‘Bike canopy’ at new PPS building offers covered, solar-powered bike parking

A new Portland Public Schools building that is set to open this fall will have one of the coolest bike parking facilities in the city. While riding home from Bike Happy Hour last week I peered over the construction fence at the forthcoming Multiple Paths to Graduation building on Northeast 16th (near Benson High and Buckman Field). What I saw was a three-tiered roof covering over 50 bike parking spots in the main front courtyard of the building.

This building is being constructed as part of the 2020 PPS School Improvement Bond. It will house student programs, a gym, makerspace and other services.

The bike parking structure, which PPS refers to as the “bike canopy,” consists of six rows of eight staple racks (two rows under each roof) and several other staples assembled around the edges. There are also overhead lights mounted on the ceiling of the structure for visibility at night. I’m not sure if any security measures will be in place, but the high-visibility location should help deter some theft.

This bike parking is yet another example of how PPS is not cutting corners when it comes to giving students and staff ample places to park bikes. Last year I was amazed at the bike parking I saw at the new Lincoln High School campus in southeast. And when Roosevelt High School in north Portland was renovated in 2018, PPS installed quality, covered bike parking there as well.

The only quibble I have with this bike parking is the rack spacing. People with cargo bikes or other types of oversized bikes might have trouble when the racks are full. Other than that, this is really great work by PPS!

And the icing on the cake is that this new building and bike parking sits atop what used to be a lowly parking lot. This building is set to open to students this fall. Learn more here.