TRAIL BLAZERS LAUNCH WEB SITE TO SHARE ROSE QUARTER VISION, SOLICIT FEEDBACK

[BoBoBREWSKI]

http://www.imaginejumptown.com/

TRAIL BLAZERS LAUNCH WEB SITE TO SHARE ROSE QUARTER VISION, SOLICIT FEEDBACK
Team supports renovated Memorial Coliseum to augment eco-friendly mixed-use entertainment district

Portland, Ore. – In conjunction with today’s request for Memorial Coliseum development concepts by the City of Portland and the Portland Development Commission (PDC), the Portland Trail Blazers have launched a new Web site – imaginejumptown.com – to articulate their project vision and solicit community feedback on the proposed ‘JumpTown’ neighborhood.

Imaginejumptown.com provides a synopsis of the Trail Blazers’ Rose Quarter development vision, a brief history of the vibrant neighborhood where the Quarter sits, a project history timeline, recent news, and specific information regarding the team’s concept for an enlivened Memorial Coliseum.

“The Memorial Coliseum will play a central role in our vision for a district that’s green, vibrant and better connected to adjacent communities,” said Trail Blazer President Larry Miller. “We want to create a neighborhood that’s rooted in Portland values and informed by community input.”

The Trail Blazers are proposing a mixed-use sports and entertainment district around a revitalized Memorial Coliseum. The Memorial Coliseum vision includes capital upgrades to render a more intimate venue for sports, concerts and events. The enhancements will preserve the building’s architectural integrity and expressiveness while modernizing the venue and ensuring a bright future at the Rose Quarter for the iconic Rose Festival, the Portland Winter Hawks and numerous civic events that call Memorial Coliseum home.

Earlier today, the City of Portland announced that proposals for future usage of Memorial Coliseum will be accepted by the PDC through Tuesday, December 1. Each submission will be reviewed by Mayor Sam Adams’ 32-member Stakeholder Advisory Committee (SAC). In September, the SAC began meeting twice monthly to develop criteria for evaluating ideas and concepts for the renovation or adaptive reuse of Memorial Coliseum by the spring of 2010. By fall of 2010, the SAC will provide feedback on development plans for the Rose Quarter.

“Before we officially submit our ideas, we’d like to encourage people to weigh in with their input,” Miller said. “Our hope is that Portlanders will share their ideas at imaginejumptown.com to help us in the development of this important part of Portland’s eastside. We believe that the quality of our public involvement will enhance the quality of this project.”

Guiding principles for the Trail Blazers proposed mixed-use district include:

• A deliberate tie to north and northeast Portland’s rich cultural history
• An economically sustainable business model that creates thousands of jobs and instills civic pride
• Architecture and urban planning appropriate for its location and diverse uses, facilities and customers
• A commitment to the greenest mixed-use district in the country – in construction and ongoing operations

“JumpTown holds the potential to showcase Portland’s sustainable values – and emerging green economy – to the rest of the nation,” Miller said. “We want to create jobs and build a vibrant neighborhood that features leading-edge green technologies and operating practices.”

In coming months, visitors to imaginejumptown.com can see sketches and architectural models/renderings to further illustrate the vision. Components of the project may include restaurants, clubs, retail, hotels, residential, athletic facilities and a one-of-a-kind interactive center being considered by Nike near the site of its inception.

 

[BoBoBREWSKI]

Mods,
I wasnt sure if this belong in the OT forum or the main page. Please move it if you think it should be on the main page. THANKS!

 

[SodaPopinski]

I appreciate the effort. I hope they're able to do some cool stuff, but I am skeptical unless they can make this an entirely privately-funded venture. If they ask for any public money in the form of bond sales or urban renewal funds, this project is doomed to failure.

Unless they plan on making the MC a giant campsite for homeless people, there's no way the City Council will approve dollars for it.

Having AEG involved is impressive. They have some deep pockets.

This will be an interesting challenge for them, since I don't think you can do some chain-restaurant-anchored McCoolTown USA. That might work in places like LA or Kansas City, but not in Portland.

 

[SlyPokerDog]

I appreciate the effort. I hope they're able to do some cool stuff, but I am skeptical unless they can make this an entirely privately-funded venture. If they ask for any public money in the form of bond sales or urban renewal funds, this project is doomed to failure.

Unless they plan on making the MC a giant campsite for homeless people, there's no way the City Council will approve dollars for it.

Having AEG involved is impressive. They have some deep pockets.

This will be an interesting challenge for them, since I don't think you can do some chain-restaurant-anchored McCoolTown USA. That might work in places like LA or Kansas City, but not in Portland.

I see PDC's logo on it so I imagine they'll be some funds available from them.

 

[SodaPopinski]

Just saw this on the site:

Project funding:

As a development partner, the award-winning Cordish Companies will provide significant private resources for the construction and operation of JumpTown that will complement their expertise on major mixed-use developments. JumpTown will create hundreds of permanent jobs and utilize local and minority contractors when possible.

To achieve a vibrant Rose Quarter, public financing will be required. Tax increment financing can serve as a tool to foster economic growth and further additional private investment without the use of the city’s general fund dollars. As a city-owned asset, the Memorial Coliseum will require public dollars for capital improvements. The Trail Blazers are committed to ensuring that the Coliseum’s renovation fits into a larger eastside renaissance to maximize the benefit of public investment. Our vision is viable, sustainable, and firmly rooted in the area’s cultural legacy.

Project is doomed.

 

[BlazerWookee]

Titty bars, cheap beer, and dead animals cooked over an open flame!

 

[ironcrotch]

No prospective renderings? What have they been doing this whole time? Even the dead beaverton stadium idea had renderings.

 

[SodaPopinski]

No prospective renderings? What have they been doing this whole time? Even the dead beaverton stadium idea had renderings.

Tough to have renderings if you have zero tenants lined up.

 

[ebott]

I love that their plan thus far is nothing. This is why they screwed over the plan to put a baseball stadium there? So they could put in a "world-class mixed-use sports and entertainment district", which is nothing.

Maybe I'm going over board here, but it seems like everything Larry Miller does is crap. The Comcast situation is crap. The online games streaming is crap. This appears to be crap.

 

[RR7]

comcast deal was not done by Miller. So "everything he does is crap" is the online streaming games, and something that is in the extremely early oncept stage. Awesome.

 

[BoBoBREWSKI]

Press Release

December 10, 2009

Winterhawks Pledge Collaboration with Trail Blazers on Memorial Coliseum Plan;
Teams Will Work Together on Proposal for Mayor’s Stakeholder Committee
Revitalized Coliseum would provide more intimate experience for sports fans, event-goers

Portland, Ore. – The Portland Trail Blazers and Portland Winterhawks have pledged to work together on a plan to enhance and revitalize Memorial Coliseum, both teams announced today. The teams will submit a collaborative concept to the Mayor’s Stakeholder Advisory Committee before the City’s January 8, 2010, deadline.

The proposed concept would revitalize Portland’s iconic arena as part of the Trail Blazers larger vision for a vibrant, mixed-use neighborhood at the Rose Quarter. The concept advocates a reduced seating capacity at Memorial Coliseum to create a more intimate venue for the Winterhawks, the arena’s anchor tenant, and other users. The changes will also help attract new events and will add non-event activity to further enliven the venue.

“We look forward to working with the Trail Blazers to provide the Winterhawks and our fans a true home ice advantage,” Winterhawks President Doug Piper said. “A revitalized Memorial Coliseum will help ensure our long-term future with an intimate, first-class facility in a building rich with hockey history that dates back nearly 50 years.”

The plan would provide a true home for the WHL club, with upgrades that would include a new state-of-the-art scoreboard, an ice sheet upgraded to league-regulated size and new fan amenities, like club seating, to improve the fan experience. Fans will also have upgraded dining options, including a wider variety of concession options and increased points of sale.

“Hockey has a tremendous history in Portland,” Trail Blazers President Larry Miller said. “We are pleased to partner with the Winterhawks for an even stronger project. An invigorated Memorial Coliseum will play a central role in a neighborhood that’s green, vibrant and economically sustainable for the city of Portland.”

The teams will work with the Mayor’s Stakeholder Advisory Committee to ensure the plan includes a memorial to the veterans who served the country with great honor.

The plan would upgrade Memorial Coliseum amenities to attract more visitors to this important part of Portland’s eastside. Already, Memorial Coliseum draws more than 430,000 guests each year for more than 150 events, including the Winterhawks, the Rose Festival, Oregon School Activities Association events, and other community gatherings. The plan preserves the building’s architectural integrity and expressiveness while modernizing the venue for current and future Portland tenants.

The Memorial Coliseum is an essential element of the mixed-use sports and entertainment district being proposed by the Trail Blazers for the Rose Quarter. Project leaders are working to create a district that fosters additional private investment in the area and provides thousands of construction and permanent jobs.

For more information on Rose Quarter, or to provide your feedback on the best future for the Quarter, visit www.imaginejumptown.com or the Portland Development Commission’s site at www.rosequarterdevelopment.org.

 

[BoBoBREWSKI]

merge alert
http://sportstwo.com/forums/showthread.php?t=151324