With bike weddings, bike parades, hundreds of naked bicyclists, bike fashion shows, popular & interesting cargo bikes, and travelling bike pubs, Portland is #3 on this great bicycle city photo tours list.

Portland has great bicycle facilities (colored bike lanes, bike boxes at intersections, great bike signs, off-road bicycle paths, etc.), a large number of people using the bicycle for transportation, and a bike culture that brings the fun of bicycling to another level.

As a result of these factors and more, Portland was the first large city in the US to achieve the Platinum level Bike Friendly award from the League of American Bicyclists (LAB) — the Platinum level being the highest level possible (above Gold, Silver and Bronze). It is truly a world-class bicycle city now, and the amazing photos in this photo tour help to show that.

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Portland, Oregon-based businessman Joe Doebele has another complaint about the program: there’s nothing in it to get commuters to shift from four wheels to two. Rather than just throw stones, though, Doeble decided to do something about this shortcoming: he’s started his own “cash for clunkers” program at his cargo bike shop Joe Bike.

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Portland, Oregon is a beautiful city, known for its roses, organic food, environmentally conscious citizens, and its beer.  It has truly become a destination for Oregonians and travelers alike searching for locally made micro brews and craft beers.

It’s hard to walk two blocks in Portland without encountering a brew pub, ale house, or beer bar, but there’s one that stands out as being truly exceptional.  Located in downtown Portland, Bailey’s Taproom is a cozy, modern facility that specializes in Pacific Northwest microbrews and craft brews.  They serve up everything in every imaginable style from a “brutally hoppy IPA, a clean lager, a sour Belgian, a thick stout, or a boozy barleywine”.

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August is hotter than ever for those of us who envision a future where the streets are populated with plug-in hybrids and electric vehicles and powered by renewable energies.

The month began with the unveiling of Nissan’s Leaf electric vehicle. On Wednesday, President Obama and the Department of Energy announced $2.4 billion in grants to fuel the development of the electric vehicle industry and reduce our nation’s dependence on oil.

Next week opens with the second annual Plug-In 2009 in Long Beach, Calif.

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For a city with so many amazing trees, Portland is getting ready to add a bunch of new LEAFs to our streets.

No, that’s not a typo. I’m talking about the LEAF, Nissan’s just-unveiled electric vehicle, which is set to hit dealerships in the fall of 2010. In our quest to be the nation’s leader in electric vehicle infrastructure, usage and development, the Portland region took a big step forward today with the announcement that Nissan and eTec selected Oregon as one of five test markets for the largest deployment of EV’s and the associated charging station network in American history.

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Editor’s Note: John Gartner is Editor in Chief of Matter Network and an Industry Analyst at Pike Research

While San Francisco and Portland are each publicly claiming they’ll have the best electric vehicle networks in place in their cities, San Jose may be have made the most progress.

The city of San Jose has installed 7 charging stations so far, including spots at City Hall and a public parking garage. At the charging locations vehicle owners don’t pay for the power; instead they are charged based on the time in the parking spot. To simplify payment, EV owners get a keychain fob that’s connected to their credit card.

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Bike Wedding Parades

Bike Fairy Pedicabs

“When man invented the bicycle he reached the peak of his attainments. Here was a machine of precision and balance for the convenience of man. And (unlike subsequent inventions for man’s convenience) the more he used it, the fitter his body became. Here, for once, was a product of man’s brain that was entirely beneficial to those who used it, and of no harm or irritation to others. Progress should have stopped when man invented the bicycle.” ~Elizabeth West, Hovel in the Hills

Bike Halftime Shows

Bands on Bikes

Bike Parades

Bike Street Clowns

“After your first day of cycling, one dream is inevitable. A memory of motion lingers in the muscles of your legs, and round and round they seem to go. You ride through Dreamland on wonderful dream bicycles that change and grow.” ~H.G. Wells, The Wheels of Chance

Image Credit 1: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 2: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 3: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 4: Portland Pedalworks via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 5: actionhero via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 6: Ben Amstutz via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 7: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 8: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license

Green Bike Lanes with Bike Boxes, Dutch Style

Blue Bike Lanes at Major Intersections, Copenhagen Style

Bike Lane Stencil — Bike & Golf

Bike Lane Stencil — Juggling on a Bike

Artistic Bike Racks

Good Signage for Bicyclists

Great Bicycle & Pedestrian Lanes on a Bridge

On Hawthorne Bridge. The photographer writes: “This clear signage allows a wide sidewalk on a bridge to be safely shared between bikes and pedestrian traffic.”

Bikes on Transit

From the photographer: “MAX trains essentially have have three kinds of carriages: two kinds of low-floor carriages and one kind of high-floor carriage.

Each MAX train consists of just two carriages (they are short because Portland city blocks are so short), and one carriage is guaranteed to be a low-floor carriage (only the low floor carriage are suitable for folks with disabilities). But… only the low floor carriages have hooks (you can stand on the high-floor ones). Each low floor carriages has 4 hooks, so a train has 4 or 8 good places to hang a bike and relax.”

Image Credit 1: poetas via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 2: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 3: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 4: Shannon Henry via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 5: Brewcaster via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 6: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 7: hradcanska via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 8: Mark Stosberg via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 9: brianellin via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 10: mokolabs via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 11: Mark Stosberg via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 12: Major Clanger via flickr under a Creative Commons license

Bike Fashion Shows

Image Credit 1: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 2: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 3: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 4: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 5: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 6: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 7: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 8: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 9: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 10: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 11: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 12: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license

Bike Tattoos

Bike Art

Bike Fish or Fish Bike (not sure)

“When I go biking, I repeat a mantra of the day’s sensations: bright sun, blue sky, warm breeze, blue jay’s call, ice melting and so on. This helps me transcend the traffic, ignore the clamorings of work, leave all the mind theaters behind and focus on nature instead. I still must abide by the rules of the road, of biking, of gravity. But I am mentally far away from civilization. The world is breaking someone else’s heart.” ~Diane Ackerman

Bike Art?

Image Credit 1: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 2: vj_pdx via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 3: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 4: Philosophographlux via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 5: Ben Amstutz via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 6: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license

Fun Family Bicycling

“A bicycle does get you there and more…. And there is always the thin edge of danger to keep you alert and comfortably apprehensive. Dogs become dogs again and snap at your raincoat; potholes become personal. And getting there is all the fun.” ~Bill Emerson, “On Bicycling,” Saturday Evening Post, 29 July 1967

Image Credit 1: EthanPDX via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 2: drwhimsy via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 3: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 4: cafemama via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 5: qousqous via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 6: Philosophographlux via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 7: Mark Stosberg via flickr under a Creative Commons license

Naked Bicycling Events

Image Credit 1: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 2: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 3: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license

Donuts on Bikes

Beer by Bike

Pizza Delivery

Bike-Thru Window at Black Sheep Bakery, no Cars

Image Credit 1: Anomalily via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 2: Elly Blue via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 3: Elly Blue via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 4: chrispyworld via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 5: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license

Bike on Bike

Got a Package to Pick Up? Get It on Your Bike

Bike Delivery

From the photographer: “B-Line PDX is a new local business that is looking to change how Portland businesses deliver goods across town. They got two huge cargo bikes and the clients are already rolling in.”

Cool Cargo Bike

Dutch-Style Cargo Bike

More Cargo Bikes

Both of these for sale at a downtown bicycle shop, Portland Tricycles.

Cargo Bike in Snow

Cleaning Service by Bike

Recycling on Bike

Image Credit 1: gregraisman via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 2: gregraisman via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 3: timmycorkery via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 4: gabriel amadeus via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 5: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 6: NathanBackous via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 7: Mark Stosberg via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 8: Portland Pedalworks via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 9: Portland Pedalworks via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 10: npGREENWAY via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 11: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 12: Philosophographlux via flickr under a Creative Commons license

Off-Road Biking Safer for Bikes than Cars

“Until mountain biking came along, the bike scene was ruled by a small elite cadre of people who seemed allergic to enthusiasm.” ~Jacquie Phelan

If you liked this photo tour, you are sure to like the previous ones as well:

#4 Copenhagen (Denmark)
#5 Paris (France)
#6 Groningen (the Netherlands)
#7 Berlin (Germany)
#8 Barcelona (Spain)
#9 Bogota (Columbia)
#10 Basel (Switzerland)

And be sure not to miss the top two photo tours! Keep your eye on EcoWorldly or subscribe to its feed or email list to make sure you don’t miss them or other upcoming posts. Have something extra to add? Comment below!

Image Credit: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license

SAN FRANCISCO - Yesterday, Gas 2.0 (gas2.org) launched ElectricCarRace.org, a site challenging cities across the nation to be first to develop city-wide electric vehicle infrastructure. A two-minute video featuring the Mayors of Portland and San Francisco kicked off the competition, along with posts written by Mayor Newsom, Portland General Electric, and the CEO of Coulomb Technologies Richard Lowenthal.

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Editor’s Note: This is a guest contribution by Elaina Medina of Portland General Electric.

We are anticipating a large turnout at this year’s “EV Awareness Day” on Saturday, July 11, at Pioneer Courthouse Square in Portland, Ore. Portland General Electric is proud to sponsor this annual event hosted by the Oregon Electric Vehicle Association.

The PGE team will be on hand to show off its new PGE plug-in hybrid electric vehicle and talk to attendees about our network of more than a dozen charging stations we are installing across the Portland-metro area and Salem.

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Last year, 300 folks across North America turned in their car keys for a month as part of the 2008 Zipcar Low-Car Diet. And, in addition to cutting congestion, they also walked 85% more, biked 136% more and decreased their miles driven by 71%. Pretty impressive, eh? Starting July 15, a new crop of participants from all Zipcar cities worldwide* will begin the 2009 Low-Car Diet: one full month of living without a primary car.

Zipcar will be selecting 30 participants in each Zipcar metro to take part in the 2009 Low-Car Diet. Zipcar and its partners are committed to providing all participants with the necessary tools for creating transportation nirvana, including:

• Bike rentals
• Transit passes
• Complimentary meals at participating restaurants
• Discounts at local retailers
• And, of course, a 1-year Zipcar membership with some driving credit to get started

There will be a number of applicants for only 30 spaces, and Zipcar would like to make sure they’re the best. If you think you’d like to try an unconventional diet just fill out this short survey.

*Zipcar cities include Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, London, New York City, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Portland, San Francisco, Seattle, Toronto, Vancouver, and Washington, DC.

Photo Courtesy tvol via Flickr under Creative Commons license.

Disclaimer: Gas2.0 parent company Virgance is participating in the Low-Car Diet.

Bike Wedding Parades

Bike Fairy Pedicabs

“When man invented the bicycle he reached the peak of his attainments. Here was a machine of precision and balance for the convenience of man. And (unlike subsequent inventions for man’s convenience) the more he used it, the fitter his body became. Here, for once, was a product of man’s brain that was entirely beneficial to those who used it, and of no harm or irritation to others. Progress should have stopped when man invented the bicycle.” ~Elizabeth West, Hovel in the Hills

Bike Halftime Shows

Bands on Bikes

Bike Parades

Bike Street Clowns

“After your first day of cycling, one dream is inevitable. A memory of motion lingers in the muscles of your legs, and round and round they seem to go. You ride through Dreamland on wonderful dream bicycles that change and grow.” ~H.G. Wells, The Wheels of Chance

Image Credit 1: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 2: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 3: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 4: Portland Pedalworks via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 5: actionhero via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 6: Ben Amstutz via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 7: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 8: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license

Green Bike Lanes with Bike Boxes, Dutch Style

Blue Bike Lanes at Major Intersections, Copenhagen Style

Bike Lane Stencil — Bike & Golf

Bike Lane Stencil — Juggling on a Bike

Artistic Bike Racks

Good Signage for Bicyclists

Great Bicycle & Pedestrian Lanes on a Bridge

On Hawthorne Bridge. The photographer writes: “This clear signage allows a wide sidewalk on a bridge to be safely shared between bikes and pedestrian traffic.”

Bikes on Transit

From the photographer: “MAX trains essentially have have three kinds of carriages: two kinds of low-floor carriages and one kind of high-floor carriage.

Each MAX train consists of just two carriages (they are short because Portland city blocks are so short), and one carriage is guaranteed to be a low-floor carriage (only the low floor carriage are suitable for folks with disabilities). But… only the low floor carriages have hooks (you can stand on the high-floor ones). Each low floor carriages has 4 hooks, so a train has 4 or 8 good places to hang a bike and relax.”

Image Credit 1: poetas via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 2: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 3: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 4: Shannon Henry via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 5: Brewcaster via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 6: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 7: hradcanska via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 8: Mark Stosberg via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 9: brianellin via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 10: mokolabs via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 11: Mark Stosberg via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 12: Major Clanger via flickr under a Creative Commons license

Bike Fashion Shows

Image Credit 1: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 2: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 3: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 4: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 5: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 6: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 7: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 8: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 9: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 10: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 11: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 12: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license

Bike Tattoos

Bike Art

Bike Fish or Fish Bike (not sure)

“When I go biking, I repeat a mantra of the day’s sensations: bright sun, blue sky, warm breeze, blue jay’s call, ice melting and so on. This helps me transcend the traffic, ignore the clamorings of work, leave all the mind theaters behind and focus on nature instead. I still must abide by the rules of the road, of biking, of gravity. But I am mentally far away from civilization. The world is breaking someone else’s heart.” ~Diane Ackerman

Bike Art?

Image Credit 1: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 2: vj_pdx via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 3: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 4: Philosophographlux via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 5: Ben Amstutz via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 6: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license

Fun Family Bicycling

“A bicycle does get you there and more…. And there is always the thin edge of danger to keep you alert and comfortably apprehensive. Dogs become dogs again and snap at your raincoat; potholes become personal. And getting there is all the fun.” ~Bill Emerson, “On Bicycling,” Saturday Evening Post, 29 July 1967

Image Credit 1: EthanPDX via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 2: drwhimsy via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 3: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 4: cafemama via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 5: qousqous via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 6: Philosophographlux via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 7: Mark Stosberg via flickr under a Creative Commons license

Naked Bicycling Events

Image Credit 1: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 2: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 3: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license

Donuts on Bikes

Beer by Bike

Pizza Delivery

Bike-Thru Window at Black Sheep Bakery, no Cars

Image Credit 1: Anomalily via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 2: Elly Blue via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 3: Elly Blue via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 4: chrispyworld via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 5: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license

Bike on Bike

Got a Package to Pick Up? Get It on Your Bike

Bike Delivery

From the photographer: “B-Line PDX is a new local business that is looking to change how Portland businesses deliver goods across town. They got two huge cargo bikes and the clients are already rolling in.”

Cool Cargo Bike

Dutch-Style Cargo Bike

More Cargo Bikes

Both of these for sale at a downtown bicycle shop, Portland Tricycles.

Cargo Bike in Snow

Cleaning Service by Bike

Recycling on Bike

Image Credit 1: gregraisman via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 2: gregraisman via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 3: timmycorkery via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 4: gabriel amadeus via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 5: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 6: NathanBackous via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 7: Mark Stosberg via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 8: Portland Pedalworks via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 9: Portland Pedalworks via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 10: npGREENWAY via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 11: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license
Image Credit 12: Philosophographlux via flickr under a Creative Commons license

Off-Road Biking Safer for Bikes than Cars

“Until mountain biking came along, the bike scene was ruled by a small elite cadre of people who seemed allergic to enthusiasm.” ~Jacquie Phelan

If you liked this photo tour, you are sure to like the previous ones as well:

#4 Copenhagen (Denmark)
#5 Paris (France)
#6 Groningen (the Netherlands)
#7 Berlin (Germany)
#8 Barcelona (Spain)
#9 Bogota (Columbia)
#10 Basel (Switzerland)

And be sure not to miss the top two photo tours! Keep your eye on EcoWorldly or subscribe to its feed or email list to make sure you don’t miss them or other upcoming posts. Have something extra to add? Comment below!

Image Credit: BikePortland.org via flickr under a Creative Commons license

Nope. This “Wild Girl,” as she calls herself, is in the middle of a week-long adventure in which she’s eating only food she can forage or catch on the wild streets of Portland. She’s blogging about her experience at Culture Change.

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If you missed the discussion last week, we had the Mayors of two major cities—San Francisco and Portland—weighing in on electric vehicle charging infrastructure. In the coming weeks, we’re looking forward to hearing from other cities about their plans for EV infrastructure, but we also wanted to make sure the private sector had a chance to chime in.

Read more of this story »

“…few opportunities blend economy and sustainability like the electric vehicle does.” 

This post contains additional media. Click here to view the full post.

Editor’s Note: This is Portland Mayor Sam Adams’ first post for Gas 2.0. It’s a direct response to San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom, who posted for us earlier today and said the race to electric vehicle infrastructure “symbolizes what is best about our region and our country.” Mayor Adams will be holding a press conference today at 1:30 PST about this issue. UPDATE: Added video of the event above.

Portland is a great place to live, and it’s a great place to innovate. It could be Oregon’s natural beauty that inspired our long-established commitment to environmental stewardship and conservation, the Beta version of what we now call sustainability.

Couple that innate sense of stewardship with a culture of design, planning, discourse and collaboration and you get Portland — a City ranked by SustainLane (based in San Francisco, no less!) as America’s most sustainable city two years in a row!

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Editor’s Note: This is San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom’s second post on electric vehicles for Gas 2.0. It’s a direct response to Portland Mayor Sam Adams, who announced that his city would be the first to develop the charging infrastructure to support full-scale electric vehicle deployment. We expect to hear back from Mayor Adam’s later today - don’t miss it). UPDATE: Mayor Adam’s has posted his response. See video of his declaration to make Portland EV capitol of the US.

As car companies lined up in Washington, DC last November for the first round of federal bailout money – in San Francisco we announced another way – our comprehensive plan to make the San Francisco Bay Area the “Electric Vehicle (EV) Capital of the US.”

Our efforts to advance electric vehicles are not limited to San Francisco. We’ve engaged the entire Bay Area – a region of 7.3 million people – to make our region the cornerstone of the coming market for EVs. Not just governments, but key companies, business associations, policy advocates, and international car and EV infrastructure companies are all working together to make the San Francisco Bay Area the EV Capital of the U.S.

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By John Gartner. Reprinted with permission from Matter Network

Portland – On an unusually warm and sunny April Sunday, Portland Mayor Sam Adams accepted a Solar America Cities Award from the Department of Energy and pledged to greatly expand the amount of solar power in the city. Portland was one of 25 cities to have earned the Solar City award in 2007-8 which included a matching grant of $200,000 to be used for outreach to consumers about the viability of solar in the often cloudy Northwest, and to work with private companies to produce and sell solar panels. Though the 2009 award, which was handed out at the National League of Cities Green Cities Conference does not guarantee another DOE grant, city officials are hopeful that a similar amount will be made available after the department’s budget is finalized in the next few months.

Mayor Adams, who took office in January, set a goal for the city of expanding the installed solar in the city from the current 2 megawatts to 5 megawatts by 2012, and hopes that the actual number will be around 10 megawatts. Adams said that after factoring in federal and state incentives in Oregon, solar is “getting dangerously to being at a commensurate price for grid power.”

The city is developing co-marketing opportunities with contractors, roofing companies and building inspectors to communicate to consumers that installing a new roof “is an ideal time for installing solar.” The city will also include marketing materials about solar to consumers in communications from the city-operated water and sewer utilities.

The mayor said he the U.S. lack of a national energy policy for energy independence “is an embarrassment,” and he would lobby congress to establish one. Regardless of any national change in policy for energy or capping carbon emissions, Adams said Portland will meet its goals. The long term goal “is to wean Portland entirely off of [coal power plants],” according to Adams.

Despite its reputation for rainy weather, Portland receives about an average amount of sunlight annually. The consistently clear days throughout the summer and early fall make up for the long winters with overcast skies. Portland will communicate to residents that despite the weather, installing solar is a viable option.

Since the inaugural DOE grant, Portland has streamlined the permitting process for solar so that applications can be approved in a single day, and the fee for residential solar was reduced to $100, according to Lee Rahr, Portland’s Solar Program Coordinator. For commercial solar installations, the cost of the inverters and solar panels have been removed from the cost of equipment which is used to calculate the permitting fee, which can lower business fees by up to 80 percent She added that Portland recently issued a 1.5 megawatt request for proposal to add solar to eight public facilities.

Portland residents will soon be able to see who in their neighborhood has installed solar. Partly funded by the DOE grant, the city has hired consultancy C2HM Hill to develop a solar map that shows every commercial and residential solar installation in the city.

Steph Stoppenhagen, the program manager for the solar map, said it will be modeled on the map that was created for San Francisco and will be available on June 9. The interactive map will provide residents with their estimated cost savings from installing solar using data that includes their roof size and annual projected sunlight.

Hannah Muller of the DOE’s Solar Energy Technologies program says the Solar America Cities program is a change in approach for her agency because it focuses on market transformation, not just research and development. As part of the award, city officials get access to DOE engineers to help troubleshoot on solar projects.

The grant programs, which must be matched by local government funds, are used to get universities, utilities and city planners involved in the expansion of solar. Muller says the success of the program has prompted other groups within DOE to ask for expansion of their programs to include market transformation.

Image Credit: Payton Chung via Flickr under Creative Commons License

Hey, hold on a just a minute Chicago, San Francisco and Portland. Connecticut and Massachusetts want in on your race to be the country’s EV hotbed.

Northeast Utilities wants to build a 575-outlet EV charging system in the Nutmeg and Bay States, The Hartford Courant says. The pilot project would take two years to complete and the outlets would be built at private homes, businesses and public spots. Total cost: $1.4 million, helped out by a $694,000 federal grant.

Read more of this story »

On the heels of a Nissan electric car press conference in Portland Monday, yesterday Norwegian electric car manufacturer Th!nk was wooed by Oregon Governor Ted Kulongoski and US Senator Ron Wyden as the place to site an electric car manufacturing facility.

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[UPDATE: See latest post from Mayor Gavin Newsom, Mayor Sam Adams, and CEO Richard Lowenthal.] Just a few weeks ago San Francisco’s visionary Mayor, Gavin Newsom, wrote a post for us describing his plan to make the Bay Area the electric car capital of the world by aggressively developing the charging infrastructure to support full-scale EV deployment. At the time he proclaimed:

“Electric vehicles have the possibility to transform our economy, revive our car industry, and improve our environment. To make sure electric vehicles succeed this time around we need to invest hundreds of millions of dollars in battery technology and [charging] infrastructure.”

Well, San Francisco, you have a challenger.

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First and foremost I create detailed native nature drawings. With these, I create an eponymous line of paper goods and fabric accessories. I’ve been an “indie-craftpreneur” since 2001, selling my goods on my retail website and in boutiques worldwide. I also create murals, take on custom art commissions, and the occasional graphic design project for like-minded businesses.

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Activists in Portland, Ore. really know how to make a scene in a shopping mall.

Four women dressed as cheerleaders chanted and danced in front of a pet store known to sell sick puppies from puppy mills yesterday before mall security decided they’d had enough. Instead of detaining the cheer leaders, they decided to go after the one male activist who began yelling after the cheering stopped.

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