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I’ve sat through my fair share of Portland Design Commission meetings. If I were to describe them in a word, it would be “long.”

At the most recent meeting I attended, the commission even started using a timer to keep project presentations by architects and developers to 20 minutes.

But it’s not just the meetings. The backlog of projects waiting to go before the commission is long too, according to city planners.

Portland Urban Design Panel members want to help alleviate this by becoming intermediary advisers in the design review process. The panel includes representatives of the American Institute of Architects, the American Planning Association and the American Society of Landscape Architects. The group aims to enhance the quality of Portland’s urban environment and support efforts by city staffers and the Design Commission to raise design awareness.

At a recent Design Commission meeting, panel members told commissioners they’d like to serve as a voluntary resource to architects seeking early feedback on their designs. This would help identify problems that could potentially drag out the city design review process, panel member Paddy Tillett, a ZGF Architects principal, told the commission.

“It could save a lot of time if we can get those issues out of the way right away,” he said.

Too often, by the time a project goes before the Design Commission it’s so far along that it can be set back if architects have to make extensive revisions, said panel member Bob Boileau, a Myhre Group Architects principal.

“Seeing the projects sooner, we’re untangling the mess that’s happening,” he told the commission. “If it happens sooner, we think changes will be a lot easier.”

Design commissioners were intrigued by the idea.

“I really appreciate you putting something together that can help us; that’s really fantastic,” Commissioner David Keltner said. “More touches early are great. I think that’s a big problem. There’s a big time lag. We’re limited by the number of projects we can handle. That’s why it takes so much time.”

Commission Chairwoman Guenevere Millius agreed.

“I see the value of getting more eyes on projects,” she said. “This could be a breeding ground for future (design) commissioners. I think we need to have a bigger conversation on how we engage more people in Portland in design review.”