The Consumerist brings news that Oregon's school lunches are making the grade. The Center For Science in the Public Interest has upgraded Oregon from an F to an A-. Oregon and Kentucky are the only states to earn A's. (Link)

Here's a PDF of the full report card.

Posted by Aaron Weiss at 5:58 PM | Permalink

If you're a Portland foodie, you've probably already read this morning's profile of Michael Hebb(eroy) in the NY Times.

If you're not, it's a great introduction to a fascinating chapter in Portland food history. This quote must grate (sorry) with a lot of people here:

"I decided to live differently and create differently with the hope that people would see that. But I became the distinct scapegoat for the fall of Ripe, even though I had been the one who spent the most energy and time trying to save the company." (Link)

Posted by Aaron Weiss at 9:00 AM | Permalink | Comments (3)

Last night, we aired Amy Troy's special report on bikes & cars in Portland. The take-home message from that piece: there are more people riding in Portland, but the number of accidents has remained stable over the last few years. Hence, riding is safer now than it was a few years ago. (For more on what went into the story, see this post from News Director Rod Gramer.)

Sadly, statistics provide poor solace to friends of Brett Jarolimek and Tracy Sparling. The latest crash at Interstate & Greeley reinforces the notion that even if cycling is safer overall, the increase in ridership makes certain areas more dangerous.

BikePortland has photos from the scene. The cyclist has several broken bones. Police haven't cited the driver, but I don't know if that means the investigation is ongoing, or they won't be issuing a ticket.

The question now: given all the attention this intersection got at Sam Adams' emergency meeting, how quickly can the city do something about it?

Update: Answer to the previous question: about 6 hours. PDOT is now banning right turns at the intersection "indefinitely" until a solution is found.

Posted by Aaron Weiss at 12:52 PM | Permalink | Comments (20)

And now there's a text version to go along with the video version. The Times calls it "In Portland, Cultivating a Culture of Two Wheels." It goes on to say

Yet in a city often uncomfortable with corporate gloss, what is most distinctive about the emerging cycling industry here is the growing number of smaller businesses, whether bike frame builders or clothing makers, that often extol recycling as much as cycling, sustainability as much as success.

The latest from the New York Times' Portland Bureau: a 4-minute video report from Erik Olsen & William Yardley on how Portland is developing a bike economy. (Sorry, no embedding from the Times' player -- you get to click through.)

One more bicycling note - long before this recent spate of deadly bicycle accidents, we here at Newschannel-8 started crunching the numbers to get to the bottom of who's really to blame - bikes or cars - for the accidents that do occur. We found some interesting stats. You can check out report tonight on Newschannel-8 at 11.

Posted by Aaron Weiss at 6:37 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

Local faves "The Decemberists" have pulled the plug on the rest of their US tour, just weeks after cutting short a trip through Europe (the band's site is down, so no link right now, but check it for yourself at www.decemberists.com)

In a post on their website, the band cites the illness of one of its members. They hoped canceling some European dates would allow time to heal, but that turned out not to be the case.

Pitchfork has the full statement from the band, and the complete list of canceled dates. Bummer for Portland fans - their three Crystal Ballroom dates in early December are among those canceled.

Posted by Rich Kurz at 5:31 PM | Permalink