Why Downtown faces water damage risk
Speaks to both downtown residents and small commercial property owners dealing with the city’s oldest infrastructure.
Downtown Portland contains the city’s oldest commercial buildings and some of its oldest plumbing and roofing infrastructure.
Many buildings mix commercial ground floors with residential or office space above, adding varied plumbing demand.
Renovated older buildings don’t always have fully documented below-street or riser plumbing status.
Downtown’s oldest building stock combined with mixed commercial and residential plumbing demand in high-rise buildings means a leak can originate from a private supply line or a shared riser serving several floors at once.