Construction to create a two-level, 66,156-square-foot music venue is progressing at Lloyd Center, in Northeast Portland.

Demolition of the former Nordstrom building was completed in September. Crews are now working on the foundation at the site, at 901 N.E. Multnomah St. The new building, slated to open in early 2027, will be able to accommodate up to 4,250 guests.

A master plan was created for redevelopment of the area. The next project to be completed is the music venue, according to the project’s website.

The total project cost is estimated to be between $80 million and $90 million. An $18.8 million facility permit is under review for the project. Plans call for renovating the below-grade area and then constructing a two-story multipurpose event structure.

The ex-Nordstrom building’s full basement will be updated to hold storage space, catering space, production offices and dressing rooms.

Portland-based independent concert promoter Monqui Presents and global concert promoter AEG Presents are the project owners. WORKS Architecture is the architect, interior designer and landscape architect. Lease Crutcher Lewis is the general contractor. The project team also includes civil engineer 7 Oaks Engineering of Silverton and structural engineer DCI Engineers.

The building will have a movable stage, stadium seating and a mezzanine with a porch to accommodate smoking, Monqui Presents co-owner Mike Quinn said. A large plaza in front of the former Nordstrom building will remain. Parking structures to the north will also remain, he said.

In addition to being served by ample parking nearby, the venue will offer access to light rail and streetcar lines, and the Blumenauer Bicycle and Pedestrian Bridge, according to WORKS Architecture’s website.

With CX (central commercial) zoning, Quinn said development does not require special use permits or zoning changes.

“It’s not just anywhere that you can put a building like this that has potential impact on neighbors and the whole area, dumping 4,000 people out on the street,” Quinn said, adding that good sidewalks and lighting are in the vicinity.

The venue will have first-class lighting and sound, Quinn said. It’s expected to host 125 shows in the first year, and be operated by 15 full-time employees and 80-100 hourly staffers per show.

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Construction costs nationally rose 2.7 percent in the second quarter of this year as commodities, including lumber and copper, grew more expensive, according to a national cost index.

Costs rose 5.4 percent compared to a year ago, according to the Mortenson Cost Index, which is maintained by the Minneapolis-based contractor.

“Construction starts rebounded across most sectors in May and saw solid growth in June, with particular strength in manufacturing and data center construction,” Dodge Construction Network Associate Director of Forecasting Sarah Martin stated in a news release. “However, risks remain elevated that construction starts will be more subdued in the back half of the year alongside ongoing uncertainty over trade policy and the broader economy.”

In the Portland market, the cost rises were muted. Costs rose 0.6 percent in the second quarter and 3.3 percent for the past 12 months.

“Over the last four quarters, really, the Oregon-Southwest Washington market has stayed relatively flat,” said Gabe Fox, chief estimator for Mortenson in Portland. “One exception was there was some ripple in the first quarter of (2025) with the announcement of the tariff information. The industry reacted and in preparation for those upcoming tariffs. So far that reaction for our market hasn’t held into the second quarter.”

Contractors have largely not yet seen large cost increases due to tariffs, Fox said, but they’re watching for signs of price jumps in imported materials.

General contractors have “a hyper awareness” of tariff costs and are working with clients, but also urging them not to overreact to tariff effects that haven’t showed up yet, Fox said.

Data center work is buoying contractors in Oregon and other regions, Mortenson officials said.

“The growth in the data center market — it’s definitely booming, and it’s going to continue to boom for quite a while,” Fox said. “Here, Oregon is definitely an attractive place for that type of development, with readily good, clean power and power that’s priced competitively within the market for those companies.”

Fox said he expects the multifamily and hospitality sectors to pick up construction activity in coming months.

Commodities prices continue to show volatility, according to the Mortenson Cost Index. Lumber has risen 30 percent in price in the past two years, followed by increases in copper pipe (up 20 percent), plywood (up 12 percent) and copper wire (up 10 percent).

Lumber — much of which is imported from Canada — is especially vulnerable to tariffs. Tariffs on Canadian lumber jumped to 35 percent in August.

“It is a concern,” Fox said. “From a construction material standpoint, lumber would be one of those concerns because of where it’s coming from, and those negotiations that are still happening.”

Copper prices tend to be driven by demand, which has been strengthened by data center and electrical infrastructure work, Fox said.

Nationally, construction labor costs have risen 4.9 percent during the past 12 months, Mortenson’s cost index found.

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Hundreds of millions of dollars are due to be invested in performing arts infrastructure at the southern end of downtown Portland, and project stakeholders are continuing to secure funding to advance development.

The Performing Arts and Culture Center (PACC) will feature a Broadway-capable theater with up to 3,000 seats. The approximately $385 million venue will be owned by the city; officials are seeking funding, according to Jason Franklin, Portland State University associate vice president for planning, construction and real estate.

PSU‘s portion of the project will include an approximately 1,200-seat theater and academic space, a 150-room hotel with conference space, and a parking structure. Late last month, the Oregon Legislature provided substantial state support by approving issuance of $137.5 million in bonds ($85 million for the theater building and $52.5 million for the parking).

“The state’s investment in Portland State University represents a profound commitment to the importance of the arts in bringing together community and activating Portland’s downtown core,” Mayor Keith Wilson stated.

The hotel building will be developed and controlled by a hotel investor. Approximately $71 million for that project piece will be supplied by investor equity/conventional debt.

PSU also has received commitments totaling $7.6 million from Prosper Portland and $10.5 million in philanthropic pledges. University officials will aim to raise $20 million more via philanthropy.

“We’re in the funding portion of the project,” Franklin said.

The PACC will sit on a 4.25-acre PSU parcel: the current University Place Hotel property, at 310 S.W. Lincoln St. The site’s existing building and another building at 330 S.W. Lincoln St. will be demolished to accommodate the new development.

Bora Architecture & Interiors has completed conceptual design. A request for proposals (RFP) process will be launched, possibly in 2026, to secure an architect and a general contractor. Currently, design is expected to begin in 2027. Then construction would start in 2028 and finish in late 2030.

The total project cost estimate is from $615 million to $650 million. The state funding is a testament to the commitment of Gov. Tina Kotek and the Oregon Legislature to invest in performing arts, PSU, and downtown Portland, Franklin said.

“There’s a lot of opportunity for us to think about the next 100 years of performing arts here,” he said. “This is a great opportunity for the city and the region.”

PSU will use state-backed debt (to be repaid via parking revenues) to construct the parking. Officials have looked at scenarios with 500 to 700 spaces on-site and would prefer to build above ground to the extent possible since it would be less expensive and easier given the performing arts use, Gard Communications‘ Chelsea Punian, spokeswoman for PSU, stated in an email.

Community members have indicated to PSU officials that they hope the 3,000-seat theater will have a welcome, Northwest feel, Franklin said. Officials are looking at how mass timber can be incorporated, particularly in the atrium portion, he added.

Plans call for incorporating artist wellness rooms and storage space in the 1,200-seat theater. Ancillary retail space may be included as well, Punian stated.

“One thing that’s really difficult at the Keller (Auditorium) right now is just not having a lot of front (of) house space to sell merchandise,” Franklin said.

Also, multiple bars and restaurants are planned on-site.

The PACC is the first phase of Portland’s strategy, authorized by the City Council in October 2024, to develop two Broadway-capable theaters in sequence. The second phase will be a renovation of the Keller Auditorium.

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Emerick Construction, a suburban Portland contractor that has been in business for more than 80 years, faces a string of allegations of nonpayment from lenders and subcontractors, according to lawsuits and state regulatory complaints.

The allegations from a long line of unhappy business partners and clients add to other signs of financial distress and project mismanagement.

Emerick Construction has faced at least 18 lawsuits or claims in Oregon courts since August 2024. Emerick’s pursuers include banks, and subcontractors such as Skyles Drilling Inc., Santiam Heating & Sheet Metal, and Black Line Glazing. The projects in dispute involve schools, fire stations and a rural hospital. Amounts range from a few thousand dollars to more than $5 million.

Court filings and state records indicate Emerick is working to pay its debts. Several of the cases have been closed or settled with payments made, but others remain open.

Also, since August, Emerick has been the subject of three complaints to the Oregon Construction Contractors Board, the state body that licenses contractors. Emerick’s license was suspended for 18 days from May 30 to June 16, requiring the contractor to stop working, CCB spokeswoman Leslie Culpepper said. The suspension was lifted on Tuesday when Emerick paid $24,867 to settle a construction debt, according to the CCB.

Emerick has a long legacy in the Portland area. Based in Tualatin, the company traces its history to a concrete subcontractor founded by Paul B. Emerick in 1943. The entity was renamed Emerick Construction Co. in 1974, according to state records.

Corey Lohman has served as Emerick’s president since 2012, after joining the firm as a project engineer a decade earlier. He was named a 91��Ƶ Rising Star in 2013.

Lohman declined to comment. An attorney who represents Emerick, Dan Duyck of Duyck Law in Portland, did not respond to messages seeking comment. An attorney who represented Emerick’s insurance companies in some of the lawsuits, Paul Friedrich of Friedrich & Dishaw in Seattle, did not respond to messages.

‘When can we expect this check?’

Court and state regulatory records show numerous creditors pursuing Emerick. Among the red flags:

• Umpqua Bank filed a lawsuit in Clackamas County Circuit Court against Emerick and its insurer in April, alleging the contractor owes $5.3 million on a loan in the original amount of $5 million.

Umpqua alleges Emerick failed to make monthly payments in January, February and March on a loan agreement dated Sept. 24, 2024. Umpqua is seeking the $5 million principal, plus interest, late fees and attorneys’ fees.

Umpqua’s attorney in the suit, Garrett Ledgerwood of Miller Nash, said the firm does not comment on pending litigation. The loan agreement was signed by Lohman, according to a court filing.

• U.S. Bank filed a lawsuit in Washington County Circuit Court against Emerick Construction and Emerick Logistics on June 2, seeking $168,000 for alleged breach of contract. The bank alleges Emerick failed to make any lease payments on a piece of construction equipment, a 2023 Manitou telehandler. “Emerick Logistics has not paid the sums due,” the lawsuit states.

U.S. Bank’s attorney in the matter, Brian Born of Selby Morgan & Born PLLC in Fircrest, Washington, declined to comment.

• In December, West Linn-Wilsonville School District fired Emerick as general contractor of Frog Pond Primary School. The district at the time stated Emerick “repeatedly failed to pay its subcontractors for work related to the Frog Pond Primary project despite receiving regular payment from the district.”

The school district in April hired Woodburn-based Triplett Wellman Contractors to complete the job.

• Aurora Landscape filed a lawsuit against Emerick, Corey Lohman, Stacy Lohman and others alleging Aurora is owed $149,495 for extensive landscaping work at the Lohmans’ home in Canby.

The Lohmans instructed Aurora “to send all of its bills to Emerick,” according to the complaint. Aurora later filed a construction lien on the property and attempted to foreclose.

• In August 2024, Black Line Glazing filed a lawsuit in Clackamas County Circuit Court against Emerick, seeking $65,356. The subcontractor’s attorneys alleged that Emerick had paid the company, also known as BLG Inc., only in part. The lawsuit was dismissed without judgment in October, court records show.

• Subcontractor Rich Holland Painting filed a suit against Emerick and other parties in September, alleging it was owed more than $140,000 for a capital improvement project for the city of Wilsonville.

• In January, a mover filed a lawsuit seeking more than $1 million, alleging Emerick and subcontractor MC Interiors were liable for negligence and personal injury because a handrail collapsed at a West Linn middle school job site, resulting in the mover suffering a meniscus tear and other knee injuries.

• Beginning in summer 2024, Emerick was the subject of three complaints to the CCB. All three have been closed. The complaints came from Christenson Electric of Portland for work at Santiam Memorial Hospital in Stayton, Petrichor Constructors of Junction City for concrete work at fire stations in Corvallis and Lebanon as well as a middle school in Dallas, and Consurco of Meridian, Idaho, related to work at four schools in Portland.

In October, Consurco told the CCB that payment was received in full, according to public records obtained by the 91��Ƶ.

But before Emerick made good, a long thread of emails shows Consurco repeatedly demanding payment.

“When can we expect this check?” Consurco Chief Financial Officer Christina Walters wrote on July 15.

Meanwhile, a parade of subcontractors complained to state regulators of delayed payments but were later satisfied, withdrew their claims or had their complaints dismissed by the CCB for lack of jurisdiction, according to hundreds of pages of CCB documents obtained through a public records request.

At least nine more subcontractors complained to the CCB of late or missing payments from Emerick, including Black Line Glazing of Salem, Babb Construction Co. of Eugene and T. Gerding Construction Co. of Corvallis.

• The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality fined Emerick $43,200 in 2022 for water quality violations related to construction at New Athey Creek Middle School in West Linn (the contractor also faced nonpayment claims from a subcontractor on that project). The DEQ stated that Emerick’s activities, including land clearing and grading, “resulted in multiple, significant discharges of turbid stormwater to wetland and the Tualatin River.”

A contractor under scrutiny

The root cause of Emerick’s troubles is unclear from the lawsuits and public documents. Commercial contractors like Emerick often operate on thin profit margins. It’s a durable model, as long as the work keeps coming.

Mike Salsgiver, executive director of the Associated General Contractors‘ Oregon-Columbia chapter, declined to comment on Emerick’s situation.

“Things shouldn’t have gone as far wrong as they have for Emerick,” said Robert B. Coleman, a Portland construction attorney who represented Rich Holland Painting in its lawsuit against Emerick.

Emerick faces stiff competition in its market. With private-sector construction slow, contractors are hungry for public and institutional jobs.

Last year, Emerick sought sub-bids as construction manager/general contractor to build a new City Hall and police station for Cannon Beach. But the city switched contractors as cost estimates came in, City Manager Bruce St. Denis said. Cannon Beach is now working with P&C Construction.

“It was a cost decision,” St. Denis said.

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Junior McDonald trained to become an electrician at Portland Community College and was working as one when he discovered a broader interest in construction. “Owning my own home really inspired me to learn more about construction as I had to work on several projects around my house,” he said.

He started Black Dreams Construction in 2022 and provides general contracting, home additions, electrical, plumbing, roofing and landscaping services. McDonald partners with other contractors to support him on projects when he cannot complete them himself.

“I started my own company because I wanted to control my own schedule and have a way of helping others improve and maintain their homes,” he said.

Black Dreams Construction partners with local organizations such as PCRI and the Portland Housing Bureau to develop projects that benefit seniors and low-income homeowners. The company also supports workforce development by providing opportunities for young adults entering the industry.

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