Planning Commission to look at Warehouse in North Downtown

If you travel up Front Street much, you'll pass this older warehouse at the corner of D and Front. It used to be an ice and cold storage business, I'm told.

On Tuesday, August 21st, the Planning Commission will hold a public hearing and look at a request to change the zoning and reduce the required number of parking stalls.

I love some of the detailing in this building, and whenever I pass by it, I think of Pearl District restaurants on the loading docks in the old warehouse district in Portland.

There, of course, the streets are connected in the grid and stopped at most intersections. They also have taken out the rail lines.

Here it seems like a lot of car traffic uses Front as a by-pass for the Commercial/Liberty couplet, and of course there's still train traffic on the old Oregon Electric line.

But it's also along Mill Creek and the site always seems to shimmer with possibility - if out of reach at the moment. (You may recall the Sustainable Cities studies for redeveloping North Downtown!)

Perhaps the most interesting part is the request to reduce required parking from 118 stalls to 31 stalls. This overgrown lot would be paved - and the cars get the scenic view over the creek.

This area isn't very friendly for walking or biking and it will be interesting to learn more about the proposed reduction, the new use (a "wellness" clinic) and its likely trip generation.

For comparison, the new clinic on Edgewater seems like a smaller building but with a giant parking lot.

Update, August 8th

In a comment, Walker mentions a garden concept.

One of the SCI proposals included a rendering for a Community Garden and Cannery!

A community garden and cannery will promote neighborhood cohesion and provide a place for people to meet and gather. The community garden could be part of the Marion-Polk Food Share community garden program.

Also, a reader points out that the relief detailing over the doors is not very old, and is perhaps even just plastic! I supposed it might be old and even cast iron. Shoot!