About Portland

Portland is a city with a small-town feel, and for its residents, this city seems to have it all: affordable housing, great food, a beautiful and clean environment, friendly folks, and a niche for every interest. From serious winter sports to craft fairs, from hiking to dancing, from spiritual pursuits to concerts, everyone fits in Portland.

Portland is a generally progressive city, and Portlanders like the good life. There is a strong emphasis here on healthy living and quality of life, including excellent access to local, organic food; safe and dedicated bicycling routes; good public transportation; a thriving local arts and crafts community; and an eclectic and welcoming music scene.

In terms of Montessori education, Portland has a strong voice. We are proud to support the work of the Oregon Montessori Association, a grassroots, volunteer-run organization designed to support Montessori throughout Oregon and beyond. Over fifty Montessori schools make Oregon their home, with most of these in Portland. We are also thrilled to announce that, in May 2009, Portland was selected to host the 27th AMI International Montessori Congress in July 2013, joining the cities of Chennai, India and Sydney, Australia, as recent hosts of this prestigious event.

Accolades

We’re never surprised when we hear that Portland has scored highly on yet another ‘Top Ten’ list; read for yourself what the world has to say about our fair city:

2010

2009

No. 3 – “America’s Safest Cities” – Forbes.com, 2009
No. 3 – "Least Wasteful Cities in America" – Nalgene Outdoor (June 2009)
No. 6 – "Fittest Cities in America" – Men's Fitness (February 2009)
No. 2 – "America's Best Airports" – Travel and Leisure magazine (January 2009)
No. 4 – “Bicycle Friendly State Rankings” – League of American Bicyclists 2009
No. 7 – “America’s Fittest Cities” – Forbes.com, 2009

2008

No. 1 – “Greenest City in America” – Popular Science (Feb 2008)
No. 1 – “US Cities ranked by Urban Sustainability” – http://www.sustainlane.com (2008)
No. 5 - “America’s 10 Cleanest Cities” – Forbes.com (March 2008)
No. 1 – “Most Gay-Friendly City in America” - Gay and Lesbian International News Network (July 2008)
No. 1 – “Best Cities in America to have a Baby” – Fit Pregnancy magazine (Feb/Mar 2008).
No. 2 – “Top 25 Greenest Cities in America” – Country Home (March 2008)
Platinum-level Bicycle Friendly Community designation (one of only two cities in the United States currently holding this raking) – League of American Bicyclists (May 2008)

2007

No. 1, Cityscape / No. 1, "Environmental Awareness" - CNN/Travel + Leisure (October 2007)
No. 2, "10 Greenest Cities in America" - MSN.com City Guides
Portland ranks first in nation for biking to work: The U.S. Census Bureau finds that more people bike to work in Portland than any other city in the United States.
America's "Best Eating Destination" — The Food Network (April 2007)
No. 9, "Top 25 Fittest Cities in the United States” — Men's Fitness (February 2007)
One of the World's Top Travel Destinations for 2007 — Frommer's Guidebooks/Frommer's.com (January)

What are people saying about Portland?

"Portland is a bracing mixture – vital without being precocious, laid-back without being starry-eyed... More than that, Portland is funky. Not in a self-conscious way, but as a reflection of how the locals choose to live."
– The London Times

“In this beguiling Pacific Northwest city of artisanal cafés, offbeat museums, funky neighborhoods and food carts from every corner of the world, the good life comes cheap” – ‘Frugal Portland’, New York Times, May 3, 2009

“Portland retained its title as SustainLane's number one city to beat this year – not surprising given that it got a 30-year jump on the rest of the country. That’s right: city-planners in Portland have been thinking green since the 70s, when the rest of the country was still embracing the strip mall. The city enacted strict land-use policies, implementing an urban growth boundary, requiring density, and setting a strong precedent for sustainable development. The city's natural beauty is hard to beat, too. But Portlanders aren’t resting on their laurels. According to the city's sustainable development director, Portland aims to be a "20 Minute City" -- where residents spend 20 or less minutes traveling from home to work, shop or play” http://www.sustainlane.com

Portland Trivia

• The Portland Saturday Market is the largest continuously operating open-air crafts market in the United States.
• Powell’s City of Books, occupying an entire city block, is the world’s largest independent bookstore.
• The Port of Portland is the largest wheat export port in the United States.
• Portland’s Junior Rose Festival Parade is the largest children’s parade in America.
• Portlandia is the second-largest hammered-copper statue in the world (the Statue of Liberty is the first).
• Portland’s International Rose Test Garden is the oldest in the nation.
• More Asian elephants (27 to date) have been born in Portland than in any other North American city.
• Portland is known as the epicenter of America’s craft brewing renaissance.
• Portland is home to both the world’s smallest dedicated park, Mill Ends Park (24 inches in size), and the nation’s largest forested city wilderness – the 5,000-acre Forest Park.
• There are 37,000 acres of parks in the Portland metro area.
• Portland’s nicknames include “Rose City,” “City of Bridges,” “Rip City,” and “Rivercity.”
• The Oregon Brewers Festival is the largest gathering of independent brewers in North America.
• The city of Portland was officially incorporated on February 8, 1851.
• There is no sales tax in Oregon (hooray!)