Transportation committee refers citywide asset management resolution to full council

The Transportation and Infrastructure Committee voted 5-0 to refer a resolution directing the City Administrator to develop a citywide asset management strategy and financial plan.

Chair Clark, chair of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, presented the proposal and moved the resolution to a full-council recommendation. Councilor Koyama Lane moved the motion and Councilor Green seconded it. Diego called the roll: Councilors Koyama Lane, Murillo, Green, Smith and Clark voted “aye,” and the motion to send Document No. 2025194 to the full council passed.

The resolution requires the City Administrator to produce a citywide asset management strategy and a financing plan, with a deadline cited in the resolution of Sept. 15, 2026. In presenting the measure, Chair Clark said the work is intended to “refocus our efforts on fixing and maintaining the city’s existing infrastructure” and to bring leadership across bureaus into a standardized approach. Testimony at the committee hearing emphasized the scale and urgency of deferred maintenance across city assets.

Members of the public and advocacy groups urged the committee to accelerate the timeline and to include budget direction. Stephen Kafoury of Concerned Citizens said his group “strongly support[s] the proposal” and called attention to deferred maintenance in parks and surface streets. Virginia Alibee of Concerned Citizens recommended using spatial, map-based asset mapping to pair asset locations with demographic and environmental data and urged a budget note directing the city administrator to fund the strategy. Walter Wyler asked whether the strategy could be completed earlier than the Sept. 15, 2026 deadline and suggested including funds in this year’s budget “even if it’s only a million dollars.”

City staff told the committee the work would begin promptly. Jonas Berry, the city’s deputy city administrator for budget, finance and chief financial officer, said the financing work and the asset-management strategy are “intertwined” and that he expects the work to “begin very, very, quickly” and to proceed in phases. Tate White, senior strategic project manager in City Operations, said the city already uses geographic information systems and that a principal aim of the strategy is to standardize data and processes across bureaus so outputs can “inform better financial planning and better asset management planning.” White also said she is reviewing best practices and peer-city approaches, including work done in Calgary and other jurisdictions.

Committee members pressed staff on timeline, staffing and public engagement. Councilor Green said the committee will form a small finance-focused work group to help inform how to pay for the backlog; Councilor Koyama Lane asked how this strategy differs from the city’s earlier asset management policy and whether the new effort will include a report to council. Tate White said the strategy will outline specific actions, standards and resourcing needed for less-mature bureaus to meet the policy. Councilor Smith emphasized the need for community engagement and asked staff to include outreach in the plan, noting that residents often do not know what city assets exist.

The committee asked staff to return with progress reporting and indicated an expectation of quarterly updates. With the formal committee recommendation adopted, the resolution will next be considered by the full Portland City Council.

Votes at a glance: Resolution — Require City Administrator to develop citywide asset management strategy and financial plan (Document No. 2025194). Motion moved by Councilor Koyama Lane; seconded by Councilor Green. Roll-call: Koyama Lane — aye; Murillo — aye; Green — aye; Smith — aye; Clark — aye. Outcome: referred to full council (5–0).