Portland Green Streets

Dear Friend of Portland Green Streets,

Since 2007, Sarah Cushman has been instrumental in leading our grassroots fight for sustainable ways to commute to work. She launched the monthly Green Streets commute-another-way celebration in Greater Portland, grew the list of businesses offering incentives to those using alternate modes of transportation, facilitated the development of our informational website and e-newsletter, and knitted together Green Streeters of all types to show how we are all part of something bigger. Our organization now has more than 1,900 Greater Portlanders who subscribe to our mission.

After three years Sarah is ready to pass the reins to new leadership for Portland Green Streets. She has generously agreed to continue with us for six months so that the transition to a new Director is as smooth as possible and includes an overlap with her successor. She will also still serve on the Board of Directors.

To advance our ongoing community projects, the Board of Portland Green Streets is launching a search for a new Director. Please review the posting for the position and application details on our website. Parallel to this effort, we are also asking for proposals from partner organizations who might consider incorporating Portland Green Streets as a project within their programming.

Please consider sharing the position posting and Request for Proposals with any individual or organization you know that may be interested and qualified.  And we welcome you to stop by the monthly Green Streets Volunteer Social on January 17th, from 5:30-7pm at Hilltop Coffee Shop (90 Congress St.) to discuss either of these prospects further. Both are great opportunities, Portland Green Streets is a wonderful initiative, and we’re poised to change transportation behavior ever more toward sustainable modes in Greater Portland.

As always, thanks for your support. We will update you when the search is complete.

Most Sincerely,

Keith Gosselin
Board of Directors

Dear Friend of Portland Green Streets,

Since 2007, Sarah Cushman has been instrumental in leading our grassroots fight for sustainable ways to commute to work. She launched the monthly Green Streets commute-another-way celebration in Greater Portland, grew the list of businesses offering incentives to those using alternate modes of transportation, facilitated the development of our informational website and e-newsletter, and knitted together Green Streeters of all types to show how we are all part of something bigger. Our organization now has more than 1,900 Greater Portlanders who subscribe to our mission.

After three years Sarah is ready to pass the reins to new leadership for Portland Green Streets. She has generously agreed to continue with us for six months so that the transition to a new Director is as smooth as possible and includes an overlap with her successor. She will also still serve on the Board of Directors.

To advance our ongoing community projects, the Board of Portland Green Streets is launching a search for a new Director. Please review the posting for the position and application details on our website. Parallel to this effort, we are also asking for proposals from partner organizations who might consider incorporating Portland Green Streets as a project within their programming.

Please share the position posting and Request for Proposals with any individual or organization you know that may be interested and qualified. Both are great opportunities, Portland Green Streets is a wonderful initiative, and we’re poised to change transportation behavior ever more toward sustainable modes in Greater Portland.

As always, thanks for your support. We will update you when the search is complete.

Most Sincerely,

Keith Gosselin
Board of Directors

Green Streeter Ellie Chase biking with daughter Jia and son Oliver

Join the Portland Bike Commuter Meetup for a Sunday morning ride to audit the Portland Bike Network.  If you don’t belong to the Bike Commuting Meetup, you’ll need to join the Meetup to participate in this event (it takes just a minute to join and the group is free, super informative, and fun).

Starting at 9 AM from 3 different locations, groups of riders from the Meetup group will evaluate Portland’s “bike network”, especially sections with bike lanes and shared lane markings (a.k.a. “sharrows”). At 10:30, the groups will converge at the USM Student Union on Bedford Street to compare notes. The long duration is intended to give groups plenty of time to stop and take a closer look at things, re-ride sections, ride the other way, take measurements, or whatever. Deficiencies, suggestions for operational improvement, or even just impressions, will all be shared with the Portland Public Services department.

Designated audit ride routes may be viewed online at the Meetup site. They are basically:

1. Start at Falmouth line at far end of Auburn, come in on Washington and Ocean Ave, then “outer” Deering.
2. Start at far end of Forest, near Riverside, come in to Woodford, then detour to check out “inner” Deering and Park.
3. Circle the Back Cove counter-clockwise on Preble, Marginal, and Baxter, using the separated path over Tukey’s.

Please indicate when you RSVP which ride you will be participating in.  Organizer John Brooking will email participants the day before to share which other people RSVP’d for your route.

All participants should refer to a document in the Files area for details covering what to bring, what to look for, and maps and detailed directional instructions. For comparison, John has also created a map of the bike network, mostly where the bike lanes and sharrows are.

Hello Green Streeters,

I am writing to say farewell as Portland Green Street’s 2010 Intern.  As the summer is coming to a close, the internship is wrapping up this month.  I’d like to share with you some the changes that you will soon see in the current Incentive Program.   We have assessed how the program is working, gotten feedback from our business sponsors, taken a participation count, and done a lot of brainstorming.  We are very excited about the changes that are being made, and believe they’ll make being a Green Streeter easier, more convenient and more fun.  Here’s a preview of what you’ll be seeing soon:

1.  Green Streets membership cards – you’ll be able to access incentives all over the Greater Portland area by using your new membership card.  Incentives will no longer be available only on Green Streets Days on the last Friday of the month, but every day of the year.  You may redeem each business’ incentive once a year. Challenge yourself to as visit as many of our sponsor as you can in a year!

2.  You will see “This is a Green Streets Business” decals in the windows of our business sponsors.  This will heighten our visibility and let you know that the business offers an incentive to Green Streeters using sustainable transportation.

Be sure to sign up for a membership card when they become available, and keep an eye out for new incentives!

I’ve had a great time working for Portland Green Streets this summer, and hope I continue seeing everyone out on the streets on Green Streets Days and beyond!

-Michelle Boisvert, PGS Summer 2010 Intern

[Editor's Note:  We've had a great time working with Michelle this summer and will miss her presence and hard work - and we wish her the best in the community and environmental planning work she's seeking.  For those out there looking for the right person for the job: don't waste your chance to hire this woman!  Michelle is a fun, warm, and thoughtful team player - very smart, great at looking at the big picture, and a suit-up and show-up hard worker.  We've been blessed to have her with us.]

Green Streets on the Streets

This in from Summer 2010 Green Streets intern, Michelle Boisvert:

“Munjfest [the Munjoy Hill Neighborhood festival that this year celebrated the bicycle] was a blast! Green Streets, the Portland Bike Commuter Meetup, and the Bicycle Coalition of Maine (BCM) teamed up to offer alternative transportation and bicycling advice, free bike tune ups, Green Street T-shirt stenciling, and a plethora of information about what each group is up to. Thanks to Jim Tasse from BCM, who brought a bike stand and equipment to provide the tune-ups – they were in high demand! Thanks, too, to Green Streets volunteers Maryann Welsch, Kevin Donoghue, and Jake Hoffman for helping out at the table! We met a lot of great people and printed a lot of Green Streets shirts. They’ll look great out on the street this Friday. One Green Streeter said she planned to wear her Green Street shirt on the days that she walks to her elementary school.”

Please take 30 seconds to  Sign in Here for Green Streets Day – Friday, July 30th.  Sign in now (and every month!) if you plan to walk, bike, take public transit, carpool, and/or telecommute this Green Streets Day.

For special treats for Green Streets Day participants, visit our Green Streets Freebies & Discounts page for offers of free food and drink and various area discounts that day.

Green Streeter & Bike Coalition rep Jim Tasse does bike checks at Munjfest 2010

Portland Green Streets Calendar

As always, please check out the Portland Green Streets Calendar for exciting upcoming transportation-related events in Greater Portland.

Ride the Bus, Borrow a Book – Youth Escape this Summer to Local Public Library

Children and teens, ages 18 and younger, receive a FREE ride ticket to ride METRO or South Portland City Bus (www.southportland.org) when they borrow a book from participating libraries in Portland, South Portland, Westbrook and Falmouth during July and August.  For more information, visit www.gpmetrobus.com

Bike Commuter Education Program on the Move

The Bike Commuter Education Program, a joint effort of GO MAINE, the Bicycle Coalition of Maine and MaineDOT, is off and running. Or should we say off and riding? And they can come to your workplace too.

The new bike commuter program is designed to assist businesses that want to promote cycling within their organization and help the cyclists who want to commute by bike, and it’s all FREE.

To support businesses, the program offers guidance on creating a bicycle friendly culture in an organization, understanding the needs of a cyclist who rides to and from work, and outlining what facilities a cyclist would typically want at the workplace. While having all the facilities like showers and lockers is nice, it’s not a deal breaker. When an organization understands the cyclist’s perspective, many different options are possible. This program offers that type of guidance to businesses.

To support the cyclist, the program offers on-site training seminars by qualified cycling instructors. These sessions are adapted to the time available to employees during the day or scheduled after hours, at the business’ and employees’ convenience. Through these, existing or would-be cyclists can learn the realities of cycling to and from work and the hard skills that go with it. Topics include setting realistic goals, managing a work out on your way to work, bikes and other equipment, riding techniques, route selection, night riding, and general traffic safety. These classes are taught by instructors who speak from experience and are trained in safe cycling practices. Classes are for novice to intermediate cyclists of all ages.

For more information about the program and to schedule a visit to your place of business, please contact Erik West at ewest@gpcog.org or at 207-774-9891.

Maine Alliance for Sustainable Transportation (MaST) has Launched New Website

The Maine Alliance for Sustainable Transportation (MaST) – of which Portland Green Streets is a member – has officially launched our new website! MaST was spearheaded by the League and has some great groups working to increase access to affordable, reliable and sustainable transportation option.  Check MaST out and find out how you can get involved!

Maine Lighthouse Ride to Benefit Eastern Trail Alliance

September 11, Southern Maine Community College, South Portland – Come take in the view, tour a lighthouse, and cycle to support the Eastern Trail Alliance, an organization dedicated to building a 60-mile greenway from Kittery to South Portland. There are several ride options ranging from 25 to 100 miles.

Hike & Bike with MaineShare

Participate in MaineShare’s annual Hike & Bike event and support their work to provide funding to groups working for a clean, healthy, and prosperous Maine. This is the 3rd year of the smaller footprint “virtual” Hike and Bike: you choose the day and time for your hike or bike, then register and collect donations online, saving time, paper, and fuel. The first 15 people to register will receive a FREE pair of tickets to MOFGA’s Common Ground Country Fair in September! For more info about the Hike & Bike, click here.

Good day, Green Streeters!  My name is Michelle Boisvert.  I’ll be spending the summer working for Green Streets, and I wanted to introduce myself to you all and tell you a little about myself.  I moved to Portland in 2006 to be closer to good friends, to go to college, and because this city completely charmed me upon visiting — which says alot considering I moved here from Charm City: Baltimore, MD.  The parks, the street trees, the great local businesses, the trails system, the fact that one can live on the East End and walk a few blocks to a beautiful public park, trails into and out of town, accessible water, and A BEACH (?!) while living in a city – I’ve been sold on Portland.

I’ve been working at Preble Street Resource Center for the last four years and doing farm work the last couple of summers.  In May, I graduated from the University of Southern Maine with a bachelors degree in Environmental Policy and Planning.  This summer, while I’m fulfilling the internship requirement for my degree program, I’ll be doing a little bit of everything — including helping with a signage and mapping project at Portland Trails and working on a community visioning project in the Town of Waldoboro.

I should probably tell you about my own green streeting.  I sold my car in 2004 and have been getting alot of exercise ever since.  Mostly, I’m a year-round bike commuter, but I love a good spontaneous conversation with other public transit riders in icy weather or when I have too much to carry.  (Although, I have a knack for bungee cords and have transported everything from cross country skis to camping gear on my bicycle)  I’ve found alot of creative ways to get around Portland and beyond including the bus systems, a temporary car share for an out-of-town job, carpooling, Go Maine’s services, the Portland’s U Car Share program, and USM’s shuttle buses.  If you’ve been curious about using any of these modes of transportation, feel free to ask me anything.  My email address is greenstreetsvolunteers@yahoo.com.

I’m excited for this opportunity to participate in the excellent work Green Streets has been doing to increase awareness for the many modes of transportation we have available, promote healthy and active lifestyles, and create a more vibrant, people-friendly city — by getting folks out from behind the steering wheel!  Some of the work I’ll be doing for Green Streets will include:

• surveying our local business partners about the our incentive program
• developing and implementing improvements to the program to make being a Green Streeter even easier and more convenient
• developing and implementing the “This is a Green Streets Business” decal project
• recruiting new local business sponsors.

Your input is welcome!

I’ll be hanging out at the North Star Cafe on July 20th from 5:30 -7:00 for Green Street’s monthly volunteer social.  Come by to say hello, find out more information about Green Streets & how to get involved, or come share a cookie.  Happy Green Streeting, All, and I hope to see you on the streets on the last Friday of this month!

Munjfest – Portland’s Munjoy Hill neighborhood celebration of summer – will be held on Sunday, July 18 from 11am-4pm, as always on Congress Street at the top of the East End.  This year organizers are going all out with a Lovefest for the Bicycle theme for people of all ages and abilities.  And Green Streets is joining the fray with volunteers and a Print-Your-Own Green Streets T-Shirt Party!

So bring yourself , a favorite blank t-shirt (preferably green!) and your dear old bike out for some fun with a:

• Bike Decorating Party
• Grand Bike Parade (rumor has it that the Grand Marshall may be Bruce Hyman, the City of Portland’s new Bike-Pedestrian Coordinator)
• Kids Bike Raffle of 5 reconditioned bikes – a recycling of good bicycles!
• Bike Safety Q & A Station – for those burning “What am I Really Supposed to do in This Particular Road Situation??” questions
• Free Check-Up from a Local Bike Shop
• Print-Your-Own Green Streets T-Shirt Party! (we’ll have a station set up with stencils of the new Portland Green Streets logo – and black and white options of ink to print with.  We’ll also have some t-shirts on hand for $5 if you don’t have one of your own)

Volunteer with Green Streets at the Event!

Whether or not you have a bike or use other alternate transportation to get around, we’d love to have you volunteer with us at Munjfest! We’ll need folks to help with various Munjfest organizing activities (the bike decorating party, the parade, the biking Q&A, etc. – and also to host the Green Streets table and star in the T-Shirt Printing Party).  Please select a stint you can help out on this Doodle schedule (it takes 30 seconds – no registration required), put it on your calendar, and we’ll be in touch!

Neighbors, Vendors, Local Businesses and Exhibitors

Interested in entering your dog in the Annual MunjMinster Dog Talent show? Interested in getting involved or sponsoring? Fill out the following form: MunjFest 2010! Form; Call: 207-773-4336 or e-mail: info@munjoyhill.org

Portland Green Streets will be the Featured Non-Profit at the two-year anniversary of Portland GreenDrinks on Tuesday, 3/9 from 5:30-8pm!

The venue is 645 Congress, the historic former “Portland Hall” dorm that has been renovated to house spacious apartments (with discounted rent for tenants who are living car-free) and retail spaces (new home of Local Sprouts). It is a big space with plenty of room to saunter about and network with environmentally-minded folks from Greater Portland.

Thanks to input from GreenDrinks participants, the group has revamped it’s monthly event model and as the Featured Non-Profit this month, Green Streets will not only host a table, but also be:

• offering an on-site Action Item for those attending the event (a quick on-line survey to boost Green Streets’ effectiveness to get more people going green – that will take 3-5 minutes)
• receiving part of the proceeds from the door ($2 if you bring a drinking vessel (BYOV) or $5 if you don’t)

So come on out and bring a friend!

And if you’ve been looking for simple ways to volunteer for Portland Green Streets and can help out with this event, please click on this Doodle (no registration required) and let us know your availability!