Bullseye: SERA moving downtown
SERA Architects is bullish on downtown Portland.
The local designer is taking a 15-year lease at Galleria, located at 600 S.W. 10th Ave. SERA will be the building's first office tenant and the largest lease signed in the urban core in 18 months. The architect and interiors firm will lead the $20 million renovation of the building, with a move-in date set for early 2022.
The newly-renovated Galleria is next to the coming Ritz-Carlton hotel in Eleven West, a 35-story building with offices and luxury condos.
However, the adjacent Target store has had its windows broken in during Mayday 2017 and on May 20, 2020. Protesters also vandalized nearby shops on Nov. 4, 2020.
SERA's well-known local work includes the Hyatt Centric and AC Portland hotels, the Portland City Hall and Edith Green - Wendell Wyatt Federal Building renovations, Blanchet House, and the Old Town Recovery Center.
The firm will take 42,000 square feet, the entire fifth floor, just as Target flees the building's second and third floors. The Target store last week reopened as an even smaller, street-level-only presence, keeping its Starbucks.
SERA is currently based on the Old Town bus mall at 338 N.W. Fifth Ave., part of Portland's ghost town. With workers staying home and large camps of unhoused people nearby, the advantages of being close to light rail and the leafy North Parks blocks have worn thin.
The historic Class A office building is an entire city block directly on the MAX transit line at Southwest Ninth street and Morrison in Portland's West End, a part of downtown that was becoming more visitor-friendly with boutiques and restaurants before 2020.
Real estate investment and operating company Unico Properties and Partners Group, a leading global private markets firm, are partners. Together they attracted SERA and plan to spend $20 million to renovate the historic 194,737-square-foot Class A office building.
Rough year 2020
The Galleria was built in 1910 and was initially known as the Olds, Wortman & King department store. It is a historic landmark listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Partners Group and Unico purchased Galleria from the Bill Naito Company in 2018 as part of a joint venture partnership.
The Bill Naito Company repositioned the building in 1976 as downtown Portland's first shopping mall. Galleria underwent significant renovations in 2013 and has been seismically retrofitted.
"Portland has had a rough year given the pandemic, civil unrest, and the economic turmoil that the whole country has experienced," said Joe Pinzone, Principal, SERA Architects. "But the fundamentals of what Portland is, and stands for, are solid. We believe in this city more than ever, and we're very proud to be the architect on one of Portland's historic icons."
Pinzone told the Business Tribune the firm was not leaving Old Town because the streets are too rough. SERA staff had grown, and the firm spilled over into a second space. Crossing the MAX tracks constantly for meetings was inconvenient.
When it is open, the SERA floor in the Galleria will have an occupancy of about 180 people, and they expect all but 15 percent to work from the office.
"We're putting out people at the forefront of the design idea," he said. "We'll have a front porch and back porch for open collaboration on the north and south side of the building and will avoid private offices, wherever possible." Just as they do now, there will be an open plan with no hierarchy. Principals sit in the open.
"There's a point of being accessible and being able to be involved in projects more directly when you can hear what's going on in team discussions."
Unico
"We're thrilled to have earned this long-term commitment from a highly distinguished firm like SERA at Galleria to serve as the lead tenant and lead architect in this renovated building. SERA is an integral partner in our repositioning of this historic landmark, and we're excited to revitalize this prime area of downtown and create a hub, with a modern and exceptional amenity package, for many tech and creative tenants to come," said Charlie Floberg, Unico Properties Director, Market Leader.
Floberg told the Business Tribune, "My belief is that Downtown Portland will come back stronger than before. SERA's long-term commitment is a testament to that optimism. With the future arrival of the Ritz Carlton and Eleven West, this downtown location is, and will continue to be, a prime destination for office, tourism and residential."
He added, "The West End has become the hot spot in downtown over the last couple of years, with some of the best bars and restaurants along with some of the most prominent hotels and developments in the city."
He said lease rates have decreased in Class B and C properties, but for Class A, they have not. "If you have desirable space, there is still pricing power for the Landlord. If your space is tired, or more of a commodity, demand is quite weak."
Renovations will include:
You count on us to stay informed and we depend on you to fund our efforts. Quality local journalism takes time and money. Please support us to protect the future of community journalism.
Joseph Gallivan
Reporter, The Business Tribune
971-204-7874
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
Follow us on
RELATED STORIES |
|---|
