Mayor announces first of four bike corrals promised in “100 Days” plan

Kryptonite Racks in the Pearl-2.jpg

PBOT will remove and then reconfigure
these racks on NW 13th at
PNCA. They will also add 13 more.
(Photos © J. Maus)

Mayor Adams can tick an item off his list of promises to fulfill in his first 100 days as Mayor.

Adams’ office has announced the first of four new bike corrals that will go up around Portland in the coming weeks. The new racks are coming to NW 13th street adjacent to the Pacific Northwest College of Art (PNCA) in the Pearl District. Slated for installation on Tuesday of next week, the City of Portland Bureau of Transportation plans to install 13 new staple racks in the place of two motor vehicle parking spaces.

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“People were walking three blocks just to find a sign or a pole to lock up to.”
— Michael Hall, Dean of Students at PNCA

There are currently 14 staple racks installed at the location (paid for through a partnership between the Bureau of Transportation and a private corporation) where these new ones are going. According to Michael Hall, Dean of Students at PNCA, PBOT will remove and then reconfigure those as part of this project (because they are spaced too close to each other).

When completed, this bike parking corral will occupy three former motor vehicle parking spaces and will have 27 total staple racks — enough space for 54 bicycles. Here’s a diagram from PBOT that shows the new configuration:

Diagram of new bike parking configuration on NW 13th at NW Johnson adjacent to PNCA. Orientation of this diagram is NW Johnson at the bottom and the existing PNCA building at right. (The shaded green area represents the footprint of two bicycles).

Hall at PNCA says their school is in dire need of racks because this year, for the first time ever, demand has exceeded available spaces. Hall said via telephone today that, “People were walking three blocks just to find a sign or a pole to lock up to.”

Hall also said that the families of Tracey Sparling and Brett Jarolimek — two former students of PNCA that were killed in October 2007 while riding — are interested in creating a memorial roof over the bike corral. Plans for that project are likely to begin next year.


[If you’re keeping track, Adams’ first 100 days will be up in mid-May (it’s 100 business days).]

Jonathan Maus (Publisher/Editor)

Jonathan Maus (Publisher/Editor)

Founder of BikePortland (in 2005). Father of three. North Portlander. Basketball lover. Car owner and driver. If you have questions or feedback about this site or my work, feel free to contact me at @jonathan_maus on Twitter, via email at maus.jonathan@gmail.com, or phone/text at 503-706-8804. Also, if you read and appreciate this site, please become a supporter.

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BF
BF
14 years ago

Regarding photo caption: I believe that’s NW Johnson at the bottom of the diagram, not Lovejoy.

— Thanks for catching that. my mistake. i have fixed the story. thanks. — Jonathan

Joe Adamski
Joe Adamski
14 years ago

Now THATs a bike corral! The more the merrier..

Waiter.. I’d like two please.. put them on StJohns tab..

Dave
14 years ago

If any more are up for discussion still, I’d love to see one on SE Division around 34th-36th 😀

Or, just for future reference to all those city govt folks out there…

Dave
14 years ago

That is a pretty spiffy corral, and that would be awesome if a roof got added at some point. I know from the bike parking I see around town mostly on Hawthorne and Belmont, it’s almost always at least half full – it will be nice to see more places meeting demand for bike parking, and I think as we start making more available parking, more people will find it appealing to ride bicycles around – I have to say, going over to Clinton, Hawthorne, Belmont, etc it’s WAY easier to park my bike than it is to park a car.

jim
jim
14 years ago

It would only make sense for this to have a roof, ask any pidgeon

Borgbike
Borgbike
14 years ago

As others have said, my vote for one of the next four would be NE 18th and Alberta.

redhippie
redhippie
14 years ago

Great news!

It would also be good to start seeing the city start removing old junker bikes that seem to sit on bike racks for weeks and months before being removed. What is the current plan to address that anyway.

Cheers

Michelle (BTA)
Michelle (BTA)
14 years ago

This is part of PNCA’s big effort to both encourage bicycling among their community and get really serious about bike safety.

Ample bike parking right by the front door, heavily discounted helmets ($5) and good lights($10) available every day in the student services office, regular bike skills and maintenance classes, and bike advocacy focused on establishing safe routes to and from campus.

I am very proud and impressed. I hope other local colleges follow their lead.

twistyaction
14 years ago

I agree with #7, redhippie. There ought to be a sign installed along with each bike corral (or on each staple) stating the maximum time allowed for parking and the city’s right and intent to remove overdue bikes. I have seen too many staple racks rendered useless, both in corrals and on their own, from long term squatters. I believe the max time on a public rack is 72 hours, am I correct?

Travis Wittwer
14 years ago

This is one of the few places in Portland where you can really see bikes being used due to the visual nature of seeing so many parked in one place. It gives an almost European look. Our school bike bus goes by them every day. It has been nice to watch them get more and more filled up this year.

I used this spot in a movie-short I did for Filmed by Bike. I am glad I got it in before the remodel. I did not even know that was going on. Thanks BP. Is there a time this will occur on next Tuesday?

PortlandNews_
14 years ago

Mayor announces first of four bike corrals promised in “100 Days” plan: PBOT remove and then reconfi.. http://tinyurl.com/co8ofj

Jonathan Maus
14 years ago

New blog post: Mayor announces first of four bike corrals promised in “100 Days” plan http://tinyurl.com/c5htw7