Fewer developable properties remain in Portland’s Pearl District than can be counted on the fingers of one hand.

One of the last sizable projects under way there is at the corner of Northwest 13th Avenue and Quimby Street. Crews are making rapid vertical progression on the 16-story Holden of Pearl, a 237-unit senior living facility designed by Ankrom Moisan Architects for Alliance Residential. Ground was broken in March, and general contractor Walsh Construction is expected to finish in August 2023.

Holden of Pearl tenants will have access to a huge range of amenities as they age in place.

“There’s going to be a lot of green space and courtyard space so that residents can play at chess tables; there’s even going to be a giant chessboard,” said Laura Waddick, a Walsh Construction project engineer. “There are barbecues, water features. There’s a double-sided fireplace on the first floor. It’s going to be a good spot for people to come and visit their grandparents.”

The building will have 16 stories of post-tensioned concrete and a single level of below-grade, tandem parking. A three-story podium will support a narrower tower with the bulk of the residential units – including luxury penthouse units at the top.

The building’s ground floor will have a double-height, arched entryway off of 13th Avenue. Memory care units on that level will serve residents with dementia or Alzheimer’s disease. A porte cochere (essentially a circular driveway) off of Quimby Street will be used for valet parking and access to the parking garage.

The second and third levels will feature assisted living units, while the fourth floor will host shared facilities such as a dining area, a yoga studio, a bistro, a nail salon and more. A massive rooftop patio on the fourth level will hold a barbecue area, a dog run and the aforementioned giant chess set. The remainder of the brick-clad building will host studios and one- or two-bedroom apartments.

Because of low soil quality at the site, the engineering team of Kramer Gehlen & Associates and Harper Houf Peterson Righellis chose to employ auger cast piles to shore up the foundation. Pacific Foundations used a massive drill.

“It’s bored out and they pour concrete in and pull the drill out,” Walsh Construction assistant superintendent Abigail Anderson said.

“Our deepest one was 117 feet,” Walsh Construction superintendent Mario Hernandez added.

Other work was required to allow Westech Construction crews to proceed with excavation.

“This is the lowest elevation part of the Pearl District, and we had to do some pretty extensive waterproofing,” Waddick said. “We are in the flood zone, and we had to ‘bathtub’ the entire basement.”

While many Portland project teams have had to deal with radon mitigation, the Holden of Pearl team also had to deal with methane seeping from the ground.

Though no sustainability certifications will be sought for the building, it will have a large eco-roof as well as bird-safe glass on the floors with outdoor amenities. Because birds are unable to see standard transparent glass, bird-safe glass has patterns of dots or stripes.

“It’s basically around all of the courtyard green spaces,” Anderson said. “It’s just around the fourth-floor roof and then there’s a courtyard on first, second and third where the residents can just go out there and have lots of green space, so they put bird-safe (glass) all around that – anywhere where birds land.”

Currently, crews with RDF Builders, Walsh Construction’s carpentry and concrete division, are constructing formwork and piecing together shoring for what will be the fourth-level PT deck. Other crews from Ocean Park Mechanical, Bergelectric and Patriot Fire Protection are installing mechanical, electrical and fire suppression systems, while ironworkers with Timberland Inc. are handling structural steel.

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PROJECT: Holden of Pearl

LOCATION: 1540 N.W. 13th Ave., Portland

SIZE:��16-story tower (237 units)

COST:��$36.3 million

START DATE: April 2021

ANTICIPATED END DATE: September 2023

DEVELOPER: Alliance Residential

ARCHITECT: Ankrom Moisan Architects

ENGINEERS: Kramer Gehlen & Associates, RDH Building Science Inc.

CONTRACTOR:��Walsh Construction

ADDITIONAL CONSULTANT: Biella Lighting Design

SIGNIFICANCE OF PROJECT: Construction of Holden of Pearl, a 16-story senior living tower, began in April. Type I-A construction is being used for the building, which will have an urban, vertically integrated design. Red brick will dominate the exterior; other materials will include metal panels, an aluminum storefront system and vinyl windows.

In a departure from the traditional senior living model, Holden of Pearl will offer residents striking views of the city and modern amenities. The site is within walking distance of Portland’s cultural hubs, restaurants, boutiques, art galleries, public parks and museums. There will be 237 apartments that cater to people seeking either independent or assisted living. A separate, private community space will be reserved for memory care residents.

With 28,000 square feet of indoor amenity space, Holden of Pearl will offer residents access to a range of culinary experiences, including multiple dining venues, a street-level bistro and an elevated bar. State-of-the-art wellness amenities will include a yoga studio, a salon, activity areas, family gathering spaces and more. Terraced courtyards and rooftop spaces will provide outdoor dining opportunities.

There will also be outdoor living rooms, water features, a chef’s herb garden and a covered pet area. At the street level, an enhanced pedestrian experience will include park-like elements. There will be convenient, weather-protected pick-up and drop-off, valet parking, housekeeping and transportation.

Milestone Retirement Communities will manage the property. Medication management will be among services provided.

Currently, Phoenix-based Alliance Residential has 16 communities in its senior housing pipeline; they represent more than $1 billion in total capitalization.

“Building Blocks” is a 91��Ƶ feature that spotlights noteworthy projects either under construction or approaching the start of construction. To submit a project for consideration, please visit: djcoregon.com/building-blocks.

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A Phoenix-based developer is moving forward on a senior housing tower that would fill in one of two remaining undeveloped parcels in the north Pearl District.

The Holden of Pearl project team received design advice from the Portland Design Commission for the second time on Thursday. The 16-story podium-and-tower project would bring 224 senior housing units to the northeast corner of Northwest 13th Avenue and Quimby Street.

The full-block property is owned by Hoyt Street Properties, which is poised to sell the parcel to Alliance Residential Co. for development. The property is one of two remaining from the 1989 Hoyt Street Yards master plan.

Hoyt Street Properties’ Tiffany Sweitzer, in an email, stated that the local developer’s role in the project is only as the potential property seller.

“We would not play a role, but do think it’s needed and will be well accepted in the neighborhood,” Sweitzer stated.

The design from Ankrom Moisan Architects centers on a tower that would rise from a three-story podium on the block’s eastern portion. At 210 feet by 210 feet, the property is larger than a typical Portland block.

Commissioners praised the designers, Ankrom Moisan’s J.P. Emery and Lauren Jones, for their consideration of comments given at the first design advice hearing.

“You responded creatively, and we really appreciate it,” Commissioner Zari Santner said.

The tower would be a mix of red brick, metal panel and glass. Bureau of Development Services staffers noted brick is an atypical material on Pearl District towers, which tend to feature glass and concrete expressions. Red brick is often used on lower floors. Some commissioners said the red brick would be acceptable.

Santner urged the project team to tone down the brick’s bright red color as it appeared in renderings.

“Hopefully there is something that is more subtle,” she said.

The top of the building needs some architectural detail, Chairwoman Julie Livingston said. The tower terminates in a plain fashion, without any design flourishes.

The entrance lobby would be on 13th Avenue, with a dock. At the building’s center, an internal courtyard would serve memory care patients. Motor vehicle drivers would enter from Quimby Street and navigate a turnaround to drop off residents. Valets would take any vehicles needing to park into a parking ramp.

Holden of Pearl’s exterior would have a number of protruding canopies to shield pedestrians from rain, as design guidelines encourage.

“You can’t have too many canopies,” Commissioner Jessica Molinar said. “The more canopies, the better.”

The building would be constructed at the far northern edge of the Pearl District. Fields Park lies to the east. The designers anticipate a pedestrian connection through Block 245, a vacant parcel, to the park. Holden of Pearl would join several large buildings nearby, including the Ramona Apartments, The Parker, The Abigail, Modera Pearl and NV.

The property is within the 1996 flood zone.

Holden of Pearl comes from Alliance Residential Co.’s Seattle office. The applicant is Alliance Realty Partners, a limited liability company. Alliance’s Evan Lawler was out of the country and not available for comment.

The project is likely to return before the Portland Design Commission for a land-use review, but it has not yet appeared on future agendas.

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