The city of Eugene and private developers are working on a series of significant projects near the banks of the Willamette River in a bid to revitalize the long-neglected waterfront.

Walker Macy is designing a 4.5-acre riverfront park for the city of Eugene. The aim is to link downtown Eugene to the river with a newly constructed multiuse path.

“It’s a really exciting opportunity to connect the people of Eugene and visitors with the water,” said Chelsea McCann, managing principal of Walker Macy. “The Willamette is important to the city. It’s hard to get to, right? We’re trying to remedy that, at least to the extent that we can, and create easier transitions and pathways for people to get from the urban core to the water.”

Nearby, developer Atkins Dame is planning for the first buildings on a former Eugene Water & Electric Board industrial site.

Atkins Dame is led by Jim Atkins and Dike Dame, two developers who have left their mark on Portland by revitalizing neighborhoods such as the Pearl District and the South Waterfront District. They also teamed up to build two condo towers and a hotel in Los Angeles’ South Park neighborhood.

Atkins Dame has closed on the land and acquired equity for the first two Eugene buildings, Dame said. KPFF is advising the developers on the new streetscape, and consulting with Walker Macy on the riverfront park.

“This is something that Eugene has been trying to make happen for a long, long time,” Dame said.

In the first phase, Atkins Dame will construct two multifamily buildings with approximately 228 units. The buildings will not include retail space, but that is planned as the neighborhood grows, Dame said.

“I don’t see office in the cards,” Dame said. “It will primarily be multifamily and neighborhood-serving retail, but the retail will also be attractive to people coming to the neighborhood for the new park.”

SERA Architects is designing the first two buildings, and Essex General Construction of Eugene is on board as contractor. (SERA completed a master plan for Atkins Dame in 2018).

“We’ve acquired about 360,000 square feet of property, so over time there will be a number of other projects,” Dame said. “These are just the first two.”

A separate development team, led by Mark Miksis of deChase Miksis and Mark Frohnmayer of Arcimoto, is negotiating with the city of Eugene to redevelop the EWEB steam plant. The Miksis-Frohnmayer group has unveiled adaptive reuse plans that call for inclusion of office space.

Construction of the waterfront park is well under way. Crews are working to complete the project ahead of the World Athletics Championships, a 10-day track and field competition set to take place in Eugene in July 2022.

The multiuse path will connect to Fifth Avenue, a street in the heart of downtown Eugene that is home to the Fifth Street Public Market and other restaurants and shops. The trail will include amenities to serve pedestrians and bicyclists, McCann said.

The project is part of a nascent movement to create access to the river in Willamette Valley cities that once used it primarily for heavy industry. Albany is at work on its own project to connect downtown with the Willamette River, which currently is blocked by a street, parking lots and thick foliage. In Portland, some activists are lobbying for greater access to the river from the Eastbank Esplanade.

In Eugene, Walker Macy is restoring the riverbanks along the trail.

“We’re planting with native species, but throughout this area we’re also trying to be really cognizant of plant scale,” McCann said. “We want to keep the views open.”

Trail users will have ample opportunities to linger.

“There’s lot of spots to sit and enjoy the river,” she said.

McCann said people were discussing what to do with the EWEB property when she was studying landscape architecture at the University of Oregon in the late 1990s. For years, the trail has been a narrow path, fenced off from the river, with few amenities.

“We’re excited to have it finally open up and having people using it,” she said.

The post Riverfront improvements advancing in Eugene appeared first on Daily Journal of Commerce.

PROJECT: The Overland

LOCATION: 11990 S.W. 72nd Ave., Tigard

SIZE: 256,760 square feet

COST: not provided

START DATE: August 2020

ANTICIPATED END DATE: November 2022

OWNER: Dartmouth Project LLC

DEVELOPER: SKB-DIG Dartmouth LLC

ARCHITECT: SERA Architects

ENGINEERS: DOWL, Froelich Engineers

CONTRACTOR: Essex General Construction

OTHER ASSOCIATES/CONSULTANTS: Innovative Air, Porter Electric, Tapani Plumbing, Jet Industries, Timber Technologies, Primo Construction

NUMBER OF WORKERS EMPLOYED: 350

SIGNIFICANCE OF PROJECT: This mixed-use project is expected to spur redevelopment within the Tigard Triangle Urban Renewal Area. The Overland will feature two six-story buildings with 219 apartments, a shared parking structure and voluminous retail and commercial spaces. Amenities will include a covered rooftop terrace, an elevated courtyard and workout facilities.

Exterior materials such as brick, wood and metal siding are intended to provide longevity in a Northwest style. Abundant bike parking will far surpass city requirements. The wood-framed buildings will be on concrete podiums.

One of the main challenges facing the project’s design and construction team was the topography of the site. There is a slope of nearly 30 feet from the north side to the south side, and it impacted the two apartment buildings, retail spaces and multiple parking areas. The various elevations step down from surface parking to apartment units and then to retail space at the southern end. Design, cost and constructability all influenced the final design; the project team spent significant time coordinating these aspects in order to meet overall goals.

“Building Blocks” spotlights noteworthy projects either under construction or approaching the start of construction. To submit a project for consideration, please visit: djcoregon.com/building-blocks.

The post Building Blocks: The Overland appeared first on Daily Journal of Commerce.