PORTLAND, Ore. — Portland City Council unanimously approved a Moda Center lease agreement that keeps the Trail Blazers in the Rose City through at least 2030, with an option to extend for another five years.
The deal is part of a larger plan to revitalize the Rose Quarter and the surrounding area, along with much-needed upgrades to the Moda Center to keep it a viable NBA arena.
“I’m an enthusiastic Trail Blazers fan and can’t imagine our city without the NBA team, so it was really important to get this moving along," Portland City Commissioner Dan Ryan said. "Today’s action is a pragmatic step that will help our Trail Blazers remain in their home, Portland.”
The five-year lease extension with the city and Rip City Management, which operates the Moda Center, also opens the door to potentially attract a WNBA expansion in the future. The WNBA initially deferred a Portland franchise until Moda Center renovations are complete.
To make the necessary upgrades happen, Portland City Council agreed to purchase the Moda Center for $1 and a piece of land for $7.03 million underneath the arena, which Rip City Management owns, to do a full ownership transfer. This will allow the city to make public investments into the center. It also gives the city ownership of the whole area that encompasses the Moda Center and Veterans Memorial Coliseum.
As part of the current lease agreement set to expire in 2025, the city collects a percentage of revenue from parking in the garages and a small tax (6%) on ticket sales for Blazers games, which equated to approximately $4.6 million in 2022. Typically those funds have gone into other city-owned sports facilities, including the Coliseum and Providence Park, according to the city.
Under the new lease agreement, the city plans to reinvest the revenue into the Moda Center for updates, repairs and maintenance. However, its costs for the work will be capped at 50% of the total costs required, with the other 50%, plus overages, being paid for by Rip City Management, which maintains full operational control of the Rose Quarter.
"In many ways the Rose Quarter and Lower Albina is Portland's front porch," said Dewayne Hankins, president of business operations for the Portland Trail Blazers and Rip City Management. "Many people get their first impression of our Central City when they come into town for an event at the Moda Center."
The Moda Center currently sees nearly 1.5 million visitors a year, including Blazers home games that generate more than $600 million annually for the city and support nearly 6,000 jobs regionally.
With the partnership between the city and Rip City, Hankins said it will enable "a major renovation of the Moda Center and keep Portland as the Blazers' home for years to come."
Upgrades to the Moda Center are expected to cost approximately $61.5 million over the next five years, according to the lease agreement. A majority of that will go toward mechanical, electrical, plumbing and technology improvements. But the total cost could be much higher; staff said the $61.5 million does not include any large-scale renovations planned, but is rather the cost to keep the 1995 arena running and viable.
Portland City Commissioner Rene Gonzalez approved the lease extension but warned that the city needs to prepare for the prospect of new Blazers ownership in the future.
"Retention of the Blazers is very much a cornerstone of our city’s future economically and fundamentally in restoring and protecting both our social fabric and national reputation," Gonzalez said. "We need to put on the table of possible replacing the stadium or at minimum a material remodel to position our city for the future, whatever may come.”
