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A proposal for a new six-story office building at Southwest 12th Avenue and Morrison Street will go before the Portland Design Commission for the first time this week, and developers are hoping for quick approval.

Menashe Properties is developing the project and a team from LRS Architects and Design Department Architecture is designing it. The building will replace an existing one-story retail building 鈥� on the quarter block at 1127-1139 S.W. Morrison St. 鈥� that is set to be demolished. Plans call for the new building to occupy the northeast corner of the 10,000-square-foot site.

The developer did not request design advice from the Design Commission prior to the hearing later this week. Although most project teams receive design advice from the commission prior to the hearing approval stage, others 鈥渟ometimes鈥� secure approval at their first appearance before the commission, city planner Grace Jeffreys said.

鈥淚 have recommended approval with the stipulation of three items needed to show the commission,鈥� she said. 鈥淭hey have to do with the fritted glass, lighting at higher exterior levels and covers for gas meters. It’s left in their hands to show the commission.鈥�

The building’s design calls for a full-height glazing system with a ceramic pattern printed within the glass that will reduce both interior glare and heat gain by 30 percent. According to the proposal filed with the city, exterior materials include an aluminum curtain wall with clear and fritted glass, aluminum composite panels, two-coat stucco party walks, painted metal accents, painted steel box-rib mechanical screening on the roof, tongue-and-groove ipe wood soffits at the first and sixth levels, and sealed architectural concrete bulkheads at sloped sidewalk edges.

The proposal includes upper-floor building projections of oriel windows up to four feet deep, outdoor terraces on the second through sixth floors, loading and service areas off of Southwest 12th Avenue and no provision for parking. Long-term bike parking is proposed at the ground level and the developer will pay into the city’s bike parking fund for short-term bike parking.

Monty Hill of LRS Architects said this is the first ground-up development for Menashe Properties, and the design reflects the downtown neighborhood’s history.

鈥淭he aesthetic expression blends well with the urban fabric scale and proportion and draws inspiration from the many historic modern buildings in Portland such as the Commonwealth Building, the Federal Reserve Building, Memorial Coliseum and many others,鈥� Hill said.

Designed by renowned architect Pietro Belluschi, the Commonwealth Building on Southwest Sixth Avenue was the first glass box tower in the country. It’s sheathed in aluminum with double-glazed window panels and fully air-conditioned.

鈥淎t the time Portland was a big producer of aluminum,鈥� Hill said. 鈥淭he developer feels that this (new project) is a perfect example of how using the city’s design guidelines helped to shape excellent design solutions.鈥�

The building will offer creative office space on floors two through six, ground-level retail space, a green eco-roof and long-term bike storage with lockers and showers.

CBRE Group was selected by Menashe Properties to handle leasing for the new building.