South Waterfront News [Archive] - Page 2

BrG

May 17, 2007, 5:00 PM

^you can't say more then modern? materials, glassy?...maybe please...

B49: "semi-quiet" modern. B&W elevations don't come close to doing the building justice. It's affordable housing, built as inexpensively (as is required) as possible, to make it financially feasible. Thankfully there will be affordable down in SOWA. They can't ALL be high-end residences...sheesh. Think Sitka quality, but modern... and you get the idea. Common financial models.

B46: Two more progressive low rise designs and one very progressive modern (almost deconstructivist) design, fronting the rail turn-around. It's always a challenge to do something like that out of wood framing (unconventioanl plans/ meandering walls, etc), and not have an intimidated contractor price it out of reality or have an envelope consultant pepper the design with "No, you cant...that'll definitely leak" comments. That one will be tough to get done perfectly, but good for Simpson in accepting a challenge by AMAA, to try it there. Particularly for apartments. They are really just cash machines for the ultimate owners, and some are mostly interested in that aspect, with as minimal risk as is possible for a 30 million dollar project. Especially the developers that have a corporate model (TCR, etc)

If Simpson thinks they can develop it (and potentially sell it off once done) successfully, great.

65MAX

May 22, 2007, 3:21 PM

Well, there are some lower-rise Vancouver condos lining the waterfront... right across from Granville Island, for instance.

http://img72.imageshack.us/img72/1041/dscn1222py5.jpg
pic taken by me, 5/8/05

Great pic, Z. You're right, the Strand does look like the foreground buildings here. Now if we can just get some 20-30 story towers on Parcels 3 & 8.....

MarkDaMan

May 24, 2007, 3:04 PM

A trail to Beaverton? Plan gets green light
Thursday, May 24, 2007
By Fred Leeson
The Oregonian

Someday, Southwest residents -- and anybody else -- will be able to walk or bike along 15 miles of gentle grade between the South Waterfront and Beaverton safe from high-speed traffic.

Making it happen will take many years and maybe $16 million to $17 million. Thanks to a unanimous City Council vote last week approving the route and giving the go-ahead to look for funding, however, the pieces can begin falling into place.

"This is a valuable first step, just knowing where the route is," says Gregg Everhart, a Portland Bureau of Parks & Recreation landscape architect who helped plan the Red Electric trail. The route in large part follows the path of an electrified rail line Southern Pacific abandoned in 1930. Parts of the old right of way became public streets; some fell into private ownership.

Railway engineers found the gentlest grades when they started laying tracks in the 19th century. Don Baack, a veteran Southwest trails enthusiast, says other potential east-west routes are too hilly for comfortable biking and walking.

When finished, the trail should provide safe access along a corridor connecting parks, schools, community centers and churches. Since it will connect to the Fanno Creek trail system in Washington County, walkers and bikers could proceed as far as Tualatin.

"This section really makes Southwest Portland and the South Waterfront connect to the rest of the region," says Mel Hui, a Metro regional trails planner.

"People in the city and the Southwest are ready to walk and ready to bike," says Commissioner Dan Saltzman, who oversees the Parks Bureau. "This is going to be a great addition to Southwest Portland."

Planning the route was not quick or smooth. Planners met for years with residents along the route, many of whom were concerned about litter, noise, homeless campers and the risk of depressed property values.

"In typical Portland style, Parks beat this to death and then wrote an excellent report," says Lillie Fitzpatrick, chairwoman of the Hayhurst Neighborhood Association. Fitzpatrick, who presided over several contentious neighborhood meetings, says she is convinced trail supporters outnumber opponents. No one voiced objections at the City Council hearing.

Chris Hathaway, another Hayhurst resident, says evidence from other urban trails shows no increase in crime and indicates that being close to a trail improves property values. "Trails are a valuable amenity for any neighborhood," he says.

"Trail" conjures an image of a meandering path through a forest. The Red Electric will include some natural areas but also will traverse low-traffic city streets and use sidewalks where available. Painted street lines and signs will indicate routes along much of the way.

In an 11th-hour change, the Parks Bureau decided to avoid Southwest Capitol Highway in the busy Hillsdale area. Instead, the trail would use Southwest Vermont Street, taking pedestrians to an existing trail through George Himes Park while bicyclists travel on Southwest Nebraska Street.

Access to privately owned portions will have to be achieved by purchase or easement. Hui says some money for trail sections might be available from a 2006 Metro bond measure for buying open space from willing sellers. He says Metro would not use condemnation to force any sales.

"The next step," Saltzman says, "is piecing together the funding to make this work."

Portland News: 503-221-8199; portland@news.oregonian.com
http://www.oregonlive.com/portland/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/portland_news/1179795311255790.xml&coll=7

MarkDaMan

May 25, 2007, 3:59 PM

hmmm, it seems they are still interested in buying already built projects instead of building new...but their continued interest in Portland's market I guess is a good sign.

California real estate firm sets an apartment record
Portland Business Journal - May 25, 2007
by Wendy Culverwell
Business Journal staff writer

A California firm has reportedly broken its own record with the purchase of the 10th @ Hoyt apartments in the Pearl District.

Trammell Crow Residential opened the 178-unit luxury apartment building at 925 N.W. Hoyt St. in the Pearl District in 2004. It apparently sold an interest in the full-block property, which includes retail space and an underground parking garage, to Prometheus Real Estate Group of San Mateo, Calif.

The price hasn't been recorded, but is rumored to exceed $300,000 per unit, well above the previous record, also held by Prometheus. In late December, Prometheus purchased the 156-unit City Heights complex in downtown Portland, for $39.7 million, or more than $254,000 per unit. Like the 10th @ Hoyt complex, City View consists of retail space at ground level with apartments on the floors above.

Officials from neither Trammell Crow Residential nor Prometheus would comment on the sale. However, Prometheus recently added 10th @ Hoyt to the list of residential properties it publishes on its Web site.

At $300,000 per unit -- and likely more -- 10th @ Hoyt would hold the current title for highest price paid per unit for apartment property in Portland. The record isn't likely to hold.

The Louisa apartments, which opened after 10th @ Hoyt, is for sale along with the rest of Gerding Edlen Development Co.'s signature project, the Brewery Blocks. Apartment watchers expect The Louisa will eclipse 10th @ Hoyt when it sells.

Prometheus is a private company with an extensive network of apartment properties across the West and a handful of nonresidential holdings concentrated in the Bay Area.

wculverwell@bizjournals.com | 503-219-3415
http://portland.bizjournals.com/portland/stories/2007/05/28/story7.html?t=printable

sopdx

May 25, 2007, 11:33 PM

Correct me if I'm wrong, but wasn't Prometheus the company that started the whole south waterfront? By that, I mean, they wanted to go in and build a gated community so the city jumped in, platted the whole thing, and essentially said no, hence the beginning of the planning for what we now have. I believe they tried to sue the city and lost. Maybe I've got the name wrong.

MarkDaMan

May 29, 2007, 3:23 PM

^from my understanding, I think you are pretty much correct.

Dougall5505

Jun 6, 2007, 10:46 PM

block 46: 2 seperate buildings, 5 stories each, 275 apartments, 9 live/work units, 2 floors of underground parking
http://www.portlandonline.com/bds/index.cfm?a=157756&c=42263

block 49: 6 stories, 210 units, ground floor retail, 143 below grade parking sports, 50 ground level parking spots (for old spaghetti factory)
http://www.portlandonline.com/bds/index.cfm?a=156973&c=42263

edit: and portland has the banner over at ssc at least for now www.skyscrapercity.com
http://i96.photobucket.com/albums/l177/dougall5505/Picture1-17.png?t=1181170927

MarkDaMan

Jun 7, 2007, 2:52 PM

^I'll save my criticism for better renderings, but it appears the Pearl has found its way on the streetcar the the South Waterfront...at least for those two blocks...maybe something positive will come from the Block 46 odd shapped building...but otherwise it's boring and somewhat out of scale compared to the giants nearby

zilfondel

Jun 7, 2007, 4:52 PM

^^^
Block 49 = 210 affordable apartments
Block 46 = 275 apartments

I think that these projects will have excellent urban presence - creating a street wall, which the towers going up don't really do - the average tower going up in SOWA doesn't actually have that high of an FAR.

By comparison, the Atwater will only have 212 units... and is considerably taller. If you want affordability, lowrise is the way to go. I'm assuming that they will still make them modern-looking buildings, not influenced by historic buildings in the Pearl, like your post seems to imply...

pdxman

Jun 7, 2007, 5:28 PM

Lets hope this is the last of these small buildings down there...i know its affordable housing but still, 5 and 6 stories? come on, atleast get in to the double digits. Sowa should have a minimum height limit IMO not that would ever happen

NJD

Jun 7, 2007, 5:33 PM

I'm more for a variety of building sizes... I'm more worried about the flat skyline effect of the row of 250' towers in front of a row of 325' towers.

pdxman

Jun 7, 2007, 5:39 PM

I'm for a variety too, just not the 5-6 story kind. The alexan and whatever gets built by ohsu will help create different levels that are needed. I would have everything built down there be a min of 14-15 stories.

MarkDaMan

Jun 7, 2007, 9:31 PM

I'm with you pdxman. I'm not down with two rows, one with 325' and one with 250', but I do have a problem with a cluster of 250'-325' towers and than a bunch of 75'.

And sure, Zilfondel, I get the affordable housing component but from my understanding Block 46 isn't even going to be 'affordable'. What I'm worried about, and why I am referencing the Pearl is the 10th and Hoyt/Lexis type developments. Which are fine in the Pearl, but aren't what I would consider exciting, nor could I see them sitting next to a 325' glassy tower...well, soon enough I will, I guess.

Dougall5505

Jun 15, 2007, 9:42 PM

A special on sustainable development in cities focused mostly on portland. It aired on the sundance channel and you can buy the episode on itunes for 2 bucks. I bought it and it was worth it. They spent a lot of time talking to one of the developers of sowa, and there was a section on "guirella gardeners" in portland. very cool, you should check it out: http://ax.phobos.apple.com.edgesuite.net/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/browserRedirect?url=itms%253A%252F%252Fphobos.apple.com%252FWebObjects%252FMZStore.woa%252Fwa%252FviewTVSeason%253Fi%253D251359896%2526id%253D251168692%2526s%253D143441%2526partnerId%253D30%2526partnerId%253D30%2526siteID%253DTuICr.YJnDo-Muj76km.9yjmxEqrk5gu4g
anyone have any news about sowa?

Dougall5505

Jun 19, 2007, 10:22 PM

John Ross I heard a pizza place is going into retail c
http://www.urbanworksrealestate.com/listings/images/ground_floor_lg.gif

atwater it looks like there is a riverfront property in this one
http://www.urbanworksrealestate.com/listings/images/Atwater_floorplan_lg.gif

pdxman

Jun 19, 2007, 10:40 PM

I might just have to go to that presentation. Hopefully they'll have some prelim site plans or renderings.

Dougall5505

Jun 22, 2007, 7:05 PM

block 31, mirabella: http://www.portlandonline.com/bds/index.cfm?a=158415&c=42263

CouvScott

Jun 27, 2007, 6:30 PM

They have started excavation at Block 46.

Dougall5505

Jun 27, 2007, 7:12 PM

good news! do we have a final rendering for b46 yet?

MarkDaMan

Jul 3, 2007, 10:28 PM

Car lifts reflect elevation of local real estate prices
Portland Business Journal - June 29, 2007
by Wendy Culverwell
Business Journal staff writer

Phyllis and Ron Maynard retired a few years ago from a home in the Sylvan area to a condo in Portland's Riverplace district.

There was plenty of downsizing, but the couple balked at cutting back to a single car.

Phyllis, who retired from the Portland Public Schools, and Ron, who retired from the city, felt they each needed a vehicle -- a BMW wagon for her and a Porsche roadster for him.

Parking was a sticky proposition until earlier this year, when they moved to The Strand, a new riverfront project by developer Jack Onder.

The Maynards moved to The Strand because they wanted steel and concrete construction instead of the wood frame variety of their former home. But it turned out the building offered something more: Portland's first mechanical parking lifts.

Onder Development installed German-made car lifts in about 30 parking spots that had enough headroom to accommodate vehicles parked double-decker style. The high-density parking arrangement complements the high-density living arrangements above and is yet another sign of the value of pressing every square inch of space into service.

Beth DuPont, a broker specializing in multifamily investment properties at Colliers International, said it's natural to start looking for ways to maximize space when real estate and parking are at a premium. Car lifts have been successful in San Francisco, New York, Los Angeles and Washington, D.C., she said.

"It's a natural to come to Portland."

Klaus Parking Systems has installed its system in 88 West Coast locations, according to its regional representative, Norm Brudigan. Most are in and around the Bay Area, but there are a few noteworthy exceptions. In addition to The Strand, Klaus has put its lifts in condominium projects in Kansas City, Mo., and Seattle.

Brudigan said he's gotten lots of inquiries from the Northwest.

The technology is nothing new, which makes permitting relatively easy. Jeff Joslin, a land use manager for the city's Bureau of Development Services, said car lifts have a place in Portland and could be a meaningful addition to high-density projects if they are widely adopted.

Noting that parking garages are among the most costly and permanent structures built, he said it's surprising they didn't arrive earlier.

The Maynards said they initially balked at paying $28,000 to put a car lift in their one-car parking spot. They decided to go for it, treating it as both a convenience and an investment that could pay off handsomely if or when they sell their unit and can boast that it comes with parking for two vehicles.

Most of the time, the Porsche is parked on the lift and elevated over head, while the wagon is at the ready on ground level. The Maynards say they love having two parking spots and the convenience of parking both their cars a short elevator ride away from their home outweighs the inconvenience of having to coordinate who parks and when.

Ron Maynard said the elevated parking comes with another bonus. It puts his Porsche out of reach of other cars, protecting it from door dings and accidental bumps. The idea has clearly caught on, with sports cars and collector vehicles making up the majority of the population of elevated vehicles in The Strand's garage.

Onder, who has built luxurious condos all over Portland, said he first saw the Klaus parking lift system while visiting Chicago. He weighed bringing it home to Portland but didn't know if real estate was pricey enough to warrant the cost.

The Strand offered the perfect opportunity to find out if it was, he said.

The project consists of 189 condominiums and 27 townhouses in three towers. Most important, it occupies a sloping site bordering the Willamette River waterfront.

That sloping terrain means the floor of the underground parking garage rises and falls, creating areas inside where the ceiling is high enough to accommodate two vehicles stacked one over the other.

About 30 spots (out of 250) had sufficient clearance to allow cars to be stacked two high by way of an electric-powered hydraulic lift.

Had the garage been specially designed to accommodate the lifts, the cost would have been prohibitive, which is one reason they aren't part of Onder's other ongoing high-rise condominium project at the Uptown Shopping Center.

Lift-equipped parking spots have been a hit with Strand buyers, said Kathleen MacNaughton, principal broker for the project. The lifts are offered as an upgrade and as with condos, released for sale in batches.

Every one that has been offered has sold, she said.

wculverwell@bizjournals.com | 503-219-3415

http://portland.bizjournals.com/portland/stories/2007/07/02/focus4.html?t=printable

Dougall5505

Jul 13, 2007, 10:14 PM

I don't know if excavation has really started it looks like its still going through the approval process: http://www.portlandonline.com/bds/index.cfm?a=161808&c=42263

and theres a new small crane up at sowa, look to the right of the john ross its dark against the river, I have no idea what its for
http://i96.photobucket.com/albums/l177/dougall5505/Picture1-21.png?t=1184364778

CouvScott

Jul 16, 2007, 11:22 PM

I don't know if excavation has really started it looks like its still going through the approval process: http://www.portlandonline.com/bds/index.cfm?a=161808&c=42263

They were digging on the North side of the property. It could have something to do with some street utilities, or a partial excavation permit.

MarkDaMan

Jul 23, 2007, 10:31 PM

South Waterfront attracts Denver apartment builder
Portland Business Journal - 1:51 PM PDT Monday, July 23, 2007

Simpson Housing LLP will build a 270-unit apartment building on Block 46 in the South Waterfront district.

SHLP Block 46 LLC, a subsidiary of Denver-based Simpson Housing, bought the property from Williams and Dame Development, which is the lead developer for the South Waterfront district. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

The project will be coordinated by Simpson Housing's Seattle office, which plans to develop the neighborhood's second market-rate apartment building. Trammell Crow Residential is constructing a luxury apartment building adjacent the district's central park.

Simpson has retained Ankrom Moisan Associated Architects to design its project, which calls for two six-story buildings with 270 units of housing and ground-floor retail space.

"We are pleased that Simpson Housing will be leading the development of market-rate apartments on this important block in the South Waterfront," said Homer Williams, chairman and founder of Williams and Dame.

Simpson Housing focuses on the luxury market on a national scale. It has more than 1,750 units in development on the West Coast.
http://www.bizjournals.com/portland/stories/2007/07/23/daily8.html?t=printable

tworivers

Jul 23, 2007, 11:16 PM

^^^ Didn't we already know this? That article makes it sound way farther back in the process than I thought.

I heard a whisper that Trammell Crow is doing another apt tower on block 43 (next to the Alexan) and plans are well underway.

I like the idea of W&D selling off blocks in the River District. Anything to get a little more diversity down there, if not a better mix of height among the buildings.

Dougall5505

Jul 23, 2007, 11:38 PM

do you know who is designing it?

tworivers

Jul 23, 2007, 11:42 PM

I do but I'm not allowed to say. A firm with a solid reputation has inherited a pre-existing design.

Dougall5505

Jul 23, 2007, 11:56 PM

can you tell me the approximate height/# of stories? at least tell me if it looks good or not

tworivers

Jul 24, 2007, 12:00 AM

I haven't seen the design yet, but my friend and source says they're working overtime to make it "look good". I believe it is the same height as the Alexan, or close. I'll try to wrest more info next time I see him.

Dougall5505

Jul 24, 2007, 3:19 AM

sweet!

MarkDaMan

Jul 24, 2007, 3:45 PM

^^^Interesting...I figured as much though. When TC pulled out of the Oak Tower the said they were in essence hungry to build a second apartment tower, and looking into SoWa. I hope they get the second one up quicker than the Alexan took!

Developer to build apartment project
South Waterfront - Simpson Housing plans 270 units amid the condo towers as the rental market thrives
Tuesday, July 24, 2007
RYAN FRANK
The Oregonian

A Denver-based developer will build a 270-apartment project among South Waterfront's towering condos, another signal that Portland's robust rental market and sluggish condo sales are starting to reshape the city's housing mix.

Simpson Housing last week paid about $8 million to buy Block 46 from South Waterfront's lead developers, North Macadam Investors, said Homer Williams, who leads the North Macadam team.

Williams said they had explored apartments and smaller, less expensive condos at Block 46. Over the past few years, Williams' company has peppered the Willamette River bank with high-priced towers. But Block 46 is a good site for less pricey condos or apartments because it's a few blocks from the riverfront where the views are best and sales prices highest.

"We could have gone either way," Williams says. But staring at slumping condo sales and Simpson's three-year quest to build in South Waterfront, Williams said they agreed to sell the site for apartments.

Williams' company is the lead developer in South Waterfront, a new high-rise, riverfront neighborhood just south of the Ross Island Bridge. Construction began in the area after North Macadam Investors signed a $2 billion deal with the Portland Development Commission and Oregon Health & Science University.

Williams' company has finished two towers at the Meriwether and has three more under construction with the John Ross, Atwater Place and 3720.

But sales have slowed.

Williams says they sold 30 to 50 condos a month when they started. "That wasn't sustainable," he says. "A lot of it was investors, speculators."

Now, Williams says they sell three to four a month. Given the slowdown, Williams says the next riverfront condo tower likely won't start construction until late 2008. Williams says he isn't worried about the slowdown. He expects the market inventory to level out in the next six months or so. But right now, Williams says of condos: "You wouldn't want any more."

With condos cooling, apartments appear to be hot in South Waterfront and elsewhere.

A streetcar ride away from South Waterfront, Opus Northwest ditched plans for a Park Blocks condo in favor of apartments.

In South Waterfront, Trammell Crow Residential has started construction on the district's first apartment building, a tower targeted at luxury renters. Simpson's project at Block 46 will be shorter and marketed with less expensive rents. Plans call for two six-story buildings with ground-floor shops designed by Ankrom Moisan and Associates. For a comparison, Williams offered Trammell Crow's Pearl District apartments at Northwest 10th Avenue and Hoyt Street.

Simpson, founded in 1948 and a big player in the nation's apartment market, has more than 1,750 units in the works on the West Coast.

Just south of the Simpson site, Williams & Dame Development will build affordable apartments under an agreement with the Portland Development Commission. Williams said he expects construction to start on Block 46 and 49 in 2008.

In the past year, the Portland-Vancouver market saw average apartment rents climb 6.9 percent, according to research firm RealFacts. In Silicon Valley's Santa Clara County, apartment rents climbed 11 percent, and in Seattle, rents went up 9.9 percent.

Block 46 covers 62,000 square feet or about 1.5 city blocks. The sale has no effect on North Macadam Investors' commitments under its agreement with the Portland Development Commission, said Larry Brown of the PDC.

Part of South Waterfront's apartment allure comes from Pill Hill, which is a three-minute tram ride away. Williams says about 7,000 people who work on the hill rent.

Ryan Frank: 503-221-8519; ryanfrank@news.oregonian.com
http://www.oregonlive.com/business/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/business/1185245738120800.xml&coll=7

MarkDaMan

Jul 26, 2007, 3:44 PM

Early growing pains at South Waterfront
Thursday, July 26, 2007
Fred Leeson
The Oregonian

Kevin Countryman first learned about a retail space in the South Waterfront's Meriwether condo tower more than a year ago.

He likes the idea of a whole new neighborhood rising from bare ground as the home of the third Bella Espresso coffee and gourmet specialty food outlet, opening in mid-August. He and his son, Bret, have been selling coffee and a few food items from a nearby trailer since last year.

"There is a strong sense of community here, and that is very appealing to us as a company," Kevin Countryman says.

But they and others are running into some early growing pains in the budding neighborhood, with three completed high-rises and planning and construction under way on several others.

"The biggest headache we have is parking," Countryman says. "It's hard getting a grasp on where our employees or customers will park. Parking seems to have been an afterthought. That really surprised us."

Off-street lots in the neighborhood are owned by Oregon Health & Science University, and efforts to negotiate haven't succeeded. "They have all the parking," Countryman says. "We don't have any."

Susan Harntett, OHSU's new director of transportation planning, says she hasn't ruled out a parking-sharing agreement.

"We are very interested in saying yes," she says. But she notes that the high-rise neighborhood always "is going to be a constrained parking and transportation environment" given its geography.

Some residents, meanwhile, worry that Southwest Curry Street is becoming overburdened as a loading access street. And development of a park and the riverfront Willamette Greenway are lagging behind original schedules even as plans for new buildings roll in.

"It's getting harder to sit here and approve the public taking of our sun and sky without seeing the complement of that," says Michael McCulloch, a member of the Portland Design Commission, which enforces city height regulations in the urban renewal area. He thinks the Bureau of Parks & Recreation has waited too long to plan improvements for a two-acre grassy patch to be known as South Waterfront Neighborhood Park.

"It feels like there is a huge missing piece," McCulloch says. "You don't design the whole city and what's left over is the public realm."

The Parks Bureau is scheduled to launch a public planning process this fall, aimed at adding improvements to the park in 2009. The bureau relies on citizen involvement, and until recently, there were few residents in the area destined to be home to nearly 10,000.

The latest building plan nearing approval is for a 325-foot, 30-story tower intended for seniors. Mirabella, bounded by Southwest Bond Avenue and River Parkway between Curry and Pennoyer Streets, it will face the new park.

Pacific Retirement Services plans 224 units for independent living and 60 for residents needing special care. The proposed slender, curving tower offers the most interesting addition yet to the neighborhood skyline.

Jeff Los, a principal with Ankrom Moisan Associated Architects, says the building will add colors to the neighborhood, and nonreflective glass will make it more visible at night. Most new buildings use reflective glass to minimize heat gain, but Los says engineers decided clearer glass would work better with the Mirabella's configuration.

"That was quite a surprising finding," he says.

Los is also considering rooftop solar panels to help heat water. The panels would rest flat and out of sight.

"It's an extraordinary building in lots of ways," McCulloch says. "It's going to be a wonderful beacon in the neighborhood."

Portland News: 503-221-8199; portland@news.oregonian.com

http://www.oregonlive.com/portland/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/portland_news/118496670995250.xml&coll=7

Dougall5505

Jul 26, 2007, 9:17 PM

channing frye, the newest member of the portland trailblazers, is also the newest resident at the south waterfront. not sure what building
http://sportsmedia.ign.com/sports/image/article/655/655749/channing-frye-interview-20051004015802717-000-000.jpg

brandonpdx

Jul 26, 2007, 11:10 PM

^yes, he was fortunate enough to buy 2 units and combine them into 1.

Dougall5505

Jul 27, 2007, 2:18 AM

seriously!? how did you find out, and do you know which building?

zilfondel

Jul 27, 2007, 8:46 AM

seriously!? how did you find out, and do you know which building?

Actually, I think it's "how did you find out, and can I have one, two?"

:haha: :tup:

Dougall5505

Jul 27, 2007, 9:45 PM

http://mylasso.com/FileWarehouse/Users/User_1889/Images/street_car.jpg

Streetcar stop at Lowell and Bond to open with a party on August 17th

pdxman

Jul 29, 2007, 2:52 AM

From Tokyo with love
Saturday, July 28, 2007
T hat sound you hear Homer Williams making this week? Maybe it's a huge sigh of relief. The South Waterfront developer may yet be able to sell all those leftover condos.

To baby boomers.

From Tokyo.

We knew Portland was the hot pick these days as a place to retire. We weren't quite expecting the next wave of 401(k)insmen to come from Japan.

Wednesday, a crew from Fuji TV starts shooting a 90-minute special on Oregon as the ideal place for a second home, an unhumid haven for those fleeing Tokyo's notoriously muggy summers and population density of more than 14,000 people per square mile. (Portland's is closer to 4,000.)

The show is the latest triumph for travel executive Sho Dozono, Portland's de facto ambassador, whose shuttle diplomacy has taken him everywhere from New Orleans to Pyongyang. Japanese viewers, Dozono reminds us, are no strangers to Oregon's allure. The hit TV series "From Oregon With Love" first aired there in 1984. Its executive producer, Hisashi Hieda, now is CEO of Fuji.

As for Hieda's timing, it couldn't be better. The Japan-America Society of Oregon celebrates its 100th anniversary this year. And, with daily nonstop flights, Tokyoites can be here almost as quickly as folks from Beaverton can get to Bandon. Now, if we could only get Ichiro to play for the Beavers.

http://www.oregonlive.com/editorials/oregonian/index.ssf?/base/editorial/1185582606237980.xml&coll=7

mcbaby

Jul 29, 2007, 11:08 AM

fascinating.

zilfondel

Jul 29, 2007, 11:35 AM

I've noticed there has been a veritable boom in the number of japanese tourists in Portland the past year or so, compared to 3 or 4 years ago. I see several groups almost every day downtown.

pdxman

Jul 29, 2007, 5:00 PM

Portland State seems to have a decent sized japanese student population too. Now that we have a direct flight to japan the city should really push developing better ties with japan

MarkDaMan

Aug 8, 2007, 5:33 PM

Spaces in between offer connections for city life
Daily Journal of Commerce
by Alison Ryan
08/08/2007

The sliver of urban fabric between the 16-story Civic condominium tower and the six-story apartment building rising next to it connects the commerce and chaos of East Burnside Street with fanfare of PGE Park. Across the city, on South Waterfront’s Block 46, designers envision a Euro-inspired concourse between the site’s two apartment and retail buildings.

Different projects, different dynamics. But the spaces between both two-building projects have potential to be destinations in themselves, say members of the Portland Design Commission.

Block 46’s apartments are contained in two six-story buildings. To the north, a horseshoe-shaped building outlines a courtyard at the block’s center. The building to the south caps the block.

The streetcar line will wrap around the site, said Dave Heater of Ankrom Moisan Associated Architects, and the design responds to that flow of traffic. The southern building’s undulating, multi-planed metal façade was inspired, he said, by stone that has been eroded and sculpted by the movement of water.

That movement is hoped to carry into the interior courtyard and the broad path that bisects the site, connecting Southwest Bond and Moody streets.

The project’s wider contribution, said Commissioner Jeff Stuhr, is in the context of South Waterfront’s broader urban planning.

“That really intense kind of urban space where people can gather had not materialized,” he said.

What could happen there, said Commissioner Andrew Jansky, is similar to what could happen at the Civic.

On East Burnside Street, the Civic’s 286 concrete-and-glass condominium units sit side-by-side with the wood-and-concrete affordable apartment units. The courtyard bracketed by the two, planned as a space to hold public art, the activity of retail, and resident life, could see the same kind of spill-over exterior buzz that designers of Block 46 are aiming for.

Space for life in the public realm, commissioners said, is as important as space in the private realm. And diversity of development and activity for the new district should be considered along with building design.

“Once it’s done, it’s done,” Commissioner Michael Mc-Culloch said. “Then it’s just front porches and poodles.”
http://www.djcoregon.com/viewStory.cfm?recid=29905&userID=1

Dougall5505

Aug 9, 2007, 10:47 PM

I thought the streetcar wasn't going to open on lowell until aug. 17th but there it is next the the mirabella site. maybe their testing
http://i96.photobucket.com/albums/l177/dougall5505/Picture1-25.png?t=1186699588

CouvScott

Aug 10, 2007, 7:45 PM

http://www.portlandonline.com/shared/cfm/image.cfm?id=164754

sirsimon

Aug 10, 2007, 8:13 PM

Hmm, nice to see this stuff moving along. :)

Sioux612

Aug 11, 2007, 11:34 PM

What's the latest on the height limits at SoWa? Is 325' the ceiling for this community?

sirsimon

Aug 12, 2007, 3:41 PM

^ I don't believe it has been raised. I think it is still 325'.

Sioux612

Aug 12, 2007, 11:14 PM

Has block 41 been reviewed yet by the PDC?

http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e214/couvttocs/PromethiusBlock41b.jpg

bvpcvm

Aug 13, 2007, 1:22 AM

Has block 41 been reviewed yet by the PDC?

looks like it has (http://www.portlandmaps.com/detail.cfm?action=Permits&folder=2541438&propertyid=R327891&state_id=1S1E10DB%20%20300&address_id=673821&intersection_id=&dynamic_point=0&x=7645864.186&y=674041.924&place=3510%20SW%20BOND%20AVE&city=PORTLAND&neighborhood=SOUTH%20PORTLAND&seg_id=141051). back in 3-2006. interestingly, there's later activity on the same block that identifies it as block 42, and what's more, the same (or virtually the same) wording is used in notices - with the same dates - on block 43. anyway, the map i have shows block 41 went thru design review in 2006, yes.

sirsimon

Aug 15, 2007, 1:01 AM

Not a bad design - I like what appears to be curving, interleaved balconies on the top-left portion.

pdxman

Aug 15, 2007, 8:26 PM

Saw the new renderings of block 46 over on amaa.com. I must say i'm very disappointed. Low rise, especially poorly designed, does not belong in sowa. Oh well...

Dougall5505

Aug 15, 2007, 11:46 PM

heres what pdxman was talking about. I wish they had not built anything on a quarter of the block and when the market gets better build a tower there later so that whole block is not all lowrise.
http://i96.photobucket.com/albums/l177/dougall5505/Picture1-29.png?t=1187221580

http://amaa.com/_uploads/photo/project/173_lg1_Block46_01.jpg

http://amaa.com/_uploads/photo/project/173_lg2_Block46_02.jpg

http://amaa.com/_uploads/photo/project/173_lg3_Block46_03.jpg

http://amaa.com/_uploads/photo/project/173_lg4_Block46_04.jpg

MarkDaMan

Aug 15, 2007, 11:50 PM

I think that project will be fine in the South Waterfront, however, what a waste of a super block!

zilfondel

Aug 16, 2007, 12:49 AM

Hmm, apparently Ankrom has hired some actual designers now...?

Dougall5505

Aug 16, 2007, 1:42 AM

looks like they tried to incorporate as many materials as possible on one project, they have wood, metal, brick, I'm not sure if thats nesicarilly a good thing though...

WESTSEATTLEGUY

Aug 16, 2007, 1:55 AM

Cool buildings. Nice architecture too.

PDX City-State

Aug 16, 2007, 5:18 AM

Feels a little sterile. I don't like it at all.

bvpcvm

Aug 16, 2007, 6:03 AM

yeah, it looks a little like something from kruse way.

nwroots

Aug 16, 2007, 6:22 AM

[QUOTE=Dougall5505;3012361] I wish they had not built anything on a quarter of the block and when the market gets better build a tower there later so that whole block is not all lowrise.
http://i96.photobucket.com/albums/l177/dougall5505/Picture1-29.png?t=1187221580

You took the words right out of my mouth! All this lowrise crap taking up a whole block. The developers SHOULD wait awhile on at least part of it to build a tower. There are only so many blocks to develop in SOWA. Use the 325' limit to develop that block to it's potential. SOWA is billed as a "high rise" neighborhood. City planners and developers should keep that in mind and not rush to build. It's all about the $ though....

Sioux612

Aug 16, 2007, 6:33 AM

Ouch. That is one ugly building. It looks like a cheap office building.

sopdx

Aug 16, 2007, 4:31 PM

It looks like a medical building, all it needs is a heliport on top.

cab

Aug 16, 2007, 4:51 PM

MarkDaMan

Aug 16, 2007, 8:01 PM

^this project isn't the affordable housing block. That's block 49. From my understanding these wont be priced at the same level as the Alexan, but will be comparable to the rents at 10th and Hoyt, which is not cheap. I looked at a second floor, one bedroom place overlooking the Post Office parking lot in back, and all their noisy trucks 24 hours a day. It went for just over a grand a month. For a terrible location, I was appalled.

BrG

Aug 16, 2007, 10:46 PM

This looks like a similar mistake made when they built the stadium apartments next to the MAX stop in Goose Hollow. It has that same "cheap" lowrise look. I guess this is the only way to get low rent joint built in SWF.

It is a "cheap" lowrise. Same as 10th at Hoyt.

There's only so much you can do with an unsubsidized, stick frame and punched window apartment building, on a very expensive plot of land....all on very tight budget.

Particularly with the design commision all but designing it for you these days.

I don't think an aerial view rendering does much justice to any low rise.

PDX City-State

Aug 16, 2007, 10:56 PM

It looks sterile...

westsider

Aug 17, 2007, 6:20 AM

[QUOTE=Dougall5505;3012361]
http://i96.photobucket.com/albums/l177/dougall5505/Picture1-29.png?t=1187221580

Its a little odd how the rendering shows all the neighboring blocks as empty park land.... And yeah, if you are going to build a six story apartment building in SOWA, thats perfectly fine, but please build it on one of the blocks next to Macadam or something, not on one zoned for up to 325'.

pdxtraveler

Aug 17, 2007, 4:16 PM

I don't think it is that that bad. I just miss the original condo design for this block. The 20 story and the 2 six story buildings. I thought that design was GREAT! If I hadn't seen that, I would probably be much more okay with this.

zilfondel

Aug 17, 2007, 10:15 PM

I think the material selection is fine, particularly considering the nature of the design.

I think the low-rise nature of the development is going to be used to farm out the extra FAR to enable towers in the surrounding blocks. It looks maybe 3-4 FAR, and there are still pretty low FAR limits in SoWa, even if the height limits are 325'. We won't get ANY towers if they don't transfer those FAR rights.

Anyways, I'm not going to complain if the shortest building in SoWa is 6 stories. Half the blocks in downtown are shorter than this...

rsbear

Aug 17, 2007, 10:33 PM

^ Agreed, and it would look odd for every building to be about the same height in SoWa. I'll bet most will disagree, but I'll bet once the district is built out people will appreciate the open air space this low-rise building affords.

Sioux612

Aug 19, 2007, 12:30 AM

^ I don't believe it has been raised. I think it is still 325'.

If I remember correctly the first height limits for SoWa was 225' but was eventually raised 100'. Is this even in the realm of possibility?

http://i201.photobucket.com/albums/aa254/pdxprojects/qBlock46.jpg

I know this is just a rendering but that building looks to be pushing 400'+

*edit* I just realized this was the first rendering for block 46. And now this has turned into the cheap looking medical building. What a big let down.

NJD

Aug 19, 2007, 1:34 AM

^ if you follow the renderings perspective lines from the other two 325' towers to the "400' " tower you will notice it is in perfect alignment to be only 325'. This is a common illusion in renderings today.

CouvScott

Aug 22, 2007, 2:09 PM

Applicant: Tim Dacey, ANKROM MOISON ASSOCIATED ARCHITECTS
Site address: Block 45
The applicant seeks Design Advice for an apartment building on Block 45A in South Waterfront.

bvpcvm

Aug 22, 2007, 2:37 PM

this is new... how do they get to the design commission without us ever seeing the pre-app documents?? i know you check them all the time and i check them once a week or so. damn! oh well.

CouvScott

Aug 22, 2007, 5:36 PM

this is new... how do they get to the design commission without us ever seeing the pre-app documents?? i know you check them all the time and i check them once a week or so. damn! oh well.

I don't understand the correlation either. :shrug: It might be that the pre-application process is optional for those developers that want to test the waters of city and neighborhood approval.

MarkDaMan

Aug 23, 2007, 3:11 AM

New retailers add life to S. Waterfront
Portland Business Journal - August 17, 2007
by Wendy Culverwell
Business Journal staff writer

Tina Chong was a virtual pioneer when she staked out a 1,400-square-foot claim in the South Waterfront and opened a small grocery.

Now, she's getting company. As of today, four businesses are up and running in the Meriwether condominiums, the first building to open in the 130-acre neighborhood. The Meriwether includes more than 270 residential units and about 7,000 square feet of street-level retail space, all leased.

The joint opening of a Japanese-French fusion restaurant, a cleaner and an espresso shop is an important development in the evolution of the South Waterfront from industrial land to high-rise urban neighborhood.

This fall, retailers such as Umpqua Bank, Pizza a Fetta and Pampered Pooch will open at the John Ross condominiums, which has about 20,000 square feet of retail space.

To date, the neighborhood has about 35,000 square feet of retail space, in the Meriwether, the John Ross and Atwater Place. Leasing hasn't started for several other projects in the offing, including the 3720 condominiums and Trammel Crow's Lexan apartment building.

When complete, the South Waterfront is expected to have between 100,000 and 200,000 square feet devoted to retail space.

Chong didn't need to be sold on the South Waterfront as the location for her business, called Urbana Market.

A Beaverton resident, she sold her former grocery in Old Town/Chinatown and was on the lookout for a spot to site an upscale store. She drove by the construction zone south of the Ross Island Bridge and immediately called Ashley Heichelbech, the Urban Works Real Estate broker working on leasing retail space at South Waterfront. She signed a five-year lease with a five-year renewal option and opened for business in May.

* Bella Espresso, a small Oregon chain with locations in Cannon Beach and Tanasbourne, took a 2,100-square-foot corner space at the Meriwether. Owners Julie and Kevin Countryman said the community-oriented focus of South Waterfront suits their business model.

The Countrymans and partner James Faurentino self-funded the new store on their own, as did most of their neighbors. Though they don't disclose finances, the partners were confident enough in the future of South Waterfront to sign a 15-year lease.

* At 900 square feet Bee Tailors and Cleaners is the smallest addition to the neighborhood. It's the third location for the Portland chain, owned by Jay Bleich.

Bleich leased space more than a year ago, before construction of the Meriwether wrapped up.

"It just looked like it was going to be a high-growth area," said Bleich, who self-funded the new location.

Bleich said he encountered only one skeptic when he considered expanding. His attorney suggested negotiating an escape clause in his lease if the numbers didn't pan out.

Bleich declined and signed to a 10-year agreement.

The South Waterfront has a daytime population of 1,200 to 1,600 people, including about 700 residents in the Meriwether condominiums and the neighboring John Ross condominiums, and 1,000 employees and visitors to the Oregon Health & Science University waterfront building.

Tenants will start moving into Atwater Place's 10,000 square feet of retail space next spring.

* Of all the people opening locations at South Waterfront, perhaps none is more busy than Sung Kim, of Le Hana Restaurant Group.

The Korean-born restaurateur opens Le Hana, a fine dining restaurant that fuses French cuisine and sushi, at South Waterfront today.

The first time he visited South Waterfront, the district was a massive construction zone and the future of the Portland Aerial Tram was very much in doubt. Undaunted, he visited the sales center and was convinced he needed to be in business there.

Kim is also considering opening a sushi restaurant and a tea business.

"I will be investing down here. I like the neighborhood a lot," he said.

wculverwell@bizjournals.com | 503-219-3411
http://portland.bizjournals.com/portland/stories/2007/08/20/story4.html?t=printable

bvpcvm

Aug 24, 2007, 7:54 AM

info and elevations: http://www.portlandonline.com/shared/cfm/image.cfm?id=166010

Drew-Ski

Aug 31, 2007, 12:18 AM

Is there any news floating around as to what the Zidell family is planning to do with their waterfront properties???

Sioux612

Aug 31, 2007, 12:45 AM

I'm also wondering if well see anymore 325' towers at SoWa after the Mirabella.

pdxman

Aug 31, 2007, 1:28 AM

Hopefully prometheus will come thru with some good stuff--when it comes to height

WestCoast

Sep 18, 2007, 5:45 AM

thank the lord, JR, Atwater and now with the glass on 3280 (?) it's all the SAME. it's awful! Some mixing it up might actually make those three buildings, being so similar, nice and dense, but right now....ugh (and I'm a HUGE fan of the idea of SoWa)

zilfondel

Oct 13, 2007, 6:02 AM

is there anymore news on this baby? I think it'll be another one of those iconic, district-defining projects. Especially in conjunction with the new light-rail bridge and aerial tram.

just wondering.

CouvScott

Oct 15, 2007, 9:14 PM

The crane looks like it was raised to full height last weekend.

Dougall5505

Oct 15, 2007, 10:16 PM

you are correct couv, and dang that is high, wish there were some towers that high down there
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2093/1581786610_a9fb19582c_o.png

65MAX

Oct 15, 2007, 10:34 PM

Looks like the Mirabella site is fenced off and ready to go :)

CouvScott

Oct 15, 2007, 10:40 PM

then which block is this? 41, 44 or 45?... (from the design commission agenda)

Date of Hearing: November 15, 2007 at 1:30 PM
1. LU 07-101940 DZM, GW Kristen Minor, 503-823-7972
Applicant: Mack Selberg, ANKROM MOISAN ASSOCIATED ARCHITECTS
Site address: SO WATERFRONT AT ABERNATHY AND RIVER PKWY
24-story building with ground-level retail and 23 stories of residential condominium units. Townhouse residential
units in lower podium. Parking on two below-grade levels.

Later in the same agenda is...

LU 07-151312 DA Abigail Fowle. 503-823-0624
(Rescheduled from Oct 18, 2007 to Nov 15, 2007, POSTPONED UNTIL FURTHER NOTICE)
Applicant: Tim Dacey, ANKROM MOISON ASSOCIATED ARCHITECTS
Site address: Block 45A, SOUTH WATERFRONT
The applicant seeks Design Advice for an apartment building on Block 45A in South Waterfront.

could be the same thing, but not sure why they would list and review it as a seperate line item in the same meeting.

Anyone have some insight? My guess is that the first one is a block 41 review.

Dougall5505

Oct 15, 2007, 11:20 PM

hasn't it been like that for a while? though i hope its starting up soon

PacificNW

Oct 15, 2007, 11:34 PM

⤴ If you look @ the Mirabella site on the So. Waterfront cam site you can see there is a difference between the July-September Pics and the present live October view....did I make sense....or did I confuse everyone..including myself? Too me, it looks like site preparation is underway..

Dougall5505

Oct 15, 2007, 11:55 PM

I understand what you mean but it looks like there is still a construction trailer on the site, and until that is moved I wouldn't call it site prep

bvpcvm

Oct 16, 2007, 12:46 AM

Sioux612

Oct 16, 2007, 1:15 AM

http://i201.photobucket.com/albums/aa254/pdxprojects/blockplns.png

Just for reference

MarkDaMan

Oct 24, 2007, 6:33 PM

Thanks a million! Tram passes passenger milestone
OHSU - Despite its controversial birth, the Portland icon is more popular than anticipated
Thursday, October 18, 2007
ANDY DWORKIN
The Oregonian

Portlanders disagree about many parts of the new aerial tram.

Some reviewers see "a sculpture," "postcard-pretty" and "a Portland icon." Others "a vanity project," "a full-blown public relations nightmare" and "a $45 million fiasco."

But Wednesday morning, at least one feature of the tram passed argument: It's popular. Especially if you work or study at Oregon Health & Science University.

Just after 8 a.m., 67-year-old Portland resident Coelleda O'Neil took what university officials reckoned to be the millionth ride on the tram (counting a one-way trip as one ride). Like most tram riders, O'Neil is an OHSU employee. She has worked there for 25 years and does computer work in the family medicine department.

O'Neil also represented a small minority of riders: OHSU patients. She was honored on the way down from Marquam Hill to visit a doctor at OHSU's year-old Center for Health and Healing, said Mike Brooks, the school's transportation operations manager.

The tram, which spans the 3,300 feet from OHSU's Marquam Hill main campus to its South Waterfront expansion, logged its millionth ride earlier than expected, Brooks said. That continues generally positive reviews that the tram has won since its public opening in January, underscored by a large number of locals and tourists riding just for the experience.

"I had a couple that literally came from New Jersey to ride and to drive down the gorge," Brooks said.

The operating success contrasts markedly with the project's planning and execution, fiercely opposed by many neighbors, whose roofs and bedroom windows are now eye candy for tram riders.

Construction ran 10 months over schedule and more than $40 million over the initial $15.5 million estimate. In the end, the project cost about $57 million: $38.2 million from OHSU, $8.5 million from Portland, $4.5 million from South Waterfront property owners, $3.8 million from South Waterfront developers and $2 million in state tax credits.

Now it's the ridership that's well above projections: 37 percent higher than expected on weekdays, even more on weekends, when the curious public has been riding, said Sam Adams, who oversaw some of the project's planning and operations as city commissioner in charge of transportation. (Portland owns the tram, but OHSU operates it through a subcontractor.)

"We're bringing in more fare revenue than we anticipated and ridership is higher than we anticipated, so this is a good start," Adams said.

The tram costs about $100,000 a month to operate, Brooks said. Just how much revenue it's bringing in wasn't clear Wednesday; the city employee with those figures was involved in the TopOff terror drill and unavailable for comment.

It's hard to know exactly how many people have actually ridden the tram, Brooks said, because many free riders need no tickets, especially OHSU employees and students. That group yields the bulk of rides. Some OHSU workers make 12 or 14 trips a day delivering mail and supplies, Brooks said.

Only a couple of percent of the riders are patients, partly because OHSU discourages hospital inpatients from using the tram, Brooks said. If the car had to stop midway, there's no guarantee inpatients could get to medical help in time, he said.

Tram workers have been counting riders, even without tickets. So they knew a million was close. When they were sure they'd hit a million, Brooks rode to the top stop and waited to pick a winner from the crowd of downhill passengers.

O'Neil "was the only person who showed up," Brooks said. "So we said, 'Wow. That makes it easy.' "

They gave her a free messenger bag packed with gifts, including chocolates, clothing and a certificate to the spa in OHSU's Center for Health and Healing - a happy surprise.

"Thankfully she was not a cardiac patient," Brooks said. "That was one of our jokes."

Andy Dworkin: 503-221-8564; andydworkin@news.oregonian.com

http://www.oregonlive.com/news/orego...820.xml&coll=7