Efforts to secure public funding to renovate the aging Moda Center formally ramped up on Monday with the introduction of a bill in the Oregon Senate that drew widespread support from government leaders, including Gov. Tina Kotek. The legislation, Senate Bill 1501, would divert income taxes from performers and athletes, including the high-paid Portland Trail Blazers, to a new Oregon Arena Fund and give the state joint ownership of the building with the city of Portland. “The Moda Center, with the Portland Trail Blazers as its anchor tenant, is a source of civic pride and is critical to the strength and continued growth of our local, regional, and statewide economies,” said Senate President Rob Wagner, who sponsored the bill. “Renovating Oregon’s Arena is the best investment we can make in Oregon’s economic future.”
