Portland Council President Jamie Dunphy puts a proposal to charge owners of vacant commercial properties on hold.

Downtown areas are experiencing even higher vacancy rates, reaching just under 39%. Property owners initially supported the proposal, but the study found that vacancies are primarily driven by weak demand and high build-out costs. The report indicated that a citywide vacancy fee would be expensive to implement and could disproportionately affect small or local owners while doing little to reduce the overall vacancy. While the study noted that a vacancy fee is an effective tool in specific, narrow circumstances, the administration announced that it is not the primary solution for Portland's current vacancy problems. Instead, the report recommended that the city make the permitting process cheaper and quicker. It also suggested changing rules to make it easier to convert empty spaces to different uses and using targeted enforcement for nuisance properties.