I went to a breakfast meeting this morning where J.E. Issac was talking about the JumpTown proposal that would turn Memorial Coliseum and the surrounding area (including the Rose Garden, where the Blazers play) into a sports/entertainment-focused neighborhood.

The development project is intriguing. And as senior v.p. of business affairs for the Blazers, Issac knows the proposal inside-out. There is one part of his presentation he might want to rethink, though. Especially if he’s trying to win the support of the local building industry.

According to Issac, the project is going to be sustainable to such a degree that it will qualify for certification in the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design program.

“Just imagine,” he told this morning’s gathering. “Someday, when three or four helicopters are hovering overhead (for the NBA Playoffs), people will look down and say, ‘Look at that sustainable development.'”

More than a few people in the room shot each other confused glances at that comment. I have to admit, it left me scratching my head, too.

Helicopters don’t exactly paint a picture of sustainability. But maybe I’m wrong. Maybe having a bunch of helicopters spewing fumes into the air is OK as long as the buildings they’re  hovering over are made with recycled materials.

I guess it’s like carbon offset credits you buy to make up for the fact that the vehicle you drive is a larger-than-life Hummer that gets 11 miles to the gallon.

The post JumpTown’s not-so-green reality appeared first on Daily Journal of Commerce.

I went to a breakfast meeting this morning where J.E. Issac was talking about the JumpTown proposal that would turn Memorial Coliseum and the surrounding area (including the Rose Garden, where the Blazers play) into a sports/entertainment-focused neighborhood.

The development project is intriguing. And as senior v.p. of business affairs for the Blazers, Issac knows the proposal inside-out. There is one part of his presentation he might want to rethink, though. Especially if he’s trying to win the support of the local building industry.

According to Issac, the project is going to be sustainable to such a degree that it will qualify for certification in the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design program.

“Just imagine,” he told this morning’s gathering. “Someday, when three or four helicopters are hovering overhead (for the NBA Playoffs), people will look down and say, ‘Look at that sustainable development.'”

More than a few people in the room shot each other confused glances at that comment. I have to admit, it left me scratching my head, too.

Helicopters don’t exactly paint a picture of sustainability. But maybe I’m wrong. Maybe having a bunch of helicopters spewing fumes into the air is OK as long as the buildings they’re  hovering over are made with recycled materials.

I guess it’s like carbon offset credits you buy to make up for the fact that the vehicle you drive is a larger-than-life Hummer that gets 11 miles to the gallon.

The post JumpTown’s not-so-green reality appeared first on Daily Journal of Commerce.

While browsing the proposals at Tuesday night’s Memorial Coliseum presentations, I ran across one for a “Jumptown Plaza Concept.” I introduced myself to the guy standing in front of the board.

“So you’ve heard of us?” he asked.

“Well, yeah!” I responded. “The a few weeks ago. We said you and the MARC proposals are the standouts.”

“Oh?” he said, seeming confused. “I didn’t know you had covered us.”

It wasn’t until much later, when the “Jumptown Plaza Concept” gave its presentation, that I realized I had the wrong Jumptown.

The one I was thinking of, , was titled at the presentation, “Trail Blazers and Winterhawks Concept.” I guess there’s no copyright on the name “Jumptown,” but come on. That is kind of confusing. I had seen the presentation for the real Blazers-Winterhawks Jumptown, but I thought that was just their proposal for Memorial Coliseum. I thought the “Jumptown Plaza Concept” was the Blazers-Winterhawks proposal for the rest of their Jumptown idea, the Jumptown entertainment district in the Rose Quarter. For some reason, the fact that I didn’t recognize the renderings from previous press releases didn’t bother me.

I sent an apology email to the Jumptown Plaza guy, who by the way is . He did the design visualization for the Jumptown Plaza by James M. Harrison. They are seeking partners.

The post The other Jumptown appeared first on Daily Journal of Commerce.

While browsing the proposals at Tuesday night’s Memorial Coliseum presentations, I ran across one for a “Jumptown Plaza Concept.” I introduced myself to the guy standing in front of the board.

“So you’ve heard of us?” he asked.

“Well, yeah!” I responded. “The a few weeks ago. We said you and the MARC proposals are the standouts.”

“Oh?” he said, seeming confused. “I didn’t know you had covered us.”

It wasn’t until much later, when the “Jumptown Plaza Concept” gave its presentation, that I realized I had the wrong Jumptown.

The one I was thinking of, , was titled at the presentation, “Trail Blazers and Winterhawks Concept.” I guess there’s no copyright on the name “Jumptown,” but come on. That is kind of confusing. I had seen the presentation for the real Blazers-Winterhawks Jumptown, but I thought that was just their proposal for Memorial Coliseum. I thought the “Jumptown Plaza Concept” was the Blazers-Winterhawks proposal for the rest of their Jumptown idea, the Jumptown entertainment district in the Rose Quarter. For some reason, the fact that I didn’t recognize the renderings from previous press releases didn’t bother me.

I sent an apology email to the Jumptown Plaza guy, who by the way is . He did the design visualization for the Jumptown Plaza by James M. Harrison. They are seeking partners.

The post The other Jumptown appeared first on Daily Journal of Commerce.

The city of Portland received approximately 80 proposals to redevelop Memorial Coliseum; close to 30 came in on the Jan. 8 deadline date. While the proposals range from detailed to whimsical, the Daily Journal of Commerce focuses on two:

One, supported by developer Douglas Obletz, has persisted through the years as other redevelopment ideas have gained and lost support. The Obletz plan would turn the coliseum into the Memorial Athletic & Recreation Center, which would add recreation, training and track facilities, while keeping use of the existing ice rink.

The other, backed by the Rose Quarter‘s two biggest tenants, would modify the arena to allow for more city views and add an indoor pool and recreation area. The Portland Trail Blazers and Portland Winterhawks venues would be incorporated into a broader “Jumptown” mixed-use district.

Ideas were submitted through an online application process sponsored by the Portland Development Commission, Mayor Sam Adams’ office and Portland’s Bureau of Planning and Sustainability. Kia Selley, senior development advisor for the Portland Development Commission, said Monday that most proposals have come from unqualified developers that lack relevant experience and access to financing.

Selley said she hadn’t reviewed the proposals that came in last Friday. Some of those submitted earlier include building roller coasters, an addiction recovery center or a rotating, artificial snow bowl. Others would turn the coliseum into the Summer Dome (“an internal great outdoors with warm weather”) or Oregon Sports Factory (“the front of the coliseum could be a gravity/wind/human-powered/skate park/park”).

An advisory committee will discuss the selection process at a meeting today. The proposals will be presented at a public forum Jan. 26. Portland City Council will select the winning proposal in May.

Shiels Obletz Johnsen proposes multiuse athletics center for Memorial Coliseum

Project management firm Shiels Obletz Johnsen is leading a proposal to turn Memorial Coliseum into a multiuse athletics center, with training facilities and demountable playing surfaces.

The plan would cost up to $140 million and create a new, 6,500-seat arena and more than 200,000 square feet of recreation, training and competition space. The Memorial Athletic & Recreation Center would attract more than 1.5 million visitors annually to Portland’s Rose Quarter, according to Shiels Obletz Johnsen.

The proposal to transform the aging, underused coliseum was one of approximately 80 that were turned in by Friday’s deadline. Ideas were submitted through an online application process sponsored by the Portland Development Commission, Mayor Sam Adams’ office and the Portland Bureau of Planning and Sustainability.

A Memorial Coliseum Stakeholder Advisory Committee will meet today to discuss evaluation and recommendation plans for the coliseum, and certain plans will be presented Jan. 26 at the arena. Portland City Council is slated to choose a proposal by mid-May.

Douglas Obletz, president of Portland- and Seattle-based Shiels Obletz Johnsen, did not immediately return messages Monday seeking comment. But he said in a statement last week that his plan promotes health and wellness and preserves architectural heritage, among other benefits.

“Now is the time for the citizens of Portland to step up in support of a community project that symbolizes what Portland is about,” he said in the statement.

Shiels Obletz Johnsen is joined in the proposal by TVA Architects and Peter Meijer Architect, both of Portland, and Washington, D.C.-based Brailsford & Dunlavey, facility planners and economic consultants.

Under their plan, the facility, nicknamed MARC, would have several demountable playing surfaces – a 152-meter velodrome for bicycle racing, a competition-level running track and a National Hockey League regulation-sized ice rink.

It also would be the home arena for the Portland Winterhawks junior hockey club and Portland State University men’s and women’s basketball teams. In addition, it would host the state high school championships for several sports, including wrestling, swimming and volleyball.

MARC also would have weightlifting and fitness studios, a 50-foot-tall climbing and bouldering wall, and storage space.
“As envisioned,” the proposal states, “the MARC will rise majestically above the Willamette River, its glass curtain wall beckoning the public to participate in the myriad of activities visible within.”

According to the proposal, annual operating costs would be at least $8 million. Operating revenues would come from monthly and annual passes, facility rentals, birthday parties and catering, advertising and other sources.

Winterhawks and Blazers push Jumptown entertainment district

With Memorial Coliseum sitting in the heart of the Rose Quarter, the area’s main property manager and a key owner may seem to have an advantage in any redevelopment proposal. It also doesn’t hurt that the Portland Trail Blazers’ Jumptown proposal has the support of the coliseum’s main tenant, the Winterhawks hockey team.

MORE RENDERINGS (PDF)

• Aerial rendering
• Section elevation
• Street view
• Urban design goals

“We wanted to not develop an approach in a vacuum,” proposal spokesman Charlie Burr said. “We wanted to make sure it fits in with the plan of a vibrant district, and that’s one reason we collaborated with the Winterhawks.”

The Winterhawks play half their home games at Memorial Coliseum, but could play many more there if Portland City Council picks the redevelopment proposal the team is backing, said Doug Piper, the team’s president. That proposal would expand the ice rink surface to National Hockey League standards and remove seats to create open “party decks” where fans can gather around tables to watch the game, eat and drink.

The floor area outside the bowl would be reconfigured to include a swimming pool and a recreation room, and portions of the seating area would be removed to offer spectators views of town.

Presently, the Winterhawks play as many games as possible in the newer Rose Garden arena, Piper said. But a reworked Memorial Coliseum would better suit the team and eliminate its biggest scheduling headache.

“The Blazers, in the Rose Garden, have the first right on (game) dates, and we kind of have to sneak in around them,” Piper said. “We hold up the entire (Western Hockey League) scheduling process by two months.”

Although the proposal reduces the number of seats, it wouldn’t make the coliseum less desirable for major events, Piper said. The Rose Garden and Memorial Coliseum should be considered as two pieces of the same campus, he added.

For example, Piper said, events such as the U.S. Figure Skating Championships can use the rinks at both venues, with the final competitions held at the larger Rose Garden. “The preliminary events, or where they need to do more things at once, you could do in the smaller building.”

Portland Arena Management owns the Rose Garden and an adjacent parcel, and manages the city-owned Memorial Coliseum and Rose Quarter parking garages. The Winterhawks have a lease with the city that runs through 2013.

In addition, a parcel owned by Portland Arena Management affiliate Aegean across North Interstate Avenue, between Interstate Avenue and the Willamette River, would be included in Jumptown.

The Jumptown concept includes shops, restaurants, housing, event spaces, a Nike museum and possibly a 250-room hotel and a farmers’ market. The hotel wouldn’t be the oft-discussed Oregon Convention Center headquarters hotel, said J.E. Isaac, the Trail Blazers senior vice president for business affairs, despite the plan to build it a short walk from the center. A true headquarters hotel would have to be several times larger than one proposed for the Rose Quarter.

While that hotel could serve convention-goers, Isaac said, it would mainly serve Jumptown. Still, he said, a bustling entertainment center could spill over to the convention center, he said.

“Being as close as we are to the convention center, having an activity center here that is active 365 days a year is really a draw for additional conventions.”

The post Two proposals stand out for Memorial Coliseum appeared first on Daily Journal of Commerce.

One of the features of the Jumptown district the Portland Trail Blazers proposed for the Rose Quarter is a collection of Oregon craft breweries, according to a Memorial Coliseum redevelopment proposal submitted to the city of Portland today. But an artist’s rendering lifts a different state’s beer above Oregon’s own.

The Jumptown redering shows a bustling street scene, with shops, cafés and live music under a glass roof. A giant screen shows the Civil War football game, and restaurant awnings display the familiar Widmer Brothers logo.

But flying above the big screen is another beer’s logo: Seattle-based Pyramid Breweries.

Don’t take the drawing too seriously, said J.E. Isaac, the Trail Blazers senior vice president for business affairs. It’s early in the process.

“We were just kind of trying to give a flavor for the businesses that might be represented,” Isaac said.

The post No-so-Portland beer in Jumptown appeared first on Daily Journal of Commerce.

One of the features of the Jumptown district the Portland Trail Blazers proposed for the Rose Quarter is a collection of Oregon craft breweries, according to a Memorial Coliseum redevelopment proposal submitted to the city of Portland today. But an artist’s rendering lifts a different state’s beer above Oregon’s own.

The Jumptown redering shows a bustling street scene, with shops, cafés and live music under a glass roof. A giant screen shows the Civil War football game, and restaurant awnings display the familiar Widmer Brothers logo.

But flying above the big screen is another beer’s logo: Seattle-based Pyramid Breweries.

Don’t take the drawing too seriously, said J.E. Isaac, the Trail Blazers senior vice president for business affairs. It’s early in the process.

“We were just kind of trying to give a flavor for the businesses that might be represented,” Isaac said.

The post No-so-Portland beer in Jumptown appeared first on Daily Journal of Commerce.

MORE RENDERINGS (PDF)

• Aerial rendering
• Section elevation
• Street view
• Urban design goals

The Portland Trail Blazers submitted their proposal for the Jumptown entertainment district in the Rose Quarter ahead of today’s city deadline for Memorial Coliseum redevelopment ideas. The proposal formalizes the idea the Blazers and Portland Winterhawks announced last month.

While short on specifics, the proposal includes a grab bag of Portland development ideas. That could include a 250-room hotel near the convention center, if not a convention center hotel. And a farmers market, if not a year-round indoor farmers market.

The hallmarks of the proposal are a Memorial Coliseum reworked to hold more private boxes, a Nike museum and a mixed-use development that includes live-event venues.

Restaurants and a community athletic center would help liven up the district during the days and when no events are taking place.

The post Blazers submit proposal for Coliseum appeared first on Daily Journal of Commerce.

If Pioneer Courthouse Square is Portland’s living room, then perhaps the Rose Quarter could become Portland’s recreation room.

The Portland Trail Blazers and the Portland Winterhawks announced Thursday that they would team up for an effort to redevelop the Rose Quarter into a 24-hour sports and entertainment district.

But the largest challenge facing the Jumptown proposal, according to Trail Blazers President Larry Miller, is what to do with Memorial Coliseum. The city is soliciting proposals to redevelop the historic building, and its fate remains uncertain. But Miller said he is confident that the teams’ plan would make the best use of the aging facility.

“We see maintaining Memorial Coliseum as an event venue is its best use,” Miller said. “(Approximately) 450,000 people go through there each year. To take it down, the city would lose something there.”

What Memorial Coliseum would lose if the Jumptown proposal were chosen, however, is seating. Winterhawks president Doug Piper said the 20,000-seat arena could be pared down to only 6,000 to 7,000 seats to draw in visitors who want a more intimate viewing experience. Reducing capacity to attract more visitors may seem counterintuitive, but Piper insists the seat reduction is about supply and demand.

“It creates a scarcity of product so that tickets become harder to get, which is important in our business,” Piper said. “Think about the challenges that (Portland Beavers and Portland Timbers owner) Merritt Paulson faces with PGE Park. He can get a huge crowd in that stadium and it still doesn’t look full. Seven thousand seats seems to be the most successful amount for teams in the Western Hockey League.”

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Blazers president presents Jumptown to minority entrepreneurs | If the Portland Trail Blazers‘ and Portland Winterhawks‘ proposal for a 24-hour sports and entertainment district in the Rose Quarter is approved by City Council next year, Blazers team president Larry Miller said he wants minorities, women and emerging small businesses to have a big piece of that development pie.
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While the plan would remove seats, it also would create new training facilities for the Blazers at the coliseum, upgrade the stadium’s ice sheet and add amenities such as club seating and more dining options.

But before the Winterhawks can think about costs associated with altering the seating, Piper said other costly building issues such as old wiring, plumbing and HVAC systems will need to be addressed.

“It’s not going to be cheap,” Piper said. “The biggest problem right now is the building is dated. There’s no electronic scoreboard, the lighting and sound systems are old, and it needs to meet ADA requirements. It’s going to be a big project just to get the building up to speed.”

The cost to renovate the building as laid out in the Jumptown proposal has not been determined. But Piper said Winterhawks owner Bill Gallacher would not be opposed to helping finance the project.

“That decision would be based on a revenue assessment to see how much of an investment we could recoup,” Piper said. “As we figure out what the city’s decision on the proposal is, our roles will become more clear, whether it’s tenant or investment partner.”

The city will stop taking concept proposals to redevelop Memorial Coliseum on Jan. 8, 2010. Concepts then will be reviewed by the mayor’s Rose Quarter Development Stakeholder Advisory Committee. A public presentation of the qualifying concepts is scheduled for Jan. 26, 2010 at Memorial Coliseum.

Despite competition from more than 50 proposals for the building, Miller said he was confident that the teams’ plan will succeed.

“We’re more focused on presenting our plan in the best possible light than on the other proposals,” Miller said. “We’ve been well received by the Portland Development Commission, and we have a viable plan and partners.”

The post Portland Winterhawks partner with Blazers for Jumptown appeared first on Daily Journal of Commerce.