Located in Portland, Oregon’s Pearl District, Vibrant! is a new affordable housing, high-rise development. Salazar Architect designed the building shell and interior common areas in collaboration with LRS Architects, which led the overall project management and design of the apartments.
Vibrant! includes 93 one-, two-, and three-bedroom apartments, including 40 units that are set aside for families transitioning out of homelessness. The building’s exterior design forgoes the brown brick tradition of the district and instead opts for a combination of neutral and brightly colored metal panels.
See Also: MLK Plaza brings 167 units of affordable housing to the Bronx
Interior common areas were designed with a minimalist approach and simple materials including natural concrete floors and ceilings. The lobby’s flooring is stained in a blue hue that contrasts with the reclaimed oak wood walls that wrap around interconnecting management and social services offices, casual seating, mail boxes, and a bike room. The second floor features a playroom, a community room, a kitchen, and a computer room. Glazed garage doors lead to an outdoor playground. The building also includes a number of sustainable features such as a rooftop PV solar array, native plants, and a roof terrace.
Also on the build team: KPFF (structural engineer), Shapiro Didway (landscape architect), A3 Acoustics and 3J Consulting (civil engineer), Bremik Construction (general contractor).
Related Stories
| Jun 19, 2013
New York City considers new construction standards for hospitals, multifamily buildings
Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s administration has proposed new building codes for hospitals and multifamily dwellings in New York City to help them be more resilient in the event of severe weather resulting from climate change.
| Jun 17, 2013
DOE launches database on energy performance of 60,000 buildings
The Energy Department today launched a new Buildings Performance Database, the largest free, publicly available database of residential and commercial building energy performance information.
| Jun 13, 2013
AIA partners with industry groups to launch $30,000 'Designing Recovery' design competition
The program will award a total of $30,000 to three winning designs, divided equally between three locations: Joplin, Mo., New Orleans, and New York.
| Jun 12, 2013
5 building projects that put the 'team' in teamwork
The winners of the 2013 Building Team Awards show that great buildings cannot be built without the successful collaboration of the Building Team.
| Jun 11, 2013
Vertical urban campus fills a tall order [2013 Building Team Award winner]
Roosevelt University builds a 32-story tower to satisfy students’ needs for housing, instruction, and recreation.
| Jun 11, 2013
Finnish elevator technology could facilitate supertall building design
KONE Corporation has announced a new elevator technology that could make it possible for supertall buildings to reach new heights by eliminating several problems of existing elevator technology. The firm's new UltraRope hoisting system uses a rope with a carbon-fiber core and high-friction coating, rather than conventional steel rope.
| Jun 5, 2013
USGBC: Free LEED certification for projects in new markets
In an effort to accelerate sustainable development around the world, the U.S. Green Building Council is offering free LEED certification to the first projects to certify in the 112 countries where LEED has yet to take root.
| Jun 4, 2013
SOM research project examines viability of timber-framed skyscraper
In a report released today, Skidmore, Owings & Merrill discussed the results of the Timber Tower Research Project: an examination of whether a viable 400-ft, 42-story building could be created with timber framing. The structural type could reduce the carbon footprint of tall buildings by up to 75%.
| Jun 3, 2013
6 residential projects named 'best in housing design' by AIA
The Via Verde mixed-use development in Bronx, N.Y., and a student housing complex in Seattle are among the winners of AIA's 2013 Housing Awards.
| Jun 3, 2013
Construction spending inches upward in April
The U.S. Census Bureau of the Department of Commerce announced today that construction spending during April 2013 was estimated at a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $860.8 billion, 0.4 percent above the revised March estimate of $857.7 billion.
