Council approves $350,000 settlement for driver injured in Parks vehicle collision

Portland City Council on Thursday approved payment of $350,000 to resolve a bodily injury lawsuit filed by Carlos Ibarra arising from a rear-end collision with a city-owned parks vehicle on April 15, 2022. Senior Deputy City Attorney Anne Milligan and David Ferro, senior risk analyst in risk management, presented the staff recommendation to settle.

Milligan said Ibarra’s 2018 Nissan Rogue encountered a stalled vehicle on a southwest ramp to Interstate 5 and was rear-ended by a city vehicle on a Parks employee’s route. Milligan told council the incident occurred in icy conditions on a flyover where the pavement froze while other nearby roads did not, and that the city driver had no prior driving discipline. Plaintiffs filed suit in Multnomah County Circuit Court in March 2024 seeking damages in excess of $1.9 million; medical damages claimed exceeded $428,000 and lost wages over $80,000, according to Milligan. The city’s risk-management staff recommended settling for $350,000 to resolve the claim before a scheduled trial.

Councilor Kunal asked whether policy changes could prevent similar incidents; Milligan and Ferro characterized the collision as an unusual, low-speed event driven by weather and the geometry of the ramp. No members of the public signed up for testimony on the item.

At roll call the council approved the settlement by recorded vote. One councilor (Zimmerman) was recorded as opposed during the roll call; the remainder voted to approve the settlement (final tally recorded as 11 yes, 1 no).