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One design team showed Thursday how an early request for advice from the Portland Design Commission can help a project sail through its eventual review hearing.

The commission voted 5-0 to give conditional approval to Hacker‘s plan to renovate Portland State University’s Neuberger Hall.

鈥淵ou really took to heart the comments we made about landscaping and circulation and everything,鈥� Commission Vice Chairman Tad Savinar said. 鈥淚t really shows. The jetty is exactly what the doctor ordered.鈥�

One of the biggest changes from the design advice hearing was the addition of seating jetties to landscaping around the building. Other aspects of the $70 million renovation include: replacement of the existing curtain wall on the building’s west side with new glazing; replacement of existing single-pane glazing on the east side with high-performance double-pane glazing; the addition of new entrances and increased glazing to the ground floor and exteriors; and new landscaping for areas north, west and south of the building.

Many of the changes from the previous design revolved around changes to the landscaping to make the building blend better with its surroundings on the Park Blocks.

While the comments and the hearing were largely positive, the commission did have issues to sort through during the two-hour hearing. The thorniest one revolved around a stairwell leading to an exit onto Southwest Broadway.

The renovation plan calls for leaving in place the stairwell, which is positioned so that an entryway is dark. That is a security concern because it creates a space hidden from public view where people could stand or try to break into the building.

鈥淟ighting is an issue,鈥� Commissioner David Wark said. 鈥淲e would never approve it for a new building.鈥�

The stairwell presented a problem for designers because it’s attached to walls that provide seismic strength. The entryway also provides a fire exit that must be kept clear.

The commission debated installation of a gate at the top of the stairwell, but clearance issues made that impractical and the commission decided any benefit would be minimal.

In the end, the commission settled for installation of high-intensity lighting with motion sensors to try to deter problems.

Another issue was the dark color that would result from a planned lime wash of the existing brick. Commissioners discussed a variety of possibilities, including use of different colors.

Commissioner Samuel Rodriguez said that he believed this issue had been dealt with in the previous hearing.

鈥淲e spent hours talking about this building,鈥� he said. 鈥淭hat was, in my mind, the time if we were going to ask them to preserve the brick, preserve the brick.

鈥淚f you change that brick, I think that whole thing falls apart,鈥� he added.

In the end, commissioners agreed to approve Hacker’s plan.

The commission also agreed with staff recommendations for added conditions concerning lighting in the stairwell, the color of the brick matching the one presented and maintaining the appearance of the seating jetties on the building’s park side.

Also on Thursday:

Block 290

After more than two years of design changes, the Design Commission voted 5-0 to approve plans for the Block 290 project at 1417 N.W. 20th Ave.

Guardian Real Estate Services‘ seven-story mixed-use building went through multiple design review hearings and was opposed by neighbors. They claimed LRS Architects‘ design didn’t fit with the Con-way master plan, which, in addition to city design guidelines, governs development in the area.

The Design Commission even created a subcommittee to work with developers to devise a plan that would, in the commission’s view, meet the master plan and city design guidelines.