Allan

came up in conversation last night that the lloyd redevelopment is potentially going to also demolish the regal lloyd theater as part of the project, which would mean closing the last commercial IMAX theater in the city of portland

Photo of two people lying in grass on the side of a road, kissing. There's a sign next to them that says "Cyclists are advised to dismount." Two bicycles are leaning against the sign.

Don't forget to dismount, folks

#ValentinesDay

America Fell Out of Love With the Sedan. Detroit Wants to Bring It Back. With drivers looking for more affordable options, U.S. automakers are having second thoughts about abandoning the mass-market sedan.

This framing US carmakers way too much credit.

Detroit's execs killed off *all* their entry level sedans. WHy? Because giant SUVs and trucks are more profitable. 

Now they're paying the consequences.

Like you guys keep yelling PORTLAND SUCKS FOR CAPITAL and then never imagine you might be causing the perception lol

Portland Winter Light Festival

To paraphrase Derek Zoolander: is this a city for ants? We need to think at least three times bigger

So @binnig.bsky.social wins this round of public testimony www.portlandmaps.com/bps/testimon...

Good comment from @onrepete.bsky.social on the Central City Code Amendments

You should send in your own comment to BPS asking for a more ambitious project that meaningfully increases homebuilding in the central city.

Comment here, it takes just a couple minutes
www.portlandmaps.com/bps/central-...

Wow

Will making drivers pay a fair share for the benefits they receive and the problems they cause be on the poster boards? I’m not super optimistic about it.

Want to improve affordability and lower rents? Build more housing, especially more apartments. Case in point: Austin, Texas--a building boom produced a precipitous decline in rents. www.apartmentlist.com/research/nat...

The bill cuts the stretcher requirement in small bldgs at risk of having no elevator at all (up to 6 stories, 24 units), as well as ordering the building code council to reconsider the issues of elevator hoistway opening protection and two-way visual comms. Tens of thousands in savings per building.

Economic impact of NBA teams: Nearly nil. cityobservatory.org/economic-imp...

in defense of not handing the trailblazers $600M

Also, our long municipal nightmare is almost over -- a new Committee of the Whole is on the agenda!
www.portland.gov/council/docu...

Total @pnwelcome.bsky.social victory, unfortunately total aaa.com victory as well

I'm no architect, but is that ground-floor entrance intentionally nodding to the Veterans Memorial Coliseum?

This rendering provides a good view of what the New Moda Center project would include: an expansion out to the edge of the pedestrianized N Center Court St, presumably allowing queuing to happen indoors

Transit-priority lane decision keeps 82nd Avenue Transit Project moving forward but funding questions remain - TriMet News The decision advances the design of the project but millions of dollars in additional funding must be identified to determine […]

gotta say, after a wretched long week in the sausage-making of legislating and government, i'm getting all the warm fuzzy feelings seeing that the organized community voices who demanded state-of-the-art bus service on East Portland's main street are gonna get it

news.trimet.org/2026/02/tran...

if this was your performance review at your annual appraisal you wouldn't make it 15 min after the meeting

Sometimes it's to finish out the narrative they already have, other times it's just the first person they talked to

woman smiling Roses are red Violets are blue If you give me that little wave after almost hitting me with your car I'll forever haunt you.

A Valentine's Poem.

State lawmakers ponder $27 million cut from Safe Routes to School, mass layoffs, and more We are at the precipice ODOT has warned us about for many years.

Ain't no more flesh to cut folks.

Sort of surreal to see these budget cut options presented in a real meeting and not just be hypothetical ideas.

bikeportland.org/2026/02/12/s...

Maybe we need to do more outreached reporters on the progressive side of things.

Or maybe that's already been tried and failed

No bicycling for me — but I appreciate even one fewer car I am not a bicyclist, and I sometimes wish that more of them would stop for me when I’m in a crosswalk or stay off the sidewalk. But despite that, I’ve got to admit that the growth of bicycling is goo...

Pretty reasonable take

ggwash.org/view/102313/...

After housing, this is the next big zoning reform: the right to do business. Always found it odd that the USA, supposedly the land of the free market, makes it the hard if not outright illegal to open a business in most places.

Like many other planning failures, this one's also rooted in racism.

I love when elected officials pretend PAC money/ endorsements don’t sway them. Both actually signal your commitments!

One legislator said that they felt ok taking oil money because “all money is dirty” so you might as well accept it and then do good.

Ok, but my guess is they gave it for a reason…?

always puts a smile on my face to log on first thing and see that my boss has been awake for a few hours and already had a spicy take on the internet

PROPOSED STATUTORY INITIATIVE Relating to the governance of the Tri-County Metropolitan Transportation District; creating new provisions; and amending ORS chapter 267. SECTION 1. Short Title. This Act shall be known as the TriMet Democratic Accountability Act. SECTION 2. Purpose. To establish direct democratic accountability for the Tri-County Metropolitan Transportation District by requiring that its Board of Directors and its Chief Executive Officer be elected by the voters of the District. SECTION 3. Definitions. As used in this Act: (1) “District” means the Tri-County Metropolitan Transportation District of Oregon. (2) “Elector” means a voter registered within the District’s boundaries. (3) “Board” means the District’s Board of Directors. SECTION 4. Election of the Board of Directors. (1) The Board of Directors shall consist of seven members elected by the electors of the District. (2) Board members shall be elected from residential districts within the TriMet boundary. The Legislative Assembly shall establish these districts to ensure substantially equal population. (3) Board members shall serve four-year terms. No person may serve more than two consecutive full terms. (4) Board elections shall be nonpartisan and held at the statewide general election in accordance with ORS chapters 246 to 260. (5) Notwithstanding ORS 267.107 or any other provision of law, the Governor shall have no authority to appoint members to the Board following the effective date of this Act, except as expressly provided in Section 7.

SECTION 5. Election of the Chief Executive Officer. (1) The District’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO) shall be elected at large by the electors of the District. (2) The CEO shall serve a four-year term. No person may serve more than two consecutive full terms. (3) The office of CEO shall be nonpartisan. (4) The CEO shall serve as the chief administrative officer of the District, with duties and authorities as prescribed by law. SECTION 6. Compensation. (1) Compensation for the Board and the CEO shall be set by statute and publicly disclosed. (2) Such compensation shall reflect the public service nature of the offices. Severance or separation pay shall not exceed compensation already earned. (3) Retirement benefits, if provided, shall be consistent with those generally available to District employees. SECTION 7. Transition. (1) Board members serving when this Act takes effect shall continue until their elected successors are qualified. (2) The first election for Board members and CEO shall be held at the first statewide general election occurring at least 12 months after this Act’s effective date. (3) Following this Act’s effective date, the Governor may appoint Board members only to fill vacancies that occur before the first election. Such appointees shall serve until the next statewide general election, at which time a successor shall be elected to complete the remainder of the term, if any. SECTION 8. Severability. If any provision of this Act or its application to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the invalidity shall not affect other provisions or applications of the Act which can be given effect without the invalid provision or application, and to this end the provisions of this Act are severable.

A new Oregon initiative petition just dropped. Petitioner Shakur Hussein (who is also suing TriMet for wrongful termination) wants to get something on the ballot in the Nov 2026 election that would require TriMet’s Board and CEO to be elected, rather than appointed by the governor.

Cut and cover for the win. However it's probably worth picking a new alignment because as others have said it's an entirely new line. Ideally replace existing service with streetcar

Port unveils plan to smooth traffic to and from PDX airport A $100+ million investment in car capacity to keep flyers happy.

Step 0 is stopping the project to grade separate *traffic* but NOT the red along airport way.

After that, probably targeted flyovers of key E Burnside intersections

bikeportland.org/2025/05/07/p...

Rep. Boshart Davis also wants to limit state transit funding only to transit agencies that can prove they have a farebox recovery ratio of 50% or more. Looks like a clear ploy to freeze out TriMet, since their current ratio is about 7%.