A timeless monument to greed and stupidity
It's been close to two years since we posted about this monstrosity -- a mixed-use bunker, on Woodstock Boulevard near I-205, that nobody wanted. It was quite the eyesore. And an alert reader down that way wrote us on Sunday to remind us that it's still there, as bad as it ever was:
The reader noted:
I just took these pictures today. The only difference from 2009 is that the plastic wrap is tattered, and they took down the sign proudly announcing it is a PDC [Portland Development Commission] project.... If you want to talk about ruining a neighborhood and blight, look no further. The sidewalk has been closed and the place enclosed in chain link fence. Makes you want to invest and settle right in as a neighbor -- so much for all that multi-use housing demand along the light rail line. I wonder how much money down the rat hole, between transit-oriented development and PDC, has put together this mess.
The infill nobody wants. We should start running tour buses down there for progressive Portlandians to look at it.
| Posted at 8:49 AM | Permalink |
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Comments (22)
When the million or so promised climate change refugees finally arrive, at least they'll have abandoned apartment and condo buildings to take refuge and squat in. Think of these structures as shelters for the future.
Posted by Mr. Grumpy | June 19, 2012 9:41 AM
Odds that the proper permits have been filed to keep that sidewalk closed?
Posted by Dave J. | June 19, 2012 9:47 AM
Be a shame if someone reported it to the city as a hazardous site...
Posted by tankfixer | June 19, 2012 9:47 AM
Same as the one on NE 15th and Alberta
Posted by Leaving soon | June 19, 2012 9:55 AM
Christo's art projects are often misunderstood. This is titled 'Wrapped Boondoggle,' a playful statement that puts a wrapper on a building from the Loaf of Bread school of architecture. A permanent gift to the city.
Posted by Cary | June 19, 2012 10:16 AM
The street trees are lovely though, don't you think?
BTW - I love the new banner GIF; be interested to see the SoWa edition.
Posted by Max | June 19, 2012 10:41 AM
...and it's within sniffing distance of the proposed composting site.
Posted by R1Ray | June 19, 2012 10:51 AM
MAX has been so good for Lents!
The revitalizing has been tremendous.
Milwaukie and Oak Grove are next.
Posted by Lying Pig | June 19, 2012 10:59 AM
At least we got a good band name out of it:
The Mixed-Used Bunkers.
Posted by Bill McDonald | June 19, 2012 10:59 AM
Christo's art projects are often misunderstood. This is titled 'Wrapped Boondoggle,' a playful statement that puts a wrapper on a building from the Loaf of Bread school of architecture. A permanent gift to the city.
He had to find a new location after the City of Beaverton took down his long-running installation on The Round.
Posted by Soon-to-be-Dr. Alex | June 19, 2012 11:18 AM
Speaking of white elephant eyesores, the abominable ICE building (read: jail) at the south end of South Waterfront remains untended and undeveloped (and unnecessary), after all the smoke and noise created by a few greedy developers. Sick.
Posted by Rolf | June 19, 2012 11:28 AM
That picture and the observer's E mail text ought to be mandatory reading for all of the folks playing games as citizen representatives on the Barbur Boulevard Plan;for Morgan Tracy, the PBOT staff person heading up the railroading job, and for SWNI head Marianne Fitzgerald, who is in lovge with the Toonerville Trolley.
Posted by Nonny Mouse | June 19, 2012 11:31 AM
I've been inside that building and climbed around on the scaffolding behind the shrinkwrap on several occasions (when it was bank-owned). It is a real mess from water intrusion and even if it were fixed up it would still be a nightmare. The best solution would be to tear it down and leave the land vacant.
Posted by reader | June 19, 2012 11:33 AM
This is about 2 miles from my house and I drive past it almost daily. It makes the New Copper Penny (across the street) feel more classy, that's for sure.
I can't wait until Recology puts in the new stinky compost site so I can have eyesores AND nosesores! Win Win Win!
Posted by TacoDave | June 19, 2012 12:09 PM
I guess you just don't get that much for $165K (foreclosure sale in 2010) these days.
Posted by Steve | June 19, 2012 1:38 PM
The infill nobody wants. We should start running tour buses down there for progressive Portlandians to look at it.
Great Idea. Let them look at the "reality" of plans rather than looking at the artistic illustrations used to sell the plans. I read somewhere where this is a great technique to have all these illustration boards used at meetings, much more convincing and distracting to have citizens view nice drawings. Don't think they show photos like these at the meetings!
Posted by clinamen | June 19, 2012 1:58 PM
"The infill nobody wants. We should start running tour buses down there for progressive Portlandians to look at it."
Hey, maybe Randy will lend the Bull Run tour bus!
Posted by Cary | June 19, 2012 2:15 PM
Makes all those vacant, developable lots of land next to the MAX line look like progress.
You know, like that vacant lot between Rose Quarter and Convention Center, or the empty parking lots surrounding 7th Avenue...the empty land near Gresham City Hall/Civic Drive...Beaverton TC...the Round...Millikan way...Beaverton Creek (heck, almost ALL of the Westside MAX stops!).
Posted by Erik H. | June 19, 2012 2:22 PM
I can vouch for the fact that the blue tape is an excellent product, but this is ridiculous.
Posted by Mark Ellis | June 19, 2012 8:16 PM
We should start running tour buses down there for progressive Portlandians to look at it.
Sorry, the funds for such a bus have been transferred to toy train operations by TriMet. Now if there was a streetcar that went past it, then we could talk...
Posted by MachineShedFred | June 20, 2012 4:36 AM
That's what Vancouver's "Waterfront Project" is going to look like in a few years as well.
Posted by Chieftain | June 20, 2012 6:47 AM
Besides tour buses only go to the "show" areas of our city, must becoming more difficult as less to show, and routes along the way may be more telling. I can see the city saying, can't take that route, because now. . . . the roads are too bad. . .
Posted by clinamen | June 20, 2012 12:58 PM