Tigard’s Downtown Alliance was recently selected as at a Designated Main Street Level by Oregon Main Street program. “The Designated Main Street level is a mark of distinction that reflects a demonstrated effort to building, growing, and sustaining a main street organization to support efforts to improve a community’s historic downtown by leveraging partnerships and engaging community members,” said a statement from Oregon Main Street, a program that aids communities in helping to revitalize historic downtowns and commercial districts. ...

Forest Grove lost a leader, volunteer and community pillar this weekend — but what remains is a legacy of service. Richard Kidd III, a former mayor who served in city leadership for over three decades, died Sunday, Oct. 6, at his Forest Grove home. He was 88. A U.S. Army veteran, Kidd arrived in Forest Grove in 1970, initially assigned to assist the city’s National Guard armory. Though his military...

Oregon’s governor and top elections official are calling for an independent external audit of the state’s automatic voter registration system after the Motor Vehicles Services Division found another 302 people were incorrectly registered to vote. The latest numbers, included in an “after-action” report Gov. Tina Kotek requested from the DMV, join an earlier 1,259 people who were registered to vote despite not providing proof of citizenship when they obtained driver’s licenses. At least 10 of those individuals voted, though election officials have since determined that...

Below are the most recent statewide girls soccer coaches polls in all classifications, brought to you by the OSAAtoday. Please note: these polls are for generating interest and discussion only and have no impact on the OSAA ratings that form the basis of the OSAA’s rankings for playoff purposes. If you are a girls soccer varsity head coach, did not receive a ballot and would like to vote in future...

It’s said that there’s more than one way to skin a cat. By that same token, there’s more than one way for fans to approach a big game. And while the most dedicated of the bunch might disagree, I ride with anyone who has a plan and sticks with it in regard to what gets them and their team what they want most — a win. This topic is especially apt this week as Oregon Duck fans playout the clock over the final days of...

Oregon and more than a dozen other states are suing the social media giant TikTok for allegedly harming children with its short-form video app. On Tuesday, Oct. 8, Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum said TikTok's business model exploits and harms young people through deceptive and manipulative practices aimed at keeping people addicted to the platform. “Social media companies, out of basic greed, intentionally design their platforms to addict users and...

Washington County is getting a leg up on increasing safety for victims of domestic violence, sexual assault and stalking. The county has been awarded a $750,000 federal grant that will improve the county’s pretrial release program by providing funding to monitor those who are awaiting trial but aren’t in custody in domestic violence cases. In addition, it will pay to integrate a risk-assessment tool into that monitoring system to determine the appropriate level of monitoring needed for the person being charged. ...

“Because it is vital to democracy.” That was a remark heard numerous times during the recent national convention of the League of Women Voters held in Washington, D.C. The comments addressed the question that the League in Oregon has been exploring for several years — why journalism and local news is important to our country, and what can be done to support it. The bipartisan “Community News and Small Business Support Act” introduced in the U.S. House during 2023 was noted as a bill encouraging...

Maybe it’s some kind of record, maybe not. Laura Veirs, one of the new inductees into the Oregon Music Hall of Fame, estimates that she has written about 1,000 songs. Veirs has also put out 13 albums, including the appropriately named “Phone Orphans” in 2023, which includes — you guessed it — old songs that she had written and recorded on her phone. She “found” 14 of them — songs from 2018, 2020 and 2022. ...

It’s electric — The newest output from Beaverton’s Sexton Mountain Pump Station, that is. After a year of renovations, a hydropower turbine has been installed at the pump station to generate clean energy during the normal flow of water operations in southwest Beaverton. Before, gravity pulled clean drinking water from the Fernhill Wetlands in Forest Grove to the Sexton Mountain reservoir. That rushing water was untapped potential for energy generation...

It was another great week of high school football action on the westside, with teams from Washington and Columbia counties coming away with both nail-biting victories and heartbreaking defeats. Here’s a review of the action: Mountainside erased a seven point halftime deficit with 35 third quarter points in a 49-28 win over Sunset. The Mavericks got fumble returns for touchdowns from both Liam Ange and Sean Bour-Nelson, along with 118...

For nearly a year, Loran Beck believed he did not belong in an Oregon state prison – even though Oregon’s governor sent him there. On Sept. 19, a Multnomah County District Court judge found that Beck, not the governor, was correct. After Judge Michael Greenlick heard the case, he ordered Beck’s immediate release. “I don’t want to spend another day drafting an opinion if it’s going to delay his release...

Portland Community College staff and industry partners showed off the latest technologies, training and careers at one of the largest manufacturing-related learning events in the state. More than 200 high school juniors and seniors from Columbia, Tillamook, Clatsop and Washington counties attended the annual Manufacturing Day on Oct. 4 at the PCC Oregon Manufacturing Innovation Training Center. Manufacturing Day is an opportunity for students and educators to experience the world of modern manufacturing. Prior to the pandemic, this event was the largest Manufacturing Day in...

The Oregon School Activities Association's delegate assembly voted on Monday, Oct. 7, to designate girls flag football as an emerging activity. The sport met the threshold of 25 schools to be eligible for the vote. It will be considered an emerging activity for the next two years, and if it reaches 50 schools by the end of that period, it would be eligible to become an officially sanctioned OSAA sport. ...

Lance Siebler has run dozens of marathons in his life — almost all of them in Portland. The certified accountant from Tigard, Oregon, will be one of nearly 10,000 participants in this year’s Portland Marathon on Sunday. He’s run in every version of the race since 1986. It began as a way to bond with his father, himself a marathon runner, and the pair participated in Siebler’s first few races...

U.S. Rep. Andrea Salinas never pursued a master’s degree and a career in mental health after she graduated with a bachelor’s degree in psychology from the University of California, Berkeley. She decided she didn’t want to end up with a pile of debt. But Oregon and other states need more behavioral health professionals, and now she’s trying to do something to encourage more people to enter the field. Salinas is...

Interest rates have officially dropped and headlines everywhere are talking about how the housing market is about to heat up like we haven’t seen in a few years. For those of us who are not in the market for a new home, though, it feels like the rate drop is for everyone else. But that is not the case. Interest rates dropping don’t only make mortgages more affordable, they also...

Beginning Tuesday, Oct. 8, and continuing through Wednesday, Oct. 16, the city of Tigard is hosting a series of workshops on “traffic calming” throughout the city. The goal is to get residents together to hear about city traffic calming measures designed to slow down street traffic. Residents are asked to share concerns as well as collaborate with community members and experts all in an effort to create a safer community. ...

Can a factory race-ready performance car ever serve as a daily driver? In the case of the 2024 Nissan Z NISMO, the answer is a surprising yes, at least much of the time. I did not think that when I tested a 2020 370Z NISMO, the last year of the previous generation of Nissan’s long running sports car. Although I enjoyed the 350 horsepower produced by its normally-aspirated 3.7-liter V6 and optional six-speed manual transmission, the ride was so stiff that I described it as...

Dark, dreary winters often bring feelings of sadness and sluggishness, commonly called the “winter blues”. Decreased sunlight can disrupt neurotransmitters that are crucial for maintaining wellness. Here in the Pacific Northwest, we’re more likely to suffer from Seasonal Affective Disorder which causes changes in mood, activities and overall well-being. As winter approaches, it’s important to implement strategies that combat these symptoms and help us thrive even in the darkest months. Exercise: When it comes to managing depression, physical activity naturally boosts “happy hormones” like serotonin,...