Urban Forestry

Additional Info

Award Winner : Blazer Industries, Inc.

Architectural Excellence : Portland, Oregon is well known for the tagline “Keep Oregon Weird”. It came as no surprise for the City of Portland to step outside the box, and want a building that is different than what is typical for additional office space even if it is placed in a location no one, but those working will see. They chose a design that included an off-set private office on either end, and a meeting room and group work-spaces separated by a kitchenette, restroom and hallway allowing the common space to be efficiently utilized by various teams without disturbing the others. The types of finishes chosen are durable, but also make the look of the structure more modern and pleasing to the eye. The off-set design and corresponding roof slopes add great visual elements to the design. The exterior material selections work well in the forest type setting, and the colors selected blend in well with the other structures located on the property.

Cost Energy Effectiveness : The cost effectiveness of the project was provided primarily in the return on investment. Since the materials chosen would have been the same regardless of the method used for constructing, the effectiveness was found in the speed in which the building became operational. This allowed for minimal downtime for the staff, and the reduced disruption to the other operations on the site. Modular proved to be even more effective in light of the site delays. Since the building was fully constructed during the site delay, once the client received the green light to install they were able to quickly move the modules into place and occupy rather than having to begin the construction of the building at that time. Site delays are not uncommon. In this case, the use of modular construction greatly mitigated many of the issues.

Occupied Date : 6/22/2019

Owner Firm Name : City of Portland

Production Start Date : 9/13/2017

Project Location City : Portland

Project Location State Name : Oregon

Technical Innovation : The offset ends, angled wall, sloped suspended ceiling, and shed roof created a variety of challenges for the production of the modules. Despite the challenges, the building turned out to be exactly what the client was looking for. The layout is very efficient for their use, and allows them the space needed to hold planning and development meetings while not disturbing others in the office. The client elected to use a standard split system HVAC for the common areas of the building, exposed ducting and a mini split system in each of the private offices which resulted in a more efficient system for their use. Unfortunately, as is common with many local municipality projects, there were issues the client had to deal with on site that caused a delay which lasted over a year. The project was complete in the factory, and closed up for storage until the issues were resolved. Once the site was ready, the building went together without any further delay.

Total Square Feet : 1792