Lake Oswego Demonstration Street Project

GreenWorks closely collaborated with an engineer and urban designer to develop a prototype street reconstruction plan that emphasized a pedestrian friendly environment. Design solutions included narrowing of lane width, replacing left turn lane with landscape median, addition of a rich variety of paving materials in pedestrian zones and placement of street furniture, ornamental street lights, street trees, and annual color accent planting. Our specific responsibilities included final design and specifying of cobblestone paving in crosswalks, pre-cast concrete pavers in parking zone, patterned concrete in pedestrian and furniture zones, as well as landscaping improvements.

City of Dallas Streetscape

The City of Dallas Streetscape Design Concepts and Toolkit provides an adaptable strategy for downtown Dallas to take advantage of existing opportunities and assets to improve and expand the quality of the central district and streetscape conditions. The aim is to re-establish the central area as a pedestrian-friendly, safe, and economically viable district that is reflective of the unique identity of the residents of Dallas. GreenWorks worked with a diverse group of stakeholder from the City of Dallas and the Urban Renewal Agency to develop consensus on a design concept, materials toolkit, and street tree selection criteria which will guide the downtown core as well as provide additional guidance for future projects. Specific activities included ODOT coordination, visualization, and development and refinement of multiple concepts. The City is currently going forward with an initial pilot project, and is developing funding sources for the initial three-block catalyst project to be constructed in 2011.

TriMet Light Rail Blue Line Station Improvements

TriMet’s MAX Light Rail system connects Portland, Gresham, Beaverton, Hillsboro and the Portland Airport. As a part of TriMet’s commitment to build and maintain a safe transit system, GreenWorks is assisting the agency in reviewing its existing lighting and access control design standards for the MAX stations. The overall goal is to create a safe and secure system of transportation for its patrons. Initially, this process will review, analyze, design, and implement prototype improvements to the existing lighting systems and access control at two eastside LRT platforms, both located on the TriMet Blue Line the stations of 82nd Avenue and Gresham Central. Design illumination and access control improvements will complement the existing architectural character of these two platforms. The improvements will be completed in coordination with internal and external stakeholders, and TriMet’s leadership review board. GreenWorks provided documentation of the site review of the two stations and a report including mapping of existing site conditions, an inventory of site elements, mapping of site opportunities and site constraints, an illumination assessment and light readings from the two stations. Building on this field research, our work included schematic design and construction documents. After implementation, our services will include a post occupancy analysis to inform the design analysis and may contribute to the modification of the TriMet Design Criteria.

Wilsonville SMART Operations Fleet Facility

GreenWorks provided landscape architectural services for the City of Wilsonville South Metro Area Regional Transit (SMART)  Operations Fleet Facility.  The project includes a 12,600 square foot Fleet and Administration Building located on an approximately 4.5 acre site. Site improvements include employee and bus parking, fleet maintenance, and administrative services, and is located on SW Boberg Road adjacent to the Wilsonville Westside Express Service (WES) Station.

Design services provided by GreenWorks, include Conceptual Site Design and Grading Coordination, type ‘C’ Tree Preservation and Removal Plans, and Final Construction Documentation. The design team developed a budget sensitive sustainable plan that embraces the natural characteristics of the site, and architectural design features. Habitat and buffering improvements integrated adjacent to the Significant Resource Overlay Zone (SROZ), provide a transition and embraced the landscape strategy of incorporating native and drought tolerant plants, in combination with a temporary irrigation system.  Stormwater is managed through on site conveyance in channels and basins, and is celebrated through roof rainwater capture and outfall at architectural scuppers along the building entrance.

TriMet Lightrail Station Redevelopment at Rockwood

GreenWorks provided conceptual planning and design for the redevelopment of TriMet’s Light Rail station at East 188th Street in the Rockwood neighborhood of Gresham, Oregon. A neighborhood in transition, Rockwood is part of Gresham’s first Urban Renewal Area. The 188th station in particular has the highest number of riders in the city. Station redesign focused on attracting redevelopment in the area through improvements to the 188th and East Burnside intersection, expanded access and capacity of the stations, pedestrian-oriented facilities, user safety, visibility and CPTED (Crime Prevention through Environmental Design) design. The station design exceeded the local stormwater requirements and incorporated infiltration planters adjacent to the platforms as a terminus for the platforms. The approved design incorporated significant redevelopment of the transit platforms, shelters, trackways, signage, landscape plantings and other features. Final presentation drawings and perspective sketches were prepared and presented to the Urban Renewal Commission.

Sandy Public Works and Transit Operations Facility

GreenWorks, as part of a team, assisted the City of Sandy in the design of its new operations and maintenance facility which houses public works services and transit operations. The facility embraces sustainable design strategies by using a native plant palette and minimizing stormwater run off with a series of vegetated swales. Individual downspout features artistically accentuate the sheet flow activated by roof run-off. Our involvement included preliminary and final design for site improvements, overall grading and sustainable stormwater design solutions, low-maintenance landscape improvements, native planting design schemes and site screening for buffering requirements and hardscape design for public access locations.

Bingen Downtown Revitalization

GreenWorks analyzed the downtown area of Bingen, Washington which is a small community in the Eastern Columbia River Gorge. It is a community which attracts tourists, recreationists and windsurfers in the Gorge. GreenWorks helped develop recommendations to revitalize the downtown core with streetscape improvements, pedestrian amenities and design of civic spaces. We compiled the analysis and recommendations in a comprehensive report which was used to seek funds for implementation.

Oregon City 7th Street Pedestrian Environment Improvements

GreenWorks provided Schematic Design, Design Development, and Construction Drawings for this nine block commercial and residential district in Oregon City. The primary focus of this project was improving the pedestrian environment including street furniture, street trees, paving and public art. Neighborhood participation was a critical component. GreenWorks provided public involvement services and property owner coordination.

Independence Downtown Revitalization

GreenWorks provided design coordination for the City of Independence Downtown Revitalization project. The challenge was to accommodate a high volume of traffic on Main Street, while enhancing the business and pedestrian corridor through downtown. By widening the sidewalks and providing curb extensions at intersections, the city was able to control vehicular traffic, and greatly improve a pedestrian friendly streetscape within the downtown core. Additional improvements included period street furniture, historic lighting with planted hanging baskets, and accent trees.

Gresham Main Street

GreenWorks developed concept plans and working drawings for pedestrian improvements related to a street renovation project in downtown Gresham. The project required citizen involvement meetings and coordination with utility companies and state officials. Pedestrian improvements were applied to five “core” downtown blocks including; bomanite crosswalks, new sidewalks of patterned concrete, street trees, benches, litter receptacles, and ornamental street lights. Considerable design time was spent evaluating various alternatives for streetscape layout. Reference: City of Gresham.

Boones Ferry Road

GreenWorks worked alongside HNTB Corporation and the City of Lake Oswego to develop an innovative streetscape and green infrastructure strategy as part of the Phase 2 Boones Ferry Road Improvement Project. Using the scope at hand, the design team identified multiple green street strategies and concepts from successful similar projects, ultimately concluding a center median based treatment concept would best manage stormwater runoff from the roadway and sidewalks.  The overall character of the streetscape has been designed to support the vision set forth in the Lake Grove Village Center Plan to reflect the natural beauty of the surrounding evergreen forest.

Damascus Green Street Concepts

Assisting the City of Damascus, GreenWorks recommended strategies using a system approach to meet the needs for parks and open space services while maximizing the preservation of natural areas, enhancing ecosystem services, and creating a sense of place. GreenWorks developed a preferred level of service approach with the quantity and quality of facility capacity that would determine the basis for developing and justifying specific capital improvements projects, the recommended level of service standards, and financing plans for each type of capital facility. The eco system service approach to the Public Facilities plan is a first for a municipality in the State of Oregon to consider how public facilities planning can effectively consider its natural resources as an economic and natural resources for the city and its residents. GreenWorks’ parks system planning efforts identify strategies for incorporating eco system services and the public infrastructure for a sustainable parks planning foundation.

Pringle Creek Community Pervious Pavement

This sustainable housing and mixed-use, 32-acre project spearheaded the redevelopment of the 275-acre former Fairview Training Center site in southeast Salem. The project incorporates sustainable design concepts for both the building types and the public infrastructure. As part of an interdisciplinary team, GreenWorks implemented a wide range of project objectives related to sustainable site design.  GreenWorks  design responsibilities included: collaboration on design of green streets and rain gardens; public recreational spaces; the Village Green open space; pedestrian / pathway  network; woonerfs; greenway enhancement; and overall landscape treatment.  The project was awarded the Land Development of the Year Award in 2007 from the National Home Builder’s Association.

Tualatin Nyberg Interchange (Interstate 5)

GreenWorks created a master plan for the interior Interstate 5 corridor through the City of Tualatin. The first phase of this involved a comprehensive opportunities and constraints analysis, that identified target areas and potential scope of improvements throughout the corridor. This led to the design of a master plan that provides the conceptual view of long-term and short-term landscape improvements, as well as potential costs. The master plan was approved by Tualatin, as well as regional ODOT staff for compliance to recommended plant species and overall maintenance regimes. The master plan provides guidance for future landscape improvements, opportunities for public-private partnerships, and overall consistency of subsequent projects.

The second phase involves the development of a more detailed design of landscape improvements for the Nyberg Road Interchange (phase one). This expansive interchange is currently underutilized and offers the opportunity to become the visible gateway to the City of Tualatin. Design challenges involved working with ODOT for maintenance access and planting apporpriateness made easy through pre-review of the master plan in the first project phase. Since the majority of users for the interchange are in fast traveling vehicles, we developed 3D modeling and photomontage design solutions to represent the user experience at speed. This greatly improved the overall communication of design intent. After developing and refining a number of possible solutions with the project team, including Tualatin and review by ODOT, a preferred alternative was created, and construction documents were prepared.

Oregon Zoo Stormwater Retrofit

GreenWorks developed a Stormwater Retrofit Master Plan for the Oregon Zoo at the request of the Portland Bureau of Environmental Services in partnership with the Oregon Zoo. The Oregon Zoo is one of Oregon’s top tourist attractions and is ideally suited for public education related to environmentally-responsible and sustainable site design. Subsequently, GreenWorks was contracted by METRO to implement parking lot and Greenstreet improvements, at this major tourist attraction, to treat and detain surface runoff, provides public education and creates aesthetic improvements. GreenWorks was part of a design / build team to implement strategies that included stormwater filtration for street runoff and flow-through stormwater planters for parking lot runoff treatment. The project was funded by an EPA grant.

Sherman Pass Scenic Byway

GreenWorks developed a Scenic Byway Master Plan for a 32 mile long National Scenic Byway consisting of three major components: Strategy, Interpretive Guide, and Implementation Guide. The key objective was to develop a marketable identity for the Scenic Byway. We developed interpretive themes, corridor improvements and site designs for 11 major waysides, overlooks, and interpretive sites. In the preliminary stages we used GIS in creating a base map of the corridor to serve as a reference through out the project. We then developed construction drawings and specifications for implementation at several sites.

Kenton Denver Avenue

Portland’s first green main street, the Denver Avenue Green Street extends along the four-block historic Kenton business district in north Portland. The initial phase of the streetscape design developed an overall concept for the street section, including the widening of sidewalks, addition of bike lanes, and the restructuring of existing parking, drive lanes and medians. The design developed through input from a Citizen Advisory Committee, a Technical Advisory Committee, and with extensive public involvement at open house meetings. GreenWorks, as part of a multi-disciplinary team, prepared an overall street layout for the corridor that defined paving patterns, materials, street trees, site furniture, ornamental light fixtures, and the design of gateways at either end of the corridor. An important component was the integration of green street stormwater solutions within the right-of-way. This project was completed on time and on budget.

Our initial design work moved successfully into a constructed streetscape project in 2010 with GreenWorks providing construction documentation led by the Portland Bureau of Transportation. As a main street and ODOT-designated freight route, we successfully integrated sustainable design with main street design to create a vibrant streetscape. Long suffering from a high storefront vacancy rate, the Kenton downtown now has experienced a boom in new businesses and its local economy.

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“And now in 2020, as the coronavirus pandemic and the attendant economic crisis have walloped businesses, communities, and Main Streets across the nation, Denver Avenue is again going through a transformation. The Kenton Business Association, working closely with Portland’s Bureau of Transportation and Salazar Architect, have created #DenverAvePlaza – prioritizing parts of the roadway for outdoor commerce, dining, displays, and socially-distanced gathering. While the new plaza has gone through a couple of changes, the Business Association reports that “what has not changed is our determination to make the Plaza in whatever shape as safe and as enjoyable a space as possible.” This latest iteration of Denver Avenue clearly emphasizes the importance that public space has for us even in these hardest of times (and even if Paul Bunyan has to wear a mask).”

- SERA Architects, Summer 2020

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