High-Density Riverside Development Hits High Tide
Published Mar 05, 2007
OHSU’s new Center for Health & Healing in the South Waterfront district is linked by the Portland Aerial Tram to the main campus on Marquam Hill.
The South Waterfront development on the west bank of the Willamette River isn’t just the hottest, most dramatic real-estate game in Portland – it’s also the largest urban development currently under way in the nation.
“The next five to 10 years will see tremendous growth down there,” says Mark Edlen, managing principal of Gerding Edlen, a developer for the South Waterfront district. “It is and will become a model of mixed-use urban, high-density, sustainable development.”
High-rise condominiums, street-level townhouses, medical facilities, and a mix of commercial and retail buildings are rising from the once-gritty industrial area. When complete, the 130-acre district will have the capacity for as many as 10,000 jobs.
“People had talked about opening up the South Waterfront property for 20 years, but nothing was happening,” says Homer Williams, chairman of Williams & Dame Development, another South Waterfront developer. “Around 2000, property became available there. We bought it and sat down with OHSU (Oregon Health & Science University) and the city of Portland and got serious about it.”
OHSU’s Center for Health & Healing opened in the South Waterfront district at the end of 2006, the first component of a planned new OHSU campus there. The “green” building features toilets that flush with rainwater, staircases that are ventilated with outdoor air, and solar energy that helps to provide heat and electricity. The new Portland Aerial Tram provides a link to OHSU’s main campus on Marquam Hill.
South Waterfront is being built in stages. The current phase, covering 38 acres and known as the River Blocks, is scheduled to be completed by 2010 and have properties valued at $1.9 billion. Green spaces, restaurants and entertainment venues will enhance the area’s appeal.
“It caters to baby boomers who are ready for a change and don’t want to be mowing lawns anymore,” Williams says. “It also caters to 20- and 30-somethings who are choosing to raise their kids downtown” instead of in the suburbs.
Story by Jessica Mozo
Photo by Tim Jewett
Current Weather Conditions In Portland, OR (97201)
Clear, and 56 ° F. For more details?
Click here...
