Q:Do you do tours for groups or classes?  (5/15/2008)

A:The Port offers guided bus tours of its marine facilities to community, educational and business groups with a specific interest in marine trade, as time and staffing permits. Unfortunately, we do not offer tours to individuals or young children. Most marine tours last from 2-3 hours. We also offer limited tours of Portland International Airport (PDX) and our business parks. Due to federal security law and safety issues, access is restricted at the marine terminals and beyond the security checkpoints at PDX. For more information, please call us at 503.944.7051. The City of Portland offers tours of City owned facilities. For more information, please contact the City and County referral line at 503.823.4000.

Q:Has there been any thought to decreasing the carbon footprint by the use of more energy efficent LED's in place of existing lighting both in/outdoors?  (4/2/2008)

A:The Port has and will continue to consider the use of LED lighting on and off the airfield. For example, LED lighting will be a part of the Port's new headquarters building and area lighting as part of this new construction. The headquarters site is directly to the east of the Short Term Parking garage in case you were wondering. On the airfield, LED lighting is available for taxiway edge lights, but is not yet available for runway centerline lights. The Port is closely tracking this technology, the cost-benefit of change-out, and regulations so the Port can take advantage of these more energy efficient fixtures when it makes sense as part of a project. In the airport terminal, we consider LED lights for retrofitting. However, the range of LED fixture options in this emerging market is still very limited and does not yet offer what the terminal needs. Additionally, heat dissipation and some other technology issues need to be worked out before the Port is comfortable with the reliability and efficiency in a LED retrofit scenario.

Q:Will any of the planned airport changes affect Hillsboro Airport traffic?  (3/29/2008)

A:None of the plans for PDX related to Airport Futures are expected to impact Hillsboro Airport.

Q:Will PDX get more flights to destinations like St Louis, Toronto, Calgary, or Baltimore nonstop?  (3/18/2008)

A:All of these cities are target markets for the Portland-Vancouver region for new nonstop service from PDX. Due to higher fuel costs, the current trend shows carriers reducing not adding routes. The Port will continue to monitor the marketplace and meet with carriers throughout the year to present new route opportunities.

Q:Is anything being done to update the x noise impact overlay district boundaries in light of the 2007 PDX Noise Compatability Study LDN mapping?  (3/11/2008)

A:The Portland International Airport (PDX) Noise Impact Zone is intended to discourage or limit dense residential development in close proximity to PDX in order to reduce or limit the noise impacts to communities and residents. Although the boundaries of the PDX Noise Impact Zone are based on the noise contours from the 1990 Part 150 Study Update, there are no plans to adjust these boundaries. While the 65 DNL contour has shrunk slightly since 1990, trends in aviation and forecast data indicate operations will likely increase in the future. Based on this expectation, it is in the public interest to maintain the current protections provided by the Noise Impact Zone.

Q:More airports are using 2 jetways for boarding of widebody aircraft (A340), is this something PDX is going to look at?  (12/22/2007)

A:PDX currently has no plans to use two jetways for boarding wide body aircraft like the A340, but this is something that might be considered in the future. Airports that do have this feature generally have a lot of wide body aircraft. Because PDX is a small airport when it comes to the number of wide body aircraft on a typical day, it is less economical to provide this feature because it cannot be used as many times during the day. Cost is always a factor when PDX looks at adding facilities as these facilities are funded by airport fees and revenues, not tax dollars.

Q:Are there any plans to make a tower so that visitors and other people can watch the planes land and takeoff?  (12/21/2007)

A:There are no plans to create a dedicated observation tower at PDX for airplane watching. While PDX does not have a tower for viewing, the seventh floor of the short term parking garage at PDX is a great viewing area of the most of the runways - especially on a clear day. Some residents park on North Marine Drive and watch takeoffs and landings on the north runway as well.

Q:Do you think PDX would ever become a hub for a major airline? If it did, would there be other plans to make it a larger airport?  (12/21/2007)

A:Given our relatively small market size and location on the West Coast, PDX is not likely to become a hub for a major airline. A hub by its nature is typically in the middle of things, not on the edge (i.e., coast). Airports that are major hubs are either in very large communities (e.g., Los Angeles - LAX), or are located east of the Rockie Mountains (e.g., Denver, Detroit, Atlanta, Dallas, Chicago). At one time, Delta Airlines had an "international hub" in Portland to Japan. PDX did add facilities to serve there needs. The PDX Delta hub was a small "hub" by most standards. The size of PDX will most likely be dictated by how big the Portland/Vancouver area grows. If the region grows slowly, PDX will grow slowly. If it grows fast, PDX will grow faster.

Q:Are plans going to be included in the future development of PDX for the airport to be able to handle next generation aircraft such as the A380?  (12/14/2007)

A:The A380 is not a plane that is likely to come to PDX because of its size. It is designed to fly between very large airline hubs. PDX is not an airline hub, nor a large airport. The 787 is a plane which is perfectly suited for PDX because of its size.

Q:Planes routinely take off over the river, then turn north into Vancouver. Why are they being allowed to do so? It's become much worse in a year.  (9/30/2007)

A:In the 1980s at the request of the Port of Portland, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) agreed to direct jets departing from PDX over the Columbia River rather than having them fly out over Oregon and southwest Washington neighborhoods surrounding PDX. This jet departure procedure was developed to reduce noise impacts to neighborhoods. Since that time, the number of turbo-prop aircraft (flown primarily by Horizon Airlines) has multiplied greatly. In order to ensure the separation of aircraft for safety, the FAA turns smaller (yet still large), slower turbo-prop aircraft out of the jet path over both Portland and Vancouver after they reach an altitude of 3,000 feet. When aircraft separation is not a factor, the Port has requested that the FAA keep the turbo-prop aircraft over the river corridor. On rare occasions, jets may deviate north or south to avoid bad weather. When the Port finds a jet has deviated for no apparent reason (i.e., not weather or safety related), the Port noise office follows up with the airlines to reinforce the importance of flying the procedure that keeps jets over the river.

Q:Are there still plans for residential development out by Cascade Station?  (9/7/2007)

A:Cascade Station is Port-owned property which is under a long-term lease. There are no plans for permanent residential development in Cascade Station. In fact, because the property was acquired with Federal Aviation Administration grant funding, there is an FAA prohibition on residential development in Cascade Station. The City of Portland plan district for the area does allow for additional hotel development.

Q:Will PDX be getting any new international flights anytime soon? If so, what might some of the destinations be?  (8/30/2007)

A:Currently, PDX has nonstop international service to Europe, Asia, Mexico and Canada and is one of 12 cities in the U.S. with nonstop service to Europe and Asia. The focus of the Port air service group is to retain current levels of air service and then target markets not yet serviced that could sustain a new nonstop service at PDX. To this end, the air service group regularly meets with air carriers to discuss both new domestic and international service based on specific passenger and cargo market demand at PDX.

Q:What plans are there to reduce airport/plane noise in North Portland (come sit on Denver st. anytime of day)? Extremely loud, all day, everyday.  (8/28/2007)

A:Thank you for your inquiry about plans to help reduce aircraft noise for residents near the airport. Aircraft noise management is handled by Portland International Airport (PDX). Since your noise issues is south of PDX, it is likely caused by general aviation (private) airplanes, cargo feeder airplanes, and perhaps news and traffic watch helicopters.. The Port recently completed an analysis of its noise program and did a follow-on study of the cargo feeders. Information about both studies, including the recommendations can be found at the FLYPDX.com website in the noise management section. This information will be used in the Airport Futures planning process to address aircraft noise issues. There are no easy solutions to noise from aircraft overflights. To reduce residential noise impacts, jets have been channeled over the Columbia River for take offs and landings since the mid 1980’s. For cargo feeders and general aviation, the goal is to keep these smaller, slower aircraft out of the traffic flow for larger heavier faster moving jets. This means they fly north and south of the airport, away from the jets that go generally east and west. Through the cargo feeder study process, the goal was to disperse these aircraft so that one neighborhood did not bear the brunt of all of the traffic, and to get them to fly higher on departure or stay has high as they can before descending to land. Another opportunity to learn more is to attend a Citizen Neighborhood Advisory Committee (CNAC) meeting, held at the airport every second Thursday of the month from 6pm to 8pm at PDX in the St. Helens B Conference Room (call ahead to confirm time and location). The CNAC is a committee of citizens that advise the Port on aircraft noise management issues. The public is always welcome at their meetings. If you have specific questions, you can also call the PDX noise management office at 503/460-4100, or 800/938-6647 and talk to someone in person.

Q:Where will the new parking garage and Port Offices be built out at PDX?  (8/23/2007)

A:The new parking garage will be built to the east of the existing seven level short-term parking garage. The Port administrative offices will be three floors built on top of a new seven floor parking garage (offices floors 8, 9, and 10). Sustainable design strategies are being incorporated in the design of this structure.

Q:I was only questioning the security of this website. Do you think with this website people may be enabled to plan Mischievous things?  (8/19/2007)

A:This website is intended to provide information to the public and offer for an opportunity for public input into the joint City-Port planning process designed to create a long range development plan and City of Portland land use plan for PDX. We believe that the input of the public and airport customers from across the region is critical to producing the best plan for PDX and the City of Portland. All information on the website has been reviewed and approved by the City and Port prior to posting. We are comfortable with the content posted and do not foresee any issues with website security. We will monitor the content of and feedback from the website, but believe that the website will be valuable to the planning process.

Q:Will there more fast food choices at PDX like McDonalds, Burger King, or KFC?  (8/15/2007)

A:PDX has been working on redeveloping the food offering at PDX for the last few years, including a mix of “fast food” choices like Wendy’s, Quizno’s and others. In the last 24 months, a Beaverton Bakery, Sandoval’s Margarita Bar, Pizzicato Gourmet Pizza and Stanford’s Restaurant have all opened with many more new choices on the way. Planned openings of Big Town Hero, Rose’s Deli, Jamba Juice, Baskin & Robbins, Rogue Ales Public House and two new Laurelwood Public House locations will further improve the selection of food available to PDX customers in addition to the “fast food” choices already in place.

Q:I know PDX isn't a big airport but Why doesn't PDX have showers so Passengers can refresh themselves or a hotel? that would really make PDX perfect.  (8/7/2007)

A:The Sheraton Airport Hotel at PDX does offer hot showers and a day rate to accommodate in-transit travelers. This hotel is only minutes away from the terminal and offers free courtesy shuttles. To schedule use of a shower, call the Sheraton at 503/281-2500 and then select “0” to speak to a local Sheraton representative. In the past, the Sheraton has quoted a rate of $79 plus tax for this service; some restrictions apply. Sheraton’s web site is www.sheratonpdx.com.

Q:Do you see PDX ever having another concourse? and I really love the architecture at PDX, do you ever see non-passengers going through PDX?  (8/7/2007)

A:The 2000 PDX Master Plan envisioned two future development alternatives for PDX: a Centralized and Decentralized terminal. In both development scenarios, there would be additional concourses. The design of the new terminals and concourses would complement the existing terminals. Non-passengers do visit PDX today. Over 10,000 employees come to work each day at PDX, enjoying the food and retail concessions. In addition, passengers frequently are met at the security gates by family and friends. PDX strives to ensure that the food and retail concessions meet and exceed the expectations of our customers. If your question is do you see non-passengers going past security, any changes to current security requirements will be a Transportation Security Administration decision.