The Encore | 175 feet | 15 floors | Complete

[pdx2m2]

The EnCore is having their topping out party today.. ..the roof pour is done.

[Pavlov's Dog]

I wonder how long until all the people moving into the buildings next to the railroad tracks demand that they be tunneled under Naito Parkway. They are so damned noisy and have a lot movements at night.

[pdxtraveler]

There are many ways to sound insulate buildings. I bet at the prices Hoyt Properties gets, that they spent a bit on insulation. I doubt it will be that huge a concern.

[PDX City-State]

This has been an ongoing issue with residents of the Pinnacle. There is something in the works to install special equipment that would alleviate the need for train conductors to use their whistles.

[pdx2m2]

The solution to the train noise is for the City to create this area as a 'quiet zone'. This process needs to be initiated by the City and requires changing some of the equipment at the vehicular track crossings to assure safety without the loud whistles.

Once the quiet zone is created the trains are then no longer required to and prevented from blasting their horns.

I know Hoyt and the neighborhood are discussing this and suspect the City will support it given all the new development along both sides of the tracks.

[PacificNW]

Train noise comes with the package. If you purchase property next to an existing and working railroad yard you have to expect some noise. I don't think it is reasonable to expect a "100% quiet zone" in an active industrial area anymore than eliminating "noise" around racetracks or airports. (For those who recently moved into these zones...too bad for you if you don't adapt or insulate. )

[pdx2m2]

I think there will be train noise for decades. That said this isn't really an industrial zone any more...this is downtown portland and adding the quiet zone is just good sense and is what cities across the US are doing as the urban core transforms industrial areas into living areas. The quiet zone won't be quiet..just less loud.

Ultimately the rail traffic will move to the east side...the current bends get tracks back and forth across the river make no sense and really slow down rail traffic. It's only a matter of time until either rail dies or becomes really important in which case it will stay on the east side and bypass downtown..and create a new passenger station on the east side.

[NJD]

Ultimately the rail traffic will move to the east side...the current bends get tracks back and forth across the river make no sense and really slow down rail traffic. It's only a matter of time until either rail dies or becomes really important in which case it will stay on the east side and bypass downtown..and create a new passenger station on the east side.

not really the place to debate this, but passenger rail will probably always stay on the West side due to politics. We may see all freight rail move to the East side, but I doubt it with the Industrial areas in Washington County. Anyway, my 2 cents says rail will be there, stronger if anything, in any future outcome. (check out the new funding for Amtrak and State initiated high-speed rail corridors, passenger rail is coming back! Finally.)

[Pavlov's Dog]

No matter which side of the river freight trains run on it will be tunnelled. There's a point when the value created by tunnelling of roads and railways become economically feasible because the value of the land above ground is less than the cost of tunnelling.

[zilfondel]

^ Yea, but that might not happen for a long time. Additionally, freight trains can only climb a certain max grade, making it difficult to build tunnels nearby freight yards, because they require miles of slope before it would be low enough to go under the river - but that really just compounds the cost issue.

[WestCoast]

too bad it is topped out at this height. I was hoping for 1-2 more floors to give it some contrast to the Pinnacle (?) building next door.

[pdx2m2]

more height would have been attractive...unfortunately the height limit is 175'. The Encore is about one story taller than the Pinnacle because the site is steep enough to allow the measurement of height in a more favorable way.

the new north pearl plan when approved in 2008 should allow unlimited height...or height limited only by the far and floor plate size.

[Castillonis]

I took this photo Wed November 22, 2007, 12:36:34. They installed more glass on the park side of the Encore. We might get more of a feel for what the Encore will look like soon. The Mistral is the building on the left.


http://picasaweb.google.com/stoneyv/Encore/photo#5135585942926462290

[Castillonis]

I took this photo of the Encore at aproximately 1600 on Mon 21Jan08. I had difficulty holding my camera still let alone adjusting my exposure. I immediately went to REI and purchased some thin gloves with something equivalent to windstopper and a package of hand warmers for my coat pockets

1200x1055 Encore

[WestCoast]

I've decided I like the color and shape of this building.

It's got good context with the others. (tan bricks on the sides, white trim like the metropolitan, brown cladding and nice glass).

I wish this building were being built in better times. The sales office shows very few units sold as of last month when I visited. It's at the edge of the pearl, a little ways out, but is adjacent to the park and good views to the west at this time.

I wish it all the best as it continues to fill out.

[RED_PDXer]

CHOOOO CHOOOO!! [the deafening sound of a train going by at 5mph]

[Okstate]

^ do the trains run all hours? Maybe train enthusiasts will purchase these units.

[Castillonis]

Someone mentioned that the city or another entity was going to make this a hornless crossing. Sudden horn blasts would be much more significant than the continuous low frequency of the train and its motor. Many people would probably become accustomed to the motor and train noise. Plus low frequency noise does not antenuate easily without objects that have high densities/high mass. So motor/train noise is probably effects much more of the pearl.

To me, the train horn blasts that look more like an impulse function are what would be unpleasant and disruptive.

[Leo]

Originally Posted by Okstate

^ do the trains run all hours? Maybe train enthusiasts will purchase these units.

Yes, the trains, and the horns, run at all hours. My rental unit faces in that direction, too, and it doesn't bother me all that much.

However, I wouldn't buy a condo with that noise issue unless it came at a *significant* discount. In a condo, I'd be risking $100+K downpayment for the possiblity that I may not get to sleep at night - for my rental, all I'm risking a $3k security deposit. Pricing at The Encore does not seem to take the noise issue into consideration.

[pdx2m2]

Discussions are underway for the City to make this area a 'quiet zone' which would adjust the design of the vehicular crossings and minimize or eliminate the horn blasts at the crossings. I think the City has to initiate this process and believe Hoyt Street and the neighborhood are discussing this with the City.