The South Waterfront is a high-rise district under construction on former

brownfield Brownfield is previously-developed land that has been abandoned or underused, and which may carry pollution, or a risk of pollution, from industrial use. The specific definition of brownfield land varies and is decided by policy makers and l ...

industrial land in the South Portland neighborhood south of downtown

Portland, Oregon Portland ( ) is the List of cities in Oregon, most populous city in the U.S. state of Oregon, located in the Pacific Northwest region. Situated close to northwest Oregon at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, ...

, U.S. It is one of the largest

urban redevelopment Urban renewal (sometimes called urban regeneration in the United Kingdom and urban redevelopment in the United States) is a program of land redevelopment often used to address real or perceived urban decay. Urban renewal involves the clearing ...

projects in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. It is connected to

downtown Portland Downtown Portland is the central business district of Portland, Oregon, United States. It is on the west bank of the Willamette River in the northeastern corner of the southwest section of the city and where most of the city's high-rise buildi ...

by the

Portland Streetcar The Portland Streetcar is a streetcar system in Portland, Oregon, that opened in 2001 and serves areas surrounding downtown Portland. The NS Line runs from Northwest Portland to the South Waterfront via Downtown and the Pearl District. Th ...

and MAX Orange Line (at South Waterfront/SW Moody Station), and to the

Oregon Health & Science University Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) is a public university, public research university, research university focusing primarily on health sciences with a main campus, including two hospitals, in Portland, Oregon. The institution was founded ...

(OHSU) main campus atop Marquam Hill by the

Portland Aerial Tram The Portland Aerial Tram or OHSU Tram is an aerial tramway in Portland, Oregon, that connects the city's South Waterfront district and the main Oregon Health & Science University (OHSU) campus, located in the Marquam Hill neighborhood. It is on ...

, as well as roads to

Interstate 5 Interstate 5 (I-5) is the main north–south Interstate Highway System, Interstate Highway on the West Coast of the United States, running largely parallel to the Pacific coast of the contiguous U.S. from Mexico to Canada. It travels thro ...

and Oregon Route 43.

Description and history

The South Waterfront is part of the

Portland Development Commission Prosper Portland, formerly the Portland Development Commission (PDC), is the community development corporation created by the city of Portland, Oregon. It promotes development, housing projects and economic development within the city's eleven ur ...

's North Macadam Urban Renewal District. The first phase of the South Waterfront is the $1.9 billion "River Blocks" development. Construction began in early 2004. The full build-out of the district envisions many residential (primarily condominiums) and medical research towers ranging in height from 6 stories to 35+ stories. As of August 2010, nine towers have been completed in the district: the 16-story OHSU Center for Health & Healing, the twin condominium towers known as the Meriwether, at 21 and 24 stories, the 31-story John Ross Tower condominium, the 22-story Atwater Place condominium tower, the 31-story apartments The Ardea, the 22-story Riva on the Park, the 30-story Mirabella Portland, the Matisse, and Gray's Landing. The Mirabella is the district's first senior living community. A linear park called South Waterfront Greenway, running along the west bank of the

Willamette River The Willamette River ( ) is a major tributary of the Columbia River, accounting for 12 to 15 percent of the Columbia's flow. The Willamette's main stem is long, lying entirely in northwestern Oregon in the United States. Flowing northward ...

, is partially completed. The district currently has its own park between the Riva on the Park and OHSU. The Gibbs Street Pedestrian Bridge, which opened in July 2012, connects the South Waterfront District with Lair Hill over I-5. The Tilikum Crossing, Bridge of the People, a new

TriMet The Tri-County Metropolitan Transportation District of Oregon (TriMet) is a Transit district, transit agency that serves most of the Oregon part of the Portland metropolitan area. Created in 1969 by the Oregon Legislative Assembly, Oregon legi ...

bridge for the MAX Orange Line that carries only

pedestrian A pedestrian is a person traveling on foot, by wheelchair or with other mobility aids. Streets and roads often have a designated footpath for pedestrian traffic, called the '' sidewalk'' in North American English, the ''pavement'' in British En ...

s, bicyclists and public transit vehicles between the South Waterfront and Hosford-Abernethy, opened on September 12, 2015. In addition to residences, the district contains restaurants, grocery, retail, and service businesses, with more in the planning stages. Construction of three new OHSU buildings in the district is scheduled to begin in 2016, and the university has earmarked $500 million for the work, which is expected to take about two years. Together with the existing OHSU Center for Health & Healing, the new facilities will be part of the Knight Cancer Institute, which also has facilities outside the South Waterfront. The largest of the buildings will be for patient medical care, another will be for research and administration, and the third will provide housing for patients and their families.

References

External links

*
PDC: North Macadam Urban Renewal District
- ''

Willamette Week ''Willamette Week'' (''WW'') is an alternative weekly newspaper and a website published in Portland, Oregon, United States, since 1974. It features reports on local news, politics, sports, business, and culture. History Early history '' ...

'', July 30, 2003. {{South Portland, Portland, Oregon Neighborhoods in Portland, Oregon Redeveloped ports and waterfronts in the United States South Portland, Portland, Oregon

Description and history

See also

References

External links