Sarah Iannarone has thoughts on the future of Portland | EP 39

Sarah Iannarone grew up in a union family in upstate New York. Rather than going to college out of high school, Sarah pursued a trade and worked as a chef in great food cities around the U.S.. Not long after moving from New Orleans to Portland in 1998, Sarah opened a small restaurant to connect the people in her working-class neighborhood with high quality food from local farmers at a fair price. It was even featured on Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives. Sadly, it is now shuttered due to the COVID crisis. After working without pay as a stay-at-home mom for several years, Sarah decided to enroll at Portland State University where she focused on planning sustainable cities. That's how she ended up spending the last decade helping urban leaders from around the world improve their places via the First Stop Portland program, best practices trips, and other educational endeavors, including lecturing to students here at home and to audiences around the world including in South Korea, China, Brazil and Canada. She resides in Mt. Scott-Arleta neighborhood, where 82nd Avenue meets Foster road, and can be spotted scooting around town on her e-bike, picking up groceries on her Xtracycle, running to catch the #10 & 14 buses, or enjoying the Douglas Firs in Mt. Scott Park park with her dog, Bacon.