Oregon Convention Center:
Martin Luther King, Jr. / Alberta

Summary

The Grant Warehouse Site, located on the east side of MLK Boulevard between Ivy and Cook Streets, was part of an emergency abatement action of hazardous materials initiated by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in late 1998. Following the initial abatement, PDC participated in negotiations with the EPA and site owner to acquire the property. On January 29, 2004, PDC acquired the property for the appraised fair market value of $177,000. The current project site is comprised of the former Grant Warehouse property as well as two parcels to the south of the warehouse. Located near the intersection of NE Fremont St. and Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., the site is seen as a vital commercial redevelopment “node.”

In 1998 the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) conducted an emergency removal action at the Grant Warehouse site in response to the discovery of several thousand containers of hazardous waste, ultimately placing a $1.5M lien on the property for the cost of this action. While EPA removed the most dangerous and volatile threats to human health and safety from the property during this action, significant waste material remained for remediation and abatement. At the urging of the EPA and Mayor Katz, PDC amended the Oregon Convention Center (OCC) URA boundary to include the site and adjacent properties, negotiated with EPA for the purchase of the property, secured funding commitments for cleanup, budgeted TIF funding for cleanup and redevelopment of the site, and developed strategies for both initiatives.

Background

In 1998 the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) conducted an emergency removal action at the Grant Warehouse site in response to the discovery of several thousand containers of hazardous waste, ultimately placing a $1.5M lien on the property for the cost of this action. While EPA removed the most dangerous and volatile threats to human health and safety from the property during this action, significant waste material remained for remediation and abatement. At the urging of the EPA and Mayor Katz, PDC amended the Oregon Convention Center (OCC) URA boundary to include the site and adjacent properties, negotiated with EPA for the purchase of the property, secured funding commitments for cleanup, budgeted TIF funding for cleanup and redevelopment of the site, and developed strategies for both initiatives.

The Site Today

To date, the site has been cleaned to a standard that supports residential uses; the PDC has received a No Further Action (NFA) letter from the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ). All structures have been demolished and all environmental contamination has been abated from the site. The site has been graded and planted with grass seed to match the remainder of the lot, marking the final phase of the overall cleanup effort.

Development Concept

The Fremont/MLK Vision, a component of the overall MLK revitalization strategy, calls for the development of a mixed-use, mixed-income project that will provide approximately 40-50 mixed income units. Ground-floor commercial space will be a requirement of the project, however, given the current market rents for such space, it may prove most profitable to build the space as live/work in order to convert retail space once the demand warrants. Development of commercial condominiums will be encouraged.

Request for Proposals

PDC plans to release a request for proposals (RFP) for redevelopment of the site in March 2008. Redevelopment will likely focus on the provision of a number of affordable homeownership units. Full details will be available in the RFP when it is released. If you are interested in the RFP, you can sign up to be notified of its release at http://www.pdc.us/new/mail_list.asp#rfp

Project Timeline

1.	Formation of Project Advisory Committee	September 2007
2.	Release of RFP	March 26, 2008
3.	Required Pre-proposal conference	April 11, 2008
4.	Proposals Due	May 14, 2008
5.	Proposal/Developer Selection	June/July 2008

For More Information:
Contact Karl Dinkelspiel, (503) 823-1354 with any questions.

Related Documents

Public Participation Plan
Closeout Report
July 8, 2005
Geophysical Investigation
Geophysical investigation of the Grant Warehouse site and structure to determine the location of underground storage tanks and any other objects or areas of concern hidden from view.
Hazardous Level Building Survey
Hazardous Level Building Survey to determine presence and quantity of hazardous materials/contamination.
Quality Assurance Project Plan
Quality Assurance Project Plan identifies type and amount of contamination.
Health & Safety Plan
Health & Safety Plan which outlines the who (specific personnel and what type of training they have had), what (type of contamination and procedures for removal), and where (location of contamination and where it will be disposed) of the cleanup process.
Alternatives Analysis
The Alternatives Analysis indicates the various scenarios for cleanup that were considered prior to removal of contamination from the site. In the case of the Grant Warehouse, all contamination was removed from the site as a means of ensuring the highest level of safety for the community.
Level 1 Environmental Site Assessment
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Level 1 Environmental Site Assessment, 1999.
Phase II Environmental Assessment Report
Hart Crowser, 2003.
Phase II Environmental Site Assessment
McCann/Lenske Property
ERM, 2005.
Appraisal of Grant Warehouse Site
PGP, 2003
Grant Warehouse Phase II Environmental
Assessment
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Seattle 05/09/2002
Printable Fact Sheet
PDC, 10/06