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Context and massing are the two issues keeping TVA Architects‘ design for the Fremont Apartments from getting the go-ahead from the Portland Design Commission.

The commission couldn’t hold a final vote during聽a hearing Thursday because a revised city staff report hadn’t been prepared. The previous staff report on the project, planned at 1650 N.W. Naito Parkway, was issued in September and recommended the design be rejected.

Four commissioners were in attendance Thursday. Both Don Vallaster and Andrew Clarke indicated they would vote to approve the proposed design, but Chairwoman Julie Livingston indicated she would not. Only Jessica Molinar was unsure.

鈥淔or me, I am on the fence,鈥� she said. 鈥淚 feel like there must be a solution, but we haven’t seen it yet.鈥�

The sticking point is a portion inserted onto the eastern facade of the L-shaped structure facing the Willamette River. A push to maximize floor area ratio for developer Lincoln Property Company drove that portion of the design, according to Tim Wybenga, a TVA Architects principal.

鈥淥ur intention in that piece is we believe, and have studied it quite thoroughly, that a mid-tower piece like that gets us to the FAR that gets us to the net rentable (units) that is needed to make the project viable,鈥� he said. 鈥淚t’s less intrusive than if we put the additional floor or two back on Naito Parkway, which would still keep us under the 100-foot limit on Naito Parkway but becomes a much more imposing mass.鈥�

As designed, the proposed structure would be 17 stories and include 309,000 square feet. It would have 275 residential units and ground-floor retail space.

Livingston said she believes the project’s design is being determined by the pro forma statement, and not city guidelines.

鈥淭he pro forma is not a guideline,鈥� she said. 鈥淭he pro forma that you have needs to be able to respond well to those guidelines.鈥�

The dimensions of the site presented designers with a variety of logistical hurdles in their work to provide the desired number of units, they said.

Designers also had to include a public plaza between the structure and the river in order to meet greenway specifications. Meeting all of the conditions required the project team to ask for six modifications to zoning code development standards.

鈥淭he massing of the building is performing a lot of gymnastics to make the pro forma work,鈥� Livingston said. 鈥淭hose gymnastics require a long laundry list of modifications. Typically, to receive those modifications, every bucket of guidelines needs to just hit it out of the park.鈥�

While questions about the massing were a major sticking point, the commission expressed that it believes the public plaza is designed well to give access to the Willamette River.

The design team also received praise for its use of quality materials, although some commissioners said they feared wooden canopies would be tough to maintain. Molinar also questioned whether the L-shape would be appropriate for that part of Portland.

鈥淭he L is not ideal because I don’t think it responds to the context properly,鈥� she said. 鈥淚t does benefit views from other areas in making the actual shape of the building not block as much of the bridge. It really does come down to that extra piece.鈥�

The design team will return before the commission聽on Nov. 30聽with modifications. A final vote could potentially take place at that time.

Also on Thursday:

11th and Clay

SERA Architects‘ plans for a new 16-story, mixed-use structure was approved by the Design Commission with a 3-1 vote. Molinar cast the lone dissenting vote.

The main sticking point for the College Housing Northwest development at 1110 S.W. Clay St. was its response to the area’s context. The new building will replace an existing six-story, brick apartment building built in 1909 that provides one of the few remaining ties to the area’s past. While Vallaster, Clark and Livingston shared Molinar’s concerns, they believed it would be unfair to impose new requirements at this point in the process.

The lone condition attached to approval was to add a canopy to a fourth retail bay on the ground floor.