Geography 368: Field Seminar
Day 7 | Transit-Oriented Development & Introduction to Portland
Day 7, October 3rd, 2018, started off by driving from Astoria to Portland Airport to drop off our trusty minivans that had charioted us all over Oregon thus far. We turned them in for light rail passes, buses and our own two feet, items a little easier to use to get around Portland. Our first stop before we dropped off the chariots however was Orenco Station just outside of the Portland metropolitan area in Hillsboro. While there, students were tasked with studying the mini-landscape of the area. We recorded the business types that we saw and noticed planning features such as incorporating the nature already present into the design of the area, namely a group of big, beautiful trees.
Photo by Ezra Zeitler of the Orenco Station
Groups of students split off and recorded observations of different blocks to see what they could find in regards to urban planning. Students reported ethnic food restaurants such as Lebanese and Italian restaurants that had a distinct Americanized feel to them. There was also evidence of redevelopment of an old downtown and we concluded that this area was catered towards older, middle and upper-middle class folks with items such as an Orange Theory Fitness and food places like Ava Roasteria and Alotto Gelato. From there we said farewell to our steeds, hopped on the light rail and traveled to Portland.
Photo by Ezra Zeitler of the groups going off to explore the surroundings of Orenco Station
Our first stop in Portland was the Pioneer Courthouse Square which is arguably one of the central cultural points of the city with events like concerts, movies and Ale Fest. Famous speakers are also known to come to the Square, like the Dali Lama, to talk to Portlanders. All of this information was provided to us by our local Portland Walking Tour guide, Grace. She informed us of the history of modern Portland and how when it was being designed and planned there was a pedestrian-based philosophy in mind with open blocks and buildings that don’t reach over a certain height to avoid the canyon effect that occurs in places like NYC and Chicago.
The planning of Portland was tied up in bureaucracy for years and it was not until Bud Clark was elected mayor that things began to change. He became known first for quite literally exposing himself to art and people decided that they did want someone like that for mayor and so began Portland’s development into the weird and quirky metropolitan area it is known as today.
Grace also told us about local features that help make Portland, Portland.This included things such as Benson bubblers constantly flowing in the city to serve as a public source of water, over 800 food carts, the most breweries in a city and of course what Grace termed the city’s “best kept secret”, Portlandia and she was not talking about the show. Grace was referring to the 35 foot tall statue of a woman wielding a trident that embodies the city of Portland and how she was supposed to serve as their Lady Liberty, but did not due to the copyright owned by the artist. As of our visit, she was hidden under a tarp while the building she resides near undergoes renovation.
Photo by Ezra Zeitler of Grace our Walking Tour guide extraordinaire in Pioneer Courthouse Square
Photo by Ezra Zeitler of the Benson bubblers that are around Portland
Photo by Ezra Zeitler of a student trying the free public water provided by the Benson bubblers
Photo by Ezra Zeitler of the students listening to Grace tell us about the Elk statue
Photo by Chase Mohrman of the famous Portland Elk statue
There were many unique features and facts that we learned about Portland (such as it almost being named Boston) but a favorite was about a park in downtown. Historically, Portland had been a primarily male-populated city so to make women feel more comfortable, a women's-only park was designed that also had only female ginkgo trees in it. When the male population learned of this they decided that they wanted to have a park only for men too. So they built one, right across the street. This park was a bit smaller, but it had only male ginkgo trees in it and only men were allowed in. There was also a statue commissioned for it that was supposed to be an elk, but the person who made it had never seen one before so they mashed up what they knew of elk, deer, and moose to create a creature that had an incredibly unproportional body. The man who commissioned it was, needless to say, displeased and did not want it in the park so he had it moved to the Plaza Blocks where it currently resides. Our tour ended by showing us the world’s smallest park, Mill Ends Park and a nice stroll back to Pioneer Courthouse Square.
From there we hopped on the light rail and then walked the rest of the way to our hostel where we stayed for the remainder of our trip, the Portland International Hostel. After a nice debrief session in the quaint and cozy backyard of the hostel, the students decided to go to dinner as a group. And so ended our first day in Portland; a long day of learning and touring the city that is at the heart of Oregon culture.
Photo by Ezra Zeitler of the class next to a piece of art in the Portland'5 Centers for the Arts lobby