Native Portlander here, let’s be honest, downtown used to be a very active place, it used to be full of people until…..we all know. Were you born here? It’s primarily a business district now, but it’s a ghost town from what it used to be. Even in February. It’s heartbreaking 💔

@livinginoregon

3 ай бұрын

I was born here, yeah

@smokinglife8980

Ай бұрын

That's what I was thinking it's been a very long time since I've been there I was like 14yrs old and I'm 21 now but I remember a very beautiful city full of life and things to do all day!

@calikeisha365

5 күн бұрын

Hi Lisa, I’m from the West Coast, California to be exact but unfortunately never got the opportunity to visit Portland. Is it one thing or more of a culmination of things like in California? I know a lot of folks also say the BLM protests. Is that true? I’m curious.

@lisaknieriem5852

5 күн бұрын

@calikeisha365 Hi Keisha 👋 Portland has been in decline due to Progressive Policies and liberal voting. Downtown Portland has become a wasteland due to businesses closing, homelessness , drug addiction and crime. Used to be the clean and green city of art and awesome food. I’m heartbroken to see what has become of Portland, once a safe, beautiful, prosperous and fun city. Antifa has a strong presence here.

Last weekend's Winter Lights Festival last weekend was just like the old days! Families out walking around, pretty lights and sculptures everywhere. It was really fun driving through the city and seeing so much good activity. Funny thing about city events, the tweakers disappear when the rest of us come out & enjoy ourselves.

@davewinkerson8221

3 ай бұрын

Saturday Market was losts of fun. But, that was when the City actually cared about law and order.

@newtexan1

Ай бұрын

Liar

Yeah, try going at nighttime and tell me how great it is. I have a business and it’s a daily struggle to keep the fenty junkies from my entrance and have to call Clean and Safe on a regular basis. Sometimes the sidewalk out front looks like a scene from The Walking Dead. Also, hardly a day goes by when someone doesn’t steal.

@robertgold7652

Ай бұрын

Yeah try to travel through in the early morning. Especially 5th and Washington- more likely to get shot at

I’d say it’s gotten a little better city-wide but it has a long way to go. Destroying your reputation isn’t easy to repair.

Back in the 1990s Portland had some of the best Records shops in the USA.

Another great one. Thanks!

i moved out of portland 3 years ago and have never looked back, was the best choice of my life.

@uglyhobo4602

3 ай бұрын

I'm homeless here in Portland lolm

@anonymousmouse1032

3 ай бұрын

Where did you go and whats the difference?

@akahina

Ай бұрын

Portland is glad you left too! Love it or leave it. Portland is better without you.

@mattropolis99

Ай бұрын

@@akahina You're exactly the kind of person I've come to know that lives in Portland. Open minded, welcoming, accepting of diversity, and tolerant. /s

@triquepersonalwork6369

3 күн бұрын

I am considering moving there, seems like a city that values the arts more than many other cities

I lived in downtown Portland in 1991. I loved it. Every evening, we would head downtown, and there was always something cool happening. Open air markets on the weekend. Great food everywhere.

I've lived in Portland 25 years - and I'm leaving. I don't recommend moving here in 2024. I mean, we just had more massive damage, violent protesters, and people smashing up local businesses May 2, 2024 from the PSU library takeover. Portland downtown now has the highest commercial vacancy in the entire US and it's just getting worse the last 2 years - that's how fast companies are moving out. You clearly avoided all the tents downtown, walking past the courthouse that is boarded up like a fortress since 2021, and the crazy people that make it completely unsafe if you need to walk to work at 7-9am. Try being a woman and taking public transit at 7:30am downtown and tell me how safe you think it is. Last time I had to catch the Max at 7:30am at Pioneer square, there was a guy on platform with his pants around his ankles walking around and 2 people threatening each other with knives.

I grew up in Portland. I went to Lincoln high school which is downtown in the 1990s. Downtown Portland was a living downtown with tons of people and this was a source of pride back then. I moved away in 1994 and didn't realize how bad it's gotten. This is sad for me to see.

Portland is a great city for the arts, culture, Etc. nice video

Thanks for the video! FYI- we are thinking of selling our Harrison condo HE 18B. Dean & Cindy

@livinginoregon

2 ай бұрын

Thanks for watching! Get in touch if you'd like to discuss further.

That is dead for a Friday. I live in the Pearl and its been pretty busy lately. We went downtown on a Sunday and it was hard to find parking. I walked around yesterday on Saturday and it was pretty busy.

Moving to Portland in the Fall. Looking for a part of town close to PSU/accessible to the light rail, but I also want somewhere that does have that social presence and things to do. Anyone have any good neighborhood recommendations? Trying to keep it affordable too though! Thanks.

@livinginoregon

27 күн бұрын

Lair Hill or Goose Hollow would be good options

@vanji611

8 күн бұрын

Try the local sewer.

Good stuff

A customer is not even allowed to use the bathroon at Starbucks in Pioneer Square because of the druggies.

Is it a hot land or cool land?

It looks like the water fountains are still working ... good enough for me!

Seattle nice u been up here yet to visit

It’s concerning that I did not see many people walking the streets in this video. I understand that you said downtown is more of a business hub than social hub or that it is a Friday (which most people WFH). But there were parts of the video where you did not see one person in the distance on the streets.

@davewinkerson8221

3 ай бұрын

Nobody want to go downtown. Even the City workers don't want to return to the City Building after a multi-million dollar remodel, due to the high crime, drugs, etc.

Lived there for 14 years. Last time i visited I was stunned at the ghost town that is downtown. This was in late July and there was no one around. Very sad.

I am in Portland visiting right now and I can assure you downtown is not safe! When a McDonalds permanently closes its dining room for safety that tells you something. We saw someone doing drugs. And the homeless are all Over downtown. Yes there are small Pockets of decent areas downtown. But I am glad I decided to airbnb and stay in one of the neighborhoods that have shops and restaurants vs staying downtown. Much safer!

Portland has not been the same since 2020. I moved out last year and now I am in Chicago. There are a few pockets of Chi-town that are pretty rough, like along 79th St on southside. Overall, however, Chicago feels way better than Portland right now. I miss Portland, but it feels like it is slowly dying.

The light festival at pioneer square last night was really crowded and it went well🤷🏽‍♂️

@sketchypeoplepdx

3 ай бұрын

Drove by the light festival over the weekend! It was hoppin'! My wife and her friend went shopping downtown on Sunday, and she said it was buzzing with activity.

@mattropolis99

Ай бұрын

Actually, the attendance in 2024 was way down from previous years and continuing to decline.

High tops I've heard that high tops are popular in San Francisco because when you step into what you step into you don't want that getting inside your shoe anyway wish I would have left Portland but I guess I'm here for the foreseeable future and unfortunately I think we're continually circling the drain

I have never heard Vancouver, WA ever referred as part of the Portland metro region. This is like stating Camas or Washougal is part of the City of Vancouver. Many businesses, restaurants, and homeowners left Portland en masse starting 2019. The decline first accelerated in 2010 due to policies and liberal attitudes. 2015 was acceptance of public camping, Measure 110 finished the job.

Like every weekend yes

is that a bullet hole in the glass?

@livinginoregon

3 ай бұрын

Where? If it looks like a bullet hole I assume it would be.

@davewinkerson8221

3 ай бұрын

No, the owner just wanted a little extra ventilation. And some nice citizen made their wish come true.

I went to college at Eastern Oregon Univ. in the mid 2000s and loved going to Portland on the weekends. I always made sure to visit the REI before making the drive back to La Grande. I just found out it closed for good earlier this month citing crime as the main reason. It's sad to see what they did to a once great city.

@CRneu

3 ай бұрын

Reminder that retailers got caught lying about how bad retail theft is. Their lobbying group openly admitted they grossly overstated how bad retail theft was. Employee and corporate theft far outnumber retail theft for basically all companies. It's not as big a problem as companies make it out to be, it's just a very easy scapegoat to blame. Additionally, people dont want to go downtown. The other neighborhoods generally have everything people want. The big retailers downtown were mostly for tourists. Downtown is mostly for offices and events, not for retailers.

@lukebandy516

3 ай бұрын

@CRneu You can thank DA Mike Schmidt for refusing to prosecute retail theft. Get rid of him and watch buisness come back.

@lisafreeman2810

3 ай бұрын

@@CRneu Underrated comment right here. The news is trying to perpetuate the crime angle because it sells ad time. It's the corporations. It's invariably the corporations.

@benkizer9509

3 ай бұрын

REI closed that location, because it moved a few exits up the freeway to Walker Street in Beaverton.

@davewinkerson8221

3 ай бұрын

Yes, those broken windows and dumpster fires, are just an opticall illusion. @

Moved to Portland and started working near Pioneer Square in early 2022. It’s been nothing but improvement since then. In the last year it’s gotten to the point where it is no longer stressful to catch a movie with my small children and walk back to the car after dark. Tents no longer pop up in audacious locations. There’s a ton of positive proactive activity, like city-supported jazz buskers. If I had to point to two new businesses that helped revitalize their key blocks, it’s the Shake Shack near Powell’s and the Midtown Beer Garden.

@turbokid8719

3 ай бұрын

😂

@lylewalker5681

3 ай бұрын

Yep, things are obviously getting better. And from the perspective of all the conservatives that have spent the last five years hating on Portland, and calling it a cesspool, this improvement is obviously happening because of Democrats, because of liberal voters, because of the DAs, because of Everything that was also to blame for the crime rate getting worse during Covid. Of course you can’t blame Covid for the crime rate getting worse and livability deteriorating, because it was the Democrats fault then. We have to blame democrats and progressives and ignore covid. But then, of course, now it’s the recovery from Covid that is responsible for the crime rate getting better, and things generally getting back to normal. I am very smart.

@benkizer9509

3 ай бұрын

I'd also add the Ritz Carlton to that.

@clausbohm9807

2 ай бұрын

Great, ... because it looks like I am now moving back to PDX after leaving in 2009.

@turbokid8719

2 ай бұрын

@@clausbohm9807 sorry to hear that 🤣🤣🤣🤣

I left Portland last summer after my wife slipped on a human turd and broke her ankle.

@pauladeensbuttbutter

2 ай бұрын

lol sucks to suck

I retired just prior to the corona virus pandemic. We moved to North Dallas suburbs in Texas. Less taxes, more affordable, and almost no crime. Access to medical care is better even under medicare. I have a much less intrusive government. Oregon decriminalized many drugs 2 years ago. Portland city council defunded the police. The result is down town is not safe or prospering.The governor just declared a drug emergency in Portland. It is very sad and tragic, what it used to be and what it is now.

@davewinkerson8221

3 ай бұрын

I love the vidio. Some real eastat fool trying to say that downtown is just a business district, when everyone has been driven out by riots, crime, druggers, campers, and he drug inducted brain dead.

Downtown was a "hot bed" 20 years ago.

This is total BS. Last time I was downtown there were 4 homeless junkies kicking each other in the groin for 10 minutes until they finally got exhausted and passed out in the street.

Only the homeless, druggies, and criminals hang around downtown... I remember Portland in the early 90's. It was actually a beautiful city....

@lisafreeman2810

3 ай бұрын

You mean when the Guardian Angels walked around because the Crips & Bloods were all killing each other in Portland?

@portshore8552

2 ай бұрын

@@lisafreeman2810 Your not from Portland are you.

@lisafreeman2810

2 ай бұрын

Yea, you're right. I moved here in 1971. I'm a newb. @@portshore8552

PDX deserves credit for closing some of their streets to cars and for allowing outdoor dining. They've also done a great job of repurposing their old industrial brick buildings. The single best aspect of Portland is their zoning laws. Where else in America can you find a restaurant or coffee shop operating out of an old house in the middle of a residential neighborhood.

I go downtown probably every other day. I used to work and live downtown at various locations. My dad's old office building is over by the amazing 2nd Ave. Records. I will always return downtown. Been going downtown since the early 90s. Is downtown dead? Nah. Sure, it wasn't what it once was but what is? The only constant is change. Oh, you can get Sketchy People books at Powell's #shamelesspromotion

@lisafreeman2810

3 ай бұрын

😍 Everyone, buy the Sketchy People books! They're really clever and SO Portland.

@sketchypeoplepdx

3 ай бұрын

@@lisafreeman2810 🙏

Am I thinking of re-locating to the Portland metro area? No. I'm not. I have no idea how you earn living as a Portland realtor.

@livinginoregon

2 ай бұрын

There are probably crazier occupations out there.

If downtown Portland is just a "business center", why does downtown have so many condos and apartments? Who are you trying to fool?

@livinginoregon

3 ай бұрын

I think the area I was defining as downtown (mostly the area I was walking around) got lost in translation. Happy to discuss some more if you want to get in touch!

hope that big book store is still there

Beware...the video is defentally decieveing...not showing the realiety of it buy any means

Portland is a cesspool, I work there on and off doing restoration, it is unstable and sketchy…Do one of you cute ambient videos at night…😂

@uglyhobo4602

3 ай бұрын

I'm homeless out here in downtown without a tent.

@futureworldhealing

3 ай бұрын

you want a medal? @@uglyhobo4602

@SS-mp4wl

3 ай бұрын

Sounds like a lifetime of bad choices…

👻

Portland has a budget of over $12 billion, where is the money going to pet projects and stupid crap and not on the important things, you get what you voted for

Im homeless in downtown portland at the moment.

@SS-mp4wl

3 ай бұрын

Of course you are.

You look like a pretty intelligent person. Could you please, PROOFREAD the story before posting it? Do People Actually Go Downtown Portland, Oregon. How about, Do people Actually Go ( TO ) Downtown Portland Anymore? And to think you spent all that money on an education! BTW Why didn't you share the scenic beauty of the drug dealers and the homeless problem downtown, or all the shops with broken windows. And lets not forget the homeless camps, the garbage and the stench of not having a toilet. Just sayn!

@davewinkerson8221

3 ай бұрын

Where to I go the buy?

@livinginoregon

2 ай бұрын

Thanks for just sayn. There is, for better or worse, a way of phrasing titles, headlines, and descriptions that tends to perform better from an SEO perspective. It's all a part of "internet speak." Thank you for calling this out and engaging. In this particular video, I walked several downtown blocks with no intention of showing Portland from a grim perspective OR a rosy perspective. I just filmed what I saw on a given day. It seems that a lot of people were almost disappointed to not see more tents and turds.

Engaging in discussions about religion requires delicacy and empathy, especially when addressing deeply held beliefs. When considering the stark differences between Christianity and Islam regarding the role of Jesus, it's crucial to approach the conversation with sensitivity and respect for differing perspectives. While Christianity reveres Jesus as the divine Son of God and the savior of humanity, Islam holds him in high esteem as a revered prophet but not as divine. Understanding these distinctions is essential when presenting Islam to someone from a Christian background, as it involves navigating complex theological differences while fostering mutual understanding and respect. In this discourse, we'll explore how to approach such conversations with thoughtfulness and empathy, aiming to build bridges of understanding between individuals of different faith traditions. In Christianity, Jesus occupies a central and unique role as the Son of God and the savior of humanity. Christians believe in the doctrine of the Trinity, which asserts that God exists as three persons in one essence: God the Father, God the Son (Jesus Christ), and God the Holy Spirit. Jesus's death and resurrection are foundational to Christian theology, as they are understood to provide redemption and salvation for believers. This view of Jesus as divine is fundamental to Christian faith and practice. Conversely, in Islam, Jesus (known as Isa in Arabic) is honored as one of the most esteemed prophets, but he is not considered divine. Instead, Muslims believe in the absolute oneness of God (Allah) and the finality of prophethood with Muhammad. According to Islamic teachings, Jesus was born to the Virgin Mary through a miraculous birth but was a human prophet, not divine. The Quran emphasizes Jesus's miracles, including his ability to heal the sick and raise the dead, but he is ultimately regarded as a servant and messenger of God, rather than as God incarnate or the Son of God. When presenting Islam to someone from a Christian background, it's essential to approach the conversation with sensitivity, respect, and a genuine desire to foster understanding. Here's a more detailed approach: 1. **Establish Common Ground**: Begin by acknowledging the shared values and beliefs between Christianity and Islam, such as the belief in one God, the importance of prayer, charity, and moral conduct. Highlighting these commonalities can help bridge the gap and create a sense of familiarity. 2. **Clarify Misconceptions**: Address any misconceptions or stereotypes the individual may have about Islam. This could include misconceptions about Islamic beliefs and practices, as well as cultural misunderstandings. Providing accurate information and dispelling myths can pave the way for a more open-minded discussion. 3. **Highlight Islamic Beliefs**: Share key aspects of Islamic belief, such as the belief in the oneness of God, the prophethood of Muhammad, the importance of following the guidance of the Quran, and the concept of accountability in the afterlife. Emphasize the emphasis on social justice, compassion, and community in Islam. 4. **Offer Resources for Further Exploration**: Provide the individual with resources, such as books, articles, or websites, where they can learn more about Islam from reliable sources. Encourage them to engage in further study and reflection to deepen their understanding. 5. **Encourage Dialogue and Questions**: Create a safe and open space for the individual to ask questions and express any concerns or doubts they may have. Encourage dialogue and respectful exchange of ideas, emphasizing that it's okay to have differing perspectives. 6. **Respect Their Journey**: Recognize that exploring faith is a deeply personal journey, and individuals may need time to process new information and perspectives. Respect their autonomy and agency in making decisions about their spiritual beliefs. By approaching the conversation with empathy, understanding, and a commitment to dialogue, you can foster a sense of mutual respect and create opportunities for meaningful engagement with Islam. Remember that ultimately, the decision to explore Islam or any other faith is a personal one, and individuals may need time and support as they navigate their spiritual journey.

will never get the visual out of my mind of the guy washing his butt or the woman washing her "stuff" in the beautiful public drinking fountains. pts

I am in Portland visiting right now and I can assure you downtown is not safe! When a McDonalds permanently closes its dining room for safety that tells you something. We saw someone doing drugs. And the homeless are all Over downtown. Yes there are small Pockets of decent areas downtown. But I am glad I decided to airbnb and stay in one of the neighborhoods that have shops and restaurants vs staying downtown. Much safer!