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The developer of the 35-story tower planned on Block 216, in downtown Portland, has scheduled a ceremonial ground-breaking event for later this week, but real movement of dirt will have to wait on permits.

An excavation permit for the project remains under review, said Alex Cousins, spokesman for the Portland Bureau of Development Services.

The applicant is still in the process of obtaining consent forms from neighboring property owners for right-of-way encroachments necessary for the shoring process, Cousins said Tuesday.

鈥淭hat process is still unfolding, and they’re still waiting on some additional permits from (the Portland Bureau of Transportation) and (Bureau of Environmental Services) for water,鈥� Cousins said. 鈥淗opefully they can get going sometime this summer.鈥�

鈥淚t’s all happening,鈥� he added. 鈥淚t’s just not quite there yet to get an excavator out there yet.鈥�

The ceremonial event is scheduled for 11:30 a.m. on Friday.

On Monday, Mosaic Real Estate Investors announced an affiliate has provided $460 million in senior construction financing for the mixed-use tower. The four-year loan, along with Ritz-Carlton‘s agreement to take hotel and condo space in the tower, suggests developer Walt Bowen’s BPM Real Estate Group has the necessary funding in place.

鈥淭he high-leverage聽loan聽request, in and of itself, made this a very complex financing,鈥� Alex Ovalle, managing director for the lender based in Calabasas, California, stated in a news release. 鈥淚t was made even more complicated given that it is also the first development of its kind in Portland to offer this mix of uses.聽However, we were able to approach and understand the valuation of each of the separate components.聽Combined with the strength of sponsorship, it created a situation that was perfect for us.鈥�

The loan pitch went to market in late February. George Smith Partners Principal and Managing Director Malcolm Davies arranged the financing along with Senior Vice President Zachary Streit.

The 460-foot-tall building will include a 251-room Ritz-Carlton hotel, 138 Ritz-Carlton condominiums, 160,000 square feet of office space and 7,800 square feet of ground-level retail space, along with four and a half stories of parking below ground.

The Portland Design Commission approved GBD Architects‘ design in December. The project team also includes general contractor Howard S. Wright, a division of聽Balfour Beatty; interior designer HKS Architects and landscape architect PLACE. The Goodman family’s Downtown Development Group owns the property, and has agreed to a long-term ground lease.

More than 50 food carts were evicted from the block on June 30 to clear the way for construction. The development will also eliminate surface parking spots.

The project is subject to Portland’s inclusionary housing ordinance. Instead of providing affordable units within the building, BPM representatives have said they plan to pay a fee-in-lieu to the Portland Housing Bureau.

The fee must be paid at the time permits are issued. Based on information provided by the applicant, the fee will be approximately $7 million to $8 million, Housing Bureau spokeswoman Martha Calhoon said.