Category Archives: development

Pizza Hut to Lease Former Adidas Store

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Pizza Hut is reported to have signed a lease for the vacant property at the corner of Alberta and MLK. The store will provide take-out and delivery only. Pil Jun Chung, owner of several local businesses and properties including the Alberta Street Market, has had difficult finding a lessee for the property since Adidas moved out over a year ago. Long envisioned as a focal intersection in the plans to rejuvenate the King commercial district, the site has been plagued by poor foot traffic, no onstreet parking and a lack of commercial activity in the vicinity. With another large national chain expanding into the area, the continuing development of walkable communities with local identities is in question in King.

The Portland Development Commision’s Vanport Square project stalled after the first third was completed and is still not fully leased. The existing buildings on the south end of the site were bulldozed for a phase of the project that never began and removed a noise buffer from neighbors on Garfield Street.

Unable to wait indefinitely for economic conditions to change, private landowners are put in the postion of leasing to whomever can profit from the decreasing affluence of the community as customers with means patronize other neighborhoods. King could benefit from a renewed discussion about what we want our community to look like long-term and not wait for apathy or resignation to make that decision for us.

CRC Public Meeting and News

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News from the Columbia River Crossing Project:

The public is invited to provide input Aug. 5 on set of draft recommendations for Columbia River Crossing project
The Columbia River Crossing Project Sponsors Council encourages testimony Thursday, Aug. 5, at a public meeting on draft recommendations related to several project elements, including the Hayden Island interchange and I-5 bridge.
Residents, businesses and interested community members are invited to attend the meeting to learn about the draft recommendations and provide input directly to PSC co-chair Steve Horenstein. The recommendations are the result of assignments from the PSC to the Integrated Project Sponsors Council Staff (IPS) group to collaboratively address several questions. Meeting topics include project performance measures, techniques to manage traffic after construction, transportation and land-use modeling, the number of I-5 bridge lanes, and the latest design concept for the Hayden Island interchange.
Earlier Hayden Island interchange concepts were presented to island residents and stakeholders at two public meetings in June. The concepts have continued to evolve as a result of stakeholder input and the latest concept (“Concept D”) will be discussed Aug. 5. This week Hayden Island stakeholders and staff from the City of Portland and Metro reached consensus on this newest concept.
After a brief presentation, attendees can share their opinions about the draft recommendations. Comments can be given verbally, in writing or online.
The meeting is scheduled for:
Thursday, August 5, 2010 | 5 – 8 p.m.
(Presentation at 6 p.m.; public testimony to follow)
Jantzen Beach SuperCenter, Community Room (Across from the food court)
1405 Jantzen Beach Center, Portland, OR

More information is available online. The public also can submit comments and questions specifically to the PSC through an online comment form.

The meeting site is accessible to persons with disabilities. Accommodations for people with disabilities or people needing language interpretation can be arranged with advance notice by calling the Columbia River Crossing project at 866-396-2726. Persons who are deaf or hard of hearing may contact CRC through the Telecommunications Relay Service at 7-1-1.
Metro finds CRC toll bridge with light rail would have negligible impact on growth
The Metro regional government released the findings of its forecast of the population and employment growth that would result from building the Columbia River Crossing project. The forecast was completed as part of the collaborative process to resolve outstanding issues that began in April 2010.

The agency finds that the project would have negligible impact on population and employment growth in Clark County, when comparing the projected growth that would occur with the project compared to no change to the existing bridge and highway. The project’s most significant land use effect would be to boost North Portland employment by about 1.5 percent. Findings were based on Metroscope, a nationally acclaimed growth modeling technology that projects population and employment changes in a seven-county area.
These findings confirm analysis completed by the CRC project in 2008 for the Draft EIS concerning the potential for the project to induce land use growth and travel demand. CRC found that the project would not cause significant land use changes in the region’s urban periphery (“sprawl”). CRC reviewed national case studies, reviewed land use policies in both Oregon and Washington, used travel demand models that had been reviewed and approved by a group of national experts, and relied on results from an earlier analysis using the Metroscope model to draw these conclusions. A summary of those results are presented in a 2009 memo.
Additional information on the most recent Metro findings can be found on their website.
Join us at a fair or festival this summer

CRC has had informational booths at various fairs and festivals throughout the summer. Staff is on hand to answer questions about the project and hand out informational materials. In the coming weeks, project staff will be attending the following event: St. Johns Farmers Market – Aug. 21, Portland, OR

A complete listing of summer events where CRC will be present can be viewed in the calendar on the project website.

Columbia River Crossing contact information

Email: feedback@columbiarivercrossing.org
Mail: 700 Washington St., Suite 300
Vancouver, WA 98660
Phone: 360-737-2726 or 503-256-2726
Fax: 360-737-0294

www.ColumbiaRiverCrossing.org

Green Features Grant for Interstate Corridor URA

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Portland Development Commission Green Features Grant Program

An open house to introduce the Portland Development Commission’s (PDC) Green Features Grant Program is scheduled for June 3, 2010 from 6:00-7:30 p.m. at the Shaver Green Community Room located at 375 NE Shaver St.

PDC is seeking proposals from businesses in the Interstate Urban Renewal Area (map at: http://pdc.us/pdf/ura/interstate_ura.pdf) that are interested in implementing creative sustainable business practices and “green” building features. Grants are available for up to $25,000 for eligible businesses for property redevelopment, historical rehabilitation and applying creative means of implementing sustainable property improvements. Funding is through tax increment financing, and therefore is limited to real property improvements.

This grant is intended to generate interest in sustainable design and practice in Portland’s neighborhoods. The grant is being targeted to small, emerging businesses that typically may not think about sustainable options or have the ability to cover the incremental costs associated with emerging technologies. The grant seeks both need based applicants looking to cover the incremental costs associated with sustainable building and those desiring to adopt more sustainable practices.

A total of $200,000 is available for fiscal year 2009 – 2010. Grants will be dispersed on a reimbursement basis. Reimbursements will occur after agreement between PDC and applicant as to work to be performed and verification.

Green Features Program Goals

The Green Features Grant is intended to encourage neighborhood-based business and small to medium-sized wholesalers and manufactures to implement creative sustainable business practices and green building features. Program goals are to encourage small to medium-size businesses to:

Think innovatively and strategically how sustainable features can be included in their business model; Introduce sustainable features to demonstrate cost-savings or reduce environmental impact; Demonstrate the potential of sustainable features to increase productivity; Integrate conservation and efficiency into business operations; Contribute to Portland’s environmental, economic and social goals.

Preference will be given to those projects that, in addition to meeting the eligibility requirements:

Have a high likelihood of implementation Demonstrable energy savings or resource conservation Use local or recycled products Increase neighborhood livability Can demonstrate increased productivity Show cost-savings Have a measurable environmental impact Leverage private resources Have high-visibility Lead to job creation or retention

For more information contact Stephen Green, Project Manager Portland Development Commission at (503) 823-3231 or GreenS@pdc.us

Joleen Jensen-Classen
Public Participation Manager
Portland Development Commission
222 NW Fifth Ave.
Portland, OR 97209
(503) 823-3352 desk
(503) 823-8057 cell
jensen-classenj@pdc.us

Follow on Twitter: @PDCJoleen

http://www.pdc.us/pdf/ura/interstate/greenfeatures/Green-Features-For-Business-Guidelines.pdf

PDC to Modifiy N/NE Urban Renewal Areas

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Press release from PDC:

CAC approves changes in two URAs
In August 2009 the Portland Development Commission asked a Community Advisory Committee to examine several key issues in two north and northeast Portland urban renewal areas as part of the North/Northeast Economic Development Initiative. After months of public involvement, the 21-member CAC voted at its Wednesday, May 19 community meeting to approve eight separate recommendations regarding policy issues and boundary adjustments for the Interstate Corridor Urban Renewal Area (ICURA) and Oregon Convention Center Urban Renewal Area (OCC URA).

“The approval of all eight recommendations really speaks to the collaborative process we used throughout this project,” said John Jackley, PDC’s Director of Communications and Business Equity. “We brought together the traditionally underrepresented communities, representatives from neighborhood associations, higher education, businesses and the unions to support a common vision of more jobs and more resources for residents and small businesses in north and northeast Portland.”
The adopted recommendations included policy issues dealing with prioritization of investment in the two URAs, the establishment of a Community Benefits Agreement for the Rose Quarter development, recommendations for the Portland Housing Bureau and five URA boundary adjustment recommendations.

The boundary changes include expanding the ICURA to include 75 acres along NE Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevard, 103 acres in the St. Johns Town Center, 33 acres of the Alberta/Killingsworth node, 28 acres along the south side of Lombard Street and 186 acres currently in the OCC URA along Martin Luther King, Jr. Boulevard.
For more information on this process and to review next steps visit: http://pdc.us/four/nnestudy

Vanport Project Advisory Committee Meeting

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Vanport Project Advisory Committee Meeting
Thursday, May 06, 2010
6 – 7:30 PM

The purpose of the meeting is to update the committee members and interested neighbors on the status of the Phase II housing and the Phase III commercial project and next steps.

Contact:
Joleen Jensen-Classen, Public Participation Manager, 503-823-3352

Location:
Curious Comedy Club at Vanport Square
5225 NE Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd