More on-street parking comes to Mississippi

bike parking on Mississippi-4.jpg

The prime parking spots are reserved for
bicycles at Por Que No Taqueria
on N. Mississippi.
(Photo © Jonathan Maus)

I got a call from a happy business owner on N. Mississippi Street this morning.

It was Bryan Steelman, owner of Por Que No taqueria (3524 N Mississippi Ave, just north of Fremont). He wanted to let me know that PDOT work crews have just installed his new on-street bike parking.

Directly in front of his taco restaurant, where there used to be two car parking spaces, is now room for at least 18 bicycles.

Here are a few more photos:

bike parking on Mississippi-5.jpg bike parking on Mississippi-6.jpg bike parking on Mississippi-2.jpg bike parking on Mississippi-1.jpg

This bike parking facility is the third on-street “bike corral” on N. Mississippi Ave. I rode by the other two this morning to do some quick math.

Between the bike corrals at Fresh Pot, Amnesia Brewing, and now, Por Que No, the smart business owners on this street have translated five car parking spaces into 56 bike spaces. Not a bad rate of return if you ask me.

And the seed continues to spread. Be on the lookout for more on-street bike parking coming to the Pearl District, Southwest/downtown, on Alberta Street, and in inner Southeast. I’ve heard whispers about projects in all these areas coming in the near future.

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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janis
janis
16 years ago

Yea! I love it. I might just have to go check it out tonight!

rgratzer
16 years ago

Sweet.
I was walking up mississippi late last night, and noticed some of those racks behind a barbed-wire fence in a storage yard. I hoped they\’d be making their way to the commercial section. And they did!

truthy
16 years ago

Any idea where the Pearl ones are going to be? We need some up in NW!

aaron hayes
aaron hayes
16 years ago

great! i\’ll stop by eat to support bike parking!

alan bluehole
16 years ago

Go Por Que No! Thanks!

Todd
Todd
16 years ago

This will make sidewalk dining so much more enjoyable…without being up next to a hot car!

And the additional bike parking is much needed vs. having to hunt for a pole or cross the street and park at the Rebuilding Center.

I would think that now this business will be more visible to passing motorists who do not know the area and see its patrons dinning outside and want to stop.

All we need now a bike thru lane for food pick ups. 😉

zilfondel
zilfondel
16 years ago

God I love these bike racks! Which streets have them besides Miss. and Belmont?

reminds me a bit of Amsterdam… I really miss the bollard-lined streets and bikeways. 🙁

Perhaps we could get a bikeway lined with those yellow plastic curbs?

Igor
Igor
16 years ago

Wow, cool.

I would love to see those over here in the Beaumont/Wilshire neighborhood. How do we get them?

Dour
Dour
16 years ago

See I say these are a terrible thing. I mean I like biking in order to lose weight, but I also love a good burrito which counteracts the losing weight. The more of the on-street parkings there are the more burritos I will eat. Stop the tyrany before it\’s too late!

Seriously, this is awesome. Anybody want to go grab a burrito?

greg
greg
16 years ago

I have to disagree, as a resident of the Miss area all it is doing is pushing cars further into the neighborhood. I am a fan of the racks but as these go in we need to also think of the other traffic along this route.

rixtir
rixtir
16 years ago

Dour, the more you bike, the more burritos you can eat without putting on the weight…

Jason
Jason
16 years ago

To post #10: Trading in 5 car parking spaces for 56 bike parking spaces only equates to LESS motor vehicles looking for side street parking as now there is infrastructure to adequately serve more than 5 times (assuming an average of 2 occupants per motor vehicle) as many people, all arriving to the neighborhood pollution-free, to boot.

Graham
Graham
16 years ago

A sidewalk cafe with bikes in front of it is so much more appealing than one with cars right there. Well done! If you\’ve got a good chili relleno burrito I\’m yours. Bonus points for agua fresca.

Tony Pereira
16 years ago

Great news! I love Por Que No, but have had exhaust blasted at me while eating at a sidewalk table.
Dour and Graham–no burritos at PQN. Only delicious tacos and some other sides. The guac is excellent. Check it out, you\’ll love it too.

Matthew
Matthew
16 years ago

Greg – it\’s only about two car parking spaces, and for that space, we get over 18 bicycle parking spaces! I can\’t think of anything more efficient. I see your point about how it is removing two on-street parking spaces. But it\’s also providing the opportunity for more people to bicycle, rather than drive, to your neighborhood

And that reduction in automobile congestion has got to be a good thing, right?

Thanks to the cool taquiria for installing this! How awesome, I can\’t wait to go and check them out on a bicycle ride.

Jim Labbe
Jim Labbe
16 years ago

This is great to see. It will make dining at Por Que No that much more gratifying. I hope we see more of it.

Jim

NPBike
NPBike
16 years ago

The big old blue building between failing/beech is coming down as we speak; consequently all of the on-street parking on Mississippi, Failing, and Albina adjecent to the project is gone…I think that has a larger impact than removing 2 spots…but I\’m not a rocket scientist.

greg
greg
16 years ago

the bike rack only counts if it is full. Matthew there are numerous racks along Miss, and they are constantly empty.(incl the one in front of fresh pot) I do walk or bike from my house but the reality is that we all dont bike or walk to this area, I just would rather it not be turned into a bike or pedestrian hazard area due to vehicle congestion like alberta or hawthorne.

Ben
Ben
16 years ago

Hey Greg,

Have you seen the racks on SE Belmont? Always, always full.

There was a funny note in a Tribune article from one of our city\’s anti-bike nuts, saying \”What crazy business owner would take out car parking for bikes\”? Well, if he goes by those Belmont racks he\’ll have to eat his words. So many bikes! Instead of 1-2 cars.

What savvy business owner *wouldn\’t* take out car parking for bike racks? Hawthorne has those off-street oases, also well used, but could use a few on-street. Go Portland!

Matt Picio
16 years ago

greg,

regardless of whether the bike racks are full or empty, the removal of 5-6 car parking spaces total is hardly going to push traffic into the neighborhood – we\’re talking maybe one parking space every few blocks at the most.

If the city replaces 20-30 parking spaces along Mississippi, I think it might become a serious issue. Then again, if bike traffic warrants bike parking for 180-270 bicycles, then perhaps car traffic is no longer such an issue.

In many midwestern cities (and in Portland\’s outskirts and the suburbs), as much as 2/3 of the parking lot space rarely if ever sees use. Inner-city Portland is an exception to this, of course, but one of the realities of living in the city is that parking for cars will be limited, even if every available space for on-street parking is allocated to cars. Look at Hawthorne for a prime example.

007
007
16 years ago

Fricking awesome!