I'm back after health issues that had me an inch from the grave too many times to count. I decided to check out what John has on his mind and the new PAC. This article moved me to re-join. As a long suffering Sonic fan from my days in Seattle, (used to listen to games on a hand held transistor radio while working) PORTLAND..DO NOT SCREW THIS UP. Every time I see the name thunder, I get red in the face and cuss. Owners will move your Trailblazers if you let them.
JC, in 2026, sadly, two more businesses will leave Portland. The one that will hurt the most is Daimler truck manufacturing leaving Swan Island for the Carolinas (375 jobs plus all the butterfly effect of small businesses supporting Daimler employees). The other is Under Armour who are taking 60 jobs in PDX, back to Baltimore.
Is Mexico City or Virginia Beach also potential relocation landing spots?
I hope to be pleasantly surprised that the City retains Blazers. But I’m already mentally prepared that they will leave. Portland has just continued to get it wrong time and time again. And the current City council leadership are sympathetic to Mamdani. It’s not a good mix for a ‘poor’ and scrappy billionaire like Dundon.
Under Armour’s decision was really about cutting costs and restructuring. It likely wouldn’t have mattered what city the facility was in. They established a Portland outpost to tap into the area’s strong footwear design talent, but the business itself has been under significant pressure. The stock is trading below $7 a share, and the company’s market cap has fallen from nearly $20 billion to around $3 billion. They’re narrowing their product assortment, reducing complexity, and essentially battening down the hatches while they work through the turnaround. And their building was very expensive to maintain, at a loss.
As for Daimler, here’s a fun personal connection: I actually worked on the Freightliner assembly line on Swan Island—the very plant that is now closing. At the time, I worked for Cummins Engine Company and was a member of Machinists Local 1005 (International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers). Even back in the 1990s, the facility was showing its age. It was producing important trucks, but many of the models were specialized, lower-volume products in a niche segment. Daimler is keeping its North American headquarters and engineering presence here, though. I can actually see the headquarters from my window at adidas.
None of this takes away from the broader point that Portland’s business environment has had real challenges. But there’s some important context: in both cases, these were strategic business decisions driven by industry changes and operational realities, not simply a company leaving Portland because of the city itself.
You are probably right about Under Armour being a business decision, the footwear sector being in a bit of a recession. As for Daimler, this is a real downer as they have been in Portland for 84 years. The other loss to region is dry up of Port of Portland, and all that sea freight business shifting to ports of Tacoma, Seattle, Oakland. Part of that was port operators getting sick and tired of the unionized longshoremen antics. I recall reefers could be taken off vessel - but could not be unplugged by port authorities. Only the longshoreman were contractually allowed. Ocean containers would sit there until the authorized union got around to it. The longshoreman also resisted implementation of technology, to protect labor hours. Ocean carriers simply found it too much of a bother to regularly come to Port of Portland. Hanjin said adios in 2015 (citing prolonged dispute with ILWU) then Hapag-Lloyd followed suit resulting in Terminal 6 biz dropping 80%. By 2024, the port had completely closed. Now a slow comeback afoot in 2026, long way to go to return to glory days of 1990’s. That’s another sad tale of business leaving for more business friendly locals. All the agriculture from the lower Columbia and Snake River basin earmarked for export should be rail cars to the port of Portland, rather than ports of Tacoma or Seattle. Big time failure there.
Unionized labor has its place. But it can overstep itself to its detriment. Unions in Starbucks and the Moda Center operations make no business sense, IMO.
This is JC walking the line, as his readership is from across the political spectrum. I get that. But for myself, I’ve watched Portland deteriorate over time in real time (I’ve been watching up close since mid 90’s) and recognize that the election of DSA in late 2024 to Portland City Council took things from weird to bizarre, and we might be in the pathway to surreal and then the outlandish. Two additional villains, IMO, were former Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum (who served 2012 - 2024) and former Multnomah County District Attorney Mike Schmidt (who served 2020 - 2024). These D characters refused to cooperate with the Feds to prosecute the Antifa-types that took over the City during Covid and there after, and placed it on its current downward, economic trajectory.
Once the 20 year lease is signed... no, not Mexico City, Virginia Beach or any place for that matter can get the Blazers... unless they want to wait for 2050, and we all know that won't happen.
Dave, this would imply that you voted for the DSA at some point. Democracy is the government you deserve, not the government you want (to paraphrase Jefferson). As a former Oregonian, JC is being nice when he says Portland has elected a bunch of weirdos. People outside of Portland and Oregon use much less polite terms.
I have to vote what's in my district... they don't have a d or an r when they run... at least I am willing to be rational and call them out. That's much better than people who hate Portland and have given up and want the city to burn to the ground... what good is that... that's not productive at all and not solving the problem. Stop bashing me or get out of the way and let the rest of us solve the problems.
Also, when I voted, there wasn't anything called a DSA...so don't pin that on me that I voted for a bunch of extremists before that fact. As you said, you left Oregon, so you are not going to solve the problem. Instead of bashing, let us Oregonians work to solve the problems while you can worry wherever you live... where if it is Idaho, they don't even have major leagues to brag about.
If you don't care about major leagues, then you are the problem.
Portland and Multnomah County voters will NEVER vote them out. This is a lost generation. Voters have not yet been punished enough. And until that day comes, "weirdos" will be in charge.
The City Council actually has some leverage... and it only takes a majority to pass the lease... so those few bad apples on City Council will be out of luck and out voted 8-4 or 7-5 at worse. Even if it was a 6-6 tie, Mayor Wilson has said he would cast the winning vote for renovation and 20 year lease.
I was pleased to see Mayor Wilson cast the deciding 7-6 vote to restore $12B to PDX police/fire. One of those DSA council women opposed, called the Mayor ‘daddy’ in public forum for doing so. This far left bloc previously diverted $2M from cops over to parks. They are upside down and agreed need to be booted out by voters. They are a potential fly in the ointment for these Blazer negotiations.
Yes... a few bad apples... have you even taken the time to talk to them as I have?... doubt it. So before you grandstand, know what you are talking about. A few of them are making it difficult, the rest actually want a fair deal... deal with that, otherwise you are showing the extremist attitude. And he's my Lord also.
I suppose there are scattered fans everywhere, but my guess is that if there was a summary of Blazers season or single ticket buyers by zipcode it would be very very heavy to Portland Metro.
I can remember the "old days" of the late 1970's, early 1980's, when retailer GI Joe's was still around, with stores around the state, and their displays of Blazers merchandise. I can remember Blazers players and broadcasters doing road trips around the state.
That type of state-wide fandom no longer exists.
Yes, maybe Molly from Beaverton who moved to Sun River still is a fan in Central Oregon, but generally the Blazers get little publicity outside Metro. And, in the last couple decades have done little to change that.
I DON"T KNOW. That's why I'd like to see some data such as ticket sales by zipcode which I assume would be heavy to Portland Metro including Vancouver. I think there are fewer radio stations carrying Blazer games now? What are their ratings?
But added personal observation from the old GI Joe's days, and also see pretty skimpy Blazer offerings at Fred Meyers in Oregon cities outside of Metro as well. To me, it's an indicator - not a be all. Maybe it's simply Beavers and Ducks stuff has more floor space value than Blazers, but sure is different than the good ole days.
Of course ticket sales will have a heavy Portland / Vancouver metro area slant. I agree, it's been a while between the good old days and now. Winning makes a difference in fan interest both in PDX metro and statewide. Blazers lost a lot of fans with multiple years of tanking. It'll take some marketing effort too, to win them back. Too bad Dun da Dun Dun seems to be focused on poisoning the well.
You got that right. Radio all over the state covered the Blazers. Schoonz was as well known. Blazers also across the river in WA even with the Sonics. As you noted the players would often go to other parts of the state.
It is clear that Dundon bought this team to relocate them. As a 25+ year sales leader I am seeing the same tactics from him that I have seen from others negotiating in bad faith.
Sadly the business climate is terrible in PDX and the political atmosphere is even worse. Blazers are gone.
We need to refocus on bringing MLB or NHL to Portland. I think this could be a top NHL market.
If Portland blows up the Blazers deal, the collateral damage to the Diamond Project will be enormous. There are too many other cities--Salt Lake, Nashville, Austin/San Antonio, Charlotte, Raleigh--where adults are in charge. Portland is a great hockey town, and they could have had the NHL long before Seattle if it wasn't for their "well-intentioned weirdos".
We would hate to see the Blazers leave. We live in Sutherlin and get 2 season tickets every year. My wife drives up on game day and picks up our handicapped son in Hillsboro to go to the game. She takes him home after the game and spends the night in one of the motels. I would say they are not alone as statewide fans. I stay home and feed the horses…and watch the game on tv.
It's gone from keeping it weird to keeping it woke to just plain crazy. Both families on my mother's side were in Oregon long before statehood and they were prominent leaders who helped build Oregon. They'd be shocked to see Oregon today.
A city that is attractive to a sports team owner has to be one that wants to win. That city will be a good partner for a the owner and will help in that quest. Portland looks like it is a city that wants to lose, and has for a long time
There is a vocal and influential minority of people in Multnomah county well represented on the city council who are anti-business, anti-corporation, anti-successful/wealthy people, and several other things, who see someone like Dundon as the root of all evil, to be opposed at every turn. They were the ones who enabled night after night of riots during BLM, the rampant homelessness and related property crimes, all of which have destroyed the city’s reputation.
So Dundon might have met his match if he was hoping to strong arm a one sided deal from Portland, because that well connected minority will be just as happy to see the Blazers leave, tear down Moda center, and turn the land into a park.
The far left leaning contingent of the Portland City council met in secret (in late 2025) with aim of dismantling the quasi public/private Portland Prosper entity. This org tries to bring up and support existing business w/ seed money in Portland. There was a complaint about the legality of this closed door meeting and an investigation by the Oregon Ethics committee (who didn’t find fault). No fault but it leaves a bad taste that half the City Council isn’t interested in attracting new business.
The Portland City Peacock caucus (6 members, 4 who are DSA) met behind closed doors to scheme how to tear down / scrap Portland Prosper, the quasi public/private city entity aimed at helping grow new business. A member of the more moderate city council complained, and there was an Oregon Ethics Committee investigation that resulted. That is the city council which new Blazer ownership gets to negotiate with.
One thing I keep wondering about is why the City is so set on several contingencies for moving forward with renovations. Assume for a moment the Blazers do leave. And, the City then tries to attract NHL or hijack a different NBA club. Those prospective tenants are going to want to see a modern arena in place, or a plan from the City to quickly deliver one... and deliver it without contingencies before agreeing to move to PDX. Are the current Blazers really asking for anything different than what a new prospective tenant would want? The prospective tenant would be no more enamored with contingencies than the current Blazers?
If you listen to the Softy interview that is what he is really saying. "Don't let the Blazers leave by making decisions based on ego, and shortsighted funding." Of course, it ain't Softy's $600M, but that was his caution using some colorful language.
Bingo!! The more I read about this, especially outside of JC's biased views, the more I side with Dundon and the Blazers. Drop those idiotic contingencies, fund the renovations and the Blazers say they'll sign the 20 year lease in a heart beat. Show me where any other "tenant" is required to fund the overall structural maintenance of the property they rent? That's the OWNER'S responsibility. Pretty simple. Dundon and the Blazers are not being unreasonable. All they are asking for is the same basic deal every other franchise has and every other city gives its professional teams where the city owns the venue. If Portland and the state can't do that, they don't deserve a team in any sport.
How do you suppose Joe the Plumber feels about seeing his hard earned tax dollars spent on behalf of a business, the Blazers?
The Los Angeles Rams and Chargers play in a stadium built with private funds because the citizenry, in a referendum, clearly advised the politicos and the NFL they weren't having it.
Yeah, because the Rams owner OWNS the stadium and gets all the benefits and profits from the stadium. The city or thise citizens don't. So the owner should pay for the stadium. How do you suppose Joe the plumber is going to feel when his taxes go up because the city of Portland loses hundreds of millions of dollars each year in tax dollars from player salaries, lease payments, hotel payments and restaurant patrons, etc, each year because the Blazers are gone? They'll pay more for subsidizing the lost tax revenue than they will for having to help upgrade the arena. And if the Blazers leave, who is going to pay to upkeep an empty arena.with no tenant? Joe the plumber. So either way Joe's paying. He either pays and has a professional team to help pay city taxes, or he pays AND pays even more to make up for lost tax revenue.
You, amigo, need to review the many studies that, for years, have shown that the financial benefits of a publicly subsidized professional sports franchise are a wash with those that can be generated from such funds invested elsewhere.
I personally hope the Blazers leave. Studies also show the Blazers bring in more than $600 million a year to the city and state. Good luck generating that income without them. I'm sure all the homeless people in Portland are interested to find out how that's going to be done. And again, you never addressed the fact that the ciry of LA doesn't own SoFi stadium, the Rams owner does, so yes he should be responsible for the build and any subsequent renovations. In Portland, the city owns the arena, not the team. It's their responsibility. The dumb move was the city agreeing to buy the arena from Jody Allen in 2024 for $1. Jody knew how much work the arena needed since nothing had been done since it was built, by her or her brother. She fleeced the city by pawning off a deteriorating building, leaving them hanging with the bill. That's not Dundon's fault. Why not offer Dundon the option of buying the arena back for $1 so he gets control and all the revenue from every single event held there? See what he says about that?
Oregon sports a myriad of people, men and women, of which you speak but most of them take one look at the mess wrought in Oregon by its political leadership and say, "My life is too short to get involved with that"!!!
“Oregon is a tough place to do business. High taxes. Layers of bureaucracy. Lots of well-meaning crazies in leadership positions. And the vocal minority carries way too much clout.
— Columbia and Nike both operate in unincorporated Washington County. Lots of Oregon companies, including Dutch Bros., have moved headquarters to other states. Commercial real estate has been in a spiral since the pandemic. The loss of tax revenue should raise alarm bells with state and city leaders.”
Glad you drew attention here, John.
‘Compound choices’… the human equivalent of compound interest.
Hardly noticeable in the beginning, astonishing in the end.
The dye of a move may have been cast 10-15 years ago when the city council turned crazy.
Having lived in Portland’s Pearl District for 14 years before getting totally fed up with the city’s inept leftist governance and then moving to Clackamas County, I’m convinced that Portland voters are not about to change the political and business climate any time soon in order to right the ship. From where I sit, the economic future of our metro area is in Washington, Clackamas, and Clark counties where county and city elected officials keep the trains running on time and ensure that the streets are safe for their residents and visitors.
It's disheartening but I think you're right. There are none as blind as those who will not see. Are Portland folks so dedicated to their zeal for "weirdness" that they will go down with the ship rather than bail it out?
Why are cities such as Austin, Charlotte, Nashville, Las Vegas, Columbus, and Salt Lake booming? They have moderate/centrist governments that keep taxes low and business/housing regulations to a minimum, maintain excellent public schools, fund the police forces at solid levels, and fix the potholes in the streets. It really isn’t complicated, but apparently Portland voters steadfastly refuse to acknowledge the folly of their leftist political views.
This is the route a lot of the rust belt cities went. Many of them are finally now recovering except Detroit. In their case it was a combination of white flight and loss of manufacturing. In Portland you cannot call it white flight, but it is similar, and the loss of good jobs due to overtaxing. Like most extremist organization the DSA does not care about the short-term consequences. They are focused on the long-term and the hurt now is worth it in their mind. Basically the same errors made with the trickle-down theory. Where is the balance?
I believe you are talking about the central cities in the Rust Belt, not the suburbs which in the case of Detroit were booming while the central city of Detroit went from 2 million residents down to 640,000, which is about what Portland is today.
John. you have often asked we readers to comment on your new video ventures.
I would like to say that I clicked on your link to the Softey video (whom I have never seen or listened to) near the top of this collum, watched, and learned nothing that you haven't written before in your posts, except why there is a huge ratio of people who either love him or hate him.
Then I found the video link to the same post.
I then read the rest of your post and found out I didn't need to watch the video, as you covered everything that was in the video in your writing.
I'm in my 80s and am a reader, not a TV watcher. I do not ever watch TV to watch people TALK about sports EVER,
I watch TV to watch sorts, and bitch about the people who are talking.
Please keep WRITING to those of us who are READERS .
I am not in my 80's but I do not have time to listen to a video. I am happy just catching sports info on the radio in my car. It is something to occupy my mind while driving. I guess I could download and play the audio anytime I want but that is so much more trouble than just turning the radio dial to something live. I think the video option is more for the following generations that are used to calling up the entertainment they want when they want it. All of us that grew up watching and listening in real time when there were no other choices are not the target market.
your post was one of the funniest posts that i've read on this site! i'm a few years behind you, David, but totally agree--i'm a reader vs listener. :) "explain offsides in soccer." how 'bout explaining ANYTHING about soccer?!
Dave, good attempt to simplify but your explanation ignores timing which is critical and a cause of misunderstanding.
An attacking player is in an offside position if, when the ball is PLAYED to them by a teammate, they are nearer to the opponents’ goal line than both the ball and the second-to-last opponent.
As a basketball player, this precludes any fast break or head fake to go back door to the basket. What's wrong with gaining advantage on the defense? When Offside is called because a player's shoulder is in front of some one's elbow 60 yards away from the ball who could never be involved in the play, we get teams declaring nil nil as a victory.
Totally un American.
What' is wrong with hanging around the goal.
The other team would be up an extra player.
Going back to the basketball analogy, what if you just put a player in the backcourt to collect a possible pass. There's no goalie.
Basketball coaches have figured out this doesn't work .
Why is illegal in soccer?
If you don't respond to this I can understand, but you were the most knowledgeable person who did respond.
It’s only offside if the attacking player is involved in the play. If there is an attacker in an offside position but the passer doesn’t pass it to then the ref ignores it.
Replay camera men will often show how the whole defensive line will move away from their goal in synch to force an attacker to move away from the goal.
My thought is the average fan really has little to say about multi-billion $$ sports team deals. The Portland city council barely listens to the average local citizen. They all have their political agendas. I highly doubt Dundon cares what Oregon citizens think. Apparently the NBA doesn't either. So, while, that might be nice advice from "Softy", it is virtually worthless.
Everyone complains about the "big" problems Portland has, and about our negative image on the national stage ... so why would anyone want to risk losing one of the few really good things about Portland? And some people don't care if they leave or not? If you truly love Portland and Oregon, you should want to keep something about our state that is really good and fun!
Unless you’re one of the many people who think sports is boring, silly or frivolous. I love having the Blazers in Portland but there are lots of people who don’t get sports, how a team can unify a region, or how many dollars they bring to an economy.
AI says you’re right. I’m surprised. I travel to see Ducks football and this surprises me. AI says most fans are local and go to a game without spending on hotels and if they didn’t go to the game they’d spend the money somewhere else. Hard for me to reconcile with how much money I spend going to Eugene or couple away games per year.
I moved from Seattle in 1990 to Tucson and for the past 26 years in Las Vegas. I'm SHOCKED at the way the city has gone down the toilet. I have kids, grand kids and great grand kids living in the area. Portland too, another disaster from what I remember it.
While population has dropped by a small amount within Portland, the metropolitan area is still growing. Seattle itself is still seeing growth at a small rate, and the suburban area growing faster. So no, people are “fleeing in droves.”
Oregon is growing slower than the national average. Washington doing a but better but the chickens are coming home to roost as the political environment continues to deteriorate
Correct on this. While both cities have problems I visit both cities multiple times a year and the traffic jams keep getting bigger and bigger and are growing further and further south each time I go. I wish people were fleeing but they're not. One thing I don't do is listen to what pendants and people are saying and let my eyes observe things. Traffic jams just 5 to 10 years ago were much lighter in Portland and Seattle. So where are these people fleeing to? Don't ignore your eyes.
I-5 in Portland has been a mess for the past 25 years, south to Salem and north to the river. Nothing has gotten worse or better. Same thing in Seattle, from Olympia to Everett. It has been bad a long time at rush hours and especially if it rains
"droves" may need definition, but Oregon is going to lose a congressional seat in the next census because of the decline in population. California will lost between 2-5 congressional seats. Washington may not--might even gain one--because people are moving to central and eastern Washington.
The state's population has increased by 30,000 in six years (2020 through 2025), about 1/2 percent over that period, or about 0.10% a year, according to FRED, the federal statistics. That includes undocumented migrants. It is deminimus. Not as bad as CA and NY, which are actually losing people, but not great either. There is so much pressure on the business base of Oregon today with major layoffs at Intel and Nike, I won't be surprised to see actual declines the next 5 years.
California gained 185,000 people last year, the size of a pretty decent city. These demographics are easy to find. Pundits on TV haven't done the work to look at numbers. The "work" actually takes about 5 minutes in today's internet world. While I think Seattle and Portland both have issues they need to clean up, definitely need better city leaders. However, I'm not seeing massive people fleeing like claimed by the media and others. I challenge anyone to drive to either city not even at rush hour and tell me how clear they're driving lanes were.
No, CA did not "gain people last year". You need to do more work. California LOST people from 2024 to 2025. These are data from the Federal Reserve Economic Data (FRED):
Someone at the state legislature should also do the math on tax revenues. Visiting players are going to pay the state income tax on their game checks. So... 10 seconds on the internet tells me the visiting team payroll will generate roughly 200k in state income tax per game so about 8 million a year (only to get larger as salaries escalated) from the VISITORS. Plus the blazers income, plus the organization payroll. Etc... these are highly compensated people. You have commented with better knowledge than I on their business acumen. But at least someone should point out that the tax revenues for the state and city might at least be considered in this equation.
A lot of those taxes are already baked into other city efforts. They are not available without the city council robbing those efforts for the new arena. Good luck that happens /s.
I haven't lived in Portland for 40 years but I was born and raised there. I would hate to see the PORTLAND Trailblazers moved to the burbs or any other city. They are the only NBA team I follow. In general I have soured on the league, the money involved has gotten ridiculous. And do they actually play basketball anymore...I do prefer the college game.
I'm back after health issues that had me an inch from the grave too many times to count. I decided to check out what John has on his mind and the new PAC. This article moved me to re-join. As a long suffering Sonic fan from my days in Seattle, (used to listen to games on a hand held transistor radio while working) PORTLAND..DO NOT SCREW THIS UP. Every time I see the name thunder, I get red in the face and cuss. Owners will move your Trailblazers if you let them.
Thank you for being here Dwight.
JC, in 2026, sadly, two more businesses will leave Portland. The one that will hurt the most is Daimler truck manufacturing leaving Swan Island for the Carolinas (375 jobs plus all the butterfly effect of small businesses supporting Daimler employees). The other is Under Armour who are taking 60 jobs in PDX, back to Baltimore.
Is Mexico City or Virginia Beach also potential relocation landing spots?
I hope to be pleasantly surprised that the City retains Blazers. But I’m already mentally prepared that they will leave. Portland has just continued to get it wrong time and time again. And the current City council leadership are sympathetic to Mamdani. It’s not a good mix for a ‘poor’ and scrappy billionaire like Dundon.
Under Armour’s decision was really about cutting costs and restructuring. It likely wouldn’t have mattered what city the facility was in. They established a Portland outpost to tap into the area’s strong footwear design talent, but the business itself has been under significant pressure. The stock is trading below $7 a share, and the company’s market cap has fallen from nearly $20 billion to around $3 billion. They’re narrowing their product assortment, reducing complexity, and essentially battening down the hatches while they work through the turnaround. And their building was very expensive to maintain, at a loss.
As for Daimler, here’s a fun personal connection: I actually worked on the Freightliner assembly line on Swan Island—the very plant that is now closing. At the time, I worked for Cummins Engine Company and was a member of Machinists Local 1005 (International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers). Even back in the 1990s, the facility was showing its age. It was producing important trucks, but many of the models were specialized, lower-volume products in a niche segment. Daimler is keeping its North American headquarters and engineering presence here, though. I can actually see the headquarters from my window at adidas.
None of this takes away from the broader point that Portland’s business environment has had real challenges. But there’s some important context: in both cases, these were strategic business decisions driven by industry changes and operational realities, not simply a company leaving Portland because of the city itself.
You are probably right about Under Armour being a business decision, the footwear sector being in a bit of a recession. As for Daimler, this is a real downer as they have been in Portland for 84 years. The other loss to region is dry up of Port of Portland, and all that sea freight business shifting to ports of Tacoma, Seattle, Oakland. Part of that was port operators getting sick and tired of the unionized longshoremen antics. I recall reefers could be taken off vessel - but could not be unplugged by port authorities. Only the longshoreman were contractually allowed. Ocean containers would sit there until the authorized union got around to it. The longshoreman also resisted implementation of technology, to protect labor hours. Ocean carriers simply found it too much of a bother to regularly come to Port of Portland. Hanjin said adios in 2015 (citing prolonged dispute with ILWU) then Hapag-Lloyd followed suit resulting in Terminal 6 biz dropping 80%. By 2024, the port had completely closed. Now a slow comeback afoot in 2026, long way to go to return to glory days of 1990’s. That’s another sad tale of business leaving for more business friendly locals. All the agriculture from the lower Columbia and Snake River basin earmarked for export should be rail cars to the port of Portland, rather than ports of Tacoma or Seattle. Big time failure there.
Unionized labor has its place. But it can overstep itself to its detriment. Unions in Starbucks and the Moda Center operations make no business sense, IMO.
I'm also weary of the description "well-meaning weirdos". They are not well-meaning at all. They have no vision whatsoever.
This is JC walking the line, as his readership is from across the political spectrum. I get that. But for myself, I’ve watched Portland deteriorate over time in real time (I’ve been watching up close since mid 90’s) and recognize that the election of DSA in late 2024 to Portland City Council took things from weird to bizarre, and we might be in the pathway to surreal and then the outlandish. Two additional villains, IMO, were former Oregon Attorney General Ellen Rosenblum (who served 2012 - 2024) and former Multnomah County District Attorney Mike Schmidt (who served 2020 - 2024). These D characters refused to cooperate with the Feds to prosecute the Antifa-types that took over the City during Covid and there after, and placed it on its current downward, economic trajectory.
Once the 20 year lease is signed... no, not Mexico City, Virginia Beach or any place for that matter can get the Blazers... unless they want to wait for 2050, and we all know that won't happen.
City needs to sideline the DSA councilors and get a deal done. As JC said, the City lacks leverage and should act like it.
Voters need to vote out the DSA... and two of them are in my district and I already told them I won't ever vote for them anymore.
Dave, this would imply that you voted for the DSA at some point. Democracy is the government you deserve, not the government you want (to paraphrase Jefferson). As a former Oregonian, JC is being nice when he says Portland has elected a bunch of weirdos. People outside of Portland and Oregon use much less polite terms.
I have to vote what's in my district... they don't have a d or an r when they run... at least I am willing to be rational and call them out. That's much better than people who hate Portland and have given up and want the city to burn to the ground... what good is that... that's not productive at all and not solving the problem. Stop bashing me or get out of the way and let the rest of us solve the problems.
Also, when I voted, there wasn't anything called a DSA...so don't pin that on me that I voted for a bunch of extremists before that fact. As you said, you left Oregon, so you are not going to solve the problem. Instead of bashing, let us Oregonians work to solve the problems while you can worry wherever you live... where if it is Idaho, they don't even have major leagues to brag about.
If you don't care about major leagues, then you are the problem.
Do you ever have that absolutely correcto!!!
Portland and Multnomah County voters will NEVER vote them out. This is a lost generation. Voters have not yet been punished enough. And until that day comes, "weirdos" will be in charge.
The City Council actually has some leverage... and it only takes a majority to pass the lease... so those few bad apples on City Council will be out of luck and out voted 8-4 or 7-5 at worse. Even if it was a 6-6 tie, Mayor Wilson has said he would cast the winning vote for renovation and 20 year lease.
I was pleased to see Mayor Wilson cast the deciding 7-6 vote to restore $12B to PDX police/fire. One of those DSA council women opposed, called the Mayor ‘daddy’ in public forum for doing so. This far left bloc previously diverted $2M from cops over to parks. They are upside down and agreed need to be booted out by voters. They are a potential fly in the ointment for these Blazer negotiations.
"Fly in the ointment"? Their ilk are a threat to this country and all it stands for!!!!
"few bad apples"?
My, lord...
Yes... a few bad apples... have you even taken the time to talk to them as I have?... doubt it. So before you grandstand, know what you are talking about. A few of them are making it difficult, the rest actually want a fair deal... deal with that, otherwise you are showing the extremist attitude. And he's my Lord also.
glad your health is good, Dwight!
Dwight, glad you're back and take care of yourself.
I suppose there are scattered fans everywhere, but my guess is that if there was a summary of Blazers season or single ticket buyers by zipcode it would be very very heavy to Portland Metro.
I can remember the "old days" of the late 1970's, early 1980's, when retailer GI Joe's was still around, with stores around the state, and their displays of Blazers merchandise. I can remember Blazers players and broadcasters doing road trips around the state.
That type of state-wide fandom no longer exists.
Yes, maybe Molly from Beaverton who moved to Sun River still is a fan in Central Oregon, but generally the Blazers get little publicity outside Metro. And, in the last couple decades have done little to change that.
And you know this all to be accurate and not just a product of your own filtration system how?
I DON"T KNOW. That's why I'd like to see some data such as ticket sales by zipcode which I assume would be heavy to Portland Metro including Vancouver. I think there are fewer radio stations carrying Blazer games now? What are their ratings?
But added personal observation from the old GI Joe's days, and also see pretty skimpy Blazer offerings at Fred Meyers in Oregon cities outside of Metro as well. To me, it's an indicator - not a be all. Maybe it's simply Beavers and Ducks stuff has more floor space value than Blazers, but sure is different than the good ole days.
Of course ticket sales will have a heavy Portland / Vancouver metro area slant. I agree, it's been a while between the good old days and now. Winning makes a difference in fan interest both in PDX metro and statewide. Blazers lost a lot of fans with multiple years of tanking. It'll take some marketing effort too, to win them back. Too bad Dun da Dun Dun seems to be focused on poisoning the well.
You got that right. Radio all over the state covered the Blazers. Schoonz was as well known. Blazers also across the river in WA even with the Sonics. As you noted the players would often go to other parts of the state.
It is clear that Dundon bought this team to relocate them. As a 25+ year sales leader I am seeing the same tactics from him that I have seen from others negotiating in bad faith.
Sadly the business climate is terrible in PDX and the political atmosphere is even worse. Blazers are gone.
We need to refocus on bringing MLB or NHL to Portland. I think this could be a top NHL market.
You are not wrong to think contingency... the city has no current leverage.
In days of yore the solution would involve tar, feathers. And a rail
Portland sports fans would love the NHL. The in-game experience is a lot of fun.🏒🥅
Perhaps. But if the blazers move because of the economic climate here why would a potential NHL owner want to come here? Doesn’t seem to make sense.
Totally agree.... this is a Kabuki dance at this point
Delusional take. There was a deal in place for the Blazers to stay when Dundon bought the team
The city reneged (or is threatening to reneg) on the deal. Simple as that
If Portland blows up the Blazers deal, the collateral damage to the Diamond Project will be enormous. There are too many other cities--Salt Lake, Nashville, Austin/San Antonio, Charlotte, Raleigh--where adults are in charge. Portland is a great hockey town, and they could have had the NHL long before Seattle if it wasn't for their "well-intentioned weirdos".
We would hate to see the Blazers leave. We live in Sutherlin and get 2 season tickets every year. My wife drives up on game day and picks up our handicapped son in Hillsboro to go to the game. She takes him home after the game and spends the night in one of the motels. I would say they are not alone as statewide fans. I stay home and feed the horses…and watch the game on tv.
without question, what you wrote, Bill, is true love and dedication :)
I would hate to see the Blazers leave town, but not bad enough to steal from the general public across Oregon to pay their ransom.
Figure out how to pay the bills within the MODA center organization, the tenants who rent the building or within the city/county.
If state tax funding is used then it should be considered a loan at 25-30% interest.
It's unfortunate that we don't have any elected leadership in this state that can run a business.
Feelings and nostalgia won't fix this mess
The lack of business acumen has long been a problem for city leaders.
Portland is too busy "keeping it weird" to worry about business acumen
It's gone from keeping it weird to keeping it woke to just plain crazy. Both families on my mother's side were in Oregon long before statehood and they were prominent leaders who helped build Oregon. They'd be shocked to see Oregon today.
A city that is attractive to a sports team owner has to be one that wants to win. That city will be a good partner for a the owner and will help in that quest. Portland looks like it is a city that wants to lose, and has for a long time
There is a vocal and influential minority of people in Multnomah county well represented on the city council who are anti-business, anti-corporation, anti-successful/wealthy people, and several other things, who see someone like Dundon as the root of all evil, to be opposed at every turn. They were the ones who enabled night after night of riots during BLM, the rampant homelessness and related property crimes, all of which have destroyed the city’s reputation.
So Dundon might have met his match if he was hoping to strong arm a one sided deal from Portland, because that well connected minority will be just as happy to see the Blazers leave, tear down Moda center, and turn the land into a park.
Not just the lack of business acumen but the belief that they don’t need one
The far left leaning contingent of the Portland City council met in secret (in late 2025) with aim of dismantling the quasi public/private Portland Prosper entity. This org tries to bring up and support existing business w/ seed money in Portland. There was a complaint about the legality of this closed door meeting and an investigation by the Oregon Ethics committee (who didn’t find fault). No fault but it leaves a bad taste that half the City Council isn’t interested in attracting new business.
The Portland City Peacock caucus (6 members, 4 who are DSA) met behind closed doors to scheme how to tear down / scrap Portland Prosper, the quasi public/private city entity aimed at helping grow new business. A member of the more moderate city council complained, and there was an Oregon Ethics Committee investigation that resulted. That is the city council which new Blazer ownership gets to negotiate with.
One thing I keep wondering about is why the City is so set on several contingencies for moving forward with renovations. Assume for a moment the Blazers do leave. And, the City then tries to attract NHL or hijack a different NBA club. Those prospective tenants are going to want to see a modern arena in place, or a plan from the City to quickly deliver one... and deliver it without contingencies before agreeing to move to PDX. Are the current Blazers really asking for anything different than what a new prospective tenant would want? The prospective tenant would be no more enamored with contingencies than the current Blazers?
If you listen to the Softy interview that is what he is really saying. "Don't let the Blazers leave by making decisions based on ego, and shortsighted funding." Of course, it ain't Softy's $600M, but that was his caution using some colorful language.
Bingo!! The more I read about this, especially outside of JC's biased views, the more I side with Dundon and the Blazers. Drop those idiotic contingencies, fund the renovations and the Blazers say they'll sign the 20 year lease in a heart beat. Show me where any other "tenant" is required to fund the overall structural maintenance of the property they rent? That's the OWNER'S responsibility. Pretty simple. Dundon and the Blazers are not being unreasonable. All they are asking for is the same basic deal every other franchise has and every other city gives its professional teams where the city owns the venue. If Portland and the state can't do that, they don't deserve a team in any sport.
That's going to be Dundon's argument with Adam Silver and the Board of Governors...and it's a damn good argument.
How do you suppose Joe the Plumber feels about seeing his hard earned tax dollars spent on behalf of a business, the Blazers?
The Los Angeles Rams and Chargers play in a stadium built with private funds because the citizenry, in a referendum, clearly advised the politicos and the NFL they weren't having it.
Yeah, because the Rams owner OWNS the stadium and gets all the benefits and profits from the stadium. The city or thise citizens don't. So the owner should pay for the stadium. How do you suppose Joe the plumber is going to feel when his taxes go up because the city of Portland loses hundreds of millions of dollars each year in tax dollars from player salaries, lease payments, hotel payments and restaurant patrons, etc, each year because the Blazers are gone? They'll pay more for subsidizing the lost tax revenue than they will for having to help upgrade the arena. And if the Blazers leave, who is going to pay to upkeep an empty arena.with no tenant? Joe the plumber. So either way Joe's paying. He either pays and has a professional team to help pay city taxes, or he pays AND pays even more to make up for lost tax revenue.
You, amigo, need to review the many studies that, for years, have shown that the financial benefits of a publicly subsidized professional sports franchise are a wash with those that can be generated from such funds invested elsewhere.
I personally hope the Blazers leave. Studies also show the Blazers bring in more than $600 million a year to the city and state. Good luck generating that income without them. I'm sure all the homeless people in Portland are interested to find out how that's going to be done. And again, you never addressed the fact that the ciry of LA doesn't own SoFi stadium, the Rams owner does, so yes he should be responsible for the build and any subsequent renovations. In Portland, the city owns the arena, not the team. It's their responsibility. The dumb move was the city agreeing to buy the arena from Jody Allen in 2024 for $1. Jody knew how much work the arena needed since nothing had been done since it was built, by her or her brother. She fleeced the city by pawning off a deteriorating building, leaving them hanging with the bill. That's not Dundon's fault. Why not offer Dundon the option of buying the arena back for $1 so he gets control and all the revenue from every single event held there? See what he says about that?
> One thing I keep wondering about is why the City is so set on several contingencies for moving forward with renovations.
You’re wondering why the City is trying to develop leverage to use against Dundon? It’s so they have leverage to use against Dundon.
Thanks for articulating what should go without saying
Softy always a good for nothing.
Oregon sports a myriad of people, men and women, of which you speak but most of them take one look at the mess wrought in Oregon by its political leadership and say, "My life is too short to get involved with that"!!!
"As ye sow, so shall ye reap."
“Oregon is a tough place to do business. High taxes. Layers of bureaucracy. Lots of well-meaning crazies in leadership positions. And the vocal minority carries way too much clout.
— Columbia and Nike both operate in unincorporated Washington County. Lots of Oregon companies, including Dutch Bros., have moved headquarters to other states. Commercial real estate has been in a spiral since the pandemic. The loss of tax revenue should raise alarm bells with state and city leaders.”
Glad you drew attention here, John.
‘Compound choices’… the human equivalent of compound interest.
Hardly noticeable in the beginning, astonishing in the end.
The dye of a move may have been cast 10-15 years ago when the city council turned crazy.
Having lived in Portland’s Pearl District for 14 years before getting totally fed up with the city’s inept leftist governance and then moving to Clackamas County, I’m convinced that Portland voters are not about to change the political and business climate any time soon in order to right the ship. From where I sit, the economic future of our metro area is in Washington, Clackamas, and Clark counties where county and city elected officials keep the trains running on time and ensure that the streets are safe for their residents and visitors.
It's disheartening but I think you're right. There are none as blind as those who will not see. Are Portland folks so dedicated to their zeal for "weirdness" that they will go down with the ship rather than bail it out?
Why are cities such as Austin, Charlotte, Nashville, Las Vegas, Columbus, and Salt Lake booming? They have moderate/centrist governments that keep taxes low and business/housing regulations to a minimum, maintain excellent public schools, fund the police forces at solid levels, and fix the potholes in the streets. It really isn’t complicated, but apparently Portland voters steadfastly refuse to acknowledge the folly of their leftist political views.
Yorl diagnosis is correct. But I still wonder what the motivation is. Why is Good governance rejected in favor of political ideology?
Yes.
This is the route a lot of the rust belt cities went. Many of them are finally now recovering except Detroit. In their case it was a combination of white flight and loss of manufacturing. In Portland you cannot call it white flight, but it is similar, and the loss of good jobs due to overtaxing. Like most extremist organization the DSA does not care about the short-term consequences. They are focused on the long-term and the hurt now is worth it in their mind. Basically the same errors made with the trickle-down theory. Where is the balance?
I believe you are talking about the central cities in the Rust Belt, not the suburbs which in the case of Detroit were booming while the central city of Detroit went from 2 million residents down to 640,000, which is about what Portland is today.
John. you have often asked we readers to comment on your new video ventures.
I would like to say that I clicked on your link to the Softey video (whom I have never seen or listened to) near the top of this collum, watched, and learned nothing that you haven't written before in your posts, except why there is a huge ratio of people who either love him or hate him.
Then I found the video link to the same post.
I then read the rest of your post and found out I didn't need to watch the video, as you covered everything that was in the video in your writing.
I'm in my 80s and am a reader, not a TV watcher. I do not ever watch TV to watch people TALK about sports EVER,
I watch TV to watch sorts, and bitch about the people who are talking.
Please keep WRITING to those of us who are READERS .
Next, can you explain OFFSIDES i soccer?
I am not in my 80's but I do not have time to listen to a video. I am happy just catching sports info on the radio in my car. It is something to occupy my mind while driving. I guess I could download and play the audio anytime I want but that is so much more trouble than just turning the radio dial to something live. I think the video option is more for the following generations that are used to calling up the entertainment they want when they want it. All of us that grew up watching and listening in real time when there were no other choices are not the target market.
your post was one of the funniest posts that i've read on this site! i'm a few years behind you, David, but totally agree--i'm a reader vs listener. :) "explain offsides in soccer." how 'bout explaining ANYTHING about soccer?!
Simple... a defender has to be between the offense and the goal, otherwise it's offsides.
Dave, good attempt to simplify but your explanation ignores timing which is critical and a cause of misunderstanding.
An attacking player is in an offside position if, when the ball is PLAYED to them by a teammate, they are nearer to the opponents’ goal line than both the ball and the second-to-last opponent.
Right... thanks for expanding on it...
Got that???
If you are ahead of the last defender (ignoring the goalie) at the time a team mate kicks the ball to you, you’re likely offside.
Another way of thinking about it? No hanging around the goal waiting for someone to pass the ball to you.
As a basketball player, this precludes any fast break or head fake to go back door to the basket. What's wrong with gaining advantage on the defense? When Offside is called because a player's shoulder is in front of some one's elbow 60 yards away from the ball who could never be involved in the play, we get teams declaring nil nil as a victory.
Totally un American.
What' is wrong with hanging around the goal.
The other team would be up an extra player.
Going back to the basketball analogy, what if you just put a player in the backcourt to collect a possible pass. There's no goalie.
Basketball coaches have figured out this doesn't work .
Why is illegal in soccer?
If you don't respond to this I can understand, but you were the most knowledgeable person who did respond.
It’s only offside if the attacking player is involved in the play. If there is an attacker in an offside position but the passer doesn’t pass it to then the ref ignores it.
Replay camera men will often show how the whole defensive line will move away from their goal in synch to force an attacker to move away from the goal.
My thought is the average fan really has little to say about multi-billion $$ sports team deals. The Portland city council barely listens to the average local citizen. They all have their political agendas. I highly doubt Dundon cares what Oregon citizens think. Apparently the NBA doesn't either. So, while, that might be nice advice from "Softy", it is virtually worthless.
Everyone complains about the "big" problems Portland has, and about our negative image on the national stage ... so why would anyone want to risk losing one of the few really good things about Portland? And some people don't care if they leave or not? If you truly love Portland and Oregon, you should want to keep something about our state that is really good and fun!
Unless you’re one of the many people who think sports is boring, silly or frivolous. I love having the Blazers in Portland but there are lots of people who don’t get sports, how a team can unify a region, or how many dollars they bring to an economy.
Regarding the "dollars," they don't. Check it out.
AI says you’re right. I’m surprised. I travel to see Ducks football and this surprises me. AI says most fans are local and go to a game without spending on hotels and if they didn’t go to the game they’d spend the money somewhere else. Hard for me to reconcile with how much money I spend going to Eugene or couple away games per year.
If the Jail Blazers truly are "one of the few really good things about Portland" then the city is in the deepest stew possible.
"I fear for the future of......"
Both Seattle and Portland are run by idiots people are fleeing in droves.
I moved from Seattle in 1990 to Tucson and for the past 26 years in Las Vegas. I'm SHOCKED at the way the city has gone down the toilet. I have kids, grand kids and great grand kids living in the area. Portland too, another disaster from what I remember it.
While population has dropped by a small amount within Portland, the metropolitan area is still growing. Seattle itself is still seeing growth at a small rate, and the suburban area growing faster. So no, people are “fleeing in droves.”
Oregon is growing slower than the national average. Washington doing a but better but the chickens are coming home to roost as the political environment continues to deteriorate
Correct on this. While both cities have problems I visit both cities multiple times a year and the traffic jams keep getting bigger and bigger and are growing further and further south each time I go. I wish people were fleeing but they're not. One thing I don't do is listen to what pendants and people are saying and let my eyes observe things. Traffic jams just 5 to 10 years ago were much lighter in Portland and Seattle. So where are these people fleeing to? Don't ignore your eyes.
A lot of them are coming from California which is even worse than WA and OR
I-5 in Portland has been a mess for the past 25 years, south to Salem and north to the river. Nothing has gotten worse or better. Same thing in Seattle, from Olympia to Everett. It has been bad a long time at rush hours and especially if it rains
108K gain according to state of California in 2025.
So you take Gavin Newsom’s word over the Fed Reserve. Okay. I don’t control what you believe
"droves" may need definition, but Oregon is going to lose a congressional seat in the next census because of the decline in population. California will lost between 2-5 congressional seats. Washington may not--might even gain one--because people are moving to central and eastern Washington.
The state's population has increased by 30,000 in six years (2020 through 2025), about 1/2 percent over that period, or about 0.10% a year, according to FRED, the federal statistics. That includes undocumented migrants. It is deminimus. Not as bad as CA and NY, which are actually losing people, but not great either. There is so much pressure on the business base of Oregon today with major layoffs at Intel and Nike, I won't be surprised to see actual declines the next 5 years.
California gained 185,000 people last year, the size of a pretty decent city. These demographics are easy to find. Pundits on TV haven't done the work to look at numbers. The "work" actually takes about 5 minutes in today's internet world. While I think Seattle and Portland both have issues they need to clean up, definitely need better city leaders. However, I'm not seeing massive people fleeing like claimed by the media and others. I challenge anyone to drive to either city not even at rush hour and tell me how clear they're driving lanes were.
No, CA did not "gain people last year". You need to do more work. California LOST people from 2024 to 2025. These are data from the Federal Reserve Economic Data (FRED):
Yearly Population Estimates:
2021: 39,152,927
2022: 39,125,347
2023: 39,181,667
2024: 39,364,774
2025: 39,355,309
IF they are going to use state funding for the renovation of the Moda Center, change the name of the team to the Oregon Trail Blazers.
They at least need to take MODA down from the marque and replace it with taxpayers!
now that's funny! "The Taxpayer Arena!"
Love it!!!
Great idea, and it actually sounds better.
Someone at the state legislature should also do the math on tax revenues. Visiting players are going to pay the state income tax on their game checks. So... 10 seconds on the internet tells me the visiting team payroll will generate roughly 200k in state income tax per game so about 8 million a year (only to get larger as salaries escalated) from the VISITORS. Plus the blazers income, plus the organization payroll. Etc... these are highly compensated people. You have commented with better knowledge than I on their business acumen. But at least someone should point out that the tax revenues for the state and city might at least be considered in this equation.
A lot of those taxes are already baked into other city efforts. They are not available without the city council robbing those efforts for the new arena. Good luck that happens /s.
I’m afraid Portland screwed this up during the summer of love..spineless leadership has gotten us to this place.
The city of Portland has bigger issues than the Blazers, but lose the team and the reason for living for many is catastrophic.
I haven't lived in Portland for 40 years but I was born and raised there. I would hate to see the PORTLAND Trailblazers moved to the burbs or any other city. They are the only NBA team I follow. In general I have soured on the league, the money involved has gotten ridiculous. And do they actually play basketball anymore...I do prefer the college game.