Daily Journal of Commerce, Portland articles from December 2006

Daily Journal of Commerce, Portland archives from December 2006

Conversation with Tad Savinar, the artist/urban design consultant for Transit Mall in Portland.
December 1, 2006... Byline: Alison Ryan Tad Savinar has high mileage. The artist and urban design consultant to the downtown Transit Mall redesign project put feet to pavement in a group effort to make the new mall more than a place to get on and off a bus....

Portland Pacesetters: December 1, 2006.
December 1, 2006... Byline: DJC Staff DESIGN Sienna Architecture Co.'s Portland office recently hired Phong Chau, Aaron Emma, Jon Ford and Michelle Mueller for the firm's architectural division and Mike Carlton as director of information technology. Kayla...

Portland Real Estate Transactions: December 1, 2006.
December 1, 2006... Byline: DJC Staff OREGON LEASE // Industrial * Touchstone Granite & Marble has leased 15,200 square feet at 802 N. Columbia Blvd., in Portland, from Earl F. Bates dba Norstar Development. Tony Reser and Sean McCarthy of GVA Kidder...

The trouble with valuating green.
December 4, 2006... Byline: Kennedy Smith Green builders are a dime a dozen here in Portland. But, even in a town so revered for its sustainable building practices, those dozens have a hard time reaping the cash benefits of their efforts. For now, most...

Portland Construction Briefs: December 4, 2006.
December 4, 2006... Byline: Alison Ryan MulvannyG2 Architecture The Portland office of MulvannyG2 is designing Macadam Pointe, a three-building mixed-use project to be constructed in Portland's Johns Landing section of South Portland. Two mid-rise condominium...

Eugene builder Trygve Vik, 82, leaves a building legacy.
December 4, 2006... Byline: DJC Staff Eugene-area builder Trygve Vik died Nov. 27 at the age of 82. Vik was the third generation in a family with a long heritage in construction and served as president of the board of Vik Construction in Eugene until his...

Portland Pacesetters Briefs: December 4, 2006.
December 4, 2006... Byline: DJC Staff DESIGN MulvannyG2 Architecture has added seven more employees to its Portland office. James Van Lanen, senior associate, joins the firm from Sienna Architecture. As a senior associate, Van Lanen will be heading up the...

Renewable energy advocates oppose two new 'clean' coal plants in OR, WA.
December 5, 2006... Byline: Libby Tucker Two proposed "clean" coal plants in Oregon and Washington have ignited a debate among the Northwest's renewable energy advocates that argue there is no such thing as clean coal. At their semi-annual meeting in Portland...

Portland Pacesetters Briefs: December 5, 2006.
December 5, 2006... Byline: DJC Staff DESIGN LRS Architects Inc. has hired William (Buddy) Smith, Mary McGilvra, Bruce Barton, Kenneth Klos and Tom Gibbons as senior project managers, Cole Cabler as a project designer and Craig Moore has joined the firm's IT...

Portland commissioner to propose transportation plan that includes streetcar line.
December 6, 2006... Byline: Kennedy Smith Portland Commissioner Sam Adams is gearing up to propose to City Council a transportation plan for turning Burnside and Couch streets into one-way avenues in a project that would also include a streetcar line along...

Portland citywide WiFi manager talks business implications.
December 6, 2006... Byline: DJC Staff On the sidelines of a Pioneer Courthouse Square event to promote the benefits of Portland's citywide Wi-Fi network to the general public, an executive with the firm that will manage the network talked up potential...

Portland General Electric receives EPA's green power award.
December 6, 2006... Byline: DJC Staff The Environmental Protection Agency on Tuesday gave Portland General Electric its 2006 Green Power Program of the Year award. The utility was recognized for its contribution to growing the green power market in the United...

Portland Renovation Roundup: December 6, 2006.
December 6, 2006... Byline: Dan Carter Work on the new Cricket wireless phone service center at the corner of Northeast Weidler and Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard is nearly complete. Having rolled out service in Eugene and Salem, the company will launch...

Portland Real Estate Transactions: December 6, 2006.
December 6, 2006... Byline: DJC Staff OREGON LEASE // Office * OCS Northwest LLC has leased 2,633 square feet at Airport Center 1, 5835 N.E. 122nd Ave., in Portland, from Realty Associates Fund VI LP. Jim Carver and Steven Klein of GVA Kidder Mathews...

Portland Pacesetters: December 6, 2006.
December 6, 2006... Byline: DJC Staff DESIGN Shawn Keenan of Steele Associates Architects has passed the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design accreditation exam. ENGINEERING Landesign Group has formed a new senior management team consisting of...

Conversation with Greg Goodman, whose family is largest property owner in downtown Portland.
December 8, 2006... Byline: Libby Tucker The family of Greg Goodman is the largest property owner in downtown Portland. Goodman's company, City Center Parking, manages hundreds of parking spaces in the downtown core, and there's enough capital coming in that...

Charter school likely will not get approval from Portland Public Schools board of education.
December 8, 2006... Byline: Libby Tucker The Portland Public Schools board of education will cast its final vote Monday on a proposed charter school for construction, architecture and engineering. But the prospects for approval seem low, applicants and board...

Pacific Northwest Regional Council of Carpenters requests toy drive donations.
December 8, 2006... Byline: DJC Staff The Pacific Northwest Regional Council of Carpenters is seeking donations to its eighth annual Christmas toy drive. Over the past seven years the toy drive has collected more than 7,800 gifts and $22,000 in monetary...

Two-day event at World Trade Center in Portland to cover land-use legislation.
December 8, 2006... Byline: DJC Staff "Land Use Law in Oregon" is the subject of a two-day seminar to be held Dec. 14 and 15 at the World Trade Center in Portland. Topics include a 2007 legislative preview, the latest news from Oregon's "Big Look" task force,...

Tigard chamber to hold holiday luncheon.
December 8, 2006... Byline: DJC Staff The Tigard Area Chamber of Commerce and West Coast Bank will play host to their annual holiday luncheon from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Tuesday at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, 14811 S.W. Kruse Oaks Drive, in Lake Oswego. The...

Portland Pacesetters: December 8, 2006.
December 8, 2006... Byline: DJC Staff DESIGN CIDA, an Oregon-based multidisciplinary architecture, engineering and land development firm, has hired Kristen Bean as interior design project manager. Bean has worked in California with E Entertainment and with...

Portland Real Estate Transactions: December 8, 2006.
December 8, 2006... Byline: DJC Staff OREGON LEASE // Retail * Starbucks has leased 1,500 square feet at Wood Village Town Center, 22352 N.E. Parklane, in Woodvillage, from Wood Village Town Center LLC. Dan Bozich and Craig Sweitzer of Urban Works Real...

For OR builders, '07 is time to remodel.
December 11, 2006... Byline: Libby Tucker New home construction is slowing, but builders will find plenty of home remodeling and commercial work in 2007, economists say. Residential permits are down 6 percent over the last year in the Portland metro area and...

U.S. Army Corps begins Willamette dredge study.
December 11, 2006... Byline: Libby Tucker The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers began official plans to dredge the Willamette River for the first time in 10 years with a public meeting Thursday night. The corps has proposed removing at least 500 cubic yards of...

Portland Projects - On the Boards: December 11, 2006.
December 11, 2006... Byline: Alison Ryan "On the boards" is a weekly roundup of Portland projects in the pipeline that will shed light on some of Oregon firms' best-but-below-the-radar design work. Submissions from Oregon and Southwest Washington architectural...

Portland Development Commission: Results first - then we'll talk prevailing wage.
December 11, 2006... Byline: Libby Tucker The Portland Development Commission will strongly consider adopting its own prevailing-wage policy for public-private partnership projects - but it likely won't happen until clear progress is made by contractors and...

Portland Pacesetters: December 11, 2006.
December 11, 2006... Byline: DJC Staff ADVERTISING Leopold Ketel & Partners, one of the Pacific Northwest's leading advertising, design and public relations agencies, has promoted account manager Stacia Allen to the position of account director, overseeing the...

City of Portland's search for renewable energy sources are ongoing.
December 12, 2006... Byline: Alison Ryan The city of Portland's efforts to purchase 100 percent of its municipal electricity from renewable sources are ongoing, despite hopes that a contract would have been finalized more than a year ago. The city's Office...

Adams' Burnside-Couch couplet proposal in Portland not without opposition.
December 12, 2006... Byline: Kennedy Smith As Sam Adams gears up to show his fellow City Council members his plan to turn Burnside and Couch streets into one-way thoroughfares, he faces opposition from some businesses and residents on the west side -...

Portland Pacesetters Briefs: December 12, 2006.
December 12, 2006... Byline: DJC Staff FINANCE Washington Trust Bank, the oldest and largest privately held bank in the Pacific Northwest, has promoted Linda A. Williams to Oregon regional president, succeeding Chris Rasmussen. Williams joined Washington...

Real Estate Transactions for Dec. 12.
December 12, 2006... Byline: DJC Staff OREGON LEASE // Industrial * Recreational Industries Co. has leased 5,000 square feet at Commerce Park Milwaukie, 13501 S.E. Johnson Road, in Milwaukie, from CP Milwaukie LLC. Steven Klein of GVA Kidder Mathews...

Minority firm in Portland grows with larger partner's help.
December 13, 2006... Byline: Libby Tucker InLine Commercial Construction Inc. began as a one-man shop doing metal studs and ceilings. Now the small, minority-owned company is one of the most visible up-and-coming general contractors in the Portland metro...

City of Portland to hold Green Investment Fund info conference Thursday.
December 13, 2006... Byline: DJC Staff The city of Portland's Office of Sustainable Development has issued a call for applications for 2007 Green Investment Fund (GIF) grants. Industrial, residential, commercial and mixed-use projects are eligible, and public...

American Council of Engineering Companies of Oregon awards 2006 scholarship to OSU student.
December 13, 2006... Byline: DJC Staff The American Council of Engineering Companies of Oregon has selected Derek Manwill of Eugene as the winner of its 2006 scholarship. Manwill, an Oregon State University freshman, is studying civil engineering, with an...

Portland Pacesetters: December 13, 2006.
December 13, 2006... Byline: DJC Staff TECHNOLOGY Cricket LCW has named two new directors to its executive team, Jim Goetsch and Jason Hall, both of whom will play a vital role as the company prepares to bring Cricket wireless service to Portland. All told,...

Portland Real Estate Transactions: December 13, 2006.
December 13, 2006... Byline: DJC Staff OREGON LEASE // Office * Dr. Craig Johnson has leased 1,148 square feet at 511 S.W. 10th Ave., in Portland, from Carlyle Investment Co. Buck Reasor of Bluestone and Hockley Real Estate Services represented the lessee....

Inspired ideas grow new AIA architectural center in Portland.
December 14, 2006... Byline: Alison Ryan AIA Portland kicked off brainstorming for its new Center for Architecture with a question: How many architects does it take to change the future? And when the community next year claps eyes on the Northwest Flanders...

Comfort food eatery opens in old Pearl District space in Portland.
December 14, 2006... Byline: Alison Ryan A former auto parts store has been reborn as a noodle-centric restaurant as a retail renovation has popped a new feel into an old Pearl District space. The Noodles & Co. design team took advantage of existing elements,...

Portland Pacesetters: December 14, 2006.
December 14, 2006... Byline: DJC Staff ENGINEERING Cary Kopczynski & Co., a Bellevue, Wash.-based structural engineering firm, has hired Rhoda Ametsitsi, David Fike and Ron Carlentine as CAD drafters and promoted Ron Mirahsani to senior associate. Ametsitsi...

An interview with Portland Metro Councilor David Bragdon.(Interview)
December 15, 2006... Byline: DJC Staff In the office of Metro Council President David Bragdon, there are four clocks lined up along one wall, and each has a city listed underneath it - sort of like something one would find in an airport or a bustling...

Harris ruling's a landmark in construction defect litigation in OR Court of Appeals.
December 15, 2006... Byline: Kenneth P. Childs The Oregon Court of Appeals on Dec. 6 issued a significant ruling in the case of Harris v. Suniga., which had posed an issue often raised in construction cases but on which Oregon law had been unclear: whether the...

Portland Pacesetters: December 15, 2006.
December 15, 2006... Byline: DJC Staff REAL ESTATE Windermere/Sandy Real Estate has hired Valerie Ladd. Ladd, most recently with Coldwell Banker BSSP in Clackamas, has both legal and customer service backgrounds and is an integrity selling specialist. ...

Real estate transactions for Dec. 15, 2006.
December 15, 2006... Byline: DJC Staff OREGON LEASE // Office * Richard Moore DDS has leased 2,100 square feet at Banfield Plaza, 7921 N.E. Halsey St., in Portland, from NACM-Oregon. Tom Becic of Melvin Mark Brokerage Co. represented the lessor. * Opus has...

Portland Development Commission has framework for prevailing-wage-rate plan.
December 15, 2006... Byline: Libby Tucker Portland Development Commission staffers on Wednesday presented to the agency's board of commissioners the framework for a "new wage policy" that would apply state prevailing-wage rates to any project that receives $1...

Study: Region's freight to double in Portland-Vancouver region by 2035.
December 15, 2006... Byline: Libby Tucker Freight volumes are expected to double by 2035, dramatically increasing truck traffic in the Portland-Vancouver region, according to a new trade capacity study presented Wednesday at the Port of Portland. "The...

Equipment companies split over biodiesel's impact.
December 18, 2006... Byline: Libby Tucker Biodiesel makes Pete Kosky nervous. The vice president of Star Rentals, which leases heavy construction equipment to many large Portland contractors, likes the idea of an alternative, home-grown fuel, but he's unsure...

Business Union and Legislative Leaders Session donates $310,000 to Oregon children's charities.
December 18, 2006... Byline: DJC Staff The Business Union and Legislative Leaders (BULL) Session presented an early holiday gift of $310,000 to nine of Oregon's largest children's charities Tuesday. The donation was generated from the 16th annual BULL Session...

GroSolar acquires Grants Pass-based Energy Outfitters.
December 18, 2006... Byline: DJC Staff National solar energy firm GroSolar announced Tuesday that it had acquired Energy Outfitters, a solar energy distributor based in Grants Pass. Energy Outfitters, a 15-year-old company that also has offices in Calgary,...

Portland Construction Briefs: December 18, 2006.
December 18, 2006... Byline: Alison Ryan Richard Brown Architects Portland architect Richard Brown, in collaboration with designer Jack Walling, designed the recently completed Catherine McAuley Chapel at Mercy Medical Center in Roseburg. The team carved a...

Portland Pacesetters: December 18, 2006.
December 18, 2006... Byline: DJC Staff COMMUNITY Gov. Ted Kulongoski has reappointed Geoff Guilfoy to a third three-year term on the Oregon Public Broadcasting board of directors. Guilfoy, as a member of the board of directors, will be actively involved in...

Portland real estate transactions: December 18, 2006.
December 18, 2006... Byline: DJC Staff OREGON LEASE // Office * Overland Agency has leased 4,500 square feet at The Mikado Building, 117 S.W. Taylor St., in Portland, from Yamhill Partners LLC. Eric Haskins of Grubb & Ellis represented the lessee. Kevin...

Portland design firms push the envelope - then mail it.
December 19, 2006... Byline: Alison Ryan Great design matters to architects - even when the project is two-dimensional and getting it done on-time, on-budget means finding a mailbox and 39 cents. "When you do what we do," said Tim Eddy, principal at Hennebery...

Portland Pacesetters: December 19, 2006.
December 19, 2006... Byline: DJC Staff DESIGN GeoDesign Inc. has hired: Luc Normandin, chief financial officer; Bob Janak, senior project manager; Kristen Tucker, corporate marketing manager; John Gannon, marketing coordinator; and Kameron Manyrath,...

Real estate transactions for Dec. 19, 2006.
December 19, 2006... Byline: DJC Staff OREGON LEASE // Industrial * Integral Consulting Inc. has leased 4,240 square feet at 1991 N.W. Upshur St., in Portland, from Enid Boles. TJ Newby of Integrated Corporate Property Services represented the lessee. Steve...

Work on I-205, Portland Mall light-rail lines nears start.
December 19, 2006... Byline: Libby Tucker TriMet will kick off the new year with the opening stages of construction on the I-205/Portland Mall light-rail project. The TriMet board of directors last week gave the green light for property acquisition by...

N.Y. commuter train project gets $2.6B from DOT.
December 19, 2006... Byline: DJC Staff The federal Department of Transportation on Monday announced a record $2.6 billion agreement to fund a new network of train tunnels under New York City. The project, designed to connect commuter trains from Long Island to...

Oregon Tradeswomen Inc. land second federal brownfields grant.
December 19, 2006... Byline: Dan Carter For the second time in three years, Oregon Tradeswomen Inc. has received a brownfields training grant from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to support the organization's Trades and Apprenticeship Career class....

A look at some of the construction stories featured in past December issues of the DJC.
December 19, 2006... Byline: Theresa McKinlay This month we take a look at stories appearing in 1964, 1974 and 1987, when Zimmer Gunsul Frasca Partnership completed its design of the Oregon Convention Center. Dec. 2, 1987 "Convention center design readies...

Portland businesses, agencies to lobby for transportation package bigger than governor's proposal.
December 20, 2006... Byline: Libby Tucker In an unprecedented effort, Portland businesses and public agencies are preparing to lobby the 2007 Legislature for a transportation package that would go far beyond the governor's proposed $100 million "ConnectOregon...

Study by California consulting firm predicts financial workers will see wage jump in '07.
December 20, 2006... Byline: DJC Staff Accountants can expect their wages to increase in 2007, according to a study by Robert Half Finance and Accounting, a California consulting and staffing firm. The national base salary will rise on average 3.8 percent, the...

Portland Renovation Roundup: December 20, 2006.
December 20, 2006... Byline: Dan Carter Built more than 50 years ago, the Holman Transfer Building on Southeast Water Avenue is undergoing a major renovation. The nearly 10,000-square-foot building is being converted into the River East Center and will become...

Portland Real Estate Transactions: December 20, 2006.
December 20, 2006... Byline: DJC Staff OREGON LEASE // Office * KPD Insurance Inc. has leased 1,325 square feet at 1 Lincoln, 10300 S.W. Greenburg Road, in Portland, from OR - Lincoln LLC. Scott Andrews of Melvin Mark Brokerage Co. represented the lessee....

Portland Pacesetters: December 20, 2006.
December 20, 2006... Byline: DJC Staff DESIGN Ruffcorn Mott Hinthorne Stine has hired Patrick Donnelly, Daniel Brindisi and Fenita Soetiono as project architects; Sean O'Neill as an intern architect; and Barb Gipple as an administrative assistant. Irina Wong...

Energy a boon for builders in 2007.
December 21, 2006... Byline: Libby Tucker In the past three years, high oil prices and federal tax incentives have spurred development of energy facilities across the country, creating a lucrative niche for builders. "I think the energy market will show the...

Calif.-based solar company expands into Portland.
December 21, 2006... Byline: DJC staff All Renewable Energy Corp. (AREC), a solar energy installation and contracting firm, has expanded to Portland. The new office will serve as the center for sales and system integration in Oregon and Washington. District...

Organically Grown Co. named 'Visionary of the Year'.
December 21, 2006... Byline: DJC staff Eugene-based Organically Grown Co., an organic produce wholesaler, was named "Outstanding Visionary of the Year" by Oregon Tilth, a research and education organization of organic farmers, gardeners and consumers. The...

Commentary: Noncompete deal is nonsense at end of employment.
December 21, 2006... Byline: Mitch Baker Question: An employee who has been with my company for many years recently turned in a letter of resignation. He did not indicate what he was going to be doing after leaving the company, and I'm afraid he might go to...

Two from JD White pass qualifying tests to prepare biological assessments.
December 21, 2006... Byline: DJC staff JD White, a division of Berger/ABAM Engineers Inc., has announced that Senior Scientist Tabitha Reeder and Associate Scientist Dan Gunderson have passed the qualifying tests to prepare biological assessments for the...

Portland Real Estate Briefs: Dec. 21, 2006.
December 21, 2006... Byline: DJC staff OREGON LEASE // Industrial * Invision Exhibits & Graphics Inc. has leased 4,558 square feet at Franklin Business Park, 20194 S.W. 112th Ave., in Tualatin, from Pacific NW Properties. Erin Gram of NAI Norris, Beggs &...

Portland Financial Briefs: December 21, 2006.
December 21, 2006... Byline: DJC Staff Allen Trust Co. has named John W. "Jack" Winter Jr. to its board of directors. Winter spent most of his career with Arthur Andersen LLP. His last position there was as managing partner of Andersen's Pacific Northwest...

SeQuential Biofuels names CEO.
December 21, 2006... Byline: DJC Staff SeQuential Biofuels has appointed Dave Garten as its first chief executive officer. In this role, he will develop SeQuential's strategy and growth plans, lead funding activities and provide overall leadership and...

Yamhill Valley Visitors Assn. installs new board members.
December 21, 2006... Byline: DJC Staff The Yamhill Valley Visitors Association has installed its new board members: Beth Caster of Coldwell Banker; Deolinda Coelho of Coelho Winery; Cassie Sollars of the News Register; and Bruce Wyatt of Linfield College. All...

Hoffman Construction, S.D. Deacon working to transform building into retail space, luxury hotel.
December 22, 2006... Byline: Kennedy Smith The former Meier & Frank building, covered in scaffolding and emitting the familiar construction-related clanking, banging, grinding and buzzing, is alive with activity as Hoffman Construction works to transform the...

Perkowitz + Ruth lands new space in downtown.
December 22, 2006... Byline: DJC Staff Perkowitz + Ruth Architects is relocating its Portland office to a 9,500-square-foot space a block from Pioneer Place. The new space, at 888 S.W. Fifth Ave, marks an expansion for the Portland office, which opened in...

Portland Constructio Briefs: December 22, 2006.
December 22, 2006... Byline: DJC Staff Otak Inc. has hired six new full-time professionals to its Lake Oswego headquarters during the past four months, a period in which the multidisciplinary firm added professionals in 10 different offices. In Lake Oswego,...

Portland Real Estate Briefs: Dec. 22, 2006.
December 22, 2006... Byline: DJC Staff OREGON LEASE // Industrial * Shell Solar Industries LP has leased 44,163 square feet at EastRidge Business Park, 12016 N.E. 95th St., in Vancouver, from EastRidge Business Park LLC. * Har-Bro West Inc. has leased 2,876...

West Coast Bank names senior vice president of employee development.
December 22, 2006... Byline: DJC Staff West Coast Bank has promoted Bill Malak to senior vice president of employee development. He is responsible for planning, organizing and directing the employee development functions and activities for West Coast Bancorp...

LifeWorks names Andrews to its board.
December 25, 2006... Byline: DJC Staff LifeWorks has announced the addition of J. Scott Andrews to the board of directors of the nonprofit mental health and addictions organization. Andrews has been President of Melvin Mark Properties in Portland since 1978....

Portland's Fleishman-Hillard Inc. adds to staff.
December 25, 2006... Byline: DJC Staff The Portland office of Fleishman-Hillard Inc. announced today the addition of Jane Taber as senior account executive and Tabitha Rhodes as account executive. Taber joins Fleishman-Hillard from Nautilus Inc., where she was...

Windemere real estate groups announce new hires.
December 25, 2006... Byline: DJC Staff Windermere Real Estate/Allen & Associates has hired Brett Earnest, former general contractor and home inspector, as sales associate. Windermere/Realty Partners Inc. has hired Sue Washinger, most recently with...

DJC Construction Briefs: December 25, 2006.
December 26, 2006... Byline: DJC Staff CONSULTING AND PLANNING KPFF Consulting Engineers has hired Jim Fox, Angela Blakely, Isa Trube, Brittney Oseth, Jinae Lawson, Anne Graves, Monica Langley and Kellie Lopez. Fox, information technology, brings more than 14...

Real Estate Transactions for Dec. 26.
December 26, 2006... Byline: DJC Staff OREGON LEASE // Industrial * Shell Solar Industries LP has leased 44,163 square feet at EastRidge Business Park, 12016 N.E. 95th St., in Vancouver, from EastRidge Business Park LLC. * Har-Bro West Inc. has leased 2,876...

Historic Portland park scenes make site picture-perfect.
December 28, 2006... Byline: Alison Ryan Historic Portland park photos printed across a construction scrim at the future site of South Park Block 5 are providing a little urban nature - at least, until the real thing is planted. Hoffman Construction Co. crews...

Residential development in Sweet Home focuses on green.
December 28, 2006... Byline: DJC Staff Santiam River Club, a new residential development in Sweet Home, is offering the first 66 of a planned 450 homes for sale. The neighborhood, according to developers Phil Ordway, Rick Norton and Troy Cummins, will offer...