PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — Negotiations are still well underway on a deal to renovate the Moda Center with entirely public funds.
Multnomah County is one of three government entities to pledge money to the project, though the specifics of their contribution are still not ironed out.As negotiations continue, time is of the essence. All parties involved are working to get the project figured out before the end of the year to ensure they can access the state money set aside for the project, and to make sure the renovation is completed in time for Portland to host the 2030 NCAA Women’s Final Four.
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Commissioner Shannon Singleton said that now the county’s discussions are shifting to an agreement between the county and the City of Portland on how the project will play out.“That’s really where most of our dollars would go into,” she said. “But also, the benefits that we might get back out of it. And so that’s really been the focus of our discussion. In addition to getting to the actual dollar amounts and rates that we need to use for the motor vehicle rental tax.”Others on the board want the county’s negotiations to pick up speed. Commissioner Julia Brim-Edwards said she does not want any of the county’s partners to run out the clock.“Whether it’s intentional or not, I assume it’s not, but we still have to get some agreements because I am not going to support the county turning over any funding or agreeing to any sort of funding without us securing some of the things that are really important to us,” she said.And while the county is mostly dealing with the state and the city, Chair Jessica Vega Pederson said they are still waiting on information from the Trail Blazers, like renovation plans and budgets.“We think that these renovations are important,” she said. “We know it’s important to the economic vitality of the city, the state and the county. So we’ve shown that I think now we need the Blazers to step up and also show that they’re interested in being a partner, that they know that this is important and they understand our roles.”Next up, commissioners said they will take up talks on what funding sources they will tap into for the project in the coming weeks. The Board has already identified using money from a motor vehicle rental tax, but they will need more than just that to cover their contribution…