Is all of Portland really this depressingly bad? (Dallas, Green: middle-class, appointed)

[oldtintype]

Originally Posted by scone

Yes, the Max crimes did happen, and it shocked everyone. And I can readily believe the guy with the shirt. I've had some weird incidents like that, right out of the blue. I think there are a lot of Portlanders who just can't deal with the reality-- there are some social problems here that desperately need to be addressed. That doesn't make Portland a bad city, but the problems are only going to get worse if people don't wake up and start dealing with it. But as you see, denial is easier than facing such tough issues. And very few people are willing to raise taxes to provide more social services to help the homeless and mentally ill. Pretending it doesn't exist is so much easier and cheaper.

Who pretends it doesn't exist? Every city has problems like this, it's not unique to Portland. The difference is that the entire city is not like Old Town, which the OP seems to think. The OP visited the worst the city has to offer and seems to have missed the other areas. There are social problems everywhere and I don't know if the OP is just not aware of that, just can't handle things that aren't perfect (given that he avoids going into DC if possible it sounds like he's more of a suburban person, which small or not, Portland is a city not a spotless suburb), or had totally unrealistic expectations. I don't know of a city anywhere that doesn't have urban problems and social problems. It's reality. That he's thrilled with Camus is probably proof that he just prefers quiet suburbs not urban areas. That's fine but some reality on the actual city would be nice. I again think of places like Sellwood, Eastmoreland, Westmoreland, Laurelhurst, etc. and think it's sad he didn't spend time walking around there rather than for some reason spending time on SE 82nd by the trailer parks (or where ever he managed to find them). They also take effort to find, which confuses me why a tourist would be out there in the first place.

Someone on here mentioned that Sat. Market isn't the place to visit on Sat. anyway--the place to visit is the farmer's market on the park blocks and I couldn't agree more. Saturday Market is less than pleasant and I have no idea why it's such a draw for people. It's too bad he missed the farmer's market as that's more of a representation of what Portland has to offer and the type of people who live here than Saturday market. I again, think he has missed most of what the city has to offer. But I guess at least he couldn't find anything worse than what he (only) saw at this point.
I spent my Saturday at the farmer's market talking with some great vendors, buying amazing berries, listening to music and sampling some great food. It was peaceful clean and friendly. If the OP is here until next Sat. I think he'd be pretty happy visiting there.

[argo69]

I live in Seattle and have been down visiting in Portland every few months for years and have never had an experience even remotely resembling the one the intial poster described. The thing with Portland is because it is a city without temperature extremes (of the Chicago, New York variety) it does attract a modest size homeless/street kid population and unlike larger cities such as Los Angeles or San Francisco, they are not far off...miles away from the tourist areas...they are close in, mere blocks from the upscale Pearl and heavily trafficked downtown areas of Portland. Portland has a scruffy side but I have never, ever felt even vaguely unsafe anywhere I've been there.

Los Angeles has a much, much larger homeless/street kid population (the largest on the West coast) but as a tourist you'd have to go miles and miles out of your way to somehow run into those neighborhoods. Portland is a modest sized city so yes, if you are unlucky you will see some of the less fortunate people from time to time.

Based on the various postings I'm reading it appears to me that what the individual who opened this thread is really looking for is suburbia (which is fine) and not Portland.

[deegers]

Originally Posted by oldtintype

Who pretends it doesn't exist? Every city has problems like this, it's not unique to Portland. The difference is that the entire city is not like Old Town, which the OP seems to think. The OP visited the worst the city has to offer and seems to have missed the other areas. There are social problems everywhere and I don't know if the OP is just not aware of that, just can't handle things that aren't perfect (given that he avoids going into DC if possible it sounds like he's more of a suburban person, which small or not, Portland is a city not a spotless suburb), or had totally unrealistic expectations. I don't know of a city anywhere that doesn't have urban problems and social problems. It's reality. That he's thrilled with Camus is probably proof that he just prefers quiet suburbs not urban areas. That's fine but some reality on the actual city would be nice. I again think of places like Sellwood, Eastmoreland, Westmoreland, Laurelhurst, etc. and think it's sad he didn't spend time walking around there rather than for some reason spending time on SE 82nd by the trailer parks (or where ever he managed to find them). They also take effort to find, which confuses me why a tourist would be out there in the first place.

Someone on here mentioned that Sat. Market isn't the place to visit on Sat. anyway--the place to visit is the farmer's market on the park blocks and I couldn't agree more. Saturday Market is less than pleasant and I have no idea why it's such a draw for people. It's too bad he missed the farmer's market as that's more of a representation of what Portland has to offer and the type of people who live here than Saturday market. I again, think he has missed most of what the city has to offer. But I guess at least he couldn't find anything worse than what he (only) saw at this point.
I spent my Saturday at the farmer's market talking with some great vendors, buying amazing berries, listening to music and sampling some great food. It was peaceful clean and friendly. If the OP is here until next Sat. I think he'd be pretty happy visiting there.

I have to say something here. First of all, sorry about your bad experience and secondly, I'm glad you shared it! This has been a great thread in learning about the in's and out's of Portland. Some great posts in here and oldtintipe and others, great posts on discussing the Saturday Markets being less than pleasant but not to confuse it with all the wonderful farmer's markets. Thanks for your wisedom!

[suncat]

Originally Posted by YoAdrian

I wouldn't have expected so much squalor and so many bums in a smaller town. Maybe we were misled by people pumping their city so hard ... I think we were expecting some kind of Green utopia, where things were nice and clean, and people were friendly.

Thank the New York Times for that. They've been drooling over Portland for the past few years, and they're responsible for painting an unrealistic picture of the city. Portland has been getting so many write-ups in high-end magazines, too, and touted as "world class." Sure it's pretty and has some good Thai food, but world class, it isn't.

Have you considered Seattle?

[EnricoV]

Originally Posted by blackrabbit

But won't raising taxes to improve social services just encourage more homeless etc to come here etc...........

Not to mention creating more homeless by over-taxing working people to support people who won't (but yes, some can't.)


But to get back to the OP. I daresay we all feel safer, and take much less notice of crime in our own surroundings. When we're somewhere unfamiliar, it all seems worse.

So, being who I am, I looked up the statistics. And Washington DC is at 669.5 on the "Crime index" while Portland is at 505.3 (nationwide average was like 330). It's really interesting on a crime-by-crime basis, though.

Portland has nearly double the rate of theft and burglary as Washington DC.

Washington DC has triple the rate of robberies, almost double the assaults.

Portland has about 30 percent more rapes, where Washington DC has about 30 percent more auto thefts.

Where it really gets interesting though is, Washington DC has 8 times as many murders, and Portland has 12 times the number of arsons (what's up with that!).

[roneb]

Originally Posted by EnricoV

Portland has about 30 percent more rapes, where Washington DC has about 30 percent more auto thefts.

Where it really gets interesting though is, Washington DC has 8 times as many murders, and Portland has 12 times the number of arsons (what's up with that!).

Some research suggests that in communities with strong support services, reporting of rapes goes up; hence the higher statistic.

As far as the arsons... I have no idea. Outdoorsman that can't get out to see a campfire often enough in the winter?

[checar]

I believe it was this past winter (or maybe the year before) we had SUV's being set on fire here in Portland.

[toughguy]

Originally Posted by scone

Yes, the Max crimes did happen, and it shocked everyone. And I can readily believe the guy with the shirt. I've had some weird incidents like that, right out of the blue. I think there are a lot of Portlanders who just can't deal with the reality-- there are some social problems here that desperately need to be addressed. That doesn't make Portland a bad city, but the problems are only going to get worse if people don't wake up and start dealing with it. But as you see, denial is easier than facing such tough issues. And very few people are willing to raise taxes to provide more social services to help the homeless and mentally ill. Pretending it doesn't exist is so much easier and cheaper.

How would you compare the homeless situation to Seattle, worse or comparable? There is a sizable homeless population here in Seattle but for the most part they are just harmless junkies(except when they are shooting the Pike Place market up during tourist season 4 shot near Pike Place Market).

Is it just more noticeable in Portland because the town is smaller? I haven't been down there in quite a while, but I don't remember the homeless situation being worse than what you see in Seattle.

[oldtintype]

I think it's just mostly concentrated to a specific area of Portland so it stands out more. I don't think it's worse than Seattle either.

[scone]

Originally Posted by toughguy

How would you compare the homeless situation to Seattle, worse or comparable? There is a sizable homeless population here in Seattle but for the most part they are just harmless junkies(except when they are shooting the Pike Place market up during tourist season 4 shot near Pike Place Market).

Is it just more noticeable in Portland because the town is smaller? I haven't been down there in quite a while, but I don't remember the homeless situation being worse than what you see in Seattle.

It seems to be more concentrated in Portland, partly because the city is smaller and partly because of the tolerant attitude, which is attracting homeless people from all over, especially runaways. It's the kids I notice the most, and they are getting younger, it seems to me. But there are plenty of families, too. My DH and I are involved with Oregon Food Bank, and they are being stretched to the limit. The UU Church is trying to help with Outside In, but it's a drop in the bucket. I don't have a magic fix here, but it's a serious problem. I was just back East, and down in Cali before that-- Portland's homeless problem is far worse than anything I've seen in other cities, including Seattle, except for Memphis and the Delta region.