Every week, the Bureau of Development Services publishes lists of Early Assistance applications, Land Use Reviews and Building Permits processed in the previous week. We publish the highlights. This post covers December 14th, 2020 to December 20th, 2020.
Design Advice has been requested by Barghausen Consulting Engineers for the Grand Ave CVS at 1525 SE Grand Ave:
The project includes the construction of a new approx. 12,450SF retail pharmacy with drive thru window and surface parking for 28 vehicles.
Early Assistance has been requested for a project at 8959 SW Barbur Blvd:
We propose to remodel the existing approximately 16,000 sq ft 2 story office building into inclusionary subsidized housing apartments. In addition, we would be adding 2 additional stories on top of existing structure as the first building. The second would be a new 4-story structure with a daylight partial basement for storage and laundry.
Minnesota Places at 1208 N Jessup St has been submitted for a Type II Design Review by Wright Architecture:
This case may be subject to the 100 day review timeline. Proposal for a new 72-unit residential building, approx. 53,000 SF on 1/4 block site in the North Interstate Plan District. 100% of the units will be offered at 60% Average Median Income (AMI), and are proposed as a mix of three-, two- and one-bedroom apartments. Proposed 8-story structure to be modular, Type IVC mass timber construction with mass plywood panels (MPP). Includes on-site stormwater facilities.
A project at 4738 SE Belmont St has been submitted for building permit review by Studio 3 Architecture:
PDOX PS – construct new 3 story mixed use apartment building with 19 apartment units and ground floor retail; associated site work
A building permit was issued to Studio 3 Architecture for a project at 1515 N Simpson St (previously 5905 N Interstate Ave):
New 3 story, 19 units apartment building with partial retail on ground floor and associated siteworks. Trash enclosure inside. *** MT to be submitted seperatly ***
A building permit was issued for a project at 7350 N Greenwich Ave:
New 3 story – 16 units apartment building with associated site work. Trash enclosure inside. W 19-217568 MT.
What CVS wants is suited to an auto-centric, suburban setting rather than an inner urban site. It is the same kind of development that made most of the Broadway-Wielder / MLK-Grand area inhospitable to pedestrians. And it illustrates why it might be a good idea to have a building code that requires minimum heights as well as maximum. The proposal’s low profile – surface level “improvement” on most of the block and one story on the rest – does almost nothing to create a comfortably enclosed street scene. To the extent it activates the street, it does so for cars: three sides of this CVS block welcomes them, while just one opens to pedestrians. SE Clay Street, on the south side, is a bicycle route I believe, but CVS makes no discernible accommodation to those visiting by bike. This is a perfunctory, unimaginative, retrograde, devitalizing, urbanophobic design.
The site is zoned EX with a design overlay, EX doesn’t allow drive-through uses and there isn’t a chance in hell that this will pass a Type 3 design review in Portland.
I’m not sure why the architect or developer is even bothering with this design as it has little chance of being approved.
Then again, they built that terrible CVS in Sellwood that violates the pedestrian standards anyway.
The drivethrough is the grandfathered-in Burger King drivethrough. It’s the only reason they’re on this site. Drive-through pharmacy apparently is their business model.
Yikes.
Genius way of avoiding the rule against new drive thrus in PDX.
It’s hard to imagine a more disappointing use of a full block at a key location of the Hawthorne bridgehead. It may as well have stayed a Burger King. If it does move forward – aside from it being a disappointment from both land-use and architecture standpoints – it will likely close within ten years from under-utilization due to its impropitious proximity to developed residential areas, and the difficulty of access driving Eastbound on Hawthorne dissuading people who might otherwise be inclined to stop by on the way home from work, downtown.
No doubt that the south and east sides of the building (including the fake SE entrance) will be completely blank walls (maybe 8 ft windows at most) ensuring that the street scape will be desolate for decades to come. Might as well install permanent tent spots for all the use these sidewalks will see.
CVS is making aggressive pushes in Portland, with another new one going in on NE33rd just north of Broadway (plus two new ones in downtown). It’s too bad that the one on NE 33rd is so car centered. Large parking lot and just a redevelop of the old QFC. Plus the awful redesign of the Chase bank next door makes me feel like things are going in the wrong direction.
God why does everything have to be the same thing? There is PLENTY of spots to develop more. My goodness eventually a developing neighborhood also needs shopping essentials that CVS provides
At least the CVS at SW 4th and Harrison is nested within ground floor retail of the high rise apartment complex and makes a better use of space. This SE Grand proposal wastes an entire central eastside block and is better suited for a suburban car-centric location. Pity.