Metro Says 'No' to Blue Heron?

From OPB.org...  "Extensive studies of the old Blue Heron paper mill site have led Metro officials to recommend against a public purchase of all 23 acres. That conclusion comes as the governor pledges money for the site..." read more.

That doesn't rule out a Private Developer from getting involved.  Certainly, a Public-Private partnership would help circumnavigate the Zoning, and Land Use labryrinth necessary to conquer before beginning any sort of meaningful transformation of the nearly 200 year-old industrial site.  Its going to take an adventurous spritit, creative designers, profound patience, and a common vision to get it done. 

Examples abound... here is one.

Recycling Starbucks...

This remains one of our favorite Starbucks locations. Nearly a decade old now, this Starbucks Coffee at Escarment Village in South Austin (Texas) harvests rainwater, utilizes solar electric and solar thermal energy, has an impressive eco-roof, and impervious concrete landscaping to eliminate stormwater run-off. This is the kind of project I could see along Willamette Drive in West Linn, for Starbucks, Bugatti's, Chase or any other new Commercial venture.

Portland Eco Roof Incentive Program

Did you know that there are incentives for Eco-roof or vegetated roof construction in Oregon? 

The ecoroof incentive is again open for applications, and we'll be accepting them on a rolling basis until June 2013. This means that you can apply anytime between now and June 1. The purpose of this is to expedite the application process for people interested in having an ecoroof on their project - applicants will find out within 30 days of submitting the application. The incentive pays $5 per square foot for new ecoroof projects in the city. Industrial, residential, commercial and mixed-use projects are eligible. Application materials and more information are available at www.portlandonline.com/bes/ecoroofincentive. To receive an application form in the mail, email besecoroof@portlandoregon.gov or call 503-823-7914. Please note: funding is limited and be awarded to applications until they're gone. We've had several in the last month, so if you're planning to submit for a project, the earlier the better!

Ecoroofs are lightweight, vegetated roof systems that replace conventional roofs with a layer of foliage over a growing medium on top of a waterproof membrane. They are an important part of Portland's efforts to manage stormwater with facilities that work like natural systems. Ecoroofs are an approved stormwater management technique under Portland's Stormwater Management Manual. For more information, see this PDX BES website.

G+B will be applying for the incentive on at least one of our projects.  Let us know how if we can help you with yours.

Robinwood Station Masterplan - Public Forum TONIGHT

Gerber+Boes Collaborative is assisting the City of West Linn, Oregon and the Friends of Robinwood Station to develop a Master Plan for the Robinwood Station Community Center.  There is a Open Forum Public Meeting occuring TONIGHT.  Residents, Business & Property Owners are invited to participate and share their vision of a new Civic Community Center.

West Linn Tidings...

Emmanuel Presbyterian Church

19200 Willamette Drive

West Linn, OR  97068

7:00 - 9:00pm

 

Project Overview

Does West Linn need a Robinwood Neighborhood Community Center? Ultimately, the impetus of this Master Plan is predicated on the notion that it does.  Phase 1 of this study was commissioned to evaluate the existing community center to determine the probability and scope of future City investment in the temporary facility.  In 2010, residents from the Community, with the support of local Neighborhood Associations came before the City Council with  a request  to repurpose a decommissioned fire station for use as a venue for various Community-related activities.  Advocates were successful in their request to the extent that an organization of citizen volunteers was granted the authority to improve and manage the facility under certain Permitted conditions of temporary use. The purpose was to demonstrate, within a finite amount of time, the need for a community center.   As the clock winds down on the final of two temporary use periods for the existing building, it is imperative to review the history of operations and determine  whether a compelling demonstration has been made for both the City and its taxpayers, that a permanent community center in the Robinwood Neighborhood  is considered necessary even to the extent that its creation and ongoing operations might be subsidized by the City of West Linn. 

Originally constructed in 1964 by the unincorporated village of Robinwood, the small fire station at 3706 Cedar Oak Drive served as home to the area's volunteer fire department.  With the incorporation of Robinwood into West Linn, the station became a Tualatin Valley Fire & Rescue Facility. After TVF&R decommissioned the old Cedar Oak Fire Station, it was used mainly by the City for storage of records and equipment.  Occasionally meetings and events were held there, but for the most part it remained empty.  Under-utilized and virtually abandoned, the building quickly descended into a state of disrepair.  When Friends of Robinwood Station (F.O.R.S.) was founded in 2010, they organized a team of Community volunteers to clean, repair, and improve the facility and its grounds. 

The Temporary Use Permit is a discretionary consent awarded by the City Council for the extent of 1 year. During that time, the facility could operate in the capacity of a community center in with minimal changes and improvements.  The WL CDC restricts use of this consent to two  periods or twenty-four months total.   The first permit was awarded, however , with the condition that certain minimum accessibility and fire, life safety standards imposed by the local building department must be in place prior to the authorization Occupancy.  While those conditions were being met, FORS organized officially as a 501(c)3 Oregon Non-Profit, forged a  Memorandum of Use (MOU) agreement with the City of West Linn outlining the conditions and limitations of operations, and drafted a set of operational documents for facility users. The agreement with the City imposed restrictions similar to other COWL facilities, including limited hours of operation, varying with certain days of the week, no consumption of alcohol on the premises, and strict compliance with noise ordinances.

Permits will expire at the end of June 2013.  Information assembled in this Analysis should be made available to the sitting Council for their consideration. The Pre-Application conference in 2010 provided specific guidelines for adequate remediation of deficiencies with the existing building(s) and property.  Those will be reviewed in more detail in subsequent Phases of this Study, suffice it to say they will require considerable time and investment. The Planning process is expected to take no less than six months, leaving very little time to complete this study, then design and contract the necessary improvements.  As the schedule suggests, maintaining the timeframe is critical if operations at the Center are to continue beyond June of 2013.  The Robinwood Community Center, "Robinwood Station," will soon enter the closing stage of its two year long experiment with FORS, RNA, and COWL to establish the case that "Yes!"  The City of West Linn  does indeed  need a Community Center in Robinwood. If that case has now been established, make the determination to proceed, implement the recommendations necessary for success,  and then plan for growth.

 

Please join us.



McLean House Addition

West Linn's Historic McLean House is considering an important addition to the estate. G+B's concept for a new Carriage House is designed to provide maximum functionality with a timeless approach to form, creating a contemporary sheltered venue that appears as though it has always been there.

Microhomes in Portland...

The Microhome concept has come to Portland, compliments of DF Horton. 

Apparently the  'Division 43'  project was a huge success. The 400-600 sf homes sold for around a $100,000 and sold out fast. 

Its a good concept for Urban living, one we embraced years back with concepts like this...

Robinwood Station Community Center

Several years ago, we were asked to assist West Linn's Robinwood Neighborhood Association to convince the City to allow the Neighborhood to adopt an abandoned fire station and convert it for use as a Community Center.  The effort was successful in achieving a temporary use permit from the City to use the facility for a limited time in order to demonstrate the building's value as a Community assett.  Some work was needed to make the building habitable.  The City squeezed out some funds for basic necessities, as did the Neighborhood Association.  A volunteer non-profit organization was formed to oversee operations on behalf of the City.  And members of the Community came out to clean, repair and renovate the building. The Robinwood Station Community Center has been officially open for almost a year, and is indeed proving to be an assestt to the Community and the City.   

G+B originally proposed a bold, yet thrifty approach to renewing this building through adaptive reuse and addition. By upgrading and reinforcing existing structure, taking advantage of the current layout, then providing a small addition with a new roof element, we can effectively triple the current functionality of the facilty, providing the ability to host 3-4 individual events at a time.  Also, it would provide the City a place to host larger events including wedding receptions, conferences, classes, etc. In addition, we propose to incorporate many 'sustainable' or green building strategies into the renovation of this facility that would make it both a proud model of future civic development and a learning tool for the School and Community.  The proposed systems include: Solar electric panels to offset grid electric usage and expenses, Solar thermal collectors to provide hot water and radiant heat, rainwater harvesting from the new roof area to provide at least 10,000 gallons of site stored water for irrigation and toilet flushing, and a small vegetated roof to reduce building's albedo footprint.    By incorporating these elements and their systems into the design, we intend to make them both functionally integral and economically sensible.

Soon, the temporary permit will expire and the Facility will need to be renovated to full Code compliance to remain open. Again, G+B has offered its services to take the project to its next inevitable step.  We'd love to hear what you think...

This project demonstrates the  fundamental belief of G+B that architecture is as much about place as it is about buildings.  The care and concern expressed for a place, indeed the thoughtful nostalgia for the unique history and proud traditions, creates a beauty of its own in the sensibilities of the inhabitants.  Our regionalist approach combines elements of strength with the delicacies of craft and a deferrence to nature in patterns, forms, and colors.  The result is an artifact for the ages... a beautiful place for your life to unfold, that is at once both common and quite unique;  modern and yet, timeless.  The Robinwood Station project has been a most admirable effort on the part of this Community, and G+B is proud to have played a small part.