This week Pearl District developer Hoyt Street Properties showed off its newest asset – the 28-story Cosmopolitan tower – one of the only condo projects going up in Portland, and the new tallest building in the Pearl.

The $78 million project, once called Block 15, is a throwback of sorts. It’s a glassy skyscraper in a time of midrises, and a condo project in an age of apartments. It has 167 residential units, 197 vehicle parking spaces and 6,800 square feet of retail. Bora Architects designed a sleek and slender tower atop a four-story above-grade podium.

As of Tuesday, all but five of the condos had been sold. It should be occupiable by June 1, according to project manager Ben Miles of Andersen Construction.

Lately crews have been wrapping up paint and tile finishes, sidewalk work and a wood deck on the east side of the building.

On the walkthrough sponsored by the Construction Specifiers Institute, representatives of the Portland building community saw firsthand what’s become of a parcel that for years was one of the Pearl’s most prime. It’s located on a streetcar line and flanked by two parks – The Fields Park to the north and Tanner Springs Park to the south – meaning views in those directions are assured for years to come.

Designer Bora Architects sought to optimize views in every unit. This is apparent in the penthouse units in the top three floors, where no room is without a stunning panorama.

The parcel was one of 20 that once held a railyard when the Pearl was a hard-edged industrial zone. It had been vacant for years as the Pearl was developed, starting to the south with the Brewery Blocks development.

The project team was originally going for LEED certification, before running into cost.

“One of the bigger challenges has been the products coming from overseas,” Andersen’s Miles said.

Because each condo unit was made to buyer specifications, finish materials arrived piecemeal throughout the project. This meant lots of measuring and double-checking, Miles said, because once a product, like the Italian slab marble counters or dark larch Pedini cabinets, are ordered from the palatte available to buyers, they can sit on a boat for up to five months.

The Benson curtain wall systems used in the project traveled far, as well. For years, the facade systems were assembled locally, in Gresham. But the company has since moved some operations to Tijuana, Mexico.

“Now the aluminum is extruded in Korea, the glass comes from the Midwest, and it’s all assembled in Tijuana then shipped here,” Miles said.

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