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GBD Architects hit the right combination of historical reverence and architectural beauty in its proposal for two seven-story buildings in the South Waterfront District, according to the Portland Design Commission.

Commissioners on Thursday praised GBD’s design for blocks 42 and 45, calling it a significant architectural asset to the area before approving the proposal with a 4-0 vote. Commissioner David Wark abstained.

鈥淣ow when we see anything else,鈥� Commission Vice Chairman Tad Savinar said, 鈥淚 am going to say, 鈥楾ake a look at Block 42/45,’ because they are excellent examples of how you can build in this economy, and with these sites, to do something that is extraordinary.鈥�

Cairn Pacific is developing the project for owner Prometheus Real Estate Group. Block 42 will have close to 200 market-rate apartments and Block 45 will have around 315. Each building will have approximately 14,000 square feet of retail space.

The development site is bordered by Southwest Lane Street on the north, Southwest Bond Avenue on the west, Southwest River Parkway on the east and Southwest Lowell Street on the south.

The two buildings were designed to reflect the area’s history of use by the shipbuilding and lumber industries. For Block 42, designers tried to give the appearance of wood stacks as they might have appeared in the early 1900s.

鈥淲e are excited about the rich character that (the building) creates along the street,鈥� said Tye Bailey, an associate with GBD Architects. 鈥淟ooking at lumberyards, you have the stacks oriented in all these different variations. So we applied that logic to the facade in a way that creates an alternating rhythm of texture and light and shadow around the building.鈥�

Designers took advice from a previous hearing and reworked the live-work units and the retail space to create a larger shopping zone in the northwest corner. They also reconfigured a plaza to create more community space.

The end result left commissioners with little to criticize.

鈥淚t’s just what it needs to be a proud building,鈥� Savinar said. 鈥淣o tricks, just architecture.鈥�

Design Commission Chairwoman Julie Livingston was equally complimentary.

鈥淭he changes that you’ve made, while pretty subtle, really have turned this from a strong building with a big idea into an extraordinary building with a big idea,鈥� she said.

Commissioners were nearly as complimentary of the Block 45 design. The concept aims to pay homage to the waterfront’s shipbuilding legacy.

鈥淲e tried to make the three buildings look like ships,鈥� said Ashley Koger, an associate with GBD Architects.

The main issues commissioners had with the plans were the lack of canopies on the ground floor and placement of balconies on the east and west ends of the buildings.

Though the balconies became glass juliets and another foot was added to the recess for the retail space, in place of canopies, it wasn’t enough to win Wark’s vote even though he was complimentary of the design overall.

鈥淭he canopies are the thing for me,鈥� he said. 鈥淚 think these are exemplary projects in many ways. The projects will set a new level of quality for the South Waterfront with the exception of canopies.鈥�

The lack of canopies wasn’t enough to dissuade other commissioners though.

鈥淵ou have done a great job,鈥� Livingston said. 鈥淏oth of these buildings are great additions to South Waterfront.鈥�

Other projects addressed by the Design Commission on Thursday included:

Multifamily building

An appeal by the Cathedral Park Neighborhood Association of Type II approval of SERA Architects‘ design for a five-story market-rate apartment building at 6620 N. Richmond St. was put on hold for three weeks. An attorney for the Union Pacific Railroad had requested the record be held open. The appeal will resume on Sept. 28. The project owner/developer is Ben Wood of North Crawford Partners/Mainland North Richmond LLC.

Mixed-use building

The Design Commission sent plans for a six-story mixed-use building at 1732 N.E. Second Ave., in the Eliot neighborhood, back to the design team for revisions. Works Progress Architecture is designing the project for developer Parker McNulty of ENT Ventures VI LLC. The project will return before the commission on Oct. 5.

Also on Thursday:

City Council finalizes two decisions

The Portland City Council issued final decisions on two appeals stemming from Design Commission decisions.

Commissioners unanimously overturned the Design Commission’s denial of developer Landon Crowell’s proposal to build a 17-unit, L-shaped building at 1122 S.E. Ankeny St. Development of a proposed 70-foot apartment building, around a single-family residence, will be allowed to go forward.

Commissioners also unanimously rejected an appeal by neighbors of the Design Commission’s approval of the massive Press Blocks project on 1.5 blocks in Goose Hollow. The Goose Hollow Foothills League opposes the three-building project from developers Urban Renaissance Group and Security Properties.

The decisions were expected after previous City Council hearings. Commissioners Nick Fish and Dan Saltzman were absent from the meeting, which lasted fewer than five minutes. 鈥� Chuck Slothower