Document Type
Report
Publication Date
2025
Subjects
City planning — Oregon — Portland, Central business districts — Oregon — Portland, Homelessness — Oregon — Portland, Office buildings — Vacancies — Oregon — Portland, Work environment — Oregon — Portland, Mass media and public opinion — Oregon — Portland
Abstract
In this analysis we define the system boundary as Portland's downtown core, encompassing the downtown and immediately adjacent districts immediately affected by the effects of the "Urban Doom Loop." We selected this boundary for the concentration of reinforcing feedback loops. In Portland's downtown core remote work, commercial vacancy, homelessness, public safety concerns, and narrative media depiction of decline converge and amplify each other most intensely. Media focus on downtown disproportionately shapes public perceptions of the entire city. Interventions by city agencies are being proposed to take place there. While acknowledging that Portland's challenges extend beyond the downtown core, we intentionally restricted the scope of this analysis to that area.
Rights
© 2025 The authors. Published at Portland State University.
In Copyright. URI: http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s).
Persistent Identifier
https://archives.pdx.edu/ds/psu/44161
Citation Details
Rappaport, Noah; Kageyama, Avery; and Knight, Austen, "Portland's Urban Doom Loop" (2025). Business Faculty Publications and Presentations. 391.
https://archives.pdx.edu/ds/psu/44161
Description
We are a team of graduate-level business students, with our personal experiences representing both long-time Portland residents and newcomers to the region. Our stake in Portland's future provides on-the-ground insight but may introduce bias. To remain objective, we engaged various stakeholders and cross-checked our assumptions. We conducted semi-structured interviews with small business owners. advocates for people experiencing homelessness, local economists, researchers, and city officials. We reviewed numerous policy reports and media articles and consulted experts on urban systems. Acknowledging our roles as analysts and community members, we pursue a critical yet constructive perspective that values data and lived experience equally.