December 17, 2003
Perhaps Unexpectedly, Portland Development Commission Extends Downtown Waterfront Urban Renewal Area
One of the things I did not manage to get to this week was today's meeting of the Portland Development Commission, at which they were to take up the fate of the Downtown Waterfront Urban Renewal Area (DTWF URA).
Given the various critical comments about extending the DTWF URA in recent media coverage of the issue, I for one didn't expect anything more than issuing a last batch of renewal bonds. As it turns out, according to this press release, the PDC did much more:
Portland Development Commissioners (PDC) voted on December 17, 2003, to issue additional bonds and extend the Downtown Waterfront Urban Renewal Area (DTWF URA) Plan for four more years. In response to the vote, Chairman Matt Hennessee and Executive Director Don Mazziotti agreed that, “PDC needs to finish what we started in building a healthy downtown. Portland is dynamic and constantly changing; we need to keep up with those changes and keep downtown vibrant and economically competitive.” In making their decision, PDC Commissioners will begin detailing priority projects to be completed with private and public partners.
Mazziotti is quoted as saying, "The large majority of our partners and constituents really want us to extend the Area Plan, and we are listening." I guess somehow all of that opinion failed to reach media coverage of the matter, since I don't, offhand anyway, recall any real push to extend the life of the DTWF URA from anyone other than a business group wanting renewal funds for a proposed design plan for Burnside.
I'm still not entirely convinced this URA is worthy of a four year extension, but if it's going to be around for awhile more, can we at least get the Portland Public Market into the act now?