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Tag: Downtown Portland

  • Valentine’s Day Brings a Boost to a Downtown Portland Business That’s Been Around Since the 1930s. – KXL

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    Gifford’s Flowers, SW PORTLAND

    PORTLAND, Ore. — Portland’s downtown recovery remains uneven, according to recent economic reports, but one longtime business is hoping Valentine’s Day brings a boost.

    The Portland Metro Chamber this week described the region’s economy as being at a critical turning point, citing job losses, high office vacancy and sluggish population growth. While foot traffic and safety conditions have improved in parts of the central city, many businesses say weekday activity still lags behind pre-pandemic levels.

    At Gifford’s Flowers, a family-owned shop on the corner of Broadway and Jefferson, Valentine’s Day is typically one of the busiest times of the year.

    “Our family has owned this for four generations,” said Laura Gifford Kerr.

    The florist has operated in Portland since 1938, surviving economic downturns, changing retail trends and the disruptions of the pandemic.

    Gifford Kerr said conditions downtown feel safer than they did several years ago, though she believes more weekday shoppers and office workers are needed to support small businesses consistently.

    “It’s not scary to be downtown,” she said. “We’re not seeing as many property crimes that we were seeing maybe like three or four years ago.”

    Valentine’s Day sales remain strong, with roses still a leading choice for customers. But Gifford Kerr said buying patterns have shifted over time.

    “It used to be traditionally only roses,” she said. “We still do a lot of those, but I would say it’s almost 50-50 as far as spring, romantic mixes, local, colorful flowers.”

    The shop plans to remain open through Valentine’s Day while supplies last, stocked with classic red roses and a range of bright seasonal arrangements.

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    Jon Eric Smith

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  • Portland Police Prepare For “No Kings” March Saturday – KXL

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    Portland Police Monitor Protesters Portland’s Waterfront. (June 14, 2025)

    Portland, Ore. – “No Kings” protest marches are planned around the country Saturday, to show opposition to President Trump’s policies, including his use of the military in U.S. cities. Several events are planned for the Portland-metro area. 

    Portland Police estimate the downtown crowd could swell to anywhere from a few thousand to 50,000 people. “We’ve seen a number of protests, they’ve been very peaceful. And there are no indicators that we’re going to see anything different here from this,” Assistant Chief Craig Dobson said Friday.

    Portland’s Bureau of Transportation confirms it approved permits for three marches, starting at 11 a.m.:  At the Convention Center, east end of the Hawthorne Bridge and Pioneer Courthouse Square. 

    Multiple agencies will be involved in safety and traffic patrols, including State Police and Portland Fire. “We’re working with TriMet to ensure, as they close the roads, we’ll be able to redirect some of the bus routes,” says Dobson, “We’re working with ODOT to ensure some of the offramps and onramps are okay for people to be able to safely participate in this event.”

    Dobson added Friday, “It’s billed as a family-friendly event, so we’re expecting it to be much like the ones that we’ve seen in the summer. We’re not anticipating any issues; it’s just going to be a large, friendly event, where we anticipate people to be able to exercise their First Amendment rights. And we’re hoping that at the end of the event, they can take advantage of the decent weather and go into downtown and southeast Portland, and visit the businesses in those areas.” 

    In mid-June, an estimated 50,000 people marched through downtown Portland in the first “No Kings” demonstration (pictured). Portland Police say officers managed the event without any reports of violence or vandalism.

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    Heather Roberts

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  • Trump news at a glance: Trump orders deployment of national guard to ‘war ravaged’ Portland

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    Donald Trump has ordered the deployment of the national guard to Portland, Oregon, authorizing “full force, if necessary”, ignoring calls from local and state officials who say the president has been misinformed about the scale of a protest outside a federal immigration office.

    The president says that he has directed all necessary troops to be deployed to protect “war ravaged Portland”, claiming that immigration facilities were “under siege from attack by Antifa and other domestic terrorists”.

    Officials in Portland have pushed back against the decision and rejected the president’s characterization.

    “There is no insurrection. There is no threat to national security and there is no need for military troops in our major city,” said Oregon’s Democratic governor, Tina Kotek.

    Here are the key stories at a glance.

    Donald Trump says he is deploying troops to Portland, Oregon

    Donald Trump made the announcement on social media, where he claimed that the deployment was necessary “to protect war ravaged Portland,” and Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice) facilities he said were “under siege by antifascists and other domestic terrorists”.

    Oregon’s governor, Tina Kotek, rejected the president’s characterization. “In my conversations directly with President Trump and secretary [of homeland security, Kristi] Noem, I have been abundantly clear that Portland and the state of Oregon believe in the rule of law and can manage our own local public safety needs,” Kotek said at a news conference in Portland on Saturday.

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    Portland residents scoff at Trump threat to send military: ‘This is not a war zone’

    A visit to downtown Portland on Saturday, hours after Donald Trump falsely declared the city “war ravaged” to justify the deployment of federal troops, made it plain the US president’s impression of the city, apparently shaped by misleading conservative media reports, is entirely divorced from reality.

    There were just four protesters outside the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice) field office in an outlying residential neighborhood that the president had claimed was “under siege” by antifascists and “other domestic terrorists”.

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    Trump fires US attorney who told border agents to follow law on immigration raids

    Donald Trump fired a top federal prosecutor in Sacramento just hours after she warned immigration agents they could not indiscriminately detain people in her district, according to documents reviewed by the New York Times.

    Michele Beckwith, who became the acting US attorney in Sacramento in January, received an email at 4.31pm on 15 July notifying her that the president had ordered her termination.

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    ‘Hell on earth’: immigrants held in new California detention facility beg for help

    Immigrants locked up in California’s newest federal detention center have described the facility as a “a torture chamber”, “a zoo” and “hell on earth”, saying they were confined in filthy cells and suffered medical crises without help.

    Six people detained at the California City detention center, which opened in late August and is now the state’s largest Immigration and Customs Enforcement (Ice) detention center, shared accounts with the Guardian of poor conditions and alleged mistreatment by staff.

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    US military brass brace for firings as Pentagon chief orders top-level meeting

    US military officials are reportedly bracing for possible firings or demotions after the Trump administration’s Pentagon chief, Pete Hegseth, abruptly summoned hundreds of generals and admirals from around the world to attend a gathering in Virginia in the upcoming days.

    The event, scheduled for Tuesday at Marine Corps University in Quantico, is expected to feature a short address by Hegseth focused on military standards and the “warrior ethos”, according to the Washington Post.

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    FBI arrest man who allegedly threatened to shoot people at Texas Pride parade

    Federal authorities in Texas have arrested a man for allegedly threatening to shoot people at a pro-LGBTQ+ parade, to avenge the murder of Charlie Kirk.

    According to court documents viewed by the Guardian, on 18 September, the FBI’s field office in Dallas was notified by Abilene, Texas, police about online threats from a local resident.

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    What else happened today:

    Catching up? Here’s what happened 26 September 2025.

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  • UnderU4 Men Founder Retiring, Store Changing Ownership & Location – KXL

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    PORTLAND, Ore. —  The men’s LGBTQ undergarment store Under U4Men is undergoing a major makeover as founder Steve Lien is retiring.  But, the business is being bought by one of his longtime employees Wesley Bateman.

    Bateman plans to move the shop from its location since 2006 at SW Washington & SW Park to SW 10th & Morrison.  It is a smaller location but will remain downtown.  Bateman hopes to open the store in October.

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    Brett Reckamp

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