Ever wondered about the roses painted all over downtown Portland? On the exterior walls of commercial buildings, sometimes mixed with red white and blue flags. They’re a bit of a puzzle. Who makes them? How have they so skillfully evaded the City’s mural code?

Well here’s the secret. They’re sponsored by Joe Weston, one of Portland’s longest lasting downtown property owners. Here’s the other secret – one of the murals tells the story of Portland’s heroin plague of the early 1990s.

See – Joe’s Collage of Roses – from 2006

Draw your attention to one of the most curious and interesting of the set – the Jo-Lyn Rose, Portland’s Unsecret Tragedy. It’s located near the East side of the Broadway Bridge. You’ve probably driven by a thousand times.

A perfect Portland memorial.