McMenamins Kennedy School in PDX / Adaptive re-use

[Liamlunchtray]

So one thing I am noticing is that while PVD is finally on the bandwagon of adaptive reuse, we are stuck in this rut of "Condos with ground floor retail" for EVERY project. The condo market is going to get saturated (probably before a lot of thes proposals get completed ) and then where do we go?

Today I was thinking about how awesome McMenamins Kennedy School in Portland is, and how a similar project could do really well in Providence. Basically it is an old elementary school that has been developed into a complex that includes a small hotel (in old classrooms), a few different bars and restaurants, banquet facilities (in the gym) and a movie theatre in the old auditorium. the cool thing is that it is a complete destination unto itself in this big old school. they havent messed with the buidling very much, so if the bar is too noisy you can wander through the halls and look at artwork and whatnot or go into the Gym and shoot some hoops. The other thing I thought was interesting was that the Kennedy School is right in the middle of a residential neighborhood. I cant imagine the NIMBYs here letting that fly.

Anyhow, this just seems to be one particularly good example, but I wish some of these developers would start thinking further outside the box than just condos.

Liam

[Liamlunchtray]

Forgot to include a URL

http://www.kennedyschool.com/index.php?loc...tion%20Homepage

I would love something like this in the Armory building. Its prolly too large for this concept, but it would be really cool...

[Cotuit]

That site totally reminds me of Art In Ruins.

The Armory would be cool, how about Hope High.

[Liamlunchtray]

That site totally reminds me of Art In Ruins.

The Armory would be cool, how about Hope High. 

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Hope High would be perfect beyond comprehension. There are no Hotels on the East Side, theres plenty of room for parking, and the brewpubs/restaurants would have a built in customer base of college kids. Plus you could sell off a lot of the land for condos! I mean, we gotta work condos in here somewhere, dont we?

[pdxstreetcar]

I love Kennedy School.

Possibly another good site would be an old architecturally prominent mill in the area with a hotel, bar, restaurant, community center, museum etc all in one while keeping as much of the interior as possible.

[BBascule]

I like that idea.

Speaking of alternatives to the ground floor retail/upstairs condo I'm still waiting for our city market. I think it's been mentioned before, but Portland, ME has a nice example. Less as a tourist attraction and more as a working market (essential to the downtown residential community)

It needs a central location.

I think it could used as a central farmer's market.

But I'd also like to see it opened up to Providence's ethnic communities. It could be a place for SE Asian markets/soup stalls/taquerias/African - whatever -

(in the spirit of the Japanese markets and and eateries at Porter Square in Boston)