KGW Poll:  Location Shapes Residents Opinion on Growth

By Randy Neves and Doug Irving, KGW Staff 
December 5, 2001

City planners are turning their attention to the 65 surface parking lots scattered throughout Portland, envisioning apartments and offices instead of asphalt.

The parking lots consume precious downtown land, city commissioner Charlie Hales said. By building on them, he said, Portland could grow from within, rather than pushing its boundaries outward.

“Take those parking lots and grow buildings on them, instead of paving over farmland,” Hales suggested. “(That) is something that people far from the downtown still ought to care about.”

Many of the 65 surface lots in Portland’s city center belong to a third generation of the Goodman family. Greg Goodman has allowed a new office tower on one lot, and said he wouldn’t mind doing it again.

“The problem with it is, in most cases, it doesn’t make any economic sense whatsoever,” Goodman said.

Both sides are looking into using government subsidies to sweeten the deal. The city already pitched in money to the Brewery Blocks project to hide 1,300 planned parking spots below ground.

Planners say almost anything is better than a parking lot. Commercial office space would be fine, but planners are especially keen on new downtown housing for all income levels, and developments that provide jobs. Even a parking garage, they said, is better than a surface lot.

Previous Stories:

-Location Shapes Resident's Opinions on Growth
-Metro Area Headed in the Right Direction
-Area Residents Worry about the Economy
-Recession Complicates Planning
-Editor's note