Full Breakdown
Bike Rally Presses Trail Blazers Owner for Renovation Funding
By Drooid · · How we work
Core Event
Dozens of cyclists rode 250 laps around Portland’s Moda Center on Saturday in a protest dubbed “Moda Center 500.” Organized by Sunrise PDX, the Portland Association of Teachers, City of Portland Professional Workers, the Portland DSA and other groups, the rally demanded that Trail Blazers owner Tom Dundon contribute private money toward a proposed arena renovation.
Financing Dispute
Organizers contend the deal being negotiated could obligate the city to $400 million over the next 20 years, while the state has already pledged $365 million toward the project. Portland City Council approved a term sheet for the arrangement in an 8-4 vote in August, and a final council vote is slated for December. Critics note the city is simultaneously grappling with a $170 million budget deficit that has already forced cuts to homeless services, public-safety programs and the layoff of 99 municipal employees.
Organizers’ Perspective
Cor Dudley Borte, a Sunrise PDX organizer, framed the protest as a clash between “luxury suites” and essential public services, linking the arena funding debate to the Portland Public Schools system, which faces the possible closure of up to 20 schools this year. Alisha Chavez, president of the Portland Association of Teachers, echoed the concern, asking why the city would prioritize arena upgrades while schools risk shuttering. Both Borte and Chavez emphasized that keeping the Trail Blazers in Portland does not preclude negotiating a more favorable financial arrangement.
Impact on City Priorities
The rally underscores broader community anxiety about fiscal stewardship amid ongoing budget shortfalls.
Verbatim Quotes
- “It’s very frustrating to see the City of Portland readily giving, trying to give hundreds of millions of dollars to a billionaire who could pay for the renovations for the Moda Center all on his own,” — Cor Dudley Borte
- “I don’t think it’s a false dichotomy to say that either the Blazers are here, or we get to fund our most important infrastructure,” — Cor Dudley Borte