The sunflower (Sunnyside Piazza)

Southeast 33rd Street was closed off last weekend to allow artists to repaint the big mandala/sunflower the covers the intersection at Yamhill Street. This happens about once a year, and I'm always amazed when it does.

Most of us, when it comes to things that don't directly affect our lives, have a pretty short attention span. So often a civic amenity like this intersection captures people's attention and care, and folks step up to commit to it -- and over time it fizzles. No one is really in charge; no one takes the initiative; cracks open and the project falls through.

But that doesn't happen at this place. And that's why I love Sunnyside.


Notes:

In 2003, the repainting had its own Web page: www.cityrepair.org/ir_sunny.html

This year, a drumming circle gathered at noon last Saturday (May 20) to celebrate the event.

Also at the intersection, there is a kiosk made of cob (a builting material that combines straw and clay) where anyone can post neighborhood news. Another cob structure is a solar-powered stone fountain that recycles and refilters rainwater running off the roof of a nearby house. There are plantings in drums and whimsical canopies on the corners.

The intersection is worth a visit, by bike, by walking or via the 15 Belmont bus, which stops between 32nd and 33rd. If travel makes you hunger, you'll find several cafes on Belmont Street, a block north of Yamhill.