New Honors for Union Station

 

One of Portland’s most iconic historic buildings is earning new acclaim for its economic and cultural importance to Black residents in during a 75-year period ending in 1971.

 Union Station with its notable 144-foot-tall clock tower was added to the National Register of Historic Places for its transportation and architectural merit in 1975.  Now an amended nomination lists its major significance for Black history and commerce.

The amending information received glowing appreciation from the Portland Historical Landmarks Commission and will be forwarded what likely will be slam-dunk approval by a state preservation committee and then the National Park Service.

 In short, Union Station proved to be “the primary workplace and employer for the Black community in Portland, Oregon for the entirety of the 1896-1971 period.” Indeed, a 1941 study by the Portland Urban League concluded that 98 percent of working Black Portland residents worked in Union Station or for railroads that served it. 

 “The beginning of this date range (1896-1971) reflects the completion and first use of the station as a passenger terminal, with African Americans employed from the very beginning both at the station as well as on trains. The end of the period is when Black employment at Union Station began to decline precipitously” with the advent of Amtrak rail service.

 Researchers of the new historic material were Kristen Minor, a historic architecture consultant, and Zachary Stocks and Mariah Rocker, affiliated with the non-profit Oregon Black Pioneers organization.

 From Union Station’s earliest years, Blacks worked as Redcaps, Pullman porters, chair-car porters, baggage handlers, dining car cooks and waiters and car cleaners.  Given racial discrimination prevalent for several decades, Blacks were not selected for managerial positions.  Yet their jobs provided suitable income, for the most part, to support families and buy property. 

High Steppers, a band composed of railroad employees, 1923

“The significance of railroad jobs at Union Station to Portland’s African American community was not only economic; it held a cultural bond that shaped where families lived, provided the opportunity to earn a steady income without back-breaking labor, hosted Black union organization meetings, and fostered a sense of belonging that was unmatched by that of any other employer or commercial location in Portland,” the document states. .

“The arrival of the railroad represented a major gain for local Black employment, offering the chance to obtain jobs that were extremely limited otherwise. Railroad companies up and down the west coast sought Black labor for many customer-facing service jobs on trains beginning in the 1870s and 1880s. Railroads specifically sought Black workers for two reasons: first because they were cheaper than hiring white men, and second because African Americans especially from the South were considered proficient in customer service.”

 A. Philip Randolph, a New York labor activist who founded the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters,  visited Portland at least six times between 1927 and 1954 as part of his organizing efforts.   In 1937, the union became the first African American labor union to sign a collective bargaining agreement with a major corporation, the Pullman Car Co.

In endorsing the national nomination, the Portland Historic Landmarks Commission called it “a strong example of how to look at important places through the lends of cultural significance.”

 ---Fred Leeson

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Tortuous History of a Mid-Century Modern Landmark

 

In the early 1950s, Portland’s civic boosters feared that Portland was falling behind major West Coast cities in erecting a center for sports and conventions.  Even in the backwaters, Spokane, Washington, was opening a new 5,700-seat indoor venue.

Portland’s response was a May, 1954 ballot measure calling for the creation of a new city agency, the Exposition-Recreation Commission, to build a sports and convention center for $8 million.

 Alas, the successful measure didn’t specify where it would be built, or even for what sorts of events.  Could it be more than one facility?  What about baseball, football and the Pacific International Livestock Show? How realistic was the $8 million figure?

 Controversies raged over the next six years, including three more ballot appearances, fights between the Portland City Council and its own Exposition-Recreation Commission and insurgence of East Portland voters.  By 1960, the new Veterans Memorial Coliseum finally landed in a location that never had rated as a favorite. (By then the livestock show that had been a major booster of the project found itself squeezed out.) 

 Portland author Michael A. Orr reveals the convoluted, messy origins of the Coliseum in his new book, “Building Portland’s Memorial Coliseum:  A Mid-century Political Firestorm.” Orr’s massively-researched and richly detailed narrative includes novel factors at the time such as plans for new freeways, Lloyd Center and federal urban renewal money that played indirect roles in the Coliseum planning.

  In the early going, the five-member City Council by 3-2 favored a downtown location at or near the Civic Auditorium for the new building.  The Exposition-Recreation Commission, also by a 3-2 split favored the East Vanport/Delta Park site in North Portland that had been devastated by the 1948 flood.  City commissioners worried about another flood and possible geological instability at Vanport.

The city attorney essentially scrubbed the Vanport site by advising the council that they did not have to cede the city-owned Vanport site to the Exposition Commission if they didn’t want to. And they didn't.

In response, East Portlander’s headed by the East Side Commercial Club sponsored a 1956 initiative declaring that the new facility had to be located east of the Willamette River.  The measure passed by a razor-thin 303 votes.  Two more ballot measures later I 1956 affirmed the earlier vote, paving the way for the Coliseum to be built between the east ends of the Broadway and Steel Bridges.

Clearing approximately 13 square blocks for the Coliseum and surface parking meant some 1,400 mostly Black renters had to be evicted.  As Orr writes, “the city destroyed the heart of Portland’s Black community flourishing in the years following the 1948 Vanport flood.” The former tenants received no recompense.

 The landmark mid-century modern Coliseum suffered from deferred maintenance after the new Rose Quarter arena (now called the Moda Center) opened in the 1990s, leading some to believe the Coliseum's future was in jeopardy.  Orr says recent renovations once again have made it a pleasant event venue.  “It doesn’t feel like a dump anymore,” he said.  “Now it looks as if someone cares.”

Sometimes history does swirl around to repeat itself.  The current squabble over public funding for Moda Center renovations could prove over time to be almost as messy as the Coliseum saga the Orr so deftly examines.   

 ------Fred Leeson

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Joe Brown's Carmel Corn: A Tasty Landmark

 

Without question, a property with age and widespread recognition needs no formal designation to be a considered “landmark” in the public mind.  Example: Joe Brown’s Carmel Corn in the Lloyd Center.

 The small confection shop was an original occupant when the big shopping mall opened in Northeast Portland in 1960.  Now, 66 years later, it likely will be the last store to close when the mall shuts its doors to the public for the last time on Aug. 8.

 In the intervening years, literally tens of thousands of carmel corn buyers have visited the shop, which has remained in its original location despite an assortment of mall renovations.  For all the shoppers who remember the glory years of the Lloyd Center, Joe Brown’s proved to be the stable reminder of Lloyd Center history.

  Joe Brown’s history goes back farther than the Loyd Center.  George Brown opened the first carmel corn shop in downtown Portland in 1932, naming it for his son Joe.  The shop added a second location downtown and a third I the Hollywood District before World War II.  Pressures of the war, alas, forced the company to close.

Joe Brown’s sister, Betty Kalk, revived the company when the Lloyd Center opened.  Joe Brown’s Carmel Corn remained in family ownership until 1992.  The popcorn is popped and the carmel coating is prepared and applied all in the small shop.

The current owner is David Ferguson, a commercial real estate consultant and business owner who bought Joe Brown’s in 2019.  He reportedly intends to relocate Joe Brown’s Carmel Corn to a new location, but he has yet to disclose where.  A strong possibility appears to the Grand Central Bowl & Arcade, where he has leased space in the past.

 As closure of the Lloyd Center looms, Joe’s Carmel Corn expects a rush of business.  The carmel corn is wonderfully tasty, and many folks presumably will be interested in a nostalgic taste and a nostalgic last visit to the emptying halls of the big and once-vibrant shopping mall.

While the future of Joe Brown’s Carmel Corn is somewhat uncertain, so too is the future of the Loyd Center site.  It is zoned for high-density urban use, and the owner has shown drawings of high-rise residences and office towers.  Alas, is there a market for towers these days?

 The owner’s choices appear to be 1) tearing down all existing buildings and waiting for new proposals to arise, no matter how long that takes or 2) closing all entrances to buildings and parking lots and hoping to keep out homeless campers while plans unfold. Neither option bodes well for the nearby Irvington and Sullivan’s Gulch neighborhoods.

 ------Fred Leeson

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The Face of the James Beard Public Market

Proposed Frontage on SW Alder Street (BCV Architecture/Colab Architecture)

 

Backers of the proposed James Beard Public Market in downtown Portland have won approval for exterior changes to two buildings that eventually could hold dozens of stalls selling fresh and locally-prepared food.

The proposed market would be housed in two buildings that provide faces on SW 6^th Ave. and Alder Street.  Two floors of the 12-story Selling Building at 610 SE Alder St., a Portland landmark dating to 1910, would have its first two floors returned closer to the building’s original design.  The second building, adjacent at 622 SW Alder, would feature mass timber framing highlighting its three stories.

 An opening date for the proposed market has not yet been specified.  Given the amount of work awaiting in the two buildings, no opening is likely before 2027. The market is expected to offer fresh fruits and vegetables, in addition to locally-prepared foods that could be consumed on-site.

“It’s going to bring a much-needed lift to the downtown,” said Peggy Moretti, a member of the Portland Histgoric Landmarks Commission that unanimously approved changes proposed for the Selling Building.

 The bottom two floors of the Selling Building were remodeled in the 1930s and again in 1948, when red granite was applied to the facades with smaller windows punched through at the second floor.  Those early renovations were made while the store was a women’s clothing outlet called the Lerner Shops.  The most recent tenant in the now-vacant space was a Payless shoe store.

Selling Building today 

The approved changes would restore terra cotta facing and historic window sizes to the second floor, and creat traditional storefront faces on the SW 6^th Ave. and Alder St. frontages.  The Selling Building was an early example of several 20^th century office towers designed by A.E. Doyle, a prominent architect whose designs are included in many downtown blocks.

-----Fred Leeson 

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Celebrating Return of the Elk

Reinstallation of the historic D.P. Thompson Elk and Fountain in April after an absence of nearly six years will be a wonderful moment for all of Portland and for those who believe in the importance of historic preservation.

For more than a century, the statue sitting atop an elegant decorative fountain was the kind of distinctive urban adornment that said yes, Portland is interesting, Portland is scenic and Portland cares about its historic monuments.

 But despite the glee of its return, we must not forget that it nearly didn’t happen.  A long-time Portland preservation activist, architect William J. (Bill) Hawkins III helped lead the fight to have the statue and fountain restored when many city bureaucrats were saying, essentially, “no thanks.”

 For private distribution, Hawkins last October issued a 40-page illustrated history of the fountain and the struggle to bring it back after it suffered damage from public protests in 2020.  In short, city transportation officials hoped to use more of the Main Street right-of-way for traffic lanes, the Water Bureau wanted to quit wasting water in the fountain and the Parks Bureau wanted to shed responsibility for maintenance.

 The city went so far as to file a demolition notice to remove the fountain and statue’s historic landmark designation. The Parks Bureau floated a plan to building a concrete pedestal for placement of the elk, instead of a fountain. 

The outlook for restoration of the fountain was so gloomy, this very blog in March 2022 wrote that restoration of the fountain was doomed. Readership was so widespread, it may have helped stimulate preservation activists.

 The fight for survival was personal for Hawkins, because his great uncle, Lester Leander Hawkins, had been the executor of D.P. Thompson’s estate.  In that role Leander Hawkins negotiated the siting and designs for the statue and fountain that had been given to the city in Thompson’s estate.  The elder Hawkins also had been a member of the city Park Board that established many of early Portland’s most important parks.

 Bill Hawkins started a drive to raise funds to study full restoration.  His effort was joined by the Portland Parks Foundation, eventually raising more than $200,000 to produce detailed design drawings.

 Meanwhile, City Commissioner Dan Ryan was negotiating with City Council members on the former five-member council, eventually gaining unanimous support.  The Portland Water Bureau agreed to install a water recirculating system that will save millions of gallons of fresh water, since the fountain is no longer used for watering horses as it was when it was erected in 1905.

In his history of saving the fountain, Bill Hawkins graciously avoided naming the bureaucrats who had opposed the fountain’s restoration.  He gives the most valuable player award to Commissioner Ryan, who also sits newer, enlarged version of the City Council.

 Between you and me, let’s also thank Bill Hawkins.  Not only for his work on the fountain but for his decades of advocacy trying to encourage preservation of public art and historic sites.  Preservation lets us save the best of the past, and lets us realize that just as greatness preceded us, it can also inspire those who follow us in making Portland an interesting, vibrant city.

 ----Fred Leeson

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New Future for the Airplane Factory?

 Three Portland-area real estate agents who paid $595,00 to buy a historic but badly abused landmark in Northeast Portland will be the latest to try reviving the 110-year-old building.

 The winning bid was revealed in late January but the apparent winner preferred to wait until the deal closed before disclosing ownership.  The registered deed lists a limited liability company with Joseph Tran, Tony Ngo and Henry Liu as company managers.

 They purchased the former Gordon’s Fireplace Shop, a three-story building that has been vacant since 2016 when the shop owner closed the business and sold the building.  Subsequent plans by an earlier buyer to renovate the building for ground-floor retail spaces and two floors of housing above collapsed apparently because of the Covic pandemic and possibly other factors.

 The building is listed on the National Register of Historic Places and sits at the prominent intersection of NE 33^rd Ave. and Broadway.  During its long vacancy, the building has been heavily plastered with graffiti and is viewed by many as an eyesore.  The building still retains a large vertical Gordon’s Fireplace Shop sign at the Broadway corner. 

An earlier owner had planned to remodel the upper stories into residential units and add retail spaces at the ground floor.  But that plan died with the COVID pandemic.  The latest buyers have not disclosed their plans

 Tran and Ngo are affiliated with the Real Estate Performance Group based in Clackamas.  Tran worked for 10 years as a pharmacist before switching to real estate 20 years ago.  Liu is an agent with a different real estate firm.

 The masonry building with heavy timbers used in interior post and beam construction was erected by the Oregon Home Builders firm in 1917, when the nearby neighborhoods of Irvington, Laurelhurst and Alameda were booming with new residential construction. The company president was O.K. Jeffrey.

In 1918, Jeffrey, whose homebuilding firm was suffering financially, converted the building to the O.K. Jeffrey Airplane Factory for the manufacture of wood and canvas wings and pontoons for World War I military airplanes. Its success was based on the region’s easy access to high-quality spruce timber used in airplane manufacturing of the era.  The building often was called the “airplane factory” for decades afterward.

 Oregon Home Builders eventually went bankrupt.  The building was used for many years for woodworking and retail furniture sales.  The upper stories were used for warehousing before Gordon’s Fireplace Shop took over in 1990.

The building appears to be sound structurally, but a new life likely will require earthquake bracing and new plumbing and mechanical systems.  Photographs posted before the auction showed that all interior partitions had been removed, thus reducing the need for internal demolition.

---Fred Leeson 

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Comment on Trump's Ballroom Plan

 

For what it’s worth, all of us who care have a chance to comment in writing about the Trump plan to build a massive ballroom in place of the East Wing of the White House that he tore down.  This topic falls outside the geographical boundaries usually discussed on this blog, but hey, we can still care.

 One can’t be too enthusiastic about the ultimate outcome since the National Capital Planning Commission that is seeking comments before the March 5 deadline has a majority of its members appointed by Trump.  Regardless here’s how to comment:

 https://www.ncpc.gov/participate/guidelines/?fbclid=IwY2xjawQBlNJleHRuA2FlbQIxMABicmlkETJ0UjRqUjM0QU1YT08zbGlac3J0YwZhcHBfaWQQMjIyMDM5MTc4ODIwMDg5MgABHpxNAp577e2MaPd2hZm0QewpuQMa266YbMMFVRpCN9mE9247x

 Click on the heading marked “review”.  Scroll down to “East Wing Modernization” and follow the directions.

 Some of my Facebook friends saw my post about this and have already responded.  The commission’s guidelines allow for public testimony on March 5, but my guess is that waiting for a turn to speak will be daunting.  Meanwhile, litigation is still pending that conceivably could halt the proposed plans. 

The commission earlier put images of the proposed design on its website, but has since taken them down.  To my eye, all the images were intended to minimize the project’s rather monstrous scale in relation to the historic White House. 

 The images, since removed, also showed landscaping for the grounds.  Alas, they spelled it “gorunds” which to me suggests the level of care that has been invested.  Make of it what you will. 

-----Fred Leeson

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A Step Forward for the Historic Zoo Train

 Chances for restoring a popular Portland family entertainment option – the Washington Park Zoo Railway – appear to be growing thanks to support from Portland Mayor Keith

Wilson and the Metro Council.

 Reviving the 3.5-mile recreational train loop through Washington Park may yet for a few years away.  However, momentum is growing to create a public-private partnership that would manage the popular train that dazzled riders from 1960 to 2013 when the park loop was closed.

 The Metro Council on Feb. 3 agreed informally to support a $50,000 contribution for a geotechnical study of the loop that is expected to cost $250,000.  The remaining $200,000 would have to be raised from other sources. 

 “So many of us have memories of the full loop,” said Christine Lewis, a Metro Councilor who served earlier on a task force that studied options for reviving the route.  “It was an iconic attraction for visitors and residents alike.”

 A short ride still exists within the zoo’s boundaries, but it lasts only a few minutes.  The long loop was closed in 2013 when other projects at the zoo altered the route.  The zoo itself has declined to maintain and operate the longer route that used to offer a stop within Washington Park.

The best option for running and managing the train appears to be a non-profit entity that can work out dealings with the zoo and the City of Portland, which owns the long loop as well as the train itself.  Friends of the Washington Park Zoo Railway is the likely candidate. The train presumably could operate profitably if preliminary problems can be resolved.

 Obstacles ahead include track and equipment repairs, and any safety issues uncovered by the geotechnical review.  That study would consider soil conditions, landslide risks and potential water problems and safety of retaining walls.

The Metro Council’s decision was supported by Olivia Clark, deputy Portland City Council president, who also served on the task force that studied revival of the train.  “It’s time to move forward,” she said.  “The public is ready.”

 ----Fred Leeson

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So Much History. But Now What?

 

Gus Solomon U.S. Courthouse

Buildings perched on two downtown Portland square blocks – both drenched with decades of legal history as well as architectural significance – sit empty these days with no new uses in sight.

 Between the two, Portlanders for decades swept into to two courthouses to engage in civil and criminal trials, visit local and federal government offices and attend public hearings.  But with state and federal courts having moved to high high-rise buildings, the Multnomah County Courthouse that dates to 1914 and the Gus J. Solomon U.S. Courthouse, finished in 1933, sit silent with doors and windows boarded over.

A Portland-based housing and real estate development firm headed by NBP Capital bought the old county building in 2018, and announced plans to convert it to office use.  That plan evidently died with the Covid pandemic and the ensuing collapse of the downtown office market.

 SKB, another real estate firm, bought the old U.S. Courthouse late last year, and plans to move its own office into the building.  The firm said it plans to retain much of the elegant marble-laden interior spaces, but what other uses might occur will take time to figure out.

Former Multnomah County Courthouse

Both buildings are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.  The Multnomah County building, facing at 1021 SW 4^th Avenue, was built in two L-shaped phases while an earlier courthouse dating to the late 1860s was gradually demolished.  The courthouse was one of the final buildings designed by the firm of Whidden & Lewis, the city’s most important architectural firm from the late 19^th Century past the turn of the 20^th. 

 The county courthouse suffered numerous makeovers over the decades, but the grand hallways and main staircase remain on floors one through six.  The two upper floors contain a holding jail and small offices.

 The former U.S. Courthouse design is an interesting blend of Neo-Classical elements with Art Deco flourishes, as it was created at a time when architectural tastes were moving away from historical elements to modern forms.  “Stylistic definition of the Courthouse is difficult. It is typical of many General Services Administration properties in its eclecticism,” states the National Register listing.

The design firm was headed by Morris Whitehouse, whose long career in Portland included work for high-end clients including the University Club, the Waverly Country Club and the Eastmoreland Golf Clubhouse.  

The building’s name was changed to the Gus J. Solomon U.S. Courthouse in honor of the judge who spent 37 years on the bench.  Known as a stickler for accuracy and rough treatment for ill-prepared lawyers, Solomon also had a sense of humor.  Watching a case in his court, your correspondent once heard him explain why he often ruled quickly from the bench. “I do what I think God would do, and when I get reversed by the Court of Appeals, I know where they are coming from.”

 Both these buildings deserve brighter futures, as does the neighborhood they share in Downtown Portland.  Great minds need to get to work to find answers.

----Fred Leeson

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A New Chapter at Montgomery Park

 

There was, quite simply, nothing like it in Portland when Montgomery Ward & Co. opened its big new building NW 27^th Avenue in 1920.  By square footage, the nine-story edifice – with a 10^th added on a bay on the western façade, was the largest edifice by square footage in Oregon.  It also featured three railway spurs heading into the ground floor for delivering merchandise for retail and mail order sales.

While many commercial buildings of the era still featured historical architectural details of some sort, Montgomery Ward’s bold reinforced concrete construction celebrated its unadorned, muscular strength. As the largest structure in Portland and, supposedly, anywhere west of the Rocky Mountains, it was “the finest extant example of period reinforced concrete industrial architecture in the city,” according to a historic review.

 Now a new owner hopes to revitalize the mostly-vacant behemoth that looms on an 8.59-acre site that was once part of the 1905 Lewis & Clark Centennial Exposition. Menashe Properties paid $33 million for the building in 2024 – virtually a fire-sale price in a commercial real estate market reeling from work-at-home popularity inspired by the COVID-19 pandemic.

 

Entering the atrium from the west

“Our goal is pretty straightforward: to preserve the character of the building while continuing to invest in improvements that support a vibrant mix of tenants and activity,” said Lauren Tangvald Menashe’s property manager.  “Montgomery Park has such an important place in the city’s history, and we definitely want to keep that spirit alive. A lot of our recent work has been focused on freshening things up. There have been upgrades to some of the common areas, general maintenance, and adding new tenant amenities.”

The goal is to fill six stories with offices, and offer space for retail, medical and other uses on the lower floors.

The building’s name was changed to Montgomery Park in 1984, when a company headed by Bill and Sam Naito purchased it from Montgomery Ward.  Bill Naito, never inclined to waste money, was proud that he only had to change two letters on the giant rooftop sign. The Naitos also did research that added the building to the National Register of Historic Places.

 In its heyday, Montgomery Ward was the nation’s first and one of its largest mail order retailers.  The company used the first three floors for retail sales until 1976, and closed warehouse operations in 1982.  A north-side wing was added to the building in 1936, giving it the u-shaped floor plate it retains today.  A glass covered atrium greets visitors from the western side.

New life at Montgomery Park might not be the only change in the neighborhood.  The Portland City Council last December passed a Montgomery Park Area Plan intending to stimulate more housing, transit and mixed business opportunities in the vicinity.  Should much of plan come to pass, the Menashe Properties investment will look all the better.

------Fred Leeson

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Good News at Central Lutheran: The Deal is Done

 

What looked like potential good news last March has indeed come to pass:  The Portland Youth Philharmonic Orchestra has completed its purchase of the historic Central Lutheran Church in Northeast Portland’s Irvington neighborhood.

 The sale is great news a couple ways.  It marks the first permanent home for the youth orchestra that traces its roots to 1924 in the same Northeast Portland neighborhood.  The purchase likely means a caring, long-term owner of the church, designed in a Northwest Modern style by architect Pietro Belluschi in 1950.

 “We are honored to become stewards of this incredible piece of Oregon’s architectural history,” the PYP Executive Director Noreen Murdock said in a statement. “This is a wonderful opportunity to develop an excellent space for music education and performance while preserving a beautiful and important existing structure.”

 The purchase price has been reported as $1.5 million, comparable to the vale of many larger, older homes in the historic neighborhood that is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

 The non-profit music organization will use the building to house its own offices, provide teaching, rehearsal and instrument storage space and for public performances.  Some internal changes are expected to be made in coming months, but the building’s external envelope is protected by its historic architectural designations.

 Use of the building by the orchestra’s 300 young members is not expected to occur until modifications are finished late in 2026.

Belluschi, the building’s architect, earned a national reputation as a leading Modernist architect whose notable credits ranged from office towers to churches and houses.  One of his earliest “modern” designs was the Portland Art Museum in 1930.  His work is recognized for its use of modern building materials and sleek surfaces.  In his Pacific Northwest residences and churches, Belluschi favored “natural” materials including wood and bricks.  Some of his buildings added Japanese stylistic touches, such as the canopy over the entrance at Central Lutheran.

 Central Lutheran closed the building during the Covid epidemic and then put it up for sale.  In the preservation community, finding a suitable new purpose for a historic building that has outlived its original use – and an owner that will preserve its architectural integrity – is the best possible result. Portland is blessed by the outcome at Central Lutheran.

 ------Fred Leeson

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