Axios Portland

February 04, 2026
Good morning, Wednesday. "Springuary" has arrived. Someone tell the outside temperature that we're supposed to have six more weeks of winter.
🌤️ Today's weather: Mostly sunny, with a high of 61 and a low of 41.
Situational awareness: A federal judge yesterday barred federal officers from using tear gas, pepper balls or rubber bullets against protesters outside Portland's ICE facility unless there's an immediate threat, citing a pattern of force against nonviolent demonstrators.
- The judge set a hearing for March 2 on whether to extend the 14-day temporary order into a longer injunction.
Today's newsletter is 897 words — a 3.5-minute read.
1 big thing: 💰 "A good problem to have"
Portland officials have uncovered more unspent housing dollars, adding to the $21 million surplus revealed late last year and intensifying scrutiny of City Hall's financial oversight.
The big picture: Council President Jamie Dunphy released a memo yesterday showing that the newly identified money within the Housing Bureau totals roughly $15 million, per the Oregonian.
- The newly uncovered funds come from the city's transient lodging taxes and short-term rental fees collected from hotels and short-term rentals.
Caveat: It's not yet clear how flexible the money is. Some of it may come with legal or policy restrictions on how it can be spent.
What he's saying: "This is no way to run a city," Dunphy told the Oregonian, expressing his frustration over why these unspent funds were only being disclosed now and not during budget discussions last year.
- "This is a good problem to have but it is still a problem."
- Dunphy signaled he may delay a vote on any future housing spending packages until there's a full account of what's available.
What we're watching: The discovery lands just before councilors are set to request an investigation into the administration's handling of previously undisclosed housing funds at Wednesday's meeting.
- Councilors have floated several proposals for how to spend the money, including rental assistance for those exiting or at risk of entering homelessness or diverting a portion to projects in the works at Prosper Portland, the city's economic development agency.
- Now, with more money on the table, the surplus may also be used to help close the city's lingering budget gap.
2. 🏂 Meet Olympian Sean FitzSimons
Born and raised in Hood River, Olympic snowboarder Sean FitzSimons was carving turns on Mount Hood almost as soon as he could walk.
The big picture: Now he'll bring the skills he learned on the rails and jumps at Timberline and Mt. Hood Meadows to the big air and slopestyle courses at Livigno Snow Park, outside Cortina, Italy.
Catch up quick: FitzSimons, 25, strapped on skis while still a toddler, but he started skateboarding at age 5 and transitioned to full-time snowboarding by the time he was 8.
- His competitive nature grew out of a sibling rivalry with his brother, Tucker — each pushing the other to try new tricks on the mountain and on skate ramps in their backyard in Hood River.
- FitzSimons, known as "Bon" to his teammates, started riding in contests at age 9 and steadily rose up the ranks before getting invited to join the U.S. Snowboard Pro Team in 2019.
Flashback: His breakout moment came in 2022, when he secured his first World Cup victory at the Laax Open in Graubünden, Switzerland.
- That first place finish secured him a spot in the 2022 Winter Olympics in China, where he qualified for the slopestyle final and finished 12th.
Between the lines: FitzSimons has never been shy about his hometown pride.
- Scroll through his Instagram feed and you'll find him launching 180s over trees on Mount Hood, decked out in a custom Blazers jersey with his name on the back and the caption "Rip City forever."
- "Shout-out Oregon," he added. "I better see that in the article."
3. Rose City Rundown
⚖️ Court documents show the U.S. Department of Justice does not believe the two people shot by federal agents in Portland last month were members of a Venezuelan gang, contradicting statements made by the Department of Homeland Security in the immediate aftermath of the shooting. (The Guardian)
- Related: New video shows the Toyota Tacoma driven by one of the people shot backing into an unoccupied vehicle belonging to the federal agents before the shooting. (The Oregonian)
⚡️ Efficiency will need to be a key part of Oregon's power strategy if residents want to avoid rolling blackouts during extreme weather, according to a recent Department of Energy study.
- The state is contending with an aging electric grid and increasing demand from data centers. (OPB)
☕️ Case Study Coffee will open its sixth Portland location this month in the former King Harvest Hummus space at Southeast Morrison and 15th, complete with a drive-through window. (Bridgetown Bites)
4. 🚍 Ride free thanks to Rosa
In honor of Rosa Parks, the pioneering civil rights activist, TriMet will provide free rides today on all of its buses, MAX lines, the WES commuter rail and LIFT paratransit services to celebrate her birthday.
- Parks' arrest for refusing to give up her seat on a bus in 1955 helped launch the Montgomery Bus Boycott and the modern civil rights movement — making transit a fitting place to mark her legacy and a reminder that public transportation is meant to serve everyone.
🐕 Kale is trying to ignore the larger implications of this weather by doing dog walks in a t-shirt.
🤔 Meira is wondering why someone would steal her spin shoes from her car but nothing else.
This newsletter was edited by Geoff Ziezulewicz.
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