Portland halts $38M street makeover after Trump bill slashes funding

Portland officials

say a sweeping street makeover along North Broadway and Northeast Broadway and Weidler streets is on pause amid the likely loss of all project funding.

The city’s

Transportation Bureau

had planned to pay for the redesign between Northeast Seventh Avenue and the Broadway Bridge with a $38 million award it won last year through a federal initiative known as the Neighborhood Access and Equity Grant program.

However, a small provision in President Donald Trump’s signature policy bill — approved by congressional Republicans and signed into law this month — rescinds all “unobligated balances” of that program, created by former President Joe Biden.

The provision also means that the nearby Rose Quarter freeway expansion project

could lose most of the $450 million

it was slated to receive through the same initiative, which aimed to enhance transportation safety and accessibility within historically underserved areas.

Both projects are located in the Lower Albina neighborhood, once the center of Portland’s Black community. The neighborhood was torn apart during the creation of Interstate 5 in the 1950s and 1960s, which displaced many of its residents.

Portland’s planned makeover along more than 20 blocks of Broadway and Weidler included new sidewalks and street lighting, improved pedestrian crossings, protected bike

p

lanes and additional tree canopy.

“The bureau is working to determine next steps and will provide more information on the future of the (project),” city spokesperson Hannah Schafer said in a statement. “PBOT remains committed to finding ways to improve the safety and function of this important corridor.”

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— Shane Dixon Kavanaugh covers Portland city government and politics, with a focus on accountability and watchdog reporting. Reach him at 503-294-7632 or skavanaugh@oregonian.com.

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