Willamette Week

Sometimes, spotting a distinction between opposing political candidates is a challenge, especially on a hot-button issue. But not where data centers are concerned in the race for House District 52, where a longtime local official paints a vastly different picture than his young opponent.

The Portland Metro Chamber this week sued the city of Portland in Oregon Tax Court over its recently-reformed Arts Tax, arguing that the Portland City Council acted unconstitutionally when it reformed the tax earlier this year without referring those changes to voters.

Liz Harris’ music, which she often releases under the name Grouper, is so foggy and untethered that it takes a while to realize how much of it is basically pop. The Astoria artist first came to many people’s attention with “Heavy Water/I’d Rather Be Sleeping,” an ambient-folk classic from 2008’s Dragging a Dead Deer Up a Hill. The track is matted with processed guitar and smeared vocal harmonies. But under all that is a central hook waiting to sneak up on you.

Every decade or so in Portland, give or take a recession, industry observers declare a “barmageddon” event. 2014 was a big one, following the closure of some notable Old Portland watering holes, including legendary punk venue Slabtown and the original Matador on West Burnside. We seem to be in the midst of another one, with Expatriate, buzzy late night destination Pink Rabbit, and neighborhood standbys like East Burn and Take Two all closing their doors in 2026.

This year’s Nester is the forever home of our Real Estate Agent Rolodex: a special section spotlighting eight of Portland’s top real estate professionals. We know most of what goes into making a home is finding the right place. We also know finding the right people for the place you used to call home can be tough. Both are relatively stressful endeavors; but you don’t have to go either alone. Choose any of the enthusiastic folks featured below and rest assured that you’re in good hands.

Multigenerational households—that is, homes with three or more generations in the mix—are more common than they used to be, due to a combination of spiraling costs of care for both elders and children as well as shifting cultural norms. Sometimes this simply involves bringing an older relative or a grown child into a spare room or converted attic—but many opt for an accessory dwelling unit, or ADU.

In recent years, some of Portland’s largest nonprofit providers of supportive housing have begun to face a remarkable new expense: They effectively had to start self-insuring their properties after insurance companies backed away amid surging costs to repair units that had been burned, flooded or left in disarray.

Lillian Hardy didn’t expect to start an 850-member club. On a sunny day in mid-June, Hardy posted to her brand Landdd’s Instagram, inviting women and woman-identifying individuals to join her at a “secret river spot” in Oxbow Park near Troutdale. She created a corresponding WhatsApp group to share logistics and directions. More than 30 women came, but the WhatsApp group exploded overnight, reaching 300 members in less than 24 hours.

Our own junk drawers are not so compelling. But being able to snoop around in other people’s? Now that could be interesting. A photo book called Junk all about Portlanders’ junk drawersis now available in a few local stores and for order online (blahblahblah.love, $49). Michael Apruzzese’s 192-page book is billed as “a collection of intimate, private, useless and forgotten treasures”—all pulled from Portlanders’ junk drawers. “Every single person’s drawer is different, and not just by a little bit.

The Trail Blazers held their annual media day Monday morning in a small room in the back of the Moda Center, their home since 1995, which has become the main topic of discourse in Portland this year.