But this time, “moving cautiously” — it will be a year before we even see a “framework plan” for the project from the PDC and Beam Development. On Wednesday, the PDC began asking consultants to pitch ideas for how to reuse the area’s historic Convention Plaza building. The announcement comes just two weeks after City […]
Build Out
Posted inSports
Another Rose Quarter Redesign Idea
Remember the Blazer’s recently released really horrible “Water is Magic!” redesign idea for the Rose Quarter? Another idea cropped up in the Sunday Oregonian. In a guest column, architect Doug Obletz (who as president of a Portland-based design firm, could have a stake in the redesign if his idea gets traction) says instead of tearing […]
Posted inSports
Blazers Want “24 Hour Entertainment District” in Rose Quarter
“Water is magic.” That is the cringe-inducing motto of the development company the Blazers are partnering with to revision the Rose Quarter. According to an article in Portland’s Bizjournal, the Blazers and California-based developers Cordish Company are planning “to remake the 36-acre Rose Quarter as an entertainment-themed district alive with activity 24 hours a day, […]
Posted inBuild Out
Skidmore Fountain Makeover Pics!
Last week the Historic Landmark’s Commission voted unanimous in favor of a city plan to revamp Ankeny Sqaure — the place where Skidmore fountain is and those people sold homemade Obama shirts all summer outside the Saturday Market — by installing 12 antique cast iron columns and 12 restrooms. Which means we now have a […]
Posted inArtsy
Goodbye Graffiti
While Matt packs his bags for his publicly-funded pan-America graffiti research trip, I want to memorialize my new favorite graffiti in the city, since it will soon be torn down. Experts agree that, “Eighty-five percent of graffiti is just tags and another 10 percent is gang communication” but there’s some art on the last remaining […]
Posted inBooks
Powell’s Unveils New “Art Cube” Design
Personally, I’ve always liked the plain entrance to the World’s Greatest Bookstore, but Powell’s is in the midst of revamping their Burnside and 10th entryway into an iconic “gateway to the Pearl District.” The architect of the redesign (Ernest Munch – who designed Powell’s sleek Beaverton and airport outlets) pitched a proposal to the Design […]
Posted inBuild Out
Interstate’s New Gateway: The (Pretty Boring) Prescott Project
Big changes are planned for the corner of what’s now known as Interstate’s “liquor store block”: 155 apartment units and six storefronts are moving in as part of a development called The Prescott. This project is a big deal because it’s the first large mixed-use project on North Interstate, plus it’s the first development occurring […]
Posted inBuild Out
Irvington Condos Project = Giant Can of Worms
The Irvington Squire condo project proposed for the corner of NE 15th and Hancock has been contentious since it first came before design review a year ago. But things heated up this summer as the Irvington Community Association rallied against the planned 5-story infill project in the middle of their historic neighborhood. I wrote about […]
Posted inCity Hall
Developers Essentially Steal From the City, Screw the Poor
Last week, City Auditor Gary Blackmer released the report of a months-long investigation done on the PDC and Bureau of Planning’s policies surrounding tax breaks given to developers who build affordable housing. The report is serious. It points out the poor follow-up process that has resulted in some developers snagging tax breaks by promising to […]
Posted inNeighborhoods
Condos for Africa!
Two weeks ago, we ran a story about how some Irvington neighbors are upset at the “Irvington Squire” condo development at 15th and NE Hancock. Now neighbors are grumbling and shouting that a new townhouse project at NE Tillamook and 11th will be an “out-of-place condo bunker” among Irvington’s historic homes. But unlike the six-story […]
Posted inBuild Out
City’s New Idea: Green Buildings Get Greenbacks
The City’s Bureau of Sustainable Development and Commissioner Saltzman’s office are working on a plan to get Portlanders to build green by fining projects that meet the building code rather than going above and beyond it to reduce carbon emissions. The idea is called a feebate – a wonky way to say: the city hands […]
Posted inNeighborhoods
NE Condo Project Raises Roofline, Tensions
“As it was originally proposed, it would have been the most massive structure in Irvington ever,” said Dean Gisvold, land use expert of the Northeast neighborhood’s association. He’s talking about the contentious Irvington Squire project on NE 15th and Hancock. The plan to build a 75-foot tall condo tower in the historic neighborhood has been […]