PORTLAND, Ore. — As new construction slows throughout Portland, there are still many economic development bright spots in the city’s future in 2024.
A spate of new development is on the way and there's more in the pipeline, with several projects expected to transform and create new neighborhoods in the city, like the Lloyd Center redevelopment and Broadway Corridor — although high interest rates, increases in material costs and local challenges have created some uncertainty about when many of those projects on the horizon will be built.
For those looking for changes coming sooner rather than later, here are nine development projects expected to impact Portland’s market in 2024:
PDX terminal core redevelopment
Portland International Airport’s nearly $2 billion new main terminal is set to open this spring, after nearly four years of construction. The public will finally be able to set foot under the illustrious, hand-crafted timber roof that has captivated eyes around the nation since its unveiling. The new main terminal’s capacity will grow by 40%, and it will feature live trees and leafy foliage along with more than 20 new shops, including Grassa, Loyal Legion and Portland Gear.
Slabtown
Portland’s Slabtown is one of the city's trendiest neighborhoods with its mix of residential, restaurants, shopping, and walkability along Northwest 21st and 23rd Avenues. The district’s blocks have been slowly filling in with new construction, and 2024 will bring approximately 392 apartments and more than 11,500 square feet of retail space to the market thanks to the completion of the mixed-use Slabtown Square and Freewell projects.
The district has roughly 555 additional apartments in the pipeline, with construction of a two-building development near the highway and a seven-story building approved by the city last year.
Hollywood HUB Housing
A 12-story affordable housing development is slated to start construction in 2024 as part of a reimagining of the Hollywood Transit Center in Northeast Portland. The 120-foot-tall building will have 224 affordable units offered at 30-60% percent of the area median income (AMI). As part of the project, a vacated portion of Northeast 42nd Avenue bordering Halsey Street between the building and businesses will be turned into a paseo with new landscaped walkways and seating areas. A new ramp for pedestrians and cyclists will also be added to the end of the Interstate 84 pedestrian bridge.
Julia West
Another 12-story affordable housing tower is set to start construction this year, but in Portland’s West End near Cheryl’s on 12th and Jake’s Famous Crawfish. The approximately 60,000-square-foot tower will offer 90 units of permanent supportive housing for seniors on a small vacant site — about one-eighth of a block at the intersection of Southwest 13th Avenue and Alder Street.
Pop Blocks
Construction is expected to ramp up on the Pop Blocks, the project at the former Pepsi warehouse site along Sandy Boulevard in Northeast Portland. The first phase of the 4.7-acre mixed-use development is nearing completion with the construction of 219-unit apartment building and the renovation of the 60-year-old bowstring-truss bottling plant into a public pavilion with retail and commercial space. The next phase is expected to start construction in 2026, which will add 160 apartments.
Multnomah County libraries
Eight major construction projects for the Multnomah County Library system are underway, three of which are expected to finish in 2024: the Midland and North Portland branch expansions and 21,000-square-foot Holgate Library. The branch expansions will add approximately 7,500 square feet of library space. Work on the new library buildings in East County and Northwest is scheduled to wrap up in 2025, along with the renovation and expansions of the Belmont, St. John and Albina libraries.
Willamette Tower
Willamette Tower, a 23-story high rise in Portland’s South Waterfront, will be complete in early 2024, bringing roughly 343 apartments and 3,800 square feet of retail space to the market. The development is a part of a four-block plan that includes a pair of 23-story high rises and a trio of five-to-six-story buildings. Currently, three of the buildings have been constructed with the second half under building permit review with the city. In total the development, by Dallas-based developer Alamo Manhattan, will include approximately 1,200 homes once fully built out.
Timberview
Timberview, an eight-story affordable housing development on the corner of Northeast Glisan and 99th Avenue, is expected to be completed in the fall. It will bring 105 affordable units to the market offered at 60% of the area median income or less. Its ground floor will include a food hall with four vendor spaces. At eight stories, Timberview will be Portland’s tallest affordable housing building constructed of cross-laminated timber, an emerging timber material made from several layers of structural grade lumber glued together crosswise.
