One of Portland’s most venerable performance venues is due to receive a face-lift with the help of public dollars.

The Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall‘s marquee, beneath the iconic “Portland” sign, will receive a $1.5 million update. The money is from a Prosper Portland grant funded by tax-increment financing. The 2,700-seat concert hall is owned by the city of Portland and operated by Portland’5 Centers for the Arts, a division of Metro.

Metro will be responsible for any cost overruns, according to an ordinance approved by the City Council on Wednesday.

While the blade sign was updated in 2018, the marquee’s casing is worn and warped and reaching the end of its useful life, according to a Prosper Portland report.

Crews will replace rusted sheet metal, upgrade electrical wiring, strengthen structural elements to meet seismic code, restore the marquee cabinet to its original appearance, and replace the letter boards with electronic LED graphics. Those graphics will return the marquee to the original design of a black background with white lettering, and eliminate the need to replace letters manually.

The changes will prolong the marquee’s life, and allow its message to be changed more often, according to a City Council impact statement. The project will have no significant effect on energy use.

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