Oregon Gov. Tina Kotek has announced that she will co-chair a task force on the economic future of Portland’s Central City, which includes downtown and the surrounding neighborhoods.

“It’s no secret that downtown Portland has faced an onslaught of challenges in recent years that have tarnished some of the characteristics that people love about Oregon’s largest city. Growing pains turned into crises, exacerbated by a global pandemic, and now concerns about Portland have become a statewide economic issue. It’s time to look forward, bring together diverse voices, and focus our energy on developing concrete and equitable solutions,” Kotek said on Aug. 9.

According to the announcement, the task force is a partnership with the Oregon Business Council, a statewide business advocacy organization. It will bring together local elected, business, and community leaders to recommend solutions for unsheltered homelessness, crime and vandalism, trash and graffiti, and high business and personal income taxes.

The announcement came after weeks of mixed news for Portland. On July 7, the School of Cities at the University of Toronto reported that downtown foot traffic in the spring was just 37% of 2019 levels. From July 29 to April 1, the New York Times published two lengthy stories and an opinion piece highlighting the downtown drug abuse crisis. But on April 8, business and elected leaders celebrated TriMet moving its administration offices to One Main Place at 101 S.W. Main St., filling six floors of downtown office space that has a 20% vacancy rate.

The Metro Chamber of Commerce, formerly Portland Business Alliance, praised the announcement.

“Businesses and community leaders based in the Central City have been hanging on through some incredibly difficult times because they are committed to Portland’s success,” said President and CEO Andrew Hoan.

Their first meeting will be held on Aug. 22. The task force will meet once per month between August and October, and will the present recommendations at the Oregon Business Plan Leadership Summit — organized by the Oregon Business Council — in December.

Dan McMillan, President and CEO of The Standard, will co-chair the Portland Central City Task Force. Mayor Ted Wheeler and Multnomah County Chair Jessica Vega Pederson have been invited to join. The full membership list will be released later.

According to the announcement, the task force will focus on identifying next steps to develop a shared vision for Central City’s future economic growth and address immediate emergent challenges. Committees will be Vision & Value, Clean Streets, Crime & Vandalism, Unsheltered Homelessness, and Tax Competitiveness.

Kotek and McMillan are leading the task force “in response to a clear mandate from Portlanders and Oregonians to address issues facing Portland’s Central City, which represent a bellwether for the prosperity of the entire state as Oregon’s largest economic center,” the announcement said.

“We are thankful to have a strong and willing partner in Governor Kotek working with the business community, local officials and nonprofit leaders to create actionable steps to ensure downtown Portland’s future prosperity. We’re gradually seeing increased foot traffic, a decrease in property crime and boarded windows coming down. It’s time to seize the moment and write the next chapter for our beloved city, together,” McMillan said.