Portland

So far I've really enjoyed my time here in Portland. Its a unique city with a commitment to sustainability and the first city that I've seen doing a great job of fostering civic spaces and really working to make a city and sustainability a reality.

One of the things that I appreciate in a mid size city that Denver and Omaha lacked was a good transit system. Here in Portland a combination of light rail and streetcars make it relatively easy to get around, but the thing that is really great about transit here is the free ride zone. This zone within the city center makes it incredibly easy to get around and free. This fosters a park and ride relationship with the transit system that many cities lack when you look at the cost of getting to multiple locations. The additional incentive is in building the light rail system they removed vehicle traffic on many streets in downtown, adjusting them to instead be light rail only. A streetcar system also links a number of projects I looked at today. It goes across the far end of downtown, ringing the road.

The other sustainable planning initiative is the encouraging of bicycle transportation. Cognoscente of Copenhagen, the street network has been shifted to add bike lanes and on a few streets, even a full lane for bikes, again reducing the capacity for vehicles in order to encourage transport usage. It's been really easy to get around so far, making this a fun city to explore.

As far as the spatial experience of the city, seeing the waterfront on a weekend has shown the tremendous potential of outdoor spaces. For one, the Saturday market here in Portland is really great. This art, craft, and food market is open every weekend and optimizes the use of a number of city spaces, including a purpose built pavilion and the underpass of a highway.  There was a great vibrancy to this show, with a number of really unique and interesting things. The other public event that was going on was the Oregon Brewers Festival, which occupied a large piece of Tom McCall but was a large event with multiple tents and a stage. The form factor of the park makes it roughly a block wide and extremely long, but I really enjoyed the space because it felt well scaled. with a row of trees on the city side and the river side, it helps to create divisions in the space as well as provide shade and shelter for park goers.

I saw three redevelopment projects today: The South Waterfront, Riverplace, and the Brewery Blocks.

The South Waterfront was everything I hoped. Really well designed buildings, great streetscape and water scape, and good connections to the city. Especially to the huge medical center on top of the hill directly behind the development that the aerial tram is connected to. The buildings are spread out enough to allow for infill without feeling empty and the massive highway that could be an issue is higher than the street level of the waterfront, so its not an issue. The integration of the light industry into the development is also an interesting choice.

The Riverplace development is greatly plagued by the double decker freeway bridge that is located between above it. The road noise is so massive that it ruins the area near the waterfront and ruins the quality of the waterfront space. The view is also towards the highway and industry, instead of trees and green like the south waterfront. It just wasn't great.

The Brewery Blocks project was really interesting. It took the industrial aesthetic and adaptive reuse to heart.   This Five Block section of Portland features a number of interesting things, including a courtyard that has a smokestack in it that is a restaurant. Its an interesting area and no doubt has become a catalyst for the revitalization of the whole area.

Photos and Drawings to come. Another day in Portland and then its on to Seattle.