PORTLAND, OR | SMART tower | 650ft | 16 fl | PRO (codes, design)

[TJCalif]

Originally Posted by The Cactus Leaguer

I'm not sure why the SMART tower project stalled, probably lack of financial feasibility/funds

The ballpark effort died five years ago when the Montreal Expos decided to move to Washington DC instead.

The convention center hotel is stalled because the county can't figure out how to pay for a subsidy large enough to attract a hotel chain that would be willing to be a partner.

The Delta Dome died in the 1960's when taxpayers barely voted against it.

PGE Park will be fine for MLS soccer & PSU football, most of the new MLS stadiums run between 20,000 and 30,000 seats.

Wow, it looks like Portland will never approve anything unless it's very environmental-friendly and being able to fund it in any ways.

Oh, I didn't know that about new MLS stadiums. I am not into soccer so I don't care for it.

[khyron]

Originally Posted by TJCalif

Wow, it looks like Portland will never approve anything unless it's very environmental-friendly and being able to fund it in any ways.

If I understand you correctly, I think that's great...I mean, why would anyone want a city to support major new-construction projects which lack LEED certifications or financial backing?

The opposite choice reminds me of so many "convention centers" that went up in blighted urban areas across the country in the 1970s and 1980s (which made tons of money for corrupt "public/private partnership" investors) many of which now sit empty or even condemned as huge losses for the cities who backed them.

[HowGoesIt]

Looks very tacky. What purpose is this going to serve anyway? office space?

[UrbanAdventurer]

650ft is not that tall as far as high-rise buildings go. The Well Fargo bldg is ~500ft so some of those pictures are not at all to scale.

[portlandia10000]

its a good building, very beautiful and exquisite

[portlandia10000]

just what portland needs, it needs to be comparable to other cities, were just a poof in height compared to other buildings, we need to be comparable, be need the smart tower

[Minervah]

There was a lot of controversy about the Portland Building when it was being built and a lot of criticism about Portlandia not fitting in the place where they put her. But there was a need for that or some type of building at the time.

I don't see the need for this new building that looks like something out of science fiction and doesn't blend with the rest of the landscape. Not to mention the problem that there are already office buildings downtown that have been empty for awhile.

[EnricoV]

Originally Posted by portlandia10000

just what portland needs, it needs to be comparable to other cities, were just a poof in height compared to other buildings, we need to be comparable, be need the smart tower

Portland doesn't need to be comparable to any other city. It's been fine doing its own thing for 150 years, and will continue to be so.

Besides, other cities focus on the heights in their skylines, because they have nothing better to look at. Like mountains.

[UrbanAdventurer]

A couple more tall(ish) buildings in the 500ft+ range wouldn't hurt anything and would be help out the aesthetic attractiveness of the downtown area, but, they don't build these things to compete in city beauty contests. Only if it looks like a winner financially from the developer's standpoint.

[hamellr]

My understanding is that the underlying bedrock in downtown is too shallow to support many of the larger buildings, without hugely reinforced (and exponentially expensive) footings.