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Mill Creek Residential has a decision to make on a developable property near Portland State University: It could go big, go small or go home.

The developer is proposing a multifamily building that would replace food carts and a parking lot on Southwest Fourth Avenue near the downtown transit mall and PSU. The twist? The developer initially proposed a seven-story building with 250 units. But during a Design Commission meeting Thursday, the project’s architect revealed Mill Creek is simultaneously considering a larger development: a 16-story high-rise that would be paired with a six-story mid-rise for a total of approximately 320 to 330 apartments.

鈥淲e actually don’t know at this point which option will prove to be more feasible,鈥� said Kurt Schultz, principal at SERA Architects.

Mill Creek will have to decide in June to exercise its option for the property, Schultz said.

The developer’s upcoming decision underscores how one-off project choices shape how, where and when cities can grow. Portland city officials have in recent years encouraged denser growth through rezoning. The Central City 2035 plan, first adopted in 2018, raised height limits in certain areas.

Mill Creek’s initial proposal included 12 interior courtyard units on the ground floor. Bureau of Development Services staffers and a city attorney concluded those units violate city code that encourages ground-floor active uses, even though those apartments would not face the street, Chad Encinas, development associate for Mill Creek, said in an interview.

鈥淲e sort of feel that is an overly restrictive interpretation of that code,鈥� he said. 鈥淭hat sort of changed the economics of the deal for us. It really was s situation where those 12 units made a big deal on the marginal success of the project.

鈥淚t’s slightly frustrating, because it’s forcing us to look at a more expensive project type, which gets passed on in the rents we have to charge.鈥�

Mill Creek’s smaller proposal would rise to 79 feet, far below the 460-foot height limit for the parcel. It’s not clear how tall the 16-story building would be, but it would also be well within the height limit.

A representative of the Portland Downtown Neighborhood Association said the group prefers the smaller building but favors more housing generally.

鈥淧eople who work downtown can afford to live downtown 鈥� that’s what we want to see,鈥� said LaJune Thorson, a Downtown Neighborhood Association board member.

Thursday’s meeting was a design advice hearing, so no decisions were made. Schultz said the project team would return to the Design Commission for a second advice meeting before proceeding to review.

Mill Creek, based in Boca Raton, Florida, is one of the Portland area’s most prolific multifamily developers, mostly through its Modera brand. Mill Creek has completed 10 projects in the Portland area. Others are in the works: Modera Main, a massive 337-unit multifamily and parking structure in Goose Hollow, was approved in September. In Southeast Portland, permits for Modera Woodstock, a five-story, 194-unit proposal, are under review by the Bureau of Development Services.

Schultz compared the downtown high-rise option’s design to Block 17 Apartments and Heartline Apartments, both large-scale residential projects in the Pearl District that are divided by a central courtyard. Schultz said the high-rise option was not yet fully developed. He presented renderings showing the seven-story mid-rise option.

鈥淲e’re proposing a building of very light brick with repeating punched openings and a very simple, classic window grid, also punctuated with some vertical breaks in the building where we would introduce some recessed balconies, but really trying to keep the building very, very simple, very elegant in that kind of classic tradition,鈥� he said.

Some commissioners said the neoclassical design, meant to evoke older buildings in the downtown core, was out of step with the PSU area, where contemporary designs predominate.

鈥淭he reference to the downtown buildings 鈥� it’s not particularly relevant here,鈥� Commissioner Don Vallaster said. 鈥淭hey’re quite a ways away, maybe a half-mile.鈥�

Commissioner Jessica Molinar agreed.

鈥淭he design needs to be contemporary to now,鈥� she said.

Parking would be provided underground. The building would meet inclusionary housing requirements with affordable units on-site.

Design Commission Chairman Sam Rodriguez also serves as senior managing director for Mill Creek in Portland. He recused himself from the land-use case and did not appear in the Design Commission meeting, which was held via Zoom. Instead, Encinas represented Mill Creek.

Schultz and Encinas said both designs would work to incorporate food carts that would be displaced by the project via micro-retail spaces planned for the Southwest Fourth Avenue frontage. About 18 food carts currently line the block; the project would have approximately 10 micro-retail spaces on the ground floor.

鈥淚t is our intention that we would give priority to existing food cart tenants that are on that block already, Encinas said. 鈥淭hat is our intention. We would love for them to be able to stay 鈥� to come back after construction is complete.鈥�