Portland Building update, February 2018

 It has been a very busy couple of months as construction is starting to ramp up to full speed. The construction site has been secured, a 10’ tall wall with project graphics has been built on the SW 5th Avenue side, pedestrian tunnel installed on the North side and no public access allowed on the east side. Scaffolding is being erected around Portlandia to protect it during construction. Demolition has altered the look of all floors, with a majority of the demolition activities focused on the top and bottom floors. The basement has been opened up with all non-essential interior walls removed and most of the concrete floor slab demolished to make way for the new seismic foundations.  The northeast stairway between the basement and the 2nd floor has been removed along with the roof above to make room for the tower crane.  A complex foundation of steel and concrete piles has been constructed to support the 270’ tall crane and the base has been set into place.  If you look at the east side of the building you will notice one of the capitols has been removed at the 11th floor in preparation of the crane installation coming in the middle of March.

You can find photos of the work here.

 Interior demolition of non-structural partitions and building systems (HVAC, electrical, low voltage) has occurred on the east half of the first and second floors.  The west half of these floors have been protected as they contain historical elements or are currently being used for construction administrative purposes.  Demolition has also occurred on the upper floors with the 14th and 15th floors being cleared off entirely. 

Exterior work is evident as well. Trees close to the area of work have been provided with plywood protection for their trunks.  The teal colored tile that covers the lower 3 floors of the façade is being removed, starting with the third floor and continuing to the first floor and the Loggia (the covered walk area at the first floor).

Be prepared for some very exciting progress over the coming months!