Multnomah County Library Operations Center

Location: Portland

Cost: $35 million

Completion: November 2023

Owner/Developer: Multnomah County

Architect: Hennebery Eddy Architects

Engineers: OEG, Arris Consulting, Interface Engineering

General Contractor: Fortis Construction

Submitting Company: Fortis Construction

Subcontractors: Apollo Mechanical Contractors, Heinz Mechanical, Kurahashi & Associates, McDonald Excavating, NW Scaffold, Otis Elevator, PMG (Professional Minority Group) Abatement Contractors, Western States Fire Protection, Zavala

Funded by the 2020 voter-approved $387 million capital bond measure, the Multnomah County Library Operations Center is an adaptive re-use project.

It is the first project under the bond measure and sets the stage for a series of expansions and modernizations. A beacon of sustainability, it is the first fossil fuel-free building in the county.

The 73,000-square-foot sorting and distribution center includes automated materials handling technology with both low- and high-bay storage, loading docks, offices, workspaces, staff training and meeting spaces and support spaces. The centralized location in East Portland helps better serve the community through improved operational efficiency and expanded outreach services for schools, shelters, retirement and immigrant communities.

The center houses the largest shared collection for the library more than 500,000 library materials on 11 miles of shelving.

Originally built in 1996, the existing glulam and wood truss building was previously a Safeway grocery store. The renovation and expansion required partial demolition of the 53,000-square-foot building and included a two-story, 35,000-square-foot addition. Upgrades included mechanical, electrical, plumbing and fire systems along with structural enhancements and a seismic upgrade to a Risk Category 3 Building. The existing glulam beams were salvaged and milled into custom seating and stair treads in the center.

The design utilized an elevated steel structure at the perimeter of new roof areas and over the roof terrace to support large portions of a photovoltaic array. That allowed the center to reach the Net-Zero Energy target and avoid costly seismic upgrades to the original grocery store roof structure.

The cantilevered solar array also serves as a highly visible architectural feature that demonstrates the county’s sustainability goals. More than 600 solar panels offset the building’s power usage and there is capacity for 40 charging stations supporting EVs and library fleet vehicles. The building received a LEED Gold certification.

A key to meeting the aggressive project schedule was the collaboration of the entire team using a Development Plan and Operations Manual. The manual was a functional tool for inspiring teamwork by defining roles, responsibilities and expectations for how the team would collaborate and communicate throughout all phases.

Fortis Construction achieved a 36 percent COBID-certified subcontractor and vendor utilization rate on the project.

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