The estimated costs to change Portland’s form of government and expand the City Council from five to 12 members remain largely uncertain months after voters approved the sweeping overhaul, but they are all but sure to be much higher than what city officials originally told the public.
That’s because, officials concede, they didn’t include the millions of dollars needed to renovate and reconfigure City Hall and its council chambers or the nearby Portland Building to accommodate 13 elected officials and their staffs rather than the current five members.