Oregon Politicians Vow To Keep Trail Blazers In Portland

In a letter addressed to NBA Commissioner Adam Silver, Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek and Portland Mayor Keith Wilson have stated their position in favor of keeping the Trail Blazers in Portland and the Moda Center renovated.

“The Portland Trail Blazers are more than a part of our history — they are part of our future. Blazers are in our DNA, and at the center of what makes this community so special,” Kotek and Wilson wrote in a letter Tuesday.

“We fully support renovating the Moda Center to become a point of pride for the Blazers and for our city. We are prepared to explore the public-private partnerships needed to make it happen.”

Trail Blazers Officially For Sale By Paul Allen Estate

According to Lauren Dake of Oregon Public Broadcasting (OPB), the letter marks the first public lobbying from two of Oregon’s most prominent politicians on the fate of the Blazers and their publicly-owned arena.

Paul Allen’s estate announced in May that it had begun the process of selling the Trail Blazers. Allen, the billionaire co-founder of Microsoft, died in 2018 at age 65 from complications of non-Hodgkin lymphoma.

Since then, his sister, Jody Allen, has served as chair of the Trail Blazers and the NFL’s Seattle Seahawks and trustee of the Paul G. Allen Trust, according to NBA.com.

The state of the aging Moda Center is also a significant issue if the Blazers plan to remain in Portland.

During a meeting with reporters in Las Vegas on July 16, Silver said he preferred to keep the team in the city but that it is in dire need of a new arena.

Everyone seems to be on board with the plan.

Rip City Forever Wrote Letter To Governor’s Office

A group of local business executives and former Blazer players established a new group called Rip City Forever, which also wrote a letter to the governor’s office this week.

“Leadership begins with clear-eyed recognition that Portland and Oregon will need to compete with other cities who are likely already plotting to woo the next Blazers owner to their city,” the letter read.

The letter calls on city and state officials to either consider renovating the Moda Center or commence their search for another site to keep the NBA franchise in Rose City.

“For example, replacing the Moda Center with a new arena at the Lloyd Center or another central city location could not only secure the Blazer’s future in Portland, but would revitalize downtown and create even greater opportunities for the future of the Albina neighborhood and Albina Vision Trust — the largest restorative redevelopment effort ever undertaken in the United States,” they wrote, per Dake.

The newly-formed Rip City group includes former Trail Blazer legend Clyde Drexler; ex-Trail Blazer and gubernatorial candidate Chris Dudley; the head of the Oregon Business Council, Duncan Wyse; former state Senator and gubernatorial candidate Betsy Johnson; Sadie Lincoln, the founder and CEO of Barre 3; and founder and CEO Kim Malek of Salt & Straw.

The city of Portland now owns the Moda Center. The Blazers’ short term lease at the arena runs through 2030, with an option for an additional five-year extension.