Daily Journal of Commerce, Portland articles from September 2005

Daily Journal of Commerce, Portland archives from September 2005

Rookie with Portland office of Collier's real estate firm redefines multi-family brokerage.
September 1, 2005... Byline: Kennedy Smith Gary Winkler, a relatively new face at real estate firm Colliers International, is on a mission to redefine the traditional methods of selling properties. And looking at his sales record over the last year, one could...

City of Gresham launches online permit tracking system.
September 1, 2005... Byline: DJC Staff The city of Gresham has gone live with its new permit application and tracking system. The Aug. 22 unveiling "was a great day," said Eric Schmidt, deputy director and building official for the city's Community and...

Two trade organizations claim union bias on Oregon's task force studying prevailing wage rate.
September 2, 2005... Byline: Cody McCullough Members of two area trade organizations said this week that a task force commissioned to address Oregon's prevailing wage rate law is "stacked" and has an "overwhelming union bias." Created by Oregon Labor...

Portland chapter of Engineers Without Borders plans hurricane response.
September 2, 2005... Byline: Justin Stranzl The Portland chapter of Engineers Without Borders-USA expects to get involved in Hurricane Katrina relief efforts but is in no position to do so at this time, the chapter's president said Wednesday. "I definitely...

Washington state proposes hike to workers' comp rates.
September 2, 2005... Byline: DJC Staff Washington state's Department of Labor and Industries this week proposed a 3.8 percent boost in 2006 workers' compensation rates that would cost employers on average an additional $57 per worker. The proposed increase...

Better infill design goal of proposed changes by Portland Planning Bureau.
September 6, 2005... Byline: Alison Ryan Designing infill housing projects that meet aesthetic and regulatory approval may get easier in 2006 if zoning code changes proposed as part of the Portland Planning Bureau's Infill Design Project go through. "We...

Business owner from Longview, Washington, honored by SBA, says firm deserves all the credit.
September 6, 2005... Byline: Cody McCullough Joseph D. Lane, president of Pacific Tech Construction of Longview, Wash., was surprised and honored when he learned late last month that he was named the U.S. Small Business Administration's Minority Small Business...

Oregon's governor signs bills to support minority-, women-owned businesses.
September 6, 2005... Byline: DJC Staff Minority and female small business owners last week joined Gov. Ted Kulongoski for a roundtable discussion on strengthening and expanding opportunities for small businesses in Oregon, a celebration of the signing of three...

Interview with Bruce Warner, new executive director of Portland Development Comm.
September 7, 2005... Byline: Kennedy Smith In many ways, Bruce Warner, the new executive director of the Portland Development Commission, leapt straight into the line of fire. He resigned as head of the Oregon Department of Transportation to take on the role...

Entry redesign at Black Butte faces opposition.
September 8, 2005... Byline: Alison Ryan A proposal to redesign the entry area at Black Butte Ranch, a 1,800-acre resort community west of Sisters, is under fire from a group of ranch homeowners who say the proposed changes would transform the existing entry...

No debate over need for improvements t Black Butte Ranch.
September 8, 2005... Byline: Alison Ryan The need for improvement to the Black Butte Ranch's entry scheme is something on which both sides of the redesign debate agree. Landscape architect Doug Macy, of the Portland firm Walker Macy, completed a master...

Portland committee recommends Ashforth Pacific for HQ Hotel.
September 8, 2005... Byline: Kennedy Smith The Headquarters Hotel evaluation committee will recommend to the Portland Development Commission that Ashforth Pacific/Garfield Traub develop the Headquarters Hotel near the Oregon Convention Center. Ashforth...

Three Oregon law schools all make room for Hurricane Katrina-stricken students.
September 9, 2005... Byline: Kennedy Smith The sheer amount of devastation that has occurred as a result of Hurricane Katrina - and subsequent charges that efforts to help the victims were poorly planned - have made it difficult to see much about the disaster...

Former Portland market Irvington Corner now fully leased.
September 9, 2005... Byline: DJC Staff Irvington Corner, the 6,800-square-foot building at the corner of Northeast 15th Avenue and Brazee Street in Portland, is now 100 percent leased, reported Venerable Properties LLC. The building's tenants include Mio...

Former Nike counsel joins Portland office of Garvey Schubert Barer.
September 9, 2005... Byline: DJC Staff Paul J. Kelly Jr., the former global director of public affairs for Nike Inc., has joined the Portland law office of Garvey Schubert Barer. Kelly will focus his practice on international law, government relations,...

Portland Business Alliance survey: Small business members rely on networking.
September 12, 2005... Byline: Kennedy Smith Members of the Portland Business Alliance place a high priority on opportunities for networking, especially among small businesses, according to the organization's 2005 membership survey. Respondents said they...

In-house design studio targets rising Clark County home prices.
September 12, 2005... Byline: Alison Ryan A few paint chips and carpet swatches just aren't cutting it as design display options anymore for one Vancouver homebuilder, especially as the median sale price for new single family homes in Clark County begins to...

Oregon's governor and legislative leaders launch selection process for land-use task force.
September 12, 2005... Byline: Cody McCullough Gov. Ted Kulongoski, Senate President Peter Courtney and House Speaker Karen Minnis have launched the selection process for a state task force on land-use planning that was created by Senate Bill 82 during the 2005...

Study by Oregon State University researchers says obesity, sprawl relationship a two-way street.
September 12, 2005... Byline: DJC Staff A new study by Oregon State University researchers suggests the relationship between obesity and sprawl may be due to personal preferences when choosing a home location and not any direct impacts of the suburban...

Bechtel, CH2M Hill among firms proposing OR Dept. of Transportation partnerships.
September 12, 2005... Byline: Cody McCullough In response to its first request for proposals, the state Department of Transportation's Oregon Innovative Partnerships Program has received four proposals for three unfunded major highway efforts: the...

Linnton residents fight to stick with the plan.
September 13, 2005... Byline: Kennedy Smith Peppered throughout the historic district of Linnton, a small hamlet nestled squarely in the midst of Portland's Northwest Industrial area, are signs that boldly warn residents that their neighborhood could be in...

North Plains native and architecture student nets $50K grant.
September 13, 2005... Byline: DJC Staff An aspiring architect from North Plains got a substantial financial push along the path toward studying biomimicry. Brian Brush, a graduate student at Montana State University's School of Architecture, was one of 76...

OR. Dept. of Environmental Quality to review PGE's heating of lower Clackamas River.
September 13, 2005... Byline: DJC Staff The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality will hold a public meeting Sept. 29 to share information on Portland General Electric's Clackamas hydroelectric project, which is raising temperatures on the lower Clackamas...

Port of Tacoma terminal switches to ULSD fuel.
September 13, 2005... Byline: DJC Staff Months after the Port of Tacoma Commission directed that all diesel equipment at Port-operated facilities use ultra-low sulfur diesel fuel, all diesel-powered equipment at the Port's Pierce County Terminal have been...

Eyeing Development: Sacramento housing experts tour Portland.
September 14, 2005... Byline: Kennedy Smith A busload of Sacramento natives emerged Tuesday in Portland to tour the city and find out just what it takes to turn their state's quiet capital into a more vibrant metropolis. Largely comprising Sacramento-based...

Eyeing Development: Designers look at bringing Portland's solutions into Sacramento.
September 14, 2005... Byline: Alison Ryan Sacramento is a town better known for Arnold than for architecture. But it's what's not there - and what's hoped will be there sooner rather than later - that leaves the capital city's canvas ready for architectural...

Third phase of Vancouver's Cascadia Village opens.
September 14, 2005... Byline: DJC Staff The Mews, a new, 24-unit affordable-housing project of three, 3-story wood-framed buildings and the third phase of Cascadia Village in Vancouver, opened last month. The project features an exterior courtyard and...

Portland home tour highlight trends in sustainable building.
September 15, 2005... Byline: Alison Ryan Dave Heslam's an old pro when it comes to putting construction projects on the Build It Green! Home Tour: A project by his Coho Construction Services Inc. has been part of the route since the tour kicked off four years...

Kalama-based steel sheet manufacturer adds zinc phosphate capability to Washington facility.
September 15, 2005... Byline: DJC Staff Kalama-based steel sheet manufacturer Steelscape Inc. is adding zinc phosphate capability to its Washington facility. The metallic-coated and painted steel sheet maker recently ceased operations at its Richmond,...

Columbian newspaper publisher announces plan to build $30M office in Vancouver.
September 15, 2005... Byline: Kennedy Smith The publisher of Vancouver's Columbian newspaper, Scott Campbell, has announced plans to build a $30 million, six-story office building just south of Esther Short Park in downtown Vancouver. Construction of the...

Montana college town builders pledge to build Energy Star-certified properties.
September 15, 2005... Byline: DJC Staff Energy costs in Montana's largest college town may not increase as rapidly as its housing market, as 13 home builders pledged this month to build Energy Star-certified properties in Missoula, a city that's home at present...

Auditor tells Portland Development Commission to streamline internal processes.
September 16, 2005... Byline: Kennedy Smith Back in June, when the Portland Development Commission found itself under the spotlight of public distrust, the City Council started raising questions about some of the PDC's practices - particularly, "Are they...

Portland Development Commission moves ahead on purchase of Cook Street property.
September 16, 2005... Byline: Kennedy Smith At the Portland Development Commission's Wednesday evening board meeting, first on the agenda and unanimously approved without discussion was Resolution No. 1, a request to purchase the property located at 427 N.E....

July Oregon state bar exam sees 70 percent success rate.
September 16, 2005... Byline: Kennedy Smith Seventy percent of the 387 individuals who took the July Oregon bar examination passed, a major improvement over a relatively poor February when an unusually low 58 percent of examinees avoided failure. The 70...

Holy Names Sisters Foundation readies future home of heritage center.
September 16, 2005... Byline: DJC Staff The Holy Names Sisters Foundation won't break ground on their planned heritage center building Sunday, but they'll bless it. The sisters, founders of St. Mary's Academy and Marylhurst University in Portland and nearly...

Northeast Portland's Cully neighborhood gains new community garden.
September 19, 2005... Byline: Alison Ryan It took five years of collaboration, wrangling, work and compromise, but the efforts put in by an enormous volunteer design and construction team came to fruition last week as a former overflow parking lot officially...

Prospects for Portland's Hoyt Street project grow as tall tower gains approval.
September 19, 2005... Byline: Alison Ryan Hoyt Street Properties is now one step closer to bringing unprecedented height to the Pearl District. BOORA Architects' design for the Metropolitan, a mixed-use tower that will be 225 feet at its tallest point, won...

Oregon OSHA plans Bend workshops, Medford conference.
September 19, 2005... Byline: DJC Staff Oregon OSHA will set up shop in Bend next month for four workshops and then head to Medford for a two-day conference on workplace safety. The Occupational Safety and Health Division of the Department of Consumer and...

Poll suggests Portland accounting firms could expand in 4th quarter.
September 19, 2005... Byline: Kennedy Smith The hiring of full-time accounting and finance professionals could increase slightly in the fourth quarter in metropolitan Portland and much of the United States, according to the Robert Half Financial Hiring Index....

Funding in store for Beaverton's storefronts.
September 20, 2005... Byline: Kennedy Smith Connie Terwilliger has lived in Beaverton for 35 years and owned her family law practice on Southwest Second Street since 1987. In that time, she's seen Beaverton go from a city beyond the boundaries of the Portland...

Survey: Employees moving up as unemployment rate drops.
September 20, 2005... Byline: Kennedy Smith As the national unemployment rate steadily declines, more Americans are moving up in the world, according to the second-quarter 2005 Lee Hecht Harrison Career Mobility Index. The index, based on a nationwide...

OR Department of Transportation honored for environmental excellence.
September 20, 2005... Byline: DJC Staff Environmentally friendly and sustainable efforts earned the Oregon Department of Transportation high marks from an association of transportation officials, who on Sunday gave the department one of three awards lauding...

American Institute of Architects: Home office popularity spikes with gas prices.
September 20, 2005... Byline: DJC Staff Rising gas prices aren't just leading drivers to leave their cars in garages - they're also leading more homeowners to request offices as part of their home designs, according to a survey by the American Institute of...

Designers make LEED priority on $5B Las Vegas complex.
September 20, 2005... Byline: DJC Staff A renowned team of architects that Las Vegas officials announced the commissioning of last week is expected to make green building practices a hallmark of the $5 billion Project CityCenter, an 18-million-square-foot...

Katrina brings rise in construction materials costs.
September 21, 2005... Byline: Alison Ryan Hurricane Katrina is expected to nudge up construction material costs in 2006, but current price jumps for certain materials are either already starting to level or are still on the horizon for local builders in 2005 -...

Bonneville Lock and Dam, trail at top of Corps' list for clean-up day.
September 21, 2005... Byline: DJC Staff The Portland office of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers is asking Oregon and Southwest Washington residents to get their hands dirty Saturday while making their homes clean. For the 12th straight year, the Corps will...

Twenty years later, Portland Building may get a touch-up.
September 21, 2005... Byline: DJC Staff A 15,000-square-foot green roof planned for the top of Michael Graves' iconic Portland Building probably won't reshape the design community's impressions of the postmodern structure. That's fine, the designer of the...

Coquille-based Roseburg Forest Products looks sharp to OSHA.
September 21, 2005... Byline: DJC Staff Roseburg Forest Products' plywood plant in Coquille is the latest graduate of Oregon OSHA's SHARP campaign, scoring top honors for a three-year effort that's seen injury-related absences drop by 75 percent. The...

Portland area electrical workers get boost from talking moose at B.U.L.L. Session.
September 21, 2005... Byline: DJC Staff Electrical workers and Portland-area business leaders got a hand from none other than America's best-known talking moose at an annual fundraiser for children's charities. Bullwinkle, the creation of cartoonist Jay...

Architecture Foundation of Oregon seeks to raise public awareness of Portland's architecture.
September 22, 2005... Byline: Alison Ryan Portland's fine architecture just got a new job. There'll be no more standing idly by for the likes of Jackson Tower, the Mark O. Hatfield Courthouse and the Pythian Building - soon, these buildings and others will...

Portland-based Crandall Arambula awarded planning contracts in New Mexico, Washington.
September 22, 2005... Byline: DJC Staff Portland planning outfit Crandall Arambula PC will be headed outside the Rose City for two upcoming projects, as the firm was recently awarded contracts to complete a downtown visioning plan for Santa Fe, N.M., and a...

Home prices continue to rise in Clark County.
September 22, 2005... Byline: DJC Staff The Clark County residential real estate market set records in August, as new sales activity jumped more than 7 percent from July and more than 30 percent from August 2004, according to the latest report from Windermere...

City officials look to put Portland on road to transportation safety.
September 22, 2005... Byline: DJC Staff City officials, industry representatives and community leaders will gather Oct. 3 to drive discussion of the state of transportation in Portland. At a one-day Transportation Safety Summit, Mayor Tom Potter, City...

Portland's Home Improvement and Remodeling Show features environmentally friendly methods.
September 23, 2005... Byline: Alison Ryan Let the glossy home improvement catalogs gather dust - a debut exhibit at this weekend's Home Improvement and Remodeling Show demonstrates just how good a home can look when it uses all reclaimed materials. ...

Ridgefield, Wash., school kids team with Vancouver-based Nutter Corp. for hurricane relief.
September 23, 2005... Byline: DJC Staff Moved by the plight of victims of Hurricane Katrina, children at South Ridge Elementary School in Ridgefield, Wash., have raised $1,500 to donate to the American Red Cross, a total that will be matched by the...

Portland City Council wants Planning Bureau to study Centennial Mill site.
September 26, 2005... Byline: Kennedy Smith It seems that plans for Centennial Mill, the rundown former flour plant along the west bank of the Willamette River, have been delegated to the back burner since 2004, when Tom Potter, then running for mayor,...

Oregon Maritime Museum has big plans for Big Pipe conduit.
September 26, 2005... Byline: Kennedy Smith Dick Montgomery, president of the Oregon Maritime Museum, which is currently housed in an old steam boat along Tom McCall Waterfront Park, has been more than patient with the city as it tries to figure out what to do...

Efficient manufactured homes get incentive opportunities from Energy Trust of Oregon.
September 26, 2005... Byline: DJC Staff Buyers of energy-efficient new manufactured homes now have fiscal opportunities beyond whatever they may save on electric bills. Efficiency advocate the Energy Trust of Oregon Inc. has made available a new $450...

City of Portland selects first two designs for its 'Living Smart' competition.
September 26, 2005... Byline: Alison Ryan The city has selected two designs to become the first permit-ready plans to emerge from its "skinny house" design competition, but it'll still be a while before Portlanders are able to build them. Portland...

Portland-based Bullivant Houser Bailey PC merges with Sacramento boutique firm.
September 26, 2005... Byline: DJC Staff Portland-based law firm Bullivant Houser Bailey PC and the Sacramento, Calif. outfit Bartel Eng & Schroder are merging, effective Oct. 1. The merger should allow Bullivant, which operates nationally, to enhance its...

OR Dept. of Transportation looks to boost minority contracting opportunities.
September 26, 2005... Byline: DJC Staff Eyeing a more inclusive workforce, the Oregon Department of Transportation will gather today at the offices of the Oregon Association of Minority Entrepreneurs to plot ways to bring more minorities and women into the...

Driving toward change: Ethanol stations could dot Oregon's highways.
September 27, 2005... Byline: Alison Ryan The Midwest has been the center of ethanol-based fuel production and use, but within five years, Oregon's own ethanol-based fuel industry could take off. Known as E-85, ethanol-based fuel is a blend of 85 percent...

State of Washington settles with firm cited for H-2A violations.
September 27, 2005... Byline: DJC Staff The Washington state Department of Labor and Industries and Employment Security Department have jointly settled suits with a California-based labor contractor that the departments alleged had violated various workers'...

Portland office of Lease Crutcher Lewis to break ground on green project.
September 27, 2005... Byline: DJC Staff The Portland office of Lease Crutcher Lewis will break ground Thursday on an $11 million residence hall that's designed to become the first LEED-certified building on Pacific University's Forest Grove campus. The...

How Portland's quest for Wi-Fi access for all could hurt local ISPs.
September 28, 2005... Byline: Kennedy Smith In its quest to rival Seattle as the United States' most unwired city, Portland has rallied behind the Portland Development Commission's most ambitious attempt to bring Wi-Fi access to all Portlanders: the Unwire...

Portland Bureau of Environmental Services launches stormwater exhibit focused on solutions.
September 28, 2005... Byline: Alison Ryan Portland's wettest feature will forego the gutter for gallery walls next week with the launch of an exhibit focused on stormwater solutions. "Landscapes for Rain: The Art of Stormwater," a traveling exhibit...

LEED accreditation workshop, green showcase scheduled in Bend, Oregon.
September 28, 2005... Byline: DJC Staff LEED accreditation preparation and a green building showcase will come together next week at a daylong, two-part event from the Building Green Council of Central Oregon. On Oct.6, the council will host a workshop...

Visitors find Portland's older buildings integrate sustainability and preservation.
September 29, 2005... Byline: Alison Ryan New attitudes toward old buildings were in the spotlight Wednesday as a crowd that included architects, preservationists, archaeologists, students and planners hit the sidewalk to learn about Portland's green historic...

Renovation challenges differ in large cities and small towns in Oregon.
September 29, 2005... Byline: Kennedy Smith Differences between historic preservation efforts in large cities and small towns in Oregon came to light at a Wednesday workshop led by the Historic Preservation Development Council as part of the weeklong National...

Riverscape Townhomes readies second phase along Willamette River in Portland.
September 29, 2005... Byline: Kennedy Smith In celebration of the launch of its second phase of construction, Riverscape Townhomes will hold a gala event Oct. 6 as part of First Thursday festivities at its new showroom at the corner of Northwest 11th Avenue and...

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers restarts work on $3.7M habitat restoration on lower Columbia River.
September 29, 2005... Byline: DJC Staff Government agencies and conservation groups have restarted work on 94 acres of tidal marsh and channels and 115 acres of forest on the lower Columbia River's Crims Island, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers said Wednesday....

Interview with Portland City Council member Sam Adams.
September 30, 2005... Byline: Kennedy Smith Striding into his office at City Hall, hand extended and ready to shake, Sam Adams immediately apologizes for his tardiness: "The transportation commissioner gets stuck in gridlock and is late to his own interview;...

Work to start on British Columbia-styled Pearl District building in Portland.
September 30, 2005... Byline: DJC Staff Work will begin next week on a Pearl District project intended to give the trendy Portland neighborhood a taste of British Columbia. Hoffman Construction Co. plans to break ground on Waterfront Pearl, a Vancouver...

Central Oregon Green and Solar Homes Tour to feature 25 solar and sustainable homes.
September 30, 2005... Byline: Alison Ryan The weekend forecast for central Oregon is sunshine - even if the weather itself doesn't cooperate. The Central Oregon Green and Solar Homes Tour, now in its sixth year, will provide a peek into 25 solar and sustainable...