Shvitzin' at the Schnitz

An exasperated reader got this message the other day:

You have tickets to Oregon Symphony’s upcoming concert Classical Gershwin (May 13-15, 2023) at the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall. The concert will now take place at a different venue: Keller Auditorium in Portland located at 222 SW Clay St, Portland, OR.

The forecasted hot weather in Portland during the Classical Gershwin concert dates (May 13-15) means that we will need proper air conditioning in the hall. Unfortunately, Metro, which operates the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall, has not been able to repair the hall’s broken HVAC system. Rather than cancel our concerts, the Oregon Symphony, in conjunction with Portland’5 Centers for the Arts, has identified an alternative venue in Portland, Keller Auditorium. This nearby venue will allow the concerts to proceed as scheduled with air conditioning for our patrons and musicians.

According to the reader, the system at the Schnitz was also broken for the symphony's May 1 concert. "Arlene is spinning in her grave," she wrote.

It's another signature moment for the mission creepers at Metro. No wonder so many concerts are moving to the Reser Auditorium in Beaverton. (Plus, no junkies hassling the blue-hairs out there.)

Except maybe for land use, Metro makes no sense. Garbage, a zoo, theaters, conventions, parks, cemeteries, a hotel, and now homeless pork distribution – Metro's a collection of unconnected functions that would best be given back to the cities and counties, or even private business. There's a reason no other metropolitan area has a Metro bureaucracy. It's a waste of money.