Portland Architecture

Slabtown Rising

In Tuesday's Portland Tribune, writer Peter Korn looks at the emerging neighborhood in Northwest known alternately as 'Slabtown' or, more recently, 'NoLo' (for its location North of Lovejoy). This is an area filled mostly with warehouses and surface parking lots for now but an ideal location just west of the Pearl District (just over or under I-405) and east of 21st and 23rd Avenues.

The article spotlights two familiar dramas: the displacement of industrial businesses and jobs, and the proliferation of high-density residential, mixed-use and (to a lesser extent) office buildings. In the latter case, the problem is that development is coming faster than the city can plan for it. As a result we see projects like the 20th Avenue Townhomes at the corner of 20th and Pettygrove, which include surface-level rear garages that would not be allowed in more established neighborhoods because it isn't very high density.

In a long-delayed article that I've been working about the land north of Lovejoy over on the Pearl District side, the same problem seems to exist, with the largest developer in the area frustrated that the city's planning process can't happen more quickly. Personally, I can see both sides. Developers know they'll lose money and opportunity by waiting to build, but planners may be wise not to rush the process in a way that would detract from the ultimate vision.

I'd appreciate any insight people in both the private and public sector as to how Slabtown will ultimately shake down. Is it a neighborhood with great potential, or are we setting ourselves up for missed opportunity? The development lessons of the Pearl and elsewhere should bare fruit now that the real-estate wave has traversed the freeway overpass. But will history be written before the plans are?

Holst's 937

Holst Architecture, designer of the phenomenally successful Belmont Lofts as well as the Ecotrust building and the Pacific Northwest College of Art (both extensive renovations), has unveiled its design for a new 16-story tower in the Pearl District for W&K Development.

The half-block site between 9th and 10th Avenues on Glisan will include 118 units and has already received unanimous approval during design review with the city earlier this year.

The building will be clad in a sandy white brick and features an abstract-looking pattern of windows that recalls recent projects like the Eliot Tower (with more of this style surely to follow). 937's facade also includes a series of vertical extrusions made by a four strips of balconies, thereby breaking up the mass. What's also particularly noteworthy is that this is a tall, thin building that will bring lots of natural light into the units. Many of the squattier condo buildings, such as the nearby Gregory and Elizabeth buildings, feature long, thin units shaped almost like bowling alley lanes, in which light has a difficult time penetrating the interior portions. Not so with 937.

At first glance at the rendering, I wasn't sure if I liked this building's exterior look. It seemed almost to resemble an office building. But the more I see it, the more I like, because the details really hold up well to scrutiny. The tall, thin proportions give 937 a big head start, and the white brick palette should give the building an appealing texture. The seemingly random window pattern also counters the symmetry of many other nearby condo exteriors.

Once it's completed, one wonders if 937 could set a precedent for Holst. Although the firm was the initial designer on the Edge Lofts in the Pearl, as I understand it developer John Carroll essentially replaced Holst with GBD Architects before the design was completely carried out. So even though it's only a half-block building compared to some of the full-block giants, it could be argued that 937 marks Holst's entry into the realm of larger-scaled projects that dominate the Pearl and South Waterfront. Will developers of those larger buildings, such as Hoyt Street Properties and Gerding/Edlen, now give Holst more consideration for their big towers?

Regardless, Holst has a string of residential projects in the works for other pockets of the city. This firm was already on our radar as one of the city's most capable, but we may need to watch out for John Holmes, Jeff Stuhr and company even more with the introduction of this building.

More on the Rosefriend

Yesterday I spoke with architect Paul Falsetto of Fletcher Farr Ayotte, an historic preservation specialist who was part of the Friends of Ladd Carriage House who helped save that building. But our conversation was about the Rosefriend Apartments, the historic building on the same block set to be demolished at the best of the First Christian Church so they can build a new condo tower and underground parking garage.

“Anytime you come up Jefferson and see it there, it’s just a wonderful sight of a building,” Falsetto says. “I think in this case the ground underneath it literally and figuratively is unstable. They just couldn’t make the block pencil out.”

Falsetto says “It would take an absolutely heroic effort” to save the Rosefriend. Some have wondered if the church annex on the North Park Blocks could be demolished instead of the Rosefriend, but the annex is set to come down too. The new tower, designed by Ankrom Moisan, is a half-block in size, so it’ll take up most of the annex site and the Rosefriend site.

The main reason all this is happening though, is not the tower but its parking. The church wants parking for its congregation. They hired a developer to make it pencil out, and that developer, Opus NW, recognized that the only way to make underground parking profitable was to sell lots of condos above it. So they hired the biggest producer of condos in town to churn out another one.

One other thing Falsetto said really got me thinking. It’s clear that within the parameters of the parking-condo tower deal, there’s no way preserving the Rosefriend would pencil out. “The buildings won’t stand up to the pro forma,” Falsetto said. “But can you change your pro-forma?”

In other words, I think the church really needs to take a long look in the mirror. With the help of Opus, they’ve put together a standard development deal that even includes the saving of an adjacent historic architectural work, the Ladd Carriage House. But this is a religious institution, not a business. Spiritual values are held above monetary ones. Does destroying an important vestige of Portland’s past, a beautiful building with a delightful sense of place, represent what this church stands for?

Certainly the church does need parking. But it’s not as if this project in its current iteration is the only way that can be accomplished. Why can’t the city help put together some sort of deal on discounted tickets in another lot? Another noted developer, Tom Moyer, owns the vacant lot across the street. How about a project there that allows Sunday parking for the church?

It doesn’t look good at all for the Rosefriend, but I urge everyone out there who’d like to see the building saved to contact their elected officials such as Mayor Potter , Randy Leonard, Eric Sten or Sam Adams. Or, even better, the First Christian Church itself.

Walking the UGB

David Oates has just published the book City Limits: Walking Portland's Boundary. As Chris Smith said on the Portland Transport blog, "not so much a planning book as a book about the soul of our region."

On the Blue Oregon website, Oates had this to say:

"We have not yet crystallized the vision that adequately conveys our communal self. Too bad that 'city on a hill' is already taken; it's a city, a polis, a mighty solidarity, not a collection of surly individuals at dagger-points. John Dewey called it the 'Great Community' and said it was, as yet, invisible. Martin Luther King amended that to "the beloved community," locating it deep, down near the heart. That's good, that feels right -- for I think it is the moral imagination that sees our commonality most clearly. Who is my neighbor? my brother? my child? Everyone, said the Teacher. But we must look with the inner eye to see it; we must look past the immediacy of personal convenience, short-term profit, and private resentment."

I haven't read the book, but Oates of course seems to lament the fact that the Urban Growth Boundary has come under as much fire as it has. He completed the book just as Measure 37 was being passed, gutting our land use system. Hey, can't argue with that!

In Collaboration with the City Club of Portland Oates is leading a walk on a portion of the UGB to discuss it purpose and challenges on Saturday, June 24.  Joining Oates will be Metro President David Bragdon.  The event is free and open to the public.  More information is at the City Club website. People can sign up by sending an email to Tim DuRoche at the City Club.

Historic Preservation on Broadway:One Step Forward, One Back

You may have read in last Friday’s Portland Tribune article by Jim Redden that the historic Ladd Carriage House downtown at the corner of Broadway and Columbia (across from the Oregonian building) will be preserved at its current location after a new agreement was reached. Redden writes:

“As recently as three months ago, volunteers hoping to save the house were considering moving it to a site at Southwest First Avenue and Gibbs Street, where it might have been remodeled and opened as an English-style pub. But since then local developer John Carroll has worked with project manager Opus Northwest LLC to incorporate the house into the overall project, which will remake three-quarters of the block between Broadway and the South Park Blocks.”

As many know, the Ladd Carriage House is a local treasure. It was originally built in 1884 as part of former mayor William Ladd’s mansion. It’s one of the last remnants of the many mansions that used to exist downtown. That it’s going to stay put and be restored after being threatened is great news.

But there is tragedy on this block happening too. In order to make room for the 21-story Ankrom Moisan-designed condominium tower that initially threatened the Ladd Carriage House, another historic building on the same block is set to be demolished: the Rosefriend Apartments.

Until reading the Tribune article, I didn’t even know the name of this building. But I always liked it. There’s a florist on the ground floor adding vibrancy to the corner, and the stately brick building compares favorably, I think, with Pietro Belluschi’s Oregonian building across the street. This is no masterpiece, but it’s a very nice little building that exemplifies Portland’s historic urban fabric. Personally, I think tearing down the Rosefriend Apartments is just as much a catastrophe as it would have been for the Carriage House. After all, even though it's beautiful and architecturally significant, there's never been an ideal use for the former horse barn. But the Rosefriend Apartments are, while historic and attractive, also a working building with much-needed local affordable housing. While I was photographing the buiding this morning, a student from Portland State University stopped me to ask if I knew if there were any apartments for rent at the Rosefriend. I had to tell him it was being torn down.

Obviously the First Christian Church needs more space, and the condo market is booming. One can’t begrudge the parties involved for wanting to make this project happen. But especially when you see the vacant lot next door (a former gas station) and imagine the wrecking ball hitting the Rosefriend, it should make any architecture enthusiast wince. Is it impossible to renovate the Rosefriend into market-rate condominiums? Does (at first glace of the renderings) a seemingly banal tower absolutely have to happen here?

I'm also thinking of how many contemporary buildings exhibit a hybrid architecture in which there is a historic building (or at least its facade) that is combined with a newer portion. Why couldn't Ankrom's tower grow out of the Rosefriend?

Last year Mayor Tom Potter got involved with trying to preserve the Ladd Carriage House, and some of his words echo just as much for the Rosefriend:

"We don’t want to let another piece of Portland’s history quietly disappear."

"Community leaders must step forward and be partners in finding a timely way to keep this building intact."

Well, Mr. Mayor, how about trying to step in again to save the other historic property on this block? To the Friends of Ladd Carriage House who so nobly worked to save that building, how about simply changing your name and keeping up the fight?

Or, looking at it another way, is it merely naïve of me to resist the notion of such fine historic residential property being destroyed?

On the Lamb With D48

Jeff Lamb has long been known as one of the most talented designers in the city. More than 14 years ago as a boy wonder he led the design effort for the American Institute of Architects office, and he seemed to have a great career going at Sienna Architecture Company. But Lamb left Sienna in the late 1990s, and both designer and firm have kept a relatively low profile over the last few years. Lamb started his own firm, then went to BOORA Architects for awhile, where he was instrumental in the design of The Metropolitan, the firm's biggest and best condo project. Sienna, meanwhile, seemed to focus more energy on its Seattle office over the last few years.

But now Lamb has come full circle and rejoined Sienna, with a host of projects on the boards, mostly high-density residential urban infill. The first one with renderings the firm is ready to make public is called D48, a 30,000 square foot, 28-unit condo project (including four live/work spaces) sited at Southeast Division and 48th Street (hence the name). The developer is Greg Dolinajec, who with whom Lamb is teaming on two other condo projects: H45, which Lamb began while working at BOORA and has continued in partnership (for this project, which is currently under construction), and H44, an adjacent property Sienna has taken on with Lamb.

Lamb tells me D48, which breaks ground in December,  will be constructed with a steel frame pre-fabricated structural system. The pre-fab parts will help keep costs significantly lower than other comparable condos. The exterior skin consists of composite metal panels, Swiss Pearl concrete panels and a Murante rain screen system.

At first glance, this looks like an excellent neighborhood condo. Taking a cue from Holst's Belmont Lofts, the exterior wood gives D48 a warm, textural feeling. At the same time, the building overall seems nicely balanced between simplicity of form and undulating, complex angles. Lamb also stressed to me that this building, and all his current work, is designed from the inside out. "I'm not the shell boy I used to be," he said. I'd certainly be happy to live at D48. How about you?

The Building Formerly Known as Taylor Electric

Recently I biked over to the former Taylor Electric warehouse in the Central Eastside. It was destroyed by fire a few weeks ago. As we speak, a demolition crew is cleaning out the charred remains.

I remember a few years ago walking to a burned-down warehouse at or around Southeast 11th and Morrison the day after it burned, and there must have been scores of us there: some taking photos like me, others just staring blankly, almost meditatively.

What is it about burned buildings that draws us? Some of it is obvious: destruction is always full of action and drama, what with the giant flames and all. Moreover, there's a kind of perverse attraction one has to the aftermath. One feels sympathetic towards the victims, naturally, for their physical, psychological and financial loss. But there's often a child-like voice that wants to blurt out, 'Whoa!', as if doing a Keanu Reeves impression. At the same time, I think there's also something deeper involved when gazing at the burned remains of a building. I'm reminded of a Tom Waits lyric "All the rooms they smell like diesel/and you take on the dreams of the ones who have slept there." Or in this case, I guess, it would be the ones who ran forklifts there, or who took inventory. The burn destroys that history.

Luckily there remain, at least for a few more days, some rubble worth noting. As you can see in this photo, the paint has been burned away to reveal outlines and shadows of old signs and decals. It's like discovering a kind of urban 20th Century hieroglyphics. How's about saving a chunk of that wall like we did with the Lovejoy Columns? This wall isn't artwork per se, but I think it's a beautiful little piece of a pop-archaeology.

While taking photos of the warehouse, I stopped briefly to take a photo at the open gate, where vehicles were coming in an out of about every minute or so. I heard this disembodied voice from far away yell "Hey!" in a hostile voice, and when I looked around to try and figure out where it was coming from, the guy yelled sarcastically, "Who? Me?"

I then realized he was inside the loading dock of an adjacent warehouse, which seemed to be the owner of the burned building. Within a few seconds, another guy approached. By that time, I was moving away from the gate, and he politely explained they just wanted to make sure I wasn't going to go inside the fence. So, crisis averted. But that cranky blowhard inside the warehouse took me back to reality, that these poor guys' warehouse burned down, and now they're having to deal with annoying, unpredictable gawkers like me. Not that he couldn't have bellowed a little more politely. But I digress....

William Wilson Architects Wins National Award

William Wilson Architects has received two Golden Nugget awards from the American Institute of Architects and US Department of Housing and Urban Development. For its design of Esther Short Commons in Vancouver, WWA received the Secretary’s Award for Housing and Community Design for Mixed Use/Mixed Income Housing, and a Merit Award for Mixed Use Housing. The project provides 160 apartments in the heart of downtown Vancouver. Ground floor retail includes the 8,500 sf home for the Vancouver Farmers Market. The Market is located directly across from Esther Short Park. Overhead doors open onto the weekend street market and the park. 

From the press release:

Formerly an edge location for light industry, this area is now a thriving center of downtown Vancouver. Esther Short Commons contributes to this vibrant neighborhood by providing downtown living options and convenient access to mass transit. In addition, ESC provides safe and enjoyable housing for residents at a variety of income levels. The primary architectural design goals for Esther Short Commons were to respond to the unique location within the city, to provide innovative construction details and to contribute to the residents’ quality of life. This project was completed for the Vancouver Housing Authority and KemperCo, LLC

William Wilson Architects isn't a firm one hears the name of bandied about often. In a world of sprawling online portfolios with lots of Flash animation, their website is one page with an address and phone numer. Bbut they do consistently good, solid work. Esther Short Commons is reflective of WWA's larger portfolio, which includes numerous transit-oriented developments such as Midland Commons and Hazlewood Station (pictured). Congrats to the fim on these national awards.

A Favorite Little Gem: The Christian Science Reading Room

I've been meaning to write about this little building for awhile - not because it's new or even historically significant, but just because it's a minor little gem that I've long had an affection for. I think amidst the talk of condos and offices and the politics that go with them, this blog should also take time once in a while to celebrate the city's lesser known treasures. I encourage readers to send in their favorites as well.

Anyway, the Christian Science Reading Room is situated at the corner of SW 10th Avenue and Columbia Street, just across from Museum Place and its ground-floor tenant, Safeway. It's a small little midcentury brick and glass building owned by the larger Christian Science church fronting the North Park Blocks. I've looked online and in Bart King's Architectural Guidebook to Portland, and haven't found any information about when it was built, but to be honest I'm not crucially concerned with its pedigree anyway. This isn't a masterpiece, but just a cute little building that I love because I'm a sucker for midcentury modern.

Although tiny in scale, the building creates a sense of presence for itself with two double-story columns that pierce a flat awning at the corner. Moving to the right, away from the corner on the south facade, a two-story wall of glass is hidden by a sort of brick lattice. It's imposing to the eye, but once you know the glass wall is hidden behind, it feels like a little secret one's gleeful to discover.

The interior has a small, almost oppressive entryway, but it gives way to a double-height main area that also includes a mezzanine. Additionally there is a tiny little interior courtyard that you can view from a floor-to-ceiling glass wall.

I wouldn't be the least bit surprised if this building is eventually demolished to make way for a much larger structure. The church could easily acquiesce to the inherent value of the land here, what with the West End becoming a hot spot for condo towers. And if they did, I might not even begrudge them for it. But for the time being, I wanted to pass along my affection for this little structure while it's still around.

Starchitects, Condos and Inside-Out Design

In Sunday’s New York Times, architecture critic Nicolai Ouroussoff writes about how famous architects have increasingly begun partnering with mainstream developers, particularly with condos.

In addition to Gehy, there is Bernard Tschumi’s blue-toned glass tower planned for downtown Manhattan near Delancey Street. And Richard Meier has a new luxury condo near Miami Beach (pictured below), following another condo project in New York. Museums and libraries are not the only territory for today’s ‘starchitects’.

Ourossoff focuses largely on the massive Atlantic Yards complex in Brooklyn, which has Frank Gehry partnering with developer Bruce Ratner, someone not heretofore known as a refined architectural patron. Ourossoff writes:

“Few would question Mr. Gehry's talent. The question is whether he has allowed his experimental ethos to be harnessed for the sake of maximizing a developer's profits. It's also fair to ask whether Mr. Gehry and other gifted architects have made a pact with the Devil, compromising their values for the sake of ever bigger commissions.”

I don't buy that at all. As long as these great architects are given the opportunity to design something of integrity, we're all better for it. If one of Portland's bigger mainstream condo developers chose a truly exceptional architect from the world stage to design something, I'd applaud both architect and client. Hell, I've been imploring for it to happen since day one of this blog. Why shouldn’t the world’s most talented designers join the condo-boom party? Better them than corporate firms with lesser talent and vision. But of course it isn’t so simple. Ourossof continues:

“Not so long ago American architects complained that they were shut out of the public dialogue. Today they work in a climate in which building is booming, and architecture is revered, but as an aesthetic, not a social, force.”

In particular, when a talented, noteworthy architect is selected to design one of these condos, he/she is often chosen to design the exterior, while another architect is selected for the interiors. Frank Gehry was able to escape this scenario by the power of his celebrity and reputation. But many others don’t.

Here in Portland, for example, we have many projects in which a striking façade gives way to a cookie-cutter interior designed by another firm. Zimmer Gunsul Frasca and its talented young-ish rising star Eugene Sandoval designed the exterior for developer John Carroll’s Eliot Tower, for example, but interior was designed by recurring Carroll collaborator Ankrom Moisan. The building looks to be easily the best Carroll has ever commissioned. But is the newfound beauty only skin deep?

What’s more, there hasn’t been anything close to a nationally celebrated architect designing any of Portland‘s many condos. Even the city’s lone star, Brad Cloepfil and his firm Allied Works, have been shut out. I know I've mentioned this several times by now, but I feel compelled to keep returning to it, because it remains the big elephant in the room none of our developers seem to want to acknowledge. Why keep shopping at Payless Shoesource when you can have Prada? The justifications I've heard never seem to...well, justify.

I’d like to know if Portland’s most prolific and successful developers, such as Carroll, Gerding/Edlen, and Robert Ball, have seen the fervor with which buyers are flocking to condos by celebrated architects. Sure, they’re already selling out towers by local firms before ground is even broken. But in business, as in many pursuits, we’re always in search of the next big thing. When is one of them going to bring in one of those extra-special architects from out of town? It wouldn’t be an altruistic architectural move; it can set their product apart. I don't think Portland needs Gehry; that's trying too hard, and surely his fee is enormous. But what about one of the other numerous architects outside Portland whose work is dazzling in other cities around the world?

And if they do, I hope it isn’t just window dressing. Let them design the units, too.

UO Cohousing Workshop

Yours truly's vacation continues, but luckily with online access: This just in from FOPA (friend of Portland Architecture) Nancy Cheng at the University of Oregon School of Architecture...

UO Architecture students are spreading the word about how to live more harmoniously with nature and other people. Students from Nancy Cheng's Sustainable Cohousing studio contributed to a Cohousing Workshop as part of City Repair's Village Building Convergence on Saturday, May 27, 2006.

In collaboration with the East Portland Co-housing Group, the students presented their designs for new kinds of village with reduced environmental impact. The students have been developing ideas for three Portland sites, including an existing southeast apartment complex that the East Portland group has targeted From visiting cohousing communities and talking with aspiring members, the students programmed what activities and spaces would suit each site. They researched how other communities have incorporated sustainability measures such as solar design, rainwater harvesting and urban agriculture. The students have been grappling with how to preserve privacy while encouraging interaction and what kind of image is appropriate for a developing neighborhood. They will present their final projects on Monday June 5, 2006 from 5pm to 8pm on the 4th floor of the Duck Shop Building at 2nd and Yamhill. Visitors are welcome.

Maybe at this point you're asking the same question I did when Nancy emailed me about the event. What the hell is co-housing? Here's Nancy's answer:

Co-housing is a form of intentional community that comes from Scandinavia, a new kind of village or extended family life.  Kathryn McCamant and Charles Durrett's book defines cohousing as including participatory process, planned neighborhood design, shared facilities and resident self-management.

Of course I would be looking forward to checking out what these architectural Ducks have put together were I not on vacation. But you, gentle readers, are encouraged to check it out and support our young architects. You pros just might learn something from these kids. Oh, and keep a special eye out for the work of one student, my good friend Adrienne Leverette, a classically trained musician, documentary filmmaker and graphic designer who has now set her sights on design.