Potential Development Sites in the Portland, Oregon, Region

Based in Portland, Barclay Grayson is a real estate executive who serves as BPM Real Estate Group’s senior vice president of development and acquisitions. Over the past several years, Portland resident Barclay Grayson has spearheaded work toward the completion of sites such as the luxury downtown tower Block 216. He has an interest in future development sites in the Portland area.

Locations explored in a Portland Monthly article include the US Post Office on Hoyt Street and Northwest Ninth Avenue. This 14-acre location is situated in an area that has already seen pioneering developments that help resolve issues such as lack of affordable housing. It presents the opportunity to create an accessible residential, business, and cultural hub.

Another target for developers is the Lloyd Center, a mid-century open-air shopping center that incorporated fountains ad stretched from 16th to Ninth Avenue. The property is now being reimagined in ways that should meet core local needs for multifamily housing, workspaces, and even medical care through a “health hub” approach.

A third potential development site, Centennial Mills was built in the early 20th century and is situated near Ninth Avenue between the Willamette River and the Northwest Naito Parkway. Potential projects here include creating an “industrial ruins” park similar to Seattle’s Gasworks Park. Alternatively, extensive new housing and offices could be created at the location.

The New Ritz-Carlton and Shared Condo Space

The senior vice president of BPM Real Estate Group in Portland, Oregon, Barclay Grayson is responsible for acquisition and development at the company. In this role, Barclay Grayson plays an integral part in such projects as the new Ritz Carlton building in Portland. This hotel will occupy 11 floors of a 35-story structure that the company is building at Alder Street and Southwest Ninth Avenue.

The new downtown tower brings a level of luxury that is unprecedented for the city. The ultra-high-end structure will cost about $600 million to build, and its planned 138 condos will sell for $1,350 to $1,900 per square foot. Despite a downturn in the condo market in the area, developer Walt Bowen believes in the property and expects that interest in the residences will be bolstered by the presence of the planned Ritz-Carlton hotel, another of his projects.

Rooms at the hotel will cost an average of $450 a night by the time the business has been operating for four years. Compared to other luxury hotels in the city, this amount is close to double the current rates.

The project is evidence of the developers’ belief in the structure, and their belief in Portland.

LEED Certification – Good for Buildings, People, and the Planet

Based in Portland, Oregon, experienced real estate executive Barclay Grayson serves as senior vice president of BPM Real Estate Group. In this capacity, he directs the firm’s operations in property acquisition and development of commercial, hospitality, and multi-family residential construction. Barclay Grayson of Portland also maintains a strong interest in obtaining LEED certification for the firm’s properties. The development at the Radisson Blu hotel in Anaheim, California, which earned BPM a 2020 award from the Anaheim, California Chamber of Commerce, is set to become a LEED Silver-certified property.

The LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) certification program has received international recognition as the major standard in environmentally responsible building design. A range of residential and commercial building types are eligible to receive LEED certification.

The system is a product of the United States Green Building Council (USGBC). It offers third-party, independent verification that a structure’s design and construction meet standards for reduction in carbon dioxide emissions, energy and water usage efficiency, and other aspects of environmental quality. LEED strategies are continuous over the life cycle of a building, from initial design and materials, to ongoing maintenance and logistics, to future retrofitting.

The USGBC works to create healthier, more secure, and more sustainable communities all over the world. The USGBC team believes that a long, healthy, enjoyable life is a basic right to which every human being is entitled, and that the quality of the buildings humans inhabit contribute immeasurably toward that effort.

Broadway Tower – A Dynamic Mixed-Use Asset in Downtown Portland

Barclay Grayson of Portland, Oregon, oversees a diversified portfolio of commercial properties as a senior vice president of BPM Real Estate Group. In 2015, Barclay Grayson’s firm moved into the office ownership, development, and asset management sphere. Having acquired or developed more than $250 million in Portland Class-A office buildings over the past five years, core BPM assets include Willamette Oaks, Pearl West, and Broadway Tower.

With construction started in June of 2016 and completed in late 2018, Broadway Tower encompasses 19 stories and 430,000 square feet. It inhabits a footprint previously occupied by the locally owned Oregonians Credit Union building. In addition to office space totaling 175,000 square feet, it includes a 180-room Radisson RED, a hotel brand that is particularly attractive to millennial professionals. The tower also offers 247 underground parking spaces.

When it comes to office space, financial, law, and IT firms have been the primary drivers of demand in Oregon. In April of 2020, the LEED Gold-certified building was in the news, with the office portion of the tower acquired for $132.5 million by Principal Real Estate Investors. The Radisson RED hotel, which occupies the building’s first eight floors, was not included in that sale.

LEED Certification – Sustainability and Benefits to the Bottom Line

A senior vice president with BPM Real Estate Group in Portland, Oregon, Barclay Grayson oversees a diversified portfolio spanning commercial, multifamily, and office holdings. Committed to reducing costs and the company’s carbon footprint, Barclay Grayson and his Portland team have achieved Leadership In Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certification on a number of projects.

With the US Green Building Council handling the certification process, LEED programs exist across a wide range of categories, from single-family residences to entire urban areas. The programs cover new construction as well as existing buildings that owners want certified for management and operations purposes.

The current iteration is LEED v4.1, which was introduced in 2018 and updated the program in ways that reflect emerging sustainability issues, with a focus on material use. In addition to traditional areas of LEED credits, such as water conservation and energy efficiency, elements taken into consideration include waste reduction, site selection, and even how natural light is used.

LEED certification is not only a proven pathway to both good public relations and energy conservation; it can also generate significant tax credits. An added benefit is that local municipalities are often more willing to approve projects that can attain LEED certification.