Clackamas County (Milwaukie, Oregon City, Lake O, Happy Valley, etc.)
MitchE has created an extremely impressive photo thread of Portland's (mostly new) burban developments, and an interesting discussion has followed. I know Dougall mentioned this in another thread, but if you haven't checked it out, it is comforting to see that Metro's policies are leading to quality and dense suburban development. MitchE in one of his posts makes an interesting case that in 15 years or so, if these policies stay in place, many burban neighbohoods will be more dense than many inner Portland neighborhoods.
http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showthread.php?t=125601 |
Wilsonville invisions future: biking, walking, river trails, mass transit and parks
As city eyes future, 'It's all about connections'
Planning - Proposals for biking and walking mesh with those for parks, mass transit Thursday, February 15, 2007 ERIC MORTENSON The Oregonian Talk about being transported by a vision. A Wilsonville city plan describes a bike and pedestrian bridge over the Willamette River that would take off from the original Boones Ferry landing and connect to the Charbonneau neighborhood south of the river. It also talks about a "water trail," a designated stretch of river for canoes and kayaks, with restrooms and camping spots. The bicycle and pedestrian master plan, which the Wilsonville City Council adopted in December, connects all the dots. It speaks of adding bike lanes and extending sidewalks where there are gaps. Hooking into regional trail systems. Extending connections with city parks, the South Metro Area Rapid Transit bus system and the city's future commuter rail station. The idea, says Chris Neamtzu, Wilsonville's long-range planning manager, is to make it possible to walk or bike "from wherever you are to wherever you want to go." "It's all about connections," Neamtzu said. Which is why the bike and pedestrian master plan is not intended as a stand-alone document. Up next for City Council adoption are master plans for parks and mass transit. City officials, emphasizing the connectivity they're seeking, describe the documents as "Three plans -- one vision." The parks master plan will be discussed at a city work session March 19, followed by public hearings April 2 and 16. Dates have not been set for review of the transit plan. Neamtzu ("NAM-soo") said the master plans reflect the city's aspirations for the next 20 years. "It's a list of things we'd like to do in a perfect world," he said. Which is to say the projects listed in the bike and pedestrian plan don't come with funding attached. Nonetheless, here are some key recommendations: Creating a Willamette River bike and pedestrian crossing. Estimated to cost $7 million to $12 million, the bridge would carry the added benefit of providing an alternative river crossing for emergency vehicles. If the Interstate 5 Boone Bridge were blocked or damaged, cops and firefighters would be unable to reach Charbonneau. Improving bike and pedestrian crossings over I-5. The freeway bisects the city north to south and impedes east-west city traffic. Adding or improving bike lanes on the roads that cross the freeway could encourage more people to leave their cars home. Appointing a city coordinator of nonmotorized transportation to facilitate walking, biking and transit use. Also, establishing safe biking and walking routes to schools. Hooking into regional trails. The Tonquin Trail, connecting westside Wilsonville residents with Tualatin and Sherwood, will pass through the Coffee Creek wetlands, Graham Oaks natural area and the Villebois housing development. Wilsonville's share of the trail would cost $1.2 million to $2.9 million. The Boeckman Creek Trail, on the east side of I-5, will connect parks, schools, shops and major employers. The estimated cost is $1.5 million to $2.5 million. Neamtzu said the bike and pedestrian bridge is particularly appealing. It could link to the Willamette Valley scenic bikeway that stretches from Eugene to Champoeg State Park and also could serve as a gateway to the south Portland area for bicycle tourists. "What a landmark," he said. Funding might include economic development grants, because of the tourism tie, and homeland security funds, because the bridge could handle emergency vehicles, Neamtzu said. "We think we can do it -- we're optimistic," he said. http://www.oregonlive.com/swweeklylw...950.xml&coll=7 |
Wilsonville is really embracing dense development. I explored the area about a year ago and was pleasantly surprised especially considering it is exurban and very car oriented.
Then there's the huge Villebois under construction, its being built in phases. http://www.villebois.net/image_file/site_map.gif I believe the Village Center is now under construction... Village Center Villebois’ Village Center will be a bustling village center with townhomes, loft-style condominiums, urban apartments, shops and restaurants. At the heart of the village center there will be an inviting plaza lined with shops, sidewalk cafes and balconies from the homes above. Architecture in the village center complements the design of Villebois’ homes. Following are the conceptual designs of the first rowhomes planned for the Village Center: Les Bois Rowhomes and The Seville Rows. |
Out of curiosity, does anyone know how well this project is doing? If it's doing well, is there any reaon to not expect additional villebois-es elsewhere? (What does Villebois mean, anyway? Village of... bois?)
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I don't know how well they are doing but about this time last year I heard that at least half of the sales were from "investors" hoping to flip for a profit. It would be interesting to know how things are going now. Most of the investors were from Marshall Reddick seminars in California.
http://www.marshallreddickseminars.com a critique of what they are really about is here http://www.johntreed.com/Reedgururat...l#anchor535653 |
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You probably wont see many large scale projects like this. Possibly something similiar in Damascus, but the UGB limits large tracks of land available for these type of mega-developments. Villebois is being built where the an old mental hospital used to be (the one in the movie One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest). Since the hospital closed decades ago, the land has sat mostly vacant. |
Villebois, French for “village near the woods,” is a 500-acre master planned community near
Wilsonville, Ore. featuring elements reminiscent of European villages and small U.S. towns built before World War II and the proliferation of suburban sprawl. The planning for this 2,500 home community is based on the tenants of connectivity, diversity and sustainability. |
However, at 500 acres, it's not very dense: 5 units/acre. Even considering that half the site is open space, it's still only about 10 units/acre. I had higher hopes for it. =(
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It still seems like a pretty cool development...better than most and sorta europeanesque, just without the density that europe has. If anyone wants to see bad, low density developments head 50 miles south to salem and you'll see great examples....
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^^^^
Regarding the Villebois map.... notice there are only 2 cul-de-sacs in the whole development, compared to the existing development directly to the south. :tup: |
(Just a belated thanks to the people who answered my questions)
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The Cove work to start next year
Housing - Oregon City has high hopes for the complex development project Wednesday, April 18, 2007 STEVE MAYES The Oregonian OREGON CITY -- Developers of a high-end residential project that will bring new life to an old industrial area expect to start work next year. The 103-acre site includes Clackamette Cove, a city-owned lagoon that serves as the development's centerpiece. An office building, two restaurants, 86 townhouses, and 180 condominiums will be built along the shore. The Cove "will be a spectacular place to live," said Ed Darrow of Pacific Property Search, the project's developer. "It will be an enclave unto itself." City officials see The Cove as a showcase, a project that could revamp Oregon City's mill-town reputation and persuade other developers to take a look at the historic riverfront community. The site, just north of downtown Oregon City, borders the Clackamas River close to where it merges with the Willamette River. The project includes a private marina and a public boat dock. About 85 percent of the area, including the lagoon, will be open space or parks. Darrow and his partner, Randy Tyler, are finalizing their financial plan and will meet with city planners next week to discuss land-use issues. "This isn't a standard project," Darrow said. "There are extraordinary costs." For example, the land is in a flood plain. About 250,000 cubic yards of dirt will be moved around the site to fill in low areas. The lay of the land will affect the design of roads, building foundations and parking areas, Darrow said. The lagoon also is bordered by a shopping center and a wastewater treatment plant. Darrow said landscaping, building design and improvements at the wastewater plant will offset concerns about the unsightly or unpleasant neighbors. Darrow and Tyler are no strangers to complex real estate ventures. They developed similar projects on Portland-area industrial sites: Oswego Pointe in Lake Oswego and Tidewater Cove in Vancouver. Oregon City owns about 75 percent of the property -- once occupied by an asphalt plant and a gravel-mining operation -- needed for the project. The city will sell its property to Darrow and Tyler. It's possible that the price will be less than the $2 million the city paid in 1998 when it bought most of the land, said City Manager Larry Patterson. Property taxes generated by The Cove eventually will outweigh any public subsidies, Patterson said. Mayor Alice Norris said The Cove will help change the way outsiders view the town. "It's a symbol of the opportunities that are coming to Oregon City," Norris said. "It's our time." Steve Mayes: 503-294-5916; stevemayes@news.oregonian.com http://www.oregonlive.com/metrosouth...020.xml&coll=7 |
Oregon City struggles with growth, identity
Daily Journal of Commerce by Kennedy Smith 05/23/2007 It’s a half-an-hour drive south through Milwaukie, Clackamas and Gladstone to reach Oregon City, by most accounts a small town. Its quaint downtown has a lazy-Sunday feel, with the occasional passer-by waving to his neighbor. But the 163-year-old city with a population of just under 27,000 is attempting to update its sense of place with two major projects, a retail-oriented lifestyle center and a mixed-use waterfront project complete with condos, town homes, restaurants and office space. The lifestyle center, in the hands of Bridgeport Village-maker CenterCal Properties, is on the “fast track” to being developed at the site of the former Rossman Landfill, Larry Patterson, city manager, said. Called The Rivers at Oregon City, the lifestyle center will sit right off of Interstate 205 and include large-format retailers as well as office space and some residential units. The second major project is a high-end residential, commercial, retail and open-spaces development on 103 acres along the confluence of the Willamette and Clackamas rivers. Pacific Property Search, the power behind Lake Oswego’s Oswego Pointe mixed-use development, has submitted pre-application documents and plans to go ahead with a waterfront development that would comprise 180 condominiums in six four-story buildings, 86 town homes, a public amphitheater, an 18-foot-wide esplanade for public use, 58,000 square feet of office space and two restaurants. Called The Cove, the development is expected to cost between $120 million and $130 million, Ed Darrow, principal of Pacific Property Search, said. And although the development would include some of the same elements as Oswego Pointe, the developer went through more than a year of planning and 15 public meetings to ensure the development would be built with an Oregon City stamp. “This is a new representation of where the city is headed,” he said. “Our initial position with the city was, let’s do a first concept and then meet with entities that have a stake in this. When you do projects of this size, if you don’t understand that you need to work through those bodies and incorporate their thoughts into the design, you shouldn’t be in the business.” So far, residents have taken kindly to the proposed developments, Patterson said. Patterson said Oregon City’s ultimate goal is to create more than $500 million worth of assessed value within the city. “If that happens, we’d see more development that would stretch into the downtown core,” he said. Inviting new development while keeping a sense of place is a challenge that many smaller communities surrounding Portland face, David Bragdon, president of regional government Metro, said. “Oregon City has assets in its historic architecture,” he said. “It will help if they can preserve that as the place grows.” But the city is taking a risk by pushing for a lifestyle retail center, he said, which “do end up looking generic after a while.” The most important step to take, Patterson said, once the new developments take place, is to build a community – through public amenities and citywide events – around them. Oregon City is in the process of amending its urban renewal plan, acquiring properties in and around the downtown core, as it prepares for growth, Patterson said. The city has been buying up lots peppered throughout the city that it could use as parking in the future. Oregon City’s population grows about 6.25 percent per year, he said. The city’s current urban renewal plan has a maximum debt of $29 million, but already $17 million has been used, Patterson said. The amendments would allow Oregon City to extend its debt limits. http://www.djc-or.com/viewStory.cfm?...29462&userID=1 |
Lake O | Riverview Condos | x | 7 floors | proposed (with great opposition)
LO’s Old Town faces age-old question: To build or not to build
Condo project has stirred the ire of area neighbors By Lee van der Voo The Lake Oswego Review, May 8, 2008 Here’s the existing hillside below Furnance Street where a seven-story condominum unit is proposed. A development idea proposed in Old Town could plant seven stories of condominiums on the hillside between Furnace Street and the Willamette River, but residents there say they plan to stop it. On the table is a proposal made by developer John Tercek, who wants to demolish a single-family house at 397 Furnace St. to build the Riverview condominiums. Tercek has not made a formal application to the city to build the project yet. But plans for the Riverview condominiums were introduced in pre-application meetings with both the city and the neighborhood in April. As proposed, the condo’s façade would stand two stories tall and front Furnace Street. But the backside of the development would span another five stories, sloping down the hillside in tiers of windows, capturing views of the Willamette River. The 10 condominiums inside would range from 2,500 to 3,800 square feet and a ground-floor garage would offer 17 parking spaces inside the building. Each unit is projected to sell at approximately $1.5 million, Tercek said. Old Town residents are balking at the idea. They say the proposal compromises the neighborhood’s historic character and doesn’t adhere to a city plan designed to protect it. The Old Town Design District, adopted as part of the city’s comprehensive plan, calls for preservation of the area’s village-like character. It also requires protection and privacy for single family homes and compatibility between new and old developments. In letters sent to the Lake Oswego Planning Department last month, more than a dozen Old Town residents pointed to the design district plan and urged the city to scale down the Riverview proposal. They have formed a committee called the 397 Group, named for the project address, to formally oppose the plan. “We have not, as a group, said what our bottom line is yet. We’re not that far. But what we see here is unacceptable,” said Jeannie McGuire, a former president of the Old Town Neighborhood Association and a member of the 397 Group. “For now we just want the city to be aware that this is a slippery slope. If this goes through, this could happen to all the properties (on Furnace Street) as they change hands,” McGuire said. Tercek said he and partners were meeting Wednesday to discuss how to address neighborhood opposition. “We’re working very hard to make it work,” he said. “I want to make the neighbors happy but I also know people are opposed to change. All I can do is combine all the variables I’m up against” such as height and parking requirements, Tercek said. Zoning along Furnace Street and other parts of Old Town currently allows for multi-family dwellings like the one proposed. But for many, the Riverview proposal is a test case for where the city will draw the line on neighborhood density as infill boosts Old Town’s population. Related issues like tree preservation, wildlife habitat, parking and traffic are also being watched. “It’s disturbing to us because there are other properties along the riverfront there that could become available and all of a sudden Furnace Street is going to depart from the character that was given to it … and it’s going to become a thoroughfare,” said Dick Reamer, chair of the 397 Group and vice chair of the Old Town Neighborhood Association. Tercek agrees city officials must make the call on how much density Old Town can add. He said zoning currently allows high density despite strong opposition from the neighborhood. “The city has to decide where that lies,” he said. Records show that a second developer once backed down from a high density proposal on the same site because of neighborhood opposition. Pacific Property Search, LLC, registered to Edward Darrow, proposed a 10-unit condo complex at 397 Furnace St. after buying the single-family home there for $1.2 million in 2006. Pacific pitched the 10-unit condo idea for more than a year without success. In the interim, the company sold the property to the city of Lake Oswego so officials could take a chunk for a riverfront pathway. Pacific retained a development option for more than a year, then bought the land back. Instead of moving forward with development plans, the company sold the land to Tercek’s Riverview Holdings, taking a $400,000 profit. Tercek said Pacific Property never disclosed that neighborhood pressures caused the company not to build. City officials now have the latitude to determine how densely the lot will develop. In city documents, planners note the height of the Riverview condominiums, as proposed, is almost 20 feet above the 50-foot height limit for the building. They also note the land is part of a conservation zone that protects natural lands along the Willamette River and that the property has significant landslide potential and is partially located in a flood plain. |
Clackamas County to experiment with going denser.
I am surprised this hasnt been posted yet.
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It has
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Here...
http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/show...=83367&page=89 But this is a better forum to discuss suburban happenings. |
That makes sense, I hate it when the Oregonian does the same article more than once on their website and it has different dates on it. They should have the original date that the original article was posted.
Anyway, this is probably something that does deserve its own thread in the future when potential projects begin to happen. The PSU architecture department should jump on this for a studio project...it would be interesting to see what students could come up with and could be a good way to get the ball rolling with ideas during a down economy. |
Besides the land adjacent to the stations...are they referring to redeveloping the massive parking lots which they deem as being underused to denser projects? That would be interesting if so.
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