Pittock Mansion Parking Plan

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Located just minutes from downtown Portland, Pittock’s beautiful natural setting, incredible overlook, historic Pittock Mansion, and the proximity to Forest Park make it a natural destination for hundreds of thousands visitors each year.
Pittock Acres Park Parking Action Plan
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Pittock Acres Park Parking Action Plan (pdf)


Improving access for this Portland icon


Longstanding issues continue- Pittock Acres Park is one of the most iconic and recognizable destinations in Portland. Located just minutes from downtown Portland, Pittock’s beautiful natural setting, incredible overlook, historic Pittock Mansion, and the proximity to Forest Park make it a natural destination for hundreds of thousands visitors each year. In fact, attendance to Pittock Mansion has doubled since 2009.

As visitation continues to increase, Pittock Acres suffers from parking issues inside the park and on adjacent neighborhood streets. Traffic congestion, crumbling road infrastructure, and insufficient safe pedestrian access creates an unwelcoming environment for visitors and neighbors.


Charting a course for the future

Portland Parks & Recreation and the Pittock Mansion Society recognize that the current trajectory in the park is not sustainable. A new approach is needed. We need to provide sustainable investment into the park that addresses congestion, security, and maintenance, while improving the overall park experience.

Since 2019, PP&R and the Pittock Mansion Society have been looking at options to address parking, congestion, and security in the park. The Pittock Acres Park Parking Action plan has identified paid parking as an option to improve the park and reduce congestion

As we've seen in Washington Park and Willamette Park, a paid parking program can help with:

  • Dedicating funding to improving road infrastructure and increasing pedestrian safety. Pittock Acres Park has a backlog of nearly 14 capital improvement projects for repair and maintenance of assets, worth $3.6 million. This does not include work on the historic buildings themselves.
  • Adding seasonal maintenance staff during peak times to improve daily clean and care of the park. As general funds continue to be cut to PP&R but visitation increases, we want ensure a consistent level of service for this important destination.
  • Providing dedicated parking enforcement to prevent vehicles parking improperly, creating risks for first responders and impacts to neighbors and visitors.
  • Dedicating Park Rangers in the park to enforce Park Rules and reduce after-hours nuisance activity. Ranger patrols have averaged about 40 minutes per week since 2016, significantly less than necessary to provide a consistent level of service to enforce park and parking rules.

How we got here

Portland Parks & Recreation and the Pittock Mansion Society look forward to initiating a series of important changes to Pittock Acres Park to address maintenance, security, and congestion issues. In early 2020, PP&R began improvements in the park in anticipation of future paid parking revenue.

  • Repaved portions of Pittock Drive, with more paving scheduled for summer 2021.
  • Installed speed humps and new safety signage in parking lots and roads.
  • Improved the gravel walking path along Pittock Drive.
  • Began installing parking meter infrastructure in the main parking area.

The Pittock Acres Park Parking Action Plan was developed winter 2019, and presented to stakeholders and the neighborhood early January 2020. Implementation of paid parking is scheduled for January 2021. 


Parking rates & hours

  • Paid Hours: Daily 9:30am to 8pm, including holidays.
  • Rate: $2 per hour; $8 daily maximum.
  • For parking information or refund requests, e-mail washingtonparkparking@portlando…. Refunds are only provided in the case of overcharging or meter errors. 
  • The parking lot and park road gate closes nightly at 9:00 p.m. 

100% of parking revenue stays in Pittock Acres Park to fund improvements identified in the Pittock Acres Park Parking Action Plan.

Employees and volunteers, contact a member of the Pittock staff for parking options.

Parking with ADA placards

Parking with regular disabled placard/plates:

  • If you have a disabled placard or disabled plates from any state, you MUST pay to park during enforcement hours (9:30 am to 8:00 pm).

Parking with an Oregon Wheelchair User or Wounded Warrior placard:

  • If you have an Oregon Wheelchair User disabled placard that clearly has the words "Wheelchair User" or "Wounded Warrior" written, you may park without payment for an unlimited amount of time.

All disabled parking placard/plate holder MUST follow all other posted signs.


Project Timeline

November 2019

  • Open public comment period - Thank you for your feedback!
  • Neighborhood information session at Pittock Mansion - Thanks for attending!

January 2020

  • Draft plan released - PDF available above
  • Open public comment period on the plan - Thank you for your feedback! Comments on the plan are now closed.
  • Open house on Pittock Acres security issues - Thanks for attending!

July 2020

  • First round of improvements to park roads, parking areas, and pathways.

January 2021

  • Paid parking goes live.

Summer 2021

  • Additional roadway and parking area improvements scheduled.

Questions or concerns?

  • How do you access Pittock?
  • What are the barriers to access at Pittock for you?
  • What are your top maintenance, security, and access concerns at Pittock?

To provide feedback or share concerns, please contact danny.dunn@portlandoregon.gov 

Location

Park Location or Entrance
3229 NW Pittock Drive
Portland, OR 97210

Contact

Danny Dunn

Program Coordinator