[downtownpdx]

South Park Blocks Residents Tell Kotek They Appreciate Bottle Bill Pause at Safeway, Plaid Pantry

Oregonians’ love for the Bottle Bill has collided with their fatigue with the open fentanyl use it enables.

By Nigel Jaquiss
March 10, 2024 at 8:06 am PDT

When the Oregon Beverage Recycling Cooperative polled Oregonians’ attitudes toward the Bottle Bill a couple of years ago, “Oregonians give the system an A+, with 97% agreeing that it’s good for Oregon.”

Since fentanyl took hold of Portland’s downtown streets, the numbers in some neighborhoods—especially around grocery and convenience stores that take back cans and bottles—might be a little softer.

After Gov. Tina Kotek took the drastic step of exempting some of the hardest-hit locations downtown, the Safeway at Southwest 10th Avenue and Jefferson Street and an adjacent Plaid Pantry on 11th Avenue, neighborhood residents responded to the governor in emails WW obtained under a public records request.

Here’s what the emails said:

From A.M. in Portland:

re: Bottle Drop Suspension at 10th and Jefferson Safeway and Plaid Pantry Good Evening Governor Kotek, As you can see from my address [redacted], I live across the street from the Safeway and Plaid Pantry where you suspended bottle drop service. As such, I wanted to respond to your recent order with immense gratitude. Ever since the COVID-19 pandemic brought the world to a halt, the population of homeless persons has steadily risen in my neighborhood. I have incredible sympathy for our neighbors who live on the streets - it is a more difficult lifestyle than I can even imagine. With that being said, the increase in homelessness has turned into a serious problem. I have encountered many recurring characters who do not seem interested in seeking the available resources and improving their situation. I love living downtown. Before the pandemic, I loved walking through Portland after it had gone to sleep and taking in its serene beauty. But I haven’t felt at ease doing so for almost four years now. That is, until tonight. I am shocked by how quickly the suspension of bottle drop service made my corner of Portland feel like its old self again. Whenever I would walk my dog I would have to constantly look over my shoulder, scout ahead to see whether I should cross the street, and stop him from eating whatever suspicious refuse he decided looked like a treat. Tonight, however, was different. Tonight felt safe. Tonight felt peaceful. Tonight even felt fun. For the first time in a while, I saw parents with children after dark and several groups of PSU students slowly strolling through the streets. I felt a lightness in the air that I had forgotten existed in the cultural district, and it reminded me of when I moved into my building almost eight years ago. It is going to take me a long time to shake the anxious, looking-over-my-shoulder, on-edge mindset, but now it feels closer than it did just a few nights ago. I understand this is meant to be a temporary suspension, but I hope that you extend it until we can pressure Multnomah County to spend its homelessness-resource budget and hire more public defenders to restore our criminal justice system. Thank you.

(continues) ... https://www.wweek.com/news/2024/03/1...-plaid-pantry/