends. Vegan and gluten free. Located in the heart of southern Oregon, everything is shipped directly from our farm to your door. horncreekhemp.com

Broadway Cannabis Market

A “PREMIUM WITHOUT THE PRICE” EXPERIENCE.

Deals + Discounts:

40% OFF FLOWER, EXTRACTS, EDIBLES, PRE-ROLLS 30% OFF STOREWIDE $1 PRE-ROLLS

THE FRESHEST GREENS AND BEST PRICES ON THE BLOCK.

Deals + Discounts:

From 4/14 through 4/23, visit any of our affiliated dispensaries for a chance to HIT IT BIG this 420! Save up to 60% on your favorite brands and grab one of our FAN FAVORITE tote bags. Visitors will receive one lucky scratch-off where everyone is a winner, to be redeemed from 4/24 through 5/7 only. Don’t miss our rich 420 DOORBUSTERS only on 4/20. oregonqualitycannabis.com

Celebrate 4/20 at Broadway Cannabis Market dispensary with hundreds of products on sale. Members can shop exclusive early access to deals by downloading the App and turning notifications on. Check out the newest location of Broadway Cannabis Market in Downtown at 219 SW Broadway, opening April 14th, for a ‘premium without the price’ experience mega store that has everything you need to stock up on 4/20! The first 50 visitors at 3 p.m. on the day of the new store’s grand opening will receive a free goodie bag containing a cannabis comfort kit. broadway-cannabis.com/orderonline

Dispensary Spotlight

This month, we visited Kind Heart Collective and Love Buzz Dispensary to evaluate everything from the inventory to employee expertise.

BY BRIANNA WHEELER

In a city replete with boutique dispensaries (and a few questionable ones), a recommendation for a quality shop is a valuable commodity.

Like real estate speculation, or internet recipe collecting, evaluating dispensaries is a relatively harmless hobby most stoners can appreciate. Every shop has its own vibe, and while some are worth chatting about and even praising, there are plenty of others that fall short. For instance, some dispos get clowned in the group chat for charging way too much for their dusty inventory, or are retired from rotation for keeping their staff visibly miserable. But there are those times when we encounter a business that’s so outstanding, we immediately file it in our mental directory of recommendable stores. This month, we’re adding two to the catalog.

After putting on my customary dispensary judging robe (aka blanket poncho), I paid a visit to North Tabor’s Love Buzz Dispensary and Kind Heart Collective in the Kenton neighborhood. Factors that were considered include the shop’s footprint; the staff’s comfort, knowledge and efficiency; product selection; and general safety precautions.

Kind Heart Collective

8217 N Denver Ave., 503-512-6136, kindheartcollective.com. 9 am-9 pm daily.

Located along Kenton’s quaint main drag, Kind Heart is especially notable for its selection of cloned plants. Customers can check out a wall full of thriving baby cannabis stalks with bouncy, robust leaves on firm stalks. There are a number of phenotypes to explore, and the atmosphere seems positive enough to produce happy-looking plants, which is a powerful green flag.

Aside from a fragrant wall of potential new leafy BFFs, the shop has stellar flower deals, like $5 eighths of popular, midshelf strains and two-for-$30 pre-roll packs, as well as staffers that seem both satisfied and confident in their work. Bonus: A spacious, separate waiting room keeps the locked showroom safe from terror, as well as overcrowding, and a permanent 420-themed selfie wall is silly fun for regulars and out-of-town strain hunters alike.

Pro tip: Visit the glass gallery at neighboring head shop Smoke It Up and perhaps score a new unit for your home collection, or at least some hemp cones to roll up your bargain eighths.

Love Buzz Dispensary

5425 NE Glisan St., 971-754-4977, lovebuzzpdx.com. 9 am-9:40 pm daily.

Just west of the Interstate 84 on-ramp, at the corner of Northeast Glisan Street and 55th Avenue, is Love Buzz, an intimate, friendly store in the space adjacent to Acme Comic Books and Trading Cards, a Portland classic where the inventory is perpetually 50% off.

I visited Love Buzz shop on a particularly sluggish, bedhead-and-sweats type of day, and proceeded to clumsily ask the budtenders dozens of questions—some meandering. Each was deftly handled by the two employees behind the counter, who were easy to laugh and chat with, but also maintained their awareness, and even knew to back off when I wanted some space to meditate over a dozen or so pre-roll brands.

On my inaugural visit, I realized you couldn’t stroll in willy-nilly. Someone inside will buzz you in. The inventory was stocked with familiar brand favorites like Meraki, Fire Dept., and Bobsled, as well as a counter case packed with a considerable selection of extracts from niche brands (shout out Yas Queen dabs). The showstoppers, however, were ounces of terpy B-buds, for between $23 and $35.

Bonus: A small rack of branded merch features tie-dye shirts with Love Buzz’s uniquely nebulous, initials-forming-a-heart logo, possibly a delightfully Portlandian souvenir for any interested, tie-dye shirt-wearing parties.

SHOWS OF THE WEEK

WHAT TO SEE AND WHAT TO HEAR

BY DANIEL BROMFIELD @bromf3

SUNDAY, APRIL 16:

Thoroughly Modern Nellie

Award-winning singer-songwriter and activist Nellie McKay admits, “It’s about damn time,” as she announces new music.

BY LIBBY MOLYNEAUX

If Nellie McKay were a bird—and who’s to say she isn’t?—she’d be one of those seemingly frail buttercups that charmingly flutter about with an undercoat of biting contempt that can dumbfound the mightier birds right off their high perch. She might even be a kākāpō (one of the world’s most endangered birds), because there’s just no one like her. Take her majorly fed-up song “Identity Theft”: “Because I’m tired of being sweet and nice/Fuck you once and fuck you twice/Show your passport, get that stamp/Funny like a Nazi camp,” which is a full-blown, belty jazzy pop number but also pretty damn punk rock. Or the satirical “Won’t U Please B Nice” from her first album, Get Away From Me, written when she was 19 and sung in her most prim voice: “Give me head or you’ll be dead/Salute the flag or I’ll call you a fag.”

McKay can turn a phrase with the best of ’em. This is a songwriter who writes such intricate and clever lyrics you’ll have to squint your ears to catch all the wordplay. Her music often incorporates rap, albeit with a style that’s more Rex Harrison than Snoop.

Many of her songs are like tumbleweeds, offering soaring ideas with sharp points, like the whirlwind “Columbia Is Bleeding,” a protest of the university’s testing on animals. (McKay, who is vegan, is the recipient of PETA’s Humanitarian Award and the Humane Society’s Doris Day Music Award for her work dedicated to animal rights.)

You’ll hear cheeky lines like “Lookin’ for some kind of closure, all I’m findin’ is Ray Bolger,” along with bursts of sass like rhyming “Attila the Hun” with “cinnamon bun.”

With all her teeming talents, McKay has been known to say, “I’d rather end factory farming and vivisection than ever write another song.” On the phone before a tour that’ll take her to Astoria, Eugene and Portland, among other West Coast dates, McKay shares the exciting announcement that new music is a-coming later this year. Since four of her five most recent albums focused on songs by other artists, this is tremendous news. “And it’s about damn time,” she jokes, adding that she may even share something new at the Alberta Rose, though this tour is not about the upcoming stuff. She doesn’t say too

much about the new music, other than that it was mostly recorded in West Virginia and is “a mix of things, an amalgam.”

After a brief chat about her friendship with the late Dave Frishberg, famed jazz pianist and Portlander, she welcomed a tip about the wonders of Kate’s vegan ice cream. “There’s this problem with touring that it’s just always the food,” she says. “You can’t possibly get to it all. I should do an eating tour.”

McKay’s live shows are predictably unpredictable. She’ll fly through songs old and new on piano and ukulele, and often takes requests. That can be a bold move for someone with such an expansive catalog; not every song is on the tip of her tongue.

“I just wish I knew them all,” she says. “Someone might have come from far away and might have hired a babysitter, they paid for gas and dinner and, you know, they’ve taken all this time, maybe there’s that one song they really want to hear. And then you can’t remember how to play it.”

Her singing style is gorgeous, going from lilting and lovely to commanding and fiery. Does she like her voice? After a short pause, she says, “Yes. I like the high operatic stuff.” Is there anything she can’t sing? “Not so good at the gospel.”

When asked what makes a song worthy—in the vein of Joni Mitchell’s adage that it can only be considered good if listeners hear themselves in it rather than the songwriter—McKay thinks for a second and quips, “That seems like a lot of guessing.”

As for songwriting, her outlook about it is, “I don’t know if it’s bravery or arrogance, because really, you know, there’s enough music, there’s enough books. I have enough. I have enough books just in my house to last till I die. I wouldn’t need to do anything else. Just try to get through all those books. I think you probably help people more making vegan ice cream.”

SEE IT: Nellie McKay plays the Alberta Rose Theatre, 3000 NE Alberta St., 503-719-6055, albertarosetheatre. com. 8 pm, Sunday, April 16. $28, $32 at the door. Minors OK with parent or guardian.

No one really seems to know where Turquoise Jeep is from, which makes sense: They seem to have sprung fully formed from an alternate, Fast & Furious-esque universe where confidence and style supersede reality. Flynt Flossy and “Lemme Smang It” might’ve added up to just another viral rap hit if not for the weird streak of sly, twinkling mystery that courses through their music, from their choice of one of their most gorgeous colors to the vaguely scamlike air of the whole thing. Doug Fir Lounge, 830 E Burnside St., 503-231-9663, dougfirlounge.com. 9 pm. $20. 21+.

TUESDAY-WEDNESDAY, APRIL 18-19:

John Flansburgh and John Linnell celebrated their 40th year as a duo last year, and they’ve become a genuine institution in that time. If They Might Be Giants were all clean-cut geniality and everynerd anti-rock star humility, they might still have a built-in cult following. But what inspires the devotion of their fans is the moments when the amateur-theater whimsy parts to reveal the gnarly life truths no number of turtlenecks and beanies can guard against. Crystal Ballroom, 1332 W Burnside St., 503-225-0047, crystalballroompdx.com. 8 pm. $35 per night. 16+.

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 19:

The punk poet laureate of austerity-era Britain sounds like you’d hope he does: a thick accent and a bottomless reservoir of bile and spittle, all set to the kind of music that plays when you press the wrong button on a kid’s Casio keyboard. From this extremely limited palette, Jason Williamson and his loyal, motionless accompanist Andrew Fearn have created a body of songs rich and historically trenchant enough that the field of Sleaford Mods studies seems inevitable. Revolution Hall, 1300 SE Stark St., 971-808-5094, revolutionhall.com. 8 pm. $25. 21+.

MUSIC Editor: Bennett Campbell Ferguson | Contact: bennett@wweek.com

SA-ROC AT THE GET DOWN

BY ROBERT HAM

How does a hip-hop artist push beyond the typical performance particulars of two turntables and a microphone? In the case of D.C. rapper Sa-Roc’s appearance at The Get Down this past Friday, the answer was to turn the gig into part spiritual cleansing and part motivational speech.

When the 41-year-old, born Assata Perkins, emerged from the wings, she was carrying a small bundle of burning sage from which she blew smoke toward the audience. And between nearly every song, Sa-Roc laid affirmations at the feet of the worshipful attendees. “The savior of your own self is living inside of you,” she said, introducing the head-nodding title track to her 2016 EP MetaMorpheus. “You belong wherever your steps land.”

Perkins likely needed to hear those messages as much as she needed to impart them. She’s an emotional work-in-progress—a point she drove home on “Options,” from last year’s deluxe edition of her album

The Sharecropper’s Daughter. “I wonder now that I have it/Do I really want your attention?” she asks. A startling question that she answers by keeping listeners locked in on her quick turns of phrase and wellearned boasting. At The Get Down last week, she emphasized that song’s lyrical intimacy, crouching down to lock eyes with folks near the lip of the stage and spit bars directly in their faces.

Even as far removed from the action as I was, it had me blushing. Sa-Roc played a lot of the set as expected, stalking from one side of the stage to the next like a boxer sizing up an opponent and beseeching fans to get their hands in the air. But it was her attempts to make a deeper, one-on-one connection with as many people in the crowd as possible that took the set to a different, higher plane.

The Write Stuff

Humor, humility and humanity won at this year’s Oregon Book Awards.

BY MICHELLE KICHERER @michellekicherer

“I think it’s safe to say there are people who deserve this award more than I do. And that might even be true, but it’s definitely safe,” said poet Gary Miranda to a chuckling crowd as he accepted the Stewart H. Holbrook Literary Legacy Award at this year’s Oregon Book Awards on April 3 at Portland Center Stage.

Miranda added: “ What’s both true and safe to say, is that when some 60-plus years ago I decided I wanted to be a poet, winning an award such as this was the furthest thing from my mind. I just wanted to impress beautiful women.” He looked into the crowd, at a seat toward the front and thanked his wife, whom he referred to as the beautiful woman he’s been “trying to impress for the last 43 years without much success. So I’m hoping this award will help with that.”

After the laughter and clapping, Miranda recited the opening lines of “Ars Poetica,” Horace’s poem about the art of writing poetry: “Ambience, feckless, ineluctable:/sometimes you think it would all be clear/if you merely increased your vocabulary,/learning words that line up possibilities/like birds on a wire, or clothespins.” These lines got the audience mm-hmming in understanding.

When Eric Tran got onstage to accept the Stafford/Hall Award for Poetry for Mouth, Sugar, and Smoke, more laughs were had. “Thank you all for giving me the opportunity to wear this suit,” Tran joked of his burnt orange suit. After the laughter quieted, he took on a more serious tone, addressing the themes of his work: love in the face of addic-

tion, isolation, possibility. “I never could have believed anyone could have looked through my own window, that we might find each other through poetry and literature and might somehow feel less lonely,” he said.

Casey Parks accepted the Sarah Winnemucca Award for Creative Nonfiction for her memoir, Diary of a Misfit. A former reporter for The Oregonian who now writes for The Washington Post, Parks combines research, reporting and memoir in Misfit as she uncovers the story of a country singer named Roy Hudgins who, as Parks’ grandmother put it, was “a woman who lived like a man.”

In her acceptance speech, Parks told her own story of growing up gay in a Southern Christian culture and a family that believed her soul was with Satan. “I started working on this book in 2002, soon after I came out as being gay,” she said. “My pastor asked God to kill me, and my mom told me that thinking of me made her want to throw up. And I really thought the rest of my life was going to be miserable.…Luckily, Portland exists.

The lesbian Xanadu.”

Lauren Kessler accepted the Frances Fuller Victor Award for General Nonfiction for Free: Two Years, Six Lives, and the Long Journey Home, a book that chronicles six peoples’ experiences after incarceration. “Six hundred thousand men and women leave prison and come to our communities every single year,” she said. “That’s because we incarcerate more than 2 million people—this is the story of six. From caged to free. What stood in their way and how they persisted. I am accepting this award on their behalf. Because it’s their book.”

Another powerful moment came when

After the laughter died down, Parks said that for so many people in this country, there isn’t a Portland yet: “There’s a record number of anti-trans bills that have been passed in the last year, and those people are maybe still waiting for a heaven of sorts. So, this award is for them.”

From the children and young adult literature awards for books that represent what one of the authors referred to as “what Americans actually look like” to Sindya Bhanoo’s short story collection Seeking Fortune Elsewhere, each of the selections at this year’s Oregon Book Awards highlighted a well-deserving writer doing what writers are supposed to do: share stories that increase our understanding of the world, of each other, of ourselves.

“I never could have believed anyone could have looked through my own window, that we might find each other through poetry and literature and might somehow feel less lonely.”

MOVIES

No Time Like Shoe Time

Air, Ben Affleck’s film about Nike’s quest to sign Michael Jordan, is a witty meditation on artistry and celebrity.

BY BENNETT CAMPBELL FERGUSON @thobennett

Let’s get this out of the way: In Air, Ben Affleck’s breezy film about the birth of Michael Jordan’s partnership with Nike, Matt Damon drives over the St. Johns Bridge and Chris Tucker declares that Portland has the nation’s best burgers. But the film is not really about Portland. Or Nike. Or Michael Jordan, for that matter.

Given Affleck’s recent history—divorce, marriage, starting a new company—it’s hard not to see Air, a saga of celebrity worship and entrepreneurial verve, as a reflection of his hoped-for rebirth. Which raises the question, will Air restore the reputation of the man who went from winning an Oscar for Argo to doing Justice League reshoots in Zack Snyder’s backyard?

In a word, probably. Air has a laughably romanticized view of Nike, but like the best sports movies, it’s about the game behind the game—the one whose players are sweaty, irritable businessmen whose schemes can be as exhilarating as a slam dunk.

Chief among them is Sonny Vaccaro, an executive who spends 1984 rolling his eyes at the options for players he could sign to Nike’s beleaguered basketball division. (Melvin Turpin? Pass, he says.) It’s a thankless job, and with a paunch visible under his shapeless sweaters, Damon looks less like Jason Bourne than one of Bourne’s slimy CIA handlers.

Then…a revelation. Watching a video of then-rookie Michael Jordan taking a game-making shot, Sonny becomes obsessed. Like a priest rereading holy Scripture in search of divine inspiration, he eventually realizes that Jordan isn’t just talented: He’s smart, and potentially Nike’s savior.

Jordan is a near-mythic figure in Air—he’s seen only from behind, and the one time we hear his voice, it’s a single word

over the phone (“hello”). But we meet his mother Deloris (Viola Davis), whom Sonny woos in North Carolina, circumventing Jordan’s perpetually outraged agent (Chris Messina).

As Sonny and Deloris enter the Jordans’ backyard, she remarks that their ancestors have lived there since the Civil War and that the surrounding trees are 800 years old. She then turns the conversation to Sonny’s mother, which he cheerfully recognizes as a trick to keep him on the defensive. Salesmanship is a language they both speak fluently—and Damon and Davis deftly capture the intimacy of two people who respect one another’s mastery of bullshit.

Sonny is selling Nike, Deloris is selling Jordan, Air is selling both. Working from a screenplay by Alex Convery, Affleck (who plays Phil Knight) has created a film that is both a defiantly uncritical ode to Nike and a rant against its rivals at the time. To this director, Converse is a kingdom for Rolex-loving phonies, Adidas is a haven for Nazi apologists, and Knight is a scrappy outsider leading a rebellion against evil shoe empires.

There are traces of truth in this narrative; a line about Knight selling sneakers out of the back of his Plymouth sounds cheesy, but is actually based on fact. Still, it’s hard not to snicker when the film informs us during the end credits that Knight has donated $2 billion to charity (given that Knight’s current net worth is $47.1 billion, Affleck may have an inflated idea of his generosity).

That said, you can scoff at Air and still enjoy it. It may lack the spikiness and savviness of The Social Network or Moneyball, but it belongs in the same genre—movies about men improbably finding themselves as they rage, negotiate, flounder and coerce their way through office life.

There are many gems amid the maneuvering, from director of

marketing Rob Strasser (Jason Bateman) ruminating on the true meaning of “Born in the USA” to Knight praying while barefoot on his couch. In several delectable scenes, the lovably abrasive Matthew Maher plays Air Jordan designer Peter Moore. The frantic Tucker steals every scene he’s in as Howard White, who’s currently Nike’s Jordan brand vice president.

Ultimately, Air is the Sonny/Damon show—and Affleck fittingly enlists his friend (and Good Will Hunting co-writer) as his apparent avatar. When Nike reveals the first Air Jordan, Sonny unleashes a prophetic monologue, telling Jordan of the trials ahead. People will build you into an icon who cannot possibly exist, he warns. And taunted by the very image of perfection they have created, they will tear you down.

In that moment, it’s as if Affleck is speaking through Damon. How many cycles of failure and reinvention has he experienced? Gigli killed his career; Hollywoodland revived it. Argo raised him up; Batman, alcoholism and heartbreak brought him down.

Now, Affleck is married to Jennifer Lopez and he and Damon have started their own production company, Artists Equity. Their ambitions are at once commercial and artistic—not unlike Nike as it’s portrayed in Air

Can Affleck and Damon shake up cinema the way Jordan and Knight shook up sports? Probably not, but they have made a pleasantly sentimental and sturdy film. Call it the Foot Locker school of moviegoing: If the film fits, buy it.

SEE IT: Air, rated R, plays at Cedar Hills, Cinema 21, City Center, Clackamas, Eastport, Evergreen Parkway, Fox Tower, Hollywood, Living Room, Lloyd Center, Oak Grove, Pioneer Place and Studio One.

JUST DOING IT: Viola Davis, Matt Damon, Ben Affleck, Chris Tucker and Julius Tennon.

screener PHOTOS COURTESY OF WARNER BROS./PHOTO ILLUSTRATION BY MCKENZIE YOUNG-ROY

Editor: Bennett Campbell Ferguson Contact: bennett@wweek.com

Army of Darkness (1992)

Few franchise installments delight in their also-ran status quite like Sam Raimi’s Army of Darkness. The third Evil Dead film was once saddled with being the original trilogy’s misunderstood studio-backed effort, with a reputation paling next to the first film’s legendary guerrilla filmmaking and the second’s incomparable shift to horror comedy. Thirty years on, though, Army of Darkness gets to live forever as the “you know what’s super fun?”

Evil Dead movie.

As with Evil Dead II, the initial joy of Army of Darkness lies in its utter lack of self-consciousness about completely resetting the series. Here, the story becomes a Harryhausen-inspired slapstick adventure. Ash (Bruce Campbell) finds himself stranded in 1300 A.D., doomed to seek out the Necronomicon (“book of the dead”) to aid the medieval English against the Deadite scourge.

Campbell goes to another level. Viewed as a foretold messiah, Ash poses like Errol Flynn, but with the “I’m walkin’ heeuh” manners of a Ratso Rizzo. And, of course, he’s as game as ever to be his buddy Sam’s favorite crash-test dummy.

Army of Darkness plays at Cinemagic on April 15 and 16 as part of the theater’s Evil Dead retrospective, leading up to the release of Evil Dead Rise (2023) on April 20.

ALSO PLAYING:

5th Avenue: Shithouse (2020), April 14-16. Academy: Santa Sangre (1989), April 14-20. Cinema 21: A Face in the Crowd (1957), April 15. Cinemagic: The Evil Dead (1981), April 14, 16, 19. Evil Dead 2 (1987), April 14, 15. Evil Dead (2013), April 15, 19. Clinton: Le Samouraï (1967), April 13. Lost Highway (1997), April 15. Fast Break (1979), April 16. Multiple Maniacs (1970), April 17. Polyester (1981), April 18. Hollywood: Village of the Giants (1965), April 13. Audition (1999), April 14-15. Titanic (1997), April 15. Redline (2009), April 16. Dazed and Confused (1993), April 17. The Doom Generation (1995), April 18.

HOW TO BLOW UP A PIPELINE

Recent films to tangle with uncivil climate resistance—First Reformed, Night Moves, Woman at War—tend to weigh the meaning and cost of radical activism through their characters’ sometimes intense subjectivity. In How to Blow Up a Pipeline, ideological development is yesterday’s news. Per the title, director Daniel Goldhaber (Cam) unfurls a steely and process-driven thriller about eight activists attempting to detonate a West Texas oil pipeline. With Gavin Brivik’s Tangerine Dream-esque score guaranteed to quicken heart rates, Pipeline (which is based on a nonfiction book by Andreas Malm) thrives on ratcheting tension and detail: It’s all titrating, wiring and metadata editing. For amateurs, the activists are remarkably capable, but it’s bracingly apparent their sabotage has zero safety net—even in cinematic terms. When characters defy realistic authority to this extent, the audience has no playbook for what happens next. One by one, the story flashes back to reveal how the activists arrived in arid oil country, but the vignettes are finely calibrated to suggest the various righteous rages without turning polemic. As in the conspiracy itself, every actor knows their precise role, with Forrest Goodluck (playing a self-taught demolitions expert) achieving the deepest impression. His permanently furrowed brow is a sculpture of maniacal determination, and like How to Blow Up a Pipeline, he never flinches. R. CHANCE SOLEM-PFEIFER. Cinema 21.

THE SUPER MARIO BROS. MOVIE

RIDE ON

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:

:

On the one hand, there’s something disturbingly cynical about The Super Mario Bros. Movie ’s threadbare plot and paper-thin characters, as if the exercise is less a standalone film and more a pitch document for a forthcoming Mario Extended Universe. On the other hand, it’s hard to argue with the results. Thirty years after their first cinematic outing, Mario (a shockingly serviceable Chris Pratt) and Luigi (Charlie Day) return to the big screen in a lovingly made animated extravaganza. There’s a clear passion for the material that directors Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic bring to the proceedings, blending the vibrant colors and iconic architecture of the Mushroom Kingdom with kinetic visuals that are a genuine treat to behold, buoyed by Brian Tyler’s score and its clever incorporation of Koji Kondo’s iconic chiptune orchestrations. The Super Mario Bros. Movie is certainly lacking in depth or narrative complexity, but like Star Wars or Avatar, it uses the basics of the monomyth as a jumping-off point to create a world that captures the imagination and leaves the audience begging for more. Older moviegoers will likely be turned off by the simplicity of it all, but for fans who are young or young at heart, it’s an entertaining trip down the warp pipe. Let’s a-go! PG. MORGAN SHAUNETTE. Academy, Bagdad, Cedar Hills, Clackamas, Eastport, Fox Tower, Lake Theater, Lloyd Center, Oak Grove, Pioneer Place, St. Johns, Studio One, Tigard, Wunderland Milwaukie.

Whatever happened to Jackie Chan? The question is a bit of a rhetorical one: He just works in China now outside of occasional voice work. But Ride On posits a world where Jackie Chan was never anything more than a stunt man trying to repay his debts by getting people to take pictures of him wearing a racist Native American costume with his horse, Red Hare. Emphasis on the horse. Ride On is a love letter to stunt men as a concept writ large, but the emotional arc of the movie is centered on a man who calls his horse his son, and is so sincere that even his estranged daughter is moved by the sentiment. Ride On tries to do a bit too much, juggling parental growth, cool-looking horse-adjacent stunt work, and a heavy dose of melodramatic backstory. But that’s to be expected from a full-course sentimental film—the kind that’s increasingly popular in a Chinese film market that’s mostly lost interest in superheroes. While there’s not too much here to appeal to anyone aside from admirers of stunts, horses, and Jackie Chan, Ride On certainly makes a strong effort to sell what it’s offering (with no villains, no less). NR. WILLIAM SCHWARTZ. Cedar Hills.

MAFIA MAMMA

Kristin never even knew she was out; still, they pull her back in. While the mob comedy may have peaked three decades ago, in Mafia Mamma, star Toni Collette and director Catherine Hardwicke (Twilight, Lords of Dogtown) attempt to create a new kind of “girl boss.” Kristin (Collette) is a suburban empty

nester married to a cheating deadbeat, so when she’s mysteriously summoned to Italy and discovers she’s the heir to a criminal empire, she dives into the family business. Like the setup, the execution is shamelessly hokey. Colette, one of the most versatile actors of the past 25 years, is often reduced to a rambling, mouth-agape American out of water, and even The Simpsons ’ Fat Tony would probably call the mob lieutenants (Monica Belluci, Eduardo Scarpetta) she encounters cartoonish. But to Mafia Mamma ’s credit, it commits to the bit. Kristin’s new reign comes with surprising viciousness and terrific mafiosa jumpsuits, and in a standout sequence, she’s greeted by successive underlings on a canopy bed in an outdoor courtyard. By that point, every character seems nonsensically horny and wine-drunk, and it’s as though time has stopped completely (à la the Twilight gazebo scene, Hardwicke hasn’t lost the ability to make the perfunctory feel surreal). Mafia Mamma may not be a great movie, but it has the vibe of a not-bad vacation.

R. CHANCE SOLEM-PFEIFER.

Bridgeport, Cascade, Cedar Hills, Cinema 99, City Center, Clackamas, Division, Eastport, Fox Tower, Living Room, Movies On TV, Progress Ridge, Vancouver Mall, Vancouver Plaza.

THIS MOVIE IS EXCELLENT, ONE OF THE BEST OF THE YEAR.

: THIS MOVIE IS GOOD. WE RECOMMEND YOU WATCH IT.

THIS MOVIE IS ENTERTAINING BUT FLAWED.

THIS MOVIE IS A STEAMING PILE.

by Jack Kent

JONESIN’

BY MATT JONES

"Running Free"--more words, words, words.

ARIES (March 21-April 19): I hope that in the coming weeks, you will keep your mind bubbling with zesty mysteries. I hope you'll exult in the thrill of riddles that are beyond your current power to solve. If you cultivate an appreciation of uncanny uncertainties, life will soon begin bringing you uncanny certainties. Do you understand the connection between open-hearted curiosity and fertile rewards? Don’t merely tolerate the enigmas you are immersed in—love them!

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): An old sadness is ripening into practical wisdom. A confusing loss is about to yield a clear revelation you can use to improve your life. In mysterious ways, a broken heart you suffered in the past may become a wild card that inspires you to deepen and expand your love. Wow and hallelujah, Taurus! I’m amazed at the turnarounds that are in the works for you. Sometime in the coming weeks, what wounded you once upon a time will lead to a vibrant healing. Wonderful surprise!

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): What is the true and proper symbol for your sign, Gemini? Twins standing shoulder to shoulder as they gaze out on the world with curiosity? Or two lovers embracing each other with mischievous adoration in their eyes? Both scenarios can accurately represent your energy, depending on your mood and the phase you're in. In the coming weeks, I advise you to draw on the potency of both. You will be wise to coordinate the different sides of your personality in pursuit of a goal that interests them all. And you will also place yourself in harmonious alignment with cosmic rhythms as you harness your passionate urge to merge in a good cause.

Buckminster Fuller referred to pollution as a potential resource we have not yet figured out how to harvest. A company called Algae Systems does exactly that. It uses wastewater to grow algae that scrub carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and yield carbon-negative biofuels. Can we invoke this approach as a metaphor that's useful to you? Let's dream up examples. Suppose you're a creative artist. You could be inspired by your difficult emotions to compose a great song, story, painting, or dance. Or if you're a lover who is in pain, you could harness your suffering to free yourself of a bad old habit or ensure that an unpleasant history doesn't repeat itself. Your homework, Libra, is to figure out how to take advantage of a “pollutant” or two in your world.

SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): Soon you will graduate from your bumpy lessons and enter a smoother, silkier phase. You will find refuge from the naysayers as you create a liberated new power spot for yourself. In anticipation of this welcome transition, I offer this motivational exhortation from poet Gwendolyn Brooks: "Say to them, say to the down-keepers, the sun-slappers, the self-soilers, the harmony-hushers, 'Even if you are not ready for day, it cannot always be night.'" I believe you are finished with your worthwhile but ponderous struggles, Scorpio. Get ready for an excursion toward luminous grace.

ACROSS

1. Gemini star

7. Tour guide

14. "Is Anybody Goin' to San ___?" (1970 #1 country hit)

15. Like 18K or 22K, relatively

17. It's sung in French and set in Spain

18. Fenced

19. Language spoken in "The Passion of the Christ"

21. Suffix with Senegal or Sudan

22. Hardware acronym

23. C8H17 radical

24. Uracil carrier

26. "___ good you let him know" (Hamlet quote)

28. Lindsey of "Pretty Little Liars"

29. Alaska natives

31. Hill affirmations

32. It branches into Ulster and Dublin accents

35. Lasso handler?

37. They come to a point near your field of vision

38. Etonic rival

39. Corrupt

40. Undisputed

44. Subject of some terraforming proposals

46. Actor Sheridan who plays Cyclops

47. Word after rap or flow

48. "Tarzan" actor Ron

49. Role, figuratively

51. Silence, in a way

53. Costal enclosures

56. Rabbit creator

57. Mars option

58. Decreasing figure?

59. Hohe ___ (Cologne shopping locale)

60. Devices that displayed numbers

DOWN

1. Tropical beans

2. Revolting type, old-style

3. Levels

4. Director with a memeworthy Mark

5. "You Can't Stop the Reign" rapper

6. Santoni who played Poppie on "Seinfeld"

7. Abbr. on bottles of beer

8. Times associated with availability

9. Those, in Toledo

10. Black listing

11. Gym instructor's deg.

12. Musical character who sings "I swear on all my spores"

13. One of Chaucer's Canterbury pilgrims

16. Involve

20. Some strength-training enthusiasts

25. "Whenever"

27. Throws a sleeper

©2023 Jonesin’ Crosswords (editor@jonesincrosswords.com) For answers to this puzzle, call: 1-900-226-2800, 99 cents per minute. Must be 18+. Or to bill to your credit card, call: 1-800-655-6548. Reference puzzle #JNZ990.

then touches the ground, essentially

29. Went for the silver, perhaps

30. Ganon, to Link

33. Family surname in current TV

34. "... the giftie ___ us": Burns

35. Field items that follow an arc

36. Barely

37. Underground experts

41. Add new padding to

42. "Mr. Belvedere" costar Bob

43. They're real knockouts

45. Zulu warrior king

47. Toyota model rebooted in 2019

50. Forever and a day

52. Laugh line

54. "Proud Mary" band, briefly

55. Dir. from Iceland to Ireland

CANCER (June 21-July 22): Some scientists speculate that more people suffer from allergies than ever before because civilization has oversanitized the world. The fetish for scouring away germs and dirt means that our immune systems don't get enough practice in fending off interlopers. In a sense, they are "bored" because they have too little to do. That's why they fight stuff that's not a threat, like tree pollens and animal dander. Hence, we develop allergies to harmless substances. I hope you will apply this lesson as a metaphor in the coming weeks, fellow Cancerian. Be sure the psychological component of your immune system isn't warding off the wrong people and things. It's healthy for you to be protective, but not hyper-over-protective in ways that shut out useful influences.

LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): One night in 1989, Leo evolutionary biologist Margie Profet went to sleep and had a dream that revealed to her new information about the nature of menstruation. The dream scene was a cartoon of a woman's reproductive system. It showed little triangles being carried away by the shed menstrual blood. Eureka! As Profet lay in bed in the dark, she intuited a theory that no scientist had ever guessed: that the sloughed-off uterine lining had the key function of eliminating pathogens, represented by the triangles. In subsequent years, she did research to test her idea, supported by studies with electron microscopes. Now her theory is regarded as fact. I predict that many of you Leos will soon receive comparable benefits. Practical guidance will be available in your dreams and twilight awareness and altered states. Pay close attention!

VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): You don't know what is invisible to you. The truths that are out of your reach may as well be hiding. The secret agendas you are not aware of are indeed secret. That's the not-so-good news, Virgo. The excellent news is that you now have the power to uncover the rest of the story, at least some of it. You will be able to penetrate below the surface and find buried riches. You will dig up missing information whose absence has prevented you from understanding what has been transpiring. There may be a surprise or two ahead, but they will ultimately be agents of healing.

LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): Visionary philosopher

SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): I periodically seek the counsel of a Sagittarian psychic. She's half-feral and sometimes speaks in riddles. She tells me she occasionally converses by phone with a person she calls "the ex-Prime Minister of Narnia." I confided in her that lately it has been a challenge for me to keep up with you Sagittarians because you have been expanding beyond the reach of my concepts. She gave me a pronouncement that felt vaguely helpful, though it was also a bit over my head: "The Archer may be quite luxuriously curious and furiously hilarious; studiously lascivious and victoriously delirious; salubriously industrious but never lugubriously laborious." Here’s how I interpret that: Right now, pretty much anything is possible if you embrace unpredictability.

CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): "I’m not insane," says Capricorn actor Jared Leto. "I’m voluntarily indifferent to conventional rationality." That attitude might serve you well in the coming weeks. You could wield it to break open opportunities that were previously closed due to excess caution. I suspect you’re beginning a fun phase of self-discovery when you will learn a lot about yourself. As you do, I hope you will experiment with being at least somewhat indifferent to conventional rationality. Be willing to be surprised. Be receptive to changing your mind about yourself.

AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): People of all genders feel urges to embellish their native beauty with cosmetic enhancements. I myself haven't done so, but I cheer on those who use their flesh for artistic experiments. At the same time, I am also a big fan of us loving ourselves exactly as we are. And I'm hoping that in the coming weeks, you will emphasize the latter over the former. I urge you to indulge in an intense period of maximum self-appreciation. Tell yourself daily how gorgeous and brilliant you are. Tell others, too! Cultivate a glowing pride in the gifts you offer the world. If anyone complains, tell them you’re doing the homework your astrologer gave you.

PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): I encourage you to amplify the message you have been trying to deliver. If there has been any shyness or timidity in your demeanor, purge it. If you have been less than forthright in speaking the whole truth and nothing but the truth, boost your clarity and frankness. Is there anything you could do to help your audience be more receptive? Any tenderness you could express to stimulate their willingness and ability to see you truly?

Homework: What’s your favorite lie or deception? Newsletter.FreeWillAstrology.com