Multiple public agencies have issued calls for donations of personal protective equipment amid the COVID-19 pandemic. The state of Oregon, Portland Fire & Rescue and the Multnomah County Health Department are among those seeking surplus unused gloves, masks, respirators and other equipment for use by medical staff and first responders, and are reaching out to the construction industry and other groups.

Requested items include latex-free gloves, N95 respirators and filters, other respirators including P100s, PAPRs and PAPR supplies, as well as procedural masks, face and splash shields, and hand sanitizer.

Donations are being accepted in Portland at Portland Fire & Rescue’s fire marshal’s office parking lot, at 1300 S.E. Gideon St., between noon and 4 p.m., Monday through Friday, and at the loading dock of Multnomah County’s headquarters building at 501 S.E. Hawthorne Blvd.

Donations can also be dropped off in Salem, or mailed to: Oregon Dept. of Corrections, Attn: PPE Coordinator, 3601 State Street, Salem, OR 97301.

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Multnomah County this week celebrated the grand opening of the Gladys McCoy Health Department Headquarters, a new public health building that will bring an array of services and 500 employees to the western edge of Portland’s Old Town Chinatown neighborhood.

The nine-story, $94.1 million building is over a decade in the works, and includes pharmacy services, specialty clinics, examination rooms, open office space, and a large central laboratory that will service 20 off-site county clinics. A large ground-floor space will serve as a public health emergency command post and a meeting space. Employees will move into the space next month from an outdated 10-story building (also named for the late Gladys McCoy, a former county chairwoman) at 426 S.W. Harvey Milk St.

The grand opening marks the completion of a two-year project by construction manager-general contractor J.E. Dunn, which began major work on the ZGF Architects-designed project in February 2017. Shiels Obletz Johnsen served as the owner’s representative. A total of 935 skilled tradespeople worked on the project – up to 250 on the site at one time at the peak of construction. The project team utilized 31 percent apprentice labor and 28 percent DMWESB-certified firms.

Multnomah County Chairwoman Deborah Kafoury, speaking at the opening ceremony, praised a project labor agreement between the county, contractor, labor unions and other interested parties. The PLA created a framework so that the project partners “could work together to overcome the historic barriers that have kept the construction industry from being open to everyone,” she said.

The project was funded in part by Prosper Portland, which contributed $36.4 million in tax increment financing from the River District Urban Renewal Area. The building is located within the Broadway Corridor, a 34-acre area that could eventually see up to 4 million square feet of mixed-use development.

“This is a key moment in our long-term partnership with Multnomah County,” said Kimberly Branam, Prosper Portland’s executive director. “This building signals the transformation to come within the Broadway Corridor, which is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to bring the Pearl District and Old Town together.”

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Seattle-based Urban Renaissance Group and private equity firm Gaw Capital USA, in a joint venture, have purchased the Gladys McCoy Building, in downtown Portland, from Multnomah County for $9.85 million.

The Gladys McCoy Building, at 426 S.W. Harvey Milk St., was built in 1923. The 10-story, approximately 100,000-square-foot building was occupied by J.K. Gill Co. for over 60 years before it was acquired by the county. It is being replaced by a new Gladys McCoy Health Department Headquarters on property near Union Station in the Pearl District.

Urban Renaissance Group and Gaw Capital USA say they intend to renovate the old building starting this fall and finishing in spring 2020.

“As URG continues to pursue both significant renovation projects and ground up development, we couldn’t be more excited about this acquisition,” URG Vice President Tom Kilbane, stated in a press release. “The McCoy Building is in an ideal location with great historic appeal, and we anticipate it will attract a wide range of tenants, from technology to engineering to creative types.”

The county will continue to lease the building through mid-2019. Then crews will renovate the lobby, construct a new café, modernize elevators, apply exterior paint, install new storefront glass, doors, canopies and mechanical systems, and build new restrooms, spa-grade showers, lockers and bike storage.

Original features – double-height ceilings on the first floor, an open mezzanine, a grand staircase and 10,000-square-foot floor plates – will be preserved, according to Kilbane.

“By investing in the existing character of this historic building, we will ensure it serves Portland for another 100-plus years,” he stated.

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Ownership of Multnomah County‘s 95-year-old Gladys McCoy Building in downtown Portland will soon transfer to private developers.

County commissioners voted unanimously Thursday to approve the sale of the building to Urban Renaissance Group LLC for $11.1 million. The 10-story structure has approximately 100,000 square feet and will be converted into commercial office space in the future, according to county documents.

The building has served as Multnomah County’s Health Department headquarters for many years. Construction of a new headquarters building is in the final stages in Old Town.

“The plans are to renovate this historic building and offer the space as office space,” Bob Leek, interim director of the department of county assets told commissioners.

The county’s real estate team started a blind sales process in 2017, with the board of commissioners formally declaring the building as surplus earlier this year.

Commercial real estate services and investment firm CBRE Group began marketing the building on behalf of the county in May and had over 7,000 initial qualified buyers inquire about the property.

Further exploration whittled that figure down to 164 registered parties expressing interest. By July, the county had eight formal offers for the property in hand, Leek said, which necessitated four rounds of reviews by the county real estate team.

“The end result of that is why I’m here this morning,” he said.

The deal also includes a leaseback provision that will allow the county to continue to use the Gladys McCoy Building as its health department headquarters in the event delivery of the new building is delayed.

“Which isn’t going to happen,” board Chairwoman Deborah Kafoury interjected with a laugh.

Urban Renaissance Group LLC is based in Seattle, but has a Portland office. The firm offers real estate acquisition, development and management services.

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It’s not just the private sector where construction is booming in the Portland-metro area. The public sector is just as active, especially in Multnomah County. On top of the 17-story central courthouse being built near the west end of the Hawthorne Bridge, the nine-story, 157,000-square-foot Gladys McCoy Health Department headquarters is rising on a half-block parcel at Northwest Sixth Avenue and Hoyt Street.

The health department’s existing headquarters, on Southwest Stark Street, was built in 1923 and has long been too small to meet staffing and service needs. ZGF Architects designed the $94 million replacement, named for the first African-American elected to public office in Oregon, to occupy a property near Union Station in Old Town Chinatown.

General contractor J.E. Dunn Construction and a multitude of subcontractors are entering the final phases of the project. Crews topped out the building in December and have since been working on the envelope and the interior. The team expects work to be substantially complete by the end of the year.

“It’ll definitely be an iconic building,” said Tom Heger, a J.E. Dunn vice president. “One feature I’d say is unique here is the exterior skin. With the way it’s designed for passive energy savings, it’s a very efficient building, and we have all the weather barriers up.”

Deep, masonry-punched openings, or apertures, are being positioned to take advantage of the building’s orientation, and minimize glare and heat penetration. In addition, virtually all windows are recessed to provide exceptional energy efficiency. Such features are intended to allow the building to achieve a Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design gold rating.

A terrace and stormwater planters will be installed on the roof, and the apertures were designed to fit the neighborhood and its vintage warehouses.

“It complements Union Station right there,” Heger said. “The design team did a really good job of matching the neighborhood and the context of where it’s at.”

No vehicle parking will be provided, although there will be 55 bike parking spaces. A lobby and a pharmacy will be located on the ground floor, while specialty clinical services will occupy three stories. Administrative offices and work areas are planned for the upper floors.

Public art will be installed on the ground floor, Multnomah County project manager Brett Taute said, and be visible from the street through massive floor-to-ceiling windows.

An incident command center specific to the health department will be built. This area of the ground floor will have a backup generator and other mechanical services, next to the loading dock. However, allowing for change will ensure the space is useful in the long run, Taute said.

“The health department will be the major user of this building,” he said. “But as programs change, and as we move through, it just would behoove the county to allow for as much of that flexibility and adjustment without holding ourselves to the walls and elements that are there.”

Currently, Heger said, sheet metal workers, masons, carpenters, electricians and other tradespeople are working steadily to finish not only the exterior brick cladding, but the interior as well.

“We actually have carpet laid and we have ceiling grid in,” he said. “We’re getting ready to start laying ceiling tile, and the walls will be painted on the lower floors, so we’re just bringing up the building and prepping eventually for furniture later this fall.”

Extensive seismic reinforcement was designed into structure. From the massive steel buckle restraint braces in two main stairwells to a wide array of smaller seismic features intended to secure mechanical systems, the new building will be able to survive a sizable earthquake in much better condition than many of its neighbors, Taute said.

“It’s not meant as a central facility,” he said. “There’s not the full reliance that we’d be open for business the next day. But at least it wouldn’t be a complete loss and you wouldn’t have to restart the entire building. That was the design intention.”

For the full history of the project, visit .

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Exceptional communication can turn a good project into a truly great one. That was the case for the project team involved in the recent $4.5 million renovation of the Multnomah County Health Department‘s North Portland Health Center.

Designed by Hennebery Eddy Architects and built by Aloha-based general contractor INLINE Commercial Construction, the remodel provided a much-needed upgrade of a 15-year-old clinic on North Lombard Street in St. Johns. Crews added a host of new exam rooms and team rooms, replaced a pharmacy, and installed security improvements.

The clinic remained open during the entire 12-month project – well, almost.

“INLINE discovered about a third of the way through the project that the main sewer line underneath the building had deteriorated and needed to be replaced,” Multnomah County project manager Greg Hockert said. “And it was only closed one day, which is an amazing feat. That’s like throwing a magic wand over the building with some fairy dust on top of it.”

With INLINE already on-site, the fix was remarkably easy, Hockert said.

“From my side, once you bring a contractor on board, it’s about building the relationships with the people you’re servicing,” he said. “It was clear and open communications, and that’s how you have a successful project. It takes a special talent to do what they did in here; it’s a skill set that’s not easy to find.”

The North Portland Health Center was built in 2003, but aging quickly. It had a rather dour color palette as well as security deficiencies that left staff and patients vulnerable. Possibly the worst flaw in this regard involved the former first-floor pharmacy, which was located barely 10 feet from an exterior door and just around the corner from the main entrance.

“Having two entrances and exits for the public is not a good security move,” said Meg Matsushima, project manager for Hennebery Eddy Architects.

The two-story clinic’s floor plan was changed extensively to enhance security, Matsushima said. Also, the facility gained new interior and exterior cameras, staff card-lock access, duress alarms and more. Perhaps most noticeable to the public is that there is now only one public entrance and exit.

Also, fencing and a gate were added to the parking lot, while a new dental office was built on the second floor next to the pharmacy. However, the dental office cannot open until additional funding is provided.

In addition, the building’s interior now is highlighted by a range of blue and green tones to provide patients with a calmer atmosphere than the previous one.

Project costs topped out at roughly $150 per square foot, Matsushima said. Funding came from a half-dozen different sources, including a $935,000 federal Health Resources and Services Administration grant.

“We didn’t use extravagant materials; we used good, sustainable materials where they counted,” Matsushima said. “I think this project represented good stewardship of taxpayer dollars, and people now think it’s a new clinic. If they can get the dental portion up and running it’s going to be incredibly viable.”

INLINE project superintendent Bill Anderson also credited communication with the smooth outcome. In working with neighboring residents and businesses, as well as clinic staff and patients, it took constant juggling to complete the project, he said.

“One of the things was just the team atmosphere from the county to the clinic to the architect, as well as our team just trying to figure out the intent and the best way to get there,” he said. “And always keep in mind that we have to make sure they’re still operating and keeping the doors open and keeping the patients happy.”

Now, the county health department has a new crown jewel.

“It’s really all about the access for the patients,” county project manager Nicki Winchester said. “And this is really the high point of our system now.”

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A $94.1 million project to build a new headquarters for the Multnomah County Health Department is about halfway complete. Construction manager-general contractor JE Dunn is building the ZGF Architects-designed structure on a half-block lot in Old Town Chinatown along Northwest Sixth Avenue between Hoyt and Irving streets.

When completed, the Gladys McCoy Health Department Headquarters will have nine occupied stories with a mix of specialty clinic space, a central laboratory and office space for about 500 county employees. The building’s ground floor will have a retail space, a pharmacy, bike storage for building employees, and display space for public art.

Ground was broken in December 2016, and major work commenced in February 2017. Groundwork and pile driving lasted through last August, at which point steel erection began; the building was topped out in December 2017.

Concrete floors are to be completely poured in the coming weeks, while exterior framing is now taking place on the fourth floor. Crews are at work installing interior framing, ductwork, fire protection systems and piping. Plumbing is being installed to circulate fluids for the building’s radiant panel heating and cooling system. The project is slated to be dried in this spring.

The building will be clad in brick on the upper floors and precast concrete on the ground floor, with window projections on the upper floors designed to minimize glare and heat penetration. The project is slated for completion in the first quarter of next year.

Multnomah County has set project goals for 20 percent utilization of MWSDVESB-certified subcontracting firms, as well as 20 percent apprentice utilization. A Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design gold rating is also being targeted.

Editor’s note: This story has been updated to reflect the correct project cost and subcontractor utilization goals.

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A groundbreaking was held Wednesday for the Multnomah County Health Department’s new headquarters building in Old Town-Chinatown. The Gladys McCoy Building, which has been a decade in the making, will provide a much-needed upgrade from the department’s current downtown facility. The nine-story, 157,000-square-foot building will be erected on the eastern half of a block bounded by Northwest Broadway and Sixth Avenue, and Northwest Hoyt and Irving Streets, adjacent to the Bud Clark Commons.

The ZGF Architects-designed building was approved by the Portland Design Commission last month, and construction manager-general contractor JE Dunn will begin work on the $93 million project next month.  Shiels Obletz Johnsen is serving as the owner’s representative for the county.

Approximately 500 previously scattered county employees will work in the building, which will house a pharmacy, three specialty clinics, administrative offices and work areas. Substantial completion is slated for October of 2018, and final completion is expected to follow that December.

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The Portland Design Commission on Thursday voted unanimously to approve the design of the Multnomah County Health Department headquarters, allowing the nine-story building to rise to 145 feet.

The 157,000-square-foot building will be constructed at Northwest Sixth Avenue and Hoyt Street, on a vacant lot adjacent to the Bud Clark Commons building, which provides apartments for people battling homelessness.

A lobby and a pharmacy will be located on the ground floor. Clinics, administrative offices and work areas are planned for upper floors. A terrace and stormwater planters will be installed on the roof.

The building will have a floor-to-area ratio of nine to one.

Design Commissioner Andrew Clarke voted in favor of approval, but said the design missed the mark.

“I think we missed an opportunity here,” he said. “It still feels like it was too much of a compromise to me.”

Chairman David Wark recused himself from the vote.

Earlier versions of the design were rejected in design review meetings on Sept. 22 and Nov. 3. In response, the architects revised certain aspects. Metal panels were turned a darker shade. Brick was extended upward on the building.

The design was revised at ground level to present a more “open and friendly front door to the county,” according to a staff report. Deep masonry punched openings are intended to reflect the character of nearby warehouses.

ZGF Architects‘ Jimmy Gantz is responsible for the design.

Public art will be installed as a condition of occupancy.

The development will be visible from the Broadway Bridge and Union Station.

The project will rise immediately east of the 14-acre U.S. Postal Service property purchased earlier this year by the Portland Development Commission. That site is envisioned to be home to a massive redevelopment totaling some 3.8 million square feet, including residential, office and retail uses.

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The design of the Multnomah County Health Department‘s new headquarters will require changes. The Portland Design Commission denied a bid for approval on Thursday, though it will take another look at the project next month.

Construction of the nine-story, 157,000-square-foot building, designed by ZGF Architects, is set for a vacant lot at Northwest Hoyt Street and Sixth Avenue, next to Bud Clark Commons and near Union Station.

The building’s ground floor will house a pharmacy, a lobby, work space and a loading area. Upper levels will hold medical clinics, offices and administrative work areas. Other details include a precast concrete exterior with a glazed window wall system, acrylic stucco and painted metal panels for window projections and box rib metal panel for the ninth-floor walls and rooftop mechanical screen.

Joanne Fuller, director of the Multnomah County Health Department, told the Design Commission that the building will accommodate “500 living-wage jobs.” The neighborhood is expected to gain approximately 300 people per day, so programming will account for activity on nights and weekends.

But the building’s light color bothered Commissioner Don Vallaster, who said it should respond more to other buildings in the neighborhood.

“A lot of buildings use red brick, but this is a very cool, almost austere white building,” he said.

Gene Sandoval, a ZGF partner, said the color, which he called light gray, is in accordance with other civic buildings in town.

Another concern expressed by Vallaster was the lack of canopies, but Sandoval said they would block views from the street of an 8-foot-by-10-foot piece of art in the building’s lobby.

City staffers did not recommend approval and said the applicant needs to submit a plan for stormwater management and certify the size of the eco-roof with the Bureau of Environmental Services before bonus floor area can be granted. A maximum floor area ratio of 9:1 is possible because of bonuses from the bike locker room and affordable housing replacement fund.

City planner Puja Bhutani said the building also needs a larger entrance on Northwest Sixth Avenue. Staffers had concerns about coherence, materials and other details, such as metal sills with stucco surrounds on the windows. They also said a recess of four to six inches at the ground level should be shallower to prevent trash accumulation.

Commissioner Tad Savinar praised the ZGF team for giving a “very clear and illustrative presentation,” but also criticized the design.

“I would not approve because it’s a cage keeping the animals out and it’s not doing the neighborhood any good or the building any good,” he said. “For me, the canopies and east facade are stumbling blocks.”

The project is slated to return before the Design Commission on Oct. 27.

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