Commissioner Ryan believes the more quickly we can get small businesses, affordable housing units, residential improvements and modifications, new investments, and large-scale housing developments flowing, the more quickly we can rebuild our economy. That's why he co-chaired the Permit Improvement Task Force, which serves to align the up to eight permitting bureaus, decrease the time it takes to get a permit, and improve customer experience. The Permit Improvement Task Force led directly to the creation of Portland Permitting & Development (PP&D), a unified development review organization that brings together 350 professionals from five bureaus to continue improvements to the building permit process and keep construction projects on track.
Commissioner Ryan knows revitalizing Portland's downtown is pivotal for our City's comeback—that's why he's led investment in a range of downtown activations that make our City center cleaner, greener, and welcoming for residents and visitors alike.
We are a city where creativity and innovation is welcomed for all. Let’s continue to build an inclusive economy where everyone has access to thrive and create generational wealth.
Permit Improvement Task Force
When Commissioner Ryan first started learning about the intricacies of the City's Permitting System, he was surprised to learn that most customers seeking a permit are not large commercial builders—instead, they are residential and small business owners. He was also surprised to learn that the largest share of permit seekers are residential alterations—followed by new residential construction and commercial alterations, which are often small to medium businesses repurposing or remodeling space for their business operations.
Commissioner Ryan identified this Council-wide legacy opportunity to make meaningful, transformational change to ensure a safe built environment, and a timely and customer-focused process. The Permitting System impacts the City's housing shortage and our economic recovery effort—from the ability to grant permitting fee waivers for shelters to the billion dollars of pending projects currently in the permitting pipeline.
Commissioner Ryan formed the Permit Improvement Task Force with the stated goal of reducing timelines, improving customer experience, building digestible public data to improve performance management. Comprised of leadership from all eight of the City’s permitting bureaus, the Task Force provides a different approach from past attempts to reform our system and processes, with the addition of a dedicated transition team to drive the implementation of recommendations.
Effective July 1, 2024, the permitting teams from the Environmental Services, Transportation and Water bureaus and the Urban Forestry Division of Portland Parks & Recreation—along with all Bureau of Development Services divisions—are now unified in a single bureau known as Portland Permitting & Development (PP&D). PP&D is a unified development review organization that brings together 350 professionals from five bureaus to continue improvements to the building permit process and keep construction projects on track. Portland Permitting & Development (PP&D) manages building permits, land use, inspections, code enforcement, and public works permits to ensure our built environment is safe and accessible.
Learn more about the Permit Improvement Task Force.
Visit Portland Permitting & Development.
Revitalizing Downtown
Commissioner Ryan is dedicated to reinvigorating our downtown core. Healthy cities have healthy downtowns, and Portlands is still on the road to recovery. In his time on City Council, Commissioner Ryan has focused on downtown Portland by:
- Investing in a robust Downtown Clean & Safe.
- Directing funds to Pioneer Courthouse Square.
- Supporting downtown arts events.
- Advocating for the Keller Auditorium's future and the Halperin Sequence's conservation.
- Serving as Royal Rosarian liaison and hosting Sister City events downtown.
- Supporting the Coraline Cat Trail through downtown Portland.
- Advocating for the restoration of the Thompson Elk.
- Overseeing the Portland Monuments Project.
Learn more about Downtown Clean & Safe.
Visit the Office of Arts & Culture.
International Relations
Commissioner Ryan has served as the Royal Rosarian liaison since taking office in September of 2020, and he delights in the yearly Rose Festival activities that feature our Sister City relationships like Kaohsiung, Taiwan. Commissioner Ryan is committed to strengthening Portland's ties with our existing sister cities and international communities as well as growing our global bonds. International sisterhood and international trade are vital to our cultural and economic growth.
Learn more about Commissioner Ryan's International Relations work.
Bureau of Development Services (now Portland Permitting & Development)
Commissioner Ryan's priorities when he was the Commissioner-in-Charge of the Bureau of Development Services from September 2020 to January 2023 were using the bureau's expertise to improve Citywide permitting processes, facilitating Portland's development from small residential improvements to large-scale affordable housing, and streamlining the bureau's use of technology and customer experience.
Under Commissioner Ryan's direction, BDS enhanced the City’s solar permit application process to support property owners in promotion of clean energy goals, Successfully advocated for $1.2M in funding for the Neighborhood Inspections program, to reduce the program’s reliance on enforcement fees which pose equity concerns reported in the City Ombudsman’s November 2021 report, filled a variety of vacancies on the Development Review Advisory Committee, adding additional racial and experiential diversity to the committee, and more.
A nimble, data-driven, customer-centered response from permitting bureaus is the key to Portland's economic development.
Learn more about Commissioner Ryan's oversight of the Bureau of Development Services, now Portland Permitting & Development.
Commissioner Ryan's work for a prosperous Portland:
- Commissioner Ryan passed an ordinance to temporarily waive sections of the zoning code to support economic recovery. Read BDS' article on how these changes support businesses.
- Safe Rest Villages are a critical part of Commissioner Ryan's economic recovery approach—by connecting Portlanders experiencing homelessness with services, we will bring back small businesses disproportionately impacted by the COVID-19 crisis and the homelessness crisis.
- Commissioner Ryan negotiated an unprecedented $38M joint City/County investment in homelessness that will recruit and retain service providers, mitigate the environmental impacts of encampments, and streamline the Joint Office of Homeless Services' work to improve results. Read the joint press release.
- Commissioner Ryan worked with City bureaus to create a system to reimburse shelter permit fees to further remove barriers to shelter siting, using funds we advocated for and passed in the Fall BMP.
- Commissioner Ryan advocated to meet the unique needs of affordable housing providers in code changes to the Historic Resources Code Project (HCRP) and the Design Overlay Zoning Amendments (DOZA), which will help the City provide more affordable housing on schedule. Learn more about HCRP and DOZA.
- Commissioner Ryan ensured that the Homebuyer Opportunity Limited Tax Exemption (HOLTE) will work for homebuilders while still providing affordability and homeownership for low to moderate-income households. Learn more about HOLTE.
- Commissioner Ryan actively recruited for Development Review Advisory Committee (DRAC) and Historic Landmarks Commission appointments, resulting in more diverse representation on these vital public bodies. Learn more about DRAC and the Historic Landmarks Commission.