Say it isn’t so

Tri-Met and the city of Portland are conspiring to drastically change the face of one of Portland’s most enduring features: the transit mall. The impending facelift is needed, official say, to make way for another light-rail path into downtown. Turns out the present light-rail lines can handle the traffic only from the existing west and east lines, and the soon-to-be unveiled Interstate line. The hoped-for southeast link will need a new place to trundle along the Portland cobblestones, and so the transit mall is being eyed for this purpose.

This will mean considerable changes to the city’s matchless, award-winning transit corridor. Worldwide Pablo thinks the uprooting of trees and removal of the signature pieces of artwork will prove unsettling, to say the least. WWP amigo Bob Richardson has prepared an extensive review of the proposals, and offers his interesting and helpful feedback at his website. Check it out.

Comments

[beerick]

gack! I don't like the sound of that at all. I'm still not convinced that the recent Portland decision makers are able to consider what actually makes these features of the city nice. It seems the greatest improvement that they could make would be to either elevate the tracks, or lower them.

[The One True b!X's PORTLAND COMMUNIQUE]

The general plan isn't really all that catastrophic. It would come down more to execution, and how they balance what is already compelling about the transmit mall versus making this Union Station to PSU line.

Reminder, regardless of one's opinion of the proposal: Tomorrow evening is the public hearing on the matter, after a series of three open houses this month, which were follows ups to three open houses a few months ago.