You know the latest is they still want to bury the freeway.

http://www.oregonlive.com/portland/index.ssf/2012/06/400_million_plan_to_cap_inters.html

Funny, we can find $400M for this once we like it and god knows how much for the no-car bridge and $65M to lift SW Moody 15 feet.

However, no money for schools and we still need to keep water rates going higher yet.

That was the summer we moved to Portland from the farm near Burns to live on Albina North of Penisula Park. They vacated all the homes along what was called the Minnesota Freeway corridor (for its alignment on Minnesota Avenue), moved or demolished them, then dug a trench like that from the Coliseum to well past Lombard. But, before they did, the fruit ripens and it was an adventure to play among the vacant houses, gorge ourselves on plums, pears and peaches and break windows.

Steve -

No money for schools?

What are you smoking.

PPS all funds budget had been on a constant upward trajectory from 1978 when I first started living here until 2012.

My property tax bill for PPS (and Mult ESD) has been on a continued upward trajectory from 1978 through 2011 (last year on which I have data - 2012 numbers won't be in until late this summer).

Schools have issues. So, too, do taxpayers, most of whom don't have kids in the schools, and many of whom are on fixed incomes.

Stupid comments like "...no money for schools..." label you as a non serious commentor, IMHO.

I am pretty good with Portland and old maps and photos, but cannot identify a single landmark. Help anyone??

On Saturday's when dad and I would head to Kenton for haircuts we would stop a bit Minnesota Avenue so I could watch the earth movers dig the trench..

I was just an 11 year old kid, but I remember all the earth movers digging and digging. They built the freeway pretty fast as I recall. Then in 1964 the 405 was built. That really disrupted things. I remember my mom, who was born here in the early 20th century, saying that both the freeways "cut the heart out of Portland" and that the locations would be regretted in the future.

"No money for schools?"

I meant to say that schools (and almost every branch of govt) is always complaining about a lack of funding for basic services. No money for potholes also.

Besides, even if we gave schools money, we'd still have a 60% grad rate.

Eventually Portland will want to "cap" all Interstates inside of city limits, close all on and off ramps, and make claims about how they eliminated freeways and cars!

concordbridge,

I felt the same way. I was mystified by this picture. Here's some help:

Go to the Vintage Portland website through the link in the post and then in the text accompanying this picture there's a link called "another view of this same area can be seen here."

At least you can see Lloyd Center and Benson High School in the distance on that one, but it's shocking how much change has taken place in 50 years.

Amazing. Thanks for posting this.

cannot identify a single landmark.

To the east of the ditch, on Broadway, on the south side of the street, Broadway Furniture is there. And just to the west of that, some storefronts with arched doorways; they're still there. One's a car stereo place now. Across Broadway, that church is still there, but the houses all got mowed down for the car dealership.

At the very far right of the photo, just to the west of the ditch on Broadway, some of those buildings are still there.

This picture is the final insult to Sam and Randy. They think they're building some permanent monument to their greatness but in 50 years, a lot of it's going to be gone.
Love it. The long abandoned SoWhat debacle back to being a wetlands with trees? I'm down with that.

I can remember this time, my Grandmother used to drive (from 174th & Powell) via the Ross Island bridge to her cleaning shop at 18th & W Burnside. They were always scrapping huge WWII era destroyers, etc, at the Zidell shipyards.

Yes! The one story building with the arches is the former tile business, still beautiful today. Across from that is Mt Olivet Church, which is being used by a vigorous church called The Well.

Thanks for the tips!

it's shocking how much change has taken place in 50 years.

My uncle was here in the 1950's. When I mentioned that I was moving here in 1972, he told me that Portland ended at 82nd Ave. - it was all farms and forest from there to the east.

Look. Jobs!