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The Chronicle - Centralia
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Memories of Portland's glory days fuel stripper's longshot mayor run
Liv Osthus came to Portland in 1996 because she didn’t know where else to go. After graduating from Williams College in Massachusetts, the aspiring writer and musician couldn’t imagine returning to Minnesota, where she grew up. And New York and Los Angeles just seemed like too much, too soon. So she landed in Portland, a midsized industrial city in transition. Osthus made a good choice. It was an exciting time to be young in the Rose City. Cheap rent abounded and everybody was in a band. You could be whoever you wanted to be – and you could make it, in a low-key kind of way. That was then. Over the past half-dozen-or-so years, Portland’s good vibes have largely disappeared. Record-breaking numbers of murders, homeless encampments and fentanyl overdoses have turned the city of Osthus’ youth – the Portland of Satyricon, the Red and Black Cafe and, yes, the TV show “Portlandia” – into a distant memory. People miss it. Which is why, Osthus says, she made a decision a couple months ago that surprised even her: She would run for mayor. She wants to bring back the buoyant, striving, look-at-me city that lured her here all those years ago, and she believes she knows how to do it. Her campaign announcement scored headlines across the country and beyond, but not because political observers believe she has a shot at winning. It’s because Osthus is best known as the erotic dancer Viva Las Vegas, longtime Mary’s Club habitué and subject of a feature-length 2018 documentary. A stripper running for mayor? How very Portland, commentators from Toronto to New York have opined. See, Osthus says, her plan is working already. *** It’s not unusual for an attention-seeking oddball with no experience in politics to run for Portland’s highest elected office. There was Steven J. Entwisle, a self-described former Chinatown bouncer and “frequent testifier at City Hall,” in 2016. And Scot Campbell, aka Extremo the Clown, in 2004. To name just two of many. Osthus, 49, and her supporters insist she doesn’t fall into this category. Sure, she’s a stripper, but so what? This is Portland. Besides, says the novelist Chelsea Cain, who recently hosted a rooftop “house party” for Osthus, “taking off your clothes, dancing in front of strangers and managing a crowd are all excellent prep for politics.” Cain brought together many of her friends on Osthus’ behalf, she says, because the first-time candidate is offering a unique vision that revolves around what, before the city’s recent downward spiral, gave Portland its identity. Osthus is running to focus attention on the arts. FROM THE ARCHIVE: Stripper Viva Las Vegas’ unusual approach earns devoted following. What happened in the city in the 1990s and aughts, when it seemed that everyone of a creative bent wanted to be in Portland, can happen again, Osthus says. The government simply needs to aggressively step in to help artists. When bankrupt office buildings emptied by the coronavirus pandemic go to auction, for example, the city should buy them and “turn them over to artists” for work and living spaces, she recently told The Oregonian/OregonLive. “That’s how downtown can come back.” This doesn’t mean she thinks the corporate types should follow the musicians and painters and potters back to the city’s core. Considering the climate crisis and the advent of work-from-home technologies, there’s no longer a good reason for anyone to be driving from far-flung suburbs to sit in downtown skyscrapers, she says. She also wonders if the city could “do arts coverage,” hiring people to review plays, gallery shows and other artistic efforts that get little attention from the press. Osthus admits she hasn’t worked out the details of her proposals, and she has no idea how much they’d cost. She’s still in the there-are-no-bad-ideas-in-brainstorming phase of her campaign, with only a handful of volunteers and few events planned. But she knows for sure that running for mayor is not just about identifying the right policies. “I think we really need a voice of optimism,” she says. “Fentanyl is so cheap that addicts won’t get straight without hope. And the arts bring hope, energy and ultimately money.” *** Historically speaking, optimism has never come easily in Portland. This is a town that, throughout the 20th century, got attention from the wider world only when things went very wrong. When mobsters tried to muscle their way into the city’s inner sanctum, say. Or a teenage couple was battered to death in a lovers’ lane attack. Or a gang of white supremacists turned murderous. But by the 1990s, something different – something hopeful – had started happening in the Rose City. Priced out of bigger, higher-profile cities, young artists from around the country were arriving in town by the busload. Osthus was one of them. She soon made a name for herself on local stages – more than one name, in fact. She was Coco Cobra, lead singer for a punk group. And she also became Viva Las Vegas as Portland was becoming a hot spot for strip clubs thanks to an unusual 1987 decision by the Oregon Supreme Court that safeguarded all-nude dancing. Portland being Portland, life remained difficult for her. There was never enough money, her big break staying just out of reach. Then, at 33, she got breast cancer. She didn’t tell any of her Portland friends or colleagues about the diagnosis, because, as she put it in an essay, “it felt like a personal failing.” Then, finally, she did tell them – and immediately wondered why it had taken her so long. Her fellow artists helped her through this period, becoming like family to her. After recovering from surgery and chemotherapy, she returned to Mary’s Club, Portland’s iconic downtown strip joint, proud of her new scars. She tweaked her approach to the job, now talking with patrons – and listening – more than dancing. Her local celebrity grew, culminating in a documentary about her, “Thank You for Supporting the Arts,” named after her standard response when a customer slips cash into her bikini bottom. Osthus really does believe that Portland’s musicians, novelists, strippers and visual artists – her close-knit community – can save the city from its current ills. Because she’s seen them do it before. The early 21st-century boom years that filled new, gleaming Pearl District condo towers with tech- and ad-agency professionals? Scratching-to-survive artists made that possible, Osthus says. In the couple of decades before, they created the 24-Hour Church of Elvis and Danzine and the Velveteria. They packed rock clubs along Burnside, making the city a breeding ground for talented, ambitious bands. They turned a grimy, working-class city into, as The New York Times called it in 2015, “one of our national capitals of cool.” Portland has since reverted to its historical mean. But it doesn’t have to stay this way, Osthus says. The city’s artists can spark a second boom period, post-pandemic. One that lasts this time. “We’re deciding Portland’s soul,” she says of the November mayoral election, the first that will employ ranked-choice voting. *** The conventional wisdom on Osthus’ candidacy is crystal clear: She doesn’t have a chance. The city faces a phalanx of tough problems, and voters don’t seem to be in any mood to take a flier on an unorthodox, inexperienced candidate. City Commissioners Rene Gonzalez, Mingus Mapps and Carmen Rubio are considered the frontrunners. But nostalgia is always a powerful lure, and that’s Osthus’ pitch – that the Portland that made Viva Las Vegas possible can rise again. “Her true, deep ties to the arts community are a strength that no one else in the race has,” says Jessie Glenn, a Portland-based book publicist who’s known Osthus for years. Glenn, Osthus’ “ersatz campaign manager,” adds that Osthus is “brilliant and warm-hearted and well-meaning.” Osthus says that, if elected, she will come up with a 24-hour plan, a seven-month plan and a seven-generation plan. When asked what the 24-hour plan will be, she thinks for a moment and then says: “Connect, listen, uplift.” As it happens, she’s already launched the 24-hour plan. And it appears to be working, at least with her primary demographic. Though they have friends in common, Cain and Osthus had never met each other before that recent rooftop gathering. Cain says she didn’t know what to expect from Osthus as a mayoral candidate, and that she came away from the get-together enthused. “She made me believe in Portland again (in the possibility of Portland – both the Portland I miss and the one I want, which is better than the one I miss),” Cain wrote in an email. Those two Portlands of the imagination are undeniably linked, to each other and to the Rose City in the real world right now. The dirty, rundown Portland of today, after all, looks much like it did three decades ago, when Osthus arrived in town – and everything felt possible. ©2024 Advance Local Media LLC. Visit oregonlive.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. |
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Big win for Tacoma baseball: Cheney Stadium gets some love with $3 million state grant
Rainiers fans rejoice: Cheney Stadium, home of Tacoma's Minor League Baseball team, is getting a major cash infusion thanks to a state grant. The City Council adopted a resolution May 7 accepting a $3 million grant from the Washington State Department of Commerce. The money will help reimburse expenses tied to public-safety improvements and repairs at the stadium — including to the fan-seating area — from last July through the end of June 2027. Tacoma Rainiers president Aaron Artman told The News Tribune that nearly 400,000 fans are drawn to the venue each year. It's a "great source of pride" for Grit City residents, he said. "People love the 'Rs' ... It's an affordable option in the sports landscape in this market," Artman said. "Especially when you get to the major-league level, and any other sports, it's not only a long drive and somewhat of a hassle with traffic and parking, but it's also much more expensive. And so we feel like we have a great platform for Tacoma." The grant will help cover costs to mend leaks and structural concerns in the stadium's seating bowl, Artman said. The visiting-team locker room, which dates to when the stadium was built in 1960, also needed to be redone. The city joined 10 other communities in asking the state government to allocate $24 million toward various baseball-stadium improvements, according to a 2023 Tacoma joint capital budget request. In addition to generating jobs, events held at 2502 S. Tyler St. in Tacoma work to boost the local economy. Other recipients of the state's ballpark bonding budget, approved unanimously by the Washington Senate and House in April 2023, include Spokane, Pasco and Everett, according to the Tri-Cities Area Journal of Business. Adam Cook, director of Tacoma Venues & Events, explained the rationale for the resolution in a memo sent to City Manager Elizabeth Pauli. "A thriving entertainment and cultural sector is critical to enhancing livability of the City of Tacoma and is a strong tool for encouraging families to relocate to the city," the April 15 memo read. "Conversely, a major venue that has become non-functional and derelict due to lack of capital investment creates an area of blight within the community that is not welcoming to new residents or out of town visitors." Hundreds of events are hosted at Cheney Stadium on an annual basis, according to the joint capital budget request. Local youth sports groups, businesses and nonprofits use the venue when the Rainiers aren't playing. Some 75 pro-baseball games are held there each year. The resolution notes that the city of Tacoma is on the hook for infrastructure upgrades and other capital improvements mandated by Major League Baseball. Not complying with set standards would mean the Rainiers could lose their league eligibility. Fixing up stadiums can be costly for cities and counties, Artman said. It's also necessary: "If we don't get our facilities compliant, Major League Baseball has the right to take the franchise and relocate it, as well as in the meantime subject us to fairly significant fines." Most of the work on Cheney's seating-bowl area has been completed, aside from certain cosmetic elements and railing systems, Artman said. The Rainiers put on a good show for folks across the financial spectrum, he added. For the May 14 game against the Salt Lake Bees, for instance, tickets on SeatGeek range from $9 to $85 each. "There's ticket prices that vary from businesses who want to spend the high end to families who want to come out affordably," Artman said. "We think we put on a good show and provide a great value, and really feel good about us being a beacon of aspiration for Tacoma. And that's kind of what we set out to do." ___ (c)2024 The News Tribune (Tacoma, Wash.) Visit The News Tribune (Tacoma, Wash.) at www.TheNewsTribune.com Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. |
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Melinda French Gates resigns from Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation
Melinda French Gates announced Monday she is resigning from her role as co-chair of the Seattle-based Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. “This is not a decision I came to lightly,” French Gates wrote in a post shared on X. CEO Mark Suzman, the executive leadership team and the board of trustees will continue to lead the foundation’s philanthropic work, French Gates said. Suzman said in a statement that French Gates “ will not be bringing any of the foundation’s work with her when she leaves.” The organization’s name will change to the Gates Foundation, with Bill Gates, her ex-husband and Microsoft founder, becoming the sole chair. Upon resigning, French Gates said she will receive “an additional $12.5 billion to commit to my work on behalf of women and families” thanks to an agreement with Bill Gates. In 2015, French Gates created Pivotal Ventures, which funds projects that seek to empower women. “This is a critical moment for women and girls in the U.S. and around the world — and those fighting to protect and advance equality are in urgent need of support,” she said. French Gates’ last day of work at the organization will be June 7. She said she will soon share more about her future charitable plans. “I am sorry to see Melinda leave, but I am sure she will have a huge impact in her future philanthropic work,” Bill wrote in a statement shared on X. “Looking ahead, I remain fully committed to the Foundation’s work across all our strategies, and to realizing the opportunities we have to continue improving the lives of millions around the world,” he said. The Associated Press in early 2023 reported that the Gates Foundation is the largest private philanthropic donor, as it had planned to donate $8.3 billion for that year. The foundation plans to donate $9 billion annually by 2026. The foundation has given out nearly $78 billion and has a $75.2 billion endowment as of the end of 2023. Upon the couple’s divorce from a 27-year marriage in 2021, the foundation had announced that if the pair could not work together as co-chairs by 2023, French Gates “will resign her position as co-chair and trustee.” The foundation, created in 2000 by the couple, appointed outside board members for the first time in 2022. ©2024 The Seattle Times. Visit seattletimes.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. |
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Thurston County task force seizes $3,000 in cash, 5 grams of meth, three guns and a vehicle
A local fentanyl dealer was arrested on May 2 in Tumwater after the Thurston County Narcotics Task Force acquired a warrant and found drugs, guns and cash. According to the Thurston County Sheriff's Office, the Narcotics Task Force executed a warrant on the person's vehicle and storage unit and found 10 ounces of fentanyl powder. They also found five grams of methamphetamine, three firearms, one of which was stolen, a vehicle, $3,000 in cash and scales and packaging. The suspect was arrested on suspicion of possession of a stolen firearm, unlawful distribution of a controlled substance, and unlawful possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver.
(c)2024 The Olympian (Olympia, Wash.) Visit The Olympian (Olympia, Wash.) at www.theolympian.com Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. |
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Former probation officer in Pierce County accused of having a sexual relationship with a client
A former probation officer in Pierce County is accused of having a sexual relationship with a client who was assigned to him. Prosecutors have charged Mario Joseph Tropiano, 39, with three counts of first-degree custodial sexual misconduct, court records show. Charges say that between October 2022 and October 2023, Tropiano used his position as the victim's probation officer to initiate inappropriate relations with her. Tropiano's arraignment is scheduled for May 24 at Pierce County Superior Court. Efforts to reach him or an attorney for him were not immediately successful. An investigation began after the victim's attorney informed the court on Oct. 24, 2023 during a probation hearing that the woman had an intimate relationship with Tropiano. At that time, Tropiano was no longer the victim's probation officer. Her attorney told the judge that she had adverse emotions about meeting her current officer because of the former relationship with Tropiano, documents show. When the investigation began, Tropiano was working a probation-officer assignment in Des Moines. Evidence showed that Tropiano and the victim had sexual contact through text messages, at her home, in hotels and occasionally at his office, court records show. The text messages revealed that Tropiano and the victim allegedly met multiple times to have sex, records show. Tropiano was assigned to the victim's case in July 2022 in regards to a misdemeanor charge. He served as her probation officer until August 2023 when he moved to Montana because his father was ill, documents say. During their first meeting, the victim spoke to Tropiano about the abuse she faced in a past relationship. They met another time for a normal check-in. After that, Tropiano would call frequently, and the victim said it felt unusual, noting her previous experience with probation officers. In another instance, Tropiano asked if he could come over. The victim thought it was odd for him to check her home for a misdemeanor charge. After that, Tropiano and the victim began flirting over text while discussing her probation, documents show. Tropiano and the victim met in Fife at a hotel in October 2022 with the purpose of having sex. They would have multiple sexual interactions after that. One instance was in his office after she wore something revealing, records show. Tropiano allegedly told the victim he wanted her to complete her probation so he could date her without consequences. Tropiano would try to help her get off probation, including by writing to the judge, documents show. Tropiano also allegedly gave the woman money, including $1,500 for rent after she lost a large sum of money gambling. Tropiano was reluctant until she threatened to report him in regards to their relationship. He gave her the money and then they had sexual contact, charges show. In another instance, detectives found a money transaction where Tropiano allegedly sent her $72.50 in October 2022, records show. In an initial statement, the woman said she felt Tropiano was a predator who used information he found out about her during the time he was her probation officer to target and take advantage of her, documents show. The woman told investigators that if she did not comply with Tropiano, she believed he would make the conditions of her probation worse or have her put in jail. When asked if any of the sex acts were forcible, she said that she was choked. She commented that Tropiano was "aggressive and weird." Documents show that detectives attempted to contact Tropiano in January 2024, but he replied by saying that he retained an attorney. The Des Moines city manager told detectives in November 2023 that Tropiano was put on administrative leave after she was informed of the sexual-misconduct allegations, documents show. ___ (c)2024 The News Tribune (Tacoma, Wash.) Visit The News Tribune (Tacoma, Wash.) at www.TheNewsTribune.com Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. |
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WIAA assembly votes against adding girls flag football
The Washington Interscholastic Activities Association released the results of voting from its Representative Assembly on Monday morning, and girls flag football was not made a sanctioned sport in the state. The Rep Assembly is made up of 53 members from across the state and is largely populated with athletic directors. Flag football was one of 13 amendments, so called because they amend the state constitution (or rule book), that failed. Girls badminton was also not added as a sport, nor was eSports. An amendment needs 60% to pass. The vote was 26-27 against it. Several Seahawks threw their support behind it. Tyler Lockett even invited the Emerald Ridge team to join him at the NFL draft last month in Detroit to announce their third-round pick. Girls flag football remains a club sport in Washington, which schools still have the option to add, but it won't fall under WIAA supervision or have a sanctioned state tournament. The Rep Assembly passed 14 amendments, most of them on behind-the-scenes issues. Among the amendments that did pass: The number of practices (normally 10) needed to enter competition was reduced for all sports except for football and gymnastics. Also, all players and coaches who are ejected from a competition will be required to take a course from the National Federal of State High School Associations. Players will have to take a sportsmanship course and coaches a course on teaching and modeling behavior. ___ (c)2024 The Seattle Times Visit The Seattle Times at www.seattletimes.com Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC. |
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Washington State Patrol issues Missing Indigenous Person Alert for woman last seen April 11
The Washington State Patrol on Monday issued a Missing Indigenous Person Alert (MIPA) for Cayla Rosario, 24, of Bellingham. According to the alert, friends last heard from Rosario on April 11. Authorities do not have a description of the clothing she was wearing when last seen. Rosario is described as 5 feet, 5 inches tall, weighing 120 pounds, with black hair and brown eyes. The alert was issued on behalf of the Bellingham Police Department. The case number is 24B25321. Please call 911 if you have any relevant information. (c)2024 The Bellingham Herald (Bellingham, Wash.) |
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Man who was severely injured at Washington water park last summer sues park's owners
A man who was severely injured last summer when his legs went through the side of the Hairpin, one of the four main slides at the Birch Bay Waterslides in Blaine, has sued the park's owners. Larry Baker, who was 43 at time of the accident, filed a civil tort lawsuit May 9 in Whatcom County Superior Court against Birch Bay Jun Yu Waterslides LLC, according to court records. Baker's lawsuit states that he visited the water park on Aug. 25, 2023, and that while he was on one of the slides, he "slid over a damaged or defective section, causing severe injury and other damages," the court records state. Baker's lawsuit accuses the park's owners of negligence, stating that they had a duty to "keep the common areas of its property safe and properly maintained for the benefit of the customers." The owners also failed in their duties to provide safe and adequate maintenance of the park's premises and grounds; to provide its customers with warnings regarding unsafe areas and hidden dangers; to have a system in place to inspect the premises for unsafe conditions; to have a policy of supervising employees, independent contractors and vendors to ensure they complied with all safety guidelines for the premises and other state and local safety regulations and statues; to inspect the premises of unsafe conditions once employees became aware or should have become aware of unsafe conditions and of complying with state laws regarding the proper operation and maintenance standards of water parks in Washington state, including routine inspections, maintenance, and repairs to the physical components to ensure all structural facilities are intact and free from corrosion, wear or stress, Baker's lawsuit alleges. Baker's lawsuit states he has suffered "severe physical injuries"; that he's incurred current and future medical expenses and that he's experienced and may continue to experience physical pain and suffering. He also claims he's suffered general damages, including a loss of enjoyment of life and a permanent injury, as well as economic loss involving past and future lost wages, the records show. Baker is asking for prejudgment interest on all medical and out-of-pocket expenses related to the injury he suffered while at the water park. He is also asking for monetary damages stemming from the park owners' alleged negligence and his subsequent injury. He is also asking for monetary damages in the form of past wage losses, medical expenses and attorneys fees, court documents state. The Bellingham Herald has reached out to Baker's attorney for comment. It's unclear at this time if Birch Bay Waterslides has retained an attorney.
Park closed Meanwhile, the Whatcom County Department of Health and Human Services has suspended the park's operating permit and it will be unable to open until significant repairs are made, spokeswoman Marie Duckworth told The Bellingham Herald in April. Iain Buchanan, general manager of the Birch Bay Waterslides, wasn't immediately available for comment.
'Code Red' called An injury report from Aug. 29, 2023, conducted by Whatcom County health officials describes the incident and a dramatic effort to save Baker's life. Baker is described only as "the victim" in the Health Department's report, but he is named in the lawsuit. According to the report, Baker smashed a hole in the side of the Hairpin, severely cutting his left foot and right leg, and continued sliding down at 12:52 p.m. Aug. 25, 2023. "Victim strikes slide riser panel on turn 4 (turn to the rider's left) with both feet/legs, calls out, and continues down slide," according to the report. At 12:53 p.m., lifeguards called a "Code Red," activating the park's emergency plan, and were keeping riders off the slides. A manager called 911 at 12:54 p.m. and went for medical supplies. In an effort to control the bleeding, a bystander with medical training and a lifeguard started to bandage and apply pressure to Baker's wounds. At 12:54 p.m., the bystander applied a tourniquet to each of the man's legs. The bystander and a lifeguard kept pressure on Baker's wounds. Other lifeguards were keeping bystanders away and closing the attraction. Firefighters arrived at 1:01 p.m., and EMS personnel assumed patient care. An ambulance left at 1:08 p.m. An Aug. 30 follow-up to the initial report indicates that firefighters took Baker to St. Joseph Medical Center in Bellingham, and he was transferred to the Intensive Care Unit at Harborview Medical Center in Seattle, where he had undergone two surgeries with more expected. Additionally, Health Department officials found that documentation of emergency response training was unavailable. Regular inspection reports were unavailable at the time of the incident. Park management was told to develop a record-keeping and documentation system. In a report dated April 12, the Health Department's Environmental Health Supervisor Tom Kunesh noted that while Birch Bay Waterslides officials had supplied inspection and repair reports that were requested at the time of the injury, none of the reports specifically mention inspection or maintenance work on the fasteners (nuts, bolts and washers) that were holding the failed slide section together. According to the April 12 report from Kunesh, for the water park's operations permit to be reinstated, officials must:
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Washington State News
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Mercury C Brittney Griner (fractured toe) out multiple weeks
(Photo credit: Michelle Pemberton/IndyStar / USA TODAY NETWORK)
Phoenix Mercury standout center Brittney Griner fractured a toe on her left foot and will be re-evaluated in the "coming weeks," the team said Monday.
The manner in which Griner sustained the injury hasn't been divulged.
Griner missed Friday's preseason finale against the visiting Los Angeles Sparks and was seen in a walking boot and using a scooter.
The M
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Columbian Newspaper
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Two of three people who filed to run for governor under name Bob Ferguson withdraw from race
Washington’s candidate filing week ended in chaos — and more than a few jokes on social media — when the field of candidates for governor increased by two more Bob Fergusons. |
