1. Both the built and natural environments contribute to Portland's beauty.

• Portlanders value beauty and feel that a beautiful city is one that successfully balances the natural and built environments.
• The overwhelming majority of respondents think Portland is blessed with a beautiful natural environment, including:
  • Many mature trees of different species;
  • An abundance of plants and flowers that bloom for many months;
  • Hills and mountains (e.g. Rocky Butte, Mt. Hood, the West Hills); and
  • Rivers such as the Willamette and Columbia, along with smaller creeks that feed into these.
• Many Portlanders also see beauty in the city’s built environment. The following features contribute to creating this sense of beauty:
  • The integration of nature into the city (people love the abundance of trees in the city, urban greenspaces, wildlife, the river running through the middle);
  • A low skyline that allows for views of hills and mountains;
  • Historic buildings and homes that are unique in style to the Pacific Northwest;
  • A mix of old and new structures, including buildings and bridges;
  • Buildings that fit in with the surrounding landscape and streetscape;
  • Well-designed public gathering spaces like Pioneer Courthouse Square;
  • Public art, including fountains, sculptures, murals and art that is unique to Portland;
  • A city scale that feels “built for humans,” with walkable blocks, buildings that aren’t too large, and a compact layout that makes it easy to get around;
  • High-quality structures made to last with quality materials (Portlanders consistently equate “cheap” and “poorly made” with “ugly”); and
  • Buildings and places (parks, plazas) with unique character that are not homogenous, “cookie cutter” or mass-produced in their feeling.
• Looking to the future, Portlanders want to preserve and enhance the city's beauty.

Sample Strategies:

1. More plants, trees and urban ecology.
2. Return streams that have been placed underground or paved over to the surface.
3. Paint and beautify the bridges over the river.
4. “Pick up trash whenever you see it.”
5. Increase the number of public trash cans and recycling bins downtown.
6. Remove 1-5 from the East Bank of the river, put it underground or route it around the eastern edge of the city.
7. Bury the power lines, or at least the ones that interfere with mature trees. Do not ruin the look of old trees to accommodate cables or power lines.

2. New development and redevelopment should enhance the city’s beauty.

• Portlanders strongly believe that additions to the built environment should enhance the city’s beauty.
• Portlanders generally oppose new construction, renovations and infill development that detract from the visual appeal of the city.
• The following types of buildings are seen by many Portlanders as unattractive:
  • Buildings, houses or condominiums that all look the same;
  • Buildings that appear cheaply, hastily or poorly constructed;
  • Buildings whose design is bland, boring, uninspired or everyday; and
  • Buildings that look out of place with the surrounding landscape/streetscape.
• Many Portlanders think that new development should be designed to meet the needs of various different groups, such as children, families, the disabled and neighbors, not just the needs of those paying for the development.

Sample Strategies:

1. Create and uphold stricter design standards to ensure that new development is high-quality and visually attractive.
2. “Engage visionary artists, architects, landscape artists, public park designers, etc… in all phases of housing developments, commercial buildings, etc…”

3. The city’s appearance directly impacts people’s lives.

• The appearance of the city’s built and natural environment impacts how people feel about the city, how they feel about their own experience and how they feel about their community.
• People feel uplifted in certain buildings, parks and public spaces but demoralized in others.
• Portlanders want those who shape the environment (architects, builders, landscape architects, developers, arborists and others) to consider the impact of their work on the community as a whole, not just on the users of the specific building, park or new structure.

Sample Strategies:

1. Find a way to provide shelter/housing for the homeless. Many people have strong negative feelings about Portland when they see people sleeping on the streets.
2. “I’d like to see the city’s low-rent, low-rise commercial strips (such as Powell and Barbur) transformed into something else.”
3. Improve the appearance of parks, streets and open spaces in low-income neighborhoods.

4. Everyone in Portland should have access to beauty.

• Portlanders believe that beauty should be enjoyed by all and not reserved for a wealthy few.
• Many people oppose efforts to “privatize” beauty, such as limiting views of the river or mountains to those who purchase riverfront property.
• Portlanders strongly support public art, public fountains, public parks and other efforts to ensure that all Portlanders have access to beauty.
• There is also strong support for improving the physical appearance of blighted and low-income areas, so that Portlanders with fewer resources can still experience visually attractive surroundings.

Sample Strategies:

1. “The city buys 50% of all billboards within its limits and commissions local artists to paint them up.”
2. Plants more street trees, especially in lower-income neighborhoods.
3. Whenever possible, preserve mature trees; do not cut them down to make way for younger plants.
4. Expand pedestrian and community access to the East Bank of the Willamette River (see Urban Livability: Access).

5. Portland should strive to maintain its distinctive look and feel.

• Portlanders place enormous value on the city’s distinctiveness—the fact that it has a unique look, feel and history. This creates a local identity, local pride and a strong sense of place.
• Portland is often referred to as a “jewel,” a place that is more visually attractive and more livable than many other American cities, which are characterized as “bland,” “soulless” and “concrete urban jungles.”
• As Portland grows, it should seek to grow in ways that preserve its uniqueness.
• The majority of respondents do not want Portland to look like “Anywhere, USA” or even like other West Coast cities like Seattle or San Francisco.