The progressive Seattle Times has issued a warning to the city’s residents by turning on neighboring Portland, Oregon, and calling the city “a dumping ground.”
Columnist Jon Talton wrote the pieceA Tale of Two Cities: Portland Provides a Disturbing Example for Seattle.
In the article, Talton shared that one person he spoke to said Portland “is like the road to the landfill and, in some areas, the landfill itself.”
The person speaking to the author blamed the city’s own “preoccupations” with grand abstractions such as “social justice,” liberal policies, and high tax rates.
Seattle has long been compared to Portland for their Pacific Northwest locations, climates, Democratic leadership, and most recently their problems with drugs and homelessness.
The progressive Seattle Times has warned the city’s residents by addressing neighbor Portland, Oregon (pictured), referring to the city as “a dumping ground”
Seattle (pictured) has long been compared to Portland for their Pacific Northwest locations, climates, Democratic leadership, and most recently their problems with drugs and homelessness
Columnist Jon Talton wrote the piece “A Tale of Two Cities: Portland Provides a Disturbing Example for Seattle,” in which he writes that citizens should be concerned
In the article, before death, Talton described Portland as a “quirky, endearing city,” known for its walkable neighborhoods and youthful, vibrant neighborhoods.
“This was a city that cared about itself decades ago,” the author wrote.
However, that quickly changed as the city’s politics, centered on crime, drugs and homelessness, spilled over and turned the city into a hellscape for many residents.
One of the main issues Portlandians face is how to solve their problems.
“The split is between compassion and open arms and citizens affected by crime, trash, and encampments spilling over into sidewalks and neighborhoods.
Meanwhile, the decriminalization of drugs for ‘personal use’ – including fentanyl and methamphetamine – has further torn Portland. Sounds familiar?,” Talton wrote.
The city used to attract thousands and even millions of people from all over the country, but now it is looked down upon by itself.
“Ten years ago, Portland was an urban success story virtually unparalleled in America,” said the Portland resident who spoke to Talton.
“We did this to ourselves out of equal parts denial and sentimentality,” he said.
Columnist Jon Talton (pictured) wrote the piece for the Seattle Times
A homeless person wanders the streets of Seattle, Washington
A boatload of trash outside a large homeless camp in an affluent Seattle area
The author went on to compare the two cities, noting that while Portland is seeing an overall decline in quality of life and new residents, Seattle continues to grow with business.
Despite this, he notes, 7.2 percent of Seattle adults felt pressured to move out of their neighborhood because of crime.
More than 1.6 percent more than the second highest area where residents felt pressure to move because they felt unsafe, Riverside-San Bernardino, California.
Portland did not make the top 15 cities on the list, unlike Los Angeles, Chicago, San Francisco, New York, Boston, and Houston, in part.
Talton ended his “cautionary tale” article with the hope that Seattle can still “avoid Portland’s fate” by using the city as a signpost for what not to do.
However, Seattle already seems to be on the same path as Portland.
In August, DailyMail.com reported that Seattle residents are outraged by the city’s ongoing homeless and drug crises.
Hundreds of tiny houses intended to house the homeless are locked in storage as sprawling homeless camps grow.
Komo News revealed that there are at least 204 unused houses locked up and guarded by a fence, leaving people sleeping on the street.
Fentanyl user at a bus stop in downtown Seattle, Washington
Individuals parked outside an RV in Portland, Oregon, on June 21, 2023
Meanwhile, earlier this month, members of an affluent Seattle neighborhood became enraged at homeless people setting up a swimming pool at their encampment.
The expansion of the encampments sparked outrage among homeowners, who were frustrated that officials had not removed it.
In early July, DailyMail.com reported that a July 4 parade had to be diverted to avoid a fentanyl-riddled homeless camp for “the safety of everyone.”
The parade in Burien, just south of Seattle, was modified to avoid a homeless encampment of up to 20 tents, according to local media.
The problems are just as bad, if not worse, in Portland, where residents are so fed up that they have berated city leaders and called homelessness “an out-of-control disaster.”
A recent survey commissioned by People for Portland found that more than two-thirds of voters wanted to clear the streets by forcing drug addicts into rehab.
Respondents broadly supported Mayor Ted Wheeler’s plan to ban homeless people from camping during the day and people pitching tents near schools and daycare centers.