A $70 million renovation to Portland State University‘s Neuberger Hall is the latest in a series of major upgrades to campus buildings, including the Karl Miller Center last year and the Viking Pavilion at the Peter W. Stott Center this year. Fortis Construction is building the Hacker-designed project, which will modernize the 1960s-era Brutalist building with seismic and systems upgrades, improved accessibility, a light well providing ample daylight penetration, and a new curtain-wall system on the western portion.

The full-block structure, which fronts Southwest Broadway to the east and the South Park Blocks to the west, consists of two separately constructed buildings. The western portion is constructed with concrete-encased steel and was completed in 1961, and a steel-framed addition on the eastern portion of the block followed in 1969.

Crews have been at work on the project for about four months, primarily handling demolition and abatement. That phase of work is expected to continue through this summer. Performance Abatement Services is currently removing asbestos-laden fire retardant from steel beams on two of the building’s four above-grade floors, as well as in the basement.

Once abatement and demolition work is completed, the next major step in the project will be to cut a light well into the building’s west side. A section of slab measuring approximately 3,000 square feet will be removed from each floor and the roof to allow daylight into the center of each of the building’s occupied floors.

Meanwhile, Staton Companies crews are demolishing fifth floor/rooftop mechanical structures, and soon will commence removing the curtain-wall facade of the western portion. The facade will be replaced with more glazing in an effort to open the building up to the facing Park Blocks. Similarly, precast concrete panels on the ground floor of the building’s eastern portion will be replaced with an aluminum storefront system, providing a connection to the streetscape of Southwest Broadway. In addition, new entries will be constructed at each building elevation.

When it opens for the fall 2019 term, the building will house offices, classrooms and laboratories, and an art museum funded by the Jordan Schnitzer Family Foundation.

The project team also includes Mayer/Reed, KPFF Consulting Engineers, PAE Engineers, and ABHT Structural Engineers.

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One design team showed Thursday how an early request for advice from the Portland Design Commission can help a project sail through its eventual review hearing.

The commission voted 5-0 to give conditional approval to Hacker‘s plan to renovate Portland State University’s Neuberger Hall.

“You really took to heart the comments we made about landscaping and circulation and everything,” Commission Vice Chairman Tad Savinar said. “It really shows. The jetty is exactly what the doctor ordered.”

One of the biggest changes from the design advice hearing was the addition of seating jetties to landscaping around the building. Other aspects of the $70 million renovation include: replacement of the existing curtain wall on the building’s west side with new glazing; replacement of existing single-pane glazing on the east side with high-performance double-pane glazing; the addition of new entrances and increased glazing to the ground floor and exteriors; and new landscaping for areas north, west and south of the building.

Many of the changes from the previous design revolved around changes to the landscaping to make the building blend better with its surroundings on the Park Blocks.

While the comments and the hearing were largely positive, the commission did have issues to sort through during the two-hour hearing. The thorniest one revolved around a stairwell leading to an exit onto Southwest Broadway.

The renovation plan calls for leaving in place the stairwell, which is positioned so that an entryway is dark. That is a security concern because it creates a space hidden from public view where people could stand or try to break into the building.

“Lighting is an issue,” Commissioner David Wark said. “We would never approve it for a new building.”

The stairwell presented a problem for designers because it’s attached to walls that provide seismic strength. The entryway also provides a fire exit that must be kept clear.

The commission debated installation of a gate at the top of the stairwell, but clearance issues made that impractical and the commission decided any benefit would be minimal.

In the end, the commission settled for installation of high-intensity lighting with motion sensors to try to deter problems.

Another issue was the dark color that would result from a planned lime wash of the existing brick. Commissioners discussed a variety of possibilities, including use of different colors.

Commissioner Samuel Rodriguez said that he believed this issue had been dealt with in the previous hearing.

“We spent hours talking about this building,” he said. “That was, in my mind, the time if we were going to ask them to preserve the brick, preserve the brick.

“If you change that brick, I think that whole thing falls apart,” he added.

In the end, commissioners agreed to approve Hacker’s plan.

The commission also agreed with staff recommendations for added conditions concerning lighting in the stairwell, the color of the brick matching the one presented and maintaining the appearance of the seating jetties on the building’s park side.

Also on Thursday:

Block 290

After more than two years of design changes, the Design Commission voted 5-0 to approve plans for the Block 290 project at 1417 N.W. 20th Ave.

Guardian Real Estate Services‘ seven-story mixed-use building went through multiple design review hearings and was opposed by neighbors. They claimed LRS Architects‘ design didn’t fit with the Con-way master plan, which, in addition to city design guidelines, governs development in the area.

The Design Commission even created a subcommittee to work with developers to devise a plan that would, in the commission’s view, meet the master plan and city design guidelines.

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Portland State University has unveiled designs for a major remodel of a prominent campus building.

Neuberger Hall will be fully modernized, as well as seismically strengthened and cleared of hazardous materials. Financing for the $70 million project includes $60 million in state bonds and a $5 million boost from PSU alum Fariborz Maseeh.

The contractor is Fortis Construction and the architect is Hacker. Construction is scheduled to begin in December and last for two years.

The building, constructed in the 1960s, currently houses a number of student services, as well as classrooms and faculty offices. The five-story, 237,000-square-foot building is on Broadway in downtown Portland, between Harrison and Hall streets.

The university also is currently reconstructing its basketball arena, the Peter W. Stott Center, and its School of Business Administration.

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