Plus, police reassure Portlanders after Manchester terrorism attack and City Council steps up enforcement on short-term rental regulations

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The City Council voted to declare May 30 to be the Vanport Day of Remembrance last Wednesday.

Vanport, built in the Columbia River floodplain in what is now Northeast Portland, was the largest public housing project and second largest city in the state when it was flooded by a levee failure on May 30, 1948. It was originally built to house World War II shipbuilders and their families.

According to the resolution approved by the council, "Vanport became an experiment in racial integration, for as many as 25 percent of its residents — from all corners of the country — were African-American, when African-Americans were less than 1 percent of the entire state's population."

The resolution says this year is the 75th anniversary of the construction of Vanport, which included schools, stores, a hospital, a movie theater, and a two-year college.

Police say city is safe

Portland police reassured area residents there are no known threats to large-scale events following the May 22 terrorist attack in Manchester that killed 22 people and wounded dozens more.

Police spokesman Sgt. Pete Simpson said officers work closely with private security companies hired for such events and will make adjustments if the threat assessment changes. Simpson also encouraged people to call 911 if they see anything suspicious.

Major planned events include last Friday's opening of the Portland Rose Festival's CityFair in Tom McCall Waterfront Park and the annual Blues Fest over the Fourth of July weekend in the south end of the park.

Council cracks down on short-term rentals

The City Council moved quickly last week to implement Measure 26-194, which was approved at the May 17 special election.

The measure, introduced by Commissioner Nick Fish, clarifies that the city has the authority to collect lodging taxes from companies such as Airbnb and Home Away that list short-term rentals in private homes on their websites. Such taxes have historically been paid by hotels, motels, and bed and breakfasts.

Although Airbnb has been collecting the taxes from hosts and paying them to the city, Home Away has been fighting the requirement in court.

The resolution passed Wednesday gives the Revenue Bureau the authority to subpoena the names and addresses of the hosts from the companies. It is widely believed that only a small percentage have been inspected and licensed, as required by the city.