City Club Hosts Lents Forum Tonight at the New Copper Penny

THE LINCOLN BARROOM: The New Copper Penny has been an icon in East Portland for four decades. Negotiations between the Portland Development Commission and the bar's owner, Saki Tzantarmas, have recently fallen apart.
By AARON MESH

The last time Portland city officials sat down with the owners of the New Copper Penny Bar & Grill, their meeting didn't go well.

Last summer's negotiations between the Portland Development Commission and representatives of the Lents nightclub resulted in name-calling, threats and a public rift that threatens to undermine $103 million of urban-renewal efforts in this East Portland neighborhood.

Tonight, the Portland City Club is bringing City Hall back to the New Copper Penny.

The City Club is hosting a panel discussion about the future of Lents urban renewal at 5:30 pm today at the New Copper Penny (5932 SE 92nd Ave.). Among the panelists: Mayor Charlie Hales' urban renewal aide Jillian Detweiler and Lents Neighborhood Association chairman Jesse Cornett.

Cornett in November accused PDC director Patrick Quinton of calling the New Copper Penny owners "terrorists holding the neighborhood hostage" during negotiations to buy the nightclub. (Quinton denies using the word "terrorist.")

WW outlined the context of the firestorm in a recent cover story:



I will be moderating tonight's discussion—maybe "refereeing" is the better word. Neighborhood activists Cora Potter and Nick Christensen will also be on the panel. 

City Club says Lents' newest residents—the artists formerly known as the Belmont Goats—will attend. Everybody likes goats.

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