PortlandMaps

Our Mission

The City of Portland is providing PortlandMaps.com as a new way of accessing public data. This data has always existed and been obtainable by any public citizen, but processes for finding and retrieving it have either been too complex or not well known by the average individual.

Our mission is to provide up to date public information in a easy to use interface. Letting everyone have access to the information, not just the experts.

Data

A wide variety of data is available for the Portland Metropolitan Area, a few of these datasets are listed below.

Assessor/Tax Lot Information
Aerial Photography
Building Footprints*
Building Permits*
Census
Crime Data*
Elevation
Parks*
Mass Transit
Natural Hazard
Schools
Urban Growth Boundary
Underground Storage Tanks*
Water/Sewer*
Zip Code
Zoning Maps*

* Data available for Portland only

Traditionally, these datasets all needed to be obtained from multiple sources, in many different formats. Now, using our service, you can get all of the information through a single application.

Privacy

All information provided through our service is available through traditional public channels. We have, however, limited the information we provide to protect individual's privacy. Because of this you will not find phone numbers of individuals in any of our public databases. If you require access to this information, you will have to go through traditional methods. Please refer to the for more information.

UPDATED 9/17/2007: Owner names have been added to PortlandMaps at the request of the City Ombudsman. See explanation below:

A complaint was filed with the Ombudsman Office in 2006 over the City's decision not to display the names of property owners along with other property information that was made available on PortlandMaps.com. The complaint argued that the names were part of public records that were readily available through the county. Multnomah County provides owner information in their offices or over the telephone. In addition they provide owner information to anyone willing to pay to subscribe to their online service. Further, it was argued that all City employees with intranet access could retrieve property owner names, and when requested would occasionally provide those names to the public.

After many months of research and discussion, within the City and Multnomah County, there was concurrence that based on State Statutes, the property owner names were public records and the property owner names should not be blocked from view on the internet. Once Multnomah County, the custodians of property records, authorized the City to display names, the City made the decision to make the names available on the internet through PortlandMaps.com.

Many local governments in Oregon, and throughout the country, now provide electronic access to property owner names. There are also a number of jurisdictions that allow a search for property by owner name as well as a search by property. The City has made the decision to allow search by property only, NOT by an owner's name. This prevents someone from locating property, often the property owner's residence, when only having a person’s name. This compromise, of allowing a search by property but not by the name, helps address potential privacy and safety concerns, yet still meets the intent of the public records laws.
For more information or feedback reguarding the owner name policy please contact the City of Portland Ombudsman.

Suggestions and Comments

Our service has been designed to be very simple and easy to use, while providing the most flexibility possible. If you have any comments or suggestions about our service, please e-mail us at portlandmaps@ci.portland.or.us.

Who We Are

Although the data presented here is largely the work of hundreds of dedicated individuals, the site and the applications within it were built and are maintained by Corporate GIS (CGIS), and the Bureau of Technology Services (BTS) at The City of Portland. For more information on CGIS, please visit our web site.

Disclaimer

THE GIS APPLICATIONS ACCESSED THROUGH THIS WEB SITE PROVIDE A VISUAL DISPLAY OF DATA FOR YOUR CONVENIENCE. EVERY REASONABLE EFFORT HAS BEEN MADE TO ASSURE THE ACCURACY OF THE MAPS AND ASSOCIATED DATA. THE CITY OF PORTLAND MAKES NO WARRANTY, REPRESENTATION OR GUARANTEE AS TO THE CONTENT, SEQUENCE, ACCURACY, TIMELINESS OR COMPLETENESS OF ANY OF THE DATA PROVIDED HEREIN. THE USER OF THESE APPLICATIONS SHOULD NOT RELY ON THE DATA PROVIDED HEREIN FOR ANY REASON. THE CITY OF PORTLAND EXPLICITLY DISCLAIMS ANY REPRESENTATIONS AND WARRANTIES, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, THE IMPLIED WARRANTIES OF MERCHANTABILITY AND FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE. THE CITY OF PORTLAND SHALL ASSUME NO LIABILITY FOR ANY ERRORS, OMISSIONS, OR INACCURACIES IN THE INFORMATION PROVIDED REGARDLESS OF HOW CAUSED. THE CITY OF PORTLAND SHALL ASSUME NO LIABILITY FOR ANY DECISIONS MADE OR ACTIONS TAKEN OR NOT TAKEN BY THE USER OF THE APPLICATIONS IN RELIANCE UPON ANY INFORMATION OR DATA FURNISHED HEREUNDER. FOR UPDATED INFORMATION ABOUT THE MAP DATA ON PORTLANDMAPS PLEASE REFER TO CITY’S METADATA. FOR QUESTIONS ABOUT ASSESSMENT INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT THE COUNTY ASSESSORS OFFICE IN YOUR COUNTY.