Portlanders Unhappy

Portland was once the darling of the planning world.  Early adoption of ight rail and Smart Growth policies made Portland the go-to model of what other cities aspired to.  The Portland model has been in place long enough to start showing the flaws in urban design theories that still dominate the industry.  

Today, the lower quality of life created by the Smart Growth philosophy is being rejected by an increasing number of Portlanders.  Given the number of communities that have enacted laws requiring public votes before light rail, urban renewal and other high-density practices are enacted, the metro region is taking note of what is happening in Portland.   

Portlanders Unhappy with Portland

Debates over Portland-area rail transit and land-use issues typically pit city residents against the suburbs, with urbanites favoring more transit and land-use restrictions and suburbanites opposing them. But a recent poll by Portland’s city auditor reveals that even city of Portland residents are becoming increasingly disillusioned about Portland’s policies.

The complete survey is here. The same survey has been made for each of the last five years, and support for Portland’s land-use and transportation policies in particular has steadily eroded during that time.


Read the entire article by Randall O'Toole, Fellow at the Cato Institute at The Antiplanner.