portland boat mall

Situated a block from the Willamette River in Portland’s Central Eastside District, this former warehouse is transformed to the new use of retail sales of recreational boats. Typically this sort of business is set up in a water-adjacent suburban paved lot and small enclosed showroom. Given the urban location this program is placed indoors. Showrooms for four separate retailers surround an interior “boat lot” containing the sales stock for the brands represented.

Often inner city industrial buildings no longer accommodate the types of businesses they were constructed for. The spaces are smaller than those available in suburban industrial parks. Access for semi-trucks with multiple trailers can be limited and rail spurs with access to freight cars abandoned. Still these buildings with their enormous wood bowstring trusses and high clerestory windows have great aesthetic value. The large open spaces offer flexibility in accommodating new programs.

When establishing a new retail use in an existing urban environment still dominated by industrial uses it’s important to add visual attraction. Because formal signage is limited in area, another illuminated visual element is added to the building that also increases its stature. The parapet is extended by eight foot high, lighted graphic panels behind corrugated clear polycarbonate creating a diffuse enigmatic pattern. Given that a major thoroughfare is located on a viaduct one block away, the location becomes a glowing curiosity and landmark in the urban grid.