Old Town/Chinatown News

[crow]

satyricon is one of those haunts that help push the alternate music scene in Portland - too bad, but the building was in pretty bad shape. I agree with you CAB, why tear a building down when there are empty lots all over the place. The city must own one or two them around town that they could entice development on, but I suspect it is really a money opportunity for the owners of Satyricon rather than good urban planning

[MR. Cosmopolitan]

Strange, this problem that Portland has with homeless people, accumulated in very poor areas of downtown right next to rich or very rich neihborhoods. It's something very unusual in the cities of continental Europe I've been in, but yet extremelly common in the cities of the Anglosaxon countries I've been in, USA, Canada and Britain.

[Eagle rock]

Does anyone have renderings of what will replace this building? If the existing building next door is any indication, it will not be inspiring architecture. How can the city keep letting historic buildings in Old Town be demolished? Is there any way to stop this and perhaps exchange that building for some parking lot where they could build their center?

[pdxtraveler]

Originally Posted by Eagle rock

Does anyone have renderings of what will replace this building? If the existing building next door is any indication, it will not be inspiring architecture. How can the city keep letting historic buildings in Old Town be demolished? Is there any way to stop this and perhaps exchange that building for some parking lot where they could build their center?

I feel horrible at the lose of these buildings as well. They are so much more interesting than the new ones IMO! But I also see the other side of the coin. These buildings are in horrible condition above the ground floor and would cost CONSIDERABLY more to bring back up to code than to build new. Especially in this economy this is something most companies can not and won't do. The city's hands are tied a lot of time, because if they give too big of breaks to developers people start yelling and screaming about wasting money on rich developers.

Still..I really wish they could be saved. There are several I really like, especially the one at 3rd and Davis (across from my normal barstool at the Rainbow Room) with the HORRIBLE light green paint job!

[cab]

Appeal to the bands that grew up playing at Satyricons. Most of the Seattle bands of the early 90's played Seattle and PDX at Satyricon. Saving this little dirty icon would be petty change for some of the bigger bands that came out of the grudge movement.

[MR. Cosmopolitan]

Nobody thinks that we should find a solution to this problem instead of housing it. I wouldn't mind to pay more taxes to help this people enter society and have a better more usefull life. I really feel ashame when I go outside and see so many people living like rats on the streets, eating garbage, sleeping outside, while there are so many people around them living the good times.
And regarding the building, do they really need to destroy it? why cant they just connect the upper floors to the existing building? they really need so much space?

[MarkDaMan]

Hung Far Low sign soon to be rehung
POSTED: Wednesday, August 18, 2010 at 10:39 AM PT
BY: Daniel Savickas
Daily Journal of Commerce

The Hung Far Low sign will hang once more in Portland’s Chinatown, with an unveiling of the sign at the First Thursday art event on Sept. 2.

The sign was taken down during a 2008-2009 renovation of the Hung Far Low building, located at Northwest Fourth Avenue and Couch Street, when an inspection of the building’s roof showed the sign’s support structure was deteriorating.

Some details about the unveiling are still up in the air, said Anne Mangan, spokeswoman for the Portland Development Commission, but owners of the restaurant Ping, which operates out of the ground floor of the Hung Far Low building, hope to have the street shut down for the occasion.

Mangan said the sign means a lot to anybody who grew up in Portland because it represents the history of the Chinatown.

“It’s something people have just always associated with downtown,” Mangan said. “People are so fond of it. It’s iconic.”

Portlanders rallied to bring the sign back to Chinatown and raised $8,600 toward the effort through T-shirt sales and other donations. The PDC put $45,000 in grant money toward restoring the sign.

The cost to rehang the sign, which is a two day process, is expected to to be $77,461. The sign will be hung prior to the Sept. 2 event, but it will be wrapped to hide the restoration work until its unveiling.

http://djcoregon.com/news/2010/08/18...to-be-re-hung/

[tworivers]

Anyone want to pool some money together?

Bids for U.S. Custom House disappointing so far
POSTED: Wednesday, August 25, 2010 at 12:12 PM PT
BY: Nathalie Weinstein
DJC

Three months have passed since the General Services Administration put the historic U.S. Custom House in Portland up for public auction. Only five people have bid on the building so far, according to GSA realty specialist Andrew Schwartz.

The GSA has posted a closing date for the auction - Sept. 21. The most recent bid for the building is $500,000. The suggested opening bid for the building, however, was $2.5 million. Located at 220 N.W. Eighth Ave. in Portland, the U.S. Custom House had trouble securing a tenant since the U.S. Army Corp of Engineers moved out of the building in 2004, prompting the GSA to put the building on the auction block in May.

“Selling the building at $500,000 would be left up to the GSA,” Schwartz said. “We’re hoping that by announcing the closing date there will be an impetus for increased bidding activity.”

The identities of the five people bidding on the building will be kept confidential until a sales contract has been signed, Schwartz said.

[puerco]

I hope they don't end up tearing it down. It's such a great building. I've seen it on "Leverage" a few times.

[NJD]

U.S. Customs House up for re-use, owned by the GSA.

U.S. Customs renovating a building in SoWa for use.

What?

[Shilo Rune 96]

8-29 iPhone shot:

[davehogan]

Originally Posted by NJD

U.S. Customs House up for re-use, owned by the GSA.

U.S. Customs renovating a building in SoWa for use.

What?

I've read elsewhere that it needs significant earthquake retrofits and stuff. Somewhere around $10 million worth.

[Okstate]

http://djcoregon.com/news/2010/09/01...be-demolished/


Former fast-food location to be demolished
POSTED: Wednesday, September 1, 2010 at 08:37 AM PT
BY: Nick Bjork
Tags: Gerding Edlen Development, SERA Architects, Walsh Construction

One of downtown Portland’s eyesores is about to be demolished.

During a Sept. 7 groundbreaking ceremony, the boarded-up former Burger King at the corner of Northwest Couch Street and Broadway will be demolished to make way for a new health clinic.

Central City Concern - a local nonprofit providing affordable housing, health, recovery and employment services - is planning to build a $19 million, 44,000-square-foot health clinic on the lot. The facility will be partially funded by $8.9 million in federal stimulus money.

The building will be attached to the organization’s Old Town Clinic, which is located right next to the proposed project. It will house Central City Concern’s 12th Avenue Clinic, a mental health facility now located at 412 S.W. 12th Ave.

Partners on the project include Wells Fargo bank, Oregon Facilities Authority, SERA Architects, Walsh Construction and Gerding Edlen Development Co.

The groundbreaking will take place on Tuesday, Sept. 7 at 11:45 a.m. Speakers will include Rep. David Wu, D-Portland, Multnomah County Commissioner Deborah Kafoury, Portland City Councilor Nick Fish and Wells Fargo Regional President Don Pearson.

[rsbear]

Originally Posted by Okstate

http://djcoregon.com/news/2010/09/01...be-demolished/


Former fast-food location to be demolished
POSTED: Wednesday, September 1, 2010 at 08:37 AM PT
BY: Nick Bjork
Tags: Gerding Edlen Development, SERA Architects, Walsh Construction

One of downtown Portland’s eyesores is about to be demolished.

During a Sept. 7 groundbreaking ceremony, the boarded-up former Burger King at the corner of Northwest Couch Street and Broadway will be demolished to make way for a new health clinic.

Central City Concern - a local nonprofit providing affordable housing, health, recovery and employment services - is planning to build a $19 million, 44,000-square-foot health clinic on the lot. The facility will be partially funded by $8.9 million in federal stimulus money.

The building will be attached to the organization’s Old Town Clinic, which is located right next to the proposed project. It will house Central City Concern’s 12th Avenue Clinic, a mental health facility now located at 412 S.W. 12th Ave.

Partners on the project include Wells Fargo bank, Oregon Facilities Authority, SERA Architects, Walsh Construction and Gerding Edlen Development Co.

The groundbreaking will take place on Tuesday, Sept. 7 at 11:45 a.m. Speakers will include Rep. David Wu, D-Portland, Multnomah County Commissioner Deborah Kafoury, Portland City Councilor Nick Fish and Wells Fargo Regional President Don Pearson.

Yea! Glad to see the BK building go.

[PDX City-State]

That's why this building is so tough. It needs a seismic upgrade for most occupancy levels, and the cost is indeed huge. Even if this building were to be donated, it would still require many millions just get it to code.

[eric cantona]

at $2.5m for the building/land, and $15-19m for seismic that amounts to around $200/sf for a beautiful, historic building in a central location on the park blocks? I know the economy sucks, but it seems like this could be an amazing deal for the right (deep-pocketed) developer. I'm sure there are other needs that would add to the bottom line, but it still seems like a reasonable to great deal. am I missing something?

[New Madrid]

Custom House Bidding hits 1.25 Million

[2oh1]

The auction has been extended a day. As of yesterday, the highest bid was up to $1.525 million, which is still nowhere near the $2.5 million suggested "opening bid." HHhhhmmmmmmm...

http://portland.bizjournals.com/port...0/daily24.html

[dkealoha]

Top bid hits $2.5 million
http://portland.bizjournals.com/port...04/daily3.html

[Shilo Rune 96]

The Macdonald Center, a Portland nonprofit providing housing to extremely poor residents of Old Town, on Tuesday announced plans to replace the West Hotel with a 42-unit apartment and outreach center. The $10 million project is slated to begin next spring.

The West Hotel, a 27-room hotel constructed in 1905, will be demolished in January.

The new Macdonald Center will consist of six floors with 42 apartments and an outreach and support center for the “forgotten poor." Construction begins in May and will take about a year to complete.

The Macdonald Center launched the initiative in 2008 when the West Hotel was put up for sale. The agency exercised a first-right-of-refusal and bought the property at 127 N.W. Sixth for $1.5 million.

The project is funded by $6.3 million in federal Low Income Housing Tax Credits, grants and a $200,000 pledge from Meyer Memorial Trust.

The fund raising campaign continues.

The Macdonald Center operates with a staff of 10 paid employees and volunteers. It reported $1.7 million in revenue in 2008, down from its 2006 peak of $1.92 million, on its 2008 990 report to the Internal Revenue Service.

It derives most of its revenue from fees for services. Its chief expense is compensation for board and staff.

LRS Architects is the project architect.



Re:
http://portland.bizjournals.com/port...4/daily18.html