Visiting Portland next week/advice

[Radical347]

I was just in Portland and found it pretty unsettling. If you stay downtown I would recommend staying close to the waterfront and not straying too far. I stayed at the Hyatt House which itself was a nice hotel, and the immediate area was nice. I was in town for a convention so I had to take the streetcar — more often than not the streetcars (and MAX lines) were scary, going both downtown and to the convention center, both inside and outside the trams. Buses were a little better. The vibes in most of downtown were bad enough, but Chinatown has completely imploded. It was nowhere near that bad when I last visited (3 years ago) and I’m used to the homeless problem in SF/LA but this time I found Portland on a whole nother level.

[EasyBeezy]

Originally Posted by Radical347

I was just in Portland and found it pretty unsettling. If you stay downtown I would recommend staying close to the waterfront and not straying too far. I stayed at the Hyatt House which itself was a nice hotel, and the immediate area was nice. I was in town for a convention so I had to take the streetcar — more often than not the streetcars (and MAX lines) were scary, going both downtown and to the convention center, both inside and outside the trams. Buses were a little better. The vibes in most of downtown were bad enough, but Chinatown has completely imploded. It was nowhere near that bad when I last visited (3 years ago) and I’m used to the homeless problem in SF/LA but this time I found Portland on a whole nother level.

Portland's street scene really has gotten totally out of control. The MAX is downright frightening. Twenty years ago the MAX was totally safe. Old Town is atrocious. Can't even walk through there anymore. I'm liberal in most ways, but I disagree with the notion that to let people live like this is compassionate. It's a massive disservice to the homeless as well as the housed that they live among. When I drive around, I often wonder if the city leaders can see what I'm seeing.