A Growing Central City
A cultural and economic hub for the state, Portland’s Central City is growing rapidly. By 2035, the Central City’s population is projected to triple, and the number of jobs in the area will increase by 40 percent. As the Central City and economy grow, more people and businesses are using our existing streets, sidewalks, and transit systems.
To accommodate more users on our existing street system in a way that provides affordable transportation options, we need to invest in the Central City’s transportation network. Central City in Motion is Portland’s plan for strategic investments in our streets to create a smart, 21st century transportation system in the Central City. Our goal is to make the entire street system work better and provide more predictable travel times for businesses and residents.
Implementation Plan
The Central City needs a transportation network that supports the daily movement of people and goods as efficiently as possible. We can’t add new streets, but Central City in Motion outlines how we will make our system more efficient. Read the full plan below:
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Public Involvement
In Spring 2020, PBOT hosted a series of three open houses featuring 13 capital improvement projects and initiatives as part of Central City in Motion. SE Hawthorne/Madison, MLK/Grand, and SW Jefferson generated the most comments from the public.
Open houses were hosted at local businesses and institutions in the Central City, including the University of Oregon’s White Stag building in Old Town (February 18, 2020), Revolution Hall in SE (February 26, 2020), and the Portland Building in downtown in partnership with the Portland Business Alliance and Business for a Better Portland (March 4, 2020). PBOT promoted the events with door-to-door outreach to businesses along four project corridors (Broadway, Hawthorne, MLK/Grand and NW Park Blocks). In addition, PBOT notified over 22,000 business owners, property owners, and residents via mailers and email and promoted the events on PBOT’s social media pages. The Portland Business Alliance and Business for a Better Portland shared invitations as well.
PBOT staff engaged over 200 Portlanders at the open houses and engaged several thousands through event promotion. By far, open house attendees were those who work (67%), shop (64%), and live (44%) in the Central City. Several noted that they also went to the Central City for entertainment and to attend church. Download more details below: