The abrupt closure of a downtown Portland parking garage could leave a nonprofit's weekly free meals without shelter.

Potluck in the Park has been serving free meals at O'Bryant Square, a small plaza at Southwest Stark Street and Ninth Avenue, for more than two decades. In especially hot, cold or rainy weather, it took shelter in the parking garage underneath.

But the parking garage was closed earlier this month due to structural concerns, leaving the nonprofit without a sheltered place to serve food.

David Utzinger, a longtime volunteer who manages logistics for the organization, said that's probably untenable in the long-term.

"We've never missed a Sunday in 1,360 Sundays," he said. "But I don't know how long the health department will let us keep going on in the rain."

The Portland Bureau of Transportation closed the O'Bryant Square SmartPark garage Sept. 4 because of damage discovered during a planned repair project. There's a risk pieces of concrete could fall and injure people or damage property.

A structural engineering firm will assess the damage to the 44-year-old garage and provide repair options, a process that could take as long as four months, the bureau said.

Utzinger said his organization heard six months ago that the garage might have to close for an extended period, and that he told city officials they would need time to find a new location if it did.

But the group was give about a week's notice on the closure. Since then, Utzinger said, the Transportation Bureau hasn't been responsive to requests for help finding a new venue.

"They pulled this out from under us that fast, so it seems like they owe us some help in finding a solution," Utzinger said. "They don't seem to feel that way."

Transportation bureau spokesman Dylan Rivera said it would use a temporary fence to allow access to the garage entrance this week, and that conversations with the organizers continue.

The Parks Bureau agreed to allow the nonprofit to put up a tent at O'Bryant Square, but Utzinger said that raising and removing the tent each week would be cost-prohibitive, and that the parks bureau wouldn't allow a semi-permanent structure.

Potluck in the Park serves 350 to 650 meals each week. Utzinger estimates about a third of attendees are homeless, and more live in subsidized housing nearby.

While free meals are offered elsewhere in Portland, Potluck in the Park fills a gap on weekends, when some other providers are closed.

-- Elliot Njus

enjus@oregonian.com

503-294-5034

@enjus