Meyer Memorial Trust Headquarters

Project Details

Project Description

FROM THE ARCHITECTS:

Project Overview

Meyer Memorial Trust is a foundation that invests in organizations, communities, ideas, and efforts that contribute to a flourishing and equitable Oregon. Their new campus in Portland's Albina neighborhood is a platform for advancing Meyer’s initiatives across the state, supported by a design that expresses the foundation’s commitment to equity and sustainability. The building program includes an engagement center for public programs, Mission Library, cafe-style event space with a roof garden terrace, workspace for 50, meeting rooms, and collaborative workspace for partners. To strengthen connections between the foundation and the communities it serves, Meyer's ground floor is designed as a welcoming “front porch.” Inside, a focal point of the building is the Center for Great Purposes, a 100-seat convening center for public programs and collaborations with partner organizations. Made from a regional wood product called Mass Plywood, the Center is an indoor/outdoor event space that opens to an educational garden. The landscape design acknowledges local ecology, community history, and regional identity, serving as an educational setting for staff and visitors. Native and adaptive plantings are used including species selected for their historical significance as a primary food, medicinal, or commodity resource for Columbia River tribes. A garden marker in the Kwánsǝm Yakwá Garden expresses the concept so steadily articulated by Native people, "we've always been here" in Chinook Wawa. The building incorporates design thinking that accommodates various levels of physical ability, and is inviting to all regardless of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, or age. Examples include a bottom-up approach to design and decision-making with participation of most foundation staff at every stage; equitable distribution of common amenities and windows throughout; going above and beyond ADA requirements; furniture that accommodates different body types and physical abilities; diversity of cultures and languages reflected in messaging, signage, and artwork. Reflecting a commitment to diverse representation and equitable outcomes across its workforce, Meyer developed rigorous participation goals and worked with the project team to maximize opportunities for BIPOC-owned, woman-owned, and small emerging businesses: 39 percent participation for the design team and 55 percent participation for the construction team. The $10.8M project's focus on regional materials and diverse business participation creates equitable economic opportunity in Oregon. The project connects sustainable building design with social equity and community development, demonstrating the synergistic relationship that can be developed between these goals. In line with environmental objectives, the project achieved LEED v4 Platinum certification. The design for the new headquarters uses several strategies to achieve the ambitious certification including solar PV panels, an energy efficient building enclosure and HVAC system, on-site stormwater management, regional materials, and native plantings.

Project History

Meyer Memorial Trust was previously located in a mid-rise building in Portland’s Pearl District. The foundation is a major catalyst for equitable opportunity creation in the state of Oregon, and its leadership and staff wanted a headquarters that connected them directly to the community and better enabled collaborations with partner organizations. With equity at the center of all decisions, Meyer sought out a site that would transform a neighborhood in a positive way, without tearing down beloved historic structures or spurring gentrification. They also desired a location close to public transit and convenient for staff. Meyer selected a former tow lot/ brownfield parcel at the edge of the Albina neighborhood, the historic heart of Portland’s Black community, as the site for their new home. The location puts the foundation in proximity to many of the organizations in which it invests and honors its founder’s heritage—grocer Fred G. Meyer began his business in the Albina neighborhood. The site is positioned across from a bus stop, next to one of the city’s busiest bike lanes, and within walking distance to a streetcar line. From a design perspective, Meyer desired a humble building that would make a positive contribution to the neighborhood, feel welcoming to the community, empower its staff and collaborators, celebrate stories of diversity in the region, and lead the dialogue on sustainability. Meyer was also forthright that the project should be an engine for equitable opportunity in Oregon. The foundation worked with the team to set rigorous goals for diverse business participation and brought an equity lens to every decision from the arrangement of floor plans to the sourcing of materials and finishes. The foundation’s campus was completed during the COVID-19 pandemic. Meyer’s staff and collaborators are looking forward to fully occupying their new home starting this fall. Their convening space, called The Center for Great Purposes, will be a dynamic new hub for programs, events, and collaborations that advance equity across Oregon.

PROJECT CREDITS
Project: Meyer Memorial Trust Headquarters, Portland, Ore.
Client: Meyer Memorial Trust
Developer: project^
Architect and Interior Designer: LEVER Architecture
General Contractor: O’Neill/Walsh Community Builders
Structural Engineer: KPFF
Consulting Engineers MEP, LEED, Commissioning, and Low Voltage Engineer: Glumac
Civil Engineer: Standridge Design
Landscape Architect: 2.ink Studio
Lighting Designer: O-LLC
Experiential Designer: Ditroen
Acoustical Engineer: Acoustic Design Studio
Wood Sustainability: Sustainable Northwest
Specifications Writer: Michael Thrailkill
Code Consultant: Code Unlimited
Traffic Study Engineer: Kittelson & Associates
Envelope Consultant: Richard Graves
Permitting: Faster Permits
Furniture Procurement: Absolute Procurement
Furniture Supply: Pacific WRO
Audio/Visual Consultant: Perfect Video Conferencing
Transportation Demand Constulant: Rick Williams Consulting
Legal Counsel: Radler White Parks & Alexander
Enhanced Commissioning: BEA Consulting
Solar PV: EC Electric