Street parking near Moda Center could cost eventgoers $8 an hour under a proposal headed to the Portland City Council.
The Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) wants to raise the event-day rate from $5.40 to $8 per hour on certain blocks in the Eliot neighborhood's Zone V parking permit area, KGW first reported. The higher rate would kick in only during events expected to draw at least 10,000 people.
The Public Works Committee, chaired by Councilor Olivia Clark, referred the proposal to the full council on Tuesday, Oct. 13, according to KGW.
If approved, the new rate would take effect 30 days after the council vote. Dates for public testimony have not been announced, according to PBOT's project page.
City data shows parking occupancy in the area hits 96% during peak event periods. PBOT spokesperson Dylan Rivera told KGW the congestion forces residents to walk blocks to find a spot.
"We've seen at peak hours it can be 96% occupied," Rivera said, according to KGW. "That means it's really hard to find a space, you have to walk blocks and blocks to find a vacant parking space."
Residents with valid Zone V permits would remain exempt from the event rate, and the annual permit cost of $120 would not change, according to PBOT's project page. The higher rate applies only when the Lloyd Event District is active and only on the highest-demand blocks.
Desaugi Ford has lived in the Zone V area for two months. He told KGW that parking fills up fast during Blazers games and concerts, even though he pays $120 a year for a residential permit. Ford said he would rather see fans use designated event lots.
David Hudnall, who lives on North Williams Avenue, told KPTV that neighbors are fed up with eventgoers blocking driveways. Hudnall said he hopes people park farther away or use the Rose Quarter lots instead of filling residential streets.
Not all support the increase. Emma Hinote, who works in the Eliot neighborhood, told KPTV the cost adds up for people already paying for event tickets.
"… It feels very much like we kind of get siphoned through every which way in a city where everything is already so expensive," Hinote said, according to KPTV.
PBOT said it is encouraging fans to consider public transit, biking or off-street parking around the Rose Quarter and Lloyd District.
The bureau has been working with the Eliot neighborhood on parking management since 2022, when the Lloyd Event District began charging eventgoers. Zone V launched in 2024, and a 2025 follow-up study found that pricing was needed to keep eventgoers from filling residential streets, according to PBOT's project page.
Council hearing dates for the proposal have not been set.
