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As Oregonians scurry to line up for COVID-19 boosters ahead of the Omicron variant, the Oregon Health Authority today opened a pop-up, walk-in vaccine clinic.
The site: the former Multnomah Greyhound Track, which closed in 2004. It’s now owned by the Confederated Tribes of the Grand Ronde and will host a drop-in clinic from noon until 7 pm Monday through Saturday, Dec. 6-11.
County officials say no appointments are required and nobody will be turned away, including people with no health insurance or regular doctor. The clinic will offer all three vaccines—Moderna, Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson, including boosters and pediatric doses.
The temporary clinic is located at 944 NE 223rd Ave. in Wood Village behind the Wood Village Town Center Fred Meyer.
The high-volume booster site is another of example of a large Portland-area venue being repurposed into a place to get shots into arms. It’s one of a dozen such clinics OHA is operating across the state. There’s one at the Tektronix campus in Beaverton, and other at a former Kmart in Gresham. Find the full list here.
But the racetrack site is especially interesting because it has a rich history. After dogs stopped racing there in 2004, several parties eyed the site as a possible location for an urban casino.
On two occasions, Oregon voters defeated ballot measures that would have authorized private casinos off tribal lands—and eaten into the gambling revenues of Oregon’s nine Indigenous tribes. In 2014, the Grand Ronde purchased the track. The tribe hasn’t built a casino there, either.
Now the track will be used for shots, not slots.