Healthy Working Waterfronts
Envisioning the Future of Portland’s Industrial Waterfront
The Urban Projects Workshop Department of Architecture in Portland
Healthy Working Waterfronts
Envisioning the Future of Portland’s Industrial Waterfronts Contents Introduction: Regeneration of Urban Industrial Waterfronts
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The Willamette River
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The North Reach
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Areas of Focus
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St. Johns Swan Island Northwest Industrial District
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Working Waterfront Projects in Other Cities
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Seattle, Washington Bainbridge Island, Washington San Francisco, California Detroit, Michigan
Bibliography
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Credits The Urban Projects Workshop Department of Architecture in Portland University of Oregon Graduate Student Participants Andrew Bishop, “St. Johns Public Landing,” Portland, Oregon Kate Casselman, “Centennial Mills Redevelopment Plan,” Portland, Oregon Aaron Frease, “Olympic College: Activating the Winslow Waterfront,” Bainbridge Island, Washington Meghan Gross, “Portland Community College, Workforce Training Center for Technology,” Portland, Oregon Tim Harkin, “Refill: The Portland Brewing Center,” Adaptive Re-Use of Centennial Mills, Portland, Oregon Will Ives, “Confluence: Exploring Eco-Industrial Synergies,” Portland, Oregon Brianne Johnson, “Puget Sound Marine Center,” Seattle, WA Jeff Knighton, “Green Industry Innovation Center,” Portland, Oregon Sina Meier, “Urban River Bath at Cathedral Park,” Portland, Oregon Jen Millikan, “The Detroit Fashion District Cooperative,” Detroit, Michigan Andi Solk, “Urban River Research Institute,” Portland, Oregon Ray Tam, “Industrial Ecology Institute,” Portland, Oregon Jeff Vincent, “Portland Center for the Advancement of Aquaculture,” Portland, Oregon Nico Wright, “Umwelt: Architecture, Habitat and the Environment,” Pier 70, San Francisco, California Project Director, Associate Professor Gerald Gast Publication Design: Will Ives Prepared for The City of Portland, Office of Healthy Working Rivers Overseen by Commissioner Amanda Fritz Sponsored by The Opsis Architecture Fund for Innovation in Architectural Education Ann Beier, Director Heidi Berg, Environmental Program Coordinator Kevin Kilduff, Environmental Program Coordinator The University of Oregon is an equal-opportunity, affirmative-action institution committed to cultural diversity and compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act. This publication will be made available in accessible formats upon request. Accommodations for people with disabilities will be provided if requested, (541) 346-3656.
Osenbashi Pier. Yokohama, Japan. International Passenger Terminal. Foreign Office Architects The project is both infrastructure and recreation, combining a new passenger ferry terminal with public recreational space.
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The Brooklyn Naval Yard.
Regeneration of Urban Industrial Waterfronts Urban Design Studies of the Willamette North Reach, Portland, Oregon This publication summarizes studies for the regeneration of urban industrial waterfronts in Portland, Oregon and four other cities in the United States. The projects are a selection of graduate design thesis projects from the University of Oregon’s Department of Architecture in Portland. The project was a collaboration with the City of Portland Office of Healthy Working Rivers. Introduction Most of the great cities of the world were born on waterfront settings. Although water transportation and defense often provided an initial force for development, the identity and image of countless cities are inseparable from their water edges. Paris is unthinkable without the Seine, Rome without the Tiber. New York’s history, economy and urban identity are closely tied to the East and West Rivers of the Hudson. San Francisco and Sydney, anchored to their bays, draw their “image” from the juxtaposition of water to urban form and architecture.
Industry remains a major force on urban waterfronts, although its modern reincarnation contrasts with the historical legacy of environmental degradation. Waterfront sites continue to be strategically important locations for industries that require waterborne transportation. Modern industry and other workplaces find waterfront sites attractive for public visibility and access to recreational open space for workers. Availability of prime development land following brownfield cleanups has opened new economic development opportunities. New industrial park concepts such as the “Ecological Industrial Park” promoted by the United States Environmental Protection Agency have attracted industries who choose to emphasize sustainable practices in their operations. Attracting clean, healthy industry to inner city waterfronts provides a counterforce to continued suburban industrial park sprawl.
Rivers and bodies of water evoke memory, cultural history, place and meaning. A great river, lake, or sea often links a city with its larger ecological and psychological region, providing a physical and symbolic “gathering” of forces that transcend function. The Evolution of Urban Industrial Waterfronts As favored landings of waterborne transportation during the industrial age, urban waterfronts were magnets for heavy industries, centers of urban industrial economies, places for machines and their waste. Beginning in the 1950s in North America and Europe, significant numbers of inner city industries moved to suburban locations and developing countries with lower costs. Many cities have since transformed their waterfronts with new recreational, commercial, workplace, and residential activities. Impressive amounts of resources have been spent for environmental cleanup and regeneration of waterfront sites, changing urban waterfronts from abandoned and polluted lands to compelling public places. The Brooklyn Naval Yard. Regeneration for new industry in the inner city, is creating 5,000 new jobs.
Introduction
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Portland’s Challenge During the past thirty years, Portland removed the Harbor Freeway on the west bank of the Willamette River to create Tom McCall Waterfront Park, built new mixed-use residential neighborhoods at Riverplace, the River District and South Waterfront, sponsored new waterfront public buildings such as OMSI and the Water Pollution Control Lab, and designed impressive recreational projects such as the East Bank Esplanade. With the impending environmental remediation projects and foundation established by the River Plan, Portland has potential to transform the Willamette riverfront to create the strong urban focus and “seam” envisioned by previous citizen and city planning efforts. The City of Portland has potential to attract new industry and workplace development along the Willamette, where long stretches of the wateredge is presently underused and neglected. A prime opportunity during the next fifty years will be to redevelop a vast array of sites for new economic development activities, including innovative and environmentally-sound industrial projects. The Design Studies The urban design and architectural investigations selected for this monograph build on the urban planning framework established by the City of Portland’s River Plan North Reach by developing site-specific illustrations of potential development opportunities, connections to adjacent neighborhoods, and open space connections along the Willamette River edge. The goal of the design studies is to help the city, private industry, property owners and residents of adjacent neighborhoods envision future redevelopment of the riverfront during the coming decades. Studies focus on three clusters along the North Reach: St. Johns, Swan Island and Northwest Portland (northwest of the Broadway Bridge). They illustrate industrial, research-development, education-training and public places that have potential to transform the Willamette riveredge into a high value, attractive riverfront where industry, residential neighborhoods, and recreation coexist and thrive. Water Pollution Lab, St. Johns, Portland. Miller Hull Partnership.
The monograph also contains four projects in Seattle and Bainbridge Island, Washington, San Francisco and Detroit. These projects provide comparative study opportunities that stimulate thinking about the potential of the Willamette.
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The Willamette River The Willamette River flows 187 miles from the Oregon Cascades, north through Portland to the confluence with the Columbia River. Over twothirds of Oregon’s 3.8 million residents live within it’s fertile basin, which supports vast crop land and provides fishing opportunities. Perhaps no stretch of the river is more important than the 17.5 miles within the city limits of Portland. The Port of Portland and surrounding industrial area fall within the 10.5 mile span of the river designated by the Portland Development Commission as The North Reach.
Portland Pacific Ocean
Salem
Columbia River
The City of Portland has a long history of civic responsibility and environmental awareness. However, this did little to prevent decades of neglect and pollution that ultimately led to a significant portion of the Willamette River being designated as an EPA Superfund site. Much of the contamination is based in the cumulative effects of bad practices which have since stopped. While the dumping of sludge and toxic waste has been eliminated, much of the waste was never removed. Additionally, the profound effects of run off and other invisible pollutants had been ignored, leaving the Willamette one of the most toxic river in the Western United States. As the city looks to the future the industrial waterfront faces significant challenges.
Eugene
Port of Portland, Willamette River
Natural Willamette River Bank, South of Portland
Introduction
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The North Reach Identified by the city as “Portland’s Working Waterfront” the North Reach of the Willamette River serves both as the gateway and economic heart of the city. This region has a long history begining with the founding of the city and is one of the oldest ports on the west coast. Currently the fourth largest port on the west coast by volume, the Port of Portland remains vital to the long term economic life of the city, state and region. Years of heavy industrial use have left behind toxic sediments in the river and contaminated many upland sites. Additionally, several species of fish and wildlife native to the region have been listed as treatened under the Endangered Species Act. The River Plan and North Reach Plan are visionary plans developed by the City to meet the challenges of the region while preserving an “Industrial Sanctuary” for this vital sector of Portland’s economy. The comprehensive effort focuses on economic, environmental, and social aspects, while allowing the city to remain an attractive location for emerging innovative industries.
Port of Portland, Willamette River
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Habitat and Riparian
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Population growth and industrial pollution have forced many species out of their typical habitat locations. There is a significant need to invest in the protection and restoration of river habitat within the riparian zone. Healthy riverbanks are one of the most important components of the river ecosystem. This will not only provide habitat, but establish a cleaner Willamette River for future generations.
Parks and Trails
Parks & Trails
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Public parks, pedestrian paths, bike trails and greenspace are key elements within successful urban regions. This is particularly true in the City of Portland. Over the last thirty years the city has led an initiative to increase both public space and river access. However, this has not been without challenges. Within the primary industrial zones of the city, it has proven difficult to manage the need to provide river access while maintaining necessary security within the port.
Industry and Urbanization
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Portland was founded for its access to the Willamette River, primarily for shipping and industry. As an inland deepwater port it has many advantages that have allowed the river to remain a vital part of the economy. However, as the city has grown public opinion is demanding industry to give the river back. Solutions must be realized in which cleaner industrial zones maintain the economy vitality of the region and provide public access. Introduction
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1. St. Johns
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2. Swan Island
3. Northwest Industrial
Areas of Focus Demonstration Projects were developed in three regions: 1. St. Johns A historic town center a few miles from downtown Portland, situated on the edge of Portland’s primary industrial district. 2. Swan Island An industrial and commercial district located on the east side of the Willamette River. The island was infilled in the early 1900s to connect it to the east bank. 3. Northwest Industrial An older and underutilized district immediately adjacent to downtown Portland. Each region offers a range of challenges and opportunities. Key thematic issues of the design studies included public waterfront connectivity as well as site connectivity. Proposals included extending public bike and pedestrian trails, adding new streets and transit lines, and the implementation of a city wide water taxi system. These elements became integral to the individual projects.
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Introduction
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St. Johns Historically, St. Johns has coexisted with Portland as an independent city on the northeast bank of the Willamette River. Today the community is best known for the iconic St. Johns Bridge and the stunning views from Cathedral Park. It is a unique area, adjacent to the river, industry and parks, maintaining a vibrant historical town center. The area is significantly more diverse than downtown Portland with 32% of the population representing non white races. Within the St. Johns / Lombard district five projects were located on two specific sites. Urban Plan Despite proximity to Cathedral Park, one of Portland’s best waterfront greenspaces, St. Johns lacks a true connection to the waterfront. The plan calls for N. Burlington, N. Baltimore and N. Richmond Streets to become “greenstreets” extending from downtown St. Johns to the Willamette River. These will help to control storm water while improving pedestrian access to the riverfront. North St. Louis Avenue is to be extended through the Baltimore Woods conservation site as a pedestrian only street leading to a restored pedestrian pier on the Mar Com site.
St. Johns Bridge
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Additionally, the Willamette Greenway Trail, which currently leaves the water’s edge at the St. Johns Bridge, would be extended to the Toyota site. A large slip prevents further extension of the trail here. A proposal to infill this slip could allow for future extension. A new public pier at the terminus of the N Burlington Avenue greenstreet will serve as a landing site for a new water taxi system serving downtown.
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Project Sites
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Toyota Facility
proposed water taxi to swan island public pier + river bath
greenway trail (proposed)
public pier
St. Johns Bridge
public boat launch
Projects 1. Jeff Knighton, Green Industry Innovation Center 2. Will Ives, Confluence: Exploring Eco-Industrial Synergies 3. Andrew Bishop, St. Johns Public Landing 4. Sina Meier: Urban River Bath at Cathedral Park 5. Ray Tam: Industrial Ecology Institute
St. Johns
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Green Industry Innovation Center Jeff Knighton
The Green Industry Innovation Center is designed to become the new center for clean tech industries in Portland, creating a new identity for the working waterfront in the North Reach. Most of the building will be used as incubator space for emerging green and clean tech industries. Incubator spaces will feature offices, labs, and light manufacturing / prototyping spaces. The Innovation Center will also have an educational component with classrooms and a resource center for the community and other similar industries. Administrative offices will be provided for support staff and advisors to the startups and research groups. The Oregon University System will have a significant presence in the Innovation Center, bridging research efforts in the various state universities with emerging businesses and technologies.
1. radiant floor heating/cooling 2. shaded south-light 3. light shelf 4. views (biophilia) 5. under-floor ventilation 6. solar energy collection 7. skylights 8. north-light 9. passive ventilation
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The incubator blocks are organized into three pods with garden-like atrium spaces in between. All of the common space is positioned around the atriums. The atriums and adjacent decks open out toward views of the bridge, river, and new public waterfront. The structure is composed of a series of large splayed steel columns on concrete bases and wooden rafters so the interior spaces can be flexible over time. The roof forms are butterfly shapes that draw daylight into the interior spaces and provide large clearstory windows at the perimeter. The south facing roofs are covered with solar panels to provide energy for the building. The Green Industry Innovation Center will be a place that inspires and educates, a place where ideas are translated into tangible products, where Portland’s green industry will receive new life and strength.
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Innovation is driven by inspiration and imagination. For a place to foster innovation, it must provide space for people to be inspired and to develop ideas—space to collaborate, share, and discover new solutions. The Innovation Center site has the advantage of being close to both the Willamette River and the St. John’s Bridge - both inspiring vistas. The building is oriented toward the south, rotating incrementally toward the river and the St. Johns Bridge. All offices and labs have direct views to the south and the river.
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Green Industry Innovation Center, Jeff Knighton.
St. Johns
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Confluence: Exploring Eco-Industrial Synergies Will Ives The project, a research and assembly facility for hydrokinetic turbines, is an exploration into renewable energy solutions and the potential to integrate these systems with architecture. By focusing on an urban industrial facility, the project serves as an example of how industry and habitat can coexist. Every aspect of the project is designed to function as a closed loop, and as part of a larger system. This allows the facility to be completely selfsufficient for water, energy, and waste management while regenerating environment and habitat. The site, located in the St. Johns neighborhood of Portland, was previously home to the Mar-Com ship repair facility. It is adjacent to Cathedral Park, just north of the St. John’s Bridge. Designated as an EPA Superfund site, a significant amount of remediation and cleanup is necessary. This will be achieved through a series of both passive and active measures. The building is oriented on a northeast–southwest axis, parallel to the existing pier and perpendicular to the river. This increases solar access for roof mounted photovoltaic (PV) panels and maximizes summer wind exposure, critical for natural cooling and ventilation. A new pedestrian way extends the pier to downtown St. Johns and connects the public to the river. This public access passes through the skin of the building and reaches to the Willamette River at the end of an existing pier. At the end of this pier a viewing platform allows the public to view below the water line where an array of six hydrokinetic turbines operate, providing energy for the entire facility. The form of the building was inspired by the fluid dynamics of hyrdrokinetic turbine blades. A long extrusion of this sweeping form becomes the major space defining element of the enclosure. The form is visually separated into three elements by a portion of the skin which unfolds to create the main entry. The enclosure is supported by tubular steel trusses with a triangular cross section. Painted a bright green, the trusses lightly meet the ground on the north end, tapering to a pin connection and span 120 feet on the open south end, further emphasizing the motion of the curve.
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Confluence, Will Ives.
St. Johns
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The interior spatial organization is defined by the three major program components: assembly, office, and research, organized by a simple grid along a central access. The office and research spaces are located within a secondary enclosure, drastically reducing the building’s heating and cooling needs. These structures, built out of easily sourced materials, are considered temporary, allowing flexibility for the entire building to operate as an assembly facility in the future. The southwest end of the building, which faces the river, is a large glass facade with a 24’ x 30’ sliding door providing public access to an open event and display floor. This skin is composed of interchangeable panels. The majority are simple insulated metal panels with a slightly reflective surface finish. These are interspersed with skylights, solar panels, and brownroof panels which reuse site contaminants and debris to create habitat. The panels are intended as a simple deployable system which can be utilized in various industrial and commercial roof applications, increasing small scale energy production while creating urban habitat corridors. Each south–facing assembly bay opens to an eighty foot wide working yard which provides both shipping and receiving access via a rail spur and outdoor work space. Running parallel to this work yard is a natural habitat remediation swale. River water, which is initially drawn for use in the research labs, will cycle through manmade pools, initiating a natural soil remediation process. The water will then flow into a restored wetland habitat, which will serve as a final filtration system before returning to the river, cleaner than when it was drawn. This project serves as an example of the potential for urban industry and habitat restoration, as well as responsible energy use. All of these are vital to the future of both mankind and wildlife. Through these initiatives, along with on-site micro-scale clean energy production, the project has the potential to be net positive in energy use, thereby addressing the past and providing for the future.
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Secondary Enclosure By enclosing the office and laboratories separately a significantly smaller volume requires conditioning
Climate Controlled Skylights Provide both solar access and ventilation
Rain Water Filters along the public pier to a catchment wetland. This water is used as needed in the industrial process.
Summer Sun Primarily shaded by an 8 foot overhand, direct light does not reach the interior enclosure Winter Sun Penetrates into the interior enclosure providing natural solar heat gain
River Water Used in testing flumes and released into a wetland for filtration
St. Johns
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St. Johns Public Landing Andrew Bishop
The coexistence of production and consumption within the city are integral to the long term social and ecological viability of urbanism. Resilient structures that accommodate new patterns of use and systemic changes in the economy create rich and vibrant communities. The Center for Craft Industry offers craftsmen an opportunity to grow beyond their traditional markets through collaboration, adaptability, and public exposure. The center aims to foster public awareness of, and value for high quality craft goods through educational exhibits, as well as supporting hobbyists and activists. Hand built bicycle companies will be used as the seed industry for developing the center with the intention to include other craft industries as the center expands. Other potential tenants include microbreweries, kayak builders, shipwrights, sail shops, and outdoor apparel companies, among others. The bicycle was taken as the aesthetic inspiration for the project. The care, craftsmanship, and simple low-tech adaptability of the bicycle is something that architects and builders should strive for. If people cared for and invested in their environments to the same degree that many do in their personal transportation, the city would be a far more beautiful place to live. If our buildings were as responsive and adaptable to environmental conditions as bicycles are, rather than rigid and inflexible, it would go a great distance to reduce the built environment’s effect on climate change. The bicycle economy and the culture that surrounds it have a great deal to teach us. The economy of tomorrow should not necessarily be based on making goods for less and cutting labor costs wherever possible. This project is inspired by an economy where value is placed on the work of skilled craftspeople and is reflected in the quality of their work. Items that influence our lives in such a profound way as our means of transportation and the buildings we inhabit should be made with care for the user and the environment and built to last.
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Urban River Bath at Cathedral Park Sina Meier In its form and organization, the Urban River Bath is rooted in landscape and location. The building extends out and over the Willamette River, yet is based in the land, reaching back into the landscape. It provides a meaningful transition from land to water and creates a connection from the St. Johns Town Center to the waterfront. The River Bath aspires to become a destination and helps connect the urban fabric with the waterfront. The site concept emphasizes Burlington Avenue as a pedestrian connection between the Town Center and river, acknowledging the street’s importance as a linear pathway to the waterfront. This concept was derived from studying the process of water filtration. Considering the four stages of catchment, filtration, purification and release, the water filtration process is analogous to human processes taking place on site. In the St. Johns Town Center, initial water catchment occurs. An informational kiosk catches visitors’ and residents’ attention, introducing them to the project. It also educates the public about the water filtration process. Along Burlington Avenue, water is filtered in a series of smaller bioswales located on either side of the street, transforming the street into a designated “Green Street”. Simultaneously, people are filtered in and out of Burlington Avenue as they enter and leave the street. Near the end of Burlington Avenue, purification takes place. Water runoff is treated in a series of large stormwater retention areas surrounding the building project. Finally, the filtered water is released back into the river. The River Bath represents the cleansing and purifying of the human body. At the same time, people are released into the river, as Burlington Avenue now reaches down the bluff and extends out into the water by means of a pier.
St. Johns
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In the building, the swimming hall on the upper level facilitates a shared spatial experience while the spa rooms below set up a series of smaller, more private and intimate environments. Spa and wellness areas exist within a thick, tactile concrete wall on the west side of the building. The wall is rooted in the landscape with the majority of the spa environment located underground. The wall instills feelings of enclosure and facilitates self-reflection, contemplation and relaxation. In contrast to the dark and earthy wall, the swimming environment upstairs is open, transparent, light, and glazed. The swimming pool reaches out over the landscape and towards the sky. This grand hall instills feelings of lightness, warmth, and a sense of belonging. It facilitates visual connections to the outdoors and relationships with others. Moving through the space, visitors arrive, change, shower and swim before returning into the landscape. Another turn in circulation completes the cycle and creates a visual release when views to the river are revealed. The building’s circulation is based on the linear, step-by-step process of water filtration through a series of pools, while alluding to the more circular movement of water, moving forward, turning, returning and being released.
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Urban River Bath, Sina Meier.
St. Johns
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The Industrial Ecology Institute Ray Tam Portland’s Bureau of Planning and Sustainability envisions the North Reach continuing to de velop as a key industrial center for the region, while integrating public access, ecological conservation, and habitat restoration with industrial activities. In order to simultaneously pursue these often competing objectives, it is proposed that the City of Portland, the region’s industries and major universities work together to develop expertise in the area of Industrial Ecology (IE), an emerging field that takes a holistic systems approach. IE views industrial processes as part of a larger ecosystem which includes both environmental and social components. The discipline works toward finding ways to enable industry to behave more like natural systems, and to create an industrial ecosystem that takes waste from one industrial sector and uses it as raw materials or energy for another. Located on the North Reach riverfront, south of the St. Johns Bridge, the proposed Northwest Institute for Industrial Ecology (NIIE) will be the central hub for applied industrial ecology research in the western United States. With application opportunities within Portland’s primary industrial areas and beyond, the center provides the city with distinctive competitive advantages for attracting a broader range of business and industry that prioritize sustainability. It will further enhance Portland’s reputation for sustainability and innovation. The center will also create a key employment node that will support industry, economy, and community, as well as increase public access to the riverfront. Capitalizing on its adjacencies to both industry and ecology, the center’s primary research objective will be to develop sustainable industrial materials and processes based on ecological and natural systems principles. The center will serve to increase the vitality of the region’s industry, strengthen neighborhood connections and access to the river, and revitalize the site’s riverfront ecology.
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Industrial Ecology Institure, Ray Tam
St. Johns
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Swan Island Swan Island is a natural island in the Willamette River that was connected to the mainland in the 1920s by a landfill. The island served as Portland’s first airport, dedicated by Charles Lindbergh in 1927. During World War II, Swan Island was the location of the Kaiser Shipyards. Following the war and a period of decay, the island was developed as a highly successful urban industrial park by the Portland Development Commission. Today, the Swan Island Transportation Management Association (Swan Island TMG) works with industry and regional agencies to reduce traffic congestion by promoting public transit use and alternative modes of transportation for workers in an effort to improve roadway access for business freight. Swan Island Urban Plan Limited access to Swan Island is one of its major problems. There is sufficient land to support higher density industrial development and an increased number of future jobs. To accomplish this, traffic flow and access need to be improved. Pedestrian and bicycle access on Going Street can be improved, making it a more effective “gateway” street to the island. Going Street can be designed as a demonstration “green street” to manage stormwater runoff.
Ship Repair Facilities on Swan Island
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On the island, more amenities for workers are needed. Shoreline restoration is proposed to create more public beaches and paths for pedestrians and bicyclists without interference with industry. A future water taxi connecting to central Portland could be provided. Small open spaces for outdoor breaks and recreation can be located at selective points accessible to workers. Future development is likely to include more technology and knowledge-based industries that demand on-site amenities, similar to trends in technology-oriented industrial parks throughout the country.
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Project Sites
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Projects 1. Roussa Cassel, Naval Training Center (Project not in Document) 2. Jeff Vincent, Center for the Advancement of Aquaculture 3. Meghan Gross, PCC Workforce Training Center for Technology
Swan Island
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Center for the Advancement of Aquaculture Jeff Vincent This project proposes a facility focused on the advancement of aquaculture as an urban industry. By creating an architectural alchemy of different typologies: agriculture industrial, academic research, and public aquarium, a new typology can be explored that will address an increasingly complex food industry. Connections between the consumer and producer will be created that will develop a unique product image and solidify a market that cannot be outsourced. The proposed project is a large scale “machine� supporting the food production process. The design places this process on display and invites the public to interact with water that supports the facility. An industrial machine producing a local product attempts to make a statement about the ability of large scale food production to be a healthy local option. Water is drawn into the facility by way of two pump houses located in the Swan Island lagoon. The water moves up a series of exposed pipes on top of which a pier provides the public with access to the lagoon from the greenway trail in front of the site. Large sand filters clean the water before it is disinfected and directed to the fish runs. Within the facility, water moves though forty-four fish runs built into a plinth that keeps them above the river’s 100-year flood plain level. The building is a simple steel shed roof with repeating structural bays that alternate in direction. The high ends on the south west side of the building provide space for second level hydroponic greenhouses that use the wastewater from the fish runs for nourishment of a crop of vegetable and fruit produce. The steel beams that make up the bottom of the large steel trusses support gantry cranes that are used to assist in harvesting the fish. As the water leaves the facility it passes through constructed wetlands terracing back into the existing lagoon. The first three terraces are planted with wild rice that utilize any remaining fish waste. The lower terraces contain a variety of wetland plants and animals that help clean the water.
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Center for the Advancement of Aquaculture, Jeff Vincent.
Swan Island
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Portland Community College Workforce Training Center for Technology Careers Meghan Gross
The project proposes a new Portland Community College Workforce Training Center for Advanced Technology located in the Swan Island industrial park. The objective of the center is to train a workforce in basic skills required to operate industrial facilities focused on new technologies such as solar panels and computer chips. PCC currently partners regularly with companies such as Intel and Solar World to develop technicians which are in high demand. The site for the building forms a new connection from Going Street to the riverfront. The site currently has a beach and a developed greenway which is incorporated into the master plan. The path provides users of the greenway access to the deep public beach. Designing the facility with expansion in mind is crucial, as PCC regularly outgrows facilities for technology programs. The project has been designed in three phases to allow for growth. At full build-out, the building will be a welcoming gateway to Swan Island. The master plan is a sequence of spaces that change as one moves through the site. The spaces contract and expand while the linear direction of the path pulls one through to the river edge. A few select spaces between buildings become courtyards which can turn into outdoor classrooms, study spaces, or cafĂŠ seating. Part of the existing site is within the 100 year floodplain. This is addressed by raising the buildings slightly. The majority of the site is planted in native grasses, shrubs, and trees. These spaces serve as water retention for the site and adjacent paved areas and filter the water before it goes back to the river. Ecoroofs on top of the buildings aid water retention and filtration. They also provide visual benefits for the bluff residents who look over Swan Island.
Swan Island
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Northwest Industrial District Located immediately adjacent to downtown Portland, the Northwest Industrial District is characterized by underutilized land and decaying buildings. Its proximity to the North Park Blocks, Tanner Springs Park, and the vibrant Pearl District offer potential for engaging the public and connecting with the Willamette River. A dominant feature of the area is Historic Centennial Mills and it’s pier and the Fremont Bridge, the longest bridge spanning the Willamette River. Within this region projects are located on two river adjacent sites. Urban Design A challenge of the northwest industrial district is river access. Rail lines, vital to industry, must be crossed in a safe manner to reach the river’s edge. Two new pedestrian bridges meet the greenway trail extension. Additionally, the sites are connected to Tom McCall Waterfront Park via the extended greenway trail. These projects are connected downtown and to the East Bank via the same water taxi as other project sites.
Aerial of Northwest Industrial Waterfront, including Centennial Mills.
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Aerial of the Fremont Bridge
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pro po sed te wa r ta n wa
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Projects 1. Andrea Solk, Urban River Research Institute 2. Tim Harkin, Refill: The Portland Brewing Center 3. Kate Casselman, Centennial Mills Redevelopment Plan
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The Urban River Research Institute Andrea Solk Building on its existing reputation, Portland has potential to be at the forefront of redefining the industrial/aquatic urban ecosystem. The Urban River Research Institute conveys and reflects these dynamic synergies. The institute redefines the relationship between research, education, and public outreach. Aquaria focused on native freshwater species will attract visitors and serve as an ecotourism touch point. Students and researchers will interact with the river and industry as a living laboratory, working directly with industries to monitor, test and install experimental water cleansing, filtration, and remediation systems. Research activities include freshwater living systems, Superfund mitigation, and industrial hydrologic engineering. Located at the intersection of the residential River District and Northwest Industrial District, the Institute serves as both a buffer and gateway to each zone. Public and private circulation through the complex are addressed as two separate systems, providing visitors with visual access but physical separation from controlled areas such as laboratories. The building as a whole gradually transforms from public to private uses as it wraps around a central courtyard.
habitat providing habitat patches for increased connectivity
Habitat Conectivity Located midway between ma to the north and south of the c tential to become an importan to increase longterm species habitat ‘stepping stones’.
superfund superfund remediatory support
Superfund Support Located at the southern end o Institute is in close enough pro role in research, testing and m cleanup effort along the North
zoning a gateway and buffer between incompatible zones
Forms, textures, materials and rhythms of the existing dock structures, boathouses, and adjacent bridges influence elements of the design. An existing warehouse will be renovated and repurposed to house a large scale hydrological model of the Willamette–Columbia River region. The site has potential to become a habitat patch, helping to increase species viability through migratory stepping stones. Physical transformation of the site’s pier structures through creation of terraced bioengineered wetlands will reverse the trend of hard seawall river edges. Vertical folding, stepping, and cantilevering of the building will enhance the human experience of the river and its edges. The existing slip provides a natural harbor for docking research and recreational vessels. The eastern arm of the building is cantilevered over the water and undercut by the terraced wetlands sloping down to the water beneath. Externally, the arm serves as a gateway, framing a view down to the river, while internally it acts as a bridge to the labs, housing the Freshwater Aquarium exhibit tanks.
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residential industrial
commercial
Zoning Located at an akward abuttm high-end residential adjecent institute should serve as both between the competing uses.
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Comprehensive thesis projeCt
The Urban River Research Institute, Andrea Solk.
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Refill: The Portland Brewing Center at Centennial Mills Tim Harkin The most sustainable building is the one already built. Through adaptive reuse, materials can be saved from disposal and buildings given new purpose. By reusing the historic structures of Centennial Mills, the site can be revitalized while the memories of industry and history are preserved. The current complex lies at the intersection of an aging industrial district and the blossoming Pearl District. By taking advantage of the site’s location, connections can be made to the Pearl and other parts of Portland. Old industrial buildings will be “refilled” with new purpose, adding to the vibrancy of the city and linking the community to the Willamette River. The Portland Brewing Center is a public destination that honors and celebrates the industry and history of the River District. The center reuses the industrial structures of Centennial Mills and injects them with a new program meant to transform the site into a community gathering space. The main element of this transformation is a craft brewery that will inhabit the lower levels of the old flour mill building. This brewery will collaborate with Oregon State University’s Department of Food Science and Technology to provide certification programs in brewing as well as a longer term Master Brewing program. Offices supporting these functions and business assistance for new microbreweries will be located on the upper floors of the flour mill. Classrooms and labs will be located on the middle floors of the building. The general public will have access to the labs for short home-brewing courses. A distribution center on the ground floor will sell home-brewing equipment and ingredients. Additional public amenities will be located in the Feed Mill, which will house a restaurant and bar with river views and samples of beer being brewed at the center. An event hall in the upper floor of the Feed Mill accommodates brewing events and space rentals. The Portland Brewing Center adds industry, culture, and public space to the shores of the Willamette River.
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The Portland Brewing Center at Centennial Mills, Tim Harkin.
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Centennial Mills Redevelopment Plan Kate Casselman The historic flour mill complex at Centennial Mills is ideally located to be a gateway linking the urban River District to the Willamette River. By preserving and adding public amenities to this historic facility, adaptive reuse of Centennial Mills provides an opportunity to connect one of Portland’s most densely populated and successful neighborhoods to its riverfront while preserving a landmark of shared history. Its recognizable forms and silhouette contribute to the river’s landscape and distinctive skyline while serving as a reminder of the city’s agricultural and industrial roots. Adding recreational, educational, commercial, social, and residential uses broadens a range of activities to an otherwise lifeless site and brings a diversity of users to the area. Activating this facility with a variety of public program elements reconnects people to the river and links the former river dependent industrial facility back to the river. The new diversity of users strengthens the neighborhood and creates a flexible, long-lasting hub of activity along the waterfront. The redevelopment of Centennial Mills accomplishes several interrelated objectives: it preserves an icon of Portland’s industrial past, reconnecting it to the river, restores the health of the river and its riparian habitat, provides public and community amenities to a neighborhood that lacks critical features, and contributes housing to diversify the population in a district that lacks a depth of social resources. The Centennial Mills project reveres the richness of the past, adapts to the needs of the present, and strengthens the community to ensure success in the future.
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R R II V V E E R R
D D II S S T T R R II C C T T
LL II B B R R A A R R Y Y
Centennial Mills Redevelopment, Kate Casselman.
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Working Waterfront Projects in Other Cities
Seattle, Washington
Detroit , Michigan
San Francisco, California
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Puget Sound Marine Center Seattle, Washington Brianne Johnson As Seattle heads into the 21st century, it has an opportunity to redefine the city’s relationship to the Elliott Bay waterfront. The demolition of the Alaskan Way Viaduct will enable Downtown Seattle to reconnect to its waterfront. Adjacent to the Seattle Aquarium, the Puget Sound Marine Center combines independent research and public education along the downtown waterfront. The facility provides a prominent place to study the natural life that enriches the region while also showcasing marine life to the public. The plane of the pier creates a cohesive public space defined by material and texture. The design concept for the research center is “pier deconstruction.” This enhances both the natural and urban environments, creating space for humans and nature to interact. Breaking down the pier reveals the world below, allowing light to penetrate into the water, improving the aquatic habitat. Additionally, opportunities for education and habitat restoration occur in the water as well as on the pier itself. The building form and façade respond to the opening of the pier allowing the water to penetrate through the pier on the interior and exterior of the building. Rising from the pier, the building creates spines that provide structure and contain the services for the spaces. The spines also direct views outward to the north and south of the site. At the roof level, an overall shed structure helps tie the building to the site. The large sheltering roof makes the building and site more visible from Pike Place Market above, drawing people down the hill to the many destinations that lie along the waterfront.
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Seattle
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Olympic College: Activating the Winslow Waterfront Bainbridge Island, Washington Aaron Frease Olympic College Bainbridge Island is a new satellite campus for Olympic Community College. The buildings occupy the existing piers of the former Washington State Ferries maintenance yard. There has been a desire by the Bainbridge Island community to bring public life and activity to their waterfront. An Olympic College campus on Winslow’s waterfront is a unique opportunity to provide a new higher education facility in Kitsap County. The campus introduces a new marine technician training program to Olympic College’s degree programs, offers local boat repairs, and generates new public activity along the water’s edge. Olympic College Bainbridge Island is a prominent new landmark on the shore of Eagle Harbor. The location is highly visible to residents and visitors arriving by ferry or personal watercraft and provides inspiring views of Eagle Harbor, Puget Sound, and the Seattle skyline beyond. A portion of the existing pier has been deliberately separated from the landscape to emphasize the transition from landscape to the pier surface. Visitors arriving on one of the two main axes cross small foot bridges to signify the arrival on the pier campus. The building organization emphasizes three principal visual axes: the existing pier, the connection to site access, and the views to Seattle. These axes cross at the central plaza, where the most active program spaces - the student commons, café, event room and library—are located. Each of these spaces open directly to the plaza. Olympic College Bainbridge Island utilizes a variety of sustainable strategies in its design. The location on the piers limits the site impact and allows a majority of the site to exist as restored habitat. Rainwater is collected from the roofs reducing run-off and providing for non-potable uses, while site stormwater is treated in a series of inland bioswales. Greywater is collected onsite and treated for reuse in irrigation and non-potable uses. Roofs with southern exposure house solar hot water arrays and a high-efficiency thermal envelope ensures that conditioned air remains in the building.
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Bainbridge Island
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Umwelt: Architecture, Habitat and the Environment San Francisco, California Nicholas Wright The capability for modeling and understanding our environment through technological means has reached an apex. It is now possible for humans to have an instrumental understanding of the feedback effects that their means and methods of habitation have on ecosystems. This is evident in current debates around climate modeling and the political, economic, and cultural responses it elicits. Architecturally, the implications of this technological capability lies in the formation of buildings and landscapes that respond to varied and localized conditions at a range of scales and are able to respond to the needs of other organisms which share our habitable territory. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Marine Ethology Institute at Pier 70 in San Francisco is a leading edge research institute devoted to the study of marine life and its interactions with the human environment. The facility will host a new research directive for NOAA, combining three components of the NOAA Office of Oceanic and Atmospheric Research branch: marine biotechnology, ecological observing and forecasting, and habitat protection and restoration. These three components will combine their efforts and interweave their research in support of the cause of evaluating the overlapping environments and interwoven existences of human and marine life.
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San Francisco
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The Detroit Fashion District Cooperative Detroit, Michigan Jen Millikan While Detroit faces great challenges, the city now has a unique opportunity to reimagine itself. A recent surge of creativity is pushing to reinvent Detroit. Residents are transforming vacant spaces in the city into public art and community gardens. Detroit is again celebrating its historic buildings. Small businesses are taking root and building a community along with a new economic base. The entrepreneurial spirit has taken hold in Detroit, and it seems to be a key component to the city’s future success. One part of this creativity surge is a budding fashion industry. Local designers are looking to build upon Detroit’s manufacturing resources so that the city can be a place that makes garments along with its other products. For the past five years, key players have been taking initial steps toward this goal by hosting a Detroit Fashion Week to build a reputation in the world of fashion. Detroit’s emerging fashion industry will plant a seed for redevelopment in the Westside Industrial District. The location is prime for redevelopment to provide new jobs in the city and link existing neighborhoods to the riverfront. A garment district will be formed with the Detroit Fashion District Cooperative as its anchor and catalyst. Garment districts benefit from the close proximity of multiple steps of the garment-making process. The center is designed to house multiple components of a garment district in order to cultivate synergistic relationships. As the industry grows, a full district can be formed around the Cooperative as more space is needed. This key building will feature an active event space to give the fashion industry an identity in the city. Nearby fashion design schools can make use of the event space, and functions such as Detroit Fashion Week will now have a place to call home.
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Located on the Detroit River, the Cooperative anchors both the new garment district and the new waterfront park. The East Riverwalk currently terminates a few blocks away at Joe Louis Arena but will now connect through the site and westward to the Ambassador Bridge forming the West Riverwalk. The expansive waterfront park will feature a variety of public outdoor spaces, such as recreation fields, a public plaza, an amphitheater, and a public boat dock. The park will return portions of the riverbank to a more natural state to provide habitat zones and invite wildlife back to the river’s edge. There is also a unique opportunity to leave some industrial heritage pieces while allowing nature to grow up around them. The park will be designed to integrate with redevelopment and infill projects as the neighborhood evolves. With its unique surroundings, the Detroit Fashion District Cooperative will declare its place on the riverfront. The Cooperative differentiates itself by providing spaces both indoors and outdoors of a different character. While event spaces along the riverfront are often inwardfocused, the atrium space in the center offers views to the river. It is bathed in daylight during the day and shines as a beacon at night. The plaza on the street side beckons toward downtown. The terraces along the river embrace the new West Riverwalk and Waterfront Park.
Detroit
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Select Bibliography “Future Sustainability Forecasting by Exchange Markets: Basic Theory and an Application.” Nataliya Malyshkina and Deb Niemeier, University of California, Davis, Environmental Science & Technology, November 2010. “Renewable Energy Report.” www.altenergy.org/renewables.htm. “Rare, Threatened and Endangered Species of Oregon.” Oregon Biodiversity Information Center, October 2010. “Cleaner Rivers For Oregon.” Oregon Environmental Council Online, www .oeconline.org/our-work/rivers/cleaner-rivers-for-oregon-report/willamette-river. “Polluted Willamette River Sullies Image of A Green Oregon.” Kim Murphy, Los Angeles Times, April 8, 2000. “Regenerative Landscapes.” Turenscape, www.turenscape.com. “River Plan / North Reach.” City of Portland Bureau of Planning, Draft, May 23, 2008. “Proposed Greenway Trail Alignment.” City of Portland Bureau of Planning, Draft, July 3, 2006. “River Concept.” City of Portland Bureau of Planning, Draft, April 6, 2006.
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