The New Frontier
Flush with hip businesses and new young residents, yet still dealing with the same old problems of drugs, crime, and poverty, St. Johns finds itself at a crossroads.
By Randy Gragg
Familiar parade tropes like marching bands, waving pageant queens, and glad-handing politicians were augmented by the addition of the St. Johns Bizarre, a street fair complete with a flash-mob and a headlining performance by Explode Into Colors, dubbed the best new band in the city last year by Willamette Week. A mariachi band blared away on the sidewalk. Even Telephone Man seemed to fit, with occasional cameo appearances in the crowd.
Speirs has seen the changes grow from a shadow on the horizon to the very real buzz that now surrounds him. He is resigned to change but still concerned about the consequences. “We need the influx of entrepreneurs and young people to rescue this place,” he admits. “But there’s a sense of resentment and concern from some that (the newcomers) are just here to skim off the surface. That they don’t really give a shit about St. Johns.”
Ultimately, what might help carry St. Johns through its next evolution is the ability to embrace its tenacious past while at the same time jettisoning that 95-year-old grudge. It’s a new mind-set of proactive progress set forth in a letter to the editor Adamski recently sent to the St. Johns Review. “Often,” she wrote, “I hear a response that reflects an attitude of ‘Well, St. Johns always gets a bad shake.’ I feel that this is not helpful and rather hurtful to our community….Consider asking yourself what a solution might be before you complain about a problem in our neighborhood.
“Perhaps a change in thinking is all that is needed.”
Published: July 2010
Great story on St. Johns. Your web-exclusive slideshow of St. Johns isn’t working. Please fix it, I need more St. Johns action!
Big news…34 years in the making the brownfield in downtown St. Johns is a major step closer to being redeveloped. On Wednesday, June 16, 2010 the City Council selected a development team. More info here, http://djcoregon.com/news/2010/06/17/north-portland-brownfield-development-closer-to-completion/
If I’m not mistaken, Angel O’Brien is the owner of Ladybug Cafe. And that’s not her in the photo. And she is not married to someone named Bennington.
I moved here 3 1/2 years ago, bought a house, got married, got a dog and my office is here in the John. I love it here, this is my neighborhood. Thanks for the article.
We bought a house in St. Johns 3 years ago and also love living here. It’s great to be able to bike and walk everywhere, 5 coffee shops, farmers’ market and NEW Krugers permanent produce market on Lombard (year round!), Swap n Play, it’s becoming a great spot for young families and professionals. Oh, and it’s a 15 min. jaunt to downtown! Thank you for writing about our neighborhood!
http://pdc.us/new/releases/2010/news-release-2010-06-18-mainstreet.asp
“Mayor Sam Adams congratulated St. John’s Main Streets Coalition, NE Alberta Main Street Program and Hillsdale Community Foundation as the initial districts to launch the Portland program, which will be the first urban Green Main Street program in the country.”
I’ve visited St. John’s a couple of times – and will be back again since my son and his family live there. It is rough around the edges but you can definitely start to see the swing back towards some “gentrification”. Three cheers to all those who have kept a stiff upper lip & are making the best of things as well as to all the transplants who have moved to the area and are improving their homes and neighborhoods with all their ideas and “new blood”, while enjoying all the tradition of St. John’s.
SO yeah, that’s not Angel or John, her ex-husband… That’s Noelle and myself, Nic. Very funny, please fix this.
St. John’s has a lot more to offer then white people moving in and making it a “better place.” Local business’ that have been in the neighborhood for years are what makes St. John’s—such as Santa Cruz and Nicola’s. St. John’s has a lot of misfortune, but it’s also one of the most diverse neighborhood’s in all of Portland. We need to be celebrating this and recognizing the people who have lived in this neighborhood after the 1950’s and before the gentrification.
I have lived in st.johns my whole life , it has gotten better around here and has come a long way . and what make st. johns the place it is are the people . I can walk down the street and run in to someone i went to kindergarden with it is nice to see peole u knew when u were little and see how they are doing and how far we have both come . friends and family are what make st. johns what it is why dwell on things that are, and happen every where
Depressing that the author, and owner of the recently opened hipster bar “the fixin to”, opens his article by mocking an elderly local resident who happens to be harmlessly mentally disabled. I plan to treat his business with similarly little sympathy (been there …. weak food, weaker drinks, unfriendly staff).