Comment:
Shopping for Grocery Ideas
Imagine walking to the Hillsdale Town Center's new anchor grocery store. Now you are wandering through the brightly colored store sampling tasty morsels, checking out the new products on display, buying a cup of coffee and then sitting down at one of the eight attractive computer terminal kiosks.
The friendly computer program welcomes you and asks whether you walked to the store today. If so, you get a five percent "healthy discount" on what you buy. Your decision to walk also takes pressure off the limited parking out front.
Next the computer asks what you would like to buy from the menu, which lists the store's items. Everything from wine to cauliflower.
Based on your tasting, sniffing and browsing, as well as your shopping list, you now check off your order on the menu. You pay electronically, of course, and then you go to a nearby table to visit with neighbors who have just strolled in. You finish your coffee, and then you leave - without your groceries.
That's because you've told the computer to have the groceries delivered to your house or apartment later in the afternoon, after you've returned from your unencumbered walk.
That scenario, painted this week by Hillsdale Neighborhood Association president Don Baack and Hillsdale Business and Professional Association President Mike Roach, is one of several floating around Hillsdale in the wake of the announced closure of the Hillsdale Wild Oats store by its new owner Whole Foods.
I joined Baack and Roach's brainstorm at Baker and Spice on Tuesday and the conversation about the future of the store and the town center took flight. Roach, who is animated to begin with, could hardly contain himself. Baack was excited that the change provides the opportunity to expand the size of a new store.
But the idea of a new concept in shopping, that would allow a smaller store, seemed most especially appealing.
Some of the ideas, such as the home delivery, were inspired by New Seasons, which many mention as their preferred grocery purveyor.
I wrote CEO Brian Rohter immediately after learning about the Wild Oats closure and he e-mailed back that New Seasons has a full platter now. It is moving its headquarters and opening a new store in Happy Valley. But he promised to stay in touch about Hillsdale.
And Roach recently reported that an unnamed coop has expressed interest in the site. The inquiry came to Wild Oats/Whole Foods, which still has three years to run on its lease.
I'll keep you informed as details become available.
In the meantime, the closure is already paying off - in ideas and excitement. If you write me with your own thoughts, I'll post them in the next issue.
Rick Seifert
Editor
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Links to Alliance Members
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An SUV makes way for pedestrians forced to walk along Sunset Boulevard shoulder.
Sidewalks, crossings put on funding wish list
A proposed "Safe and Sound Streets initiative" could bring more than $6 million to Southwest Portland for new sidewalk projects.
Hillsdale residents are already saying how they want a portion of the money spent here. At an open house held Monday, September 17, they identified three crosswalks they want installed in the neighborhood. They also pointed out places where sidewalks are desperately needed.
The initiative is being put forward by City Commissioner for Transportation Sam Adams. The city council is expected to vote on the city-wide streets package in January. In May, voters would decide on funding parts of the program that involve a boost in fees.
For details, visit the program's web site: http://www.portlandonline.com/transportation/index.cfm?&c=efcdb
The proposed program for improving streets, highways and bridges will cost between $320 million and $500 million, said Mark Lear, director of special projects at the Portland Department of Transportation,
While options are still under discussion, Lear said that money to pay for the program likely would come from a 3-cent gas tax, an increased vehicle registration fee (of no more than $27 per year) and a "street maintenance and safety" fee to be imposed on businesses and households. The maintenance fee would be adjusted for how many trips are attracted by businesses and made by residents.
"Green" incentives would be available to businesses that encourage transit use, carpooling, bicycling and walking.
Lear gave some examples of what some businesses might be expected to pay under the plan before the incentives: the average convenience store might pay $605/month while a neighborhood tavern might expect to pay $22/mo. A small hotel was estimated to pay $181/mo.
Under the proposed plan, $13.2 million is dedicated city-wide to arterial streets without sidewalks over the next 10 years. Because Southwest has 46 percent of those side-walk deficient streets, it could expect to receive more than $6 million for sidewalk-related projects. How the money will be spent will be left to neighborhood coalition committees. Our coalition is Southwest Neighborhoods Inc., SWNI.
Details of the program are still being worked out with an 89-member "stakeholders committee" of citizen and business representatives. Hillsdale Business and Professional Association president Mike Roach is a small business representative.
Don Baack, president of the Hillsdale Neighborhood Association and the chair of SW Trails, said that neighbors attending the Sept. 17 open house pressed for crosswalks on Sunset at both Martha Street and 18th Avenue as well as on Bertha Boulevard at Chestnut. They also cited the need for a sidewalk on Sunset between the Library and 18th Avenue. The Sunset improvements would protect students who now walk along the boulevard's shoulder and cross the busy street without benefit of marked crosswalks.
Nearly 40 neighbors had signed a petition calling for the crosswalk at Sunset and Martha.
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Hillsdale Farmers Market deemed mature
At the ripe old age of six years, the Hillsdale Farmers' Market is all grown up.
"We don't need any more farmers for Hillsdale," said market manager Eamon Molloy. "We have reached our natural size."
Molloy draws his conclusion in part from a survey of market goers made in late August.
Responses show stable, solid figures. Just over half of the respondents (54 percent) came from Hillsdale, Bridlemile and Multnomah Village. Eighty-four percent came from Southwest Portland.
"Every survey conducted since 2002 has found the same results," Molloy noted.
But average attendance has grown in that time from 1300 to 2500. And the amount spent per household has also doubled, from $15 to $30.
As for frequency of visits to the market, 42 percent shop every week and 27 percent every other week. "That's not a surprise," Molloy said. "Volunteers recognize the same faces every week."
If there's a change, it will be in a greater selection of protein, particularly farm-direct beef, said Molloy. The market has offered more fish this year, he added, and customers have responded.
Unlike patrons at other markets, Hillsdale's don't like to sit in the market and eat. "People want to go home and cook," Molloy said, noting that Hillsdale also offers a variety of nearby restaurants in the Town Center.
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Some Watershedders will be "home" for Thanksgiving
Several seniors will be making Hillsdale's new Watershed their home by Thanksgiving.
Martin Soloway, project manager for the senior housing project, said many of the project's new tenants will have moved in by the holiday.
The last tenants in the building's 51 units will move in in January.
Soloway said he was particularly pleased that a third of the 90 who expressed interest in living at the Watershed had strong connections to Hillsdale.
Of the 90, about half of those who have responded are accepting places, and the percentage is expected to rise as the move-in date nears, he said.
Soloway said that reviewing applications has given him "a better understanding of what it means to live on a fixed income."
He mentioned a woman who is moving to the Watershed from King City because her present $550/mo. rent just was raised $105. She lives on $1400/month. The rule of thumb is that rent and utilities should not exceed 30 percent of income.
The two commercial spaces for sale on the ground floor have not sold yet, but they are attracting serious inquiries, Soloway said.
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Short Takes
Watershed work in October affects peds, vehicles
Neighborhood Association president Don Baack is pressing City Transportation officials to alter plans to close Bertha Court entirely during the month of October. He has successfully persuaded them not to shut down pedestrian access to the Bertha Viaduct for the month, but how vehicular traffic will be diverted around the the construction of a new sidewalk next to the Watershed building is still under discussion.
Hillsdale grocery store update
An early glimmer of interest is being shown in taking over the space of the Hillsdale Wild Oats store, which will close sometime in October.
John Braidwood said he and his wife, Ardys, who owns the shopping center with her family, have heard through a third party that an unnamed coop is interested in leasing the space.
"They haven't contacted us," said Braidwood.
"We are waiting for Wild Oats to wind down, and then we will see what inquiries come in and evaluate them to see which is the best way to go," he said. "Finding the right tenant, not time, is of the essence."
Whole Foods, which bought Wild Oats last month, announced the store's closure on Sept. 7.
Money opportunities
The Hillsdale Neighborhood association is inviting grant application ideas for neighborhood projects. The ideas need to be presented at the next neighborhood association meeting Wednesday, Oct. 3, 7 p.m., St. Barnabas Church. One project in the hopper is to apply for money to light the vertical Hillsdale sign and beacon on the Watershed's tower.
Planning begins for Metro Council presentation
The Hillsdale Alliance, a coalition of major Hillsdale organizations, will meet at the Remax/Equity building Wednesday, October 10 at 7 p.m. to begin planning Hillsdale's presentation to the Metro Council. In a first, the elected regional council will meet here at Wilson High School at 5 p.m. on November 29th.
The council is interested in how to help Hillsdale in its efforts to make the town center a model for the region.
A second planning session for the Metro session will be held Thursday, Oct 11, at 7 p.m. Location to be announced.Those interested in helping should contact the editor.
A letter to the editor
Editor:
Initial plans for constructing a new sidewalk outside the Watershed Senior Housing Project had called for the pedestrian access across the Bertha Viaduct on Capitol Highway to be closed for then entire month of October.
But thanks to quick one-day action by Peter Mason, Portland Traffic Engineer, and the flexibility of the on site executives of Walsh Construction, the pedestrians will continue to use the Capitol Highway pedestrian walkway west of SW Bertha Court.
The Hillsdale neighborhood and all pedestrians thank Peter Mason of the City of Portland; Brooke Radding and Dave Riedel of Walsh Construction for their flexibility and reasonableness in finding a much better solution.
Don Baack, President Hillsdale NA.
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Rick Seifert
Editor, Hillsdale News
(503) 245-7821
editor@hillsdalenews.org
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