Portland Infill | Northwest Portland - Page 120

eric cantona · #**2381** Posted **Apr 5, 2022, 10:22 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by maccoinnich

Notice of a Public Hearing for the Northbound 30 Collaborative:

Crazy. Looks like each floor devotes nearly a third of the area to stairs. elevator, and hallway.

But no f$$$$$g parking!

maccoinnich · #**2382** Posted **Apr 11, 2022, 5:12 PM**

Request for Response for Apartments at NW 17th Ave and NW Couch Street

maccoinnich · #**2383** Posted **Apr 15, 2022, 3:48 PM**

Notice of a Pre-Application Conference:

Quote:

A Pre-Application Conference to discuss the adaptive reuse of the First Church of Christ Scientist building in the Alphabet Historic District as well as the construction of a new 5-story, 40,000 square foot hotel with 80 guest rooms on an adjacent surface parking lot. Subleased valet parking is proposed utilizing a surface parking lot across NW Everett St. On-site loading is proposed to be accessed from NW 19th Ave.

eric cantona · #**2384** Posted **Apr 15, 2022, 7:42 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by maccoinnich

Notice of a Pre-Application Conference:

The Alphabet District is well on its way to becoming a real life version of Disney's Main Street USA.

urbanlife · #**2385** Posted **Apr 16, 2022, 5:19 AM**

Wait, so their plan is to renovate the Children's Theater and build a new hotel on the parking lot behind the building? This might be some of the best news, getting rid of the surface lot and saving a historic building. I honestly thought the theater building was gonna eventually be torn down.

Jakz · #**2386** Posted **Apr 17, 2022, 12:09 AM**

Yeah, great news all around, assuming it moves forward. There's a good chance I'll be working on it (structural), since my group's on the design team. It's gonna be a bear connecting all those miscellaneous roof segments to shear walls. But, always up for a challenge.

DMH · #**2387** Posted **Apr 18, 2022, 6:41 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by urbanlife

Wait, so their plan is to renovate the Children's Theater and build a new hotel on the parking lot behind the building? This might be some of the best news, getting rid of the surface lot and saving a historic building. I honestly thought the theater building was gonna eventually be torn down.

Please wait for this process to continue. I am on the Board of the cultural center. The NW Children's Theater is the prime tenant, NOT the owner. The building has been on the market for years. The coalition of neighborhoods that own the building do not have the resources to maintain or renovate the building so it must be sold. This is the first serious offer to come along and proceed to this point. Still, the 500+ cultural center membership must vote this month on whether or not to proceed with the sale of the building.

Personally I do not see this as the Disneyfication of NW Portland. It is an intensely urban, mixed-use neighborhood that can accommodate two cathedrals, a synagogue, a children's theater, and now possibly a hotel within a few short blocks of each other.

maccoinnich · #**2388** Posted **Apr 18, 2022, 7:40 PM**

While I don't personally love the design of the new construction, I think the combination of new construction on the car park and the adaptive re-use of the existing structure is pretty great outcome. The Pre-App documents don't give a lot away, but I could imagine creating some pretty cool public spaces in the historic church.

urbanlife · #**2389** Posted **Apr 18, 2022, 10:07 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by DMH

Please wait for this process to continue. I am on the Board of the cultural center. The NW Children's Theater is the prime tenant, NOT the owner. The building has been on the market for years. The coalition of neighborhoods that own the building do not have the resources to maintain or renovate the building so it must be sold. This is the first serious offer to come along and proceed to this point. Still, the 500+ cultural center membership must vote this month on whether or not to proceed with the sale of the building.

Personally I do not see this as the Disneyfication of NW Portland. It is an intensely urban, mixed-use neighborhood that can accommodate two cathedrals, a synagogue, a children's theater, and now possibly a hotel within a few short blocks of each other.

Not sure if this was meant to be directed at me, but I know that the Children's Theater is just a tenant and not the owner, and I know this building has been for sale for a while now. I have just accepted a while ago that what happened with this building is it would eventually get torn down by a developer. If that fate doesn't happen, that will be fantastic news, especially if it involves renovating the existing building because I know how costly that will be.

Also I never liked the term "Disneyfication" for buildings people live, work, and are active with because that is just an improvement on the existing urban fabric to the neighborhood. Last time I checked, only the Ghost of Walt Disney lives at Disneyland.

eric cantona · #**2390** Posted **Apr 19, 2022, 1:58 AM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by urbanlife

Not sure if this was meant to be directed at me, but I know that the Children's Theater is just a tenant and not the owner, and I know this building has been for sale for a while now. I have just accepted a while ago that what happened with this building is it would eventually get torn down by a developer. If that fate doesn't happen, that will be fantastic news, especially if it involves renovating the existing building because I know how costly that will be.

Also I never liked the term "Disneyfication" for buildings people live, work, and are active with because that is just an improvement on the existing urban fabric to the neighborhood. Last time I checked, only the Ghost of Walt Disney lives at Disneyland.

That was directed at me for commenting on how NW is increasingly becoming "Main Street USA'.

For me that's the obvious conclusion based on Historic Landmarks design review process that tends to encourage "historic" looking projects like this one. A decent designer can generally find a way to produce something interesting (Allied Works did this recently) but most tend towards tacked on pastiche that actually lessen the impact and import of the existing historical fabric, in my opinion.

Rob Nob · #**2391** Posted **Apr 19, 2022, 3:41 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by eric cantona

That was directed at me for commenting on how NW is increasingly becoming "Main Street USA'.

For me that's the obvious conclusion based on Historic Landmarks design review process that tends to encourage "historic" looking projects like this one. A decent designer can generally find a way to produce something interesting (Allied Works did this recently) but most tend towards tacked on pastiche that actually lessen the impact and import of the existing historical fabric, in my opinion.

Totally agree!

uncommon.name · #**2392** Posted **Apr 19, 2022, 4:09 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by DMH

Please wait for this process to continue. I am on the Board of the cultural center. The NW Children's Theater is the prime tenant, NOT the owner. The building has been on the market for years. The coalition of neighborhoods that own the building do not have the resources to maintain or renovate the building so it must be sold. This is the first serious offer to come along and proceed to this point. Still, the 500+ cultural center membership must vote this month on whether or not to proceed with the sale of the building.

Personally I do not see this as the Disneyfication of NW Portland. It is an intensely urban, mixed-use neighborhood that can accommodate two cathedrals, a synagogue, a children's theater, and now possibly a hotel within a few short blocks of each other.

So are you who we need to talk to about the Children's Museum in Washington Park closing?

lol

uncommon.name · #**2393** Posted **Apr 19, 2022, 4:10 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by eric cantona

The Alphabet District is well on its way to becoming a real life version of Disney's Main Street USA.

I love the vibe that Walt went for with Main Street USA. I would not mind having a districts like that at all.

maccoinnich · #**2394** Posted **Apr 22, 2022, 11:27 PM**

Northbound 30 drawings

DMH · #**2395** Posted **Apr 27, 2022, 3:14 PM**

Quote:

Originally Posted by maccoinnich

While I don't personally love the design of the new construction, I think the combination of new construction on the car park and the adaptive re-use of the existing structure is pretty great outcome. The Pre-App documents don't give a lot away, but I could imagine creating some pretty cool public spaces in the historic church.

Last evening, the members of the Northwest Neighbors Cultural Center (aka NW Children's Theater) saw the presentation by Founders Development of plans for renovation/conversion of the historic building and construction of a 5-story new building on the quarter-block parking lot for use as a luxury boutique hotel. Following a Q&A period, the members voted overwhelmingly to approve the sale to Founders. This is excellent news of significant investment and injection of urban energy on that quiet NW Portland block with hotel guests as well as diners coming to the restaurants in the historic building and in the new building. No work in the building can start until the NW Children's Theater moves out of the building in September.

MarkDaMan · #**2396** Posted **Apr 27, 2022, 4:25 PM**

^Thanks for the update. This is GREAT news!

maccoinnich · #**2397** Posted **Apr 27, 2022, 4:44 PM**

I'd love to see the plans, but I think this is good news. The fact that the same architecture firm (Hartshorne Plunkard) is currently working on the conversion of the Troy Laundry into a Soho House gives me optimism.