Category Archives: Willamette Week

Desperate for an Escape From Traffic Jams, Oregon Officials Will Ask Feds for Highway Tolls in Portland

“People would not go out to dinner because they didn’t want to deal with traffic,” said one commissioner before voting yes. Oregon transportation officials agreed to ask the federal government’s permission to toll sections of two Portland-area Interstate highways—and say they’re considering widening that plan to include all the region’s freeways. Source: Desperate for an […]
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Portland Can Breathe Again, as Smoke From Surrounding Wildfires Moves Out

It’s safe to go outside again. The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality today changed Portland’s air quality ranking from “unhealthy” to “good.” Meaning breathing while outdoors is no longer a health risk. Source: Portland Can Breathe Again, as Smoke From Surrounding Wildfires Moves Out – Willamette Week

U.S. Sen. Ron Wyden Points to Oregon’s Catastrophic Wildfires—and Says Climate Change Is Here

He described his vote to confirm U.S. Secretary of the Interior Ryan Zinke as “one of the worst votes I’ve cast.” Record-high temperatures. The massive wildfire that jumped across the Columbia River in the gorge last year. Portlanders warned to stay indoors to keep from breathing air turned filthy with wildfire smoke. All these disasters […]
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A Growing Number of Oregonians Love Technology So Much They Make It Part of Their Bodies

It’s called biohacking. It’s (mostly) legal. And a small but fervent group of Oregon men are installing chips with self-surgery. James Newman, 37, looks more salesman than cyberpunk—which makes sense, because he’s a purchasing agent at a Fortune 500 company. Source: A Growing Number of Oregonians Love Technology So Much They Make It Part of […]
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A Federal Lawsuit Tests the Limits of How Far Oregon Can Go to Get Food Stamps and Other Benefits Back

It alleges Oregon litigators sought money back from people at the exact moment when they are supposed to be protected from debt collectors. Source: A Federal Lawsuit Tests the Limits of How Far Oregon Can Go to Get Food Stamps and Other Benefits Back

Portland Approaches a Record Streak of 90-Degree Days as Pacific Northwest Fires Continue to Grow

According the the National Weather Service, the city’s current record for number of days above 90 degrees Fahrenheit is 29. That was in 2015. So far this year, Portland has logged 26 90-plus degree days. And judging by next week’s weather forecast, that number will soon increase. Source: Portland Approaches a Record Streak of 90-Degree […]
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Democrats Enter Oregon’s November Elections in an Unusual Position: Outnumbered

This November, the Oregon voters who receive ballots will look different from the electorate of decades past: Unaffiliated and minor-party voters will outnumber Democrats. Source: Democrats Enter Oregon’s November Elections in an Unusual Position: Outnumbered

Nearly as Many Acres of Oregon Are Currently On Fire as Burned in All of 2016

Source: Nearly as Many Acres of Oregon Are Currently On Fire as Burned in All of 2016

Over 150,000 Acres of Oregon Land Is Currently Consumed by Wildfires, and the Entire State Is At an Elevated Fire Risk

A new map shows the Pacific Northwest is at most risk for wildfires of anywhere in the nation. Increasingly hot, dry summers are making massive wildfires the new normal in the Pacific Northwest. Currently, according to the National Interagency Fire Center, there are 16 fires burning in Oregon, totally roughly 151,603 acres. And NIFC predicts […]
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A Portland Tattoo Artist Fatally Shot a Homeless Man in the Parking Lot of His Business. Oregon Law Says the Shooting Was Legal.

A half-dozen bystanders witnessed what happened. Some told police they’d watched the unnecessary murder of a homeless man. Five months ago, Joseph “Dymond” Vinci killed a man in the parking lot of Vinci’s Southeast Portland tattoo parlor. Source: A Portland Tattoo Artist Fatally Shot a Homeless Man in the Parking Lot of His Business. Oregon […]
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