Portland Building Yay or Nay
LaserWolf
Portland Oregon 11,517 Posts
Portland may choose to tear down the Portland Building. In Portland it is much maligned. Hated the most by those who work in the building.
In the rest of the world it is celebrated (or jeered) for being the first Post Modern public building, and Michael Graves greatest building.
What does the strut think?
Cookie Jar, I own one of these.
Comments
Noah Cross: "whores and ugly buildings get respectable with age"
Is it a dangerous decrepit building? Tearing it down simply because it's ugly is hardly a reason.
I recently gave a presentation on John Gollings, an architectural photographer, and he had this ringing endorsement,
Q: The dastardly villain (from the history of architecture)?
A: Michael Graves. One of the leading proponents of a noble theory that in practice screwed up a lot of buildings with clich├®d devices and pastel colours in the 70's and 80's and are still around to haunt us today.
And I was shocked when I saw it in person at just how cheap it looks. It's basically just a big box with some weird decorations pasted on. It is truly the worst of post-modernism.
I hadn't heard that it might be torn down - isn't it on the National Register of Historic Places?
The city recently did a study on the costs of needed repairs. $95mil. The true repair costs are only a fraction of that, but it is the number the papers and city council are working with.
It needs seismic upgrades (like most all 80s buildings), at the very least. So yeah, dangerous.
Yes, it is on a national register. The owners still have the right to tear it down if they so choose.
Yes, it was built on the cheap, with the City Council constantly making changes.
Graves did the facade, ZGF* did the interior.
*So I was recently told. I can not confirm this on line. There must have been a local architect of record.
Sick statue.
And yes, that is a weird (not in a good way) facade.
Kaskey holds the rights to the statue and will not allow it to be moved or reproduced.
The city of Portland can not use it in promotions.
Is the interior funky?
I've only been in the lobby mezzanine area. You can (or could) see Michael Graves original drawings on the mezzanine, and this makes the trip inside worthwhile. People who work in the building give the interior, especially lighting, bad reviews.
Naw, the penis building in Portland is this one... I give you the U.S. Bancorp Tower...
"The Big, Pink Tower of Power: Q105!"
Wait, wut? "Progressive nature" has nothing to do with the lack up building in PDX since 2008.
The crash hit the new build market hard and it took over 4 years for the rents to creep up enough with the existing properties for the banks to start financing new rentals. Consider that we have a 2% vacancy rate (it bumps up 1 to 1.5% if you include the suburbs) and you see amazing upside for building rentals. 2012 and 2013 saw a massive approval of new construction in Portland (with little consideration for "progressive" anything, 40+ unit buildings with little or no parking for example). Just look at SE Division, there is construction up and down that street right now.
Unfortunately, there is still a glut of commercial retail space in the city so that is less a less attractive market.
I'm guessing you are referring to the Trader Joe's development fiasco on MLK?
TRICKY.
I think crony cluster fuck is a more suitable description but I'm glad Trader Joes walked away.
Humans > Goats. There is nothing wrong with a landowner keeping goats for purpose and profit
just like there is nothing wrong with a landowner demo-ing an existing house or building for purpose and profit.
Overall, I am just tired of all the public outcry when it comes to private property.
I say we put up the Portland Building up for auction.
He loves the Portland Building.
It is one of his most famous buildings.
He does not understand why Portland hates it so much.
None of his other buildings have caused such a fuss.
He gets asked to do expansions of his work all the time.
It is upsetting to him that even routine maintenance on the building has never been done.
No one in power in Portland has asked him for advice on making repairs, improvements, upgrades. Ever.
He was kind, funny and gracious.
He is in poor health.
Portland has a unique opportunity to make something great out of one, of only 2, landmark buildings in the city.
They need to work with Graves now while he is still alive.
For the record, I love the way it looks in the top pic and in the drawing.
Is the top pic representative of how it looks today? Is that was some are calling a "cheap" looking building?
It was built on the cheap. I think he said $51 a square foot.