Full circle?

I see in the NW neighborhood newspaper that 9 NW-located businesses have closed since the first of the year. Is this the end of gentrification? Hard to say. But one clue may be that a Dollar Store is opening in the neighborhood, something unthinkable a few years ago.

When I lived in NW in the late 70s and 80s, the neighborhood was bohemian and full of used clothing stores, funky taverns and such. Then gentrification turned it into an over-priced upscale area. Ironic if the poor economy gives it back its old aura.

When my NY agent visited me there in the late 70s she said, This is the way Greenwich Village used to be. Hope it never changes! But the changes started only a few years later, about the same time my agent decided to get out of the business because the corporate takeover of the arts depressed her so much.

I loved NW in the late 70s, couldn't stand it afterward though Nobby's, at least, is pretty much the same. Most of my best Portland memories happened in NW, so it's still a pleasant nostalgic trip for me if I go early in the morning before all the Beautiful People are on the street.

I wonder where all the retired folks who used to live in NW went after they got priced out of the market. They were an important mix to the old feel.