🎡 $550K jury award for Oaks Park ride mishap

$550K for Teens Stuck on Oaks Park Ride

A Portland jury awarded $275,000 each to two teenage girls for the 25 minutes they spent stuck upside-down on Oaks Amusement Park’s AtmosFEAR ride in 2024 — and for subsequent emotional and physical trauma. In all, 28 people were stuck upside down during the incident; nine sued, but seven settled their cases for undisclosed amounts. [Oregonian]

Backyard Replicas of Portland Bridges — Just for Cats

Dedicated cat owners have built a “Pawthorne Bridge” in their backyard — a replica of the Hawthorne Bridge. It’s part of a catio — an outdoor patio system just for their four feline companions. The catio concept is promoted by nature lovers (including Bird Alliance of Oregon) with the idea of letting cats outdoors in screened-in areas that keep them away from hunting — particularly birds. The Pawthorne Bridge will be part of the annual catio tour. (A “Taillikum” Bridge is also under construction.) [Oregonian]

• Catio Tour: Tickets to the Sept. 12 event are $15.

1M Gallons of Water a Year for These Households

Willamette Week examined the households that use the most water in the city. It’s a bit of public exposure for private citizens, but past editions of the series “Hydro Hogs” have convinced people to change their ways. Reporter Sophie Peel talked about the reporting on the pod today. [City Cast Portland 🎧]

• 🗞️ Read the story: Just 21 households used a combined 19 million gallons of water from June 1, 2025, to May 31, 2026. [Willamette Week]

This little kitty stumped our readers. The mural is located 2942 SE Hawthorne Boulevard if you want to stop by and see it in real life.

I expect a few more of you will know this week’s scavenger hunt, even though it’s in a newly reopened spot — that’s your hint.

It’s from City Cast Portland audience development manager Grace Cohen-Chen:

Do you know where his decorative wall is?

Please click here to submit the location — and, for unofficial bonus points, anything you know about it.

If you’re new to the newsletter, there’s a scavenger hunt every Friday. In next week’s newsletter, I’ll reveal the answer and shout out the first 10 readers who respond correctly.

📸 Want to submit a photo? Please email me a snapshot of somewhere in the Portland metro area, and we’ll consider it for an upcoming “Where Is It?” segment!