Prosper Portland and Lan Su Chinese Garden are working together on plans for a full-block mixed-use development in Old Town Chinatown.

On Wednesday, Prosper Portland’s board approved moving forward with the $8 million purchase of Block 24. Lan Su is under contract with the current owner, NW Natural.

The 0.9-acre property became available after NW Natural decided to move from One Pacific Square to the new 250 Taylor building. Block 24 is currently a surface parking lot.

Lan Su board members said the organization plans to construct a new five-story building that would link to the garden. The building would include a cultural center, a café, a theater, an event space, administrative offices and more. A sunken plaza able to accommodate outdoor events would join the two properties. A private developer will be sought for the project.

Overall, Lan Su is planning to build 50,000 square feet for its own purposes.

“That is definitely ambitious and definitely bold, but we think all of those activities in combination would create a really lively and engaging ground-floor opportunity on Block 24,” said Susan Hartnett, vice president of the Lan Su Chinese Garden board of directors.

The cultural center would play an important role, Hartnett said.

“As we deal with the impacts of COVID and a likely recession, looking to retail may not be the best thing, so the culture and heritage center is a great opportunity to create active uses on the ground floor for that whole block,” she said.

A hotel, retail space, office space or housing – driven by market demand – would fill the rest of the building, officials said.

Prosper Portland will use a $4 million inter-fund loan from Portland Parks & Recreation to assist with the purchase. Tax increment financing will be used as well.

The property was appraised in February at $9.5 million. The purchase price below that value reflects the cost of environmental remediation, said Karl Dinkelspiel, development manager for Prosper Portland.

The project will be a joint effort of Lan Su, Prosper Portland and likely a third-party developer, Dinkelspiel said. The developer would be selected in 2021 or 2022 after a request for interest, he said.

The project aligns with Prosper Portland’s long-term goals to boost economic opportunity in Old Town Chinatown. An action plan for the neighborhood was approved in 2014 and renewed last year.

Block 24 is bounded by Northwest Flanders and Glisan streets, and Second and Third avenues. It’s directly east of Block 25, where Key Development is working on another major proposal. Combined, the two projects would add tens of millions of dollars in economic development to Old Town Chinatown.

“There’s a lot of potential hopefully about to be unlocked there,” said Shawn Uhlman, spokesman for Prosper Portland.

The parcel is zoned central commercial. It has a base 6-to-1 floor-area ratio, with an additional 3-to-1 bonus available. The property has a 350-foot base height, although it’s unlikely the project would be anywhere near that tall, Dinkelspiel said.

Raymond Cheng, Lan Su’s board president, said the building would have a rooftop garden. He added that Lan Su has been working on a design with Li Chung “Sandi” Pei, a son of the late, legendary architect I.M. Pei, who died last year. Sandi Pei co-founded PEI Architects in New York City.

An early rendering from PEI Architects showed a 26-story hotel tower that would dwarf Lan Su Chinese Garden. That was an early concept put forward before Prosper Portland became involved in the project.

“It’s clear to everybody involved that it’s too early to say what exactly could be there,” Uhlman said. “It could be a hotel. It could be housing. All options are on the table.”

The building’s use “depends on what the market will bear,” he added.

Cheng said he met with Mayor Ted Wheeler to discuss the project more than a year ago.

“We are looking forward to making this happen, and making this a transformational project,” he said.

The post A big deal for Old Town Chinatown appeared first on Daily Journal of Commerce.

The Portland City Council voted Wednesday to adopt the Central City 2035 plan, culminating years of work with a sweeping plan that will set rules for future development, including allowable building heights.

As the plan moved close to adoption, a rift developed among commissioners regarding allowable heights on the property adjacent to Lan Su Chinese Garden in Old Town-Chinatown.

The maximum height on that property was lowered from 400 feet under old rules to 200 feet in the Central City 2035 plan, but some commissioners wanted it lowered further to 125 feet. Allowable heights vary from 100 feet to 460 feet on nearby blocks.

Commissioner Amanda Fritz said the allowed height undermines years of work to protect the Chinatown/Japantown Historic District. She added that the development guidelines violate city policies meant to preserve historic resources. Fritz said future buildings could shade the garden, making plants unable to grow and koi fish unable to survive in the garden’s ponds.

“The time to protect Lan Su Chinese Garden for sure was now,” she said.

Mayor Ted Wheeler bristled at the suggestion the allowed height will hurt the garden, saying he proposed to his wife there.

“We are more than reducing by half the height, and yet I am being told I am destroying an important historic asset in this city,” Wheeler said. “I don’t buy it, not for a second. Nor should you.”

Commissioner Chloe Eudaly said she did not want to restrict development potential on the block.

“I think it’s in the best interest of the neighborhood and the businesses down there for the development potential of this site to be maximized while protecting the garden,” she said.

Commissioners also approved a measure to require a master plan in certain portions of RiverPlace. NBP Capital has requested a master plan for a series of towers in the area of Southwest Portland.

As part of the 2035 package, commissioners also adopted a concept report for the Green Loop, a proposal to make biking and walking easier downtown and in the Central Eastside through measures such as protected bike lanes and enhanced pedestrian crossings.

“We are growing as a city; we cannot stop the growth,” Wheeler said. “People are going to continue to come here. This is going to continue to be a bigger city. But we acknowledged there are better places than others for height and density.”

The post Portland adopts 2035 plan appeared first on Daily Journal of Commerce.