news and events in portland...

The first graduates of the Beginning Urban Farmer Apprenticeship program look to make an impact on the agricultural scene of the Portland metro area. more...

Any small business owner or organization can create value through creative calendaring. more...

Imagine that you're a florist. You've spent years working in the industry, you've learned the art of arrangement and now you're ready to strike out on your own. So you begin scouting for locations and then, there it is, the ideal place for your dream shop, which you envision in an old house a couple of doors down from a small neighborhood market on a street lined with single-family homes. You're sure that you can more...

Portland's small retailers have always had to stay on their toes to be competitive in the face of online and big-box stores. Owners work hard to create personal relationships and shops that offer great experiences. Local leaders and business organizations have tried to help inform and motivate consumers with buy-local campaigns. Now, small retailers face an emerging threat from mobile apps that can turn a shop created with love into more...

At the tail end of the last century, as independent craft brewing was on the rise, an inexpensive domestic beer that was nearly forgotten got a new lease on life. The beer, of course, was the iconic Pabst Blue Ribbon. The place, of course, was here. But the reason? Pabst didn't have the capital to market itself, so it didn't, which is exactly why Portlanders embraced it. Well, that, and the beer was, and remains, cheap. In more...

Small businesses are in luck. There’s about to be more help on the way. The Portland Development Commission (PDC) has finalized the details of the Small Business Development Program (SBDP). The PDC and five nonprofit organizations have joined forces to create the Small Business Development Program. The initiative is aimed at strengthening and assisting 155 businesses located in North, Northeast, and East Portland within the next more...

Downtown A public hearing has been called before the city's design commission, which will weigh in on the redevelopment of a two-story building on the 1100 block of SW Alder. The redevelopment includes the addition of a 6,000 square-foot glass and aluminum office penthouse atop the second floor as well as a rooftop deck that will wrap around the offices. The public hearing is scheduled for the afternoon of November 3 at the offices more...

In the last month, quite a few businesses opened their doors for the first time, including a new garage operated by a fellow who'll try to repair your bicycle within a 12-hour time frame, so you can ride it home from work. But some of these new businesses are actually old businesses undergoing various forms of expansion by either building up (Nuvrei Pastries is now also Nuvrei Pâtisserie & Café) or building out more...

Savvy Portlanders have probably already noticed the telltale signs; craft services trucks, wardrobe vans, and Star Waggons filling up downtown parking lots and taking up side streets in Northeast, industrial-sized theatrical light rigs outside office buildings and hotels, the occasional celebrity sighting. Portland may not be Los Angeles, but in the last couple of years, it has been the home for a number of film and television more...

Northwest District A public hearing has been called so that SERA architects may petition the city's design commission to waive landscaping and parking standards relating to a proposed mixed-use, 56-unit residential and commercial building featuring subsurface parking on NW Lovejoy Street at 23rd Avenue. The public hearing is scheduled for the afternoon of November 3 at the offices of the Bureau of Development Services (BDS), at 1900 more...