City of Portland-owned performing arts venues
The Portland’5 Centers for the Arts (Portland’5) operates five theaters in three separate City of Portland-owned buildings in downtown Portland. Those venues include the Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall, Keller Auditorium, and Antoinette Hatfield Hall, which houses the Brunish, Newmark, and Winningstad theaters. Arts & Culture provides administrative oversight of Portland’5, and the venues are operated by Metro under the oversight of the Metropolitan Recreation and Exposition Commission (MERC).
Project: Reimagining Downtown Performing Arts
The Reimagining Downtown Performing Arts project consists of two main bodies of work, the Future of Portland’5 and the Future of Large-Scale Performing Arts.
Future of Portland’5
Operated by Metro, Portland’5 brings more than 1,000 music, theater, dance, and lecture performances and more than a million patrons to downtown Portland every year—to the tune of $77 million in total spending annually. In October 2024, Portland City Council passed a resolution to establish a performing arts venues workgroup to explore opportunities and challenges to both immediate and long-term operations, maintenance, and planning of the City-owned Portland’5 venues. The resolution also directed the study of alternative operational models for the Portland’5 arts facilities.
This portion of the project is focused on conversations around the management, operations, and the intergovernmental agreement (IGA) between the City and Metro as they relate to Portland’5.
Future of Large-Scale Performing Arts
The City’s Future of Large-Scale Performing Arts project team, consisting of staff from the Community & Economic Development Service Area, Office of Arts & Culture, and the Spectator Venues and Visitor Activities Program, are leading an effort to plan for the future of premier performing arts venues in Portland—including the Keller Auditorium—and multiple possibilities are taking shape. In October 2024, Portland City Council passed a resolution that included a two Broadway-capable venue strategy. Other components included collaboration with Portland State University, a market feasibility study, and a traffic study to explore the development of Third Avenue.
This portion of the project is focused on conversations around the physical venue spaces necessitated in Portland from a supply and demand perspective, including potential future sites at the Keller Auditorium, Portland State University, or both.