South Waterfront News [Archive] - Page 14

Eco_jt

Aug 6, 2010, 5:28 PM

http://www.kgw.com/news/local/Immigration-agency-may-build-SW-waterfront-facility-100089344.html

They have a video at the link too.

by Randy Neves, KGW Staff

kgw.com

Posted on August 6, 2010 at 7:06 AM

PORTLAND, Ore. -- Immigration officials have revealed a plan to create holding cells in Portland's slowly up-and-coming South Waterfront neighborhood.

It's part of a nationwide plan to consolidate U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE.

Officials said they want to expand upon an existing commercial building in the South Waterfront District at SW Macadam Ave. and SW Bancroft St. The proposed building would house all the employees who currently work at two federal buildings in the city, including the old federal facility at 511 SW Broadway Ave. in the Pearl District.

Those facilities currently have holding cells for people suspected of violating customs and immigration rules. Those holding cells would transfer to the new South Waterfront location under this new plan.

"No one will be kept in these locations for more than 12 hours," said ICE spokesperson Lorie Dankers. "In no way is this a jail or a detention facility, rather it's a place where we can hold people for processing for a short period of time."

Before the three-story expansion would move forward, it must pass a public design review process. The federal government would have to prove that it was a good fit for the mixed-use neighborhood before it could gain permission to build.

The next public hearing for this plan happens September 23rd, 1:30 p. at 1900 SW 4th ave. on the 2nd floor.

philopdx

Aug 6, 2010, 10:20 PM

I can't decide what development excites me the most, a jail in SOWA or tearing down Satyricon to put in another homeless shelter in Old Town. Awesomeness all around.

vjoe

Aug 10, 2010, 4:13 PM

hello protesters. :)

davehogan

Aug 14, 2010, 10:46 PM

Why would they be lifting Moody at that location? I understand that they're doing on the approach to the new TriMet bridge, but I'm pretty sure they're not doing anything much south of that...

They have to raise it north of SoWa. My guess is the person they quoted misread the project description. North of Gibbs I think is where they'll start lifting, up to near Sheridan Street.

I don't remember the whole thing, but something about environmental remediation and getting the area out of the flood plain before any development happens in addition to the future MAX/streetcar bridge.

The existing rail described as behind this building hasn't been listed as getting lifted in any of the Lake Oswego planning docs I've read.

cronked

Aug 17, 2010, 10:57 PM

Did anyone go to the meeting last night regarding the new ICE (Homeland Security) building? I forgot about the meeting so I missed it. I am a little concerned that the SW Charter School is going in next door.

RED_PDXer

Aug 18, 2010, 1:43 AM

They have to raise it north of SoWa. My guess is the person they quoted misread the project description. North of Gibbs I think is where they'll start lifting, up to near Sheridan Street.

I don't remember the whole thing, but something about environmental remediation and getting the area out of the flood plain before any development happens in addition to the future MAX/streetcar bridge.

The existing rail described as behind this building hasn't been listed as getting lifted in any of the Lake Oswego planning docs I've read.

The article is correct. SW moody is proposed to be extended south of Bancroft and is proposed to be raised by PBOT as part of the "south portal" project, which is supposed to improve auto access to the South Waterfront from the south. SW Moody would be raised 12-17' higher than the current trolley tracks in order to meet SW Macadam with just a 5% grade (versus whatever it is now).. The City had a conceptual engineering study on this project completed a few years ago, and just got money from Metro to continue the engineering work on it.

It's not a glamorous project for the city because it's all about the auto access, but the transportation staff seem to think it's pretty important to the continued success of the district. It includes double turn lanes at Bancroft and SW Hamilton Ct (I think).. might wanna double check with the City..

maccoinnich

Aug 18, 2010, 8:02 PM

Now I'm even more confused. So the article is correct that they're raising (and extending) Moody... but incorrect in that it has anything to do with the streetcar? And does it meet Bancroft at its current elevation? And if so, wouldn't that mean it had a negligible impact on this building?

Artist

Sep 3, 2010, 6:54 PM

August 31 update on Mirabella's website:
http://www.mirabellaretirement.org/portland/construction.htm

Nice photos of Dolce Vita Bistro patio and the Terrace Garden.

Residents have begun moving in!

Tykendo

Sep 4, 2010, 4:55 PM

It looks fantastic. You know, i grew up in Portland, know that area well as i use to make deleiveries in that area, and i must say, the whole area is looking awesome. If i lived in Portland, that would be a great spot to live. I know the old areas are always popular for there history and ambience, but the newness of SW Waterfront is really appealing. That Park is lovely, and the architecture is really happening. I hope once things get going again, the buildout is completed. I know retail and service will thrive once again, and this area will become one of the most desirable in the country.

bvpcvm

Sep 10, 2010, 4:56 AM

http://blog.oregonlive.com/business_impact/print.html?entry=/2010/09/ohsu_moves_forward_with_160_mi.html

OHSU moves forward with $160 million science complex on South Waterfront

Published: Thursday, September 09, 2010, 6:32 PM Updated: Thursday, September 09, 2010, 6:48 PM

http://media.oregonlive.com//avatars/userpic-5255-100x100.png Ted Sickinger, The Oregonian

http://media.oregonlive.com/business_impact/photo/the-portland-street-car-leaving-south-waterfrontjpg-9d3f6622e241678b_large.jpg
The street car passes through Portland's South Waterfront

The Board of directors at Oregon Health & Science University voted Thursday to move forward with design and construction of a $160 million, 263,000-square-foot "life sciences collaborative complex" in Portland's South Waterfront.

The complex, sitting on land just south of the Marquam Bridge donated by the Schnitzer family, would allow OHSU to expand its medical, dentistry, nursing and physician assistant schools. It also will make room for the OSU pharmacy, UO psychology and PSU biology and chemistry programs.

OHSU will contibute $70 million to the construction budget, including $40 million in cash raised from an anonymous donor and $30 million in debt service on state issued revenue bonds. The university system will kick in another $30 million in debt service on the revenue bonds, and the State of Oregon will pay off $50 million in bonds from the general fund. TriMet will put up $10 million to build a transit station near the center.

The universities are seeking a private partner to help build out business incubator space in the complex. Construction is slated to begin in December 2011, with proposed completion in summer 2014. OHSU programs would occupy about half the building. OHSU officials say incremental tuition from additional students and recovery of reserch overhead would offset operating costs.

The OHSU board approval follows a similar vote in July by leaders of the Oregon University System.

-- Ted Sickinger

© 2010 OregonLive.com. All rights reserved.

tworivers

Sep 11, 2010, 2:50 AM

Huge news. Too bad construction doesn't start for so long.

bvpcvm

Sep 13, 2010, 4:55 AM

much more info, including a map, here (http://www.ous.edu/about/legnote09/files/Sec7d2.pdf).

erinkg

Sep 17, 2010, 1:06 AM

Does anyone know if the Dolce Vita Bistro is open to the public? For some reason I had this idea that it was for residents only, but now there are signs up on the windows, so I wasn't sure.

Erin

65MAX

Sep 17, 2010, 3:21 AM

The restaurants on the 26th floor are for residents and their guests only. The bistro on the ground floor is open to the public.

Artist

Oct 2, 2010, 8:48 PM

The Bistro is not yet open to the public, as this is currently the only dining venue for Mirabella residents. Expect the Bistro the welcome the public in late October/early November when Mirabella's main dining room is complete.

I've heard only raves about the food that comes from the kitchen of these chefs and sous chefs. The reduced sauces are full of flavor, meat is tender, salmon is devine, fruit is fresh and very sweet. I hope you will enjoy is as much as I do!

dkealoha

Oct 4, 2010, 6:44 PM

Goodbye South Waterfront! We are moving to a little craftsman bungalow in Irvington (NE Portland). It's been fun to be part of this brand new neighborhood, but after 2 years surrounded by construction and waiting for the elevator on the 19th floor so we can take our dog out, I'm really excited to be in a house with a back yard! I'll miss our beautiful corner apartment with panoramic views, but I've lived in apartments on all sides of downtown for almost 5 years and it's time for a change. I still work in the Pearl and look forward to posting about developments there and infill projects in NE.

Here's a short blog post I did with shots from our apartment: http://dundeegeneralstore.com/2010/09/20/from-a-high-rise-to-a-home/

and here is our cute little bungalow!
http://dundeegeneralstore.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/irvington1.jpg

erinkg

Oct 5, 2010, 3:25 AM

Thanks for the info! So is this a sit down restaurant or a cafeteria style place? We can't tell by looking through the windows.

Artist

Oct 5, 2010, 9:00 PM

It's sit-down dining, not fast-food or cafeteria. I think you will be able to call your order ahead for take out, but you would need to verify that after the Bistro opens.

The potato chips are made in-house! Sandwiches and panninis are a full meal.

Artist

Oct 5, 2010, 9:11 PM

DKEAloha, that is a sweetheart of a bungalow. Love the exterior details.

Thank you for your posts to Mirabella and South Waterfront pages. You helped acquaint me to SW before I got to Oregon (here, now, and enjoying it.)

Artist

Oct 11, 2010, 2:18 AM

Monday, October 11, Dolce Vita Bistro opens to the public for breakfast and lunch! Enjoy!

erinkg

Oct 14, 2010, 3:41 AM

Cool! Thanks for the heads up!

urbanlife

Oct 20, 2010, 2:29 AM

Shilo Rune 96

Oct 20, 2010, 3:39 PM

I rode down to the SoWa this afternoon and took a ride on the tram, I have to say I am a huge fan of this tower, the materials that were used for it look really amazing.

Granted the SoWa is still a tiny area of glass tower condos and lacking a great deal of what makes Portland great...I imagine with time it will eventually get its own character. But I will say the tram is a lot of fun to ride and if you have your bike with you, that hill is even more fun to ride down going back into downtown.

Hehe - I ride the tram every work day. I used to think the same thing, now it's just another part of my commute (my commute from the Pearl, wow that's so far!). I wouldn't mind living in the South Waterfront someday, for now the Pearl District is my home. Back to the tram, they've been talking about getting bigger cabins, during specific times of day they are actually making people wait because of capacity problems. This is just word of mouth operators... so I don't find it credible yet.

urbanlife

Oct 21, 2010, 7:46 AM

Hehe - I ride the tram every work day. I used to think the same thing, now it's just another part of my commute (my commute from the Pearl, wow that's so far!). I wouldn't mind living in the South Waterfront someday, for now the Pearl District is my home. Back to the tram, they've been talking about getting bigger cabins, during specific times of day they are actually making people wait because of capacity problems. This is just word of mouth operators... so I don't find it credible yet.

I was actually surprised with how much the tram was being used. Each car I saw during my time down there was packed full. Which makes me happy to know that it is being used heavily and is kind of cool to have something unique like that in the city even if it did go way over budget.

Shilo Rune 96

Oct 28, 2010, 2:27 AM

http://media.oregonlive.com/business_impact/photo/gs51sowa128jpg-a7721aea44f235f2.jpg

Ruling on Zidell site could clear way for more riverfront cleanup

The Oregon Supreme Court ruled earlier this month that Lloyd's of London and other insurance companies may be liable to cover the cost of the environmental cleanup of Willamette riverfront land owned by Zidell Marine Corp., a Portland barge-building operation.

The ruling could prove important for other owners of industrial land further north in the Portland Harbor. There, dozens of parties face a massive cleanup of their own that could top $1 billion.

"This is a significant decision for Zidell and other policyholders," said Bruce Campbell, an attorney with the Miller Nash firm in Portland that represented Zidell before the Supreme Court. "It will help make insurance money available to clean up contaminated properties."

Zidell's ZRZ Realty had sued its insurance carriers in 1997 after they denied coverage of the estimated $20 million cleanup of its land and contaminated river-bottom in the South Waterfront neighborhood. Zidell Marine scrapped ships at the site for years, generating a stew of toxins that contaminated the soil and river sediments.

Like many insurance coverage disputes, Zidell's beef with Lloyds and its other carriers was complex, forcing the court to carefully parse the language of decades-old insurance policies. One of the bones of contention was the scope of "marine" insurance policies that stated the carriers would indemnify Zidell for activity in a port that resulted in "damage to any... other fixed or moveable thing whatsoever."

The issue boiled down to whether the language applied to only to ships, docks, pilings and other manmade structures in a busy port or whether the coverage extended beyond that to the riverbank and river's bottom.

The Supreme Court sided with Zidell -- reversing an earlier Appeals Court ruling -- agreeing that the marine policy coverage was broad, including the river sediment.

"This is good news for us and all of the players in the marine industry," said Len Bergstein, spokesman for Zidell. "It pretty clearly states that the insurance covers toxins in the sediment."

Tom Sondag, a Portland lawyer who represented the insurance carriers, said the case is far from over. The Supreme Court punted on some issues, remanding them back to the Appeals Court, some of which could be key to determining the ultimate financial responsibility.

Zidell hopes to move its cleanup of its South Waterfront property into high gear next summer. Current plans call for the company to cap the contaminated river sediment rather than remove it with a dredge.

Zidell Marine still builds barges at its South Waterfront site, now overshadowed by the glitzy condo towers built in the area in the last decade. It is one of the last vestiges of the heavy industry that once dominated the area.

The Portland Harbor cleanup is several years behind Zidell's South Waterfront effort. The so-called Lower Willamette Group, made up of property owners in the area, is scheduled to deliver a draft cleanup feasibility study next June, said Judy Smith, of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.

It could be 2014 before the cleanup gets underway in earnest.

--Jeff Manning
Oregonlive.com

tworivers

Dec 13, 2010, 8:36 PM

Promising news.

South Waterfront housing project faces council
POSTED: Friday, December 10, 2010 at 03:25 PM PT
BY: Nathalie Weinstein

A long-stalled, nearly $50 million affordable housing project planned for Portland’s South Waterfront could begin construction this spring, according to Portland Housing Bureau director Margaret Van Vliet.

Portland City Council next week will consider approval of a disposition and development agreement for Block 49, where an Ankrom Moisan Associated Architects-designed, mixed-use project is slated to be built. Once that agreement is approved by the council, the project team will be able to finish assembling private financing for the project, Van Vliet said. REACH Community Development will develop the project and relocate its offices and 50 employees to the building’s ground floor.

“We’re not at ground breaking yet, but this is an important step,” Van Vliet said. “We are moving as quickly as we can to start construction in April.”

The building will be 6 stories tall. Out of 209 housing units there, 42 will be leased to homeless veterans. The remaining units will be available to people making between 0 and 50 percent of the median family income.

RoseCtyRoks

Dec 16, 2010, 8:21 PM

Portland approves $80 million for affordable housing, road project in South Waterfront

http://www.oregonlive.com/portland/index.ssf/2010/12/portland_city_council_approves_6.html

Published: Wednesday, December 15, 2010, 8:50 PM Updated: Thursday, December 16, 2010, 11:02 AM
Ryan Frank, The Oregonian

The Portland City Council on Wednesday endorsed two major projects in South Waterfront, boosting the total taxpayer investment to at least $175 million for one of Portland's most ambitious economic development projects.

A $51 million overhaul of Moody Avenue will improve streetcar, light-rail and bike routes into the district of glassy condo towers and health clinics. A 209-unit apartment building -- with $30 million in public money -- would be South Waterfront's first affordable-housing project.

The two projects bring the city's total financial stake in South Waterfront to at least $175 million from local, state or federal sources.

The Moody Avenue project is expected to start in January and finish by February 2012. The council's vote approved a contract with construction company Stacy and Witbeck Inc., based in Alameda, Calif.

Portland Mayor Sam Adams made a strong push to attract federal stimulus money for the project. The work covers just six-tenths of a mile but is expensive because it requires a completely rebuilt street under a tight federal deadline. Workers will dig out the existing street and raise it by as much as 17 feet, install new water and sewer lines, add one traffic lane, re-install streetcar tracks and make room for the Portland-to-Milwaukie MAX line.

Adams said the expanded transportation network will also help the Oregon University System's plans for a $170 million science complex along Moody Avenue.

Critics have questioned the city's investments in the high-rise neighborhood that continues to grow despite struggles from the real estate bust. But Adams and others say they're relying on South Waterfront to absorb residential and business expansion and reduce suburban sprawl over the next decade or more. This fresh round of work will also provide work for a construction industry battered by the recession, Adams said.

"This is a significant step forward on a project of citywide significance," Adams said at the meeting.

The council also approved a contract with Reach Community Development to build the apartment project at Moody Avenue and Bancroft Street. Reach still has to find millions of dollars in private funding before a scheduled groundbreaking this spring.

Affordable-housing advocates have criticized the city for its slow progress. South Waterfront's first affordable apartments were supposed to be under construction in October 2005.

Of the 209 apartments, 42 will be for veterans; all the apartments will be restricted to people making less than 50 percent of the region's median income, or about $25,000 a year for a single person.

Commissioner Randy Leonard credited Commissioner Nick Fish with solving "fatal flaws" in the original proposals and said the project would be a symbol for the way the city takes care of veterans.

Early next year, the city expects to start work on another South Waterfront project: a $12.6 million pedestrian bridge over Interstate 5 that will run under the tram cables.

pdxtraveler

Dec 17, 2010, 5:56 PM

OHSU Building article:
http://www.bizjournals.com/portland/news/2010/12/16/life-science-complex-plans-nearly-done.html

MarkDaMan

Dec 21, 2010, 7:41 PM

John Ross condos sell out
Portland Business Journal - by Wendy , Culverwell
Date: Monday, December 20, 2010, 4:08pm PST

Unit 1316 is sold.

It took more than three years, but the South Waterfront's John Ross condominiums has at long last sold its final unit. Unit 1316, a studio with 636 square feet, sweeping views of the Willamette River and an asking price of $179,000, sold this week, according to the brokers selling units in the glitzy tower.

Realty Trust said in November that Unit 1316 was the only unit left and predicted it would be gone within a few weeks. Principals Todd Prendergast and Patrick Clark announced the final sale Monday afternoon.

The John Ross, 3601 S.W. River Parkway, was the South Waterfront's second residential project. The 31-story building offered 303 condominiums. Gerding Edlen Development Co. and Williams & Dame Development opened the $130 million project in March 2007. After a strong start, sales stalled as demand for condominiums evaporated.

An auction organized by the lender resulted in 47 sales in April, leaving 28 units unsold.

Read more: John Ross condos sell out | Portland Business Journal

http://www.bizjournals.com/portland/news/2010/12/20/john-ross-condos-sell-out.html

2oh1

Dec 21, 2010, 10:02 PM

My, how quickly three years pass... and yet, that seems like so long ago.

13th floor, 636 sq/ft, river views... for $179,000. Anybody know how high the original asking price for that unit was?

JordanL

Dec 21, 2010, 11:18 PM

My, how quickly three years pass... and yet, that seems like so long ago.

13th floor, 636 sq/ft, river views... for $179,000. Anybody know how high the original asking price for that unit was?

No way it was under $300k

Sioux612

Dec 22, 2010, 5:09 AM

Not a real proposal but I like the creativeness in this idea:

http://s3images.coroflot.com/user_files/individual_files/original_111177__N7z7jJwuc3nRzJ5RgOcjIG1r.jpg

tworivers

Dec 23, 2010, 2:26 AM

Where is that from? I Like the building on the lower right.

Tykendo

Dec 24, 2010, 8:58 PM

Man! That's nice. I like both buildings. The building on the right seems to have two-story units. The taller structure has a changing facade. Very nice.

tworivers

Jan 7, 2011, 5:59 PM

Groundbreaking event next week for Gibbs Street Pedestrian (and bike) Bridge

Posted by Jonathan Maus (Publisher/Editor) on January 6th, 2011
Bikeportland.org (http://bikeportland.org/2011/01/06/groundbreaking-event-next-week-for-gibbs-street-pedestrian-and-bike-bridge-45573)

Construction of the Gibbs Street Pedestrian Bridge is set to being this month and Portland Mayor Sam Adams will host a ground-breaking event this Tuesday.

Once complete, the Gibbs Bridge will extend 700 feet over I-5, connecting the Lair Hill Neighborhood to the South Waterfront District near the Aerial Tram. The bridge will be for bicycling and walking only and according to the project website, the project also comes with some, "improvements to some pedestrian crossings in the area."

Check out a video below showing how the bridge will look...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qnmDoRrmOLM&feature=player_embedded

At the event on Tuesday, Mayor Adams will be joined by Oregon Health & Science University President Joe Robertson, M.D., and representatives from the Portland Development Commission and the South Portland Neighborhood Association. The event starts at 12 noon on January 11th and will be held on the fifth floor balcony (overlooking the construction site) of the OHSU Center for Health & Healing (3303 SW Bond Ave).

The bridge has an estimated cost of $13.6 million, of which $2 million will come from PBOT and new gas tax and vehicle registration fee revenue generated by HB 2001.

Check out GibbsBridge.org for more information.

philopdx

Jan 9, 2011, 8:20 AM

This is GREAT news. Even though I liked the original design much better, this will add a whole other dimension to that area. Now, when I take company down, we can ride the tram, walk the riverfront, walk through the SW neighborhood OR walk up the stairs and across the bridge for some great city views.

Of course not to mention the new freedom it gives residents of Lair Hill and SW.

crow

Jan 10, 2011, 12:49 AM

at least the previous design gave something to the freeway elevation...this is nice for the peds crossing the bridge, but for the thousands of autos passing under it as they enter the city...well it seems ho-hum.

RainDog

Jan 10, 2011, 3:43 AM

Glad they're building this. I got stuck in that neighborhood trying to find my way to the SWF when I was walking the city on a visit before I moved here.

RainDog

Jan 10, 2011, 4:40 AM

....I just assumed there would be a pedestrian crossing of some sort.

RoseCtyRoks

Jan 13, 2011, 12:27 AM

Work begins on footbridge to South Waterfront
POSTED: Wednesday, January 12, 2011 at 08:51 AM PT
BY: Sue Vorenberg

http://djcoregon.com/news/2011/01/12/footbridge-over-i-5-to-connect-south-waterfront/

The $13 million Gibbs Street Pedestrian Bridge will span 700 feet over Interstate 5 directly below the Oregon Health and Science University aerial tram.

Underground utility work has started on a new bridge over Interstate 5 that will provide South Portland’s Lair Hill neighborhood with improved pedestrian and bicycle access to the developing South Waterfront District.

The $13 million Gibbs Street Pedestrian Bridge will span about 700 feet and run from the intersection of Southwest Gibbs St. and Kelly Ave. on the east side to the intersection of Southwest Gibbs St. and Moody Ave. on the west - directly below the Oregon Heath and Science University aerial tram.

“This is a project that came out of the tram,” explained Jean Senechal Biggs, a project manager with the Portland Bureau of Transportation. “It’s a commitment to the Lair Hill community that the city of Portland made when the tram was put in.”

About $10 million of the funding comes from the Federal Highway Administration, with most of the rest of the funding coming from System Development Charge fees on new development. It should take a year to construct, with the planned opening in January 2012, she added.

“Scaffolding should go up later this month on both the east and west sides, and in February and March we’ll start drilling the foundation shafts,” Senechal Biggs said.

CH2M Hill designed the steel box girder bridge, and Wildish Standard Paving is the prime contractor on the job. Wildish bid $6.8 million for its part of the job.

Most of the above-ground work will start in spring, when crews from Wildish will begin adding columns and decking, Senechal Biggs said.

The bridge will be flat - despite sloping terrain underneath it - and will be about 60 feet off the ground at its high point on the South Waterfront.

CH2M Hill designed an access area on that side with a long, winding stairway and an elevator that is big enough to hold bicycles with kids’ trailers attached, Senechal Biggs said.

“The elevator tower will be like its own building - with a glass enclosure,” she said.

The bridge will dovetail with other work on the South Waterfront, including the grading of Moody Avenue to align it with a new transit, pedestrian and bike bridge that will be part of the Portland to Milwaukie light rail, said Chris Armes, project manager for the Moody Project with PBOT.

It will also help residents access OHSU’s planned Schnitzer Campus, which the university plans to build on a 26 acre parcel it owns in the South Waterfront District.

“The vision for that area and the South Waterfront is that the north end will mostly be the Schnitzer Campus, with classrooms and educational research,” Armes said. “The central district will be housing, the new Elizabeth Caruthers Park and residential neighborhoods, and the south district I think is still sort of yet to be determined.”

Another goal for the area and the bridge is to eventually connect the Lair Hill neighborhood to the Willamette Greenway Trail as it extends along the river, said Jody Yates, the city’s design project manager for the bridge.

“We’re requiring developers in that area to provide some sort of access to the Greenway, and some already have,” Yates said.

There’s a small part of the Greenway at the South Waterfront that isn’t yet connected to the rest of the Greenway - although eventually the plan is to have the trail span both sides of the river with access across the Willamette at the new light rail transit bridge and also on the Sellwood Bridge as that project gets going, she said.

“We want people to be able to go all along the river,” Yates said.

erinkg

Jan 18, 2011, 4:42 AM

Does anyone have an update on Dolce Vita Bistro at the Mirabella? There is nothing posted on the door with hours, no menus, no website, etc. It doesn't even have an ABN registered with the secretary of state. You would think that if it was open to the public, they would want us to know!

Artist

Jan 18, 2011, 5:18 PM

The Bistro is open 7 days a week from 7am-2pm. I'll suggest a menu and hours be posted at the entrance.

erinkg

Jan 19, 2011, 1:07 AM

The Bistro is open 7 days a week from 7am-2pm. I'll suggest a menu and hours be posted at the entrance.

Great, thanks! Do you know when it will be open for dinner? I think you previously mentioned that it wouldn't happen until the other restaurant opens?

Also, which doors are the official entrance?

Erin

tworivers

Jan 28, 2011, 2:25 AM

Ever so slowly but surely...

South Waterfront Greenway ready to start
POSTED: Thursday, January 27, 2011 at 04:07 PM PT
BY: Nathalie Weinstein/DJC

In 2004, developers proposed constructing a stretch of greenway along the Willamette River in Portland’s South Waterfront District.

Seven years later, following difficult remediation of one of the city’s more polluted riverbanks, the project is approaching the construction phase. Portland Parks and Recreation plans to select a construction manager/general contractor for the South Waterfront Greenway by May so that building permits and design reviews can be completed in time for in-water work next year.

But hidden beneath the riverbank could be surprises leading to more delays.

“The riverbank is all industrial fill,” said Andrew Holder, landscape designer with Walker Macy. “Engineers have found whole dump trucks down there with the concrete still in them. Once they start digging, I am counting on some challenges to come up.”

The first phase of the project includes construction of a five-block-long mix of lawn, park and plaza areas along the Willamette River between Southwest Gibbs Street and Lane Street. Below the green space, which will have separate paths for bikes and pedestrians, a 25,000-square-foot gravel beach will provide improved fish habitat. The plan calls for eventually creating 100-foot-wide parks along the river for 1.2 miles between the Marquam Bridge and an existing trail at Johns Landing.

After landscape architecture firm Walker Macy took on the project in 2007, federal authorities in July 2009 refused to permit the riverbank design because of insufficient fish habitat improvements. A redesign with the new gravel beach concept resulted in a design cost 147 percent greater than the original $855,186. The project’s total cost, which includes a 10 percent contingency for unexpected construction issues, is now $8.1 million; construction is $4.8 million.

With the design solidified and approved by federal officials, Eileen Argentina, service manager for Portland Parks and Recreation, wants to be sure construction doesn’t cause more delays and cost overruns. Laws allow contractors only four months per year - July 1 through Oct. 31 - to work in the river, leaving little room for errors. Early coordination between contractors, engineers and the designers is crucial, Argentina said, especially because more industrial waste could be discovered in the riverbank.

“This is our first attempt to restore high ecological function to a severely contaminated riverbank,” Argentina said. “Bringing on a CM/GC will set us up for this final year of permitting and planning. If we aren’t able to complete the project next summer, it would be very expensive to mobilize again the next year.”

Project partner TriMet is providing $1 million for the habitat improvements, which will give it environmental mitigation credits needed to proceed with the Portland-to-Milwaukie light-rail project, Argentina said. She plans to ask City Council to forgo its low-bid process for the project and instead issue a request for proposals. A selection committee would then select a CM/GC based on a thorough evaluation of those proposals.

“The city has had good experience with RFP contracts,” Argentina said. “This is a highly specialized project with a tight construction window, so we want a contractor to be part of the team to identify issues early on.”

Once contractors start digging into the bank, Holder said, all of the excavated material must be sorted, cleaned and reused during construction. Anything contaminated must be capped.

To convert the steep riverbank into a more natural slope leading down to the gravel beach, Walker Macy designed a series of retaining walls made from large, concrete utility vaults that will work like planters. Riparian plant species will be planted along the bank below the bike and pedestrian paths.

Portland Parks and Recreation expects to issue its RFP in May. Ideally, construction would begin in July 2012.

“There are always things that can go wrong,” Argentina said. “The world wouldn’t fall apart, but we are very dedicated to hitting that target.”

Artist

Jan 28, 2011, 10:10 PM

I have no clue when they will decide to open the Bistro to evening dining. I'm sure it will happen eventually. The public can use both entrances: There is one off the front patio where the tables and umbrellas are, and another via the doors at the building's main entrance--a hard left after the main entrance brings you to the hostess's podium.

MarkDaMan

Feb 9, 2011, 8:43 PM

Plans for OHSU and Portland State’s $180 million life sciences building have been trimmed after developers Homer Williams and Dike Dame told the universities they couldn’t come up with the $10 million in equity required by the bidding process Williams and Dame won last October. PSU Vice President Lindsay Desrochers says the universities will soon request new bids for the South Waterfront project. The loss of developer equity means the planned eight-story building will lose one floor and probably open in early 2014 instead of fall 2013. “We’re OK with that,” Desrochers says. Williams couldn’t be reached for comment.
http://www.wweek.com/portland/article-16921-murmurs_2_9_11.html

huh?

tworivers

Feb 9, 2011, 10:17 PM

^^^ Yeah, that makes no sense. Do we have any journalists in this town?

So, Williams and Dame don't have the 10 mil in equity so the building loses a floor... but they're also no longer developing the project and the U's have to open it up again for bids -- but the building still loses that floor?... maybe they can take away another floor when the next delay comes along... and then another, and another... that would be so very Portland.

bvpcvm

Feb 10, 2011, 1:53 AM

MarkDaMan

Feb 14, 2011, 5:26 PM

http://djcoregon.com/files/2011/02/0214_schinitzer_campus_ohsu_life_sciences_colab_rendering_pdc_01.jpg
Oregon Health & Science University and Portland State University are collaborating to construct a new life sciences building in Portland's South Waterfront District. Most of the space in the seven-story structure will be used for educational and research purposes. (Rendering courtesy of PDC)

Developers pull out of South Waterfront project
POSTED: Friday, February 11, 2011 at 02:47 PM PT
BY: Nick Bjork
Daily Journal of Commerce

The Portland development duo of Homer Williams and Dike Dame are walking away from a project to construct a $160 million university science building in the South Waterfront District.

Williams and Dame, along with Seattle developer Tom Erlandson, last October were selected via a competitive request-for-proposals process to serve as lead developers for the project for Oregon Health & Science University and Portland State University. Officials from both universities confirmed last week that the entire development team has moved on.

According to Lindsay Desrochers, vice president of finance and administration at PSU, the team was selected not only because of its extensive qualifications, but also because of a $10 million equity investment it offered in its project proposal. When it became apparent that the investment wouldn’t be made, negotiations ceased, she said.

The joint project will nevertheless move forward, but with one fewer floor than planned previously. The plan now is for a seven-story building with approximately 235,000 square feet.

The building - planned for a site owned by OHSU slightly north of the proposed light-rail bridge and slightly south of the Ross Island Bridge on-ramp - will be a unique collaboration between the two public universities, and will serve several other state colleges. About half of the building will be used as educational space by medical, life sciences, engineering and pharmacy students. The building also will have ground-floor retail space and a couple of floors of research space for staff and students.

The 25,000 square feet being eliminated would have been private laboratory space for businesses that either branch out from the colleges or work closely with them.

“We would like to have the private research space because there’s a demand for bioscience and wet lab space in Portland,” Desrochers said. “But they couldn’t secure the investment, which means it just probably isn’t the right time.”

The universities now plan to hire an architect for design work and a construction manager/general contractor to oversee construction.

Bid requests for the two projects are expected to go out soon, and Desrochers hopes to have both positions filled before April. Construction is slated to begin in late summer and finish in January 2014.

Funding for the $160 million project is set. About $110 million will come from state bonds - $60 million from Article XI-F bonds and $50 million from Article XI-G bonds. A private donation will provide $40 million, and TriMet will supply $10 million to align the project with a new MAX light-rail line.

“We are disappointed the private incubator space will be left out, but OHSU is just beginning to build the campus in the South Waterfront and once this building is complete (it) will build another one,” she said. “There will be plenty of opportunities to add the space.”

Williams declined to comment on the situation.

http://djcoregon.com/files/2011/02/0214_schinitzer_campus_ohsu_life_sciences_colab_rendering_pdc_02.jpg
When Homer Williams and Dike Dame were selected in October to be lead developers pf a project to construct a multistory building in the South Waterfront District, they committed to a contribution of $10 million in equity. Last week, the developers pulled out of the project. (Rendering courtesy of PDC)

http://djcoregon.com/news/2011/02/11/developers-pull-out-of-south-waterfron-project/

urbanlife

Feb 14, 2011, 9:11 PM

2oh1

Feb 15, 2011, 12:45 AM

It makes me wonder why the city spent so much on the tram...

A follow up on that thought: I wonder what the real costs of the tram are. It's often packed and yet I've never once had to wait in line at the two ticket machines. OK, many people have monthly or even annual passes. But still... we all know the costs of building the tram skyrocketed... so what about the cost of operating and maintaining the tram?

MarkDaMan

Feb 15, 2011, 1:21 AM

I would say that at $57M ($8.5M from the city) the tram, which covers 3300 feet and climbs another 500 feet in elevation with two architecturally impressive stations, one on a mountainside connected to bedrock, is still a good deal. The original process and budgeted numbers were ridiculous and laughable and set back the development of other aerial trams in our city for probably decades...which is sad because the point to point rapid service could be useful in so many other areas.

And before we go too far, the South Waterfront only came into existence in 2007. Considering our national financial sector blew up and our housing market crashed, I'm surprised they are pulling off a new MAX line through the district, an architecturally significant bridge across the Willamette and an $160M+ new building to start construction later this year, not to mention the rising of Caruthers and the new permanent streetcar tracks, and the new scaled back pedestrian bridge and the first section of the new waterfront park. Oh, and we should ignore the 9 significant buildings, a streetcar loop, and a new city park that have already been completed?

Damn this failure! *shakes fist*

NJD

Feb 15, 2011, 2:33 AM

Funny how no one remembers that OHSU had to foot all the cost overruns, not the city... Oh wait, that's because Fox/Bojack/Dozono/Oregonian/Tribune wanted to blame the liberal city for something! Right, right right...

crow

Feb 15, 2011, 2:40 AM

This campus rendering is starting to just piss me off now, I would like to see that campus built, not look at pretty renderings of it. I remember when OHSU got that land, they made it sound like they were expanding like crazy and was going to need this to expand. It makes me wonder why the city spent so much on the tram if OHSU isn't following through with their end other than using the South Waterfront for extra parking.

ha - pay close attention to that rendering of the master plan - get real - the buildings are 60 feet wide, and even that close together. This should have never been massed up - it is misleading, and does not show a lot of value in the effort OHSU paid for.

urbanlife

Feb 15, 2011, 4:34 AM

From what I have heard, basically asking someone who worked running the tram that people who work at OHSU get to ride it for free...though this doesn't take into account if that cost is being paid for in other ways, which I am not arguing with.

Obviously no one against the tram wants to talk about the technicalities and who is actually paid for the overcosts, which it should be OHSU because the tram is for them.

When this campus was first proposed, I was under the impression that it was in the works and we were going to be seeing new buildings for this going up by now or in near years with the construction of light rail, but now I am wondering if that will actually happen any time soon. As for financial issues, I have not heard of any financial issues with OSHU, and figured their campus was actively expanding regardless of the economy.

Just ranting cause masterplan work tends to annoy me when there is no movement towards making it a reality, just a pet peeve of mine I guess.

MarkDaMan

Feb 15, 2011, 6:49 AM

OHSU also is paying 85 percent of the annual operating costs for the first five years of operations on the assumption that most riders will be OHSU employees and patients and VA Hospital patients. During that five-year period the city's share of annual operating costs will be capped at approximately $240,000 and all public fare revenues up to that total will go to the city to cover its share. If annual fare revenue exceeds the city's share of annual operating costs, it will be shared 85 percent- 15 percent between OSHU and the city. After five years, the operating costs - which currently are projected to run about $1.7 million a year - will be apportioned between OHSU and the city based on the actual rather than the currently estimated split between OHSU and public riders.

http://www.portlandtram.org/news_item/Tram_Now_Open.htm

pdxtraveler

Feb 15, 2011, 7:42 AM

Shilo Rune 96

Feb 15, 2011, 9:41 AM

I always was under the impression that the OHSU expansion to the South Waterfront area was a LONG term situation. A build as needed situation as they had run out of room up on the hill. I never was under the impression that this was a build out right of way situation.

They are out of room. Parking is the number 1 issue, if they build more parking garages on the hill they will need to expand or improve the roads going up the hill. Getting off the hill at 4:30 PM is quite congested.

Also, they are now charging $11 a day for employees to park, while at the same time encouraging biking incentives and deep Trimet / C-Tran discounts. In fact, after biking to work 30 trips I get $50 added to my paycheck. We log are biking hours online with an honesty system and it calculates how many miles logged, calories burned, fuel savings, C02 saved, total trips logged, etc.. It's pretty cool. But they are almost trying to force us NOT to drive cars. (I don't drive.)

Personally, the only problem I see with the Schnitzer campus is its proximity to the tram. Nobody's going to wait for the streetcar to get five blocks. Nor will anyone enjoy walking those odd five blocks in the rain.

urbanlife

Feb 15, 2011, 10:53 AM

They are out of room. Parking is the number 1 issue, if they build more parking garages on the hill they will need to expand or improve the roads going up the hill. Getting off the hill at 4:30 PM is quite congested.

Unless you take a bike down that hill, which in that case is extremely fun. I did that for the first time last fall. It was one hell of a rush going down a hill like that on a bike. I do remember thinking to myself, "where do I want to fall, if I start to fall." But what is also fun is when you hit the bottom of the hill where the traffic really backs up and the bike lane starts, then you just fly past all the cars sitting in traffic, another favorite pasttime of mine when biking.

MarkDaMan

Feb 16, 2011, 7:20 AM

Nobody's going to wait for the streetcar to get five blocks. Nor will anyone enjoy walking those odd five blocks in the rain.

In a city like Chicago, New York, Boston or LA, a five block walk transporting you between one major campus to another, would be a blessing instead of a discouragement.

I can't wait until we realize the utility of what we've created.

RED_PDXer

Feb 20, 2011, 10:50 PM

In a city like Chicago, New York, Boston or LA, a five block walk transporting you between one major campus to another, would be a blessing instead of a discouragement.

When I went to college, I had to walk about a half mile to get from my parking spot to my classes and longer if I went for the free street parking, which I often did. 5 blocks is nothing, especially for a student.

As for the length of time it's taking for OHSU to develop the campus, I believe there was a court ruling regarding state tort law that opened the university up to significant litigation liabilities. They are now paying a fortune for liability insurance, which probably has something to do with their expansion plans.

MarkDaMan

Feb 23, 2011, 12:27 AM

Bioscience groups blast center decision
Portland Business Journal - by Andy Giegerich, Business Journal staff writer
Date: Tuesday, February 22, 2011, 2:50pm PST

Oregon’s bioscience advocates are upset that the splashy life sciences center planned for Portland’s South Waterfront won’t contain business development space.

The $160 million life sciences building, a collaboration between the Oregon University System, Portland State University and Oregon Health and Science University, will forego the incubator option after developers Homer Williams and Dyke Dames withdrew from the project. Their decision means the university partners have some $10 million less to pour into the project.

As a result, the building will now contain seven stories, instead of the planned eight. It will also be developed without a space that, with the help of a proposed Oregon Bioscience Accelerator Fund, would have supported university and private bioscience commercialization efforts.

The fund was going to seek between $20 million and $25 million from private investors and public funds such as the Oregon Growth Account.

Lindsay Desrochers, PSU’s vice president for finance and administration, said while the incubator isn’t a part of the current structure plan, it could reemerge in another South Waterfront building down the road.

“We would have liked to have had that element and it still might be possible,” she said. “But at this particular time, the investors couldn’t quite make it work. This very significant building is still going up, and it will be a building in which OHSU and others can grow.”

A request for proposal was sent Feb. 11 to architectural and engineering services firms. Construction on the facility is set to begin in late 2011 and finish by mid-2014.

Patricia Beckmann, executive director of the Oregon Translational Research and Drug Development Institute, said the state had agreed to bond the project based on the inclusion of a business incubator.

“Without the lab facilities to develop new companies, the growth of the bioscience sector is at risk,” she said.

Beckmann’s group and the Oregon Bioscience Association had won a $1.6 million federal grant last year to develop the incubator idea.

Beckmann helped establish a Seattle “accelerator” that attracted $25 million in investments from many top Northwest venture capital firms. Of the 10 companies started at the Seattle incubator in 2003, eight still exist.

@andygiegerich | agiegerich@bizjournals.com | 503-219-3419

http://www.bizjournals.com/portland/news/2011/02/22/bioscience-groups-blast-center-decision.html?ed=2011-02-22&s=article_du&ana=e_du_pub

MarkDaMan

Feb 24, 2011, 12:33 AM

South Waterfront Condos Benefit From Public Spending
Posted on 02/22/11 5:10 PM
Latest Round Of Public Investment Proves That South Waterfront Is “Too Big Too Fail”

As construction for Portland’s South Waterfront began back in 2005, the district was heralded as the next Pearl District. Then came the credit crunch and buyers largely disappeared. Home values at high end condominium projects such as The Atwater or The Meriwether Condos plummeted and it was almost unanimously concluded that the district would end up as a ghost town. A closer look at the present conditions, however, shows that the “ghost town hypothesis” is actually the most unlikely of all scenarios. Granted, the South Waterfront indeed has a ways to go in terms of becoming a truly vibrant neighborhood on par with the Pearl District or NW 23rd, but it remains one of the few downtown areas that has continued to attract both private and public funding. In an age where funding has dried up for pretty much everything, the South Waterfront District has been on the receiving end, benefiting from new infrastructure projects (park, walkways, streetcar etc.) in every year since the recession begun.

Doesn’t sound like the makings of a ghost town to me, more like “too big to fail”. An there’s more in the pipeline: construction has begun on the Gibbs Street Pedestrian Bridge, there are plans to improve the freeway on and off ramps, and now this:

New Life Sciences Building Planned For South Waterfront District

Oregon Health & Science University and Portland State University are moving ahead with the construction of a new life sciences building in Portland’s South Waterfront District. According to the PDC, funding for the $160 million project is in place; about $110 million will come from state bonds, with the balance coming from a private donation ($40 million) and TriMet ($10 million) to align the project with a new MAX light-rail line.

The plan calls for approximately 235,000 square feet. Most of the space in the seven-story structure will be used for educational and research purposes. The building will occupy a site owned by OHSU slightly north of the proposed light-rail bridge and slightly south of the Ross Island Bridge on-ramp. About half of the building will be used as educational space by medical, life sciences, engineering and pharmacy students. The building also will have ground-floor retail space and a couple of floors of research space for staff and students.

Demand For South Waterfront Condos Is Quietly Picking Up

Gradually an increasing number of residential property buyers with a long-term outlook are beginning to capitalize on the real estate economics at work in the district i.e. ongoing improvements and public spending are raising the value of the land, and creating a set of amenities and infrastructure that attracts private business – in turn generating demand for office and retail space…and ultimately housing.

Already the pace of sales at The Atwater Condos has noticeably picked up. The building is now more than 70% occupied, up more than 35% from a year ago. Neighboring John Ross Condos sold out late last year. Over the past six months these two buildings have consistently been among the top five producers in terms of sales volume per month. Several of these buyers are likely applying the lessons they learned from “too big to fail” episodes in other industries; when it comes to buying with a margin of safety you can’t beat a deal backed by Uncle Sam (Adams*).

*Sam Adams: Mayor of Portland, 2008- current

http://agent503.com/2011/02/22/south-waterfront-condos/

MarkDaMan

Feb 24, 2011, 7:28 PM

S. Waterfront neighbors win cell battle
Portland Business Journal - by Andy Giegerich, Business Journal staff writer
Date: Thursday, February 24, 2011, 7:29am PST

Portland city commissioners have agreed to give South Waterfront neighbors more say into the redevelopment of an office building set to be occupied by the Homeland Security Administration.

The council decided that if the agency’s addition to an existing building at 4310 S.W. Macadam Ave. contains holding cells, the structure could be considered a detention facility. As a result, it requires a conditional use review.

The review is expected to give more weight to concerns expressed by South Waterfront residents who’d protested the prospect that their neighborhood would host a building with holding cells.

The Portland City Council voted 5-0 to approve requiring a conditional use for the 65,000-square-foot structure. The Homeland Security site is currently zoned for office developments.

“The commission’s decision gives neighbors more input into what happens there,” said Jim Davis, land use chairman for the South Portland Neighborhood Association, which led the protests. “This is the best outcome we could have hoped for.”

@andygiegerich | agiegerich@bizjournals.com | 503-219-3419

http://www.bizjournals.com/portland/morning_call/2011/02/s-waterfront-neighbors-win-cell-battle.html?s=newsletter&ed=2011-02-24&ana=e_ptl_rdup

Sioux612

Mar 1, 2011, 11:38 PM

http://s3images.coroflot.com/user_files/individual_files/111177_iTyc3U6yvLJ3gI5JW64UrlJH6.jpg

Hmm, what exactly is this rendering of?

-edit-

It looks like what could have been the Vestas SoWa HQ.

downtownpdx

Mar 2, 2011, 1:04 AM

Sigh ... what coulda been ^^ Looks like Vestas signs on the buildings. While this would have been nice in its original plan because of the jobs, I think I actually prefer what's going on now with the restoration of the Meier&Frank warehouse in the Pearl. They aren't creating as many jobs as they had planned several years ago (recession), but I'm more excited to see the downtown area get the action than Sowa for some reason. I'd like see small businesses etc around DT benefit from the high-paying jobs concentrated here, rather than the more-isolated SOWA where people don't really go. (But those HQ buildings do look niiiice.....)

crow

Mar 6, 2011, 8:34 PM

http://s3images.coroflot.com/user_files/individual_files/111177_iTyc3U6yvLJ3gI5JW64UrlJH6.jpg

Hmm, what exactly is this rendering of?

-edit-

It looks like what could have been the Vestas SoWa HQ.

Those were some quick studies by GBD for the Vestas RFP sometime ago.

Shilo Rune 96

Mar 15, 2011, 6:33 AM

OHSU and south waterfront shown in this recent CBS news video:

http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=7358893n&tag=contentMain;contentBody

65MAX

Mar 15, 2011, 2:11 PM

^^^^
About 4:10 into the video.

crow

Mar 15, 2011, 4:34 PM

^^^^
About 4:10 into the video.

That is actually pretty fascinating to discuss beyond housing, lifestyle, and hospitals, but technology and longevity.

MarkDaMan

Mar 16, 2011, 2:29 AM

Groundbreaking set for Southwest Moody Avenue project
Published: Tuesday, March 15, 2011, 3:31 PM Updated: Tuesday, March 15, 2011, 3:37 PM
James Mayer, The Oregonian

U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood will join Mayor Sam Adams next Tuesday for a groundbreaking ceremony for the Southwest Moody Avenue project in South Waterfront.

The project will rebuild Southwest Moody Avenue between Southwest River Parkway and Southwest Gibbs Street to support redevelopment of adjacent brown fields, and facilitate the completion of light rail and streetcar expansions to the east side.

Also on hand to thank LaHood for $23 million in federal stimulus money for the project will be U.S. Reps. Earl Blumenauer, David Wu and Kurt Schrader.

The event is scheduled for 10 a.m. on Moody Avenue approximately halfway between the Marquam and Ross Island bridges.

--James Mayer

http://www.oregonlive.com/portland/index.ssf/2011/03/groundbreaking_set_for_southwe.html

pdxtraveler

Apr 6, 2011, 8:48 PM

So hopefully I am not guilibly falling for another April Fools joke! ;)

http://www.portlandonline.com/bds/index.cfm?c=47126&a=344522

A new 18 floor tower!

VONzipper

Apr 6, 2011, 9:37 PM

Well, for my introductory post, I shall give you the design team that was selected for the project.

SERA and CO Architecture JV

bvpcvm

Apr 7, 2011, 12:05 AM

wow, great news! for reference, this is just south of the alexan, right between it and the matisse. nice to see some variety in height.

bvpcvm

Apr 7, 2011, 12:27 AM

on second thought... this thing will have garage doors facing bond and moody. retail will face the cross-streets. not thrilled with that.

MarkDaMan

Apr 7, 2011, 4:30 AM

duh, read slower Mark.

MarkDaMan

Apr 7, 2011, 4:37 AM

Garage doors need to be reduced to two, but despite design, any new construction is welcomed to get suffering people back to work.

pdxtraveler

Apr 7, 2011, 1:21 PM

Garage doors need to be reduced to two, but despite design, any new construction is welcomed to get suffering people back to work.

Oh, I just read more closely. The reason for the extra doors is that the north side is residential. The south half of the block is a self storage area. That is why there are so many driveways. I didn't notice that yesterday.

65MAX

Apr 7, 2011, 5:31 PM

Also looking more closely.... the rendering "from Moody" is mislabeled. It's actually the view from Bond. The tower is on the north half of the block, on the pedestrian way.

cronked

Apr 12, 2011, 5:38 PM

Yea, it looks like they should swap Abernathy with Moody. There is no need for the fitness room to be on Moody. A retail space would be much more valuable there. It doesn't look like they can move the ramps to a side street without a major redesign. Hopefully they address these issues during the approval process.

On another note, South Waterfront is getting a Subway, as in Subway sandwiches! Also rumored is a pastry (bakery?) shop and a clothing retailer. With all the buildings at 95%+ occupancy (except for Atwater Place which is at 70% last I heard), I think more retailers would do well down here. I know Soho (formerly Le Hana) is busy almost every night now. It is going to be a busy summer down here!

MarkDaMan

Apr 20, 2011, 3:31 PM

OHSU expands life science building
Portland Business Journal
Date: Tuesday, April 19, 2011, 5:28pm PDT

Oregon Health & Science University has approved adding more research space for a new “life sciences” building slated for Portland’s South Waterfront.

The building, a collaboration between OHSU and the Oregon University System, will now feature a “vibration-free” research space for OHSU’s new Center for Spatial Systems Biomedicine, as well as infrastructure for a second, future wing. OHSU will foot the extra $30 million for the 400,000-square-foot project.

The strategy will boost the cost of the project to $190 million.

OHSU’s board approved the expenditure at a Tuesday afternoon meeting.

The additional 20,000-square-feet of research space will go toward the center directed by Joe Gray, a renowned cancer and genomic researcher recruited to OHSU from Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. Gray is known as a top breast cancer researcher and plays a key role in the university’s Cancer Genome Atlas Project.

The Center for Spatial Systems Biomedicine will assemble several scientific disciplines to study how cancer cells grow. The efforts will include OHSU in the fields of cancer, neuroscience, infectious disease and cardiology. Portland State University investigators will provide insight in the fields of physics, nanotechnology and quantitative analysis.

OHSU’s board further approved a platform that could eventually allow a second addition “when adequate funding has been found,” according to a university release. While the addition is still in the planning phases, it could include space to relocate OHSU’s School of Dentistry’s clinical facilities as well as laboratory space, as the school’s research base grows over the next five to seven years.

The life sciences building will serve as a centerpiece of OHSU’s Schnitzer Campus. The project was made possible by an anonymous $40 million donation OHSU received to expand medical education.

The building’s original $160 million cost is being financed by the $40 million anonymous donation, $10 million from TriMet and $110 million in state of Oregon bonds.

Including the $30 million it will apply toward the bonds, OHSU’s total for the project is $100 million.

OHSU and the Oregon University System will co-own the life sciences building.

“As excited as we are about the life sciences building, it’s really only the beginning for the Schnitzer Campus,” said Dr. Joe Robertson, OHSU’s president, in a statement. “Despite the recession, the continued growth of our research and education missions has made it imperative to continue to plan for ongoing growth to meet the needs of Oregonians. However, as has always been true for the Schnitzer Campus, we will not build until we identify necessary funding.”

http://www.bizjournals.com/portland/news/2011/04/19/ohsu-expands-life-science-building.html

MarkDaMan

Apr 20, 2011, 3:36 PM

The Oregonian's take, adding some additional detail.

OHSU OKs expanding on South Waterfront project
Published: Tuesday, April 19, 2011, 9:39 PM Updated: Tuesday, April 19, 2011, 10:22 PM
Ted Sickinger, The Oregonian By Ted Sickinger,

The Oregon University System hasn't turned the dirt or even issued the bonds to pay for the $160 million collaborative life sciences building that it plans for Portland's South Waterfront.

But the tenant in chief, Oregon Health & Science University, is already looking to expand the structure and build a parking garage that would serve as the foundation for a second research and clinical tower.

At its regular meeting today, the OHSU board tentatively approved spending an additional $20 million to add 20,000 square feet of research space to the life sciences building, a collaborative effort among OHSU, Portland State University, the University of Oregon and Oregon State University. The additional lab space would be funded solely by OHSU and would house the Center for Spatial Systems Biomedicine.

The Center for Spatial Systems Biomedicine is directed by Joe Gray, a cancer and genomic researcher recently recruited to OHSU from Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory. Gray co-leads a team that is researching the use of computer models to predict how targeted therapies will work in attacking cancer cells. His lab requires vibration-free research space, making the basement of the life sciences building ideal, the university said.

The lab would displace parking in the original building, however. Parking has long been a critical concern at OHSU in general and on the South Waterfront in particular.

OHSU's board also approved spending an additional $10 million for parking and the foundation of a second building on the Willamette Riverfront.

The university says that building would meet its future needs for research space and would house clinical and administrative space for the dental school, depending on OHSU's success in raising $30 million in gifts. OHSU planners say adding the parking and platform for the building now will save money in the long run.

"As excited as we are about the life sciences building, it's really only the beginning for the Schnitzer Campus," OHSU President Joe Robertson said in a news release. "Despite the recession, the continued growth of our research and education missions has made it imperative to continue to plan for ongoing growth."

University officials stress that they won't start project until they identify the necessary funding. Interim Provost David Robinson said today that the university had adequate debt capacity to issue an additional $30 million in bonds to fund the expansion of the first building and the infrastructure for the second, in part because OHSU's credit rating recently was upgraded.

Plans call for starting construction on the life sciences building late this year or early next year, pending the issuance of $110 million in bonds by the state of Oregon next month. OHSU will service $30 million of those bonds and provide an additional $40 million in cash that it received from an anonymous donor.

The balance of the original $160 million project will be provided by TriMet, which will operate a light-rail line that will cross the river from the South Waterfront.

The board's approval is conditioned upon an agreement with the Oregon University System concerning OHSU's ownership and occupancy of the expanded project space. It is also contingent on a more detailed financial plan.

"We would like to move forward with this," Robinson said. "We have the capacity to fund another $30 million in debt. ... We will go back to the board with a more detailed funding proposal for how we will put this together."

-- Ted Sickinger

http://www.oregonlive.com/business/index.ssf/2011/04/ohsu_oks_expanding_on_south_wa.html

Shilo Rune 96

Apr 21, 2011, 6:14 PM

Here's a few shots from the OHSU CHH 16th floor, showing what is possibly preparation of the new transit bridge & Moody project. The photos don't show this, but the temporary streetcar track is nearly completed. They just need to connect the tracks to the current ones spanning the rest of the routes.

http://img845.imageshack.us/img845/5138/img0129j.jpg (http://img845.imageshack.us/i/img0129j.jpg/)

http://img828.imageshack.us/img828/9509/img0130al.jpg (http://img828.imageshack.us/i/img0130al.jpg/)

http://img585.imageshack.us/img585/9113/img0131tw.jpg (http://img585.imageshack.us/i/img0131tw.jpg/)

http://img215.imageshack.us/img215/5751/img0132js.jpg (http://img215.imageshack.us/i/img0132js.jpg/)

http://img232.imageshack.us/img232/918/img0134ye.jpg (http://img232.imageshack.us/i/img0134ye.jpg/)

PacificNW

Apr 21, 2011, 7:52 PM

It will be good once this project actually starts construction..

bvpcvm

Apr 22, 2011, 3:24 AM

the construction is probably the moody street project, isn't it?

Shilo Rune 96

Apr 22, 2011, 3:36 AM

the construction is probably the moody street project, isn't it?

I don't know but that large trailer next to the OHSU parking lot is new. The Moody people already have trailers near Riverplace and the tram. That trailer could be for the bridge people? I'm just speculating... :D And they've been hauling gravel in for that pad for months now.

zilfondel

Apr 23, 2011, 3:31 AM

This is the new Moody St. project.

http://swmoodyproject.com/

Apparently they are going to build a temporary streetcar track, then the new street, and rip out the temp one.

http://swmoodyproject.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/04/Moody_overall.pdf

Plans are here: http://swmoodyproject.com/concept-plans/

VONzipper

Apr 25, 2011, 5:52 PM

It will be good once this project actually starts construction..

Speaking of construction, JE Dunn was selected as the CM/GC

MarkDaMan

Apr 25, 2011, 9:43 PM

http://media.oregonlive.com/portland_impact/photo/9516334-large.jpg

Portland will break ground on affordable housing project in South Waterfront
Published: Monday, April 25, 2011, 2:26 PM Updated: Monday, April 25, 2011, 2:36 PM
Brad Schmidt, The Oregonian

Groundbreaking for the first affordable housing project in Portland’s high-rise South Waterfront district begins Tuesday, with completion targeted for November 2012 -- nearly six years behind schedule.

The $50.5 million project will feature 209 apartments, 42 of them for veterans. Public investments will cover nearly $29 million of the project cost, an upfront contribution that will subsidize expenses for renters.

“This is the project that no one thought we could pull off,” said city Commissioner Nick Fish, who oversees the Portland Housing Bureau.

Affordable housing had been promised as part of the transformation within the North Macadam urban renewal district, where riverfront industrial land gave way to 30-story condominium towers. Under the development deal, the first affordable apartment building was supposed to be built by December 2006.

But the city’s urban renewal agency didn’t purchase land for the affordable housing complex, known as Block 49, until that year. The ensuing housing collapse then froze lending and halted would-be investors.

Having already invested $5 million in the property and almost $2 million in design, the city moved forward last year with a revamped plan. The units will be managed by Reach Community Development, which will also purchase 12,000 square feet for headquarters in the ground floor of the six-story building.

Federal subsidies largely will cover rent for the 42 units open to veterans who earn less than $15,000 a year. The remaining apartments will fetch rents of about $575 for one-bedroom units. To qualify for those, single tenants must earn less than $25,000 a year.

-- Brad Schmidt

http://www.oregonlive.com/portland/index.ssf/2011/04/portland_will_break_ground_on_1.html

65MAX

Apr 26, 2011, 12:42 AM

Just FYI... Block 49 is the block immediately south of the Streetcar turnaround (Lowell) and the Matisse

http://media.oregonlive.com/portland_impact/photo/9516334-large.jpg

Portland will break ground on affordable housing project in South Waterfront
Published: Monday, April 25, 2011, 2:26 PM Updated: Monday, April 25, 2011, 2:36 PM
Brad Schmidt, The Oregonian

Groundbreaking for the first affordable housing project in Portland’s high-rise South Waterfront district begins Tuesday, with completion targeted for November 2012 -- nearly six years behind schedule.

The $50.5 million project will feature 209 apartments, 42 of them for veterans. Public investments will cover nearly $29 million of the project cost, an upfront contribution that will subsidize expenses for renters.

“This is the project that no one thought we could pull off,” said city Commissioner Nick Fish, who oversees the Portland Housing Bureau.

Affordable housing had been promised as part of the transformation within the North Macadam urban renewal district, where riverfront industrial land gave way to 30-story condominium towers. Under the development deal, the first affordable apartment building was supposed to be built by December 2006.

But the city’s urban renewal agency didn’t purchase land for the affordable housing complex, known as Block 49, until that year. The ensuing housing collapse then froze lending and halted would-be investors.

Having already invested $5 million in the property and almost $2 million in design, the city moved forward last year with a revamped plan. The units will be managed by Reach Community Development, which will also purchase 12,000 square feet for headquarters in the ground floor of the six-story building.

Federal subsidies largely will cover rent for the 42 units open to veterans who earn less than $15,000 a year. The remaining apartments will fetch rents of about $575 for one-bedroom units. To qualify for those, single tenants must earn less than $25,000 a year.

-- Brad Schmidt

http://www.oregonlive.com/portland/index.ssf/2011/04/portland_will_break_ground_on_1.html