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Trying to interpret Portland’s status from the year’s most-read news stories is like reading a fortune in chicken entrails. Sometimes you see the future. Sometimes you just see shit.
Still, it’s a useful exercise, if only to gauge which stories struck a nerve with readers. And in 2022, Portlanders were drawn to tales of abandonment. Such stories confirmed the fear (or the secret wish) that people were fleeing Portland.
WW’s most-read feature this year—perhaps the most popular recurring column in these pages since the debut of Dr. Know—was “Chasing Ghosts,” a weekly quest to answer why Portland buildings stand empty. The single most-read story of the year was an installment in that series: one that blamed an empty church meetinghouse on Mormon flight from Oregon.
The list that follows does not include our election-year endorsements—which, combined, saw more than a half-million clicks—or the Best of Portland poll. It does comprise stories that appeared in print as well as exclusively on wweek.com.
We’ve checked back in with the subjects of these dispatches to see what’s happened since we published. Spoiler alert: The Mormons are still gone.
1. Aug. 13: A Southeast Portland Church Is Left Behind as Mormons Leave Oregon
133,195 pageviews
Dozens of readers contacted WW to complain about the use of the term “Mormon” in this story, which detailed the closure of a Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints meetinghouse in Southeast Portland. The church has disavowed the term. Some attributed ignorance or ill will on behalf of the story’s author, who is in fact a descendant of a long line of Utah Mormons. It is both common practice (and acceptable, according to The Associated Press Stylebook) to refer to the church by its proper name on first reference and use “Mormon” in later references for the sake of space and clarity. As of Dec. 19, the Portland Stake Tabernacle remains empty. Bishop Ernest Plock tells WW that efforts to sell it have been hampered by the 93-year-old building’s status as a historic landmark. “My understanding is that it’s not for sale at this time,” says church spokeswoman Sandy Hinmon. The church has, however, been able to offload its Mount Tabor meetinghouse a few miles to the east. That building was sold in October to Vito Tishenko for $2.5 million. The custom home builder declined to speak to WW about his plans. LUCAS MANFIELD.
2. March 27: Starting This Week, Mall 205 Won’t Be a Mall
95,585 pageviews
The death and partial resurrection of Lloyd Center gets all the press, but Portland has another zombie mall in more dire condition 5 miles east. WW correspondent Jay Horton broke the news in March that Mall 205′s new owners had informed the few remaining storefronts and kiosks that they would be replaced by “an exciting repositioning opportunity.” (Anchor stores Target and Home Depot had already closed their interior entrances to prevent shoplifting.) Eight months later, Rhino Investments Group still hasn’t returned calls, and the “opportunity” remains a mystery. What remains is a doughnut effect: Mall 205 is ringed by fast-casual restaurants (Red Robin, Baja Fresh, Olive Garden) but with no mall at the center. The sole tenant that still can be entered from the mall proper is an outpost of Oregon Driver & Motor Vehicle Services. But only from the south entrance; most mall doors are locked and covered with brown wrapping paper. A visit on a recent afternoon found frustrated would-be DMV patrons rattling the doors and cursing. AARON MESH.
3. Feb. 16: Who’s Behind the Portland Billboards Demanding People Stop Having Kids?
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The world’s population crossed 8 billion on Nov. 15. Given that the planet is (literally) on fire, and many of the newborn billions are going to own cars and air conditioners, it might be wise policy to pump the brakes on procreation. One group took that message to the masses in January, putting up two billboards, one at Northeast Killingsworth Street and Interstate 205 and another at Southeast Division Street and 106th Avenue, exhorting Portlanders to “Stop Having Kids.” Leaders of the group that put up the signs are a prickly bunch. In April, they loaded a video onto their YouTube channel called “Responding to The Willamette Week Article & Veronica Bianco.” The video runs for 97 minutes and impugns the motives of Bianco, the story’s author. They identify her, correctly, as a student at Grant High School, where she is an editor of Grant Magazine. “She’s not a good person,” says a man in a beanie cap and sunglasses who goes by his middle name, “Dietz.” “She’s not a decent person. She’s a horrible person.” A recent visit found both billboards had been replaced by other advertising. ANTHONY EFFINGER.
4. Sept. 7: Three Hotels Approaching Foreclosure in the Heart of Portland Offer a Warning to City Leaders
93,526 pageviews
WW broke the news that the Portland Hilton and Duniway and Dossier hotels were all in foreclosure proceedings—a bellwether of what reduced tourism could mean for downtown properties. Property records showed the Duniway and Hilton owed more than $270 million to the bank and would be auctioned on the courthouse steps Sept. 13. The same fate awaited Dossier, owned by Provenance Hotels, on Nov. 29, but it appears to have dodged foreclosure. On Sept. 21, a Provenance spokesperson announced that Provenance had “closed an agreement with LNR Partners and funded the outstanding debt on the Dossier….This amicable resolution brings the Dossier’s loan current, and all notices regarding foreclosure have been withdrawn and canceled.” Meanwhile, the courthouse auction for the Hilton and Duniway is now scheduled for Jan. 10, according to the Portland Business Journal. Twice the sale has been pushed back, citing a “beneficiary’s request.” SOPHIE PEEL.
5. Nov. 7: Prosecutors Decide Portland Man Committed No Crime by Killing His Landlord With a Sword
93,386 pageviews
In September, a Portland resident fatally stabbed his landlord, who had barged in carrying a replica gun and wearing a Michael Myers mask. The details were described by prosecutors after they declined to press charges. The family of 46-year-old Justin Valdivia said he was just trying to intimidate the tenants, who he felt were breaking the terms of their lease. The tenants, however, felt harassed. Valdivia lived with his wife in a newly built house behind the rental and had tried in the past to enter it without permission. The night of the stabbing, Valdivia let himself in through a backdoor equipped with a makeshift alarm. Stas Wallace, a former tenant who was crashing on the couch, grabbed a saber and stabbed Valdivia, who was wearing the mask and wielding the fake gun and a hammer. Valdivia’s son, Daniel, told WW the family was not pursuing further legal action. The roommates have moved out and Wallace remains “traumatized” by the stabbing, a roommate told The Oregonian. LUCAS MANFIELD.
6. Feb. 16: These Four Companies Want to Take You on a Psychedelic Voyage in Oregon
92,110 pageviews
The Shroom Boom is on in Oregon. Long before Shroom House opened on West Burnside Street and started selling illegal-at-retail Liberty Caps like they were creminis, WW profiled four companies laying plans to cash in on the legalization of psilocybin therapy. The most successful so far is InnerTrek, which began training trip guides in September. InnerTrek enrolled 102 students that month, each taking a six-month course for $7,900. The biggest shroom loser so far is Red Light Holland. The Dutch company in July dissolved a partnership with Halo Collective, a Canadian cannabis company. The pair planned to pursue microdosing, something that isn’t covered under Oregon’s psilocybin law. Both companies are publicly traded, and both have cratered. Red Light trades at 6 cents. Field Trip Health and Wellness, a company looking to open a psilocybin treatment center in Oregon, has also collapsed. Its shares have fallen from 33 cents in August to 7 cents this week. Synthesis Institute, another treatment center entrant that isn’t public, is on track to open one near Ashland in 2023, according to its website. ANTHONY EFFINGER.
90,622 pageviews
WW plugged Sarah Jeong’s Verge report exploring the irony of Chad Wolf’s illegal occupation of the nation’s Department of Homeland Security in 2019. As acting secretary, Wolf fought to eliminate protections for children of immigrants and sent federal officers to Portland streets, where they dragged protesters away in unmarked rental vans. Wolf held the office for a little more than a year, during which a federal judge ruled he was acting unlawfully. The Senate had never confirmed his appointment. Now, Wolf is outside looking in. He hosts a podcast (latest episode: “Taking on Woke Corporations with Vivek Ramaswamy”) and directs a policy institute, which was recently described by sources of Politico as a “White House in waiting.” LUCAS MANFIELD.
8. July 6: Betsy Johnson Crashed Into Another Motorist. Then She Tried to Claim Legislative Immunity.
85,783 pageviews
After former state Sen. Betsy Johnson (D-Scappoose) entered the race for governor as an unaffiliated candidate last year, she touted two attributes. The first and most important: her two decades as a voice for accountability and transparency in the Capitol. When WW reported on a 2013 car crash in which Johnson rear-ended a woman’s car in Columbia County and claimed legislative immunity—Johnson was driving to the Capitol—it was a bad look. The fierce advocate for personal and fiscal responsibility appeared, when bumper met bumper, to be interested in neither: Johnson tried, unsuccessfully, to get taxpayers to foot the bill for the crash. (Johnson did ultimately apologize and acknowledge she’d been at fault. Her insurer paid a settlement.) In the months following the story, Johnson’s standing in the polls would fade. She ultimately got 8.62% of the vote. The crash victim, Melissa Gallentine, did not respond to a request for comment on Johnson’s political fortunes. NIGEL JAQUISS.
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Early this year, the OLCC dropped several new, highly anticipated changes to its slate of recreational cannabis regulations, including upping the edible potency limit from 50 mg of THC to 100 mg, increasing the amount of flower a user could purchase at one time from 1 ounce to 2, and requiring novel cannabinoids to undergo the same testing regimen as THC products. In 2023, we can anticipate another notable rule change: a permanent allowance for walk-up windows and/or drive-thrus at dispensaries. During a public comment period regarding reinstating the no walk-ups rule, the commission concluded: “During the rules advisory committee meetings and the rule public comment period, it became obvious that a separate rulemaking process focusing solely on drive-up and on-site delivery rules is needed. We will be scheduling that in the coming new year.” BRIANNA WHEELER.
65,858 pageviews
In a media market hungry for content, Sandy Mayor Stan Pulliam made a name for himself during the COVID-19 pandemic by pushing back hard against Gov. Kate Brown’s executive orders. Despite having fewer constituents (12,743 in 2021) than attend the average Portland Thorns game, Pulliam leveraged his media mentions into in an insurgent bid for the GOP nomination for governor. Pulliam styled himself as the small-town, family-values candidate. Then in February, WW reported he and his wife, MacKensey, had been part of a Portland “swingers” group. Oregon Right to Life, a key player in the GOP primary, subsequently withheld its endorsement and Pulliam’s funding slowed. He still ended finishing third in the primary, getting 10.9% of the vote. “With 19 candidates in the primary, the messaging and differentiation between the candidates became very muddled,” Pulliam says. Undeterred, Pulliam ran for reelection as Sandy mayor in November (there was no race in the May primary because the position is nonpartisan), winning by 297 votes. Pulliam changed jobs within the insurance industry and also served as a political consultant in the November election cycle for legislative and congressional candidates. MacKensey Pulliam, meanwhile, serves as president of the Oregon Moms Union, a statewide group that works on “parents’ rights” in schools. NIGEL JAQUISS.