The Oregon Convention Center (OCC) is once again participating in the third annual Lights Out Portland 2018 event on September 21, 2018.
Lights Out Portland is a one-night event where residential households and commercial buildings dim their lighting in order to raise awareness about the impact of light pollution on migrating birds. The event also seeks to draw attention to the wasted energy in the form of light that is thrown up into the sky and to remind us of the enduring beauty of the stars above the city at night.
The convention center is one of 14 buildings participating in Portland this year, including Fox Tower, Wells Fargo Tower, Park Avenue West, 200 Market, Lloyd 700, 1201 Lloyd, Lloyd Center Tower, Montgomery Park, OMSI, Holladay Park Plaza, Metro Regional Center, Bonneville Power Administration, and the 911 Federal Building.
Almost 7,000 households have RSVP'd to the Lights Out Portland Facebook event and KGW-TV ran a story about the effort that can be viewed here.
The center is also coordinating its efforts tonight with Plimsoll Productions, which is working on a 6-part documentary series called "Night on Earth". The production company is filming, among other things, the Lights Out programs in various cities—including New York and Portland—for the "Cities at Night" episode. Our building will be filmed as the lights in the spires and crescent go dark at approximately 9 p.m.
OCC is proud to participate in this community awareness raising event each fall, and has also taken measures to partner with Audubon Society of Portland on becoming more bird-friendly. Efforts include the adjusting of our energy-efficient spire LEDs to reduce their blue-white light output, turning these lights off an hour earlier through migration season, and regularly observing a lights out period during the morning commute.
About the Oregon Convention Center
The Oregon Convention Center is owned by Metro and managed by the Metro Exposition and Recreation Commission. OCC is a sustainably operated LEED® Platinum facility that hosts groups from around the world and brings millions of dollars into the Portland and Oregon economy.