I went on a canoe trip up the Willamette on Saturday and snapped some pics of South Waterfront.
My favorite building so far is definitely the Atwater. Certainly the most interesting to look at, with its shape that seems to sort of cascade down towards the river. The glass is too similar to John Ross, though, a building that I like at the base, but don't particularly enjoy looking at from afar, despite its ellipticism.
I feel more strongly than ever that the height limits as they are now are a looming mistake. In fact, if I could I'd stop all planning right now and take a second look at what could be done to vary the heights (not to even mention building materials) of the next bunch of buildings in the pipeline, even just trading FAR between some of the buildings, so that some can be taller and some shorter than the existing limits and developers can still get their precious money. I might also orient a few buildings north-south-skinny, too, regardless of the loss of views to people in the hills. How it all looks from other areas of the city is just as important. From our canoe, the future of the area looked dubious to my eyes. Sorry... especially from the south, it just looks monolithic, even
squat, that dreaded Portland curse. I do think that as build-out continues some of the monolithic effect will be lessened, but still. Can we master-plan some more diversity here?
In my ideal hand-of-god impossible reality, I think I would have facilitated the construction of most of these towers downtown... or maybe a few (like the less-than-stellar Meriwether) next to the Marquam with the tram terminating in the middle of the future Schnitzer OHSU campus. I would have used what is now Sowa to create a giant riverfront urban oak-savannah park (with the streetcar still running through it to Lake O). I know, pointless, but it just seems dumb to tower-sprawl out of downtown like this when downtown/dt riverfront itself is so far from being built out + full of parking garages and surface lots, and is begging for more vertical living and 24-hour activity. Portland's whole central city area is looking and feeling less cohesive to me than ever with this awkward profusion of towers south of the Ross Island bridge. I would have centralized the density much more. Just something I've been thinking about that has been nagging at me. Maybe I'll change my mind.
Anyways, thanks for reading and here are those photos.
Prev
Linear Mode
