Registration for fall Portland Parks & Recreation senior programs and classes is now open.

PP&R Senior Recreation is a series of inexpensive, accessible and environmentally sensitive programs and classes; they are dedicated to ensuring access to recreational, educational, and wellness opportunities for adults ages 55-plus throughout Portland and the surrounding areas.

“Portland Parks & Recreation Senior Programs are a wonderful opportunity to stay active, said Parks Commissioner Nick Fish. “Seniors are traditionally some of our most consistent and energetic users of parks and recreation centers. From golf, hiking and regional trips to watercolor, yoga and pottery, Parks is proud to offer activities for all ages.”

The September issue of the Mid-county Memo posted online. A re-cap of its content follows …

Proposed changes at Glendoveer Golf Course and Fitness Trail is this month’s main front page feature story. Glendoveer lovers and government haters showed up en masse for the heated open house last month.

Lee Perlman pens a piece about east Portland tours conducted by Oregon State Rep. Jefferson Smith (D) for candidates for City office is the subject of the second story on this month’s front page. Smith took candidates on a tour of east Portland low-lights, highlighting the decades of City neglect for Mid-county.

Members of the community are invited to the Parklane Neighborhood Fair, presented in part by Portland Parks & Recreation today,  beginning at 4 p.m. at Parklane Park, Southeast 155th and Main Street.

The fair celebrates the first project in the city’s E205 Initiative, the new equipment and upgrades at Parklane Park —  and will feature family activities, a dedication and remarks by City Parks Commissioner Nick Fish and Mayor Sam Adams. The event will conclude with a tour of the future park site, live music and a  free movie in the park “The Twilight Saga: Eclipse” at dusk.

The June issue of the Mid-county Memo is posted online. A re-cap of its content follows …

This month’s issue has feature stories about new school gardens at two Mid-county elementary schools. The first at Shaver Elementary in the Parkrose School District, the other at Mill Park Elementary School in the David Douglas School District.

An update on the close Parkrose High School bond vote held in May.

This month’s edition also has a feature story on how David Douglas High School’s music program won a Grammy Gold Signature Award — that included a $5,500 cash prize — given annually to high schools with outstanding music programs.

March 2011 Mid-county Memo online edition re-cap

The March issue of the Mid-county Memo was posted online last week. This month’s issue has stories about Portland City Council’s Citywide Tree Project hearing; an interview with Don Grotting, new David Douglas School District Superintendent; Fir Ridge Campus’ African American Family Night; CherryWood Village’s ribbon-cutting ceremony celebrating Oregon’s largest senior retirement community solar array; Mid-county Memo founder Tom Pry’s obituary and photos of last month’s one-day snow event Thursday, Feb. 24.

And, as always, the informative departments: Memo Calendar, Memo Pad, Business Memos, Memorable Menus, Letters to the Editor and Loaves & Fishes’ monthly menu.

Oh, and for your (additional) information, the online Memo Calendar has listings unpublished in the regular newspaper edition.

A news release from Portland Parks & Recreation about its acquisition of the 20-acre Roughton property in the Wilkes neighborhood. The property runs from I-84 on the north to Fremont on the south and between 152nd and 154th Avenues.

Portland Parks & Recreation (PP&R) announced today the acquisition of a 20-acre property located in the northeast Portland neighborhoods of Argay and Wilkes. The site, known as the Wilkes Headwaters Property, is an invaluable addition to natural area  preservation and watershed protection, and will be managed by PP&R in the future as a hybrid park, one which features both a 4-acre developed neighborhood park and a 16-acre natural area.

The February issue of the Mid-county Memo was posted online last week.  This month’s issue contains stories about east Portland’s Lost Arts Kitchen, the University of Western States and the Portland Housing Bureau’s proposal last month to “adjust” the territory of one of its programs: the Single Family New Construction Limited Home Tax Exemption or LTE.

In this month’s issue you’ll also find a story about the fund raising event held at the Refectory restaurant last month for the Parkrose Senior All-Night Party, a story about how the American Legion’s Portland Post #1 fixed the flag at Glendoveer Golf Course and an obituary for a Parkrose artist, Mark Phillips and an update on the planning for Gateway Park.

And, as always, the Memo Departments: Calendar, Memo Pad, Business Memos, Memorable Menus, Letters to the Editor and the Loaves & Fishes monthly menu.

We wish you a Happy New Year.  A recap with links to stories in the January 2011 Mid-county Memo follows:

We caught up to busy busy Superintendent Karen Fischer Gray for an interview as she begins her third year at the helm of the Parkrose School District.

East Portland business and neighborhood leaders are canvassed and asked what are major issues facing our little corner of Portland.

Joann “JoJo” Glass calls it quits after 35 years tending bar at the Candle Light Restaurant and Lounge on 74th and Northeast Glisan St.

A press release from Portland Parks & Recreation follows. PP&R and the Portland Bureau of Transportation are seeking members for the Sullivan’s Gulch Trail Project Advisory Committee connecting the mythical land of  “East Portland” (why do people— especially professional press release writers who are supposed to know these things —  insist on using the grammatically incorrect “East Portland”) with a separate pedestrian/bike route to downtown.

Portland Parks & Recreation (PP&R) and the Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) are assembling a Project Advisory Committee (PAC) to assist in the development of a concept plan for the future Sullivan’s Gulch Trail, a 5-mile long opportunity to connect East Portland with a bicycle and pedestrian route that is separated from auto traffic. This trail will provide safe, continuous, and direct transportation options for cyclists and pedestrians.

The July issue of the Memo was posted earlier this week.

This month’s feature stories include: a story by Heather Hill about the schism at St. Matthew’s Episcopal Church in Parkrose; Lee Perlman reports on the progress of PAC, or the Gateway Regional Center Urban Renewal Area Program Advisory Committee; Perlman also reports on the wrapping up of the Portland International Airport’s Master Plan; finally, this month’s Perlman’s Potpourri, a beat reporter’s round-up of news and information in Mid-Multnomah County.

As always, the Memo Calendar, containing east Portland’s most comprehensive listing of community events.