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The Portland Design Commission approved all three of the projects it reviewed on Thursday.

The proposal for an 11-story mixed-use building at 1500 S.W. Taylor St. received much of the commission’s attention. Eventually, commissioners followed the staff’s recommendation and voted 6-0 鈥� Tad Savinar abstained 鈥� to approve it.

Many of the revisions made came from the Design Commission’s earlier recommendations, according to SERA Architects principal Kurt Schultz. The firm’s final design calls for 151 residential units and ground-floor retail space.

鈥淲e went for a minimalist look with simple frames,鈥� he said. 鈥淲e think the building was improved a lot. We are happy.鈥�

Much of the discussion among the commissioners focused on the ground floor and whether shadow boxes were appropriate for the building. Some said they believe that some of the structures should be made smaller while others said they would be fine as proposed.

鈥淭he revisions you have made on the ground floor to kind of open it up and make more sense along the streetscape are fantastic,鈥� Commissioner Julie Livingston said.

Commissioners discussed the use of ground-floor benches and whether they were positive elements. Some said that people sleeping on benches under balconies could become an issue.

Commission Chairman David Wark said the benches in combination with balconies would help to bring people outside. He credited the design with helping make the building’s exterior friendlier to outdoor activities.

鈥淚t’s not often that we have an outdoor porch in the city,鈥� he said. 鈥淭he balconies were good.鈥�

The minor concerns expressed by commissioners were not enough to block approval. However, two conditions were added.

The first condition was to move the north wall of the shadow box of the east fa莽ade one base out. The second was to eliminate the middle infield panels of the south and west elevations and continue the building’s grid pattern.

One of the biggest discussions of the night focused on similarities between this project on Southwest Taylor Street and others in Portland designed by SERA Architects.

鈥淭here are two cases that earn a discussion,鈥� Savinar said. 鈥淭here is duplication with this designer.鈥�

He stated that too many buildings are based on similar-looking grid designs. The Modera Glisan project at 505 N.W. 14th Ave., for example, features a similar design concept, he said. That building was also designed by SERA Architects and gained approved later on Thursday.

鈥淲e may approve two buildings that are virtually the same within two blocks,鈥� Savinar said. 鈥淚f we accept both of these, are we just going to keep accepting them?鈥�

Wark said the building on Southwest Taylor Street has more going for it than just a grid.

鈥淭his isn’t just some dumb grid,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 think this is one of your better buildings.鈥�

Some commissioners said the discussion of possible design duplication should take place at another time, and that more investigation is needed.

鈥淢aybe we need to look at how pervasive this (design) scheme is,鈥� Livingston said.

Also on Thursday:

Modera Glisan

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The Design Commission voted 5-0 鈥� Savinar abstained and Sam Rodriguez excused himself 鈥� to approve SERA Architects’ revised design of the Modera Glisan project at 505 N.W. 14th Ave. Mill Creek Residential Trust is planning a 12-story, three-quarters-block mixed-use building with 291 residential units.

The commission did attach conditions, including changes to a courtyard wall. It also asked for changes to a fence on the east side near a fire station, a lighter-color brick on the body of the building and a different color of metal panel on the body of the building.

The major discussions included concerns about traffic, grid elevation and the layout of the inner courtyard. In the end, however, no concern was significant enough to derail approval.

Modera Buckman

The Design Commission voted 6-0 鈥� Rodriguez excused himself 鈥� in favor of following the staff recommendation to approve the Modera Buckman project at 909 S.E. 12th Ave. Mill Creek Residential Trust is planning a seven-story mixed-use building with 189 residential units and 9,860 square feet of ground-floor retail space.

The one condition that commissioners requested is that designer Leeb Architects make changes to the concrete along both street frontages.

Design overlay zones

The Design Commission spent two hours learning about the progress of the . The city is looking at ways to streamline the design process for Portland buildings. Among some of the ideas discussed were adjusting the thresholds for triggering a design review.

Commissioners also discussed ways to improve the process with better management of meetings.

Feedback from the public is through Feb. 17.