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PPB Chief Chuck Lovell at a 2020 press conference.
PPB Chief Chuck Lovell at a 2020 press conference. City of Portland

Good morning, Portland! Happy summer solstice—and happy oh-my-god-how-is-it-already-this-hot first day of summer. If you’re wondering if there’s a name for this heatwave we’ve been stricken with, let me introduce you to the “heat dome.”

-Oregon members of Congress are urging the Oregon Department of Transportation to expand I-5 in the Rose Quarter, but only if the project includes freeway overpasses that connect the neighborhood it cuts through. ODOT, unsurprisingly, says it’s not that simple.

-PPB Chief Chuck Lovell talked to the Oregonian about his first year at the helm of the police bureau: “It’s tough to move forward when you’re really dealing with a lot of setbacks.”

-Travel Portland bought a full-page ad in the Sunday New York Times (and other national publications) to publish what could be described as “damage control fridge poetry” :

-It’s been five months since Oregon’s new law decriminalizing small amounts of hard drugs went into effect, and its implementation continues to polarize the recovery community, raising concerns about the proposal’s sweeping promises. Get caught up on the divisive law here.

-Ryan Crouser (hometown: “unincorporated Boring”) made history during the US Olympic Track & Field Trials Friday night in Eugene by throwing a shot put over 75 feet.

-State-level efforts across the US to increase COVID-19 vaccination rates through lotteries and other financial awards haven’t been as successful as previously hoped. The vaccine pace in states that used cash prizes to incentivize vaccinations—including Oregon—hasn’t taken off as expected, data finds.

-As vaccination rates slow across the US, researchers are raising alarms about the spread of the Delta variant of COVID, which is more transmissible than the common virus. The new variant, which was first detected in India, leaves unvaccinated pockets of the country at high risk.

-A true rollercoaster of a headline, brought to you by CNN: “A tiny dinosaur trapped in amber turned out to be a 'really weird animal' instead”

-A police officer in Flint, Michigan fatally shot a 19-year-old woman during a Juneteenth parade. The officer alleged they were shot at first.

-RIP Champ.