N/NE Quadrant Plan Presents Vision for Future Development

By Carol Gossett, SGNA Land Use & Transportation Committee Chair

The N/NE Quadrant Plan is one part of the Central City 2035 project, a planning effort to update the 1988 Central City Plan.  The Central City Plan will include new guiding policies, updated land use and urban design plans, and more detailed plans for specific districts.  The Central City Plan will be included in the City's updated Comprehensive Plan and will implement the Portland Plan, the city's strategic plan.  The plan was adopted by Portland City Council on October 25, 2012.

The N/NE Quadrant Plan was the first of the more detailed district plans and stakeholders addressed land use issues, urban design, transportation, public infrastructure and development entitlements in the Lloyd District (including a portion of Sullivan's Gulch) and Lower Albina sub districts.  The N/NE Quadrant Plan contains significant facilities and functions of state-wide and regional importance including the industrial waterfront in Lower Albina and major event, office and etail facilities in the Lloyd District.

A major transportation facility in the N/NE Quadrant Plan is the I-5 Freeway.  Today, the freeway and Broadway/Weidler interchange are congested, with the highest crash rates in Oregon on the freeway and a high number of crashes, particularly  involving pedestrians and bicyclists on the surrounding local streets.  The City of Portland and the Oregon Department of Transportation (ODOT) engaged in a joint effort in the N/NE Quadrant Plan to develop an I-5 Broadway/Weidler interchange concurrently with the planning of land use, urban design, and other elements of planning related to the quadrant plan.

Poor quality of the pedestrian experience and limited street-level activity were considered elements of the planning that directly impact the Lloyd Center, Holladay Park and the Sullivan's Gulch Area.  Increasing vitality through redevelopment and new development were defined as important issues.  Solutions explored and agreed to include:

• Improving the facade of Lloyd Center 
• Development of the Lloyd Cinema parking lot to include mixed use development
• Large assembled property sites considered an opportunity for the area
• Public safety at Holladay Park
• Increasing public connectivity and safety
• Pedestrain connectivity and safety including new pedestrian bridge around NE 9th and the Central Eastside around I-84, addition of bike lanes to the 12th Avenue bridge and continuing bike lanes on Multnomah to 21st Avenue

The property at the SW corner of NE Multnomah and NE 21st seen as opportunity sites for development. These properties have split zoning at this time and the planning included ideas for design solutions and development of the sites, including potential access for the future Sullivan's Gulch Trail.  

General quadrant-wide issues included:

• Urban Vibrancy and Vitality - statements encouraging increased development including retail, office and housing
• Economic Prosperity - increased employment and business growth that particularly support expansion of existing businesses and building on exiting major attractions
• Human and Environmental Health - supporting the Lloyd Green pilot EcoDistrict now under development, improving habitat conditions, continuing storm water management, expanding parks and natural areas, etc.
• Balance and Equity - focused on bring new people and businesses to the area
• Connectivity and Access - included maintaining and improving access to and within the quadrant for all modes of transportation, including pedestrian access and safety

A Stakeholder Advisory Committee (SAC) was one of the primary means of ensuring that the public had opportunities to provide meaningful input into the planning process.  The SAC was mode up of 30 voting members, each representing businesses and neighborhood associations, property owners as well as community interest groups.  Carol Gossett represented the Sullivan's Gulch Neighborhood Association in this 19th month planning effort."

You can read the full plan here.  Specific references to the area of Sullivan's Gulch (along Multnomah to 21st Ave.) - referred to in the report as "North Banfield Portal" - included in the report are on pages 63 and 86 of the zoning and height report here.