Southwest Portland

Communities Sewage spills into downtown Portland's Waterfront Park

By KATU.com Staff Published: May 23, 2013 at 2:59 PM PDT Last Updated: May 23, 2013 at 2:59 PM PDT

About 2,400 gallons of sewage overflowed from a public toilet at downtown Portland's Waterfront Park Thursday, spilling across the sidewalk and draining into the Willamette River.

Communities Arts tax redux: Deadline extended to June 10

By KATU.com Staff Published: May 22, 2013 at 4:40 PM PDT Last Updated: May 22, 2013 at 4:40 PM PDT

A spokesman for Mayor Charlie Hales said the website is working again and taking payments. Most Portland residents are on the hook to pay the $35 tax that was approved by voters in November.

Communities Portlanders to see slight decrease in garbage, recycling rates

By KATU.com Staff Published: May 22, 2013 at 3:30 PM PDT Last Updated: May 22, 2013 at 3:32 PM PDT

The Portland City Council on Wednesday approved a rate decrease for residential garbage and recycling customers in Portland.

Communities Hospitals prepare for the worst with emergency drills (Photo Gallery) (Video)

By Valerie Hurst, KATU News Published: May 22, 2013 at 4:24 PM PDT Last Updated: May 22, 2013 at 4:26 PM PDT

Several Portland hospitals are running emergency training drills, simulating what it would be like if they were suddenly inundated with trauma patients.

Communities Portland rejects fluoride but both sides may meet again (Video)

By Steve Benham KATU.com Politics Editor Published: May 21, 2013 at 4:53 PM PDT Last Updated: May 22, 2013 at 6:49 PM PDT

Fluoride advocates admitted defeat Tuesday night after unofficial election results showed Portlanders strongly against adding fluoride to the city’s drinking water. But there were indications new battle lines may be drawn in the future.

Communities Fact or fiction? Examining rumors about a statewide fluoride effort (Video)

By Bob Heye, KATU News Published: May 21, 2013 at 5:24 PM PDT Last Updated: May 21, 2013 at 5:25 PM PDT

The votes haven’t been counted yet, but already there’s speculation that no matter what Portland voters decide, Oregon’s biggest cities could still have their drinking water fluoridated.

Communities A light at the end of the tunnel? Portland schools get a bigger budget

By KATU.com Staff Published: May 21, 2013 at 7:34 AM PDT Last Updated: May 21, 2013 at 7:42 AM PDT

Portland Public Schools will have a bigger budget next year that will add teachers and let high school students take a full course load.

Communities TriMet ticket app testing begins (Video)

By Kerry Tomlinson, KATU Problem Solver Published: May 18, 2013 at 11:03 AM PDT Last Updated: May 18, 2013 at 11:03 AM PDT

200 people are now testing the TriMet mobile ticketing system to smooth out the wrinkles before the app goes public.

Communities Services to help victims of sex trafficking face city's budget ax (Video)

By Erica Nochlin KATU News Published: May 17, 2013 at 6:06 PM PDT Last Updated: May 17, 2013 at 6:12 PM PDT

A victim of sex trafficking came to Portland when she couldn't find help anywhere else, but the services to keep her safe are facing funding cuts.

Communities Latest poll shows fluoride measure failing

By KATU.com Staff Published: May 16, 2013 at 4:25 PM PDT Last Updated: May 16, 2013 at 8:50 PM PDT

The poll, which was conducted by Survey USA and released just five days before the election, shows that 53 percent of likely voters are against fluoridating the water. Just 40 percent of likely voters are for the measure, while eight percent are still undecided.

Communities Computer glitch gives false hope to nursing school applicants (Video)

By Hillary Lake KATU News and KATU.com Staff Published: May 15, 2013 at 11:08 PM PDT Last Updated: May 15, 2013 at 11:08 PM PDT

Some Portland Community College hopefuls got into nursing school for 24 hours, but then the school took back its offer.

Communities Deadline to pay arts tax delayed after online system crash

By KATU.com Staff Published: May 15, 2013 at 5:35 PM PDT Last Updated: May 16, 2013 at 5:12 PM PDT

The city has extended the deadline to pay Portland's art tax indefinitely after an overwhelming number of people paying the tax online crashed the city's online payment system.