Is Portland still a "blue collar" city at heart? (Union: apartments, insurance)

[Minervah]

Originally Posted by belmont22

I wasn't really asking if Portland is truly economically blue collar. I was more asking do you think the overall "spirit" of the place and its people is still blue collar or has Portland become more of a capitalist fast-paced global city as opposed to one with a culture more parochial and typical of working people.

Neither.

[hamellr]

Originally Posted by belmont22

I wasn't really asking if Portland is truly economically blue collar. I was more asking do you think the overall "spirit" of the place and its people is still blue collar or has Portland become more of a capitalist fast-paced global city as opposed to one with a culture more parochial and typical of working people.

Neither of those even begins to describe Portland.

There are a lot of Do-It-Yourselfers here. A lot of people who work in the Creative and IT Industries. There is a core of capitalist suit wearers. And there is a huge amount of government workers. Then there is also a core of alternative energy workers. Then you have the huge number of "work at Starbucks until their other idea gets off the ground."

That is what really makes Portland unique. No other city I can think of has the same wide range eclectic and for the most part harmonious mix of ideas, culture and diversity that Portland does - not even Austin or New York. That grizzled Vietnam War Vet you see likely works at Powell's, organizes Critical Mass bike rides, and is waiting to get married to his husband. That punk with the 40 piercings likely runs an organically sustainable farm. The 30 something mother of three likely cans her own vegetables, raises chickens, and sings in a rock band that is just on the edge of hitting it big.

[turquoise1]

Hamellr, I think you've just written the beginnings of a novel... now how will those three characters intersect?

[Minervah]

Originally Posted by hamellr

Neither of those even begins to describe Portland.

There are a lot of Do-It-Yourselfers here. A lot of people who work in the Creative and IT Industries. There is a core of capitalist suit wearers. And there is a huge amount of government workers. Then there is also a core of alternative energy workers. Then you have the huge number of "work at Starbucks until their other idea gets off the ground."

That is what really makes Portland unique. No other city I can think of has the same wide range eclectic and for the most part harmonious mix of ideas, culture and diversity that Portland does - not even Austin or New York. That grizzled Vietnam War Vet you see likely works at Powell's, organizes Critical Mass bike rides, and is waiting to get married to his husband. That punk with the 40 piercings likely runs an organically sustainable farm. The 30 something mother of three likely cans her own vegetables, raises chickens, and sings in a rock band that is just on the edge of hitting it big.

What about the doctors, lab technicians, school teachers, retail clerks, sales people, customer service reps, wait staff, hotel clerks and all the other and ordinary workers who comprise the majority of Portland workers? I don't think Portland is so unique in the mix of workers it has. I do think it has it all though.

[Anders15]

I have another question and I'm sure many of you will HATE it but do you see Portland "building up" any time soon?

Yes similar to Seattle and other big cities. It seems like most are discovering the PNW these days so I was wondering what are future plans for Portland like to handle the population in the future. It would not be a bad thing entirely.

Portland is expected to lead the nation in being a great environmentally friendly city so even if Portland gets the tall buildings, it is likely to be a revolutionary place to live. I would expect a "bigger" Portland to have trees on buildings, mostly solar powered and using very environmentally friendly materials to build.. etc.

This is just speculation anyone know what is really going to happen?

[Minervah]

Originally Posted by Anders15

I have another question and I'm sure many of you will HATE it but do you see Portland "building up" any time soon?

Yes similar to Seattle and other big cities. It seems like most are discovering the PNW these days so I was wondering what are future plans for Portland like to handle the population in the future. It would not be a bad thing entirely.

Portland is expected to lead the nation in being a great environmentally friendly city so even if Portland gets the tall buildings, it is likely to be a revolutionary place to live. I would expect a "bigger" Portland to have trees on buildings, mostly solar powered and using very environmentally friendly materials to build.. etc.

This is just speculation anyone know what is really going to happen?

Anytime soon? Really? With all the huge apartment buildings going up in every empty space with houses and buildings being torn down to make way for them when there are no empty spaces, Portland is already being built up right now at a dizzying rate.

Add to that additional streetcar lines and MAX lines. Or at least proposed lines. And expanded neighborhood shopping such as the giant Safeway in my bursting neighborhood that has replaced an ancient smaller one that kept trying to expand with the exploding population.

Take the majority of Portland and tell me when hasn't Portland been building up? It's been gradual but steady. Now I think in order to keep up with the increasing population of people who cannot afford places like the Pearl which filled in a fairly empty and confined area it's expanding at an even more rapid pace all over the city.

This isn't the future it's now.

[EnricoV]

Originally Posted by Anders15

I have another question and I'm sure many of you will HATE it but do you see Portland "building up" any time soon?

Do you mean up, as in vertically? No time soon. No one wants to obstruct the views any more than they have to.

And, hamellr, how dare you not mention every type of person and job that exists in Portland.

[belmont22]

Originally Posted by Minervah

Anytime soon? Really? With all the huge apartment buildings going up in every empty space with houses and buildings being torn down to make way for them when there are no empty spaces, Portland is already being built up right now at a dizzying rate.

Add to that additional streetcar lines and MAX lines. Or at least proposed lines. And expanded neighborhood shopping such as the giant Safeway in my bursting neighborhood that has replaced an ancient smaller one that kept trying to expand with the exploding population.

Take the majority of Portland and tell me when hasn't Portland been building up? It's been gradual but steady. Now I think in order to keep up with the increasing population of people who cannot afford places like the Pearl which filled in a fairly empty and confined area it's expanding at an even more rapid pace all over the city.

This isn't the future it's now.

I miss the old Safeway. I still think Portland has a pretty small town feel, though I didn't live here until 2011 and didn't see the city at all until the early 2000s, so I have no idea how much smaller it may have felt before.

What's happened to Portland is nothing compared to what's happened to Vancouver since Expo '86 though. Nothing. But I could see Portland becoming a global city by 2040 at the rate things are going.

[Minervah]

Originally Posted by belmont22

I miss the old Safeway. I still think Portland has a pretty small town feel, though I didn't live here until 2011 and didn't see the city at all until the early 2000s, so I have no idea how much smaller it may have felt before.

What's happened to Portland is nothing compared to what's happened to Vancouver since Expo '86 though. Nothing. But I could see Portland becoming a global city by 2040 at the rate things are going.

The new Safeway took a lot of getting used to for me. It was the most drastic overhaul of all the overhaul because it completely got rid of the old one. I kinda miss the odor of the old KFC wafting through the air as I waited for the Hawthorne bus on the way to work in the morning back in the 80's.

The good news though is that many of the personel who worked at the old Safeway are at the new one. Erica, Shelly, Wendy at the pharmacy and some others whose names escape me right now. But there are many new faces too. I think they are the friendliest people too. I know it's their policy but it still makes grocery shopping, not one of my favorite things, more pleasant.

[Deezus]

Originally Posted by Minervah

The new Safeway took a lot of getting used to for me. It was the most drastic overhaul of all the overhaul because it completely got rid of the old one. I kinda miss the odor of the old KFC wafting through the air as I waited for the Hawthorne bus on the way to work in the morning back in the 80's.

The good news though is that many of the personel who worked at the old Safeway are at the new one. Erica, Shelly, Wendy at the pharmacy and some others whose names escape me right now. But there are many new faces too. I think they are the friendliest people too. I know it's their policy but it still makes grocery shopping, not one of my favorite things, more pleasant.

Safeway is doing a similar upgrade to the store on SW Barbur.

The old Safeway on 82nd that was a complete dump(the most "Un-Safe" way in town) was sold out and was turned into an Asian grocery to open soon. I think Safeway has had trouble competing in a town full of Fred Meyers on one end and high-end places like New Seasons on the other...