Slabtown (formerly Conway) Developments

[mmeade]

I understand that grocery stores are typically by nature one sided designs. The Main entry is the point of sale which works for most buildings.

Sadly, this design puts the one street friendly facade away from the street. Three sides of this building look to be very unfriendly to the neighborhood. Street activity needs to be encouraged, I really hope that there are additional entrances and street furniture on the sides that we can't see in the renderings.

[urbanlife]

Originally Posted by mmeade

I understand that grocery stores are typically by nature one sided designs. The Main entry is the point of sale which works for most buildings.

Sadly, this design puts the one street friendly facade away from the street. Three sides of this building look to be very unfriendly to the neighborhood. Street activity needs to be encouraged, I really hope that there are additional entrances and street furniture on the sides that we can't see in the renderings.

The back side of New Seasons looks like it will have retail somewhere along it, looks like someone was one step ahead of you which is a good thing because it would have sucked to have three blank sides in a new urban development area.

[mmeade]

Thanks,
I missed that. I guess now it only has two rather dull sides, instead of three. Hopefully the nearby buildings can pick up the slack.

[tworivers]

Skeptics can't derail New Seasons Market at Con-way
The Portland design commission signed off on plans for New Seasons Market in Northwest Portland, but with reservations about the project.

Wendy Culverwell
Real Estate Daily editor- Portland Business Journal

A conflicted Portland design commission signed off on plans for a New Seasons Market in Northwest — but just barely.

...


In a move that surprised the development team, commissioners raised serious doubts about the project’s landscape plans, its reliance on surface parking rather than an underground garage and the extension of store-related activities into a 60-foot pedestrian access way that will run the length of the property.

One commissioners (sic) said allowing the development team to use surface parking rather than an underground garage would have been akin to setting aside a block in the Pearl District for Whole Foods.

...

[maccoinnich]

New Seasons, apartment project in NW Portland breaks ground under new development team



A Northwest Portland development caught up in its developer's plan to get out of the development business is moving forward under a new team.

Capstone Partners and Cairn Pacific have secured financing and broken ground on the $46 million project, which will include a New Seasons Market and a 113-unit mixed-use apartment building.

The development was first conceived as a project of C.E. John Co., a family-owned firm in Vancouver that owns several properties in the Alphabet District, along with suburban shopping centers. It was among the first projects in the proposed redevelopment of the freight company Con-way Inc.'s holdings in Northwest Portland

Now it's moving forward under Cairn Pacific, a firm created by former C.E. John executives Tom DiChiara and Rob Hinnen, who left in the restructuring. Capstone Partners bought the site from C.E. John.

...continues at the Oregonian.

[bvpcvm]

Also, crane's up at the New Seasons site on 22nd.

[downtownpdx]

New Seasons project from I-405:

[pdxtraveler]

I look right out my office window at the Con-way crane, less than two blocks away. It was crazy to watch those construction workers up on the crane putting it together. I could NEVER do that job! lol!

[urbanlife]

I can't wait for this new urban neighborhood!

[65MAX]

So, is this new "Conway" development considered part of Slabtown? Or is it Nob Hill East? (not really a hilly neighborhood). Or maybe the Alphabet District? Seems like it's not really either.

[bvpcvm]

I've lived in that end of NW for about 12 years, and to me it's all just "Northwest". The only people I've heard call it Nob Hill are tourists and real estate agents. As far as Slabtown goes, I guess it technically is Slabtown, but I tend to think of Slabtown as the area along 16th near Le Happy.

[2oh1]

I never hear people use any of those terms. Slabtown? I've never heard anyone actually call it that, other than once or twice online. In real life? Never once. The Alphabet District? People call it NW. Nob Hill? People call it NW. So, where is the Conway property? People would call it NW.

bvpcvm is right. Those terms are used by tourists and real estate agents.

[Rhome]

Conway is in Slabtown, which historically since the late 1800s extended North of Glisan to the river and out in the flats all the way to about where the St. Johns bridge is. The more current definition shrinks the area to North of Lovejoy (South being Nob Hill) and not extending nearly so far West.

While use of the name Slabtown may not be that common, old timers and historians still refer to the area with that name. Portland loves its history, so it is likely that the name will be coming back. We have somewhat recent precedent for this in Goose Hollow, where the name fell into disuse only to be revitalized by Bud Clark and others about 50 years ago.

[urbanlife]

Originally Posted by 2oh1

I never hear people use any of those terms. Slabtown? I've never heard anyone actually call it that, other than once or twice online. In real life? Never once. The Alphabet District? People call it NW. Nob Hill? People call it NW. So, where is the Conway property? People would call it NW.

bvpcvm is right. Those terms are used by tourists and real estate agents.

I have always liked Slabtown and the Alphabet District due to the street names being alphabetical. I never liked the term Nob Hill, it feels like it is a copy of SF's neighborhood.

[Derek]

Originally Posted by urbanlife

I have always liked Slabtown and the Alphabet District due to the street names being alphabetical. I never liked the term Nob Hill, it feels like it is a copy of SF's neighborhood.

Why were some letters forgotton towards the end? We have Wilson, X is skipped (for Roosevelt), then York, and then Z is skipped (for Reed).

[65MAX]

Because the original Alphabet Streets were renamed for founding fathers of Portland (I suppose there were no founding mothers?), and nobody in that group had a name starting with X or Z.

[Derek]

Originally Posted by 65MAX

Because the original Alphabet Streets were renamed for founding fathers of Portland (I suppose there were no founding mothers?), and nobody in that group had a name starting with X or Z.

Ah. You learn something new everyday.

[davehogan]

My former neighbors still just keep calling it the Conway District. That's a few blocks away, but maybe it'll stick?

[urbanlife]

Originally Posted by davehogan

My former neighbors still just keep calling it the Conway District. That's a few blocks away, but maybe it'll stick?

It has a nice ring to it, real estate agents can start calling it the CW District or CoWa District. Haha

[horatio_the_hermit]

Here's a link to the Block 296 (New Seasons) general contractor's youtube channel. They post a monthly drone flyover of the site. The most recent shows the first column & shear wall pours.

http://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQX-ueVtcO6ZnyMHOvErCeg