Portland Infill | Southeast Portland

[asher519]

Thank you for the Gertrude Stein reference

[mcbaby]

if anyone finds renderings, please post them

[mcbaby]

Originally Posted by BrG

• 4 stories over parking (5 total on Belmont/ 4 levels on Morrison)
• 4 small independent retail spaces
• 123 units
• dark brick and wood panel facade
• large windows
• Belmont facade is broken up by two large setback courtyards
• most units have decks

No renders available as of yet.

how far has construction gotten?

[CouvScott]

[der Reisender]

Originally Posted by mcbaby

how far has construction gotten?

looked like they had just turned it into a big pile of dirt as of the past weekend

[mcbaby]

it seems out of scale for the neighborhood. i'm glad i don't live across the street anymore. seems like something they would plop down on queen anne in seattle.

[NJD]

I live in this neighborhood, and am glad to see this project u/c. The Morrison Lofts down a block from this site have been such a disappointment in sales and the finished product (the brick is nice, but the windows and such are cheap looking).

The only problem with this building is the lack of a pedestrian walkway through the site since the building is in the middle of a superblock that stretches for 2/3 of Lone Fir Cemetery. This stretch of Belmont and Morrison promotes speeding during most of the day and especially during peak hours since both streets are main neighborhood arterials.

[mcbaby]

on a similar post i suggested that they break up the building with pedestrian alleys in between. i also was hoping that there would be mention of it at the buckman neighborhood association but there is very little information or public input on this project and i lived literally across the street from there until just last month.

[BrG]

Mcbaby: That was looked at. It is a good design response that you suggest. Initial design schemes were based on 2 buildings, with a pass-though courtyard.

During initial studies, the "hole in the middle" got "filled in", so to speak. By doing that it meant one common corridor verses two, 1 elevator bank/ verses two, 4 lobbies per floor/ verses 2, etc. That all saves money for other construction expenses. Construction and land costs these days are challenging to say the least.

They chose to simplify the plans some, and spend the budget on the construction materials and exterior finishes. They chose to build it out of concrete, verses wood or steel framing. That costs more. Ditto exterior finishes. Brick/ Wood composite panel/ window wall, etc. No stucco or similar exterior materials planned for it anywhere.

With commercial and esidential development work, it's all about feasibility. Ya gotta walk into a commercial lending bank division, and ask for tens of millions of dollars to finance the construction of your idea, it and you better have the pro-forma numbers to back it up.

WDD was not the first developer to try to make something happen here. Others had studies done by multiple architects, and none were deemed financially feasible until the scheme that WDD is building, was decided upon.

Oh, and I know that WDD met with the Buckman Association representatives twice, to get feedback and opinions.

I'm happy they got something going at the old Tice site. Belmont is such a cool neighborhood.

[mcbaby]

thanks for the feed back. will be interesting to see how it turns out.

[BrG]

NP...

BTW, I posted this all reversed:

During initial studies, the "hole in the middle" got "filled in", so to speak. By doing that it meant one common corridor verses two, 1 elevator bank/ verses two, 4 lobbies per floor/ verses 2, etc. That all saves money for other construction expenses. Construction and land costs these days are challenging to say the least.

It should've read:

During initial studies, the "hole in the middle" got "filled in", so to speak. By doing that it meant one common corridor verses two, 1 elevator bank/ verses two, 2 lobbies per floor/ verses 4, etc. That all saves money for other construction expenses. Construction and land costs these days are challenging to say the least.

[BrG]

BTW, the crane should go up reasonably soon. IIRC, Hoffman crews are still prepping the site for the crane foundation.

[BrG]

http://www.wddcorp.com/projects/belmont.asp
http://www.amaa.com/portfolio/projec...Rmb2xpby8/IzE4

This rendering is a year old, based on the final concept, and the design is a bit different now. Examples: The courtyards were undesigned here, and the ground level has been revised considerably, for a myriad of reasons. The car entry is on the west end (instead of east), now. The window mullions have changed too.

As I said, new renderings are not yet available, but will be relatively soon.

[designpdx]

Originally Posted by BrG

BTW, the crane should go up reasonably soon. IIRC, Hoffman crews are still prepping the site for the crane foundation.

The crane went up yesterday. Saw it on my way home.

[zilfondel]

Russelville III

Currently a giant hole at 102nd and East Burnside, Russelville III will be the third phase of residential development adjacent to the 102nd Ave MAX Station. Comprising a full block 200' x 200' site, it will rise 3-4 stories, and features underground parking. The building will accomodate senior housing



Story from the Oregonian in August:

Gateway to Gateway takes a lower profile
Thursday, August 02, 2007
By Fred Leeson
Special to The Oregonian

Barely more than three years ago, the City Council expressed high hopes for the block bounded by Southeast 102nd and 103rd avenues between Burnside and Ankeny.

It had the potential, the city said, to become a gateway to the Gateway District. So the council gave it a zoning label that would allow a building height of 150 feet -- say, 12 or 13 stories.

What will come to this block, however, is a senior housing complex of three and four stories. And that's just fine, city and neighborhood officials say.

"Conditions for redevelopment are very difficult," says Justin Douglas, a project coordinator for the Portland Development Commission. He says incomes in the area are declining, and unpaved streets and a lack of parks discourage major developers.

The "gateway" block -- vacant except for a house that will be removed -- soon will become the third phase of Russellville, a development that began in 1999 after the Rembold Cos. bought what was then a vacant school site in 1995.

The latest, and final, phase will contain 139 units for senior residents, including 17 group-living units for seniors suffering from memory disabilities.

Four wings will frame a central courtyard. The Burnside and 103rd Avenue facades will be four-story, flat-roofed structures. The southern and western sides will have three stories topped with pitched roofs and gables.

Robert Moreland, a principal in MCM Architects, says a pedestrian link across 103rd will allow senior residents in Russellville II to use fitness and dining facilities in the new building.

While not as urban (read dense) as planners had once hoped, Moreland says the new block will help create a defined district within Gateway.

"The new development reflects a lot of the patterns and motifs of the existing development," he says. "We feel our neighborhood is developing a pedestrian feel, and what we are doing will be a continuation of that. We think it is a community that really works."

With a nod to the city's planning goals, the Burnside frontage has a more urban look, with its flat roof and a horizontal Art Moderne feel. Moreland's plan turns the corner at 102nd with a bold curve that will add visual interest before the pitched roofs march down the rest of 102nd.

The pitched roofs raised some eyebrows on the Portland Design Commission. But Linda Robinson, vice chair of the Hazelwood Neighborhood Association, says neighbors like the residential feel of the pitched roofs and gables.

"Some feel it might not be urban enough," she says of the plan, "but it's a big step from what's there now. It's really tough to put in big fancy new buildings when there's nothing there now."

Douglas of the PDC says the completion of Russellville has the potential to attract more development to the Gateway urban renewal area.

Wayne Rembold, head of the development team, says the first two phases filled slowly. He thinks the third phase will fill faster with seniors who already live in Southeast but who need assisted care.

Final approval of the plan is expected from the design commission later this month. Construction should begin soon thereafter. "We have our phase three financing, and we're ready to go," Rembold says.

Portland News: 503-221-8199; portland@news.oregonian.com

Planners ‘underwhelmed’ by Russellville III

LEE PERLMAN
THE MID-COUNTY MEMO

A rendering of the proposed building for Phase III of the Russellville Commons project, as submitted for design review and as provide by MCM Architects.
Submitted Graphic
Planners and architects from MCM Architects of Portland last month unveiled their proposals for the third phase of the Russellville Commons development, south of East Burnside Street and east of Southeast 102nd Avenue before the Portland Design Commission last month. Commission members declared themselves to be “underwhelmed” by what they saw.

Russellville was one of the first large multi-family developments in Gateway, responding to the call for higher density in the Outer Southeast Community Plan of 1996. Phase I of the project, completed in 1999, contained family apartments in structures that contained features such as balconies and gabled roofs, but were “not a typical suburban development,” in the words of architect Robert Moreland. The second phase, completed in 2003, was a senior housing structure east of a newly constructed Southeast 103rd Avenue.

In Phase III, the proposed addition, varying in height from two to three stories, will have 127 units, including a 17-unit “memory lane” assisted living complex for Alzheimer patients, built around an interior courtyard that includes a bocce ball court. The ground floor will contain 7,000 square feet of retail that will be “leased out to services that serve the Russellville Community,” Moreland said. For Phase III there will be bay windows in place of balconies, he said. Materials will be stucco and split faced blocks, with a curved, glass-fronted fitness center at the corner of 102nd and Burnside.

“I want all of Russellville to meld together as one unit, with design consistency,” Moreland told the Portland Design Commission at an informal Design Advisory session last month. They will have a covered walkway, or some other sort of connection, to link the new building to the rest of the development. They will be seeking to provide less than the required 15 percent landscaping, and several other zoning modifications, plus a possible street vacation for 103rd Avenue.

Large as the project is, by Gateway standards, it is considerably smaller than what the zoning would allow on the site. The land has a floor area ratio, or FAR, (a measure of allowed building square footage in relation to lot size) of eight to one, more than much of downtown, and a maximum height limit of 150 feet. Asked why the project was so much smaller than this Moreland said that a higher building would have required steel frame construction, in turn increasing the price the developers would then need to charge future tenants. “This area wouldn’t support really high rents,” he said.

Commission member Tim Eddy said, “I always felt that Phase I was quite distinctive, a really unique urban form that was interesting and quite successful. Phase II was less successful. Phase III is kind of a confused merging, with some other forms thrown in for good measure. The lack of density is a missed opportunity. This is an important crossroads that warrants an important building.” Referring to the Pearl District’s Jeffrey he said that it contained “a great deal of design clarity — what I’d hope for here. Gabled roofs are okay, but they need to be part of something bigger.”

Committee member Gwen Millius said the project had “a quality that’s different from anything else out there. I appreciate your effort to be more modern at the corners, but I have a problem with it.” The project needs to be urban, she said, and “urban isn’t necessarily tall.” A former officer of the Pearl District Neighborhood Association, she said that in that neighborhood, “There’s a quality of the materials and treatment that says, ‘I’m building something that’s going to be here for a long time.”

Committee member Jeff Stuhr told Moreland, “There’s not enough punch at the corners to make them work.” The distinctiveness of the glass fitness center is diminished by the fact that it’s only one story high, he said.

“This is somewhat underwhelming, especially for a gateway site,” commission chair Paul Schlesinger said. “I would like to see more, without knowing what ‘more’ is. I would like something more urban.”

The committee thanked Moreland for including underground parking, and Schlesinger liked the bocce ball court. Several called on him to dedicate some property, or do whatever else is necessary, to provide on-street parking on Burnside near the planned retail. “Without on-street parking I don’t see how you’ll have a successful ground-floor experience,” Eddy said. Noting that Memory Lane units will be at the ground floor he said, “Whether this is for people who have lost their memory or people like me who are losing it, it would not be a quality experience.”

Recalling his experience on an east Portland tour with the Portland Planning Commission last year, Schlesinger called for the preservation of existing mature trees on the lot. “They really do make a statement, but they’re becoming rarer and rarer,” he said.

Stuhr replied, “I hate to lose them, but we made a decision to make this part of town urban, and we will probably lose most of them. We may save one or two.”

Russellville is expected to request a second design advisory session before submitting a formal application for the project, although a date had not been set at press time.

[MarkDaMan]

Becoming another 23rd Ave?

Will Hawthorne's high cost spoil its flavor?
Thursday, April 03, 2008
Rebecca Koffman
The Oregonian

A flurry of business moves is reshaping Southeast Hawthorne Boulevard, and some say locally owned stores are being priced out.

Some businesses on the trendy shopping and dining street are thriving, but others have closed, moved to cheaper or smaller spaces, or teamed up with other vendors.

"Landlords are raising rents too high for local, independent businesses," says Blackie Partridge, co-owner of Home Ec, a housewares store at 3327 S.E. Hawthorne Blvd.

When his lease ended at the end of March, he says, his rent was going to jump from $1,500 to $2,600 a month. So after eight years on Hawthorne, he closed. His neighbor in the building, Bamboo Lifestyles, closed months ago.

"What building owners don't get," Partridge says, "is that Hawthorne is Hawthorne because of little businesses like us."

Michael Parrott, owner of Blue Butterfly Imports, moved to upper Hawthorne in November 2006 after 18 years in a prime spot at 37th Avenue now occupied by Peet's Coffee & Tea.

"The rent became ridiculous," Parrott says. But there's not as much foot traffic at his new location, near 41st Avenue. "We're dying up here in the dead zone."

At a strip mall near 41st with new owners, only one of five tenants is staying: Papa Murphy's Pizza. Meanwhile, Cat's Meow at 3538 S.E. Hawthorne Blvd. is remodeling and making room for two new vendors. And the Naked City clothing boutique has shrunk from two storefronts to one, at 3730 S.E. Hawthorne Blvd.

Big vacancies sit at 4026 S.E. Hawthorne Blvd., the site of the Daily Grind health-food and grocerystore; and at 3746 S.E. Hawthorne Blvd., the site of Nick's Famous Coney Island. Both were longtime landmarks, though the Daily Grind went under late last year because of declining sales while the owner of Nick's, Frank Nudo, happily sold his building this year and retired.

Karin Edwards, president of the Hawthorne Boulevard Business Association, agrees that high rents are a problem.

"We really don't want to become a victim of our own success," she says, adding that the association "would like to see rents rise slowly enough that businesses can keep up and not have to leave their locations."

Though emerging businesses used to be common, now they have to start on upper Hawthorne or somewhere else, she says. "These days, it is difficult to get a rental on central Hawthorne without an established business and a solid business plan."

Not all is bleak on the boulevard, though. Cup & Saucer Cafe, another Hawthorne institution, is expanding into a second storefront. Owner Karen Harding plans live music, expanded dinner service and local draft beer.

"I did really well 20 years ago, and I'm doing well now," she says.

Not all business failures have to do with rent, either, Harding says. "Sometimes they're not friendly, not smart, not trying to give people what they want. There's no one there who is really loving up the business."

Jackpot Records owner Isaac Slusarenko is thrilled with his bigger space next door to Cup & Saucer. He left a longtime space next to Nick's Famous Coney Island after rejecting a contract offered by the building's new owners.

Across the street, Bowers Bakery & Deli has been on Hawthorne for 23 years -- "since the days when it was the Wild West out here," says owner Dave Bowers. Bowers plans to sell or close by April 30 -- but not because of high rents. He's moving to Bend.

Carla Mink recently moved her boutique, Mink, from a tiny storefront on upper Hawthorne to a spot near 34th Avenue -- doubling her retail space and her rent. "It's totally worth it," she says. "We're doing great here."

Former employee Elsa Edens will open a store in Mink's old space, selling German and Scandinavian dishware. Edens is naming her first business for her grandparents: Elsa and Sam.

Portland News: 503-221-8199; portland@news.oregonian.com
http://www.oregonlive.com/portland/o...020.xml&coll=7

[ericb4prez]

hawthorne has always sucked. and it still does.

[NJD]

hawthorne has always sucked. and it still does.

I'm so glad the street my business has been on for 4 years and the neighborhood where I live and love is so appreciated by others.

Please post something other than drivel.

[alexjon]

What business? Do you serve tasty tasty food

[sopdx]

Hawthorne is still fine, that's bullshit, although it seemed to have missed a lot of the new restaurant scene that has grown up on Alberta, Mississippi and Division.

New Seasons is going in where that nasty Daily Grind was on upper Hawthorne. That will be a great addition.