Block 216 will be 33-story hotel, office and condominium tower.
The Oregonian reported that “Portland’s first ‘5-star’ hotel [is] planned” at Block 216, currently known for the large food cart pod on the site.
The Daily Journal of Commerce published photos of the demolition of the Portland Music building in the Central Eastside. The 86-year-old commercial building will be replaced by a new office building at 525 SE MLK.
The NW Examiner reported that the peace deal over the now approved Fremont Place Apartments could be “as contentious as the fight“.
The Portland Diamond Project, which hopes to bring major league baseball to Portland, is now looking at the Port of Portland’s Terminal 2, according to the Willamette Week. The Oregonian reported that Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson and singer Ciara have joined the effort as minority investors.
Metro is poised to refer a $652.8 million housing bond to voters, writes the Oregonian.
About that hotel… Maybe it’s just me, but I can’t help but notice how the space is being transferred a bunch of small, independent businesses to a real estate corporation to build accommodations for the economic elites of the world. It’s a bit too on the nose for these times, I think. I can get behind developing parking lots, underused lots throughout Downtown, ect. Lots full of food carts, however, pain me. These are vibrant, important areas. Food carts are part of what we’re known for, and they require a space that is in ever short supply. Moving to a brick and mortar premise is not a substitute for the small overhead of a small trailer and a utilities hookup. If there was any kind of “character preservation” I could get behind in city planning, it would be to save these. Is there a small business union out there? It would suck to see this pod go as it’s so large and has so much great food. It leaves me feeling sad.
Perhaps discussions of rebuilding and repurposing nearby O’Bryant Square as a permanent home for food carts will bring some smidgen of hope.
I would love to see somewhere in downtown have a campsite style food cart pod, similar to the one on division that closed down last year. The biggest pain is finding somewhere to sit and eat after buying food.
Food carts were always meant to be temporary. During the recession they popped up to help fill rent but were never meant to be permanent
Maybe so, but they turned out to be a great idea. I think it’s one worth keeping and nurturing. Everyone’s always going on about how important small business are for building wealth and creating local variety in a place. Or would could just have more Subways and Chipotles.
I saw on Twitter tonight a new building by Zidell ( https://t.co/o18XooAv7m ), 500,000 sqft, 19 floors.