A concept for a new building in Portland’s Old Town neighborhood calls for including approximately 700 affordable housing units
Downtown Portland could soon see a massive influx of affordable apartments in just one project.
Access Architecture recently initiated the process to discuss with the Portland Bureau of Development Services the possibility of constructing a 30-story (approximately 350 feet tall), net-zero building. “Burnside One” would hold approximately 700 affordable housing units atop ground-floor commercial space.
The proposed location for Burnside One is a half-block at 108 W. Burnside St., adjacent to MAX light-rail tracks.
The project is the second collaboration between Access Architecture and developer Curtis Rystadt. Their previous joint effort, TimberView, an eight-story, mass-timber building with 105 affordable housing units, is under construction in the Gateway neighborhood.
Rystadt’s mission is to add affordable housing downtown but in a way that lowers resident costs through sustainable measures. One for Burnside One would be the inclusion of a heating and cooling system that draws heat from the ground or water in cooler months, distributes it throughout the building, and returns it to those sources in warmer months.
“Anything that we can do to pass savings onto the tenants,” Rystadt said, “that’s what we’re going to do.”
Also, plans call for incorporating solar panels into the building’s exterior, with the team exploring various cladding options to optimize energy generation. The proposed materials include standard commercial panels, but the team is also exploring newer products resembling metal panels that allow light to penetrate through to a photovoltaic finish.
“Our hope is that with the skin of the building essentially harvesting energy from the sun, that we can try to be as close to net-zero as possible,” Access Architecture principal Brendan Sanchez said.
The building’s design was carefully considered to maximize solar exposure year-round by accounting for equinoxes and solstices, Sanchez said. Due to the heights and shadows cast by neighboring structures such as the Mercy Corps building across First Avenue and the Salvation Army building to the west, the solar panels would begin on the sixth or seventh floor.
With the site adjacent to multiple mass-transit options, Rystadt said he hopes the development remains high density. He anticipates including mostly studios and one-bedroom apartments at 60 percent of the area median income; however, that could change depending on city needs and potential resources.
“If I can get support from the different state agencies,” he added, “I will bring back affordability to downtown.”
The affordable housing project will likely undergo a type 2 design review process in which the Portland Design Commission provides design advice, but BDS staff provides potential final approval.
The project team could break ground in two years, Rystadt said; however, a lot of planning and conversations are still necessary. But if successful, Burnside One will be Rystadt’s first of many large-scale affordable housing projects in Portland, he said.
