South Waterfront News

[sowat]

I filed a noise complaint with the city today, and encourage anyone else in the area to do so too. (I wasn't the only one who filed a noise complaint today either) It's not that I am against progress, the Mirabella, or Hoffman construction, but to actually try help Hoffman alleviate some of this excess noise.

Hoffman said they asked for permission from the city to use part of the empty south waterfront park block, or block 33 to store construction material and the city said no. There might be good reason for this, such as the streetcar, only they know. But perhaps if enough people complain, the city will be more willing to let Hoffman use a staging and storage site much closer to the Mirabella site so they don't have to shuttle it all the way from blocks 41 & 44.

We put up with months and months of plate and pile driving, but an endless parade of these noisy Gehl http://www.gehl.com/const/prod_th.html Telescopic Handlers terrorizing South Waterfront 6 days a week is unbearable.

To lodge a noise complaint talk to the friendly people at 503 823-7350
(you will have to give them your name, address & tel)

[65MAX]

Not to sound unsympathetic, sowat, but you bought a condo there knowing you'd be completely surrounded by construction for several years.... at least. That's kinda like buying a house near the freeway, then complaining about the constant traffic noise.

[sowat]

that was short lived...

Lucier shuts its doors
http://www.oregonlive.com/entertainm...its_doors.html

Lucier is closing on Saturday, according to manager Donny Sullivan.

The restaurant made a bold gamble last spring to create a destination restaurant on the South Waterfront. "We want this to be the ultimate dining destination in Portland," co-owner Chris Dussin told The Oregonian last spring. But the high-priced restaurant never caught on. Reviews in Willamette Week, Portland Monthly and, last Friday, The Oregonian criticized the food and the prices the restaurant demanded.

And the economic downturn didn't help. Co-owner Chris Dussin told Willamette Week that he hopes to re-open Lucier next spring or summer, and he is evaluating the menu approach.

Lucier is located at 1910 S.W. River Drive, 503-227-7300.

[Tim the Enchanter]

I had no idea there was a restaurant down there.

Have convince stores made it down to the south waterfront yet?

[dkealoha]

Originally Posted by Tim the Enchanter

I had no idea there was a restaurant down there.

Have convince stores made it down to the south waterfront yet?

Yes there is one convenience store down here and two other restaurants besides Old Spaghetti Factory. Funny that Riverplace is now known as part of the south waterfront. I'm kind of sad I didn't have a chance to make it to Lucier...

If someone has a good view of the Ardea tonight and has a camera that takes good nighttime photos, they put up a big star on the penthouse decks and there is a 24th floor apartment lit up all red and green. Wasn't able to get a good pic to upload...

[dkealoha]

Found this on Flickr from mm767cap:



The ReDirect Guide company was having a party up there tonight I guess.

[nobody]

Great picture!

[Tim the Enchanter]

The south waterfront can probably only support one convenience store at this point anyway.

How big was the Lucier?

[Rhome]

Re: Lucier

Went there a few months ago. Reminded me of Picasso's at the Belagio Hotel -- exquisitely prepared food in laughably small portions. The food was great, and the surroundings were very high class to match the prices. Presentation was everything, but it was a little over the top. There was a point in time where the number of serving staff at our table outnumbered my wife and I by a 3:1 margin. The word that came to mind is "obsequious." I felt a little uncomfortable at the attention, but at the same time appreciated the effort and was hoping that Portland would keep such a high class restaurant. Best of luck on its return.

[pdxcrow]

I thought Lucier was insultingly expensive.

I mean, I'm all for nice, classy restaurants. Look at Blue Hour, its expensive, draws the occasional protester, and still one of the best restaurants in Portland.

There's a fine line between expensive and absurd. They unfortunately were absurd.

[cronked]

What we need is a good pub in South Waterfront. We really need a casual place to hang out and have a drink with cheap bar food. Le Hana and Bambuza serve drinks and those are both great places to eat but a pub would round out the options nicely down there. There is certainly plenty of retail space available!

[Joeplayer19]

was it a kitchen nightmare?

[Port-of-Lands]

I definitely agree that this district needs some sort of a pub. What is really needed is something to pull people in on a Sunday. Right now the district is basically the work commute during 7 and 5. The best way to do this would be with an "event" store. Something many of us in Portland would go out of our way to visit. A store that merits a trip by itself. I am thinking of something like an REI.

But what SoWa really needs is to be integrated into the city with some office buildings, apartments and some government buildings. If the city is truly committed to this district they should put a large city office in a future office building. Without that sort of influx of people into a location this district will always feel like a strange suburb in the city.

My dream building (beyond something to draw people to SoWa) is a real anchoring location. Maybe something at block 42 or 45 that has what REAL neighborhoods wants. A building who's bottom floor has a Safeway, a bank and hey maybe a McMenamins Theater like the Mission Theater or something like the Bridgeport Brewery. And maybe this building could be a 10+ story BRICK building. Something to contrast the drab glass towers that are here right now. Something that has character and looks "real".

[MarkDaMan]

^with a new Vestas building(s), the district will see a huge shot in the arm.

I'm thinking a New Seasons, H&M, local brewery, and maybe a small Powells outlet (or other bookstore) could add much vitality to the area...and PLEASE, think outside the box. No more brick ten stories in Portland. We need to break out of the Pearl style, even in the Pearl. A ten story modern building, breaking away from the glassy towers, would be a welcome change.

[65MAX]

Brick is fine as long as you use it in a modern context, especially in this area. SoWa is not even 5 years old, so don't try to get all faux-historical. If there was ever a place in Portland to push the envelope, it's here.

[Port-of-Lands]

Any new pictures or word on how this project is coming along? Any possible tenants for the ground floor retail yet?

[dkealoha]

Originally Posted by Port-of-Lands

Any new pictures or word on how this project is coming along? Any possible tenants for the ground floor retail yet?

I'll upload a pic tonight. Still just foundation work though. Some support columns for the parking garage are starting on the SW corner.

[dkealoha]

[dkealoha]

Pictures from 12/14/08 snow:

[cronked]

Thanks for the pictures, as always!

My wife and I were watching the cars slip and slide down a hill going out of South Waterfront. I taped some of it, sped it up and put it to music. Enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CXFZMGddENA