We love it when we can present positive updates to past coverage. Case in point: the Emerson Street Garden proposal, which we reported on last April and which is coming ever closer to fruition. The site at Northeast 8th and Emerson streets has been sitting vacant for decades, its soil contaminated by lead and other toxins. But as Sentinel reporter Cassandra Koslen discovered nearly a year ago, Groundwork Portland and the Oregon Sustainable Agriculture Land Trust (OSALT) are working with the state Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) on a unique experiment to determine if the lead can be removed or more thinly distributed with plants. The desired result is soil safe enough to support a community garden.

We just saw an announcement today (via King Neighborhood Association) from Groundwork Portland inviting citizens to a meeting next week to "help come up with a community outreach and engagement strategy for Emerson Street Garden." Looks like the soil-saving idea is alive and well. We'll check back in with Groundwork Portland and bring you updates as they arise. Date and time: March 16 from 4-6 p.m. at the Northeast Coalition of Neighborhoods, 4815 NE 7th Ave.

Last week, we reported on the unease of Memorial Coliseum redesign finalist Douglas Obletz regarding the city's current Coliseum operating agreement with Portland Arena Management.

Obletz, a principal with the firm Sheils Obletz Johnsen, which proposed the Memorial Athletic & Recreation Center (MARC), took issue with Section 2.2.3 of the operating agreement, which allows the city to reclaim the Coliseum with 18 months notice. However, the agreement also says the city would then only be able to use the site as a “Non-Spectator Facility."

“Our project would be dead in the water,” Oblitz told Sentinel reporter William Crawford. The agreement, in Obletz's opinion, would also put the Blazers' JumpTown proposal at a distiinct advantage.

The Daily Journal of Commerce reported yesterday that Obletz has sent a letter to City Council requesting a delay in the Coliseum Request for Proposals process until the onerous operating agreement can be re-negotiatied between PAM and city officials.  The issue will be discussed further by the Rose Quarter Stakeholders Advisory Committee tonight from 5-7:30 p.m. at the Portland Development Commission offices.

UPDATE 5:30 p.m.: OK, the dust is finally settling, and here's what we know, courtesy of WWeek, OPB reporter April Baer and Blue Oregon, among others:

-Newest candidates for Jeff Cogen's District 2 MultCo Commissioner seat: Roberta Philip, a new hire at County Chair-turned-Interim State Treasurer Ted Wheeler's office; and Paul van Orden, the former pro skateboarder and City of Portland Noise Control officer. They join Cogen aide Karol Collymore, Rev. Chuck Currie and former MultCo commish Gary Hansen in the race to fill the District 2 seat. (That's our district, yo!)

-Full slate of candidates for Wheeler's now-vacant MultCo County Chair seat: Cogen, former state Sentator Margaret Carter, and Mike Darger.

-And for State Treasurer: Jim Hill-D, Rick Metzger-D, Chris Telfer-R, and Wheeler-D.

UPDATE 3:13 p.m.: OPB's April Baer breaks the news that Steve Novick has withdrawn from the Multnomah County Chair race. On her Facebook fan page (I know, I know), April says, "Novick just told me he had been on the phones all day. Ultimately, a conversation with former MultCo chair Bev Stein led him to step back."

UPDATE 12:32 p.m.: OPB reporter April Baer resets the MultCo chair race: Margaret Carter, Jeff Cogen, Mike Darger, Steve Novick. And for State Treasurer: Jim Hill-D, Rick Metzger-D, Chris Telfer-R, Ted Wheeler-D. In her words, "Still 4.5 hours to go, folks!"

Meanwhile, WWeek reports the candidates (as of 12:30ish p.m.) for Cogen's District 2 seat are: Karol Collymore, Rev. Chuck Currie, and former MultCo Commish Gary Hansen. Check back here for more updates, including (gasp!) some original reporting.

UPDATE 10:33 a.m.: WWeek reports that former state Senator Margaret Carter will run for Multnomah County Chair. The position was vacated this morning by Ted Wheeler (pictured in slide show) when Gov. Ted Kulongoski appointed him as Interim State Treasurer to replace the late Ben Westlund, who died of cancer over the weekend. More details on the political shuffle below. 

Last fall's Senate shuffle's got nothing on this morning's political developments. Here's the scoop, courtesy of WWeek and BlueOregon:

-Gov. Ted Kulongoski announced this morning that he was appointing Multnomah County Chair Ted Wheeler as Interim State Treasurer, replacing the late Ben Westlund, who succumbed to cancer over the weekend.

-Then came word that former U.S. Senate candidate Steve Novick and United Church of Christ minister Rev. Chuck Currie planned to file for Wheeler's now-vacated County Chair seat.

-Then we learned, via WWeek, that Karol Collymore, a mover-and-shaker in MultCo Commissioner Jeff Cogen's office, was filing for her boss's seat, leading to rampant speculation that Cogen will be filing for County Chair. (Cogen has just confirmed that he will indeed run for County Chair.)

Why the sudden flurry of activity? Well, the deadline to file for the state's May primary is today. The clock is ticking. Let the games begin.

Photo in slideshow by Leah Nash, from Street Roots. Photo embeded in article of Wheeler at a past event with Portland City Councilor Nick Fish from Portlandonline