PRESERVING AN ICON THE PORTLAND WAY:
A Play in Six Acts with a Cast of Thousands

Continued:

A closer inspection reveals that the filigree is actually hand-chiseled script that says, McCaw & Martin, Architects.

I welcome you to Voices of the Armory in this way because, like all historic buildings, this one is full of stories. Most of these might have been lost to history had our Armory not been preserved. The original Armory, which stood next door and was felled in 1968, is evidence of this possibility.

Thankfully, after nearly four years of planning and construction, this iconic building, now called The Gerding Theater at the Armory is open to the public, reimagined and renovated on four pillars: history, theater, sustainability and community.

Why, you might ask, would so much be asked of one building? The answer is: Because honoring the past, celebrating the humanity, sustaining the natural environment, and giving back to the community are among the highest and best values we share in Portland, and the Armory has the broad shoulders to carry them all. Because, from the highest levels of politics, finance, architecture and design, to the artisans who painstakingly preserved the building’s original stone, brick, even window frames, the many project partners had the will to deliver not only a financially successful project — the bottom line — but one that delivers maximum social and environmental benefits as well.

This triple bottom line is the core of our mission at Portland Family of Funds, and it’s shared by many of our partners. As you’ll read in these pages, the hard work of hundreds of people across the country has contributed to the success of this project. But the momentum was built and sustained for these four years by the vision and courage of five people whom I’d like to acknowledge here.

Ed Jensen, former vice chairman and chief operating officer of US Bancorp when it was headquartered in Portland, went on to become president and chief executive officer of Visa International. Upon “retiring” he came home to Portland with a goal in mind: to bring new financial resources to our city to help propel it into the 21st century. Ed was the founding executive chair of Portland Family of Funds (PFF) whose mission is to create opportunities for profitable investments that enhance social and environmental yields. Ed brought together a board consisting of Ralph Shaw, Marty Brantley, Mike Henderson, Molly Bordonaro and Carl Talton. As of October 2006, PFF has financed projects including the Armory which are anticipated to encourage the creation of more than 5,500 construction and permanent jobs, bring approximately $260.5 million in new fiscal resources to Portland, and an estimated $1.7 billion in total economic impacts over the next decade.

The Portland Development Commission (PDC) is internationally respected as an urban development agency that “gets it” when it comes to the intelligent design of a city. In 2000, Don Mazziotti was brought back to Portland to head the organization. With the economy showing signs of weakening, Don recognized that the PDC would need new resources to continue to execute its mission. One of these resources was New Markets Tax Credits (NMTC), a new federal program that will ultimately provide $15 billion in tax credits allocation to attract private investment into challenged communities. The Armory was one of the first NMTC deals to close, and just two years later, there are a dozen significant NMTC projects in Portland, including an elementary school, a medical office, a drug rehabilitation facility, several historic preservations, even a new loan fund for small businesses in low-income areas, making this city one of the national leaders in the industry.

Some people are open books. As a former army infantryman, Ph.D. in biochemistry, real-estate developer and patron of the arts, Bob Gerding is an encyclopedia. Gerding/Edlen Development Company owned the Armory and, though other profitable opportunities existed, made the critical decision to create a new theater out of this historic structure. No doubt Bob appreciates the symmetry of creating an arts center from an armory, and his passion for creating a meaningful asset for the community that has given him so much over the years is a powerful statement from a deeply thoughtful and courageous man.

I think you’ll be amused to read Chris Coleman’s first impression of former Mayor Vera Katz. Her central role in this project is undeniable. It was Vera who made the critical political stand to preserve the Armory, as she had many other historic buildings in the city. As a long-time champion of the arts, she supported moving Portland Center Stage to the building. “Make it happen,” she told me four years ago. And if you’ve ever met Vera, you know that when she tells you to do something, you figure out a way to get it done.

The heart of this group is Julie Vigeland. She was chair of Portland Center Stage when the project began, and now chairs the Armory Theater Fund capital campaign. From beginning to end, Julie’s vigorous spirit and relentless search for solutions has inspired us all to help the stars align.

A note about the narrative structure:

In honor of the primary use of the Gerding Theater at the Armory, this book is structured like a play. The main character is Chris Coleman, artistic director of Portland Center Stage. His story is a personal one about the trials and tribulations of the project from one of his first visits to Portland until just a few months ago. I think you’ll agree that he’s quite a storyteller and offers the singular perspective of an artistic director trying to move mountains (politicians, investors, city planners, developers and me, to name a few) for his company. It is a tale about regional theater; artistic, financial and political risk; civic and architectural foresight; money; sustainability; and Portland. It is a tale, most of all, about this community.

The technical expertise needed to create a new building within a century-old structure with a LEED Platinum sustainability achievement has been extraordinary. Rather than ask Chris to recite the minutiae of excavation, natural ventilation and tax-credit finance (though at this point, he probably could), we’ve arranged for a chorus of “voices” to assist him. This catalogue of 50 voices from the front lines of this epic project — and a few from the outside — forms a fascinating historical record of the experience and expertise, drama and energy needed to make something truly wonderful happen.

The score for our play comes in the form of images by local photographers who documented the entire construction process. These act as a sort of visual timeline throughout the book to accompany the text.

We hope you will enjoy Voices of the Armory and visit Portland’s newest — and oldest and greenest — theater again and again. Enjoy!

- Norris Lozano