Sellwood Moreland Improvement League

Our Info: Newsletters > August 2017 SMILE Newsletter

August 2017 SMILE Newsletter

SMILE -- "The Neighbor"

It’s the biggest party all year, in Sellwood and Westmoreland!

It’s called “Sundae in the Park”, and since 1979 SMILE has presented it to bring the community together in upper Sellwood Park – on the first Sunday afternoon of August – for a day of live music, cheap ice cream sundaes, lunch items, local history, informational tables, and games of various sorts. In the last few years, Portland Parks has joined in with evening entertainment followed by an outdoor showing of a recent family movie to end the day at dusk (sponsored by the Sellwood-Westmoreland Business Alliance). The whole day is fun, it benefits the Meals on Wheels People service, and it really draws a crowd to the park. Be part of it! That’s on Sunday, August 6, starting at noon, at Sellwood Park along S.E. 7th Avenue north of Spokane Street!

Improvements at SMILE Station

SMILE, the city’s oldest of 95 recognized neighborhood associations, is also unique in owning its own building – the historic original “Fire Station 20”, and once the first Boys and Girls Club in the neighborhood – SMILE Station, on the southeast corner of S.E. 13th and Tenino Street. Upgrading of the station this year has included replacing its heat/cooling pumps, and adding a remnant of the railing of the recently-demolished old Sellwood Bridge to a pedestal in front of the building. The latest improvements include installing a walkway of brick pavers from the sidewalk on 13th to a point in front of the bridge railing; repairing the sidewalk near the north driveway; and adding a large bicycle parking rack on the parking strip west of that driveway on the north side of the facility. SMILE holds all its meetings there, and the building is for rent for meetings and special occasions at times when SMILE meetings are not taking place. Call 503/234-3570 for more information.

SMILE Land Use Committee keeps eye on development

The SMILE Land Use Committee will meet Wednesday August 2 at 6 p.m. – and the first Wednesday evening at that time each month – at SMILE Station, S.E. 13th and Tenino. You are welcome to attend. Minutes of Land Use Committee meetings are available online at www.sellwoodmoreland.org – under the Land Use Committee tab.

Tip: To see data on any property in the neighborhood, go to www.portlandmaps.com and type in the address, or select a property from the map. Learn about permits, zoning, public safety, transportation, parks, schools, and more.

Two volunteer leadership positions opening

Two longstanding events of special importance to Sellwood and Westmoreland are its annual cleanup, which takes place on one May Saturday morning each year in the south parking lot at Westmoreland Park – it’s the oldest neighborhood cleanup drive in the state – and Sundae in the Park, held for the past 38 years in Upper Sellwood Park on S.E. 7th on the first Sunday afternoon in August. Both are led by neighborhood resident volunteers – in the case of the cleanup, by Kris Heiberg; in the case of Sundae in the Park, currently by Nancy Walsh. Both Kris and Nancy are planning to step down from this responsibility in the next year or so, and both invite involved residents to step up to take over. Both have notes and timelines and contacts already organized in writing to make the transition easy, and both would like an interested resident to “shadow” them step by step as they ensure a successful event next year. Anyone interested in considering taking such a leadership role will find it fun and interesting, and this will really involve you in the community. For more information, come to a SMILE General or Board meeting (see schedule below), or call 503/234-3570 and leave a message to find out more.

Attend a SMILE meeting!

You’re invited to attend SMILE meetings every month at SMILE Station, an historic building on the site of the original fire station for the old “City of Sellwood”. The August General Meeting will be at 7:30 pm on Wednesday, August 2nd – and the next regular Board meeting will be at 7:30 pm on Wednesday, August 16th. SMILE Station is on the southeast corner of S.E. 13th at Tenino, a block south of Tacoma Street, at 8210 S.E. 13th in Sellwood. Meeting agendas beforehand, and draft meeting minutes afterward, are posted online at: www.SMILErecords.org.

Rent SMILE Station – or the historic church!

SMILE is the renting agent for the historic and picturesque Oaks Pioneer Church, on S.E. Spokane Street at Grand, just north of the Sellwood Bridge – overlooking the Willamette River. The church is available at very attractive rates for weddings, memorials, christenings, and other events. In addition, SMILE owns its own building – SMILE Station, S.E. 13th and Tenino, at 8210 S.E. 13th – which is also for rent at very attractive rates for business meetings, parties, wedding receptions, and special events; it will seat up to 100 and has tables, chairs, and an industrial kitchen facility. See more at: www.SMILEstation.org. For information on renting either building for your event, call 503/234-3570, and leave a message for Lori Fyre; she will return your call. To research Oaks Pioneer Church and what it offers, visit its own Internet website: www.OaksPioneerChurch.org.

Community volunteers serve on SMILE committees, too!

SMILE is also looking for neighbors to serve on one or more of SMILE’s committees, including:

Transportation Committee
Land-Use Committee
Stewardship of Natural Amenities Committee (“SNAC”)
Sundae in the Park Committee
History Committee
Emergency Preparedness Committee
Crime Prevention Committee
Friends of Sellwood Community Center
Historic Pioneer Church Committee
SMILE Station Committee
Finance Committee
Communications Committee
Various ad-hoc committees as needed

Attend a SMILE meeting, and find out more about what we do!

Websites for Sellwood-Westmoreland

SMILE offers two complementary websites as a resource for the neighborhood. One is the neighborhood’s blog: www.SellwoodMoreland.org – posting neighborhood news, and regularly updated. A second website contains SMILE’s agendas, minutes, announcements, documents, resources, and much ongoing and regularly-updated neighborhood reference information – it’s online at: www.SMILErecords.org. In addition, SMILE maintains an informational website for the Oaks Pioneer Church on Spokane Street at the east end of the Sellwood Bridge, for which it is the renting agent: www.OaksPioneerChurch.org. For more on SMILE Station: www.SMILEstation.org.

Neighborhood survey: What your neighbors think

Many thanks to the hundreds who completed last year’s SMILE Neighborhood Survey. It was a fantastic success, with over 700 people filling out the questionnaire! Your neighborhood association, SMILE, is using the results of this survey to help give direction to our stances on neighborhood issues facing our community. It will also help recruit much-needed new volunteers for SMILE’s various committees. Thanks once again. We have a great neighborhood!! Go to this Internet address to view the detailed results of the survey: http://tinyurl.com/nzymuw3. It is also posted on both SMILE websites: www.sellwoodmoreland.org, and www.smilerecords.org. A Southeast Uplift presentation, from the July 15, 2015, SMILE Board Meeting on Land Use Training, is also now posted for downloading on the latter website for those interested in the subject.

Who SMILE members are

SMILE members are EVERYONE living in, working in, or owning property in, Sellwood and/or Westmoreland – unless they specifically exempt themselves. All SMILE members are welcome to volunteer for any of the SMILE committees of particular interest to them.

SMILE is a 501c3 nonprofit

Of the 95 recognized neighborhood associations in Portland, SMILE is one of the few to be authorized by the IRS as a nonprofit “501c3” organization. This means that donations made to SMILE are tax-deductible – and are very welcome!

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SMILE 2017-18 Board election results!

At the May 3, 2017, Annual General Public Meeting, SMILE's annual Board election was held. The results were:

Officers (1-year terms):

President: Joel Leib

Vice President : Gail Hoffnagle

Treasurer: Pat Hainley

Secretary: Eric Norberg

At-Large Board Seats (2-year terms):

TERM EXPIRES 2018

Elaine O'Keefe

Elizabeth Milner [Elected to fill this vacant seat at a special election on October 5, 2016]