WHEREAS, the City of Portland owns the Portland Streetcar System and contracts with Portland Streetcar, Inc. to manage and operate it; and
WHEREAS, streetcar transit has a proven record of spurring dense, equitable growth of complete neighborhoods in and near Portland’s Central City, including thousands of units of regulated affordable housing with access to critical destinations via walking, rolling, biking, and emission-free streetcar transit; and
WHEREAS, in September 2009, building upon the success of the Portland Streetcar to date, Portland City Council adopted the Portland Streetcar System Concept Plan, which identified an extension of streetcar to the Montgomery Park building in Northwest Portland as a highest-tier priority route for further study and planning; and
WHEREAS, in December 2017, Portland City Council adopted the 2035 Transportation System Plan, which included an extension of Portland Streetcar to Montgomery Park in its financially constrained major project list (60035); and
WHEREAS, in Fiscal Year 2018/2019, Portland City Council provided funding to the Bureau of Transportation and the Bureau of Planning and Sustainability to begin planning for a potential streetcar extension to Montgomery Park (FY 2018/201 Decision Package TR-5); and
WHEREAS, in December 2018, the Metro Regional Council adopted the 2018 update to the Regional Transportation Plan, including the Montgomery Park Streetcar Extension in its financially constrained project list (11319) and in its Regional Transit Strategy; and
WHEREAS, in December 2018, Metro, as the region’s Metropolitan Planning Organization, was awarded a Federal Transit Administration (FTA) grant to support Transit Oriented Development (TOD) and land use planning for Northwest Portland and Montgomery Park and requested that the City of Portland perform specific work identified in the grant proposal; and
WHEREAS, in June 2019, Portland City Council authorized an intergovernmental agreement with Metro for the TOD planning process for Northwest Portland; and
WHEREAS, in December 2019, the City of Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) in partnership with the Bureau of Planning and Sustainability (BPS) initiated the Montgomery Park to Hollywood Transit and Land Use Development Strategy (MP2H), which in Northwest Portland focused on transit and land use scenario planning to support opportunities to create an equitable development plan for a transit-oriented district near Montgomery Park; and
WHEREAS, the MP2H planning process included robust community engagement including the formation of a Project Working Group representing a variety of local viewpoints, as well as direct-funded outreach through partnerships with Friendly House, Inc., the Northwest Industrial Business Association, and Columbia Corridor Association to inform the goals, scenario development, and potential transit alignments for MP2H and the Montgomery Park Streetcar Extension; and
WHEREAS, during the MP2H planning process, PBOT and BPS analyzed various land use development and transit alternatives for their ability to best support the implementation of City policies and dense, equitable mixed-use development including increased housing and middle-wage jobs in the Montgomery Park Area, leading to the selection of the preferred mode of streetcar and the preferred transit alignment for the extension to best serve the preferred land use development scenario; and
WHEREAS, in December 2021, PBOT and BPS published a Discussion Draft of the MP2H-Northwest Plan, including a description of the preferred transit alignment for the streetcar extension to Montgomery Park, followed by public review and input for further plan refinements; and
WHEREAS, in 2022 and 2023, PBOT and BPS conducted further community engagement and analysis to make refinements to the MP2H Plan, including focused engagement regarding the streetcar extension to Montgomery Park; and
WHEREAS, in November 2023, the Metro Council adopted the High Capacity Transit Strategy, which identified the Montgomery Park Streetcar Extension (C28) as a highest-tier priority transit corridor for its viability to advance into implementation in the next four years; and
WHEREAS, in April 2024, PBOT and BPS published a Proposed Draft of the Montgomery Park Area Plan (MPAP) for public review and comment, which updated the MP2H name to better reflect the plan’s focus in the Montgomery Park Area of Northwest Portland and included minor refinements to the preferred transit alignment to reduce capital costs and improve feasibility, as well as a description of the preferred transit alignment, an overview of the assessment of alternatives conducted toward its development per Exhibit B, and proposed cross sections for the alignment per Exhibit C; and
WHEREAS, in June 2024, PBOT and BPS presented the preferred transit alignment to the Portland Planning Commission alongside the Montgomery Park Area Plan for advisement; and
WHEREAS, in July 2024, after public testimony and work sessions, Planning Commission voted to recommend adoption of the MPAP, as amended, to Portland City Council; and
WHEREAS, in October 2024, PBOT and BPS published a Recommended Draft of the MPAP for public review and comment, and PBOT published the Proposed Locally Preferred Alternative (LPA) based upon the preferred transit alignment released in April 2024.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the City of Portland adopts the Locally Preferred Alternative for the Montgomery Park Transit Project, including an alignment using two-way movement on NW 23rd Avenue and a new one-way parallel couplet using NW Roosevelt Street, Northwest 26th Avenue, and NW Wilson Street, including preliminary station locations per Exhibit A; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that PBOT will continue to work with project partners at TriMet and Metro to advance the streetcar project into Project Development, which includes engineering, design, environmental review, and the identification and securing of necessary local funding sources toward pursuance of federal transit funding for the project; and
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that PBOT and Portland Streetcar, Inc. will continue to engage and communicate with impacted and interested community members and stakeholders in the project area.
BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED, that Portland City Council and PBOT thank all those who have participated toward the planning of this project, including Metro, TriMet, the Project Working Group, the Columbia Corridor Association, Friendly House, the Northwest District Association, the Northwest Industrial Business Association, the Northwest Portland Business Association, Northwest Active Streets, the York Street Working Group, and local businesses and community members.
Exhibits and Attachments
Impact Statement
Purpose of Proposed Legislation and Background Information
The Montgomery Park Transit Project is identified in the Transportation System Plan (TSP) financially constrained project list (ID 60035). Through planning efforts and community engagement beginning in 2019, the Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) developed a preferred transit alternative for the project, which was published as a Recommended Locally Preferred Alternative in September 2024 for public review.
In order to qualify for funding for the project through the Federal Transit Administration’s (FTA’s) Capital Investment Grant (CIG) program, a Locally Preferred Alternative must be adopted through the local planning process.
This legislation will adopt the Locally Preferred Alternative for the Montgomery Park Transit Project as described and mapped in Exhibit A, which has been identified as an extension of Portland Streetcar to Montgomery Park, completing a required step toward the pursuance of a CIG grant to help fund the project.
Financial and Budgetary Impacts
- Adopting the Locally Preferred Alternative for the Montgomery Park Transit Project does not amend the budget or change current or future revenue sources, nor will it have any immediate impact to budgetary appropriations.
- The total project cost for the extension is estimated at $178 million, including vehicle procurement ($120 million without vehicles) (low confidence estimate). The project’s funding sources have not been secured, but are likely to include federal grants, regional flexible transportation funds, Transportation System Development Charges (SDCs), and funding reserved for Portland Streetcar.
- The Capital Investment Committee (CIC) at the Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) has approved the allocation of $12 million (of the estimated $178 million above) in Streetcar Reserve funds toward activities related to Project Development. During the Project Development phase, the cost estimate will be refined, and funding sources will be identified and secured.
- Costs for this project will be posted to cost code T01304, which is included in PBOT’s FY 24-25 budget and five-year CIP forecast.
- There is no additional funding request at this time.
Economic and Real Estate Development Impacts
While the adoption of the Locally Preferred Alternative does not have any immediate economic or real estate development impacts, the construction of an extension of Portland Streetcar to Montgomery Park, paired with the proposed land use changes in the area that are being considered concurrently to this Resolution (as part of the Recommended Draft of the Montgomery Park Area Plan) will support the potential for hundreds of new middle wage jobs and 2000 or more new housing units in the area over the next 20 years.
The streetcar extension and land use changes were shared with impacted community members utilizing the methods described in the Community Impacts and Community Involvement section below. Impacted community members have been part of the planning process since 2019, with several opportunities to provide input. In particular, feedback about concern of loss of industrial land and support of mixed-use development with jobs and housing development led to the refinement of the land use development scenario, the area being considered for land use changes, and the preferred alignment for the streetcar extension. The final Recommended Locally Preferred Alternative supports feasible, direct routing to the area of greatest expected change, implementing local policy while helping to preserve nearby industrial uses.
In a future phase, environmental review will consider economic, social, and environmental impacts in compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA). Any significant negative impacts will be required to be mitigated in order for the project to qualify for federal funding through a CIG grant.
Community Impacts and Community Involvement
While developing the Locally Preferred Alternative for the Montgomery Park Transit Project as part of the Montgomery Park Area Plan process, the City did extensive community outreach in Northwest Portland to help shape project outcomes, including:
- 7 meetings of a Project Working Group representing various community and business viewpoints
- 2 online Open Houses
- Outreach through 2 community-based organizations in the area
- Meetings and presentations with neighborhood groups and business associations
- Postcards sent to 7,000 area addresses, in both English and Spanish (with additional translations available upon request)
- Canvassing to businesses along the proposed alignment
- 179 respondents to an online survey
- Intercept surveys near regulated affordable housing and existing transit stations near the proposed alignment
- Tabling at events in Northwest Portland
- Phone calls, emails, and conversations with interested community members
- Feedback on Discussion Draft elements of the Montgomery Park Area Plan, and testimony on the Proposed Draft of the plan
During the environmental review phase of the project, which will occur in the next stage of Project Development after further design, community engagement, and engineering is completed, social, environmental, and economic impacts will be evaluated and mitigated as needed. Currently, known community impacts include:
- No direct displacement of homes or businesses to construct the streetcar extension
- In tandem with land use changes and adoption of Public Benefits Agreement, this project will help support the creation of a new equitable mixed-use district including affordable housing and middle wage job targets
- While accessibility and stormwater upgrades may remove parking in some areas, it is expected that there will be an overall net-gain of on-street parking in the project area
- Improvements to pedestrian and bicycle facilities will be included as part of the project
- The project will include furnishing zones in areas that support larger species of street trees
100% Renewable Goal
While it has not been assessed to what degree the construction of the extension to Montgomery Park will contribute to the City’s goal of meeting 100% of community-wide energy needs with renewable energy by 2050, the Portland Streetcar runs on 100% percent renewable energy. This extension will also run on 100% renewable energy.
Additionally, it is likely that the construction of the Montgomery Park Transit Project will also support decreasing the City’s total nonrenewable energy use by improving pedestrian and bicycle facilities in the project area.
Financial and Budget Analysis
This action authorizes adoption of the Montgomery Park Area Plan (MPAP). While adoption of the plan does not have currently estimable costs associated, BPS notes implementation changes in zoning code may require additional staff time in impacted bureaus, including PHB, Prosper Portland, PBOT, Parks, BES, and Water. The bureau notes that increased staff time and associated cost is expected to be minimal.