Co-developers Home Forward and the Urban League of Portland recently celebrated the opening of the first of several planned apartment buildings established specifically to address houselessness in the Black community. Located in North Portland, the Hattie Redmond provides permanent supportive housing for people with disabilities who request culturally specific services. With 60 studio apartments, the building will provide residents with focused and intensive services for a population over-represented in houselessness, yet underserved. The unique residential development is named for Hattie Redmond who was a suffragist and civil rights leader in Oregon. The building’s trauma-informed, culturally specific design aims to create a stress-free environment to help residents regain dignity and hope. As designers of the Hattie Redmond’s signage and wayfinding on SERA Architects’ team, Mayer/Reed is proud to have been a part of this important addition to our city.
Construction Begins on Lake Oswego Recreation and Aquatics Center
A long-awaited recreation and aquatics center is one step closer to fruition for residents of Lake Oswego. Mayer/Reed joined City leaders, community members and design and construction team representatives to celebrate the start of construction at the March 15 groundbreaking event.
Set to open in summer 2024, the Lake Oswego Recreation and Aquatics Center will offer strong indoor/outdoor connections within the park-like public golf course setting. Mayer/Reed and Scott Edwards Architecture worked together to design a nature-inspired community asset that incorporates indoor aquatic and recreation amenities with several outdoor social spaces. Art and gardens will welcome visitors in the entry forecourt and four distinct plaza and courtyard spaces will allow activities to extend outside of the building.
Triplett Wellman is leading the construction of the $46 million project.
South Park Blocks Master Plan Receives Award from Oregon Recreation & Parks Association
The master plan for Portland’s historic South Park Blocks received an ORPA Planning Award in recognition of outstanding planning practices and processes. We are proud to have been a part of the complex planning process for this beloved downtown green space.
The South Park Blocks Master Plan develops a long-term concept for the park’s physical rehabilitation as well as a tree succession strategy to improve the resilience of the park’s iconic trees. The recommended design respects the park’s historic character while addressing accessibility and equity considerations throughout. On the MIG-led project, Mayer/Reed provided plaza planning and alignment for the Green Loop that weaves additional pedestrian and bicycle capacity along the park.
Portland Parks & Recreation accepted the award at the Oregon Recreation & Parks Association (ORPA) conference on November 8 in Sunriver, Oregon.
City of St. Helens Breaks Ground on Long-Awaited Waterfront Revitalization
City leaders, design team members and the public celebrated the groundbreaking of the first in a series of construction projects to revitalize St. Helens’ waterfront. The November 2nd event marked the start of construction for what’s known as the Streets and Utilities Extension project which will pave the way for future phases of public and private redevelopment of former industrial sites along the Columbia riverfront. Mayer/Reed worked with Otak on this initial phase which extends First and Strand streets. The street extensions feature welcoming, pedestrian-friendly amenities that will interface with a future mixed-use neighborhood and the Mayer/Reed-designed riverwalk which is set for construction in 2023.