Time is ticking as the Portland Timbers prepare to play their 2019 home opener on June 1. Then the Portland Thorns play theirs the next day. Meanwhile, a team led by Turner Construction is working to finish an $85 million expansion project at Providence Park – the soccer teams’ home field. Crews started work in October 2017.

“I think we’re all ready to be done for sure,” Turner Construction project manager Brian Sabom said Tuesday at the stadium. “We’ve been doing this for 20 months now, and there’s a lot of hard effort that was put into it. We’ve had over 1,000 workers come through our safety orientation, so a lot of people in Portland have touched this project. We’re excited to turn it over.”

The highlight of the project, designed by Allied Works Architecture, is an addition to the stadium’s east side that holds more than 4,000 new seats. The grandstand towers over the field-level seating built in 2011 and features three tiers.

Other improvements include: a large LED scoreboard mounted on the stadium’s west side, new locker rooms for both home and away teams, and a number of other features to improve the fan experience.

“We’re ready; we’re in good shape,” said Mike Golub, the Timbers’ president of business. “As you walk around you’ll see things that still need to get done and that’s not uncommon for where we are, 25, 26 days out. But the really key, critical milestones we’ve been hitting all the way, so we’ll be ready to go June 1 for Timbers and June 2 for the Thorns.”

In terms of an improved spectator experience, the new scoreboard is just the start, Golub said. There will be an accompanying sound system installed, along with renovated concession stands, signage and lighting throughout the existing stadium concourse. Also, a new team store is being built on the stadium’s west side.

“The idea was for every fan, whether you’re sitting in these new stands here or in the old areas, when they come to the stadium on June 1, they’re going to hear, see and feel a lot of new things,” Golub said.

Chelsea Grassinger, an Allied Works Architecture principal, said the overarching intent of the grandstand design was to fulfill original plans that called for a U-shaped venue. It wasn’t a complete horseshoe when it opened in 1926 as Multnomah Stadium because of a shortage of funding.

“Ultimately what was built was the north side and the west side,” Grassinger said. “So what we’ve done here is to realize the original design vision for Providence Park.”

On the outside, a glass façade now reveals the structure to passersby.

“Part of our mission was to complete that original vision, but sort of enforce the visibility and lightness and connectivity to the city,” Grassinger said. “Pedestrians can also feel connected to the action and the activity in the stadium. And then creating that light, veil-like transparency of the façade and the whole height glass and visibility gives back to the city.”

Construction crews have completed most of the big tasks. These days, tradespeople are scrambling around the stadium to take care of the smaller stuff.

“We have a lot of work to do – a lot of finish work that we’re still working on,” Sabom said. “We’re trying to complete the roof membrane on the new roof we’ve built and there are just a lot of finishing touches to put on the project from a finishing perspective.”

Despite challenges, including a highly constrained job site, the project has remained on schedule throughout construction, Sabom said.

“Yeah, there have been challenges throughout,” he said. “But as of right now, everything that we expected of the project to be complete is going to be complete, and I think it’ll be a seamless (opening) for the fans and for the city of Portland.”

The post Stadium project team rushing to meet deadline appeared first on Daily Journal of Commerce.

The Portland Timbers are starting the 2019 season on the longest road trip in Major League Soccer history.

That’s because the club is waiting until June 1 to play its home opener at an upgraded Providence Park. Currently, construction crews are in the final months of an $85 million project to expand the stadium in Goose Hollow.

General contractor Turner Construction and an army of tradespeople are building a new, three-deck covered east grandstand designed by Allied Works Architecture and inspired by stadiums such as “La Bombonera” in Buenos Aires, Argentina. Intended to hold 4,000 additional spectators, the grandstand will boost stadium capacity to greater than 25,000. The new grandstand structure features 228 micropiles that average 75 feet in length.

Also, new LED lights are being installed throughout the stadium to replace aging HID fixtures.

“There are about 13 weeks remaining, and we should be receiving the final roof truss deliveries within the next week and a half,” Turner Construction project manager Brian Sabom said. “All the seating trays are ready, so all the seating is going to be going in. So it’s a lot of finishes at this point.”

Four more roof trusses remain to be placed. Then crews will finally be able to remove the two massive hydraulic cranes roaming the playing surface.

After starting the season with 12 matches on the road, the Timbers and their fans might be among the most appreciative of the pitch being cleared.

“It’s a tight schedule, and the cold weather has been killing us,” Sabom said. “But we’re scheduled to go, so it’s a sprint to the end.”

The post Photos: Goal in sight for stadium expansion crews appeared first on Daily Journal of Commerce.

Platform, a mixed-use building from Portland developer Project^ planned for the Central Eastside, enjoyed a rapturous reception from the Portland Design Commission on Thursday.

The eight-story building would occupy a half-block at 1100-1300 S.E. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., between Taylor and Salmon streets. The ground floor would hold retail space, including a café or restaurant at Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard and Taylor Street. The top seven floors would offer office space.

Platform would also have two floors of below-ground parking, with access provided in the middle of the block on Salmon Street.

Thursday’s hearing was for commissioners to provide device advice. The project will return for a Type III design review hearing.

Allied Works Architecture‘s design essentially cuts the building in two on the upper floors, allowing light to pass through. The building is replete with decks, which the architects said serve to connect the building to the street below. Plans call for a cascading stormwater management system, with planters on each floor handling water descending from the floor above.

The design extensively uses glass and a bronze-colored metal material that would have a patina. The metal material has not been selected, but it’s likely to be aluminum, Allied Works associate principal Brent Linden said.

Platform is planned as the first phase of a two-phase development. The same landowner – listed in public records as William Floberg and EMCF, a limited liability company – also owns the block to the north. The area is zoned “EXd,” for central employment with a design overlay. (Project^ did not return Thursday a message requesting comment on development plans).

Platform, if built, would serve as a gateway to drivers coming to or from the Morrison and Hawthorne bridges and the Oregon Route 99E couplet. The site currently holds a one-story auto shop.

A city staff report listed a $30 million valuation for the Platform project.

Design commissioners blanketed the proposal with praise.

Commissioner Don Vallaster: “This is probably one of the best buildings we’ve ever had presented to us, at least in my tenure.”

Commissioner Tad Savinar: “Extraordinary. Could we have one of these (on) the west side? Yeah, I think it’s incredible.”

Commissioner Sam Rodriguez: “It’s a fantastic composition.”

Chairwoman Julie Livingston: “It’s just incredibly clear and thoughtful.”

Linden said he appreciated the positive reception from the Design Commission.

“I’m very excited about the comments,” he said. “I’m glad you guys like it.”

Platform is designed to connect well with other new construction in the burgeoning Central Eastside.

“We have a real passion for vibrant pedestrian neighborhoods and helping to create a more vibrant pedestrian neighborhood here in the Central Eastside,” Linden said. “There’s a lot of these disparate places on a pedestrian scale, but they’re somewhat disconnected.”

Platform would be the latest in a bumper crop of office buildings in the Central Eastside Industrial District. Projects including the proposed Hammer & Hand, Tree Farm and 120 Clay buildings seek to fulfill office demand in the district.

Average direct asking rents in the close-in Eastside rose to $32.41 per square foot during the first quarter, according to a Jones Lang LaSalle report. That was up 6 percent from a year earlier.

The post Project proposal’s public debut is a hit appeared first on Daily Journal of Commerce.

Plans for a new four-story mixed-use building in Portland’s Alphabet Historic District received praise at a Historic Landmarks Commission design advice hearing on Monday.

The Allied Works Architecture design of a building at the corner of Northwest 23rd Avenue and Glisan Street would have five residential units above 925 square feet of ground-floor retail space and eight long-term bike parking spaces.

The 1,789-square-foot site has sat vacant since a 2016 gas explosion destroyed the historic Alfred C. F. Burkhardt House.

“I think the design is amazing,” Commissioner Wendy Chung said. “It really does draw from the historic features of the neighborhood. Even though it’s clearly a modern building, it’s a perfect example of something that’s compatible but modern.”

Allied Works Architecture’s Rebecca Wood said the team was inspired by the simple masonry in the district. The project by R&A Development would feature glazed porcelain tile and painted vertical metal fins, custom twisted painted metal ornamental balconies, a painted metal canopy, painted aluminum-clad wood windows and French doors. They are also proposing to replace three trees that were destroyed in the explosion.

“I really appreciate your efforts in looking at the examples in the district and putting a modern spin on it,” Commissioner Annie Mahoney said. “Overall I think it’s a wonderful design.”

Commissioner Matthew Roman wondered if the residential windows without balconies would be too tall to fit well in the neighborhood, but others said they believed the windows would provide a nice contrast.

The proposal doesn’t request any modifications to code, which commissioners noted and appreciated. They praised the simple and clean look of the building – the balconies would be flush with the exterior walls and the building’s height would be the same as the adjacent structure.

Dan Koch of Allied Works Architecture said the team presented the proposal to the Northwest District Association’s planning committee, which liked the design.

At 45 feet tall, the building would be the maximum height allowed in the district. In a letter to commissioners, the neighborhood association stated it would like to see an increase in the building’s height of three to five feet in order to raise the level of the ground-floor retail entry to match the level of the sidewalk.

Commissioners said they would support the modification. However, Koch said the additional height would be a detriment to the overall design of the building.

“We were very intentional in trying to meet the design guidelines,” he said. “I appreciate your reasonable and thoughtful input. Now we will take that and make this better.”

Commissioners said they hope the building’s design will be an inspiration to others.

“The design and attention to detail is well appreciated,” Commission Chairman Kirk Ranzetta said. “We look forward to seeing the next iteration.”

The post Alphabet Historic District building design lauded appeared first on Daily Journal of Commerce.

A project is under way in Northwest Portland to reconstruct a building damaged in a fall 2016 gas explosion. R&H Construction is rebuilding 2281 Glisan, a five-story mixed-use structure originally designed by Allied Works Architecture and completed in 2000.

The building sustained harm after utility workers on a nearby site severed a gas line, causing an adjacent building at 2275 N.W. Glisan St. to fill with gas. The resulting explosion leveled that building and directed a concentrated blast at 2281 Glisan, heavily damaging the slab and steel on the west side of the second and third floors. The explosion resulted in pan decking being separated from steel by about seven inches.

Following the explosion, crews with Interstate Restoration performed heavy demolition work and cleaned up the site. R&H Construction began work on the rebuild in November 2017, performing additional demolition work including removal of MEP systems, façade and slabs. The building has been stripped down to its structural members, with pieces of damaged steel and slab removed. A total of 10 pieces of compromised steel on levels two and three have been replaced, new pan decking has been laid, and slab pours are slated for this week.

The building will be rebuilt to its original design, save for a change to the elevator system, which now runs to the top floor and includes an overrun on the roof. The building’s top two floors are a residence for owners Bob and Ann Sacks, the third floor will be office space, and the second and ground floors will consist of either office or retail space or a mixture of the two. The project is slated for completion this September.

The post Photos: Reconstruction project coming together appeared first on Daily Journal of Commerce.

The U.S. State Department‘s Bureau of Overseas Buildings Operations has added Allied Works Architecture to its list of vetted companies eligible to work on indefinite delivery/indefinite quantity (IDIQ) projects.

Allied Works Architecture was one of 136 companies that last year applied to be added to the list. The Portland firm was among 16 chosen.

Not all State Department projects go through the IDIQ process, but many of its biggest and most intricate embassies, consulates and marine barracks are awarded to companies on the list. IDIQ contracts are most often used for on-call work such as architecture and engineering services.

“We would also be responsible for (designing) anything that they are looking for,” said Eric Spencer, director of development for Allied Works Architecture.

It is the first time that Allied Works Architecture has been included on the list. The firm will be on the list for the next five years, and then be eligible for renewal thereafter.

Allied Works Architecture has worked on other State Department projects that did not go through the intricate IDIQ process, including current work on an embassy in Mozambique. That embassy is a 360,000-square-foot structure expected to be completed in 2019.

“There is multiple phases,” Spencer said. “It is roughly a yearlong process. We are happy about it. It is a great honor.”

The post Allied Works Architecture added to select list appeared first on Daily Journal of Commerce.

The Portland Design Commission shot down the St. Johns Neighborhood Association‘s appeal of staff approval given to the Central Lofts project at 8608 N. Lombard Street, by a 4-0 vote on Thursday. Bureau of Development Services staff had approved the project during a type II review in October.

“The building is very richly detailed and the materials have been well thought out,” Commissioner Don Vallaster said. “My sense is this works pretty well in sense of the diversity criteria in the guidelines. In general you could put the building in my neighborhood and I’d be happy.”

Jones Architecture‘s vision for developer Farid Bolouri’s project is for a 44-foot-tall, 27,000-square-foot structure featuring cross-laminated timber. The ground level would hold a restaurant and retail space, and the upper three stories would hold six one-bedroom apartments and 24 studios.

The neighborhood association based its appeal on three concerns. First, the group said, the design failed to apply characteristics and traditions of the St. Johns/Lombard Plan area. Also, the main entrances were not prominent or interesting, and the development diverged too much from the area’s established architecture, according to the group.

“The neighborhood is generally supportive of this development and excited about the project,” said Josh Guerra, who spoke for the neighborhood association. “The stakeholder group determined that three of the guidelines were not met.”

Of particular concern were the building’s entrances. Their small size, the neighborhood association stated, could negatively impact both the streetscape and the plaza at the corner of North Lombard Street and Philadelphia Avenue. Various community activities, including a weekend farmers’ market, take place there.

Alan Jones, founder of Jones Architecture, countered that given the size of the lot and the likely tenants, the openings were appropriately sized. The entrances’ locations could be altered to suit the types and sizes of tenants, he said.

“It is very likely that retail spaces in St. Johns are going to be smaller spaces geared toward local business,” he said. “That dictates the entrances.”

Another neighborhood concern was that the project would not blend with its surroundings. Designers countered that St. Johns has an eclectic and diverse collection of buildings.

“(The St. Johns/Lombard Plan) goes as far as to say future development should go on the path of diversity,” Jones said. “We take that to mean that future development should be of the time period it is built.”

In response to a claim that this building wouldn’t be on the same scale as others nearby, designers pointed out other projects significantly larger than their proposal.

Overall, the commission sided with the development team.

“Ultimately it is about that corner,” Commission Chairwoman Julie Livingston said. “That corner is just fantastic and its relationship to the plaza is fantastic.”

Commissioners also failed to find enough discrepancy from the St. Johns/Lombard Plan guidelines to justify overturning the approval.

“Regarding the guidelines, they seem to be nebulous enough that either side can find support or not support for this design,” Vallaster said.

Also on Thursday:

550 S.E. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.

The Portland Design Commission approved, by a 4-1 vote, Works Progress Architecture‘s design for a seven- or eight-story mixed-use building on Southeast Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard.

Market conditions will determine which version of the building developers Beam Development and Urban Development + Partners decide to build.

Livingston was the only commissioner to vote no. She had concerns about the building‘s response to neighborhood context.

Providence Park

The commission approved, by a 3-1 vote, alterations to the Providence Park expansion that was approved in August. Allied Works Architecture will make several changes – the most notable being the type of roofing material and the viewshed.

Vallaster cast the lone dissenting vote because of concerns about how changes would impact the view of the field from outside the park.

The post Design Commission’s decision aids project appeared first on Daily Journal of Commerce.

The Pearl District‘s Wieden + Kennedy building has sold for $103.25 million to a San Francisco investment firm.

The buyer of the 185,809-square-foot office building was a limited liability company managed by Stockbridge Capital Group, according to state and Multnomah County records. Stockbridge is an investment firm with broad holdings across the U.S.

The price of the Wieden + Kennedy building equates to $555.68 per square foot, near a record for the Portland office market. The current record holder is Pearl West, which sold in July for $87.5 million, or $563 per square foot.

The deal offered the buyer predictable, long-term cash flow, said Paige Morgan, an executive vice president with Jones Lang LaSalle in Portland.

“Investors currently are targeting and liking those long-term leases in Portland,” Morgan said. “They’re paying for that stability.”

Prices per square foot are expected to continue trending upward as buildings with newer, market-rate leases sell, Morgan said.

“I think we will continue to see new price-per-foot records, mostly because the rents have gone up dramatically here in the past few years,” she said.

The sale also reflects a tidy profit for seller JPMorgan Chase Bank. The New York-based bank acquired the building, via a limited liability company, for $65 million in 2012, according to government records. The bank made a 58.8 percent return on its original investment.

Like much of the Pearl District, the building at 224 N.W. 13th Ave. was originally constructed as an industrial warehouse in 1908. It was renovated into modern office space in 2000 from a on behalf of Wieden + Kennedy.

Locally, Stockbridge also owns the Tualatin Corporate Center, a 401,670-square-foot, multi-tenant industrial park, and Lloyd Safeway Center, a 205,173-square-foot retail property in the Lloyd District. Stockbridge did not return a call seeking comment Wednesday.

Wieden + Kennedy, an advertising firm that has created national ad campaigns on behalf of Nike, Coca-Cola and other major brands, is the primary tenant in the Pearl District building. It’s also home to Bluehour restaurant. Wieden + Kennedy has a long-term lease.

“It’s a very iconic building with a sort of iconic company in there as well,” Morgan said.

In total sale price, other Portland office buildings have sold for more. The U.S. Bancorp Tower, better known as “Big Pink,” sold for $372.5 million in 2015. The Block 300 building sold for $155.2 million in 2015, the PacWest Center traded for $170 million in 2016 and Pioneer Tower sold in 2016 for $121.7 million.

Currently, the most notable office property on the market is the 689,840-square-foot Wells Fargo Center, Portland’s tallest skyscraper.

The Wieden + Kennedy building transaction was recorded in Multnomah County records Sept. 8.

The post Wieden + Kennedy building sells for $103.25 million appeared first on Daily Journal of Commerce.

The Portland City Council threw its support behind a proposed encroachment into public right-of-way to accommodate a 4,000-seat expansion of Providence Park. The council voted 5-0 to follow the city engineer’s recommendation of approval.

The project team’s plan to use a cabling system that would extend 14 feet over Southwest 18th Avenue right-of-way last month received the Portland Design Commission‘s OK. That decision was forwarded to the city engineer, who prepared a recommendation to go before the City Council.

The engineer’s recommendation touted the benefit of a $50 million to $55 million voluntary improvement to the city-owned facility. It also stated that additional exits to the stadium and large sidewalks weighed in favor of the encroachment.

Some commissioners expressed concern that a covered arcade would become a haven for homeless individuals and could create new liabilities for the city. Portland Timbers officials said they expect the team to take responsibility for the area surrounding the stadium; currently, it maintains sidewalks there.

That wasn’t good enough for Robert Butler, a neighbor who spoke against the project.

“We are going to have a slum there,” he told commissioners. “What a sorry deal.”

That didn’t sway commissioners, who then approved the project to move ahead.

The plan is for the project to be completed in two phases during the next two off-seasons. The first phase would begin in October and finish in March 2018. The second phase would stretch from October 2018 and wrap up by March 2019.

The post Encroachment OK for Providence Park renovation appeared first on Daily Journal of Commerce.

Allied Works Architecture‘s design for a 4,000-seat expansion to Providence Park was approved with conditions by the Portland Design Commission on Thursday.

The $50 million project will add a stack of seats to the stadium’s east side, with a translucent rooftop curling overhead.

Commissioners questioned the design’s commitment to views into the stadium, which is used primarily by the Portland Timbers and Thorns pro soccer teams. Commissioners expressed skepticism whether a sidewalk encroachment would achieve any public benefit. In the end, the five commissioners present voted unanimously to approve the project.

Architects made a major change to the design from a prior iteration that went before the Design Commission for advice. The east grandstands were reduced to three floors, from four.

“The three-level scheme allows us to bring down the height of the building,” said Chelsea Grassinger, associate principal at Allied Works.

The roof height will be 93 feet, 3 inches. That’s still much higher than the existing stadium, which tops out at 49 feet.

While the latest design reduces the roof’s overall height from the prior iteration, it increases the floor-to-ceiling heights of each level. This was done to accommodate the 4,000 additional seats desired by the Timbers. The Major League Soccer team has sold out 118 consecutive games.

As a result, the new design pinches views into the stadium. Commissioners lamented the narrower view into the stadium from the sidewalk.

“I like having the view into the stadium, so that’s a bit of a loss from what we have today,” Commissioner Don Vallaster said.

Commissioner David Wark agreed, saying there are simply too many objects between the rear of the grandstands and the sidewalk in the design.

“What can you take away, what can you delete, what can you edit?” he said. “Because the view into that stadium for decades has been so important.”

Wark also complained that the design team didn’t tell the commission that the grandstands had been lowered. He had to notice it.

“That’s a bit of a bother,” he said.

In the end, commissioners added a condition that the grandstands begin 12 feet above the concourse to preserve views into the stadium.

Commissioners also wrestled with whether approving an encroachment into the sidewalk would yield adequate public benefit. A cabling system ties into the sidewalk to support the proposed roof structure.

Grassinger noted the renovated sidewalk approximately doubles the width of the existing sidewalk.

“It’s hard to argue that clear, organized sidewalk isn’t a public benefit,” she said.

The encroachment must be approved by the City Council, most likely at a late August or early September meeting.

Commissioners added a condition that the face of the south elevator and stair tower be given over to public uses, such as promotions for nonprofits.

Ken Puckett, senior vice president of operations for the Timbers, said the club would not object to that.

“I think the use of the towers for public benefit is a great idea,” he said. “I don’t think we would have a problem with that.”

Raising the bottom of the grandstands will require more architectural work to preserve the 12-foot aperture into the stadium. But Puckett said the commission’s mandated changes are achievable.

“We’ll figure it out,” he said.

The post Providence Park expansion plan approved, with conditions appeared first on Daily Journal of Commerce.