Remember the colorfully-painted junker cars that blocked NE Alberta during June's Last Thursday, making the event carfree for the 67 minutes it took police to tow them? Well, tomorrow the plan is to keep things legal, while still trying to make the Last Thursday safe for wandering: volunteers from the Vernon Neighborhood Association are slated to stand at each end of the Alberta stretch with posters encouraging drivers to choose alternate routes. If cars keep going, clowns riding tall bikes are supposed to be on hand to pilot them through the crowd.

last_thursday_car.JPG photo: Magnus Johannsen

For years, Alberta's monthly art night has overflowed its sidewalks. Now, neighborhood organizers are using both bottom-up action and bureaucratic meetings, trying to gain official street closure for an event that relishes its informality. This could be the kind of citizen action Last Thursday needs to build car free momentum, or it could just piss off people who don't want to be told where to drive. The City won't close the street until the residents are all in favor of it, so dividing the neighborhood is a real risk.

This month, TriMet agreed to reroute the 72 bus line that runs up the thoroughfare. Since the 72 is Portland's busiest bus line, the city has been hesitant about making a change that could inconvenience hundreds of riders. But no buses pushing through the Last Thursday crowd will definitely make the night more enjoyable, plus it could be a step forward for the car free folks.

According to neighborhood arts organizer Kriss Parnell, officially barricading NE Alberta would cost at least $1,500 each month. Usually neighborhood event organizers pay for street closures by charging vendors for street space, but the heart of Last Thursday is lack of formal contracts with vendors. "Nobody wants to end up like the Pearl where someone decides who can set up," says Parnell.

In the mean time, pedestrians, bikers and cars are sharing a dangerously tight space on Alberta each month. Neighbors have decided that the best way to make Last Thursday carfree while working through the city process is simply to do it themselves.

"It's been frustrating getting the street closed down and I wanted to show that it's pretty straight forward," said neighborhood roustabout Magnus Johannesson, who was responsible for last month's cars, "We're responsible people on Alberta." Johannsen says he bought the two cars for $550 total and a team of artists painted them before the big day. The cars have gone to the tow lot, but this month he's printed hundreds of buttons and t-shirts emblazoned with the slogan "Pranksters for Pedestrians."