A growing Portland has seen many arguments about how to accommodate an influx of residents—recommends the "step back" as a way to add density without adding shadows or creating wind tunnels.
The top of a building can have big impacts on shadows, wind passage, and views. Too often, Portland buildings are just blocks, argues Michael Mehaffy in a piece for Livable Portland. A preferable option would be to build "step backs" (step-like recessions at the tops of buildings) as a way to resolve some of the conflicts between the YIMBY crowd and those concerned about development in the city.
Why don't developers build more step back projects? "Profit-minded developers usually make more money when they go straight up from the street," Mehaffy argues. "But going straight up is precisely what a generation of failed “modernist” projects did in the 1960s, with very unhappy results," he goes on to say. Those who say they're concerned about the look of a project or its potential shadows might not be easily satisfied with this compromise, still the step back seems to be a good option for those that seek to build coalitions and…buildings.
Read the full story: Is it time for Portland to rediscover the “step-back”?
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