Public Swimming Doc Installed at Cathedral Park
Human Access Project (HAP) has installed a public swimming dock at Cathedral Park. HAP volunteers removed 150 tons of concrete and rubble from the beach area to create a new beach for people to enjoy. The derelict pilings are still to be removed in the coming months.
HAP invested around $900,000 in this cleanup. They hope to provide the community with a “river recreation playground.” HAP is a volunteer-driven, grassroots advocacy group dedicated to helping people “get into their river”.
For up-to-date information on the Willamette river’s water quality and to sign up for weekly for water quality updates go to
portland.gov/bes/check-rec. Click on Cathedral Park Boat Launch for information on the Willamette river’s water quality right at the new doc.
PBOT hires new officers, increases parking enforcement in neighborhoods
With the hiring of new officers, the Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) expands operations to better enforce vehicle registration, missing license plates, and other common violations. (June 25, 2024) The Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) will kick off a large expansion of their parking enforcement operations on July 8 in response to a significant spike in expired vehicle registrations and an increase in parking violations citywide.
At PBOT’s urging this spring, Portland City Council approved the hiring of 22 new parking enforcement officers. With this team now growing, PBOT Parking Enforcement has expanded operations to better enforce vehicle registration and parking violations citywide.
Officers will focus primarily on expired tags, missing plates, wrong-way parking, and vehicles blocking visibility at intersections. Additionally, officers will begin booting vehicles that have orders to tow issued by Multnomah County Circuit Court.
Helping people see each other at intersections can improve safety for everyone. Removing parking at intersections and crossings can make the location safer everyone. For example, people driving who are trying to pull out from side streets can better see oncoming drivers and wait for a gap. Pedestrians waiting to cross the street are more easily seen by people driving.Officers will also continue to increase enforcement efforts in the metered and parking districts.
Alarming data
Recent data from the Oregon Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) shows an alarming number of Portland vehicle owners have let their registration lapse. A couple years ago this may have been exacerbated due to the pandemic, DMV delays, or the economy, but these factors are much less impactful today.
“Every Portlander deserves safe, well-maintained roads,” said Commissioner Mingus Mapps. “When everyone follows the rules of the road and pays their fair share, we can keep our city moving smoothly. Vehicle registration fees are a crucial part of funding our transportation system. Plus, valid registration has been a requirement to legally drive in Oregon since 1905, ensuring our roads stay safe and reliable for everyone.”
“Addressing expired tags and other parking violations is of critical importance as we seek to maintain order and ensure safety in the public right-of-way,” said PBOT Director Millicent Williams.
Typical violations and cost
Per city code, all vehicles in the right-of-way should be registered or have a valid temporary registration placard displayed properly. Vehicles should display both front and rear plates, face the correct direction on the street, and be parked no further than one foot from the curb in a legal parking spot. PBOT’s Parking Enforcement team routinely issues citations to comply with these and other state and city laws. In May, officers cited 2,400 vehicles for expired vehicle registration and 670 vehicles for missing license plates.
As increased enforcement begins, here are some of the most common violations officers expect to cite for during these missions, and their cost:
| VIOLATION | COST |
| Failure to display current registrationVehicles parked on the public right-of-way must have current registration or current permit. | $70 (for tags 0-90 days expired)$145 (for tags 91+ days expired) |
| No front or rear plateVehicle does not have state–supplied front and rear plates mounted (both required). | $85 |
| Blocking view at intersectionVehicles over 6’ in height must be a minimum of 50 feet away from the intersection. | $85 |
| Wrong wayYou must park your vehicle facing in the direction of traffic when parallel or angle parking. Motorcycles may angle park in a parallel space. Failure to park in the direction of traffic may be subject to citation. | $55 |
Visit PBOT’s Common Parking Violations and Bail (citation) Schedule page for a full list of parking violations and citation amounts. Frequently asked questions about vehicle booting can be found at www.portland.gov/transportation/parking/booting.
Registering your vehicle before a citation
For detailed instructions about how to renew your vehicle registration and how much it will cost, visit the Oregon DMV’s Vehicle Title, Registration & Permit Fees page. Instructions are available in multiple languages.
Portland Permitting & Development launches
To better coordinate services, the City of Portland combines development review teams from five bureaus to form a unified building permit department.
Effective July 1, the permitting teams from the Environmental Services, Transportation, and Water bureaus and the Urban Forestry Division of Portland Parks & Recreation, along with all Bureau of Development Services divisions, are now unified in a single bureau known as Portland Permitting & Development.
These structural changes enable the newly formed bureau to resolve conflicts and concerns more quickly, establish uniform customer service protocols across review teams, and continue improving the timeliness of reviews and inspections.
This achievement fulfills a significant milestone in the city’s ongoing efforts to streamline the delivery of building permits.
The new organization is led by one director, who is accountable for leading the city’s development review processes. The interim director of Portland Permitting & Development is David Kuhnhausen, who served as interim director of Development Services since last December and in other permitting-focused leadership roles since 2008.
Portland Permitting & Development features about 350 professionals who collaborate to review development proposals for compliance with zoning and building codes and ensure their seamless integration with the city’s public infrastructure systems, including sewer and water lines, streets and sidewalks, and tree canopy.
Portland Permitting & Development is part of the city’s new Community and Economic Development Service Area, which includes the Portland Housing Bureau, the Bureau of Planning and Sustainability, Prosper Portland, and Spectator Venues.
More information about the new permitting bureau can be found online at portland.gov/ppd.