91视频

POWER LIST: GENERAL CONTRACTORS

When it comes to logistics-heavy, complex projects, Walsh Construction has its hands full at the moment.

Near the edge of Old Town Chinatown in Portland, at First Avenue and Pine Street, the general contractor is undertaking the momentous PAE Living Building. The four-story mass-timber structure is decked out with everything from solar panels to on-site waste management systems. It鈥檚 slated to become the world鈥檚 largest commercial living building.

A key aspect of the story is the building鈥檚 materials. Every screw and even the plastic coatings on wires must be researched and then receive approval.

The idea is to ensure that no item is on the Living Building Challenge鈥檚 Red List, which includes the 鈥渨orst in class鈥� materials, chemicals and elements in regard to human health and the ecosystem.

Once materials are chosen, that isn鈥檛 the end of the scrutiny. Walsh then needs to make sure what shows up on-site is actually on the approved list.

鈥淭o my knowledge in terms of sustainability (it鈥檚) the most complicated project we鈥檝e ever encountered,鈥� said Ryan Wilde, vice president and general manager of Walsh鈥檚 Oregon office.

In another part of Southwest Portland, the general contractor is working on a full-block addition to Terwilliger Plaza, a senior living campus. Parkview will be a new 10-story, 374,000-square-foot building. The two buildings will be connected over Sixth Avenue by a sky-bridge (the first one approved by the city since 2017). Wilde said the sky-bridge will have to be built at street level next to Sixth Avenue and then hoisted up in the evening hours. It鈥檚 not common to see bridges constructed over busy streets, he added.