Opportunities for Funding and Service with Metro

Funding Opportunity:

At their meeting in May, Metro’s North Portland Enhancement Grant Committee finalized the next steps for distributing a remaining $1.6 million in an enhancement fund by 2018. Letters of interest for capacity building grants from organizations and individuals that support the neighborhoods of University Park, Arbor Lodge, Portsmouth, Overlook, Cathedral Park, St. Johns and Kenton are now being solicited by the Committee. Letters of Interest are due by 4 p.m., Tuesday, Sept. 5, 2013. 

Details about eligibility and the application process can be found here: www.oregonmetro.gov/northportlandgrants.

The Committee also confirmed its support for the North Portland Greenway Trail, pledging $851,000 toward the construction of a pedestrian bridge over Columbia Boulevard and a trail to an overlook that will be constructed on the former St. John’s Landfill. The Committee encouraged Metro staff to seek additional opportunities to leverage the enhancement funds through partnerships, grants and other donations to complete a 4-mile section of the trail between Chimney and Kelley Point Park.

Service Opportunity: (great on a resume, great way to serve your neighborhood!)

Arbor Lodge residents interested in serving on the North Portland Enhancement Committee should apply to fill a recent vacancy on the committee. To apply, submit an Applicant Interest Form by 5 p.m., Monday, June 10, 2013. To download the application for membership and for more information about the committee, visit: www.oregonmetro.gov/northportlandgrants.

Questions? Please contact:

Heather Nelson Kent
Metro community grants program managerheather.kent@oregonmetro.gov
 503-797-1739

Like Trees?
If you do, consider joining us for the Tree Inventory this summer.  You can sign up for one morning, or all 4, it's up to you.   On those dates (June 22nd, August 1st, August 17th and September 14th) we will meet at 8:30 at Arbor Lodge Park, and fan out to count street trees only.  We'll end at 12, noon each day.

Why do this?  We'll have a data base of how many street trees we have in Arbor Lodge, what types of street trees we have, the general health, and the diameter of each.  With this data we can plan to increase the overall canopy if we want, what trees to emphasize, etc.

Did you know that street trees and yard trees increase the value of your home?  And, that the general health of humans living near trees increases and overall crime goes down?  Urban Forestry hosted a talk on these topics at the Lucky Lab last month by an economist with the US Forest Service.

So come out and join your neighbors.  Have some fun, get to know your neighborhood and each other while helping us continue to improve Arbor Lodge neighborhood.  You can sign up at:
http://www.portlandoregon.gov/parks/treeinventory
scroll to Arbor Lodge, then pick a date!  Training is only required for "team leaders".  Thank you.  : )

Upcoming Board Meeting Next Thursday

Join us for our next board meeting, Thursday, May 16th.

We'll be discussing our next steps for bylaws, noise at Portland International Raceways, community cleanup, our 2014 budget, Portland Public School's use of space on Lombard and Interstate, the Lombard re-imagined project, and more.

We hope to see you there!

6:30 pm
Historic Kenton Firehouse
8105 N. Brandon St.

Make Mom proud!

Join your neighbors and friends to help out at Arbor Lodge Park/Harper's Playground tomorrow, that's this Saturday, May 11th between 9-12.  We will have fun, you'll meet some new neighbors, and the Park and Playground will shine for Mother's Day.

Keeping our ParkPlayground pesticide/herbicide free is really important with all the kids, dogs, and other humans who play and relax here during this sunny Oregon spring.  Thanks to all.

Arbor Lodge Park/Harper's Playground Work Party
Saturday, May 11th     9-12

Next Saturday, May 11th, between 9-12 we will work to maintain our pesticide/herbicide free status in the Playground and Park.  Come join us for some FUN!

We will have guests from the LDS Church, hopefully also from the Timber's Army, and some UP students all coming to help support the Playground and Park.  We need neighbors too.

Projects will include:
*  general trash pickup (we have fun trash picker uppers)
*  weeding around trees, then spreading bark mulch
* weeding around light posts and in the ground signs, ditto bark mulch
* edging the entire east side along the gravel parking strip (this will be heavy digging and hauling in wheel barrows)  fyi, the Parks Dept will dig out the parking area/put down landscape cloth/cover it all with new gravel - date not known, but soon.  Our edging will complete the project and really spruce that side of the Park up!
* painting the metal pipe along the east side (weather permitting)
* detailed weeding in both Baseball diamonds, dugouts, back stops, along the foul line, etc.  (no games are set until 1pm that day)
* flame weeding all along Bryant and Dekum and in sidewalks (training required to flame weed/must be over 18/must wear closed toed shoes)
* detail weeding in the tennis courts to keep weeds out of the cracks (think fine motor exercise)

We have tools and some gloves.  We'll provide coffee and water and snacks too.

Please come help the Playground and Park you enjoy so much continue to thrive as a pesticide/herbicide free zone.  Questions?  ginger.edws@gmail.com     Thanks!

NET Training - Triaging the big three and putting splints on things

Basic disaster medicine was the name of the game for weeks 3 and 4 of NET training, the gist of those lessons being this: in a major disaster, medical help might take a long time to arrive, so NETs may have to hold the fort until they do.

To get an idea of the resource limits, consider the Portland Fire Bureau. The bureau employs 700 firefighters, but only 125 of those are on duty at a time. In a disaster, it will take a while for off-duty responders to get to work. And when they do, they will have to do the greatest good for the greatest numbers, which may mean that people in neighborhood have to sit tight.

Meanwhile, NETs are expected to play a role in limiting deaths from trauma. We're sure not doctors. But we spent week 3 learning to treat life-threatening conditions like airway obstruction, shock, and heavy bleeding.

NET Training - Fires and hazmat symbols

Weeks 2 flew by in NET Training, where we intrepid neighborhood volunteers prepared to assist in the event of a giant earthquake, flood, or other such calamity.

Our second week focused mostly on fire suppression. Fires can be common following an earthquake, and NET volunteers, charged with assisting until emergency responders arrive, need a very modest amount of fire-fighting know-how so we can stamp out little fires before they become big ones.

This video won't teach you anything about putting fires out, but it might make you feel differently about your Christmas tree. It was intended to give us NETs a clue about how quickly a fire gets out of control. In a word: fast.

$624!
That's the amount of money earned with the volunteers, donators, contributors, etc. to the Arbor Lodge/Kenton Clean Up yesterday.  And that is just our share.

Many thanks to all who volunteered, who brought items and donated, who spread the word via distributing fliers or just telling a neighbor.  This money will help us fund the Movie in the Park on July 27th, and more.

You all rock!  Together we make Arbor Lodge great.  : )

Bring your junk, recyclables and reusables to Saturday's Neighborhood Clean-up

Drop off your unwanted household junk, reusable clothes and more. We'll recycle what we can and save you a trip to the dump!

SATURDAY, APRIL 27, 2013
10am – 2pm
7654 N Delaware Ave
In the parking lot at N Delaware & N Farragut
Look for traffic routers/signage for entry and exit

We accept: Household junk, reusable building materials, metal, tires, reusable clothing and furniture. We're arranging to have a public swap area for reusable items, the rest goes to Goodwill.

We do not accept: Yard debris, garbage, kitchen waste, commercial or hazardous waste, paint, curbside recycling, concrete, dirt, stumps, large appliances, microwaves, TVs, contractor loads nor car batteries

All vehicles, regardless of, size will be charged a flat fee of $10. Proceeds go to support events in your neighborhood.

Please prepare your load by separating materials.

To volunteer or for more information contact:
arborlodgepdx@gmail.com

Generously supported by: Metro, Bureau of Planning and Sustainability, North Portland Neighborhood Services, as well as volunteers from the Arbor Lodge Neighborhood and Kenton Neighborhood Associations

Coffee Gathering at CUP, this Tuesday, April 16th, 10am
    Come join us and maybe meet a new neighbor.  We'll be downstairs in the "family area".  CUP is on Interstate, just north of Lombard.