Washington County (Beaverton, Hillsboro, Tigard, Forest Grove, etc.)

[aquaticko]

There's also the PCC Willow Creek campus right there, and I'm sure a lot of students and teachers would love a place they could walk to before/after classes. OHSU also has a lot of facilities barely a half-mile away.

It's also not just the MAX; several bus lines stop there. Obviously, given the way things are right now, there's only so much a city can do to influence where a company locates something, but....I can't help but laugh at an agglomeration of strip malls calling itself a "town center". Like, the area's probably about 70% parking.

[subterranean]

Finally getting some clue as to what is shaping up over at Elmonica Station. Not in love with how this looks, but it’s better than I thought it would be TBH. 255 units plus a couple thousand square feet of retail on the market rate side, then another 81 affordable units by REACH (unrelated project, but coordinated for access). This is already one of the densest tracts in the state in terms of ppsm, but sorely lacking in commercial for its density. Glad they added some retail, there isn’t any south of baseline, just some daycare places.


image uploader

[subterranean]

Grand Central Bakery and Sizzle Pie opened in downtown Hillsboro. Photos by me:




upload

[uncommon.name]

Originally Posted by subterranean

Finally getting some clue as to what is shaping up over at Elmonica Station. Not in love with how this looks, but it’s better than I thought it would be TBH. 255 units plus a couple thousand square feet of retail on the market rate side, then another 81 affordable units by REACH (unrelated project, but coordinated for access). This is already one of the densest tracts in the state in terms of ppsm, but sorely lacking in commercial for its density. Glad they added some retail, there isn’t any south of baseline, just some daycare places.


image uploader

Is this across the MAX tracks from the Elmonico Park and Ride, off of 170th?

[subterranean]

This is across 170th from the park & ride. This view is facing west. The entrance to the park & ride is aligned with the entrance of this project.

[aquaticko]

What do we think the chances of a mid-block crossing are from the development to the park-and-ride? Anything we can do to try and induce use of the MAX--and increase public pressure to make it better.

And agreed about the mixed-use-ness of the project. There's nothing but housing and a Costo (which basically no one's going to without a car) for at least a half-mile around Elmonica. Every new establishment will help.

[uncommon.name]

Originally Posted by aquaticko

What do we think the chances of a mid-block crossing are from the development to the park-and-ride? Anything we can do to try and induce use of the MAX--and increase public pressure to make it better.

And agreed about the mixed-use-ness of the project. There's nothing but housing and a Costo (which basically no one's going to without a car) for at least a half-mile around Elmonica. Every new establishment will help.

Biscuits Cafe is close by! But yes, I agree that area needs more mixed use.

[subterranean]

Downtown Hillsboro update

Merrill Gardens senior housing making serious progress. This is pretty imposing considering what surrounds it. Much more massive than it looks in the photo.


Collective Market has been open for a while, but I’m not sure I ever posted about it. Great addition to downtown.


Some other commercial development nearby. I’ll try to Find out more about it.

[dizflip]

This was announced last week by Councilor Kevin Teater, but:

Beaverton council votes to eliminate minimum parking requirements for new projects
By Allison Frost (OPB)

City councilors in Beaverton voted unanimously to do away with including parking in new developments in the city. Kevin Teater is the newest member of the council and campaigned on this issue. Beaverton joins seven other cities in the state that have made the same shift recently, including Portland, Salem and Bend.

Source: https://www.opb.org/article/2023/07/...-new-projects/

[subterranean]

Originally Posted by subterranean

Some other commercial development nearby. I’ll try to Find out more about it.

I was wrong about this being commercial. I asked one of the construction workers at the site and he said it was commercial. But after looking up the project on their website, it's going to be a 35-unit apartment building



Between this and Merrill Gardens, that'll be 176 new units in downtown Hillsboro. Hopefully this will help offset the loss of office workers for shops and restaurants.

[dizflip]

Originally Posted by subterranean

I was wrong about this being commercial. I asked one of the construction workers at the site and he said it was commercial. But after looking up the project on their website, it's going to be a 35-unit apartment building

Would have been nice to have included ground level retail in that.

[subterranean]

Downtown Beaverton is feeling more urban every day. A few photos, but there’s a whole lot more development going on.

Reser’s



More from the Round

Breakside is now open

See See Coffee

[urbanlife]

It is looking good, I just wish they would build some taller buildings so that their tallest building isn't a parking garage.

[subterranean]

Dude. You have been making the same comment in this thread since 2007. It's time to move on.

Originally Posted by urbanlife

I would love to see the city develop a plan to redevelop its actual downtown and push for new buildings. It actually has a great layout to be quite a cool small city with a couple towers in the teens for floors.

I have hopes for the city that they will pull their heads out of their asses and do more with their city. Right now, it feels like the city council and the people there don't care about their city.

Originally Posted by urbanlife

That is the problem with Beaverton, they have a downtown in place that they are ignoring. But again, that is a whole beast of mistakes in itself.

Hillsboro is an interesting city. It is a big city that is becoming a collection of urban centers. I don't think downtown Hillsboro will ever be that big, but with the number of urban cores that they are willing to do, I dont think it will matter.

Originally Posted by urbanlife

maybe it is time for beaverton to actually put together a development plan for downtown beaverton rather than hoping rich developers will do that for them.

Originally Posted by urbanlife

That is a great plan and all, but I think the city needs to also pay attention to their lack of downtown. Some form of future plan on this would be nice, how they wish to grow, what they would like to see the downtown look like, how the traffic issues should be handled.

There needs to be something to go with this plan because at the moment this is nothing more than constructing a park in an area in the city. Maybe combining this with the idea of building a new City Hall that would actually function as a center piece for downtown. Maybe even having a district of buildings that are over 6 stories tall might help as well. Also, the city already has a street grid in place, it would be nice to see that actually be important for the city with future developments.

Originally Posted by urbanlife

It's about time we started seeing buildings like this in Old Town Beaverton. That whole area should be full of buildings like this.

Originally Posted by urbanlife

I wouldn't mind seeing a local company become an Amazon like company that builds a group of buildings downtown.

Originally Posted by urbanlife

Does that mean Beaverton's tallest building is a parking garage? Yeah, that seems accurate.

Originally Posted by urbanlife

Personally I would like to see Beaverton get some height to its buildings and be more like a Bellevue type city to Portland.

Originally Posted by urbanlife

I thought that said Sixty Story Towers at first and was like, what the hell?? Then I realized it said six and thought that sounds more like it. I have no faith in Beaverton ever building an urban downtown with a tower district like I imagine for them.


Oh, Cedar Hills Shopping Center, not Cedar Hills Crossing, that also confused me because I couldn't understand why anyone would want to tear that place down. Over by the Sunset Transit Center, that is a great idea for a development like this. I have always wanted to see the land around Sunset Transit Center be developed Vancouver BC style with apartment towers surrounding it, and retail streets making a walkable community next to a major transit hub. This is definitely a step in the right direction for that area.

Originally Posted by urbanlife

I really wish they would start going taller by the Round and make that area stand out as more of a downtown.

Originally Posted by urbanlife

With Portland, I like seeing a lot of 250-450ft buildings going up. Beyond that height, I wonder if buildings that tall are even realistically needed. Though it would be nice to see surrounding cities go higher than 5-6 stories with their downtowns.

Originally Posted by urbanlife

I really wish we would start seeing taller buildings over by the Round, 10-20 story buildings would create a nice little skyline....also no city should have a parking garage be their tallest building.

Originally Posted by urbanlife

It's starting to look like Beaverton is finally starting to build themselves a legit urban downtown. Now if only they would start building higher than 5 stories. I have always imagined something along the lines of South Waterfront style skyline for Beaverton someday in my lifetime.

Originally Posted by urbanlife

That sounds promising, here's hoping Beaverton goes higher than 120ft, but for Beaverton, even 120ft would make an impact.

Originally Posted by urbanlife

I feel like if they are gonna build parking garages that big in "downtown" Beaverton, then they should be building buildings that people live and work in to be much higher than those parking garages.

Originally Posted by urbanlife

Yeah, I know, and it doesn't change my statement. Beaverton should be building buildings that people live and work in that are taller than the garages they are building.

Originally Posted by urbanlife

That doesn't surprise me if that's the case. Though the idea that every building that would go up in this development would have parking seems excessive for a Transit Oriented Development. Hopefully that changes as this project works its way out. I am also hopeful that it will include more housing and possibly taller buildings that what the masterplan currently shows.

Originally Posted by urbanlife

The north end of the Downtown Loop for Beaverton would be an ideal area for the city to really start building up with real towers.

Originally Posted by urbanlife

It's good to see downtown Beaverton growing more with density. Hopefully they will eventually start building up to give them a skyline to go with all these new urban infill buildings.

Originally Posted by urbanlife

It is looking good, I just wish they would build some taller buildings so that their tallest building isn't a parking garage.

[dizflip]

Why? We just want taller buildings in Beaverton.

Also, cool to see Breakside open finally. Didn't even know. Now if only we can get taller buildings in Beaverton...

[subterranean]

We all do. Just sounds like a broken record and we might as well celebrate things going in the right direction. Beaverton has made some big strides the last several years.

[jaxg8r1]

Originally Posted by subterranean

We all do. Just sounds like a broken record and we might as well celebrate things going in the right direction. Beaverton has made some big strides the last several years.

Beaverton has several upcoming opportunities within the urban core to get those taller buildings. BURA (Beaverton Urban Redevelopment Agency) has several parcels https://beaverton.granicus.com/MetaV...meta_id=168759 that will go out for redevelopment over the next couple of years, including 2 likely out later this year (Lombard West and Broadway East on the link I shared). Lombard West site is zoned for significant height and I'd expect demand to be there..

[babs]

Originally Posted by jaxg8r1

Beaverton has several upcoming opportunities within the urban core to get those taller buildings. BURA (Beaverton Urban Redevelopment Agency) has several parcels https://beaverton.granicus.com/MetaV...meta_id=168759 that will go out for redevelopment over the next couple of years, including 2 likely out later this year (Lombard West and Broadway East on the link I shared). Lombard West site is zoned for significant height and I'd expect demand to be there..

Does Trimet own the vacant property north of the transit center? That would seem to be the most shovel ready property in Beaverton.

[jaxg8r1]

Originally Posted by babs

Does Trimet own the vacant property north of the transit center? That would seem to be the most shovel ready property in Beaverton.

No, there are two vacant parcels north of the transit center. The BURA owned one and another (larger) owned by the Biggi family.

[sopdx]

https://www.oregonlive.com/silicon-f..._breaking_news