City of Portland ‘optimistic’ about Keller remodel, new PSU auditorium talks

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — The City of Portland says it’s “optimistic” about the ongoing discussions to both renovate the Keller Auditorium and build a new, “state-of-the-art” performance center on Portland State University property.

The Portland City Council initially planned to approve one project or the other. However, on Aug. 14, council members agreed to give the city, Portland State University and the Halprin Landscape Conservancy — which is overseeing the Keller restoration effort — two months to talk it out and potentially find a compromise that allows both venues to coexist.

When asked how the private meetings are going, City of Portland spokesperson Magan Reed gave KOIN 6 an upbeat assessment.

“Meetings between the city, Halprin Landscape Conservancy and Portland State University are progressing and we’re encouraged by the dialogue so far,” Reed said.

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Prior to the discussions, the city was considering either renovating the Keller Auditorium, which was deemed unlikely to survive the next major earthquake, or approving the new venue at PSU. Under PSU’s initial plan, the Keller would have served as Portland’s primary venue for traveling Broadway shows until the PSU auditorium was built. The performances would then move to the new theater. Under the Halprin Landscape Conservancy’s initially proposed plan, the local Broadway industry would shut down for two years while the Keller was heavily renovated and retrofitted to survive a major earthquake.

But if both projects move forward, both venues will be capable of hosting Broadway shows. KOIN 6 asked the City of Portland and Oregon Metro, which manages the Keller Auditorium through Portland’5 Centers for the Arts, if the region has enough demand to support two competing Broadway theaters. However, neither agency has provided a direct answer.

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Reed said that “market-demand evaluation” is one of many talking points at the ongoing roundtable discussions and that the more information will be available when the parties reconvene at City Hall. Council members will assess the projects and the future of Portland’s live entertainment industry on Oct. 9.

“While I can’t confirm specific meeting details at this time, we are optimistic about the direction of the conversations and are on track to provide an update in October,” Reed said.

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