Warning: Creating default object from empty value in /home/domains/stage.explore.publicartarchive.org/public/wp-content/themes/salient/nectar/redux-framework/ReduxCore/inc/class.redux_filesystem.php on line 29
Portland, Oregon - Public Art Archive

Portland, Oregon

Portland, Oregon

Population: 647,805
Type of Requirement: Zoning Incentive

Visit Website

Contact Information

Physical Address:
Regional Arts & Culture Council
411 NW Park Avenue, Suite 101
Portland, OR 97209

Main Contact:
Kristin Calhoun, Director of Public Art
Email Kristin | 503.823.5401

Program Summary

The Policy establishes a voluntary public art program which provides bonus floor area ratio as an incentive to develop facilities and urban amenities. Developers who are applying for the Percent for Art Bonus Floor Area Ratio shall develop an Art Plan for discussion at a pre-application conference with RACC representatives. Projects eligible for the Floor Area Ratio (FAR) Bonus Program may participate in one of the following ways:

  • Allocate and spend seventy-five percent (75%) of one percent (1%) of construction costs on a work(s) of art and contribute the remaining twenty-five percent (25%) directly to the Public Art Trust Fund, and the project may receive floor area ratio bonus of 1:1;
  • Contribute the full one percent (1%) of construction costs to the Public Art Trust Fund, and the project may receive floor area ratio bonus of 1:1;
  • Contribute an amount greater than twenty-five percent (25%) of one percent (1%) of construction costs to the Public Art Trust Fund and dedicate the balance to on-site artworks; or
  • Projects that commit more than one percent (1%) to public art receive additional floor bonus area ratio of 0.1:1 for each additional one tenth of a percent (0.1%) of the project’s total construction cost devoted to public art, up to a maximum floor area ratio bonus of 2:1.

For projects involving the expansion of buildings, the allocation for public art will be a percentage of the combined costs of new construction and the value of improvements to the property, as listed in the County Tax Assessor’s records at the time of application for Design Review.

View Ordinance

Barbara Walker Crossing (2019). By Ed Carpenter. Portland Parks Foundation Collection. Courtesy: Ed Carpenter