Conceptual design seeks to connect Lloyd Center to surrounding neighborhoods with housing and a vibrant mix of retail, entertainment, working, and community gathering space. Lloyd Center will remain open for business during long-term, phased redevelopment and continue to serve as a hub for local retailers and community events.
Portland, OR – Lloyd Center today revealed the first look at a conceptual master plan, which envisions positioning the 29.3-acre Lloyd Center site as a diverse, connected neighborhood with housing, retail, restaurants, entertainment venues, workspace, and large open community spaces.
The conceptual master plan is the result of extensive market research, design study and community input over two years. It has been submitted in an application for a Design Advice Request (DAR) meeting with the City of Portland’s Design Commission through the Bureau of Development Services, and will be followed by formal Central City Master Plan land use application.
“This is an important step in a conversation with Portlanders about how this incredible site can evolve to become more relevant and thriving – a neighborhood for all Portlanders – for decades to come,” said Tom Kilbane of URG. “While we are still early in the process, we believe this initial master plan demonstrates the incredible potential to create an inclusive, sustainable, and vibrant experience that will play a major part in this city’s next chapter.”
Conceptual Lloyd Center Master Plan
The master plan envisions transforming the current inward-facing 1960’s era mall and surrounding parking lots into a mixed-use neighborhood that builds on Lloyd Center’s long history as an active, lifestyle-oriented regional destination. The reimagined layout will be opened up to the surrounding communities by connecting into Portland’s street grid with significantly improved transportation networks for bikes, pedestrians, and cars.
The conceptual design contemplates thousands of new residences tailored toward a range of income levels, as well as an array of active and experiential retail uses, including restaurants and entertainment venues. The plan also envisions the opportunity for a large commercial office campus environment unmatched in the Central City, in addition to a significant amount of outdoor open/amenity spacearking for residents and visitors, and the continuing presence of an ice-skating rink, a long-time neighborhood favorite.
World-Class Project Team
The owners of Lloyd Center, Urban Renaissance Group (URG) and KKR Real Estate Finance Trust (KREF), have assembled a team of renowned local and national firms to support the property’s revitalization.
“We have heard from people across the community that they want to see a bold, future-focused neighborhood, but also consideration for the values and history of our community,” Kilbane said. “To make sure we accomplish that goal, we have assembled a team of partners who have experience leading successful projects in the Portland-metro area, as well as transformative projects across the country.”
ZGF, a design firm founded in Portland more than 70 years ago, is serving as the lead master planner on the project. The ZGF team has shaped many of Oregon’s most iconic environments, such as Tom McCall Waterfront Park, the Oregon Convention Center and the Portland International Airport expansion, to name a few. Today ZGF engages in planning and urban design projects across the U.S. and around the world.
Field Operations, the New York-based landscape architects and urban designers a leading-edge landscape architecture and urban design practice that designed High Line in Manhattan and the master plan for the Seattle Waterfront. They were recruited to lead work on approximately 20% of the property designated for open spaces under the proposed master plan. In addition to dedicated spaces for locals and visitors to gather, the new vision for Lloyd Center includes a network of streets and walking and bike paths crossing the site to improve access and connectivity to adjacent neighborhoods.
The initial project team is also comprised of leading firms with extensive local and national experience, including DOWL (Civil Engineering), KPFF (Structural Engineering), DKS Associates (Transportation Engineering), and Radler White Parks & Alexander LLP (Land Use Counsel), as well as dedicated team members and consultants responsible for community engagement and public affairs.
Community Engagement
The Portland-based Lloyd Center project team has engaged extensively with members of the community over the past two years to develop a vision for the property’s future. Outreach efforts include commissioning a citywide public opinion poll and conducting more than 80 opinion leader interviews, with more on the horizon. Feedback from the community is reflected in the preliminary conceptual design efforts and community input will continue to be sought and incorporated as the process continues.
“As we prepared this initial master plan concept, we talked to people across the city to get their views of what this property can be,” Kilbane said. “Across the board, we heard a strong desire for an authentically Portland neighborhood, including housing, small businesses, and unique retail and workspaces. Portlanders want a place where everyone feels safe, welcome and supported – a neighborhood that is walkable and bikeable and that connects to other important landmarks in the region, like the Oregon Convention Center and Moda Center.”
The prospect for a reimagined Lloyd Center is already creating excitement across the community.
Comments from community leaders:
Congressman Earl Blumenauer: “The Lloyd Center is a tremendous opportunity right in the heart of Northeast Portland. There is a vision for this site’s unique potential and the historic role it has played. The key is a good Master Plan and I think we’re off to a good start. It will help tie important elements together: a range of housing choices, public spaces, economic development, and a rich transportation ecosystem that includes Streetcar, Max, and bike and pedestrian options. The health and future of a vibrant Lloyd District has never been more critical. I am optimistic these pieces will all come together and be a defining part of Portland’s future.”
Commissioner Carmen Rubio: “The Lloyd Center site has historical significance in our community. For decades, it has been a major gathering spot for the North/Northeast Portland neighborhoods, as well as for residents across our community. I am encouraged that the current owners envision creating an authentically Portland neighborhood that will reflect our city’s core values of inclusivity and sustainability. I am particularly excited about the prospect for a significant number of new housing units designed to serve a range of income levels. We sorely need this investment in housing. I look forward to working with the Lloyd Center owners as they work through the Central City Master Plan process and we learn more about their vision and their plans.”
Commissioner Mingus Mapps: “The Lloyd Center site will play a critically important role in the future of our Central City. I am excited about this vision, which builds on the tremendous transportation alternatives already available in the district – streetcar, buses, Max – and lays the groundwork for making it better through greater connections to the Portland street grid and improved pedestrian and bike opportunities. I look forward to working with the owners as this proposal moves forward.”
Keith Jones, outgoing president of the Lloyd Community Association: “With its location in the geographic center of Portland, the transformation of the Lloyd Center site undoubtedly will be one of the most important redevelopment projects our city will experience over the next decade. We are excited about the vision URG announced today, a neighborhood with more residents, local amenities, public open space and walkable and bikeable thruways that connect to surrounding neighborhoods. All of us in the Lloyd District look forward to working with the Lloyd Center owners as they move this vision forward. It is also great to see that the Lloyd Center Mall will remain open for the foreseeable future. It has become home to several thriving small, local business and remains a favorite destination for the neighborhood.”
Lloyd Center’s owners have also spoken with city leaders about the desire to locate a baseball stadium on the site. The initiation of the DAR process does not preclude the option of a baseball stadium should a concrete proposal emerge to bring an MLB team to Portland.
“We would be thrilled to see a major league team come to Portland,” Kilbane said. “We have certainly heard the rumors, including around Lloyd Center as one of the potential sites for a stadium, and our ownership group is open to dialogue with team owners, the MLB or anyone else who presents an actionable proposal. The door remains open for a substantive conversation about baseball, but we feel it’s our duty to the Portland community to continue advancing the master planning process, which offers a multi-year path for achieving the revitalization of Lloyd Center. At the end of the day, Portlanders want to see Lloyd Center become a vibrant and diverse neighborhood, with or without a stadium.”
Lloyd Center is Open for Business
Lloyd Center will remain open for business throughout the proposed planning and long-term phased redevelopment process. URG and KREF have been owners of Lloyd Center since December 2021 and continue to support the existing mall’s rejuvenation as a gathering place for local businesses and community events.
Since taking ownership, the Lloyd Center team has signed 32 new leases and renewed over 90% of the existing tenants in the mall. From new tenants like Trackers Earth in the former Marshall’s department store space, who bring hundreds of kids to the mall each day, to tenants who’ve been in the mall for years like Joe Brown’s Carmel Corn, there is a new energy and sense of community at the mall. The ice rink continues to draw people from around the region, and the upcoming Painted Pines immersive art experience will be an exciting new addition at the mall.
“It is important to remember that this is a long-term vision and will take years to complete,” Kilbane added. “We want make sure that everyone knows Lloyd Center remains open for business with a unique blend of local and national retailers, offices and community events.”
About Urban Renaissance Group LLC
Urban Renaissance Group LLC is a Seattle-based full-service commercial real estate company, engaged in acquisitions, development, asset management, leasing, property management and ownership in Seattle, Bellevue, Denver and Portland. Founded in 2006, the strategic premise of URG is that the form of the American City is changing dramatically; the company acts as a catalyst that understands and ignites that change, thereby building community, generating appropriate returns for its investors and opportunities for its partners and employees. Learn more at www.urbanrengroup.com.
