More work ahead for Veterans Memorial Coliseum

More improvements at the Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Portland are in the works.

The Historic Landmarks Commission got its first look Monday at a proposal to make exterior alterations to the arena at 300 N. Ramsay Way. The five commissioners present unanimously approved the project. Commissioners Cleo Davis and Christopher Jose “Hugo” Hamblin-Agosto did not attend the type III historic resource review hearing.

The building was completed in 1959 and added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2009. The site is in the Rose Quarter, in the Lloyd Subdistrict of the Central City Plan District.

Scott Edwards Architecture designed the project for the city of Portland.

Exterior improvements will include construction of a new generator enclosure, reconfiguration of the north stage lot, additions of three new egress stairs on the west berm and an egress pedestrian connection to the right of way. The work will also involve signage, landscaping improvements and lighting.

This project will complement a larger one that includes interior upgrades . That work is set to begin this summer. Planning for reinvestment in the Veterans Memorial Coliseum began in 2020.

Modifications included in the approval were related to setback requirements, ground-floor windows, ground-floor active uses, on-site location and size of vehicle areas, landscaping within the parking area in the north stage lot, and pedestrian standards/connections. The commission agreed with all requested modifications.

The new generator enclosure will be on the north stage lot. This will involve removing landscaped berm measuring approximately 33 feet by 53 feet, landscaping and stairs adjacent to the existing loading door, according to the city’s staff report.

The curb on the lot’s western edge will be moved slightly to the west to create 1,730 additional square feet of loading area to provide better vehicle maneuvering and a larger on-site staging area for shows and events. Additional vegetated screening will be added adjacent to the new and existing curb line.

Landscaping on the west side of the building will be improved and expanded, Scott Edwards Architecture principal Jennifer Marsicek said. Also, new fencing will be provided along North Ramsay Way.

Three new egress stairs will be constructed on the west berm from the building to the Interstate Avenue right of way and provide code compliant exit pathways from the building. Exit path lighting at the new stair handrails will be provided.

There will be transparent fencing at the top of the stairs and signage at the bottom of the stairs. The stairs will be made of concrete and have black metal railings. The handrails’ lighting will generally be off, unless there is an event at the coliseum, Marsicek said. The stairs are meant to accommodate people exiting the building in an emergency.

Commission Chairman Andrew Smith expressed concern about the visual impact of the new egress stairs coming down the west berm. The design intent was to lay the stairs on the berm as lightly as possible and blend them into the existing grade, Mayer/Reed landscape architect Brian Stuhr said.

After discussion, the commissioners ultimately decided not to add a condition regarding the stairs because a majority believed they would blend into the surrounding landscape and not make an impact as significant as originally thought.

“I appreciated the conversation and hope the design team heard us about the stairs and railings making as little of an impact as possible,” Smith said.

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