Long waits make Portland Night Market unbearable

Portland’s Night Market, staged on Friday, Nov. 4 and Saturday, Nov. 21, both started at noon and finished at 10 p.m.

It left many visitors, some who never got in the door: disappointed.

The market was an event meant to support businesses around the Portland metro area and to show off the many places to visit while living here. Businesses showcased various food, culture, music, drinks and retail goods, all under one roof in Portland’s Industrial District. Makers and merchants allowed guests to taste, sip, try and buy their products. An example of an item sold was a cut-out in the shape of Oregon, made from the old Portland International Airport carpet.

Upon arrival, visitors were forced to drive around to search for a place to park around Second Avenue and Alder Street in Southeast Portland. When looking for entertainment during the weekend, you usually think of going to a party or club, but this all-ages event brought at least 10,000 people.

The building that hosted the Market was the 108-year-old industrial warehouse at Southeast First Avenue and Alder Street. The “Industrial District,” as some people call the area, usually doesn’t have large events as such, but City Liquidators decided to put on this community gathering.

Some may say that this event was successful, but others may not. Multiple Facebook posts about the Friday evening reported that the line was at least three blocks long and caused visitors to stand out in the cold. Someone even started selling blankets to those near the end of the line.

On Saturday evening, when I tried to attend, I didn’t even get near the building’s entrance before I started freezing and wanted to go home. When I walked to the end of the line, it was already a block long. I watched children stand in line and that surprised me – especially when it became colder every second. On the event’s Facebook page, there are people complaining about the line, how cold it was and how they ended up at the bar next door.

Honestly, I didn’t go inside the venue and I didn’t really want to, once I saw how long the line was when I arrived on Saturday.

There were plenty of drivers looking for parking spots and slowing down, observing the people standing in line. If this event was held in a building that could hold more than 1,300 people (the fire safety limit) and not force at least 100 people to stand outside in the cold, maybe it would’ve benefited more.

Hopefully, when event leaders put on an event that over 17,000 people are interested in going to, they’ll choose a larger venue or even a park that doesn’t have a room capacity limit.

I give this event a 1 out of 5, because there was quite a bit of hype regarding the event (there must’ve been a reason why people wanted to attend, right?).