What We Saw Cycling On 82nd Avenue.

1. The Oregon Board of Chiropractic Examiners shrugged off objections from acupuncturists and the Oregon Medical Board, voting unanimously last week to let chiropractors engage in “dry needling.” Opponents of the change claim dry needling is simply another name for acupuncture and an intrusion into that practice (see “Fighting Over the Needle,” WW, Jan. 19, 2011). Board director Dave McTeague says his group must now set training standards. Stephen Kafoury, acupuncturists’ lobbyist, says his group is evaluating options.

1.  The Red and Black Cafe is trying to raise $50,000 by the end of the month so it can buy its current space in Southeast Portland. As of Jan. 24, the vegan, worker-owned coffee bar and restaurant had collected about $42,000 in cash and other pledges of money. If the cafe raises the $50,000 necessary for the down payment, it plans to convert the building’s second floor into low-income group housing for about a half-dozen people.

1.  Lori A. Meadows, former development director at 1000 Friends of Oregon, has managed to land another fundraising job, although multiple sources tell WW she is a suspect in an alleged theft from her previous employer. Meadows, who left the venerable land-use group in November, was hired last month as the development director at the Washington County Museum. Museum director Samuel Shogren says he was unaware of Meadows’ past, which includes two prior felony theft convictions. “We don’t do criminal background checks,” Shogren says, adding that nothing in Meadows’ performance so far has given him cause for concern. Meadows declined comment.

1. STANFORDCredits: leahnash.comMarijuana activist Paul Stanford has filed a new initiative aimed at the 2012 state ballot that would establish a seven-member Oregon Cannabis Commission to regulate the cultivation and sale of cannabis for adults. Stanford projects taxation on cannabis would bring in millions of dollars for the state general fund, as well as diminish underage abuse and drug crime. He is planning a fundraising concert July 2 in Portland with reggae band Toots & the Maytals and says he’s already got $50,000 lined up for the campaign, which needs 87,213 valid signatures to make the ballot next year.

1. The Portland Timbers’ home opener is April 14, and neighbors of the revamped PGE Park are worried about parking problems when expected large crowds start arriving for the team’s first season in Major League Soccer. The Northwest District Association is discussing recommendations for stricter parking limits and tougher residency checks for parking zones around the stadium, expanded zones and more parking enforcement. The city is taking suggestions for stadium-area parking at the NWDA’s website (northwestdistrictassociation.org).

WWeek 2015