The Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (OMSI) is transforming its 7,000-square-foot Natural Sciences Hall into a space designed to deepen public understanding of climate-related challenges and community-level actions.

The renovation will begin once the hall closes to the public on Tuesday. The updated space, expected to open in spring 2026, will be named the Nancy Stueber Natural Sciences Hall after OMSI’s former president and CEO; she retired in 2020 after 38 years at the museum.

Bearing Architecture designed the project. The team also includes structural engineer VALAR Consulting Engineering and general contractor Walsh Construction.

The hall’s current Science on a Sphere exhibit will return. Also, access through the hall to the museum’s upstairs labs will remain. The museum’s prenatal exhibit will reopen in a different area of the hall. The remainder of the space will be renovated, including construction of new walls, additions of murals, and installation of new lighting to lower energy costs. Key activations in the hall focusing on renewable energy, sustainable living and conservation were developed in partnership with Portland General Electric, a sponsor of the renovation.

A new permanent, interactive exhibition will illustrate the relationship between humans and the environment. “Climate of Change/Clima de Cambio” will feature narratives from the communities in Oregon most affected by climate change.

“We want to invite visitors to explore in hands-on participatory ways how climate change is affecting our region here in the Pacific Northwest, both in our ecosystems and in our communities,” said Ciera Iveson, OMSI’s creative director.

Key climate science concepts and climate solutions will be presented, she said.

The climate impact message carried through the project’s design. OMSI is working with Timberlab to create an entrance using reclaimed yellow cedar left over from construction sites. Inside, tan oak will be used. The team will use mainly reclaimed wood that otherwise would have become waste, Iveson said.

The project’s theme is reclaiming waste, sourcing local building materials, and minimizing use of anything that in the long run would be discarded, she added.

Hall features will include: an immersive multimedia experience developed by Tellart that highlights the interconnectedness of humans and the natural world; design showcasing the beauty of the Pacific Northwest through landscapes, textures, and ecosystems; and other interactive, hands-on elements and education modules.

“We’re putting in a story theater where we’re sharing some documentary films we’ve been shooting of local communities here in the Pacific Northwest and their solutions,” Iveson said. “That’s going to be a really beautiful part of this installation.”

Donors, trustees and sponsors in the past few years have provided support for the project, Iveson said.

The museum’s “Accelerated” campaign raised $6.75 million from 2020-2025 in support of OMSI District plans. Approximately $2 million was allocated for the Nancy Stueber Natural Sciences Hall. Officials also garnered approximately $2 million in federal grants (from the National Science Foundation and the Institute of Museum and Library Services), of which $1.5 million was rescinded, Iveson stated in an email. When the grants were terminated, OMSI reduced the project scope and allocated operational funds to its partners to ensure key exhibition elements of the exhibitions could be preserved, she added.

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Plans for the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (OMSI) District are moving forward, with construction of the first project in the master plan set to begin next year.

The Portland City Council on Wednesday authorized a term sheet to serve as a guide for project agreements for the OMSI Master Plan District. The city council also authorized a $16.9 million intergovernmental agreement between Prosper Portland and the Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) to construct the New Water Avenue project.

Last week, the Prosper Portland Board of Commissioners approved the term sheet and IGA, moving it on to the Portland City Council.

Approving the term sheet affirms cooperation between OMSI, the city of Portland and Prosper Portland to achieve the goal and policies of the Central City Master Plan. The master plan establishes an urban design framework and determines adequate utilities.

The project includes 24 acres of transit-oriented, mixed-use development, 1,200 new market rate and affordable housing units and the restoration of Tribal presence on the Willamette River through the creation of a Center for Tribal Nations and the waterfront education park. Native American-led architecture firm Earthwise Design is leading the design of the Center for Tribal Nations. OMSI and the Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission will issue a request for proposals for design of the waterfront. The project is scheduled to reach 30-percent design by March 2027 and funding by spring 2028.

The city funding is allocated for the first phase of the project. This includes the New Water Avenue, a sewer systems project, design and planning for a new waterfront education park and Center for Tribal Nations, Tract A, and Tract C/D. This phase is expected to take 10 years to complete.

Phase two will include private development projects and the feasibility of district parking. Affordable housing projects will take place during phase two or phase three, depending on funding availability. Construction of the waterfront education park is also likely to take place during phase two. Phase three will include private development projects, Loop Road and city infrastructure, and planning and development of district parking.

Prosper Portland will invest $10.9 million in Central Eastside Tax Increment Finance (TIF) resources into the New Water Avenue Project and will transfer another $6 million in State of Oregon funds, once received from Business Oregon. PBOT has budgeted $500,000 in Transportation System Development Charges that can be made available for eligible improvements within the project.

The total project cost is estimated at $90 million and includes $30 million for New Water Avenue, $40 million for the waterfront education park and $15.9 million for Old Water Avenue and Loop Road.

The project is now 75 percent funded for phase one, with continued efforts to secure public funds to close the remaining gap, OMSI stated in a press release.

The New Water Avenue project, which will include a two-way cycle track, will be the first project to break ground and is scheduled to start in November 2025 and be complete in July 2027.

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The Oregon Museum of Science and Industry‘s (OMSI) plans for a new neighborhood district are moving forward.

The Prosper Portland Board of Commissioners on Wednesday authorized a term sheet with OMSI related to development plans for the OMSI District. The commission also approved an intergovernmental agreement with the Portland Bureau of Transportation (PBOT) for $10.9 million of Central Eastside Tax Increment Finance (TIF) resources, and up to $16.9 million if Prosper Portland and Business Oregon execute a $6 million grant.

Amy Nagy, development manager at Prosper Portland, said the term sheet provides the framework for private or public infrastructure and vertical development projects related to the OMSI District Central City Master Plan between Prosper Portland, the city of Portland and OMSI.

The intergovernmental agreement directs funding from Prosper Portland to PBOT for design, construction and management of New Water Avenue.

“OMSI has been a cultural attraction in the city since the 1950s,” Nagy said.

The museum moved from Washington Park to the Central Eastside in the early ’90s. It welcomes over 1 million visitors a year, hosts classroom and education opportunities for over 8,000 kids a year and partners with other museums in 15 different states, bringing different exhibits and learning opportunities, Nagy said.

In 2018, OMSI retained Edlen & Co. as its master developer and ZGF Architects to lead the Central City Master Plan process. In addition, Prosper Portland coordinated city bureau participation to support master plan development. OMSI’s plan for the District is intended to be an inclusive, vibrant new neighborhood and community destination. It includes a new waterfront education park featuring public green space, plazas, restored riparian and upland habitats, and outdoor science programming. Through its partnerships with the Indigenous and Tribal communities, a Native presence will be restored along the waterfront and within the built environment. The OMSI District will ultimately become home to 1,200 new residential units, with a goal of over one-third of them being affordable housing.

Prosper Portland partnered with city bureaus to negotiate the term sheet with OMSI to identify and invest in public and private infrastructure within the OMSI District over three phases. Construction of New Water Avenue and the Waterfront Education Park are key projects for Phase One. OMSI will also identify private development projects and build out 250,000 gross square feet of vertical development.

Phase Two is focused on feasibility, including a district parking solution and private development, and an agreement between the Portland Housing Bureau and OMSI to achieve the district’s affordable housing goals. Phase Three uses the feasibility findings to continue build out of the district

OMSI and the Columbia River Inter-Tribal Fish Commission will issue a Request for Proposal for design of the waterfront. The project is scheduled to reach 30-percent design by March 2027 and funding by spring 2028.

Funding in the intergovernmental agreement (IGA) will support construction of New Water Avenue, which will become the primary multi-modal street dedicated to moving freight and accommodating a new two-way cycle track. Old Water Avenue will also require some street improvements to support the new alignment.

“New Water Avenue is going to be the nerve center of the district,” Nagy said. “It’s going to hold all new utilities, including water.”

OMSI, Prosper Portland and PBOT have been working to identify public resources to build the $30 million infrastructure project. Through the IGA, Prosper Portland is providing $10.9 million in Central Eastside TIF resources to PBOT for the design, construction and management of the project. The state of Oregon is providing an additional $11 million, including a recent allocation of $6 million through the State Infrastructure Fund.

The project partners will pursue money to cover the balance of the project cost through June 30, 2025. If unsuccessful, the term sheet identifies a waterfall approach to reduce infrastructure costs that culminates with OMSI agreeing to a local improvement district to cover the financial gap.

The estimated total project cost is $90 million, which does not include plans for parking.

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Oregon Museum of Science and Industry‘s vision for a one-of-a-kind neighborhood gained unanimous approval from the Portland Design Commission on Thursday.

The decision comes after roughly 16 years of planning, two design advice meetings and three design review hearings. The site encompasses approximately 10 city blocks in the lower eastside from Clay Street to Caruthers Street, and from the Willamette River to Union Pacific Railroad tracks. Portland Community College’s CLIMB Center and the Hampton Opera Center are also partial owners in development of the master-planned site.

The 34-acre site could potentially hold approximately 3.4 million square feet of development – a mix of institutional, commercial, retail and residential, including up to 1,200 units of housing. A third-of-a-mile waterfront park also is planned.

“I do congratulate the team for taking it out to the finish line,” Commissioner Zari Santner said.

The master plan was formally submitted to the city of Portland in December 2021, and was nearly approved a year later. A straw poll taken by commissioners at the end of the December 2022 hearing indicated that all would approve the master plan proposal, but a final vote was not held pending review by city bureaus.

In Thursday’s hearing, deliberation between the commissioners was short since most issues had already been discussed. One condition attached to approval added Thursday was to include contributions from indigenous communities and development partners.

“I just don’t want that to get lost,” Santner said. “All of these elements can be done in a variety of ways but what really excited us about this development was that collaboration with the tribes and the inclusion of … some of the cultural histories, heritage, or arts within that development.”

Another condition is meant to help break down the massing of future buildings on the large blocks that range in length from 230 feet to 750 feet. The potential for a “visual wall” between the Central Eastside and the river caused concern early in the land review process. To prevent such a result, building setbacks and step-downs were added to certain development sites.

Two more additions were made Thursday to help break down buildings’ long façades. One would require articulation at 250 feet or less (a requirement that is similar for downtown Portland city blocks but adjusted to accommodate the master plan’s larger blocks); the other would require minimum spacing between two towers sharing a podium to allow for light, air and potential views from any direction through the district.

“Of course, it’s complicated a little bit by the fact that we have such a wide range of building site shapes and sizes that are not orthogonally related to the grid,” ZGF Architects principal Nolan Lienhart said.

More than 7,000 construction jobs are expected to be created by development in the district. At full build-out, the new neighborhood would produce more than $11 million in annual property tax revenue and generate $22 million in annual income tax revenue, according to a report by EcoNorthwest.

“I look forward to walking through this someday,” Commissioner Jessica Molinar said.

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The Portland Design Commission on Thursday provided another set of opinions on the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry‘s , and mostly approved of – though while citing some concerns with massing and access throughout the property. The project received its first , when commissioners took issue with some of the same aspects.

The 18.5-acre site is being tackled by a team including ZGF Architects, landscape architect Mayer/Reed and on behalf of OMSI. Seven podium-style buildings are planned, with total heights of 250 feet, and podium heights of 50 feet.

The buildings would be shaped and arranged in unique ways to allow movement throughout the space. Two of the buildings would have above-grade parking, while two others would have below-grade parking. Detailed renderings of the buildings have not been released yet, but rather only diagrams depicting the general massing structure.

Several public plazas will serve as event venues, and officials plan to integrate the Innovation Quadrant, where institutions like the museum and local universities can meet with startups and established businesses to drive innovation within the city.

Commissioner Zari Santner found the plazas to be geared too much toward children and events, and not enough for local residents, especially those living and working in the Innovation Quadrant.

“There is going to be a community here,” she said. “What are their needs?”

Other commissioners said the proposed podium height would be too high. Commissioner Jessica Molinar suggested the site be broken up to let more light in, as she said it currently looks more like a wall blocking the east side. Molinar and Commissioner Chandra Robinson similarly critiqued the public spaces, saying they wouldn’t be good for rainy-day activity.

But Molinar did say is headed in a good direction. Since the project is still in the design advice phase, architects can make changes before pursuing a review hearing.

The OMSI master plan team members said Thursday they will discuss whether to pursue another design advice hearing or one for land use review.

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Designers for the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry campus development are still wrestling with basic questions relating to transportation circulation and open spaces on the Southeast Portland site.

Plans for OMSI‘s 18.5-acre property went before the Portland Design Commission for advice during a meeting on Thursday. OMSI is seeking approval for the master plan under Central City 2035 plan rules.

Many of the questions facing OMSI’s proposed redevelopment concern how it relates to its surroundings, including a bicycle artery, the city’s Green Loop concept, the Willamette River to the west and Union Pacific railroad tracks to the east.

The Green Loop would go through OMSI’s site, but the precise alignment is undetermined.

OMSI proposes to reroute Water Avenue to the east, and use old Water Avenue as a “pedestrian-oriented main street” through the site. Also planned is a loop road throughout the campus to connect developable properties.

OMSI’s plans include a bridge over the Union Pacific railroad tracks to connect the campus to Southeast Portland neighborhoods. The bridge would be built by the city of Portland.

“We believe such a bridge can become an iconic, identifying development for the district,” said Allison Rouse, a project manager for ZGF Architects.

Old Water Avenue would have a two-way cycle track to accommodate bicyclists. Planners discussed how to slow bicyclists a bit in keeping with a family-friendly mixed-use street, but not so much that cyclists abandon the route for the Eastbank Esplanade.

Designers with ZGF and Mayer/Reed are working with Gerding Edlen, the master developer selected by OMSI in July 2018 after a competitive bidding process. An early master plan for the site was laid out by Snohetta, an international design firm.

The campus encompasses seven developable parcels ranging in size from 0.69 acres to 4.49 acres. Maximum building heights with bonuses reach 250 feet.

Commissioner Jessica Molinar expressed concern that the loop road could feel like an alleyway if it doesn’t have enough active uses.

“It really depends on what’s going to happen there, which is architecture,” she said.

Commissioner Zari Santner asked if old Water Avenue should be a woonerf – a Dutch-style shared street that places less emphasis on auto traffic.

“The focus is really for people,” she said.

OMSI’s designers said there are practical obstacles to such a design.

“We very much would like it to look like a woonerf, Zari, but we have had some conversation with (the Portland Bureau of Transportation) about the difficulties of that,” said Carol Mayer-Reed, a principal at Mayer/Reed Inc.

Santner also said the campus needs to better relate to the river.

“The whole district, the plan, is inward-looking,” she said. “It’s not really embracing the river.”

Both city and private planners have expressed some frustration regarding the vagueness of the Green Loop – a linear-park concept through the Central City. There are two options for the Green Loop’s alignment, and it must meet other segments of the loop north and south of OMSI’s campus.

“There’s two routes it could follow, and it’s really not up to OMSI to decide which it should follow,” said Ben Nielsen, a senior planner at the Bureau of Development Services. “It’s a continuing conversation at this point.”

Nielsen acknowledged the Green Loop could be better defined.

“It’s not as codified yet as it should be to be a real thing, but it’s in process,” he said.

The OMSI master plan is scheduled to return before the Design Commission in August for more advice.

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The Oregon Museum of Science and Industry has chosen a prominent Portland developer to remake the nonprofit group’s 18-acre riverfront campus in Southeast Portland.

Gerding Edlen beat out six other applicants to serve as master developer of OMSI‘s campus. Three applicants were interviewed, OMSI spokesman John Farmer stated in an email message.

Gerding Edlen, founded in Portland in 1996 by Mark Edlen and the late Bob Gerding, has risen to become a large-scale real estate investment and development firm. The company has played a role in developing the Brewery Blocks in the Pearl District, the South Waterfront, Twelve West, Oregon Health and Science University‘s Center for Health and Healing and many other local projects.

“I was impressed by their demonstrated expertise in developing transformative urban neighborhoods like the Brewery Blocks and South Waterfront, and their ability to work with the city of Portland and other public agencies in securing public funds for public-private partnerships,” OMSI President and CEO Nancy Steuber stated in an email message.

Securing public dollars was a stumbling block for the proposed Zidell Yards project, which collapsed earlier this month after Zidell officials determined the South Waterfront project wouldn’t work without additional money for public infrastructure. OMSI officials had hoped Zidell Yards would serve as a “bookend” development across the Willamette River.

“The city has given us a pretty strong commitment that they’ll be a good partner in this process,” said Ken Wilson, OMSI’s senior director of campus development. “We already have a lot of public infrastructure in place, which Zidell Yards didn’t. The request is probably going to be less than (Zidell officials asked the city to contribute). We’re optimistic the city is going to be able to step up and help out where appropriate.”

Gerding Edlen’s team includes SERA Architects, the Farkas Group, Long Haul Capital Group and Urban Systems.

OMSI in January issued a request for qualifications. The nonprofit developed a campus master plan concept with design firm Snohetta, in consultation with city officials.

The plan identified 11 acres of developable land with capacity for up to 1.7 million square feet of buildable space. The development opportunities are on seven developable parcels ranging from 0.69 acres to 4.49 acres. Maximum building heights vary from 80 feet to 250 feet.

“What particular uses will be on the site are still to be determined as we partner with Gerding and decide what makes sense,” Steuber said in an interview.

Jill Sherman, a Gerding Edlen partner, is leading the OMSI campus redevelopment. The project will go through the city’s Central City master plan process, she said.

Sherman said an anchor tenant will be sought that aligns with OMSI’s mission.

“It’d be great to find an anchor tenant for a building that is somehow technology- or energy-focused,” she said.

Multifamily buildings will not be a focus, Sherman said.

“There may be some component of housing, but it’s not meant to be the majority,” she said.

Office uses are likely on the site, Sherman said.

OMSI’s campus also makes sense for a cutting-edge sustainability project, Sherman said.

“It seems like such a great, obvious location for a demonstration project for a new, innovative technology, or a known technology that hasn’t been used much here,” she said.

That could mean a central plant shared between buildings, sustainable wastewater treatment or an innovative transportation project.

“Those are all possibilities and we’ll be looking at what makes sense for OMSI’s campus,” she said.

OMSI has insisted on retaining ownership of the land to create a long-term financial asset that would support the museum. Ground leases will be available on individual sites, with a structure to be determined. Gerding Edlen has successfully used that approach before, including with Sound Transit’s under-construction development in Seattle’s Capitol Hill neighborhood.

“It’s always going to be a little bit easier to finance a project that’s fee simple, but we have done a number of ground leases and it’s not an unusual approach for a public or nonprofit entity that owns the land,” Sherman said.

Gerding Edlen has developed more than 75 buildings certified by the U.S. Green Building Council‘s Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) program. As Gerding Edlen has grown, it has increasingly looked to other markets, including Boston, Chicago and Oakland, California.

Last year, Edlen reduced his day-to-day management of the firm, turning the keys over to co-managing partners Kelly Saito and Molly Bordonaro. Edlen continues to serve as the firm’s board chairman.

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On Sunday night, the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry and the Oregon Convention Center will be lit red to honor the late Bob Frasca.

The spires and crescent of the Convention Center and the pyramid atop OMSI will be lit “Ferrari red” in an alternating display, according to a news release.

Frasca, founding partner of ZGF Architects LLP, died Jan. 3 at age 84. He designed Waterfront Park, OMSI, the Oregon Convention Center, Portland International Airport, KOIN Tower and other major buildings.

The display will occur Sunday night from 6 p.m. to 12 a.m., following a public memorial at Reed College. The lights will be most visible from the west side of the Willamette River.

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OMSI’s request for qualifications (PDF)

The Oregon Museum of Science and Industry is soliciting a proposal for a densely built 18-acre campus, with flexibility to shift with changing market conditions and transportation technology.

OMSI has issued a request for qualifications for a master developer or team to lead redevelopment of the museum’s property along the Willamette River in Southeast Portland. Responses are due by 5 p.m. on Feb. 28.

OMSI worked with design firm Snohetta and the city of Portland to craft the master plan. The campus includes 11 acres of developable land with capacity for up to 1.7 million square feet of buildable space.

The museum’s RFQ comes as developers are scrambling for available space in central Portland. Strong demand for residential, office and industrial uses has pushed land prices higher, particularly in close-in locations like OMSI’s.

“This is a big opportunity,” OMSI President Nancy Steuber said. “It’s an amazing site. Just from the reaction we’ve seen, we expect to attract interest from near and far.”

Several other large, master-planned development projects are in development, including Zidell Yards in the South Waterfront District, the Broadway Corridor in Northwest Portland and The Waterfront in Vancouver, Washington.

OMSI can take advantage of a “bookend” relationship with Zidell Yards, said Carol Gossett, the museum’s property development manager.

“OMSI has some very unique features at this site, being next to one of the transit hubs of the city, having a quarter-mile of waterfront, being in the central core,” Steuber added. “Most importantly, OMSI’s here. So we are already seeing a million people a year that we serve.”

The property includes seven developable parcels ranging from 0.69 acres to 4.49 acres. Maximum building heights vary from 80 feet to 250 feet. The property will be rezoned as Central Employment (EX) with a design overlay, according to the Central City 2035 plan, giving it flexibility for a range of uses. OMSI’s pitch to developers gives broad guidelines, but officials said they wanted to remain flexible to see how developers respond.

“We anticipate that a developer would come in with a mix of uses across the site,” Steuber said. “It would be market-driven.”

OMSI is making the parcels available for ground leases, not for sale. Museum officials are counting on the ongoing lease revenue to be a “revenue generator to support OMSI’s mission,” Steuber said. The revenue would create a “quasi-endowment” to support OMSI’s educational mission.

OMSI’s RFQ asks for “distinctive design” with activated ground-floor spaces and ample public gathering places. Developers’ proposals should “strive for maximum density” in accordance with the master plan and include “market-driven uses such as office, commercial, hotel, retail, entertainment and residential uses.”

The master plan assumes 1,936 parking spaces would be created on the OMSI campus, but the eventual amount will be driven by city requirements and market analysis.

As part of the master plan, OMSI envisions a realignment of Water Avenue to the east and conversion of a portion of the old avenue into an internal street on the OMSI campus.

OMSI officials have had discussions with a number of groups that have expressed interest in space on the campus, including the proposed Portland River Center and James Beard Public Market. But OMSI officials have consistently said they’ve made no promises, and want to work with a developer first.

“We’ve committed to nothing,” OMSI spokesman John Farmer said. “We want to be thoughtful and deliberate in our process and how we do this.”

An informational pre-proposal meeting for developers will take place Tuesday at 1 p.m. at OMSI. Officials plan to host presentations by short-listed respondents during the first week of April. A development partner would be approved on April 13. A nonbinding memorandum of agreement would follow around midyear. Transactions may be phased over many years, according to OMSI.

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The annual Portland Winter Light Festival will brighten the city Feb. 1-3. While the bulk of the displays will be set up at the traditional site near the Oregon Museum of Science and Industry (OMSI), exhibits will be scattered among three other locations in Portland.

Local architects play a big role in creating many of the festival’s displays. This year, Fieldwork Design & Architecture, ZGF Architects, Walker Macy, Waterleaf Architecture, Interiors & Planning and the team of Holst Architecture and 2.ink Studio will be involved in a variety of exhibits. Two works are Flamethrower Chandelier by Ryan Ramage, and a 50-foot-tall steel, flame-shooting dragon by Ivan McLean.

Besides the main displays at OMSI, other works will be at the World Trade Center/PGE headquarters, Salmon Springs Fountain, North Park Blocks and Cathedral Park. Admittance is free.

Also, the Portland Spirit and Sternwheeler will provide free rides, and a variety of artists will deliver story readings and performances.

Learn more about the festival at .

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