Closed pools, cracked roads: How Portland is reckoning with $1 billion infrastructure gap

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — A recent audit finds Portland's $1 billion infrastructure gap is leaving broken fences, aging sewers and cracked sidewalks with leaders struggling to pick up the pieces.

Portland staff are quoted in the audit as referring to the city's maintenance as a "game of whack-a-mole," and the report shows the problem will only get bigger and more expensive if it isn't corrected soon.

From city parks with cracks in courts, public pools forced to close down, broken signs, an aging water system and roads riddled with potholes, these are not new problems in Portland.

According to the city audit released earlier this week, the 2007-era estimate for keeping infrastructure in good standing year over year was $112 million. Fast forward to 2023, and that number has soared to more than $1 billion.

"Why aren't you maintaining what you have and you're chasing these bright, shiny objects over here, we're neglecting the assets that we already own," said District 4 Portland City Councilor Olivia Clark, the transportation and infrastructure committee chair, in reaction to the audit. "Everybody in Portland who drives, walks, rolls, rides a bike on our city streets, knows that our assets are not being cared for."

Similar audits have pointed out Portland's infrastructure shortfalls for the past 20 years. Now Clark is drafting a resolution to the auditor's recommendations.

"It's not just transportation, it's water, it's sewer, it's arts, it's culture, it's police, it's fire, it's all of our assets," Clark said during a Portland City Council meeting on Monday.

The city parks department claims that without new funding, 20% of its assets — including pools, lights, bridges and playgrounds — could fail in the next 15 years.

A recent example includes North Portland's Columbia Indoor Pool, which remains in limbo after the city was forced to shut its doors in 2022, with no renovation funding in sight.

"I think any parent who has kids in Portland knows it's very difficult to get into swimming lessons. And, you know, having one less pool available to us makes it just that much harder," shared Alyson Emmett, a neighbor, last month.

In response, Portland City Administrator Michael Jordan agreed with the audit's general findings, including the need to set up an asset management strategy, setting a target date for 2027.

"I don't want to wait that long. I'm impatient, and I don't want our assets to continue to deteriorate in the meantime," Councilor Clark said.

Clark added that Portland's new form of government gives city leaders a chance to finally address this crisis. Her resolution would require the city to set up an assessment plan, create a standard to evaluate assets and a financial roadmap to address infrastructure moving forward. She is slated to present her plan before the city council for a vote on May 12.