Mayor Wheeler touts foot traffic improvements in downtown Portland

PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — Portland Mayor Ted Wheeler is celebrating what he’s calling walkability and safety improvements in downtown.

Officials said foot traffic in the Downtown Portland Clean and Safe service area is 10% higher than it was last year. Wheeler said reducing crime is helping people feel safe downtown. He credits Portland police for that change.

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“One thing that’s really impressed me about the Portland Police Bureau that I don’t think is broadly known in the community is that they’re leaders, they’re very innovative,” said Wheeler, who is the city’s police commissioner, during an annual Portland Business Alliance meeting Tuesday afternoon. “When they look at a particular category of crime, like stolen vehicles, they’re actually the ones who champion a statistical model in partnership with OHSU. And that model has been so successful that other bureaus across the nation are asking the Portland Police Bureau, how did they do it.”

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PPB’s partnership with an OHSU cancer researcher to adopt a data-driven approach to tackling car thefts has cut Portland’s stolen car rate in half since 2021.

City leaders are also working to create incentives for office leasing, including a new upcoming Central City Tax Incentive District.

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