Groups present outer East Portland ‘Safety Fair’

If you missed it, take a look at what was offered there …

In the Mill Park neighborhood, the East Portland Community Safety Fair gets underway.

Story and photos by David F. Ashton

Portland Parks & Recreation’s East Portland Community Center Community Room was the location for a new event, held on Saturday, June 24 – the East Portland Community Safety Fair.

Around the perimeter of this capacious room, tables were set up displaying literature and equipment demonstrating various aspects of safety. Perhaps due to a lack of promotion, visitors tot he event were few.

Harrison Kass, “Community Safety Fellow” from Mayor Wheeler’s Office tells about the fair.

“Our Community Safety Fair is about putting together Government Bureaus and community organizations to promote community safety,” explained “Community Safety Fellow” Harrison Kass, of Mayor Ted Wheeler’s office..

“Here, we are building community, and networking, but also handing out functional equipment – like steering wheel [locking] clubs, catalytic converter stickers, bicycle theft recovery stickers, and bicycle helmets,” Kass told East Portland News.

Before Portland Street Response workers are sent on a call, they speak with a neighbor about their work.

“Today, [the giveaway of] tangible goods seem to be the main draw,” observed Kass. “This is really just a comprehensive, very broad interpretation of what ‘Community Safety’ is – and trying to promote that.”

City of Portland Budget Office Community Safety Division Safe Blocks Program Coordinator Daniel Franco-Nunuz provides information about their work and shows the give-away from PDX311, a cooling towel.

Mayor Wheeler’s office and the Portland Police Bureau’s East Precinct were the main “points of coordination” for the safety fair, Kass said.

Portland Parks & Recreation Park Rangers Reece Sparr and Janejira Clark are on hand to talk with people who came to the event.

The best thing to come out of this offering such a fair, Kass remarked, “Is getting government and community groups together with community members and constituents, to have “strength in numbers”.

“And, the more people on the right side of this, trying to build safety — rather than nefarious forces on the outside, you know, committing the crimes and the theft, and the violence – the better for us all,” concluded Kass.

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