The Sutton (Fremont Place) | 185'-0" | 17 Floors | Complete

[innovativethinking]

Originally Posted by AcmeGreg

Can someone explain to me why the North Pearl and South Waterfront seem to be stealing each other's zeitgeist? Cosmopolitan, NV, Vista and now this project all seem better suited for SW, at least as originally envisioned. Remember? Why, it was going to become a veritable forest of towers! A mini-Vancouver of sorts. Post-recession it's nothing but a sea of 8-storey apartment warehouses down there while the Pearl continues to go tall(er). What's up (or not) with that?

I don't get either although my theory is SW isn't as desirable as planners envisioned since it's so closed off by the freeway.

[mmeade]

Originally Posted by AcmeGreg

Can someone explain to me why the North Pearl and South Waterfront seem to be stealing each other's zeitgeist? Cosmopolitan, NV, Vista and now this project all seem better suited for SW, at least as originally envisioned. Remember? Why, it was going to become a veritable forest of towers! A mini-Vancouver of sorts. Post-recession it's nothing but a sea of 8-storey apartment warehouses down there while the Pearl continues to go tall(er). What's up (or not) with that?

Honestly, I think that it has a lot to do with who owns the land. Hoyt owned many blocks in the North Pearl and built on those lots when the time was right. They built buildings, but those buildings varied in scale due to current market conditions.
http://hoytliving.com/sales/hoyt-bui...-developments/
They saved some of the best blocks for the best buildings. Only recently did they build the Cosmo, Block 17, and Vista. Hoyt has held those blocks for ages.

A lot of the blocks down in South Waterfront were purchased by developers that didn't necessarily have the ability/will to wait until the perfect time to build on those lots. The best way to get their money out of those blocks is to build a 5 over 1 and start pulling income.

It all comes down to who is willing to play the long game vs. the short game. Developing is all about taking managed risks.

[MarkDaMan]

Originally Posted by AcmeGreg

Can someone explain to me why the North Pearl and South Waterfront seem to be stealing each other's zeitgeist? Cosmopolitan, NV, Vista and now this project all seem better suited for SW, at least as originally envisioned. Remember? Why, it was going to become a veritable forest of towers! A mini-Vancouver of sorts. Post-recession it's nothing but a sea of 8-storey apartment warehouses down there while the Pearl continues to go tall(er). What's up (or not) with that?

The ORIGINAL plan for the South Waterfront came about when Prometheus in the late 90s/early00s (whom has held their land for 20ish years now) wanted to build a lower-rise than Riverplace (pre-Strand) gated apartment community. Along with OHSU exploring options to move their campus to Hillsboro, the CoP planners were seeing the explosive early growth in the Pearl and were determined to recreate the success in the "North Macadam" district and keep Portland's largest employer in the city.

The plan was for a vast OHSU medical campus based around lower rise buildings 4 to 15 floors from the Marquam to the Old Spaghetti. To connect to the upper campus there were two main options, from what I remember. A tunnel with moving walkways to elevators and a tram.

During the frothy condo craze...that crashed the housing market years later...the main developers, Gerding and Homer to name a few, decided to cash in, go bigger and bolder than originally planned and taller than anything built in the Pearl at that point. They lobbied the city to upzone the district which was highly contested by Lair Hill but eventually passed with some conditions which helped fund the Willamette path.

The market crashed, some developers turned over their point towers to the banks and condos were auctioned on the cheap. Others were turned into apartments.

The pre-crash South Waterfront dreams excited me too, however the district is turning out so much better than originally conceived, IMHO.

[ORNative]

Great summary Mark!

[urbanlife]

Originally Posted by MarkDaMan

The ORIGINAL plan for the South Waterfront came about when Prometheus in the late 90s/early00s (whom has held their land for 20ish years now) wanted to build a lower-rise than Riverplace (pre-Strand) gated apartment community. Along with OHSU exploring options to move their campus to Hillsboro, the CoP planners were seeing the explosive early growth in the Pearl and were determined to recreate the success in the "North Macadam" district and keep Portland's largest employer in the city.

The plan was for a vast OHSU medical campus based around lower rise buildings 4 to 15 floors from the Marquam to the Old Spaghetti. To connect to the upper campus there were two main options, from what I remember. A tunnel with moving walkways to elevators and a tram.

During the frothy condo craze...that crashed the housing market years later...the main developers, Gerding and Homer to name a few, decided to cash in, go bigger and bolder than originally planned and taller than anything built in the Pearl at that point. They lobbied the city to upzone the district which was highly contested by Lair Hill but eventually passed with some conditions which helped fund the Willamette path.

The market crashed, some developers turned over their point towers to the banks and condos were auctioned on the cheap. Others were turned into apartments.

The pre-crash South Waterfront dreams excited me too, however the district is turning out so much better than originally conceived, IMHO.

I have to agree, as this area builds out, it is actually starting to feel like a real urban neighborhood. I personally am okay with the stubby buildings as long as they make the first floor full of retail spaces to help add to the street activity. I think in the coming years as we see the shipbuilding site developed and the OHSU Waterfront campus grow, this area is really going to feel like its own little city, much like how Lloyd District does.

[maccoinnich]

Now on Design Commission agenda for Sept 21st.

[maccoinnich]

Request for Response

[maccoinnich]

Notice of a Public Hearing

[maccoinnich]

Drawings [PDF - 33MB]

[maccoinnich]

Staff Report, which does not yet recommend approval, and Memo to the Commission.

[maccoinnich]

In which the NW Examiner can't even get the name of the firm designing the project correct.

Now you see it . . .
Young men take in view of Fremont Bridge from The Fields Park. INSET: General shape of a 17-story residential building awaiting approval.



From The Fields Park, the public has a panoramic view of the graceful Fremont Bridge angling over the Willamette River. But not for long.

That view would be largely blocked by a proposed 17-story residential tower, and little can be done to stop it or reduce its size.

“We’re harming the city by destroying these views,” Pearl District Neighborhood Association President Stan Penkin said. “I don’t like it.”

But Penkin conceded that fighting the project would be futile.

...continues at the NW Examiner.

[Tykendo]

C'mon now. These view people take it way too far. The Fremont, a practical freeway bridge, is not the Golden Gate.

[urbanlife]

I didn't know there was a Fremont observing bench in the Pearl.

[TowerPower]

It is a bit of a shame though - it's a great view now. Gradually Fields Park is getting hemmed in on all sides (it's already lost a lot of the afternoon sun it used to get). Such is life.

[maccoinnich]

Not that long ago there was a view of the Fremont Bridge from Tanner Springs Park. It's gone now and that's a little sad, but I also enjoy seeing the Cosmopolitan on the skyline.

To provide a permanent view of the bridge what the city should really do is create a public space at Centennial Mills, as was envisioned by Peter Walker's 1999 River District Park System Plan:



The city owns Centennial Mills, and the Pearl is certainly generating *a lot* of SDC revenue for Parks.

[maccoinnich]

Latest drawings [PDF - 150 MB]

[M Kass]

Originally Posted by maccoinnich

Latest drawings [PDF - 150 MB]

I just don't understand the lack of interactivity with the river with recent builds in SoWa and the Pearl. Perhaps if Centennial Mills ever gets redeveloped (fat chance), it will have more of a terraced approach that embraces the river and has better pedestrian interactivity? You guys tell me.

[innovativethinking]

Originally Posted by M Kass

I just don't understand the lack of interactivity with the river with recent builds in SoWa and the Pearl. Perhaps if Centennial Mills ever gets redeveloped (fat chance), it will have more of a terraced approach that embraces the river and has better pedestrian interactivity? You guys tell me.

I don’t think Portland really is big on the connectivity to the river like that. I know SoWa is trying to eventually with the future development but other than that it hasn’t really been Portland’s style to do that

[zilfondel]

Originally Posted by innovativethinking

I don’t think Portland really is big on the connectivity to the river like that. I know SoWa is trying to eventually with the future development but other than that it hasn’t really been Portland’s style to do that

The OMSI masterplan, Zidell masterplan and new beaches in SE and SW are thankfully reversing that trend!

[innovativethinking]

Originally Posted by zilfondel

The OMSI masterplan, Zidell masterplan and new beaches in SE and SW are thankfully reversing that trend!

Right. A lot of future development is. But in the past the city never utilized the river for whatever reason