Some folks may know I’ve been pondering a move to the West Coast, and more specifically, Portland, Oregon. There are things which specifically attract me to Portland, including good transit and bicycle-friendliness. Mike Spina, a friend who is an advocate of smart, pedestrian-centered urban design, pointed me to Streetfilms. Here is a sampling of videos about some exciting movement in Portland:

The Towards Carfree Cities VIII kicked off Monday in Portland, Oregon with an exciting community event. Hundreds of conference participants helped break and remove asphalt from a 3000 square foot parking lot. Depave.org is the mastermind behind the Fargo Garden Project. They promote the removal of unnecessary concrete and asphalt from urban areas. Depave.org will continue to work with Goldsmith Properties to transform this now asphalt-free site into a community greenspace. Once completed, the site will be used to educate the public about pavement removal and storm water drainage management.

City Repair in Portland, Oregon hosts an annual Village Building Convergence where hundreds of people come together to build diverse projects for the benefit of their communites and to take back their streets via a process known as the Intersection Repair.

This involves painting streets with a high-visiblity mural that creates a public square for residents to gather and one which gently encourages drivers to slow down when approaching these spaces.

I am overwhelmed. To hear a private developer say turning the property into greenspace rather than build a triplex was a no-brainer makes me giggle. Portland seems like a great opportunity and place to get some real work done. I also wonder if it will be too easy, too safe. How much do projects like building parks and painting murals seep into greater concerns of poverty and modern slavery?

Latest update and new information regarding Police Critic Arrests and House Seizure :

On Tuesday, June 17^th, at 1pm, the owners and residents of 1652 Ridge Avenue will hold a press conference on the western steps of City Hall to inform reporters and interested parties about the June 13^th police action seizing their property and sealing off their home. Please read the release below for more details.

On the morning of Friday, June 13^th, 2008, plainclothes detectives and a Ninth Precinct Police Captain entered a Ridge Avenue home without a warrant and arrested four Philadelphia community members – Daniel Moffat, Trevor Burgess, Andrea Okorley, and Jennifer Rock. These residents were pulled from their home at 1652 Ridge Avenue, arrested, and detained without charges at the Ninth Philadelphia police precinct for over twelve hours. Less than twenty four hours later, almost half a dozen other law enforcement agencies, including the Department of Homeland Security and the Housing Authority, had conducted a tour of the property, and the Department of Licensing and Inspections had closed and sealed the property.

While police claimed entry to the property under the pretext that it was an abandoned building, the residents of 1652 Ridge Avenue have owned and lived at the property for up to four years, while they worked on and improved their house. They have been active members of the Francisville neighborhood – partnering on community food distribution and community garden projects, among others.

On one of the hottest days of the year, these community members were locked into police cars, waiting to discover the nature of the criminal charges against them, as multiple officials searched their home. “They said it wasn’t an arrest,” says Mr. Moffat. “The police captain [Wilson] said he’d do me a favor, and put us in a cell because it was so hot outside. I asked, if we weren’t being arrested, why we were being sent to be processed in jail? He smiled at me in a joking manner, and said, “Call it a kidnapping.” That was my last word with Captain Wilson before later that night, when I was in jail.” Moffat and his housemates were never charged with a crime.

The residents of 1652 Ridge Avenue learned that night, while in jail, that the Department of Licensing and Inspections had written up their home for multiple code violations – and that they would have only a few hours the next day to retrieve personal possessions, before the house was sealed to them and all other nonofficial entrants. When the residents returned to their home the next day, they found that personal papers, books, and computers had been rifled through or confiscated. Trevor Burgess, who returned to his room Saturday morning under police escorts, noted, “The only thing I really noticed they messed with was my photographs. All my photographs were just, like, torn through and all over my room. [The policeman] kept asking me about the photographs.”

“When I was allowed to enter the building, to get stuff out, when I got to my room, my room had been thoroughly searched,” said Moffat. “My computer was gone. I was informed that the Department of State had taken my computer for evidence. I couldn’t find my phone list that was posted on the wall. I couldn’t find a notepad with a bunch of my notes in it. I couldn’t find this little book with a lot of phone numbers in it.”

Residents stress that this incident happened just a week after they had begun circulating petitions about police surveillance cameras that had been installed in the neighborhood. Francisville, which abuts the newly affluent areas of Fairmount and Spring Garden, has seen a rise in police presence and in residents being asked for identification in their own neighborhood and in front of their homes. “It’s clear to me that you don’t have to be doing something wrong in order to be targeted by the police,” said Andrea Okorley. “The fact that we were communicating with our neighbors about the presence of surveillance cameras was threatening enough.”

These residents have called on press to not only hear their story, but to deepen coverage of increased police presence in the city – and the ways in which the city is driving out residents who have lived there for generations. “I want to go home,” says Jennifer Rock. “But this is not an isolated incident. So many others are losing their homes or their freedom – and they can’t be here to speak today.”

Hannah Sassaman forwarded this release:

June 13th, 2007. Philadelphia Police descended upon the home of homeowners who have been questioning police tactics in Mayor Nutters new “stop and frisk” program. 4 residents were arrested in their home at 17th street and Ridge Avenue, and the police are in the process of sealing the building. The homeowners are being held at the police station, no charges have yet been filed.

Homeowners had been circulating petitions calling upon Mayor Nutter and Police Commissioner Ramsey to attend community meetings on the use of excessive force, surveilance cameras, and the new “stop and frisk” policy. The mayor and police chief have declined to attend these community forums, but instead have seized the home and possessions of those who question “Stop and Frisk,” and are currently holding them in jail. While many civil liberties advocates and residents of affected neighborhoods have questioned the new police tactics, few imagined that
simple criticism of a city policy could result in the seizure of one’s home and subject residents to arrest.

And more from Philly IMC:

June 14th 8:10 AM Philadelphia. Homeowners were released from custody after being held without charges for up to 14 hours early this morning. The 4 were taken into custody yesterday after police arrived at their door without a warrant demanding entry to the premises. Upon being refused entry without the proper paperwork they arrested the homeowners and forced entry to the premises. After arresting the homeowners the police proceeded to call the Department of Licenses and Inspections which found the property in violation of various codes and permits and ordered the building cleaned and sealed. Homeowners were told they will have 1 hour at ten am to retrieve personal belongings before their home is sealed. Officials claim that the homeowners will no longer be able to access their property without violating a trespassing law. Police cruisers sat watch in front of the property all night long. Homeowners were released at 3:30 in the morning. Representatives of the homeowners will be present to make a statement while they retrieve some of their possessions. The police operation was led by 9th district Commanding Officer, Captain Wilson.

A couple things to note:

• The use of License & Inspections to penalize those who are ‘unpopular’ by well-connected persons is a hallmark of Philadelphia. Good people at the South Philly Atheneum were subject to this in 2005.
• The area around 17th & Ridge is at the edge of new development coming up from Center City, and there are many folks land-banking and holding onto delinquent houses in the area to cash-in during the next real estate boom. I used to bike up this way while working at the Teen Program. I’m not sure if this is the house, but it is representative of many of the houses along this strip:

The question is why now, and on what grounds did the Police and L&I have the right to perform this raid? There are hundreds of buildings in the area that have property violations.

It seems this was politically motivated, but remains unclear until further information is revealed.

Linn Washington Jr. writes:

Ramsey, in an unprecedented move for a Philadelphia Police Commissioner, quickly disciplined officers involved in that 5/5/08 beating, including firing four officers who Ramsey determined engaged in impermissible brutality.

However, internal Police Department documents about this beating incident expose problems far more pervasive than excessive use of force against unarmed persons – brutality that routinely occurs outside the glare of television news cameras.

Police documents in this beating case and several others show that police fail to follow supposedly standard operating procedures.

Equally egregious – documents detail how police fail at a core function for cops: being observant.

Police contend the three men shown in the beating video participated in a shooting prior to their frenzied arrest.

Continue Reading Philly’s Keystone Kop Follies: Police Brutality and Cover-Up

Colleen writes:

I stand for all women’s rights and feel so proud that we (women) had female representation in this recent primary… however, I would never vote for a woman to be our next president just because i want a woman to be the president… instead i really would like to punch a few of these men in the face!!

A great piece from the Women’s Media Center. One thing which struck me was how much of an asshole Chris Matthews is!

I worked in Times Square for half a year before moving to Philadelphia in 2005. It was terrible.

The experience that I enjoyed the most was grabbing a muffin from the cart on 43rd. The man who ran the cart was a graceful balance to my otherwise stressful and depressing corporate grind. Want to know how the business world is doing, what stocks to invest in? Talk to someone who runs a breakfast cart in a commercial district — they hear it all. My morning carb-run was a cheap form of therapy.

I remember almost getting arrested because I walked through a taping for some bullshit Donald Trump show, on a public sidewalk. Nothing will get you excited to work in Times Square like a brush-in with one of New York’s standing military.

The ratio of sidewalk to people in Times Square is best explained to Philadelphians as like walking down South Street on a Friday night. It’s not the spot for a brisk walk. You avoid it. New Yorkers generally stay out of Times Square, although I definitely appreciated it when I was 14 and hitting up all ages shows at Coney Island High.

It was exciting to work in the din of one of the most hectic few blocks in the busiest city in the United States. The excitement dips down when you realize the only place nearby to grab a bite that’s reasonably priced is the corporate cafeteria, or when you get rammed with umbrella after umbrella on a rainy day. Nothing beats sharing the busy streets with gobs of tourists who are all looking up at the bright shiny advertisements!

It was a bit sobering watching the NYPD grow into a military-tactical force that would arrest homeless by the hundreds and protesters by the thousands. Arrest and harass first, ask questions later. They would run counter-terrorism drills on 7th avenue, but all I could tell they did was figure out how to park diagonally and make people feel safe and happy about their tax investment.

A tour of Times Square