Public Art for the TriMet Portland-Milwaukie Light Rail Project ...

Public Art for the TriMet Portland-Milwaukie Light Rail ProjectPortland, ORCALL SUMMARYTriMet invites qualified artists to apply for public art commissions for the Portland-Milwaukie Light RailProject. Up to seven (7) professional, established artists/artist teams will be selected to create majorworks for new light rail stations, adjacent station areas and at other significant locations along thealignment. Emerging public artists from the Pacific Northwest are also encouraged to apply to be shortlisted for future additional opportunities. Applications that do not meet these criteria will not be reviewed.A budget of over $3,000,000 has been established for public art commissions on the project.TRIMET PUBLIC ART PROGRAMIn 1992, TriMet initiated the Public Art Program with the Westside extension of the MAX Blue Line. Theagency formalized its commitment to art in 1997 by establishing a policy to integrate public art into allnew, large-scale capital projects. Project specific art programs are funded at 1.5% of eligible project costsand guided by volunteer art advisory committees comprised of artists, arts professionals and communitymembers. Since its inception, works by over 175 artists have been added to the expanding bus and lightrail system.The goal of TriMet’s Public Art Program is to promote increased transit usage and community pride byintegrating permanent and temporary art work into the public transit system, which celebrate thecontribution of public transportation and recognize the cultural richness in the region.PORTLAND-MILWAUKIE LIGHT RAIL PROJECTThe quality of life in the Portland region is the result of visionary long-term urban planning. By connectingland use and transportation, the Portland region has become a national model for maintaining andcreating vibrant communities. Greater Portland is expected to experience significant growth during thenext two decades and the Portland-Milwaukie Light Rail (PMLR) Project is a vital transportation link in theregion’s roadmap for continued growth management and building livable communities for futuregenerations.The new 7.3-mile PMLR line will have 10 stations and approximately 1,400 Park & Ride spaces.Extending from downtown Portland through inner SE Portland to the city of Milwaukie and Oak Grove inunincorporated Clackamas County, the alignment will run primarily at grade (i.e., street level). It includesa new bridge across the Willamette River and numerous elevated structures that cross over other bodiesof water, roads and freight rail lines. The project is partially federally funded.While the primary goal of the project is to provide efficient and sustainable transit options, it also presentsopportunities to make related improvements and add significant design features that connectneighborhoods, encourage pedestrian activity and bicycle use, and create engaging public spaces wherepeople want to be.

Design of the project is currently 30% complete. Final Design is anticipated to begin in fall 2010 and willcontinue through early 2012. Construction of the alignment is estimated to begin in summer 2012,however the building of the Willamette River Bridge, a new multi-modal transit bridge that accommodatesbicycles and pedestrians as well as light rail vehicles and buses, but not private vehicles, is scheduled tobegin in 2011. The new light rail MAX line is projected to open in 2015.Applicants are strongly encouraged to view the Conceptual Design Report and visual simulations, as wellas other extensive project materials available online at: trimet.org/pm.PUBLIC ART OPPORTUNITIESTriMet will continue its commitment to public art with the Portland-Milwaukie Light Rail Project working incollaboration with project partners, the Regional Arts and Culture Council, the Clackamas County ArtsAlliance and the communities along the alignment.Station platform artwork will address the more intimate experience of patrons with site-specific imagery onshelter columns and on neighborhood “story boards” at each station, in a separate, but parallel effort thatwill coordinate with station area artwork.Significant public art opportunities exist at the following locations:Clinton Street StationOn the site of a former fruit-tree grove, the area immediately surrounding the new Clinton Street station islargely comprised of industrial/commercial uses and bisected by the Union Pacific Railroad, with theHosford-Abernethy residential neighborhoods extending to the north and the east, and the Brooklynneighborhood to the south of the station and Powell Boulevard. The new station will present opportunitiesto help connect these active, urban, inner southeast neighborhoods. The station is located near thecrossroads of three major arterials, but will have little visibility from these streets, and is also immediatelyadjacent to the existing Union Pacific Railroad.In this very dynamic location, there is an opportunity for several illuminated, large-scale, vertical works toprovide a strong visual connection to the station, as well as enhancements to a proposed new pedestrianbridge south of the station. Works that reference the past and future of the site using an innovativecombination of old industrial and new century materials may be desirable.SE 17 th Avenue CorridorThis corridor is characterized by the Brooklyn neighborhood’s residential and commercial properties tothe west of the alignment and an industrial “sanctuary” to the east. A new pedestrian bridge east of theRhine Street station will provide an improved connection in the neighborhood, replacing an existing onethat spans the Brooklyn Rail Yard. The Holgate Boulevard station area has similar characteristics to thoseof the Rhine Street Station, but is situated at a gateway location at the southeast corner of the Brooklynneighborhood’s residential core, providing east/west connections through this area. Properties east of theHolgate Boulevard station include TriMet’s bus staging area and maintenance facility.The opportunity exists for a series of sequential works that interact with, or are part of, the green streetenhancements along SE 17 th Avenue, such as topiaries, or organic ephemeral works. An illuminatedvertical beacon or landmark could assist with way-finding in the Rhine Street station area, since the viewof the station platform from the pedestrian bridge (and vice versa) may be partially obscured. Thepedestrian bridge also presents an opportunity for integrated art.

Bybee Boulevard StationThe Bybee Boulevard station area is largely characterized by the verdant landscape created byWestmoreland Park, Eastmoreland Golf Course, Crystal Springs Rhododendron Garden and the maturetrees that line McLoughlin Boulevard. Reed College is approximately a half-mile northeast of the station.The Willamette River, Oaks Bottom Wildlife Refuge and the Springwater Corridor multi-use trail are duewest of the station. In this location the platform is below the Bybee Boulevard overpass, which is a newerstructure that reflects the historic architecture of the original bridge. Access to the platform will be viastairwells and elevators on each side of the overpass. A gated enclosure for long-term bicycle parking atthe platform level will support connections by bicycle.Numerous opportunities exist at this station for works of a highly-crafted, human-scale that engagepatrons in an introspective manner and thematically link to the natural setting or watershed restoration.Designs for small scale sculptures on the platform, platform paving inserts and elevator glass treatmentswill be closely coordinated with station platform artwork.Tacoma Street StationImbued with a long history of industrial uses dating back to the mid 1880s, the Tacoma Street station areais mostly comprised of industrial and commercial uses, with residences nearby. The Eastmoreland GolfCourse and neighborhood extend north of the station, the Westmoreland and Sellwood neighborhoods sitacross McLoughlin Boulevard to the west, and the Ardenwald-Johnson Creek neighborhood extends tothe east. Johnson Creek flows through the site and runs just north of the future station platform. Thecreek area will be enhanced with riparian vegetation that can be viewed from the station platform, andwater quality impacts of the creek crossing will be minimized through storm water management design.A Park & Ride facility is located south of the station platform and north of the county line between thecities of Portland and Milwaukie.Public art at this location should celebrate and strengthen the connection to Johnson Creek, as well aseducate the public about the watershed. The potential exists to site numerous small scale sculptures,such as those that support bird or bat habitat, throughout the transitional zones of the site. The Park &Ride provides an opportunity to consider limited exterior screening of the structure. Enhanced interiorway-finding graphics could offer an additional way to further connect patrons with the creek.Downtown Milwaukie – Lake Rd StationThe station will be the southern anchor to Main Street in Milwaukie’s downtown, a classic small townenvironment that includes historic buildings, active businesses and a growing number of residents. Thestation is surrounded by established residential neighborhoods, Kellogg Creek and Riverfront Park on theWillamette River. The light rail alignment through this segment runs adjacent to the east side of the freightrailroad, which sits between downtown Milwaukie and the Historic Milwaukie and Lake Roadneighborhoods. This presents some unusual opportunities and challenges since the light rail platforms willbe adjacent to freight tracks on one side and to a small triangular site of developable land on the other.The freight tracks also create a barrier between the platform area and the adjacent land and activity to thewest, which has been identified as a future plaza in the South Downtown plan. Improvements made bythe project will be consistent with the guidelines and principles in Milwaukie’s Downtown Plan, PublicArea Requirements and Downtown Design Guidelines. Additionally the project design will be coordinatedwith the City’s ongoing work to refine the plans for the South Downtown and the restoration of KelloggCreek.Artists interested in this very complex site should be prepared to honor the historic character of downtownMilwaukie while celebrating its current revitalization. Opportunities exist to collaborate on the station